I agree on the X issue. Canada should just ban it and our politicians should not have accounts on that platform. While I didn’t vote for Carney he was clearly, and still is, the better choice than PP. Nobody in the Conservative party is a safe choice; they are all maple maga traitors.
I do think Carney, or the defence minister, should be rallying Canadians and getting us prepared to defend our Nation. I keep looking for information around the citizen militia and nothing so far. We should already be organizing local militias.
It’s always easy to criticize a sitting government. I think Carney should be doing things differently regarding preparing our nation for self defence but I also think he is honest and doing what he thinks is best for the Country. I can work with someone like that. If the Conservatives were in power we’d be in far more danger globally than we are now…PP would be abandoning NATO as well.
Yes, That citizen militia. It was mentioned. People said it was a great idea. But, there were so many differing ideas about what exactly it is supposed to be. "Citizen Militia".. Cool, train people to use weapons, do all manner of military things incase we are invaded by the biggest and best equipped military in the world. Yep, that works. Oh,, you mean train people to fly drones and work on computers is what it is. All us retired folk might have something useful to do instead of playing floor curling down at the Senior Centre. Oh, not that, but what?
In actual fact, we have a citizen militia, all malitias are actually civilian, until they put on the uniform The Americans call it "National Guard", we in Canada call it "the RESERVES" Those citizens that have full time jobs and volunteer for training and work as military personel on the weekends, and when called upon during emergency situations. So what exactly is this :Citizen Militia that was mentioned by the Carney government? When will we know or will we ?
I do think though that speaking up is the right thing to do when illegal acts occur. I do not think that it is always wise to poke the bear in the eye as he eyes your picnic basket. It is si east to lay blame and be critical from the sidelines, or even while on the playing field. I believe we have far too many armchair quarterbacks and coaching experts weighing in on far too many subjects based on emotion rather than research. We all have opinions, but those are generally not based on first hand experience with the situation.
Agree on X - I don't get why its still being used by, well, anyone sane. The other key litmus test for me will be the pending F35 decision. At this point, it should ba an easy "We'll take the 16 we are contractually obligated to, but we're going with the Swedes for the rest." Its also time for Carney to level with us in that its increasingly unlikely CUSMA will be renewed. And why should we bother anyway?
Great point on X. It’s as though everyone still thinks it’s Twitter.
One of the biggest problems the US has is the cowardly acquiescence and complicity of political, media, corporate, university, and other elites in the face of neo-fascism. This is especially enervating coming from, say, news outlets or ‘conservatives’ who have long sanctimoniously praised themselves as these great defenders of liberty. Yet the minute they actually face a tyrant, they cave for fear of lawsuits, or political costs, etc.
I don’t for a minute think our elites are any different. Indeed, our corporate class seems to be exactly as George Grant described it 60 years ago. Pining for renewed access to the USA, quite indifferent to Canadian survival.
I disagree, though, with the view that the Canadian government should be unmindful of the perils of provoking Trump. We are indeed gravely vulnerable. This means using careful discernment about which hills to fight on. The rule of law in the international order was always a shaky thing - past US governments routinely committed the sort of outrages that Trump committed against Venezuela - and largely (though not entirely) separable from the defence of democracy. Carney has been careful not to endorse the invasion; I’d call this judicious. And note that we have been much firmer, rhetorically, regarding Greenland. That makes sense to me.
Carney seems to have the right idea. Build up our defences, diversify our economy, and do it as fast as possible. If he can succeed in this, we will be in a somewhat less vulnerable position and our margin of manoeuvre will widen. For now, great care and judgement need to be exercised.
Thank you form mentioning George Grant. Also, although I feel enraged at our governments salad response, your comments make sense for now and its important to listen to other points of view. However, I don't understand the silence of former US presidents.
Thank you Emmett. I'm just aghast at the complacency and oblivion and total moral failure of our government and really appreciate you laying the stakes out so clearly.
Apart from writing to our MPs to demand better and attempting to raise awareness in our social circles, do you have any concrete suggestions for what ordinary Canadians can do? Action always seems like the best antidote to despair.
