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| Great White North | |
| Canadian fans boo Star Spangled Banner at hockey match. | |
| 2003-03-21 | |
| MONTREAL (AP) Fans booed during the playing of the U.S. national anthem before the New York Islanders' 6-3 victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night. The sellout crowd of 21,273 at Bell Centre was asked to ''show your support and respect for two great nations'' before the singing of the American and Canadian national anthems. But a significant portion of the crowd booed throughout ''The Star-Spangled Banner'' in an apparent display of their displeasure with the U.S.-led war against Iraq. More than 200,000 people turned out for an anti-war demonstration in Montreal last Saturday. ''I'm sure there are a lot of people against the war, but some things people can't control,'' said New York's Alexei Yashin, who is from Russia. ''They were probably showing what they feel about it.'' Teammate Mark Parrish, a native of Bloomington, Minn., was upset hearing the boos. ''I came to the game pretty pumped up, but once I heard that it really got me going,'' Parrish said. ''So I guess I can thank them a little bit for getting me more pumped up.'' What a shame.
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| Posted by:Steve White |
| #13 What do you expect? They are French-in-training. Even so, they will only be a pale imitation of the real thing. Maybe we could bomb them after we bomb France? |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-03-22 00:56:48 |
| #12 Hey Wills... I KNOW you are just joking about the Cup, right? Canadians still dominate in the NHL, even playing for US owned teams. I mean we can diss the Quebecois all day, but not giving CA their hockey props is hitting below the belt. |
| Posted by: Tex 2003-03-21 23:14:23 |
| #11 Guy, Jean-Claude... come over to us. Hot chow and cheap smokes are waiting for you, eh? |
| Posted by: tu3031 2003-03-21 22:13:22 |
| #10 I'm with you, RW. I'm ashamed at the Canadian government's stand, too. But it isn't just the ignorant fans in Montreal - it's the leadership of the Canadian government that is at fault. Here's a link to a story about a Liberal cabinet minister slagging George Bush on Wednesday: http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2003/03/19/46391-cp.html I hope the US government, when it isn't so busy, makes Chretien face the consequences of his contemptible anti-American attitude. |
| Posted by: Patrick 2003-03-21 13:33:06 |
| #9 The Islanders won? Against the Canadiens? Wow. Now THAT pays them back for the boos, and in spades. |
| Posted by: Crescend 2003-03-21 13:28:51 |
| #8 Hey, its just Canada , a farm team country for the U.S., and there only claim to fame ( The Stanley Cup)has not been a property of any Canadian team for a long time.I think what really pisse's them off is the best players in the world are not Canadian anymore. |
| Posted by: Wills 2003-03-21 12:19:12 |
| #7 That's right Tex. Quebec does everything opposite to the rest of the country, just on principle. Unfortunately, the anti-war sentiment all over the country seems larger than what I expected. Unless it's because they're more vocal. I am absolutely ashamed at the conduct of my government. Chretien hasn't made a right decision since his first election, and his preference to align this country with the likes of France,Germany,Russia,China when our traditional allies have been the US and Britain, is standing history and tradition on its head. Fortunately, there is a ray of hope. Some analysts agree, and the Alliance party leader also abhors this decision. To anyone saying "I'm proud to be Canadian" when Chretien made his announcement in parliament, I say, you better hope the company you work for does not do business in the States. Idiots. My American flag is unfurled, and the flag of my ancestral country as well, since they're part of the coalition actively participating (about 200 soldiers). My Canadian flag is back in the closet. Give me a reason, Mr. Chretien, to put it beside the others again. |
| Posted by: RW 2003-03-21 10:29:07 |
| #6 What do you expect from a region of Canada that identifies more with the French than the rest of their country? Montreal is a little right of Beijing and San Francisco. |
| Posted by: Tex 2003-03-21 09:24:29 |
| #5 Children boo, men take action. Go Islanders! Wanna piss off a lot of Canadians? Tell Michigan to seal the border to Toronto garbage. Americans have taken enough garbage from Canada. |
| Posted by: john 2003-03-21 08:29:54 |
| #4 It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly. So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat. Theodore Roosevelt - 1910 |
| Posted by: -----------<<<<- 2003-03-21 07:58:25 |
| #3 Maybe they were booing being 8 points out of a playoff spot with 7 games left. This same thing happened at a recent Canucks game, but when the boos started the fans drowned them out by singing the US anthem. |
| Posted by: PJ 2003-03-21 05:00:42 |
| #2 Most Important Part: "the New York Islanders' 6-3 victory over the Montreal Canadiens" Boo all you want, Canada. |
| Posted by: Lizard_King 2003-03-21 04:46:39 |
| #1 This was in the Fracophone part of Canada. But still.... |
| Posted by: Tokyo Taro 2003-03-21 02:32:52 |