When I lived in Canada many years ago, the US border was barely noticeable.
In Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, I used to take the ferry over to Sault Michigan when the Canadian bars closed early on Saturday nights. It was a no-hassle crossing. As I recall, all I had to do was show my driver’s license.
Later, teaching journalism at a college in Windsor, Ontario, I stayed with friends in Franklin Village, across the Michigan border, and crossing through the Detroit tunnel or over the bridge was a breeze. After a while, I didn’t even have to show my driver’s license, the crossing guards would wave and say, “Hi, Professor!” That was it.
Now I understand the red tape is horrendous – and getting worse. Canadians are being minutely vetted when they enter the US. And work visas, which were easy to get under NAFTA, are subject to much stricter regulations.
You might say that’s because of terrorism, that the US is being prudent. But most of the terrorism in the US has been committed by Americans born and bred. Indeed, American-born white supremacists are committing more than their share of the mayhem.
I can’t think of one Canadian who crossed into the US and committed an act of terror. Can you?
My guess is that the burdensome border bureaucracy is the prelude to a Soviet-style iron-curtain policy. Kicking out Haitians and Latin Americans is another step in that direction. So is banning Muslims. And, of course, there’s the infamous Wall.
If you also consider recent comments by the president, it certainly seems as if the US is deliberately moving toward a less diverse and more isolated society.
The question is why?
