Canadians are, on average, far too humble about our country and its institutions. Part of that is an ingrained aspect of our national character.  Our national motto could be "live and let live". Unfortunately, part of that is the effect of having the US next door. We are constantly bombarded with their pronouncements of superiority and it's bound to have an effect on how we view our own country.

The sad thing is that we do so many things much better than the US. For one, our elections are run about a million times better. The Republicans would never be able to steal an election as they did in 2000 and 2004. Our health care system is superior, our social programs are better, and most importantly, our hockey is better. Even if you disagree that any of those are better at a minimum they are better for Canada and there's no shame in being different than the US if it works for us.

Which brings me to football. The NFL is a lot of fun. I spend all day Sunday watching it. But I also enjoy the CFL. I don't watch it as much as the NFL but I certainly don't want to see it die and that would be the result of the NFL coming to Canada. The NFL might not kill the entire league if it comes to Toronto but it will certainly kill of the Argos as corporate Toronto falls all over itself to get into the NFL business. They represent 135 years of Canadian history so it was nice to wake up and see this kind of story about last night's game. The odd regular season game is fine but there is no reason for the NFL to come to Toronto at the risk of a national institution.

Sadly, it looks like the Women lost in extra time but it was a hard fought game and will hopefully help them in building towards the next World Cup. Rowing finals are up this weekend so we can look forward to breaking the medal goose egg. Links are after the jump.

If you have any other links toss them in the comments: