New poll says most Canadians blame U.S. for 9/11 attacks

A majority of Canadians believe U.S. foreign policy was one of the root causes that led to the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, and Quebecers are quicker to criticize the U.S. administration for its international actions than other Canadians, a recent poll suggests.

Those conclusions are found in a newly released poll conducted by Léger Marketing for the Association for Canadian Studies.


The poll suggests that 77 per cent of Quebecers polled primarily blame American foreign policy for the Sept. 11 attacks. The results suggest 57 per cent in Ontario hold a similar view.


When participants were given the option of choosing more than one cause for the attacks, two-thirds blamed Islamic fundamentalists and their anti-Western views, while a third pointed the finger at Israel and its position in the Middle East.


Canadian opinions have hardened against the United States and its role on the world stage, said Jack Jedwab, executive director of the Association for Canadian Studies. The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have contributed to a change of heart among people, he said.


But Canadians are divided on whether their government should pay more attention to issues fuelling extremist organizations in the Middle East, he said.


"There are a lot of people who think we should be listening closely [to extremist groups] and that there is an opportunity to dialogue with these sort of groups," said Jedwab Wednesday. "So it is showing a real ideological divide on some of these issues."


There's a growing need since the Sept. 11 attacks for balanced public education about terrorism, added Jedwab. "There is a tendency to see in these movements something more romantic than actually exists. That's something we need to keep debating in the country."


Léger Marketing interviewed 1,508 Canadian adults from Aug. 22 to Aug. 27. The poll results are considered accurate within 2.5 percentage points 19 times out of 20.


http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/07092006/3/c ... u-s-9.html

couldn't help myself, please continue discussing this oh so serious thread

Would you agree that US foreign policy is a major cause of the 9/11 attacks?

I would agree

fucking canadians. good for nothing.

Without a doubt. I mean, the terrorists didn't attack Canada, right?

exacto mundo

Why would they? I mean, we're kinda like their home away from home, no?

And they never would, right?


Lawyer: Government says terror plans included beheading

Canadian prime minister allegedly the target

TORONTO, Ontario (CNN) -- Prosecutors allege that one of the terrorism suspects arrested in Canada last week wanted "to behead the prime minister," a defense lawyer said Tuesday.

An eight-page synopsis of the allegations against the 17 men and boys was given to defense lawyers Tuesday.

"The allegations are that my client is alleged to have been part of a plot to blow up parliament buildings in Canada, storm the CBC [Canadian Broadcasting Corp.], take over the CBC, as well as, among other things, behead the prime minister," said Gary Batasar, lawyer for defendant Steven Vikash Chand, 25.

Batasar and other defense lawyers complained Tuesday in court that they have not been allowed to meet privately with their clients, who they say are under constant watch by armed guards. He called the tight security unnecessary and unprecedented.

"This is not Guantanamo, this is Toronto, Canada," Batasar said.

On Tuesday, instead of setting bail for the defendants, as had been expected, the court held a scheduling hearing to determine a date for considering bail, said Donald Mcleod, attorney for Jahmaal James, 23.

Mcleod said he and other lawyers also asked the court to allow family contact with the defendants and for the defendants to gather as a group for prayer.

Twelve men, ages 19 to 43, are charged with participating in a terrorist group. Six of them are accused of taking part in a plan to "cause an explosion" that could have caused death, injuries and property damage. The remaining five suspects are juveniles. Their names and charges have not been disclosed.

Fahim Ahmad, 21; Zakaria Amara, 20; Asad Ansari, 21; Shareef Abdelhaleen, 30; Qayyum Abdul Jamal, 43; and Saad Khalid, 19, were charged in connection with the alleged explosives plot.

In addition, Ahmad, Mohammed Dirie, 22, and Yasim Abdi Mohammed, 24, are charged with importing guns and ammunition. And Ahmad, Amara, Ansari, Jamal, Khalid, James, Chand, Amin Mohamed Durrani, 18, and Ahmad Mustafa Ghany, 21, were charged with receiving terrorist training.

