The Loonie Is Looking Sexy!

Iceland wants to adopt our loonie, so the least we can do is adopt them. Okay, seriously, no need to adopt them, but I see nothing wrong with allowing them to adopt our currency. They would have no say in monetary policy, so it would have little to no impact on us, and with the uncertainty of the Euro, it probably makes a lot of sense to them. As long as we don't have to include another language as our "official" language, I'm okay with it.

Plus, it appears that Manitoba is already home to lots of Icelandic immigrants.

“It’s not just by chance that [Icelanders] happen to be talking about Canada,” said Maurice Levi, a professor of international finance at the Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia.
“The Canadian dollar has gained 60% of value and that raises the standard of living of Canadians substantially.”
Indeed, the loonie is looking pretty sexy these days. But perhaps there is something else Icelanders have been eyeing as they contemplate their economic salvation.

And that something is Gimli. In Icelandic it means “paradise.” In Manitoba it means summer vacation. A sun-dappled community of 5,000, Gimli is perched on the shores of Lake Winnipeg, about 75 kilometres north of Winnipeg.
Before Gimli was Gimli, it was known as New Iceland, a name you won’t find in too many Canadian history textbooks, but one most Icelanders know well.
Times on the island in the north Atlantic might seem tough now. But in 1875 they were truly awful.

The tiny nation was buffeted by volcanic eruptions, shivering through a century-long cold snap that wiped out its livestock industry — the engine of the economy — and hostage to a Danish trade monopoly.
Icelanders needed a way out and Canada needed immigrants, a convenient collision of wants that led to the creation of New Iceland.

Now, it's nice and all, that Iceland might adopt our currency, as they are a cold weather nation like we are, and we can understand their culture and problems better than anyone else, but could we get a topical island somewhere to do the same thing?

Hey! I found one!  Turks and Caicos want to join Canada, maybe the first step could be adopting our currency, then asking Britain to allow us to take over the governing. WIN-WIN!

 

 Let's cut to the chase, this isn't a fairy tale story. The people who live on these islands want to join Canada. They have been eyeing us for almost a century. Every time they contact us, to see if we would like to discuss this union, our government gives them the cold shoulder. You would think after all these years they would get discouraged. But, they don't. They admire our country and they want to share their island paradise with us.

Their population is about 30,000. These people are friendly, educated, and they speak English. Even though they have a small land area, their little nation is one of the classiest in the West Indies. They pride themselves in having achieved one of the leading economies in the Caribbean. For the most part, they are self sufficient. Their beaches are some of the finest on the planet, and they have the world's third largest corral reefs. They offer tourists five star hotels or simple cabin accommodations. Different cruise ships visit their paradise every year and the passengers indulge themselves in fine cuisine and shopping.

Why do they want to join Canada? They love our country and they want to better themselves, by sharing in our higher standard of living. This union would be a win-win situation.

As Canadians, we are always complaining about the cold weather. With a Canadian province in the Caribbean, we could jump on a plane and fly direct to their main airport. There would be no need for a passport, and we would not have to declare goods on our return home. We would have our own paradise in the sun and could stay as long as we want.

The Caribbean Sun-Gods are offering us a deal, which only happens once in a life time. This opportunity is here now, and if we blow it, we will never get another chance. At this very moment, we can add a valuable asset to our country.

 What it clearly shows is that Canada is on the right track. McGuinty can whine all he wants about the high Canadian dollar, but if you are thinking of traveling outside of Canada, it's a benefit. I wonder if those union bosses are going somewhere warm this winter? Our loonie is looking sexy, now can we adopt those tropical islands?