It’s hard to know just what to make of the sometimes intense concern about “the fifth annual summit of the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America, now operating under the title of the North American Leaders’ Summit, scheduled on the [US] State Department calendar to occur in Mexico,” this coming August 8—11.

Critics of the alleged North American “deep integration” agenda at the bottom of “SPP” and whatever its current successor is properly called range from right-wing US libertarians to the left-wing Council of Canadians. On the one hand, there are good reasons for trying to make movement of goods and people in and around all of North America easier than it used to be. At the same time, anyone who values the independent sovereignty of any or all of Mexico, the United States, and Canada has some reason to wonder about some of the continental integration proposals that still seem up in the air – even in the new American age of Barack Obama.

Two current US online articles that fret about the August 8—11 North American Leaders’ Summit are at least worth looking at: “White House mum on North America Summit” by Jerome R. Corsi, and “North American Integration: Deep-Rooted Agenda Continues” by Dana Gabriel.

Gabriel also notes that: “In his book Open and Shut: Why America has Barack Obama and Canada has Stephen Harper, Toronto journalist John Ibbitson calls for a North American environmental, economic and security accord.  He argues that the border between Canada and the US should be eliminated.  Vancouver Sun columnist, Barbara Yaffe comments on the book’s scenario of erasing the Canada-US border. ‘The two nations would retain their distinct sovereignty but there would be no more passports or work visas.’” Meanwhile, the Council of Canadians website is currently carrying a related piece headlined “Industry Canada still working on SPP while Harper mum on August 8-11 leaders summit.”Â  If something terrible ever does happen on all this, we can’t say we weren’t warned.