Is a Canadian Olympic commercial offending Americans? Also: Are Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber in peace talks?

Watching Canadian television coverage of the London 2012 Games can be a little jarring for Americans. Not the events coverage, itself, but the commercial content, it seems.

It's a bit of a sneak attack, I suppose, on our good neighbours to the south, at least according to one blogger, Bill Mann, writing on the Wall street Journal's "Market Watch" web page.

Under the headline "Canadian TV attacks U.S., Brits at Olympics," he writes that the Government of Canada's War of 1812 commercials are "rather startling" (at least to Americans watching).

First of all, the headline. It's not really a true indicator of the content that follows. I get it, actually. Headlines on internet pages are designed to get you to click on that item. It's all about the clicks. The more intriguing or even salacious the headline, the better. It's why I was tempted to headline this piece "WAR! Canada and the United States in Battle! Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber to meet in peace talks with a bikini-clad Kim Kardashian as moderator?" Then you would click on that and, of course, you'd find the answer is no. Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber will NOT be meeting in peace talks. Never said they were, just asked the question.

If the fairly low key yet dramatically rendered spots are "startling" to Americans, then they are indeed rather jumpy about things these days. Perhaps they're just startled to hear or see anything at all about the War of 1812, which Mann writes " isn't nearly as big a deal in the U.S as it still is in Canada."

He's partly correct there, I think. I've never had much of a conversation with any American about the War of 1812. But, I've rarely ever had a conversation with a Canadian about it either, so to say it isn't nearly as big a deal in the U.S. as it is in Canada might be akin to saying cardboard isn't nearly as big a deal in the U.S. as it is in Canada.

If a Canadian ever does bring up the war of 1812, it's usually because they've crinkled up their nose and wrinkled their forehead as they ask "why is it called the War of 1812 if it ended in 1814?"

Look, the commercials were rather "startling" to a few Canadians, too, when they first began airing earlier this year. That's because the trumpeting of Canadian (really British and Indigenous Peoples) triumphs in holding back the American invasion aren't really top of mind up here, either. Canadians know all about the great valour, courage and dedication shown as well as losses suffered by Canadian troops at places like Vimy Ridge, Passchendaele, Normandy and Dieppe during the First and Second World Wars.

Not so much, the War of 1812.

It's the 200th anniversary of the thing, though, and shouldn't someone mark that? The War of 1812 was an immensely large turning point in the history of North America. It was a big win for the British and their allies in Canada, holding off the invasion at a time when the empire was already locked in combat with Napoleon.

With that in mind, rest assured that the commercial is not an attack on America or Americans. Just Prime Minister Harper and his crew's attempt to shine a little patriotic light on a key, protracted moment in the history of what would become Canada.

If you tune into a Canadian broadcast of the Olympics, I can understand how seeing that spot might make you feel like a Buffalo Bills' fan who's just sat down on the couch and been reminded of a less than successful Superbowl attempt. Doesn't mean it didn't happen, though.

So, to any Americans who are offended when they see a commercial depicting British victories in battles that repelled the attacking American forces and ended the U.S. desire to add a little Canadian bacon to its geography (at least up until now), let me do the Canadian thing and say "sorry."

We'll send over a box of Laura Secord chocolates as a peace offering.

Let's nip this in the bud, what say? Last thing we need is to have the Games of the Thirtieth Olympiad turning into an all too real re-enactment of the Battle of Queenston Heights. Let's keep out archers and javelin throwers aimed at the targets, not each other.

Now, back to more extensive coverage of some sports that usually get about as much attention as the War of 1812.