Talking about trade.....

[farmaholic]

Apples to apples, everything taken into account, I would like to see a comparison of what percentage of each country's population falls into the high, medium and low income bracket. I don't think it would be fair to use the same dollar range in the brackets either.

It's probably pretty easy to skew the comparison one way or the other. Salaries and goods/services might be higher in Canada than possibly lower salaries and cheaper goods/services in the US. Does that make us par, for the "average" citizen?

[littledoggie]

If Trudeau was serious about doing something to support Canadians he should axe the carbon tax.

How much has the carbon tax cost us over the years? What did we get for it? I don't know what those cumulative numbers would be, but if they were juxtaposed with 25% tariff? What would that look like?

[tubs]

Trump in my opinion is fighting comunismeand the WEF this will not get resolved till we get rid of Trudeau and liberal party. We have slid down alot in the last 9 years. Wokeisme is the path of these people. We are very bad in competing in the real world. It is going to be a very rough road for the next 2 years.

[furrowtickler]

Always interesting to look beyond the narrative being presented
//youtu.be/Hw2G5hyef2k

[sumdumguy]

Trudeau will not negotiate or back down. He wants utter turmoil, then he can stay planted on the throne - and maybe a convoy is the way to wake up this country again. Trump wants a true ally, not some petulant child over here pandering to terrorists, illegal immigrants and drug smugglers not to leave out Chinese gangs. Trump wants this mess cleaned up - and we should too.

[rastafarian]

sumdumguy- YOU are assuming Diaper don is a normal person, he IS NOT. This has F##K ALL to do with our border and fentanyl. He creates Chaos for Attention, he needs lots of it and can never get enough. Our leaders have to get over this thought that somehow spending money on Our border is going to change his mind. He is a Coward but knows he can pick fights with his ALLIES like Canada, Europe, Nato, etc but notice how he PRAISES Putin, Kim Jon and Pres xi . The fentanyl All comes from China but he only put a 10 % tariff on them?!?!
WTF

[AlbertaFarmer5]

I'll try to put a positive spin on this. Short term pain for long term gain.
Short term, it will be chaos on both sides of the border. If we escalate, will likely make Covid supply chain disruption look like child's play.

But.

For the first time in decades, it is now acceptable ( and necessary) to vote in an economically conservative government, who are pro business, pro energy, and won't have the luxury of chasing every other unicorn and woke cause. The adults will be back in charge, likely for a long time to come. Maybe it's not too late to turn the ship around. A country with every imaginable resource and an educated population can in theory be self sustaining. The current economic model of everyone working for the government, punitive taxes and regulations, artificially high energy prices, and a real estate bubble consuming all capital might finally come to an end. We can put those people to work in productive industries, invest in productive assets, use the cheapest energy on the globe. As the US cuts red tape and taxes, we will have no choice but to follow suit.

After decades of successfully dividing Canadians by region, race, religion, social/economic class, political affiliation and vaccination status, we now have a common enemy to unite behind. Nationalism might not be a forbidden word anymore. While I have no doubt that the purpose of these US measures is to split Canada apart, then pick up the pieces when we are at our weakest, it could backfire and bring us together. We saw a glimpse of this during the convoy when disparate groups came together against a common foe and discovered they had more in common than the narrative had been telling us. What has transpired in Russia since 2022, (even 2014), and the economic revival as a prime example.

The demand for energy, lumber, grains, meat, potash, car parts, etc. won't drop overnight. Just shift. If we get our act together and reduce interprovincial barriers, and allow export infrastructure to be built, we can take advantage of this, eventually. This might be what it takes to make that happen. A good time to invest in trucking, railroads, pipeline companies, shipping etc. It is just a lot further and a lot more expensive to transport across this patchwork nation than to use the natural trade corridors that exist north south.

Tariffs, and the money printing in response will certainly be inflationary for Canadians. Probably also for Americans. Farmers are well positioned to take advantage of that.

And if none of that works out, at least we in the west know that we will end up as American states. but instead of negotiating from a position of strength we will be begging to accept any possible terms.

[AlbertaFarmer5]

Also, in the positives category. We may actually get safer streets. This might be the impetus to actually get the drug problems and organized crime problems solved.

[AlbertaFarmer5]

Pollievre has discussed large cuts to taxes to counter the cost of the tariffs. The US is suggesting the same thing.
This could potentially be a complete wash. If both the sides replace income taxes with tariffs. Anything would be better than the current regressive income taxes which punish individuals and businesses for being productive and creating wealth.

[errolanderson]

Arlene Dickinson posted this today. A worthy read and opinion . . .


Arlene's post: Gather around for some facts. Trump is blaming fentanyl for his tariffs on Canada. No. This is a distraction to enable his tariff powers, and it’s not the truth.

The data proves it. Overdose deaths in the U.S. have dropped significantly in the last year. Canada plays a minimal role in fentanyl smuggling. The real crisis isn’t coming from us—and Trump knows it.

And let’s state the obvious—the primary sources of fentanyl are China and Mexico, not Canada. So if stopping fentanyl was really the priority, why slap a 25% tariff on Canada but only 10% on China? The answer is simple: this isn’t about drugs. It’s about power.

Just like the U.S., we don’t want fentanyl in our communities. We don’t want criminals crossing borders. If we share a common purpose, then we should be working together to solve these problems—not using them as an excuse to start a trade war. Then why is he? Because this isn’t about fentanyl. It’s about power and control.

Why is he making this the excuse? Because he won’t or can’t tell the truth: this is about him wanting Canada’s land, resources, and geography. He doesn’t want a trade relationship—he wants power and control. He has 100 days to seize it, and he’s using every day he has.

And for those saying, “Why won’t the White House negotiate?”—they already answered that question. They won’t speak to us because this was never about negotiation. They have said there is nothing we can do to stop this. So again, let’s call it what it is—economic pressure to gain leverage for what he wants, plain and simple.

Canada needs to see this for what it is. We aren’t just a trade partner to Trump—we’re a prize he thinks he can squeeze and that he desperately wants.

We don’t fall for distractions. We don’t get pushed around. We stand our ground.?

My comment: Kinda hits-the-nail square on-the-head doesn't it? Her comments call a spade-a-spade and what's really the target and the prize (IMO). . . .
?