Maybe it’s cause you’re young but…clearly not elbows down, thumb in mouth! In your face is only one avenue for resistance (and it is being used in full force on social media). Quiet, subtle movement is another. Secretive maneuvers and deception also come into play. Go read the historical accounts of the resistance during WWll…the personal accounts. It will give you great insight on how a smaller opponent fights against a larger one. Also, the development of allies changes the numbers as well. Canada is doing what it should. The Canadian people are too. There are some who work against us. Undermining and using propaganda. They need to be constantly confronted with truth and fact….
I’m a long term critic of the government. For 50+ years I have faced the grim prospect of having to vote for the least offensive candidate on offer. This has often led to not voting for my favoured local representative to register a vote against a leader the party has selected. The leaders have increasingly become bunfighters guided by political stimuli rather than clear eyed governance. Nation builders have to take care of priorities of course but they also have a view of the future that goes beyond the bland platitudes spouted by virtually every senior politician. In this case I see Carney as the first nation builder I have seen since becoming of age to vote.
This article advances, in my opinion, two positions I have seen many times. The first is taking a firm position on a principle. While I would agree that I too want principled leadership however that is not necessarily the same as forcing an issue simply to stand for a principle. Particularly if there is no tangible benefit for doing so but there is potentially a high cost. Second is the notion that the short term is ascendant over the long term. The urge to “do something now” is all too common but often blunts or obviates future plans. Dealing with the US now is like trying to rationalize with a pissed off honey badger. I am pleased that Carney has stayed the course on the future plans while doing what he sees as necessary for the near term chaos. I personally agree that any attempt to poke the orange bear will almost certainly result in a negative adverse response. I see no upside to the poke other than being able to claim the moral high ground. In other words, making a pointless point.
Actions not words. Carney is working across the board to create new alliances with democratic countries. Working to protect NATO and the UN. To put Canada in the forefront of leadership, which is being recognized throughout the world. His actions speak louder than starting pissing matches on X. But he is speaking out about Venezuela, Greenland
Right now Canada's democracy is in pretty hood shape. I do think his government is tracking China,Russia and USA interference in our politics and will move quickly if it crosses the line. I do question the articles intention to sew doubt about Carney...especially in the dace of foriegn interference.
I share your feelings of horror watching the daily undoing of World order. The cause is obvious to anyone . How do we respond?
What helpful thing could any government do? Provoking an unstable maniac with the ability to completely tank our economy does not seem constructive.
I think quietly preparing for the worst, focusing where we are vulnerable is the governments' task. Canadians in general need to lead and are expressing themselves quite effectively; 'buy Canadian, boycott the USA ' sentiment is strong and measurable. The push back is on all of us, and it's happening. Elbows up is everyone's responsibility, not just political leaders.
I’m not buying what you are selling Emmet. Sorry. Raising rhetorical questions doesn’t add anything to a conversation. Ad hominem attacks on individuals doesn’t prove anything, just echoes an anger that might be rattling around in a select few reader’s heads. As a reader, I can’t see a basis for your opinions. If your voice has credibility, please show us something about why your opinion matters in our noisy, polluted information swamp. Keep trying.
I don't need to "show you why my opinion matters". If you can't see the problems for what they are, then you're as morally hapless as the people you're defending.
Ok, another ad hominem attack without evidence instead of engaging with ideas and facts. Why bring that to Substack? Leave it on X or Facebook and argue with the trolls and bots. Oh… and check your grammar in the title of your post. Bye
A lot of people think the way they see it is the way it is. Unbiased thinkers recognize the factual based and objective analysis versus the lack of it.
A delicate balance between self destruction and maintaining some relationship with the USA is required. Carney is playing the game with Trump.
Trump will self destruct. We will see this November.
It's particularly difficult when 2 provincial governments are after separation and Smith in Alberta is following Trump’s plan on gaslighting Albertans, consolidating power in the Premiers office, getting her Alberta police force ready to arrest critics, and having a limited minority promoting separation and joining the UsA. And all about money and imaginary slights.
Any Media or Substack author has completely ignored the Poilievre Project by Martin Lukacs and quotes by PP himself to radical changes he proposes for Canada, including cancelled all social benefits.
Wake up folks. AMERICANS fell asleep and The Heritage Foundation took 45 years to get control. Poilievre, Harper, Manning, Flanagan and Boessenkool have been plugging along since 2995, 30 years now and we dodged a bullet in 2025.
