WEBVTT

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Ladies and gentlemen , welcome to the

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United States of America and Canadian

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joint Brindis as we celebrate the

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independence of the United States of

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America and Canada Day . Please stand

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for the invocation given by Chaplain

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Kirkman and for the playing of the

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United States national anthem and the

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Canadian national anthem .

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Let us pray Dear Heavenly Father ,

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today we gather in solemn remembrance

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and deep gratitude to honor the

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heritage of patriots , men and women

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whose sacred sacrifice has shaped the

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legacy of liberty we now share . We

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give thanks for the immeasurable

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devotion of those who gave all they had

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that their countrymen and women in both

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Canada and the United States might know

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the blessings of life , liberty , and

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the opportunity to pursue long and

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meaningful lives . Across the decades ,

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our nations have stood together

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fighting wars on foreign soil , not for

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conquest , but for the bonds of

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friendship , for the assurance of

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mutual security , and for the dream of

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peace among nations . May you now smile

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upon our peoples , oh Lord . Let the

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hard won peace brought with the blood

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of patriots be preserved and honored .

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Grant us prosperity , continued

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friendship , and the wisdom to live

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lives worthy of their sacrifice until

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we fulfill the design of him in whom we

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trust by becoming all we are called to

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be . In his holy name we pray . Amen .

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Oh

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Ladies and gentlemen , please be seated .

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Good morning Colonel Eldridge Singleton

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Winste Commandant Command Sergeant

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Major Roberto Alvarez Wintec Command

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Sergeant Major Lieutenant Colonel

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Donald Sapp Wintek Deputy Commandant ,

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Doctor Florentino Santana Winsek Dean

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of Academics , Major Ryan Cooper ,

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Canadian liaison to the maneuver Center

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of Excellence , and an extended welcome

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to our friends and families who are

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watching via social media . I'm Major

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Benjaar and I have the distinct

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pleasure to be your master of ceremony

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this morning . Please welcome to the

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podium Lieutenant Colonel Branch Romero ,

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director of the Joint planning course .

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Thank you . Good morning . Today is a

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day to express pride in our journey

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from a small settlement on the

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northwestern coast of the Atlantic . To

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a nation of , uh , to a nation of more

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than 334 million citizens facing the

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great oceans of the world . The United

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States of America and its citizens have

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experienced it all . Throughout our

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trials and tribulations , which began

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with the revolution through the Civil

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War , and then the industrial

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industrial revolution . We have

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developed in the country that we are

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today . Though we have strived to

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attain the highest praise and

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admiration from across the world . We

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have experienced the lowest judgments

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and attacks from all corners during our

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relatively short existence . We will

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continue to strive every day to make

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our nation better than it was yesterday .

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We have valiantly fought in wars around

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the world and at home in an effort to

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free the oppressed and spread democracy

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even through . Throughout thick and

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thin . Even though opinions may differ

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from person to person , we've always

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fought to ensure our unalienable rights

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of life , liberty , and pursuit of

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happiness . Thank you .

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Now we will show a brief video

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describing how the independence of the

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United States of America came to be .

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The 4th of July , or Independence Day ,

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is a fun summer holiday . A day when

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you may see lots of the flags ,

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parades , and fireworks .

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But have you ever wondered what the

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celebration is about ?

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Back in 1775 , the 13 American

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colonies rebelled against the control

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of Great Britain and sparked a war

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known in the United States as the

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Revolutionary War . After a year of

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fighting , the 2nd continental Congress

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took a vote and decided that it was

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time for the colonies to officially

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declare their independence from British

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rule . They want to .

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And to be in charge of their own

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governance . On June

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11 , 1776 , the Continental

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Congress appointed Thomas Jefferson

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along with Benjamin Franklin , John

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Adams , Robert Livingston , and Roger

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Sherman to write a document to explain

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why they were declaring their

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independence . Thomas Jefferson wrote

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most of it , but after some changes by

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the other members of the committee ,

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they presented it to Congress on June

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28th . At first ,

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not everyone agreed to vote for

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independence . They argued and debated

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the issue for days . Finally , on

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July 2nd , the agreement to declare

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independence passed . Congress made a

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few changes to the words of the

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document and two days later , on July 4 ,

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1776 , the Declaration of

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Independence was officially adopted .

