Trudeau decided to go ahead with retaliatory tariffs even though Trump’s order includes a mechanism to escalate the rates if Canada retaliates against the U.S.
Counter by decriminalizing everything to do with violations of US intellectual property. Ignore all US patents. Let Canadian drug companies make pharmaceuticals without having to pay for a US license. Let repair shops disable the DRM systems that prevent HP printers from accepting any old generic ink. Let Canadian broadcasters show US movies and TV shows without kicking back money to Hollywood. Let Canadian farmers repair their tractors without first kicking back money to John Deere. Allow anybody who wants to to jailbreak iPhones, and sell kits that allow other people to do that. Free Canadians from having to kick 30% of every purchase back to Apple in California.
That was Cory Doctorow’s recent take on it too. Trump just threw out the trade agreement with Canada and Mexico he was so proud to say was his accomplishment, after renegotiating NAFTA. They really should say fine, stew in your own mess. Ignore patents, crank out cheap pharmaceuticals, forget about DRM. Nationalize US factories on their soil. Will hurt for a while until new trade is established, but there is the whole rest of the planet to trade with.
This is extreme and could warrant an invasion from the US. Wars have been fought for less. Look at what happened to Guatemala when they wanted to take back some of the half off their farmland owned by Chiquita.
Canada is a mid-sized power but not really in a position to flaunt US power like that
Canada is part of Nato. Isn’t trump going to leave Nato? So that would mean all of Nato would be on Canada’s side. That is one hell of a leg to stand on.
Nato doesn’t have the navy to help Canada in a fight. Assuming America isn’t torn apart by a civil war as factions of the military defects and there’s a revolution in the streets. (60/40 at that point. Fighting a century old ally is a red line that would absolutley cause a civil war)
the US navy would chuckle as the french and british and other relevant navies lie at the bottom of the atlantic. And at that point, Russia moves in and Europe is in a land war while the US decides to partner with Russia.
Britain and France also have thermonuclear weapons. Britain has Vanguard-class ballistic missile submarines and France has Triomphant class ballistic missile submarines, and both have nuclear capable fighters and bombers. If Europe is to fall - let the whole world fall with it.
I know, it’s a nuclear option. Seriously shouldn’t put that card down right off. And yeah, hasn’t gone well for any central or south american government that the US has destabilized or overthrown due to some large corporation’s interests. But as all this garbage escalates, bringing up the possibility could make owners and shareholders squirm a bit. It hurts them financially, the only thing that would make them care. People who Trump might (might, small chance) listen to. But before that point? Those companies can produce all kinds of things. Doesn’t mean Canada or Mexico have to let those goods go out across their borders. Their trade agreement has been torn up by Trump again. And you know that bureaucracy is complicated, things get held up in customs sometimes, occasionally for very very long times. Paperwork gets lost… When companies here in the US are screaming about their supply lines breaking down again, now because of HIS stupid tariff war, there will be some negative political fallout. Trump’s ego and image are vulnerable things despite all the bluster. He won’t back down, but he could pivot to something else and let this nonsense drop.
This is an insane hypothetical but the worst thing is I can totally see Trump declaring a “military intervention into the Canadian comunist takeover of US interests and property” or something like that
Canada should make nuclear weapons. Such is life in the shitter multiverse. I’d want my commune to have nukes to. Humans are psychotic hairless monkeys and are untrustworthy.
I wish this comment (merc’s comment) would get bumped to the top of every post related to the tariffs. Tit for tat tariffs is stupid with predictable results. Strategic tariffs and other targeted mean of retaliation are better. Why is there only a 10% tariff on oil? Because the US needs Canada’s oil. You fuck with our economy we fuck with the resources we give you at a discounted rate. Look at CUSMA (hehe. or NAFTA or whatever broken trade agreement that was) and target the industries that the (US) wanted to protect.
And for people using the tired fight analogies - just because someone tries to punch you in the face doesn’t mean you punch them back in the face. You have already been training to kick them in the fucking balls.
Tit for tat tariffs is just political posturing for weak leadership.
Also, this is a fight against a much bigger opponent. Not only is the US population 10x bigger and their economy more than 10x bigger, that size means they have a lot more trade partners, whereas Canada is pretty isolated and trades mostly with the US.
If you’re up against a much stronger opponent in a life-or-death fight, you don’t fight fair.
