Couple of night ago I was watching South Park. The episode’s theme relied partly on the relations between Americans and Canadians and the American view of expressed toward Canadians. Never mind the whole theme, what struck me as odd is that coming from New York and have been living in Chicago for almost tow years, all the Canadian jokes and remarks did not have the same effect that they would have if I was still in New York.

Back there, references to Canada and Canadians are everywhere. Most likely a result of all the snow, hockey, and the many connections between the borders. Whenever I traveled on the freeways in New York, I would always see Canadian license plates, and I would always be pissed at them, because they would always be driving 80 – 90 miles per hours. Us Americans had to restrain ourselves to the speed limit and constantly be on the look out for Smokey.

There wasn’t a day that would pass and I won’t hear the word Canada. In Chicago and Illinois on the other hand, I rarely hear that word. It is like a dictionary word here. Some times I even forget that that country exists.

I can guess that that episode is most likely better understood and funnier amongst the northern border stats than any other place in the World. 🙂