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Not only did the Declaration of

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Independence state that the colonies

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would no longer be under British rule ,

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it said that governments only exist for

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the good of the people they govern and

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that all people are equal .

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We hold these truths to be self-evident

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that all men are created equal , that

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they are endowed by their Creator with

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certain unalienable rights , that among

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these are life , liberty , and the

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pursuit of happiness .

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Because July 4th is the day the colon

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said that they were free from Great

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Britain , the 4th of July is sometimes

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called America's birthday .

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Every year since then , Independence

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Day has been celebrated on July 4th

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with berets , music , gun

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suits , cannon fire , and yes ,

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even fireworks .

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I hope you enjoyed learning about 4th

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of July today . Good .

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Considering the rich history of the

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United States of America , just think

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what the next 249 years can bring .

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Ladies and gentlemen , a message from

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the Winset Commandant Colonel Eldridge

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Singleton . Hello , I'm

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Carl Sulton , the 9th of the Western

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Hemisphere Institute for Security

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Cooperation . Wednesday . As we

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celebrate the 4th of July , it is more

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than the birth of a nation . We give on

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to the ideas that give life , liberty ,

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unity , and courage in the face of

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diversity . As a soldier , I know that

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these values are not carried by one

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flag alone . Today we stand shoulder to

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shoulder not only as Americans but all

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side our trusted allies and partner

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nations . Together we defend peace ,

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advanced prosperity , and upheld the

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principles that bind us across borders .

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Here's your friendships , share

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missions and the freedoms we protect

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together to partnership , to the peace ,

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and the bonds between our nations .

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This we will defend . Cheers .

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Please welcome to the podium Major

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Peter Fuola , Canadian student at the

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Winsett Command and General Staff

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Officer course .

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Thank you . It's an honor to be sharing

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the celebration day today uh with the

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US , um , and Canada together . Thank

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you . Each July

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As a nation is adorned in the red and

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white of the maple leaf . Canadians

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across the country convened to

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commemorate the founding of our nation .

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From coast to coast to Arctic coast .

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The sounds of celebration Marked by

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music Reflection and fellowship .

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Underscore the diversity and unity that

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shape our national identity .

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Candidate Day Stands not merely as a

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date on the calendar . But as a

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significant occasion to honor the

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journey's aspirations . And sacrifices .

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Of those who have laid the foundation

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for the country we call home . On this

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Canada Day , we celebrate the rich

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tapestry of our nation's 158th year .

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And the enduring values we hold dear .

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As well as the unique and steadfast

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partnership we share with our closest

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neighbor and ally , the United States

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of America . From the longest

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undefended border in the world to

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decades of close collaboration and

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trade , innovation , and continental

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security . Our two nations remain bound

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by mutual respect . Common purpose .

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And a shared vision for a more secure

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and prosperous . Continent .

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Whether standing shoulder to shoulder

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through NORAD , collaborating on global

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military operations , or driving one of

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the world's most dynamic trading

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relationships , the strength of the

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Canadian-U US partnership is a

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testament . To a cooperation between

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democratic nations can achieve .

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As you raised the flag ? As we raised

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both flags . And reflect on the

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freedoms we cherish . Let us also honor

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the bonds we share and the future we

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continue to build together . Happy

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Canada Day , the true north , strong

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and free . Thank you .

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Ladies and gentlemen , a message from

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the Winsett Commandant Colonel Eldridge

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Singleton . Hello , I'm Colonel

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Sulston , the 9th out of the Western

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Hemisphere Institute for Cooperation ,

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WA . In such degrees to all Canadians ,

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it's honored to be celebrating the

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158th anniversary of the Canadian

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Confederation , commonly known as

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Canada Day . When they can for such an

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important partner within the hemisphere .

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We look forward to many more years as a

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beauty and partnership . To Canada , a

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continued and prosperous future . True

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North , strong and free . Happy Canada

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Day .

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Please welcome to the podium the

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representative of the Department of

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State , Mr . Brian Strait .

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Good morning . Everybody can hear me OK ?

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Who said nope . All right , so

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I see a lot of new faces . Uh , I know

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that it's a time of transition right

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now for Wintec in the summertime . So

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for anybody I have not met yet , my

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name is Brian Strait . I'm the

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Department of State representative here .

