Or "Brazen Acts of Canadianism"
Thanks to global warming, and at the expense of polar bears, a major expanse of shipping lanes may open up soon in the Arctic Sea -- and it's the fabled Northwest Passage that Lewis & Clark and other less lucky explorers sought. The route could be in full operation by 2050.
You should also know that there'll be a battle royale between Canada and the United States for control. And heavy economic losses to the Panama Canal as well as ports in Seattle, Tacoma, and other West Coast cities.
Talk about a sea change.
Patricia Davis, a Port of Seattle official, flipped out as she listened to scientists this summer.
What if Seattle's port could be bypassed? Davis says that the port already faces stiff competition from Tacoma and Vancouver, B.C.
International scientists have "concluded that the polar ice cap is melting at such an alarming rate that cargo ships could begin using the Arctic Ocean as a shortcut between Asia, Europe and the East Coast within decades." Seattle Times
In the summer of 2000, several ships took advantage of thinning summer ice cover on the Arctic Ocean to make the crossing. It is thought that global warming is likely to open the passage for increasing periods of time, making it attractive as a major shipping route. Routes from Europe to the Far East save 4000 km through the passage, as opposed to the current routes through the Panama Canal.
Northwest Passage, Wikipedia
Once a pipe dream, steaming across the pole is now getting serious attention.
Arctic experts from 11 countries gathered at England's Cambridge University in October to begin hashing through a thicket of environmental, political, technical and economic questions. ...
[I]f the sea ice continues to recede, viable trans-Arctic shipping routes could emerge -- especially along Russia's vast northern coast. And that could have profound effects from Panama [Canal] to Seattle and beyond.
"Melting ice may create shipping shortcut," The Seattle Times, Jan. 3, 2005
Here's how global warming will make it possible
The average amount of sea ice has fallen by 8 percent over the past three decades, shrinking the ice cap by nearly 400,000 square miles (an area the size of Texas).
....
[G]reenhouse gases are causing temperatures to rise nearly twice as fast in the Arctic as in other parts of the world.
....
[T]he north coasts of Russia and Canada could be ice-free for most of the summer by 2050. Some scenarios suggest the entire ice cap could disappear for a month or more.
"Melting ice may create shipping shortcut," The Seattle Times, Jan. 3, 2005
Here's how this creates problems, not just for the Port of Seattle, but also for the Panama Canal
A reliable Arctic route -- a true Northwest Passage -- would cut the shipping time by 5 days and the distance by 4,000 km.
"[V]iable trans-Arctic shipping routes could emerge -- especially along Russia's vast northern coast. And that could have profound effects from Panama to Seattle and beyond." Seattle Times.
"If you could steam through [the Arctic Ocean] at containership speeds, you could save five days from Asia to Europe," said Walter Parker, a marine-transportation expert and chairman of the Circumpolar Infrastructure Task Force.
....
Worried by reports in the Panamanian press about the melting ice cap, canal authorities have asked ... the deputy director of the U.S. research commission, to meet with them ... to get a better handle on whether changing conditions in the Arctic would require them to rethink their own expansion plans.
"It's a bit hilarious that we are going to Panama to brief them on the Arctic, but it shows the strategic consequences," [Lawson] Brigham said. Seattle Times
Then there's our ongoing dispute with Canada
Sheila: Well, blame Canada
Everyone: Blame Canada
It seems that everything's gone wrong
Since Canada came along
Everyone: Blame Canada
Blame Canada
Copy Guy: They're not even a real country anyway
Everyone: Blame Canada
Lyrics, South Park
Quite simply, the U.S. "considers the Northwest Passage to be international waters, while Canada considers it internal Canadian waters." Northwest Passage, Wikipedia
In 1969, Humble Oil's vessel Manhattan made the voyage:
The Manhattan voyage sparked the beginning of a dispute between the United States and Canada over the sovereignty of the Northwest Passage. In May 1969, Ottawa informed the United States that Canada was claiming ... the Arctic waters as national terrain. The United States believes the passage through the channels of the Canadian Arctic archipelago is an international strait.