Yes, I’m getting tired of the seemingly widespread belief that Carney is playing some kind of 3D chess that’s going to hamstring Trump and save Canada. He’s been far too tepid and ass-kissing and accommodating. And cozying up to China is absolutely NOT what we need right now. Has he forgotten the election interference? Even Trudeau seemed to realize, after the kidnapping of the Michaels, that the PRC is not our ally. Carney is acting as though that whole incident never happened.
I don't think he is "acting as though the whole incident never happened." He has explicitly acknowledged the challenge (same with India).
The US has dropped 10 to 15 points in terms of thier share of trade but that still leaves us massively exposed (60-65%) to a market where the leaders are belligerent toward us, want to annex us, and interfere directly in our politics.
China also does some things we dont like and have a longer history of poor human rights and authoritarian government but they currently account for 3 to 4% of our trade.
It's a messy game but if we want to significantly reduce our exposure to the US American risk we need to spread the risk around a bit more evenly. Obviously, Europe, South Korea, Japan etc. have to be a significant focus. They are the reliable partners. But if we truly want to manage our risk and diversify our economy - it makes sense have more China. If we can make it work.
Where does it land? I have no idea but, conceivably, in a decade, it could look something like: US = 40%, Europe/UK = 30%, Other = 20%, China = 10%.
To not even try to hammer out a deal with China might, on the surface, appear morally right but in fact we are already playing the game - so, it would, in my view, just be foolish. Delusional.
We are extraordinarily vulnerable. It's the consequence of a decades-old all-in bet on the United States. It was dumb, it had its critics (who were often lonely) but it's the bed we made and now we're lying in it.
That can't be turned around overnight, no matter how many appeals to speed the Prime Minister makes.
Given that, shouldn't the priority be on buying time? Careful language and restraint seem like pragmatic responses, not supplication.
But no arguments about dumping "X". I haven't used it since Musk took over and can't understand why anyone went back to it after initially leaving. It's not like there aren't alternatives.
Dual citizen here, equally appalled with the quality of political resistance in both countries. It's as if Carney has erected a double-sided Potemkin village right on the border. The Trump-facing side is amiable and polite, open for deals. The Canada facade is meant to shield us from seeing the fascist menace poised at the edge of our democracy. Double-sided and doubly useless.
It is always so simple to play armchair quarterback and criticize a sitting government, particularly when offering nothing concrete or plausible in response to that which you are criticizing. This kind of commentary serves only to heighten anxiety in the general population ... anxiety that is neither wanted nor valuable. It immobilizes people and leaves them powerless over that anxiety, resigned to "there is nothing I can do about it, so I'll just ignore it"! Factual analysis, rarely available these days, can support people to move beyond anxiety and immobility to action. We need only look at the women's movement of the early 1900s, the black movement of the 60s and 70s, the LGBT movement post 1965 and so on. There are very healthy was to give people the information they need to make change happen, and this article isn't one of them.
Let's give the PM credit for identifying that the US debt is owned by many countries that, if sold off by those countries would collapse the US economy irreparably. He toured the world reminding other leaders about the powerful situation that gives us in response to the US. In fact, it was Japan that sold off US debt and forced Trump to stop playing fast and loose with tariffs and the stock exchanges. The PM rapidly broadened economic trade to minimize our dependence on the US. Trade protected under CUSMA is exempt from US tariffs, of course it makes sense to ATTEMPT to keep CUSMA alive, unless we want to see the Canadian economy completely obliterated by tariffs being applied to everything. With the expectation that the US House and Senate will be taken by the democrats in 10 months, we shouldn't completely divorce ourselves from the possibility of a turnaround. What the PM is doing is playing the odds on all fronts ... a strategy that helps position Canada favorably for almost any eventuality. Doing anything less is nothing short of defeatist. The only other option, an UNTHINKABLE ONE, is to give power to Poilievre and ensure our status as the 51st state, something that would cause those who fought in two world wars to roll over in their graves questioning our sanity.
While folks born in the 70s and 80s, no doubt have opinions about the current situation, I would wager that all of us, regardless of our decade of birth have equally valid opinions and possibly more informed opinions given that some of us were born decades before the 70s and have lived through global conflicts of major proportions and learned the lessons from those. I'm not convinced that there is any value in hair splitting based on birth decade when the situation affects all of us and the solutions will only be created by input from as many as can offer them.
