The Candian t-shirt economy boom

President Barry is making his first foreign visit today! Of course it's not to a real foreign country, it's to Canada. But still, he needs to get in that practice for when he visits somewhere really bizarre and foreign, like rural Alabama. Still, Barry brings with him the star power to attract all the bigwigs of Canadian politics none of us know the names of and an economic boom the likes of which novelty t-shirt manufacturers have never seen.

"They want to bask in the same glory," said Nelson Wiseman, an associate professor at the University of Toronto. "Nobody would have gone to Ottawa to try to get a glimpse of Bush except to demonstrate against him."

Obama goes to Canada on Thursday for his first foreign visit as president. It will be short, about six hours long. He is not staying for dinner.

But he will meet with Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper for a working lunch and a joint news conference. He will also meet briefly with Liberal opposition leader Michael Ignatieff at the airport before he leaves.
...
Jessica Franklanv, an employee of Bang-on T-shirts, said they've sold hundreds of Obama T-shirts.

"People are really excited that he's coming up here so soon after the election," Franklanv said. "I think everybody would like the chance to see him."

This must be such a boost to the Canadian economy, I mean Bush was a tremendous boon to the 'giant marionette holding a war criminal placard' industry, but Obama is really going to move some product. It is nice to know that the entirety of Canadian/US policy can be discussed over sandwiches at a table during a six hour visit that will comprise mostly of getting off and on to a planes, driving to and from the Canadian Parliament, and standing for photos.

First on the agenda: more photo ops with Barry, second: stop rubbing our noses in the superiority of your health care, third: keep your goddamn mooses on your side of the border, fourth: keep the syrup coming cause Barry likes his pancakes soggy, fifth: we're sorry about moving hockey teams to Arizona and Florida, does Winnipeg want one back? Then it's just a matter of getting up from the table, meeting a liberal guy the airport, and then never having to remember about Canada or devote any time to Canadian foreign policy matters for another couple years. Canada's good like that. No worries.