this post was submitted on 11 Feb 2025
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Professor says Canada should block U.S. ambassador while Trump talks annexation (www.ctvnews.ca)
submitted 3 days ago by [email protected] to c/canada
20 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

Ottawa should block Donald Trump’s chosen ambassador to Canada until the U.S. president stops questioning Canada’s sovereignty, says one expert.

“We could potentially use (this) as a way of signalling the seriousness with which the Government of Canada is viewing this unwelcome talk,” said University of Victoria international relations professor Will Greaves.

“It is an overt, aggressive policy that (Trump) seems to be shifting his administration to endorse. And if we are remotely serious as a country, we should regard that as a hostile action and embrace a wider array of tools in our response towards it.”

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[–] Devanismyname 2 points 22 hours ago

Hopefully, our government has started building the nukes because that's literally the only thing that's gonna save us. We can't stand up to them economically because even if the us citizens suffer, the elite class won't even notice. And since they control the media and narrative, it won't be hard for them to stop any kind of popular uprising. We can't stop them militarily for obvious reasons either. Nobody can come and save us either. Unless we have been building nukes in secret for the last few years, it's safe to assume we will become the 51st state.

[–] [email protected] 77 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Considering Trump said he would begin the attack by hurting us economically and then enacted tariffs, paused for only a month, and then added more tariffs that ARE in effect, we should be considering this as already started.

It’s literally happening right now and people need to stop acting like it’s not.

[–] wise_pancake 33 points 3 days ago (2 children)

Delaying tariffs is worse than having them.

Canadians can’t price orders to US companies or price any cross border deliveries.

Tariffs are functionally in effect as long as the axe swings over our head like this.

[–] [email protected] 23 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (1 children)

If I were in charge I'd be nailing him to the wall with 50% tariffs on EVERYTHING we ship to America. His supporters would be screaming at $8-10 per gallon of gas.

Hit him hard and force him to step back 'cause this pussy-footing around isn't doing any good.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 3 days ago

100%. The US does not have the domestic manufacturing capability to be swinging their stick like this and the tariffs don’t affect(directly) trade with the countries willing to play nice.

[–] Dearche 3 points 2 days ago (1 children)

For incoming products, sure, but I don't see how that applies to outgoing products? If we sell something to the US, and it gets a tariff applied after the sale but before delivery, it's the receiver that has to pay the tariff, so the only risk is for multiple delivery contracts being cancelled.

We have no problems with pricing since any tariffs we put on will have advance warning unlike that buffoon that comes up with an idea and signs it in place within two days.

[–] kent_eh 2 points 2 days ago (1 children)

If we sell something to the US, and it gets a tariff applied after the sale but before delivery, it's the receiver that has to pay the tariff,

And those potential buyers don't want to risk that uncertainty.

Would you agree to buy something without knowing if it might randomly cost you 25% more than the agreed price?

[–] Dearche 1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I agree, but once you sign the contract, you don't have a choice, unless if there's a clause to state that if the import cost changes, you can break the contract. But I strongly doubt most contracts include such a clause. Not that it matters much since as long as the product is delivered, customers are obligated to pay the full cost, including import taxes since they ordered the product in the first place.

[–] kent_eh 1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

And that uncertainty will be causing customers to delay orders or find other suppliers until thw chaos subsides.

[–] Dearche 2 points 16 hours ago

To that I agree as well. Actually, several companies did that exactly when Trump first went to office and made his original threats. They already stopped taking new orders from the states due to the uncertainty.

That said, it still has no effect on already signed contracts, unless if the customer goes bankrupt while the deal is active or something (entirely possible considering the situation). Otherwise, the reliability of knowing you can renew your contracts is gone, which is why so much of Canadian products are being renegotiated to go to the EU or east Asia instead.

[–] [email protected] 20 points 2 days ago

I had always understood that any talks of annexing a sovereign country was a HUGE no-no... akin to spanking your boss' wife after being introduced... yet here we are and absolutely nobody seems to be doing anything about it

[–] [email protected] 31 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Decrease potash exports by 5% every week tariffs are in place. We’d have them where we want them within 6 weeks.

I would say enacting immediate 100% cut offs to the food supply make us out to be the bad guys. But with a consistent measured response we would get results without making an enemy of most everyday American people.

[–] YurkshireLad 9 points 3 days ago (2 children)

Cut the US off from our electricity grid? I know we’d lose money, which would suck.

[–] OldTellus 21 points 3 days ago (1 children)

This issue is that Trump is an unhinged lunatic now in charge of arguably the most powerful military in the world. We would need to be careful how we push back so he doesn't have an excuse to start an actual war. I once thought that no US President would be dumb enough to pull that trigger, but I am starting to have my doubts.

[–] Showroom7561 22 points 2 days ago (1 children)

We would need to be careful how we push back so he doesn’t have an excuse to start an actual war.

I don't think a single unhinged lunatic in all of human history ever suddenly became reasonable because their victims began walking on eggshells. In fact, the opposite happens. Just ask his buddy, Putin.

Trump will do what he wants, no matter what our response is. So, we can tell the world that we will not cave to this madman, and hope that our allies back us up.

Either way, we lose hard by not doing anything or being too light in our response.

And yes, a war is possible - no matter what we do - that's the unfortunate reality of having a lunatic in charge. We have the support of NATO if it comes to that. Trump will need to decide whether he wants to be dragged around town like Mussolini, or not.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

We have the support of NATO if it comes to that.

Sadly it's unlikely you'd get any military support. The ranges involved prohibit anything but an armada of aircraft carriers from doing anything significant in a north-american theater of war. So the few NATO aircraft carriers that aren't US owned (UK 2, Italy 2, France 1 (3 helicopter carriers)) won't be able to help you guys out. They (and any troop transports) would be destroyed before they come anywhere close to the US.

It would take many decades for the European half of NATO to develop a military strong enough to take on the US on your side of the atlantic. At that point Canada might be so integrated into the US that the people who'd like us to come help you won't be enough for us to actually risk it.

The only thing we Europeans could realistically do is completely sanction the US. This of course would likely be the excuse the US eventually uses to lash out physically, which could lead to a world war (possibly the last world war). Europe's safest move is to just wait it out until the US snaps out of the insanity, or gets more unhinged and starts attacking itself (civil war. Hopefully a non-nuclear one). Then when the US lies in ruins (or the right people win quickly), Canada might be a country again.

All that said, I think an invasion is very unlikely at the moment. If the order to invade Canada went out tomorrow, much of the military would most likely revolt and depose the government. Of course this might change over time as more loyal generals are installed.

The current administration is filled with morons, but I think even they are smart enough to realize they are not yet in a position to do anything but be economically annoying. So if Trump goes full retard and says he's going to order an invasion, the people around him will stuff him away in an old folks home and let JD take over.

[–] Showroom7561 4 points 2 days ago

If the order to invade Canada went out tomorrow, much of the military would most likely revolt and depose the government.

Honestly, this would be the stuff of heros.

And if they don't outright revolt, then they'll forever be known as the army that supported another Nazi leadership. They would be a stain on human history for all time.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 3 days ago

There's gonna be pain no matter what we do. We're better off just gritting our teeth and ripping the bandage off instead of waiting for him to do it for us.

Going on the offensive has far better chances than sticking with this defensive pattern we're in now.

[–] JoeDyrt 8 points 3 days ago (1 children)

What Canuck ever listens to the Russian Amabassador? ( do we even have one?). And now we have two!!

[–] Dearche 3 points 2 days ago

We don't, but the White House does it seems. Since President Musk repeats anything the Russians say, and even his minister of intelligence is a known Russian spy apparently.