As for "X", it is little more than another virtual scourge designed and created to ensure echo chambers for those who want validation of their specific point of view, not unlike most social media. The fact that so many people turn to it, or other echo chamber social media, leaves me incredulous when there are independent and still some credible main stream media from which to obtain factual information about politics and world events. Social media, in general, is the lazy person's way of getting the briefest understanding of issues so as to spin it in whatever shape you choose ... rather like "Cole's Notes" in Canada or "Cliff Notes" in the US in the 60s and 70s when you didn't want to read the book assigned but still have the most limited understanding of what the book was about. Social media is a blight on the notion of factual information exchange which without regulation serves no purpose other than to build division and rage between groups.
Yours is an interesting post, an interesting analysis, but one that devalues the importance of the work being done by the PM and the sitting government without offering solutions of any value. There is no doubt that you're well read, can articulate a point well, but the substance of your article is lacking significantly.
It is always so simple to play armchair quarterback and criticize a sitting government, particularly when offering nothing concrete or plausible in response to that which you are criticizing. This kind of commentary serves only to heighten anxiety in the general population.
Let's give the PM credit for rapidly broadening economic trade to minimize our dependence on the US. Trade protected under CUSMA is exempt from US tariffs, of course it makes sense to ATTEMPT to keep CUSMA alive, unless we want to see the Canadian economy completely obliterated. With the expectation that the US House and Senate will be taken by the democrats in 10 months, we shouldn't completely divorce ourselves from the possibility of a turnaround. What the PM is doing is playing the odds on all fronts ... a strategy that helps position Canada favorably for almost any eventuality. Doing anything less is nothing short of defeatist. The only other option, an unthinkable option, is to give power to Poilievre and ensure our status as the 51st state, something that would cause those who fought in two world wars to roll over in their graves questioning our sanity.
You begin by talking about those born in the 70s and 80s
I agree on the X issue. Canada should just ban it and our politicians should not have accounts on that platform. While I didn’t vote for Carney he was clearly, and still is, the better choice than PP. Nobody in the Conservative party is a safe choice; they are all maple maga traitors.
I do think Carney, or the defence minister, should be rallying Canadians and getting us prepared to defend our Nation. I keep looking for information around the citizen militia and nothing so far. We should already be organizing local militias.
It’s always easy to criticize a sitting government. I think Carney should be doing things differently regarding preparing our nation for self defence but I also think he is honest and doing what he thinks is best for the Country. I can work with someone like that. If the Conservatives were in power we’d be in far more danger globally than we are now…PP would be abandoning NATO as well.
Yes, That citizen militia. It was mentioned. People said it was a great idea. But, there were so many differing ideas about what exactly it is supposed to be. "Citizen Militia".. Cool, train people to use weapons, do all manner of military things incase we are invaded by the biggest and best equipped military in the world. Yep, that works. Oh,, you mean train people to fly drones and work on computers is what it is. All us retired folk might have something useful to do instead of playing floor curling down at the Senior Centre. Oh, not that, but what?
In actual fact, we have a citizen militia, all malitias are actually civilian, until they put on the uniform The Americans call it "National Guard", we in Canada call it "the RESERVES" Those citizens that have full time jobs and volunteer for training and work as military personel on the weekends, and when called upon during emergency situations. So what exactly is this :Citizen Militia that was mentioned by the Carney government? When will we know or will we ?
I do think though that speaking up is the right thing to do when illegal acts occur. I do not think that it is always wise to poke the bear in the eye as he eyes your picnic basket. It is si east to lay blame and be critical from the sidelines, or even while on the playing field. I believe we have far too many armchair quarterbacks and coaching experts weighing in on far too many subjects based on emotion rather than research. We all have opinions, but those are generally not based on first hand experience with the situation.
Agree on X - I don't get why its still being used by, well, anyone sane. The other key litmus test for me will be the pending F35 decision. At this point, it should ba an easy "We'll take the 16 we are contractually obligated to, but we're going with the Swedes for the rest." Its also time for Carney to level with us in that its increasingly unlikely CUSMA will be renewed. And why should we bother anyway?
Great point on X. It’s as though everyone still thinks it’s Twitter.
