And the thing i don’t think Americans have accepted yet… there’s no going back. They can vote the democrats back in next year. But we - their traditional allies will never be there for them again.
America will forever be isolated as untrustworthy.
They need a constitutional reform, limiting the power of the president to do shit like this unilaterally
Along with abolishing the electoral college and gerrymandering
We’re supposed to have a new constitution every generation.
“There is no greater tyranny than that of the dead over the living.”
— Thomas Paine
The so called president doesn’t care about the constitution, judges or laws. He gets away with it.
And when you’re the US president, they let you do it
If a proper revolution happens US will be taken back for sure. The problem is that Americans are way too comfortable for any major change and have been for a long time.
They’re in for a lot of discomfort though. Like generations of it.
It’s not only being comfortable. Arguably western democracies are even more comfortable with healthcare, job security and more social climbing.
Is the mix of hyper individualism, zero civic culture, and crab bucket job economy.
I’ve been seeing “comfortable” a lot, but I think honestly it’s less comfort and more confusion. I know it’s popular to portray us all as lazy, drinking our Big Gulp slushies and watching sportsball, but that’s not the whole picture.
We all know it sucks, we might call our reps, our friends might go wave some signs…but ultimately we’re culturally unaccustomed to organization, and that part cripples meaningful resistance. As the commenter below me stated, “lack of civic culture” and “hyper individualism” nails it.
Okay, we all want different things, we all struggle at wildly different randomized shifts because most of us are one missed paycheck away from disaster, how do we know who our friends are? No no, not the “Yeah man, that sucks lol idk.” friends, the ones who will actually fight with you?
Consequently, we’re suffering a massive lonliness epidemic where a lot of people not only have very little civic ties, they don’t even have a network of reliable companionship! A lot of this is simply thanks to suburban dominance and nowhere left to meet that’s not charging admission.
I don’t think that’s particularly a take on americans being lazy but a general issue where developed world populations tend to be more obedient because of they’re stuck in the zone of comfortable compliance.
China is by far the most extreme example of this. It’s a complete autocracy but also the economy is great and consumerism rampant.
Even the MAGA crowd are aware of this, they just think it’s a good thing. The only thing americans can all agree on is that we have some serious housecleaning to do.
I don’t think that’s true. I think the MAGAs have lived in such a comfortable bubble of American privilege that they don’t understand the implications of all this. They’re used to making jokes about Canada, “basically being the U.S.,” and having free and easy travel on the border that they don’t think about the fact that it’s a sovereign nation with it’s own culture and interests. I think they see this as politicians arguing, not America becoming a hostile foreign power.
Even the administration doesn’t seem to get this. They just had to cancel a, “cultural,” visit from the Second Lady to Greenland because both the government and public told them they were unwelcome. Apparently, they’re so steeped in American privilege (and probably used to people dismissing Trump ramblings as, “bluster,” or, “hot air,”) that it didn’t occur to them that you can’t just make a fun, friendly visit to a country the President threatened to invade.
This is one of the weirdest things anti-maga types have begun spewing.
Germany started two world wars and they have not been ‘forever isolated as untrustworthy’. I can assure you, the world is laughing at the US and Trump and a lot of countries and groups are angry.
If you stuck a half decent person in the chair and apologised, retracted tarrifs etc, I’m sure it’d all blow over in a few years.
Now your internet racially motivated Civil war? Yeah I don’t think you’ll get out of that one
It took Germany decades and at least couple of generations to shake off the lable, and in a lot of cases they still do. Obviously it’s not forever, but decades might as well be forever if you’re trying to open an international business or whatever
Yeah, you’re probably right. But a lot of trust will still be gone, it’s hard to make serious commitments with a country that has a history of ripping them up.
If something takes more than 4 years it gets lumped into “never” territory because no political party wants the next party to get credit for their work.
Guarantee it took Germany more than 4 years to recover their reputation (and even then, not enough to do well in Eurovision).
Yeah… Okay then.
The problem other country have is they are owed and they owe other countries USD. Its been the reserve currency since before the US stole Europe’s gold, its the currency of our global financial system.