Authorities have said more arrests are possible in what police said Saturday was a plot by an al Qaeda-inspired cell to blow up buildings in southern Ontario.

Dirie and Mohammed were in custody when the others were arrested. The two were arrested last August for allegedly trying to enter Canada from the United States with handguns and ammunition strapped to their bodies.

A U.S. official with knowledge of the investigation said the Canadian suspects were "pretty far along in terms of attack planning," according to Canadian officials. Authorities have also said the suspects had been in contact with like-minded Muslims in Britain and in the U.S. state of Georgia. The Georgia suspects are accused of making "case videos" of locations such as the U.S. Capitol.

The U.S. official, who declined to be identified by name or agency, said the case is an example of "homegrown Islamic extremism."

The official says there is "no evidence" the Canadian group planned to attack targets in the United States.


http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/americas/ ... index.html

We dicussed that story when it first happened.

Saying that you want to behead the Prime Minister of Canada is like me saying I want to fuck Scarlett Johansson. It's not a REAL threat.

Wait, this is news? I mean it's not like the terrorists really just "like" America but are too afraid to ask it on a date so they put earthworms in it's hair instead.

Title of thread: Canadians Blame US for 9/11 Attacks

Bolded title within thread: New poll says most Canadians blame U.S. for 9/11 attacks

First sentence of thread: A majority of Canadians believe U.S. foreign policy was one of the root causes that led to the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks...

Amazing what one word can do, eh? It can make an unreasonable statement sound reasonable.

Of course I wouldn't agree with anyone that said the US is solely responsible....but responsible to a certain extent? Yes.

Don't you know that if you place ANY blame on the US for 9/11 that you are just an apologist for terrorists?

Dude, I'm from Texas - we're exempt. Except for the Dixie Chicks.

***bricks up entrance to house and waits out inevitable US invasion***

I went to Michigan last weekend. It's about an hour from my house. I was honest with the customs agent and told her that I had no hotel reservations. This turned into a thorough inspection of my vehicle and about a 20 minute wait at the gate after I spent an hour on the bridge. An elderly gentleman with a full bladder walked up to the booth while I was trying to get through. He was escorted by two agents in riot gear toting automatic weapons to a washroom and all the while was berated for breaching border security protocol.

Man I can't wait till that cranky bitch gets to carry a gun. She seemed grossly underqualified to ask me my weekend plans and soon she will have the right to do so at gunpoint.

I can't see how US foreign policy could result in any resentment whatsoever...

Shitty deal.

But to be fair, it's not just the American Customs officers. In all my experience (none in the last year, mind you) coming home, into Canada and dealing with our own Customs officers has always been more of an agrivating fuckaround than leaving. Has it changed that much lately?

I've had one incident at Canadian Customs in my lifetime. It's usually the normal "Where are you going?" "How long have you been gone?" "Citizenship?" "Any purchases?".

There was an incident when I was coming back from the Grand Rapids show to the Ambassador Bridge. You have to go through the Duty Free parking lot on the American side to get to the bridge. I was driving through at about 3:30am and there was a single white van in the parking lot. 6 officers (don't know of what agency) stepped out from behind the van. All of them were clad in black kevlar with what looked like automatic weapons. They waved me over and told me to roll down all of the windows and unlock all the doors and turn the vehicle off. They rooted around everything and asked me a couple of rediculous questions. The one that stood out was "Do you have more than 10,000 dollars of any currency on your person?" They eventually let me go after a fruitless yet thorough search.

I hate US customs agents.

do any countries hate canada? do they piss anyone off?

That wasn't the point I was trying to make. The issue is what Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld called "blame America first." It's America's fault that 9/11 happened. Is it also America's fault that this terrorist group plotted attacks in Canada? Or what about the attacks in Britian, Spain, India, etc.?
Could it be that the terrorists have a wider agenda than a personal beef with America, or do we stick with the naive belief that terrorists only have it in for the U.S.?