One of the biggest problems the US has is the cowardly acquiescence and complicity of political, media, corporate, university, and other elites in the face of neo-fascism. This is especially enervating coming from, say, news outlets or ‘conservatives’ who have long sanctimoniously praised themselves as these great defenders of liberty. Yet the minute they actually face a tyrant, they cave for fear of lawsuits, or political costs, etc.
I don’t for a minute think our elites are any different. Indeed, our corporate class seems to be exactly as George Grant described it 60 years ago. Pining for renewed access to the USA, quite indifferent to Canadian survival.
I disagree, though, with the view that the Canadian government should be unmindful of the perils of provoking Trump. We are indeed gravely vulnerable. This means using careful discernment about which hills to fight on. The rule of law in the international order was always a shaky thing - past US governments routinely committed the sort of outrages that Trump committed against Venezuela - and largely (though not entirely) separable from the defence of democracy. Carney has been careful not to endorse the invasion; I’d call this judicious. And note that we have been much firmer, rhetorically, regarding Greenland. That makes sense to me.
Carney seems to have the right idea. Build up our defences, diversify our economy, and do it as fast as possible. If he can succeed in this, we will be in a somewhat less vulnerable position and our margin of manoeuvre will widen. For now, great care and judgement need to be exercised.
Thank you form mentioning George Grant. Also, although I feel enraged at our governments salad response, your comments make sense for now and its important to listen to other points of view. However, I don't understand the silence of former US presidents.
Thank you Emmett. I'm just aghast at the complacency and oblivion and total moral failure of our government and really appreciate you laying the stakes out so clearly.
Apart from writing to our MPs to demand better and attempting to raise awareness in our social circles, do you have any concrete suggestions for what ordinary Canadians can do? Action always seems like the best antidote to despair.
Maybe it’s cause you’re young but…clearly not elbows down, thumb in mouth! In your face is only one avenue for resistance (and it is being used in full force on social media). Quiet, subtle movement is another. Secretive maneuvers and deception also come into play. Go read the historical accounts of the resistance during WWll…the personal accounts. It will give you great insight on how a smaller opponent fights against a larger one. Also, the development of allies changes the numbers as well. Canada is doing what it should. The Canadian people are too. There are some who work against us. Undermining and using propaganda. They need to be constantly confronted with truth and fact….
I’m a long term critic of the government. For 50+ years I have faced the grim prospect of having to vote for the least offensive candidate on offer. This has often led to not voting for my favoured local representative to register a vote against a leader the party has selected. The leaders have increasingly become bunfighters guided by political stimuli rather than clear eyed governance. Nation builders have to take care of priorities of course but they also have a view of the future that goes beyond the bland platitudes spouted by virtually every senior politician. In this case I see Carney as the first nation builder I have seen since becoming of age to vote.
This article advances, in my opinion, two positions I have seen many times. The first is taking a firm position on a principle. While I would agree that I too want principled leadership however that is not necessarily the same as forcing an issue simply to stand for a principle. Particularly if there is no tangible benefit for doing so but there is potentially a high cost. Second is the notion that the short term is ascendant over the long term. The urge to “do something now” is all too common but often blunts or obviates future plans. Dealing with the US now is like trying to rationalize with a pissed off honey badger. I am pleased that Carney has stayed the course on the future plans while doing what he sees as necessary for the near term chaos. I personally agree that any attempt to poke the orange bear will almost certainly result in a negative adverse response. I see no upside to the poke other than being able to claim the moral high ground. In other words, making a pointless point.
Actions not words. Carney is working across the board to create new alliances with democratic countries. Working to protect NATO and the UN. To put Canada in the forefront of leadership, which is being recognized throughout the world. His actions speak louder than starting pissing matches on X. But he is speaking out about Venezuela, Greenland
Right now Canada's democracy is in pretty hood shape. I do think his government is tracking China,Russia and USA interference in our politics and will move quickly if it crosses the line. I do question the articles intention to sew doubt about Carney...especially in the dace of foriegn interference.
How about speaking up against the genocide of Palestinians? Is that not important??
I share your feelings of horror watching the daily undoing of World order. The cause is obvious to anyone . How do we respond?
What helpful thing could any government do? Provoking an unstable maniac with the ability to completely tank our economy does not seem constructive.
