From an American-
I’m sure by now you all have seen our government’s ‘official response’ to your wildfires. I saw that, and as an American I am beyond appalled. Please know that the public statements made by our government do not reflect the thoughts and beliefs of the majority of the American people.
When the US had wildfires, Canada sent us significant support including numerous firefighting aircraft, air crews, and support equipment. This was not a small token contribution, it made a real difference. It saved lives and property and forest. That is how neighbors and friends are supposed to help each other out, and we appreciated the hell out of it. It is not forgotten.
To hear that our ‘official response’ to your wildfires is to threaten… I have no words to describe the feeling. I am proud to be American, I love my country, but today I am ashamed. That these things are being said as representative of me and my countrymen… it is beyond shameful. We are supposed to be better than this. Better allies, better neighbors, better humans. I am ashamed and angry that my government is representing me and my fellow Americans in this manner.
I can only say that the majority of Americans do not feel this way. Forget the propaganda you see on the news (and it is mostly propaganda). The people of this country love our northern friends, we feel for you. We don’t want to annex Canada or punish you for a natural disaster or any of this crap. We want you all to be safe. We want to help.
THAT is who we are, even if we suck at electing politicians that represent that belief.
Stay safe. Be well. We love you.
Je passe ce texte par Google Traduction car mon français est médiocre…
De la part d’un Américain…
Je suis certain que vous avez tous vu, à présent, la « réponse officielle » de notre gouvernement face à vos incendies de forêt. En tant qu’Américain, j’en suis profondément indigné. Sachez que les déclarations publiques de notre gouvernement ne reflètent ni les pensées ni les convictions de la majorité du peuple américain.
Lorsque les États-Unis ont été touchés par des incendies, le Canada nous a apporté un soutien considérable, notamment en envoyant de nombreux avions de lutte contre les incendies, des équipages aériens et du matériel de soutien. Il ne s’agissait pas d’un simple geste symbolique ; cette aide a fait une réelle différence. Elle a permis de sauver des vies, des biens et des forêts. C’est ainsi que les voisins et les amis sont censés s’entraider, et nous avons énormément apprécié ce geste. Nous ne l’avons pas oublié.
Apprendre que la « réponse officielle » de notre pays face à vos incendies consiste à proférer des menaces… les mots me manquent pour décrire ce que je ressens. Je suis fier d’être Américain et j’aime mon pays, mais aujourd’hui, j’ai honte. Que de tels propos soient tenus en mon nom et en celui de mes compatriotes… c’est tout simplement honteux. Nous sommes censés valoir mieux que cela. Être de meilleurs alliés, de meilleurs voisins, de meilleurs êtres humains. J’éprouve de la honte et de la colère de voir mon gouvernement nous représenter, mes compatriotes et moi, de cette manière.
Je tiens à dire que la majorité des Américains ne partagent pas ce point de vue. Oubliez la propagande que vous voyez aux informations (car il s’agit bien, pour l’essentiel, de propagande). La population de ce pays aime ses amis du Nord ; nous sommes de tout cœur avec vous. Nous ne voulons ni annexer le Canada, ni vous punir pour une catastrophe naturelle, ni rien de tout ce non-sens. Nous voulons que vous soyez en sécurité. Nous voulons vous aider.
C’est cela, notre véritable nature, même si nous sommes incapables d’élire des responsables politiques qui incarnent ces valeurs.
Prenez soin de vous. Portez-vous bien. Nous vous aimons.


What exactly are you proud of?
I’m proud of my country’s history and what those who founded it stood for- freedom, independence, liberty, and self determination both as an individual and as a society. I’m proud of what those who followed accomplished- civil rights, technology, the Internet, art, music, science, and of course aviation.
We are not perfect. From the day Columbus set foot on the continent and killed natives, we have had a checkered history. Slavery, racism, sexism, interventionist wars in other countries, the internment of Japanese citizens during WWII, imperialism in the 1900s, the ‘global war on terror’ in the 2000s, and the majority of how the USA has conducted itself on the world stage over the Trump years, especially how we have treated our allies and friends.
I guess the analogy I would make is think of your child, even if they are badly behaved you still love them and are glad to be their parent. And even if they sneak out and smoke weed you’re still the proudest person in the room when they win the science fair.
Make sense?
Sounds like you love what your country was supposed to be, not what it is. You love a marketing slogan that was never truly actualised
No country is just one thing. I love the good parts of what my country is and I will work to fix the bad parts. Are you saying I should reject my entire country because some of it is bad?
No. Im asking what are the active good parts happening right now that you’re proud of .
Great question.
One of the biggest things I am proud of is how many people stand up against MAGA and continue to even come out in protests such as the no kings rally. It makes me happy that people are still willing to stand up and be counted for what they believe in.
More broadly, anytime I see someone fighting to make the country a better place it warms my heart. And there is a lot of that, even if it isn’t obvious from the outside.
I am proud of what we have accomplished, and continue to accomplish, in the area of civil rights and personal liberties. That is not a completely solved problem, but Americans stand up everyday to fight for it and I am proud of that.
I am proud of space related activity in the US. We have multiple private companies actively launching things on a regular basis, One of which has the largest satellite constellation in the world by far providing internet and cell phone service anywhere on the globe.
And on the government side, I am proud of our participation in ISS, in our missions to bring humans back to the Moon, and to build newer space stations.
I am proud of our work with electric vehicles and electric transportation. I wish we were doing more, wish we were doing it faster, but we are still doing it.
I am proud of the vibrant aviation world that is present in the US, more so than almost any other country. I’m not just talking about airliners, I am talking about small planes, and our pilot culture here. It’s easier to become a pilot in the US than most other countries and we have many more small private aircraft to fly. Or build yourself.