Ottawa is fighting back against a GOP ad stating that they can handle the North Korea situation because they're not busy.

The swipe at Canada is secondary to the ad's first purpose, which is to blast Democratic Senate candidate Harold Ford Jr. The 30-second ad features various actors who suggest Ford supports gun control, has lax fiscal policies and is slack on terrorism and nuclear threats against the U.S.

"Canada can take care of North Korea," says one man featured in the ad. "They're not busy." The jab hit home north of the border.

A source within the Canadian government told The Canadian Press that Ambassador Michael Wilson called the White House to remind the Republicans of the heavy load Canada is carrying in Afghanistan.

The republican National Committee now says the ad, which ran in Tennessee, will be phased out. However, it's unclear whether the decision to stop running the ad came as the result of Wilson's phone call. The ad reflects a view in the conservative south that America's closest neighbour isn't doing enough on the world stage, said one American political analyst. However analyst Patrick Basham told CP the ad is more likely an indication of ignorance at the RNC than a specific attempt to insult Canada.

The ad has also been slammed within the U.S. for apparent sexual references. At one point a bare shouldered blonde woman winks at the camera and tells Ford to call her.

First, let me address that last paragraph. Are the people who are "slamming" the ad for sexual references at all aware of the Girls Gone Wild ads on TV? Have they turned on their TV since 1960?

As for the rest of it, I really just found the North Korea quote really funny. Apparently (according to the article) Canada is trying to advertise their involvement to people in the US, but that seems pretty pointless. Why spend the money to advertise that when it's not really going to change how anyone behaves.