I think quietly preparing for the worst, focusing where we are vulnerable is the governments' task. Canadians in general need to lead and are expressing themselves quite effectively; 'buy Canadian, boycott the USA ' sentiment is strong and measurable. The push back is on all of us, and it's happening. Elbows up is everyone's responsibility, not just political leaders.
I’m not buying what you are selling Emmet. Sorry. Raising rhetorical questions doesn’t add anything to a conversation. Ad hominem attacks on individuals doesn’t prove anything, just echoes an anger that might be rattling around in a select few reader’s heads. As a reader, I can’t see a basis for your opinions. If your voice has credibility, please show us something about why your opinion matters in our noisy, polluted information swamp. Keep trying.
I don't need to "show you why my opinion matters". If you can't see the problems for what they are, then you're as morally hapless as the people you're defending.
Ok, another ad hominem attack without evidence instead of engaging with ideas and facts. Why bring that to Substack? Leave it on X or Facebook and argue with the trolls and bots. Oh… and check your grammar in the title of your post. Bye
My Post: "The Government of Canada shouldn't support white supremacy and child porn."
You: "Oh yeah, prove it!"
Buddy, go fuck yourself.
Now you are putting words in my mouth and swearing. All I have been saying is: you can do better.
A lot of people think the way they see it is the way it is. Unbiased thinkers recognize the factual based and objective analysis versus the lack of it.
You really do need to look up ad hominem.
A delicate balance between self destruction and maintaining some relationship with the USA is required. Carney is playing the game with Trump.
Trump will self destruct. We will see this November.
It's particularly difficult when 2 provincial governments are after separation and Smith in Alberta is following Trump’s plan on gaslighting Albertans, consolidating power in the Premiers office, getting her Alberta police force ready to arrest critics, and having a limited minority promoting separation and joining the UsA. And all about money and imaginary slights.
Any Media or Substack author has completely ignored the Poilievre Project by Martin Lukacs and quotes by PP himself to radical changes he proposes for Canada, including cancelled all social benefits.
Wake up folks. AMERICANS fell asleep and The Heritage Foundation took 45 years to get control. Poilievre, Harper, Manning, Flanagan and Boessenkool have been plugging along since 2995, 30 years now and we dodged a bullet in 2025.
Yes, I’m getting tired of the seemingly widespread belief that Carney is playing some kind of 3D chess that’s going to hamstring Trump and save Canada. He’s been far too tepid and ass-kissing and accommodating. And cozying up to China is absolutely NOT what we need right now. Has he forgotten the election interference? Even Trudeau seemed to realize, after the kidnapping of the Michaels, that the PRC is not our ally. Carney is acting as though that whole incident never happened.
I don't think he is "acting as though the whole incident never happened." He has explicitly acknowledged the challenge (same with India).
The US has dropped 10 to 15 points in terms of thier share of trade but that still leaves us massively exposed (60-65%) to a market where the leaders are belligerent toward us, want to annex us, and interfere directly in our politics.
China also does some things we dont like and have a longer history of poor human rights and authoritarian government but they currently account for 3 to 4% of our trade.
It's a messy game but if we want to significantly reduce our exposure to the US American risk we need to spread the risk around a bit more evenly. Obviously, Europe, South Korea, Japan etc. have to be a significant focus. They are the reliable partners. But if we truly want to manage our risk and diversify our economy - it makes sense have more China. If we can make it work.
Where does it land? I have no idea but, conceivably, in a decade, it could look something like: US = 40%, Europe/UK = 30%, Other = 20%, China = 10%.
To not even try to hammer out a deal with China might, on the surface, appear morally right but in fact we are already playing the game - so, it would, in my view, just be foolish. Delusional.
Just a thought:
We are extraordinarily vulnerable. It's the consequence of a decades-old all-in bet on the United States. It was dumb, it had its critics (who were often lonely) but it's the bed we made and now we're lying in it.
That can't be turned around overnight, no matter how many appeals to speed the Prime Minister makes.
Given that, shouldn't the priority be on buying time? Careful language and restraint seem like pragmatic responses, not supplication.
But no arguments about dumping "X". I haven't used it since Musk took over and can't understand why anyone went back to it after initially leaving. It's not like there aren't alternatives.