....
If, indeed, the passage is part of Canadian internal waters, full Canadian sovereignty obtains: Canada can require states to request permission to transit the passage, and Ottawa can impose environmental restrictions on its use. However, if the passage is declared an international strait--the U.S. position--Canada can impose only limited restrictions on the innocent passage of ships using the strait.
...
Nevertheless, the concerns--most actively voiced by the U.S. Defense Department--have been about the international precedent. ...
Globalization and Maritime Power, Chapter 8, Sea Lane Security and U.S. Maritime Trade: Chokepoints as Scarce Resources (Note: Please refer to this source for a far more detailed discussion of the issues.)
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Maybe Donald Rumsfeld will turn his eyes northward?
Sheila: When Canada is dead and gone
There'll be no more Celine Dion!
Lyrics, South Park
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Canadian sentiment against the U.S. claim runs high:
The truth is the U.S. has relentlessly stood up for its own interests in a long list of security conflicts with Canada.
....
[T]here remains a very potent territorial dispute between the United States and Canada over the question of Arctic waters.
... Twice the U.S. has sent warships through that passage, without seeking the permission of Ottawa, to keep its claim alive.
In his speech to the Economic Club of Toronto, Cellucci said "we'll have to wait and see if there are any ramifications" as a result of the current squabble. Analysts and right-wing Canadian politicians who have warned darkly of the economic consequences that could flow from offending our largest trading partner, apparently have not given much thought to the nature of Canadian exports to the U.S.
(The author, James Laxer, is a professor of political science at York University. He is writing a book on the Canada-U.S. border. From his article in www.thestar.ca)
Because of its dispute with the U.S., and another dispute over islands with Denmark, Canada is stepping up military maneuvers designed to declare its intent to keep control of the waterways and the islands:
Canada's military is slated to increase operations in the Arctic, beginning this spring [2004], with enhanced sovereignty patrols from Resolute to Alert by Canadian Rangers (a group more akin to the National Guard and largely consisting of Inuit). This summer, the tempo will increase with Narwhal, a war game, will kick off a five-year plan to expand Canada's presence in the Arctic. The includes additional sovereignty patrols (the first of which departs on April 1), tests to see how well unmanned aerial vehicles handle Arctic conditions, and Project Polar Epsilon, a satellite surveillance system that will cover northern Canada. Canada is even considering the construction of radar stations to detect and track unauthorized use of the Northwest Passage.
The Canadian response is intended to prevent a situation similar to that which led to the Falklands War.
Canadaka.net
Then there are lighter-hearted responses:
SWIMMING IN THE ARCTIC OCEAN
Canada dispatches a crew of swimmers into the Arctic to demonstrate to the world that CANADA and Canadians have or deserve sovereignty in the far north. Who else would enjoy a swim in waters that are only a couple of degrees above freezing. ...
The demonstration by the galley crew is soon followed by brazen acts of canadianism by other covertly trained Arctic swimmers. They bow jump into the absolutely frigid waters of the Arctic Ocean. Canadian sovereingty over the Arctic is again demonstrated by members of the deck crew jumping off the bow of the Simon Fraser. First Amie , then James they "jump ship."
So what would Brian Boitano do
If he were here today,
I'm sure he'd kick an ass or two,
That's what Brian Boitano'd do.
Lyrics, South Park
Cellucci was not wrong when he suggested that the U.S. and Canada are like members of a family, although a rather dysfunctional one. The older sibling left home early, while the younger sibling stayed home hoping that mom would help fend off assaults from big brother.
In practice, living next door to a superpower means that the superpower can be counted on to defend you against everyone except itself.
Former Social Credit leader Robert Thompson got it right when he remarked, "The Americans are our best friends whether we like it or not." www.thestar.ca
All emphases in quotes are mine.