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Uh , I got here last summer and I'll be

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here through summer 2027 . I'm on the

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4th floor , swing by anytime . I'm glad

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to hang out , have some coffee . Talk .

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I'm going to do a formal part of this

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and then I'm gonna transition to an

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informal personal part . Is that cool ?

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All right . So The United

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States and Canada . Share one of the

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closest and most constructive

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relationships in the world , as you

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already alluded to , sir . This

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relationship is rooted in extremely

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deep ties that span over two centuries

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of cooperation . Now , all of you in

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uniform here , you know your military

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history , so I don't have to tell you .

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About that part of it , but I will

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anyway because that's , that's what I

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do , right ? We just kind of hit

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important moments going all the way

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back to the trenches of World War One .

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Later World War II , the invasion of

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Normandy and the liberation of Europe .

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All the way up to current joint

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operations right now and the ones in

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the future . Um , that tradition of

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bilateral and multilateral

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multinational defense efforts between

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our two countries endures . That legacy

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of shared sacrifice between Canadian

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and American soldiers is something that

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we have to think about this week it's

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something we have to think about on our

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respective independence days because

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the sacrifice of all of you in uniform .

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And your family members who sacrifice

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in their own way and I know this

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because my father was a career Marine

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officer deployed to combat operations 4

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times and so I know the families also

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suffer greatly , right ? There's a

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sacrifice that's shared , um . It's

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second to none and it's what makes our

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country great . It's what makes our

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world free , so thank you . And let's

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be clear , outside of just military

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interoperability and shared sacrifice ,

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uh , Canada is not just a neighbor it's

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our largest trading partner . It is a

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cultural touchstone for everything we

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do in the United States and the US

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Canada relationship is also reflected

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in a lot of everyday things like uh

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border crossings , family ties ,

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business relationships , cross border

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friendships , um . Really , you're our

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best friend . And I say that in a room .

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Of people that represent countries that

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are truly truly outstanding amazing

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friends but that US Canada relationship ,

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uh , it's , it's really a cut above

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everything else . Now I am going to

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transition to the personal part .

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Let me paint you a picture .

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July of 1995 , Brian Strait

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is 18 years old and just finished high

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school in Virginia . I had hair

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down to my waist and some of you have

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seen the photos , so you know this is a

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fact . I had hair down to my waist . I

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had heavy metal shirts and combat boots ,

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and I wanted to be a heavy metal star .

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Some friends of mine that were in

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another heavy metal band in the

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Washington DC area said dude because

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everything was dude , right ? That was

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the language that we spoke uh

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intonations of dude to one another .

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They go dude , we're gonna go play some

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concerts in Canada and we want you to

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come with us to help haul equipment to

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pay for gas and to help drive when

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everybody is tired . And I said that

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sounds like a plan . I've never

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traveled independently . I've never

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really been to a foreign country on my

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own . I had lived in Japan as a kid

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because of my father's military service ,

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but I had never personally traveled ,

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right ? So I said , yeah , let's do

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this now . This is being live streamed ,

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so I probably shouldn't say it . I will

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skip over the part where my friends did

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not explain to me that they did not

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have work visas to go to Canada and do

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this and that I was getting dragged

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along and that I would spend 5 hours at

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the Canadian border being interrogated

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and ask what my purpose of travel was

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and all of us having to figure out like

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how to explain this . I was just along

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for the ride . I probably shouldn't

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have said that , but it's out there now

20:38.872 --> 20:41.039
and it's gonna be in the cybersphere .

20:41.039 --> 20:40.689
It was 30 years ago , I was a kid ,

20:40.770 --> 20:43.130
forgive me . The point is , we finally

20:43.130 --> 20:46.030
make it into Canada . Have an

20:46.030 --> 20:48.810
absolutely outstanding time over the

20:48.810 --> 20:52.449
long weekend and for a kid like me that

20:52.449 --> 20:54.505
had never traveled independently had

20:54.505 --> 20:56.505
really never spent much time in big

20:56.505 --> 20:59.800
cities didn't know any of this stuff

21:00.189 --> 21:03.900
really at all it was . I , I , I , I

21:03.900 --> 21:05.900
can't state this in , in big enough

21:05.900 --> 21:07.900
terms . It was the single most life

21:07.900 --> 21:10.122
changing experience I could have had at

21:10.122 --> 21:12.344
that point in my life . And when I came

21:12.344 --> 21:14.011
back to Virginia after that ,

21:14.099 --> 21:16.099
everything in Virginia seemed a lot

21:16.099 --> 21:17.988
smaller , and I suddenly had this

21:17.988 --> 21:20.210
desire to really get out in the world .