Dual citizen here, equally appalled with the quality of political resistance in both countries. It's as if Carney has erected a double-sided Potemkin village right on the border. The Trump-facing side is amiable and polite, open for deals. The Canada facade is meant to shield us from seeing the fascist menace poised at the edge of our democracy. Double-sided and doubly useless.
It is always so simple to play armchair quarterback and criticize a sitting government, particularly when offering nothing concrete or plausible in response to that which you are criticizing. This kind of commentary serves only to heighten anxiety in the general population ... anxiety that is neither wanted nor valuable. It immobilizes people and leaves them powerless over that anxiety, resigned to "there is nothing I can do about it, so I'll just ignore it"! Factual analysis, rarely available these days, can support people to move beyond anxiety and immobility to action. We need only look at the women's movement of the early 1900s, the black movement of the 60s and 70s, the LGBT movement post 1965 and so on. There are very healthy was to give people the information they need to make change happen, and this article isn't one of them.
Let's give the PM credit for identifying that the US debt is owned by many countries that, if sold off by those countries would collapse the US economy irreparably. He toured the world reminding other leaders about the powerful situation that gives us in response to the US. In fact, it was Japan that sold off US debt and forced Trump to stop playing fast and loose with tariffs and the stock exchanges. The PM rapidly broadened economic trade to minimize our dependence on the US. Trade protected under CUSMA is exempt from US tariffs, of course it makes sense to ATTEMPT to keep CUSMA alive, unless we want to see the Canadian economy completely obliterated by tariffs being applied to everything. With the expectation that the US House and Senate will be taken by the democrats in 10 months, we shouldn't completely divorce ourselves from the possibility of a turnaround. What the PM is doing is playing the odds on all fronts ... a strategy that helps position Canada favorably for almost any eventuality. Doing anything less is nothing short of defeatist. The only other option, an UNTHINKABLE ONE, is to give power to Poilievre and ensure our status as the 51st state, something that would cause those who fought in two world wars to roll over in their graves questioning our sanity.
While folks born in the 70s and 80s, no doubt have opinions about the current situation, I would wager that all of us, regardless of our decade of birth have equally valid opinions and possibly more informed opinions given that some of us were born decades before the 70s and have lived through global conflicts of major proportions and learned the lessons from those. I'm not convinced that there is any value in hair splitting based on birth decade when the situation affects all of us and the solutions will only be created by input from as many as can offer them.
As for "X", it is little more than another virtual scourge designed and created to ensure echo chambers for those who want validation of their specific point of view, not unlike most social media. The fact that so many people turn to it, or other echo chamber social media, leaves me incredulous when there are independent and still some credible main stream media from which to obtain factual information about politics and world events. Social media, in general, is the lazy person's way of getting the briefest understanding of issues so as to spin it in whatever shape you choose ... rather like "Cole's Notes" in Canada or "Cliff Notes" in the US in the 60s and 70s when you didn't want to read the book assigned but still have the most limited understanding of what the book was about. Social media is a blight on the notion of factual information exchange which without regulation serves no purpose other than to build division and rage between groups.
Yours is an interesting post, an interesting analysis, but one that devalues the importance of the work being done by the PM and the sitting government without offering solutions of any value. There is no doubt that you're well read, can articulate a point well, but the substance of your article is lacking significantly.
Sorry, what are your sources for this disconnect from reality? Rebel news? Poilievre?
It is always so simple to play armchair quarterback and criticize a sitting government, particularly when offering nothing concrete or plausible in response to that which you are criticizing. This kind of commentary serves only to heighten anxiety in the general population.
Let's give the PM credit for rapidly broadening economic trade to minimize our dependence on the US. Trade protected under CUSMA is exempt from US tariffs, of course it makes sense to ATTEMPT to keep CUSMA alive, unless we want to see the Canadian economy completely obliterated. With the expectation that the US House and Senate will be taken by the democrats in 10 months, we shouldn't completely divorce ourselves from the possibility of a turnaround. What the PM is doing is playing the odds on all fronts ... a strategy that helps position Canada favorably for almost any eventuality. Doing anything less is nothing short of defeatist. The only other option, an unthinkable option, is to give power to Poilievre and ensure our status as the 51st state, something that would cause those who fought in two world wars to roll over in their graves questioning our sanity.
You begin by talking about those born in the 70s and 80s