Counter by decriminalizing everything to do with violations of US intellectual property. Ignore all US patents. Let Canadian drug companies make pharmaceuticals without having to pay for a US license. Let repair shops disable the DRM systems that prevent HP printers from accepting any old generic ink. Let Canadian broadcasters show US movies and TV shows without kicking back money to Hollywood. Let Canadian farmers repair their tractors without first kicking back money to John Deere. Allow anybody who wants to to jailbreak iPhones, and sell kits that allow other people to do that. Free Canadians from having to kick 30% of every purchase back to Apple in California.
Sounds like heaven to me
Counter by giving Luigi Mangione diplomatic immunity.
That was Cory Doctorow’s recent take on it too. Trump just threw out the trade agreement with Canada and Mexico he was so proud to say was his accomplishment, after renegotiating NAFTA. They really should say fine, stew in your own mess. Ignore patents, crank out cheap pharmaceuticals, forget about DRM. Nationalize US factories on their soil. Will hurt for a while until new trade is established, but there is the whole rest of the planet to trade with.
This is extreme and could warrant an invasion from the US. Wars have been fought for less. Look at what happened to Guatemala when they wanted to take back some of the half off their farmland owned by Chiquita.
Canada is a mid-sized power but not really in a position to flaunt US power like that
Canada is part of Nato. Isn’t trump going to leave Nato? So that would mean all of Nato would be on Canada’s side. That is one hell of a leg to stand on.
Nato doesn’t have the navy to help Canada in a fight. Assuming America isn’t torn apart by a civil war as factions of the military defects and there’s a revolution in the streets. (60/40 at that point. Fighting a century old ally is a red line that would absolutley cause a civil war)
the US navy would chuckle as the french and british and other relevant navies lie at the bottom of the atlantic. And at that point, Russia moves in and Europe is in a land war while the US decides to partner with Russia.
Britain and France also have thermonuclear weapons. Britain has Vanguard-class ballistic missile submarines and France has Triomphant class ballistic missile submarines, and both have nuclear capable fighters and bombers. If Europe is to fall - let the whole world fall with it.
I know, it’s a nuclear option. Seriously shouldn’t put that card down right off. And yeah, hasn’t gone well for any central or south american government that the US has destabilized or overthrown due to some large corporation’s interests. But as all this garbage escalates, bringing up the possibility could make owners and shareholders squirm a bit. It hurts them financially, the only thing that would make them care. People who Trump might (might, small chance) listen to. But before that point? Those companies can produce all kinds of things. Doesn’t mean Canada or Mexico have to let those goods go out across their borders. Their trade agreement has been torn up by Trump again. And you know that bureaucracy is complicated, things get held up in customs sometimes, occasionally for very very long times. Paperwork gets lost… When companies here in the US are screaming about their supply lines breaking down again, now because of HIS stupid tariff war, there will be some negative political fallout. Trump’s ego and image are vulnerable things despite all the bluster. He won’t back down, but he could pivot to something else and let this nonsense drop.
This is an insane hypothetical but the worst thing is I can totally see Trump declaring a “military intervention into the Canadian comunist takeover of US interests and property” or something like that
As an American, I will join the war on Canada’s side if my country decides to invade.
Canada should make nuclear weapons. Such is life in the shitter multiverse. I’d want my commune to have nukes to. Humans are psychotic hairless monkeys and are untrustworthy.
the rest of the world is too chicken shit. there is no rest of the world to trade with as the us cries to everyone that they need to embargo nation X.
I wish this comment (merc’s comment) would get bumped to the top of every post related to the tariffs. Tit for tat tariffs is stupid with predictable results. Strategic tariffs and other targeted mean of retaliation are better. Why is there only a 10% tariff on oil? Because the US needs Canada’s oil. You fuck with our economy we fuck with the resources we give you at a discounted rate. Look at CUSMA (hehe. or NAFTA or whatever broken trade agreement that was) and target the industries that the (US) wanted to protect.
And for people using the tired fight analogies - just because someone tries to punch you in the face doesn’t mean you punch them back in the face. You have already been training to kick them in the fucking balls.
Tit for tat tariffs is just political posturing for weak leadership.
Also, this is a fight against a much bigger opponent. Not only is the US population 10x bigger and their economy more than 10x bigger, that size means they have a lot more trade partners, whereas Canada is pretty isolated and trades mostly with the US.
If you’re up against a much stronger opponent in a life-or-death fight, you don’t fight fair.
STOP!! I can only get so errect!!