21:20.380 --> 21:22.859
Well , fast forward about 4 months I

21:22.859 --> 21:24.915
was in my freshman year of college .

21:25.400 --> 21:27.400
And one of the very first friends I

21:27.400 --> 21:29.869
made was a Canadian woman who was

21:29.869 --> 21:32.589
originally from Nova Scotia and at the

21:32.589 --> 21:36.140
time , this is October November 1995 ,

21:36.469 --> 21:39.270
her father was the Canadian Air Force

21:39.270 --> 21:42.770
attache to the United States . And I

21:42.770 --> 21:44.881
mentioned that I wanted to get into a

21:44.881 --> 21:46.992
career field where I could travel and

21:46.992 --> 21:49.214
she goes , well , have you ever been to

21:49.214 --> 21:51.214
an embassy ? And I said , what's an

21:51.214 --> 21:53.214
embassy ? Remember I'm just wearing

21:53.214 --> 21:55.437
Metallica t-shirts and long hair like I

21:55.437 --> 21:57.548
don't know anything , right ? And she

21:57.548 --> 21:59.381
goes , I'm gonna take you to the

21:59.381 --> 22:01.492
Canadian embassy . She takes me up to

22:01.492 --> 22:03.270
the Canadian embassy one Sunday

22:03.270 --> 22:05.381
afternoon . Now I don't know what the

22:05.381 --> 22:07.437
Canadian embassy in Washington DC is

22:07.437 --> 22:09.603
like right now . It's been a long time

22:09.603 --> 22:11.437
since I've spent any time around

22:11.437 --> 22:13.548
embassies in the Washington DC area ,

22:13.548 --> 22:16.660
but I can tell you that in 1995 the

22:16.660 --> 22:18.880
Canadian embassy was huge and it was

22:18.880 --> 22:22.319
beautiful and in any case I've never

22:22.319 --> 22:24.486
been to a place like that before and I

22:24.486 --> 22:28.030
walked in there completely . Bedazzled ,

22:28.239 --> 22:30.839
be wondered , be marveled about this

22:30.839 --> 22:34.000
whole embassy thing . And so she could

22:34.000 --> 22:36.222
sense that I was really excited and she

22:36.222 --> 22:38.333
said , you know , if you ever want to

22:38.333 --> 22:40.167
work in the embassy , you should

22:40.167 --> 22:42.111
consider joining the Department of

22:42.111 --> 22:44.278
State . I said , What's the Department

22:44.278 --> 22:46.556
of State ? Which state ? She said , no ,

22:46.556 --> 22:48.500
no , no , not , uh , one of the 50

22:48.500 --> 22:50.778
states . It is the Department of State ,

22:50.778 --> 22:52.889
a federal agency . And you have these

22:52.889 --> 22:54.833
things called diplomats and I said

22:55.194 --> 22:57.714
what's a diplomat and so finally I

22:57.714 --> 22:59.603
think she could sense that I just

22:59.603 --> 23:01.714
needed to do some research and so she

23:01.714 --> 23:03.825
said look , go back to the university

23:03.825 --> 23:06.035
go to the career office and tell them

23:06.035 --> 23:08.202
to help you find some information so a

23:08.202 --> 23:10.257
couple days later I go to the career

23:10.257 --> 23:13.319
office . I asked the career counselor

23:13.319 --> 23:16.520
for information . This is all basically

23:16.520 --> 23:18.687
pre-internet like there was Internet ,

23:18.719 --> 23:21.199
but it wasn't widespread and there

23:21.199 --> 23:23.670
wasn't much Internet in my university ,

23:23.920 --> 23:25.864
so she gave me a big book that had

23:25.864 --> 23:27.698
addresses for all the US federal

23:27.698 --> 23:29.753
agencies and said here's the one for

23:29.753 --> 23:31.864
Department of State . You should send

23:31.864 --> 23:34.087
them a letter requesting information so

23:34.087 --> 23:36.142
I did that . The Department of State

