Time to open the border

At a time when the United States is advocating making it more difficult to cross the Canada/US border, I feel it is high time that we become a eurozone. Some fierce Canadian and/or American nationalists resent this idea, but it is an idea whose time has come.

Canadians and Americans are essentially cousins. Our history has been quite mutual. The time for keeping a border has come and gone. Trade should flow much more easily than it is under NAFTA. People should come and go across the border as they will with strict inspections at continental ports of entry (airports, seaports).

I am not advocating one country although this will be argued to be a slope towards it. Those who value the healthcare and social programs up here will stay here. Those who want more net pay and less services from government will come down to the States. It will be interesting to see who goes where.

Speaking of that, one of the theories I have on why the Left hates this idea is that they fear many will opt to go to the US under a eurozone arrangement and that this will erode government services. They also allege that the US will put restrictive covenants on what the Canadian government could spend on, thereby eroding Canada as a country. I don't that will necessarily happen. I'm simply for an open border where people can move to where they want to be.

They will scare-monger too, saying an open border will mean an inflow of guns from down south. Ridiculous notions. Those who want to get a gun up here have done so already. And it's not like Canadians can't own guns. They can.

A lot of talent on either side is not situated where it needs to be due to the fact that immigration is restrictive and costly. An open border will solve that.

The key question is: what about 9/11? What about Canadian sleeper cells? Well that is a tough one to deal with but it is worth addressing for the greater benefit of an open border.

Of course, it will be a tough sell here. A lot of inefficient companies and social programs exist on not allowing American efficiency to flow through. Things will have to be ironed out. However, globalization has made accessibility much greater anyway. It's time to smell the java and move towards it, not away from it. Ultimately, Canada can be richer and better off. Open borders mean open markets where the efficient will truly shine. It's odd for instance that a Canadian company manufacturing stair railings can't cross the border with tools.

There may need to be a common dollar and a common central bank. But it's time to move towards the open border and not away from it.