Canadians are modest and polite by nature

When I saw this interview with Kiefer Sutherland on the January 19th episode of Ellen, I was reminded of Kevin Conley's cover story, Redemption Song, from the December/January 2009 volume of Men's Vogue.

'Unlike the trained assassin he portrays on television, Sutherland is Canadian, and therefore modest and polite by nature. He instinctively adds phrases like "thank you" or "excuse me" to Bauer's gruff, pared-down dialogue, which, the actor admits, have to be edited out.'
- Kevin Conley

While I hesitate attributing Kiefer's polite and kind nature to him being Canadian, it's hard to argue with. How many times does Kiefer say "Thank you" during this 5 minute interview with Ellen? He maintains a 1-1 compliment to thank you ratio. He is humble and faulted. A tragic human character on and off screen. That's admirable. Sure he's been to jail and knocked over a few Christmas trees, but he is real. I dig that.