23:36.142 --> 23:38.142
then sends me a big manila envelope

23:38.142 --> 23:40.309
that was packed with information about

23:40.309 --> 23:42.531
how to become a foreign service officer

23:42.531 --> 23:45.619
or diplomat , and I saw all of this and

23:45.619 --> 23:47.730
I looked at myself in the mirror with

23:47.730 --> 23:49.952
my long hair and my combat boots and by

23:49.952 --> 23:52.099
then my very , very bad grades at

23:52.099 --> 23:55.170
university and I thought there's

23:55.380 --> 23:58.260
absolutely no way I could ever get this

23:58.260 --> 24:02.079
job . But the seed was planted so

24:02.369 --> 24:04.939
many years later , many lifetimes later ,

24:04.949 --> 24:07.329
eventually I get into the Department of

24:07.329 --> 24:11.140
State . And here we are now . So

24:11.349 --> 24:13.460
when I say that there are 3 countries

24:13.460 --> 24:15.516
that I think about more every single

24:15.516 --> 24:18.479
day . In my life that have had the most

24:18.479 --> 24:22.010
profound impact on me . Mexico because

24:22.010 --> 24:24.489
my wife is Mexican , right ? El

24:24.489 --> 24:26.959
Salvador because El Salvador was my

24:26.959 --> 24:29.880
first big experience on my own in Latin

24:29.880 --> 24:32.910
America and it marked me . And Canada

24:33.199 --> 24:35.719
because that is where all of this began

24:35.719 --> 24:38.479
for me so outside of politics , outside

24:38.479 --> 24:41.119
of protocol , outside of everything , I

24:41.119 --> 24:44.199
have a personal debt to Canada that

24:44.199 --> 24:47.680
will probably never be repaid . Uh ,

24:48.050 --> 24:50.161
because of how your wonderful country

24:50.161 --> 24:52.160
and your wonderful people shaped

24:52.650 --> 24:55.930
everything that became of my life and

24:55.930 --> 24:58.449
so for what it's worth at least today I

24:58.449 --> 25:01.900
can try to do justice . To my love and

25:01.900 --> 25:03.844
respect for Canada and what you've

25:03.844 --> 25:06.067
contributed to my life and I just wanna

25:06.067 --> 25:08.011
say thank you very much thank your

25:08.011 --> 25:09.900
country very much welcome to Fort

25:09.900 --> 25:12.122
Benning . Welcome to Winsec you are now

25:12.122 --> 25:14.344
here with your family and even though I

25:14.344 --> 25:16.289
don't drink alcohol , but if I did

25:16.289 --> 25:18.459
today , I would have a big Canadian

25:18.459 --> 25:20.570
beer in my hand and I will hold it up

25:20.570 --> 25:22.739
and I would say cheers Canada , thank

25:22.739 --> 25:25.540
you very much . God bless you guys and

25:25.540 --> 25:26.540
congratulations .

25:56.270 --> 25:59.560
Today we celebrate the anniversary of

25:59.560 --> 26:01.671
the independence of the United States

26:01.671 --> 26:04.020
of America and Canada Day . It was

26:04.020 --> 26:06.109
truly an honor and privilege to walk

26:06.109 --> 26:07.998
you down memory lane of the great

26:07.998 --> 26:10.220
nations of the United States of America

26:10.220 --> 26:12.550
and Canada . Please rise for the

26:12.550 --> 26:14.050
playing of the Army song .

26:25.680 --> 26:26.680
right

26:37.880 --> 26:38.880
I

26:50.979 --> 26:51.979
I

26:59.650 --> 26:59.969
I

27:26.020 --> 27:28.131
Ladies and gentlemen , this concludes

27:28.131 --> 27:30.353
today's ceremony . I now invite you all

27:30.353 --> 27:32.576
to the gallery of liberators to join us

27:32.576 --> 27:34.798
in a toast to honor the independence of

27:34.798 --> 27:37.020
the United States of America and Canada

27:37.020 --> 27:37.020
Day .