Senator wants beaver replaced as national symbol

[canada-man]

A Conservative senator says it's time Canada was symbolized by something more majestic than a buck-toothed rodent.

Sen. Nicole Eaton wants the polar bear to replace the beaver as an official emblem of Canada.

She says the polar bear is Canada's "most majestic and splendid mammal," and a powerful symbol in the lives of aboriginal peoples in the North.

She believes the furry white carnivore's "strength, courage, resourcefulness and dignity" is an appropriate symbol for modern-day Canada.

By contrast, she derides the lowly beaver as a "19th century has-been," a "dentally defective rat," a "toothy tyrant" and a nuisance that wreaks havoc on its environment.

Eaton acknowledges the beaver's involuntary role in founding Canada — as the fashionable pelts that fuelled the fur trade — but she says it's now time for a change.

"A country's symbols are not constant and can change over time as long as they reflect the ethos of the people and the spirit of the nation," Eaton told her Senate colleagues Thursday.

"The polar bear, with its strength, courage, resourcefulness and dignity is perfect for the part."

Eaton said the beaver should "step aside as a Canadian emblem, or, at the least, share the honour with the stately polar bear."

http://www.citytv.com/toronto/cityn...ator-wants-beaver-replaced-as-national-symbol

 

[red]

Damn her!

 

[fuji]

Why not the Loon?

 

[red]

Why not the Loon?

fuji- self promotion is forbidden on this board unless you pay fred.

 

[Aardvark154]

Oh for the love of!

 

[FatOne]

2 beavers are better than 1.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hqklWJxUTo

 

[Asterix]

Kind of an odd move considering there is a fair chance polar bears could become extinct as the North Polar ice continues to melt. In as little as 20 years it could be entirely free of ice during summer months leaving them nowhere to go. If you want to change your national symbol, a buck elk might be a better choice. Majestic, powerful, got that whole big antler thing going on. Oh wait, then you couldn't shoot them anymore. Nevermind.

 

[blackrock13]

fuji- self promotion is forbidden on this board unless you pay fred.

Hahahahahah! thanks for that.

The North American beaver is unique and has a long history in the growth and prosperity of this country, no need for a change. It's like when Harpo wanted to change the words to our national anthem.

 

[HOF]

Canada's beavers are world renowned!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgfWuzN_NJw&feature=player_embedded

 

[Aardvark154]

That will make life in Churchill less stressful.

I think making the polar bear a national symbol is a good idea. Canada is one of 3 countries in the world to have them. Pretty cool imo

??: Canada, U.S.A, Russia, Norway, Denmark, and they have made it to Iceland in the past although that is rare.

 

[mjg1]

I believe Benjamin Franklin wanted the turkey as our(American) symbol, not the eagle.

 

[Asterix]

I believe Benjamin Franklin wanted the turkey as our(American) symbol, not the eagle.

Absolutely correct, but the wild turkeys of Benjamin Franklin's time were much leaner and could actually fly. Unlike the overfed stuffed version we have now that often can't even stand to support it's own weight. How's that for a symbol? Besides, what would Thanksgiving be like if he had had his wish? It's not as if you're going to sit down and eat the national symbol. Are you?

 

[cancowboy2001]

She seems to be a bit of a hypocrite.

The Conservative senator who this week called for the polar bear to replace the beaver as Canada's national animal emblem gave an equally impassioned speech last year in Parliament celebrating the flat-tailed rodent — which she now derides as a "dentally defective rat" — as the crucial player in "the founding of our country."

Senator Nicole Eaton, who on Thursday dismissed the "toothy tyrant" as a "19th-century has-been," used her speech last June to admiringly quote the famed fur-trade historian Harold Innis, saying: "The history of Canada has been profoundly influenced by the habits of an animal that fittingly occupies a prominent place on her coat of arms. The beaver . . . ."

Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/Sena...ional+symbol/5623297/story.html#ixzz1c8i1GPVr

 

[wigglee]

Typical Conservative move.........replace a symbol which represents modest industrial perserverence with a big fat aggressor

 

[Aardvark154]

Absolutely correct, but the wild turkeys of Benjamin Franklin's time were much leaner and could actually fly.

As they can today.

Southern Ontario has had a sucessful Wild Turkey re-introduction project over the past 27 years. New Brunswick as well, where they have naturally spread across the border from re-introduction projects in Maine.

 

[blackrock13]

Typical Conservative move.........replace a symbol which represents modest industrial perserverence with a big fat aggressor

Read up on polar bears. Aggressive bears don't follow you for days to see what your up to then walk away. They are fat but so would you be if you lived in their world.

It's ridiculous, slow day in the Senate, headline grabber and nothing more.