The Morning After

Battle of Queenston Heights, War of 1812

I read an interesting Wikipedia article the other night.  Something I remember reading some time ago, but it was a good refresher.

In the 1920s, the US had a plan to invade Canada should they need to butt heads with Imperial British Aggression again.  Seeing as Canada was so conveniently located just a stones throw from the border, the Americans felt that if they needed to teach King George (who whoever runs that Empire) another lesson, it would be best to do it in Canada.

Read: War Plan Red

pretty basic plan, seize all the major ports and industrial cities of the east to cut us off from Britain and wait for our hippie sensibilities to take over and capitulate.

Victoria would be invaded from Port Angeles… hmmm, not sure if their war department ever visited PA, but that would be pretty comical, a bunch of logger skids invading the Pride of the Pacific Fleet and one of the few militarily protected and defended regions of Canada… but yeah, the rest of the plan makes sense.

BUT whoa there beatnik, put away the white flag!  Canada isn’t just going to roll over to the Yankee invader!  Somewhere buried in a bureaucrats drawer in Ottawa we had a plan errr scheme of our own for just such a plot to overthrow our collective Socialist freedom!

Read: Defence Scheme No. 1

Not so much a plan, it was called a scheme.  Zoinks… a scheme is something your uncle comes up with to “get rich quick.”  AND the plan was drafted by some military mucky-muck that had the word “Buster” in his name.  Yes, quotation makers, “BUSTER.”

But not a bad plan.

In a nutshell, Canada gets wind of the impending invasion… so we pull a George Bush and drop a little preemptive strike on the ole Red, White and Blue.

Not too insane, there’d still be a little of the World War One Can-Do attitude in the ranks of the Canadian Military of the 1920s.

We’d all be called up, packed on a boat and sent to Seattle to catch a game, do some shopping, and blow up every bridge between Tacoma and the border.

Armies would head  south from Alberta to Montana, from Quebec into New York State and New Brunswick into Maine.  The bulk of the Canadian Forces in Ontario would repel the American Invasion into Ontario (we WIN!) then counter punch into the US.

The plan wasn’t to hold any position, but strike, destroy shit, retreat to Canada, wait for Britain.

We even sent spies… well “Buster” to Vermont for a holiday ski trip/recon.  he found the people of Vermont to be, well kinda nice.  Didn’t drink too much and were looking forward to a trip to Canada to enjoy a fine micro brew!  WHAT?  was that the loose lipped Vermontians letting the invasion plan slip?  no, just Prohibition era citizens thirsty for some suds.  If there is not a statue for “Buster” on Parliament Hill, then what exactly do you have to do to get one in Canada?

Our possible second dance of the War of 1812 sounded like fun… but then Hitler invaded Poland, we collectively had bigger fish to fry and wah wah wah… we’re all friends and cheer on Dancing With the Stars together, as BFFs 4 lyfe!

I joke about “Buster” but he was actually an accomplished soldier and served Canada during some trying times.  He retired in Victoria.

Read his bio: James “Buster” Sutherland Brown: Canadian Hero

Go with youself.