Three times they were given the choice, twice he won and the other time he still had a sizable base of support - even after fucking covid up.
From now on you just have to be ready for anti-democracy, pro-imperialist, incompetency to take control of the US. They might not even allow a democrat to ever take over the executive branch ever again.
I am reminded of Winston Churchill saying that Americans will do the right thing after they have exhausted all other options.
I just didn’t quite realize how far “all other options“ could really go.
I think we’ve proven ol’ Churchill wrong this time.
No, we’ve just really gotten good at finding other wrong options.
… and it wasn’t our fault either. They literally betrayed us. We helped them with the forest fires and they stabbed us in the back. The fact that there aren’t widespread revolts and mass demonstrations and labour strikes going on in that country right now tells us a lot about the people there and their values.
While I can’t fault your feelings, a lot of us are unable to do much without going homeless/hungry. Too many of us are living paycheck to paycheck, as by design, to do anything without losing what little they already have.
There are protests everywhere, the media is just downplaying/intentionally not reporting on them.
But we are very, very sorry. Many of us have been actively fighting against this fascist bullshit for years, since 2016/17. People like myself have alienated family and friends who support this fascist regime.
There’s always more someone like me can do, but the tradeoffs are getting worse and worse. It’s easier for me to just leave the country at this point and go to a country that aligns with my views and the way people should be treated.
It’s pretty wild that the median income before tax in the USA is less than the median income in Denmark after tax (based solely on income tax). Just to put things into perspective.
With that said, it will only get worse for the American people if they don’t get rid of this administatrion, and everything that has made it possible for this administration to do as it does. You think it’s hard to make ends meet now? What about when you don’t have any tradepartners anymore? Or when all your worker rights are stripped away?
While I can’t fault your feelings, a lot of us are unable to do much without going homeless/hungry.
So you are waiting for your personal turn on the DOGE chopping block?.. bit of advice, by the time they come for YOU specifically, it will be too late
Easier to hold the mountain passes than march on the capital. My elected representatives are already some of the better ones and anything more drastic needs large, organized groups and actions beyond my skill or resources.
Really, I’m banking on this fascist regime eating itself or outside help in the civil war.
Easier to hold the mountain passes than march on the capital.
Then do that!
Really, I’m banking on this fascist regime eating itself or outside help in the civil war.
The has the “we have tried nothing and are all out of ideas” vibe
I just recognize that the enemy is a well-connected and near-infinitely-resourced christofascist propaganda movement, and there’s no point in making a political or literal martyr of myself when I can support my family and friends through the current and future uncertainty.
Again, this is exactly the mentality that allowed the situation to be this bad
Alright smartass, tell me how I could have convinced millions of Americans thousands of miles away to vote different.
I don’t like this rhetoric. Mainly the last part where folks not demonstrating means we have bunk values. From my perspective we are an anti social bunch who generally suck at organizing. I don’t have an easy way to just join up in a mass protest and I barely know where to start. I am depressed and anxious. I am trying to do what I can. Want me to just not work?? Me and who??? How will I eat?? I’d love to demonstrate.
Being anti-social and not organizing are bunk values. America will never get better until we admit the ways in which it sucks.
Unionize! Start by just talking to your coworkers about pay. You can make a difference, but it will take a long time to unfuck.
I don’t value being disorganized and antisocial. It’s just where I am at the moment.
I appricate your tone. I feel like advice and support are needed. The person earlier wanted to condemn us for having not done massive organizations at the pace they felt we should.
I get that folks are angry. Fair. It’s sad to see the anger so misplaced though. To blame the citizens we’d have to have much freer and fairer elections IMO. Not that many people vote, and the president won by like 3%. America is know for having poor work-life balance.
Lots of folks are trying. I’d much rather solidarity in the working class, and punishment for those that actually made this happen. (That being the doner class, political establishment, heritage foundation etc)
This is by design. The oligarchs have spent decades consolidating power, paying politicians off for favourable laws and regulations, and forced the wage gap wider and wider. When reports come out saying a majority of Americans live paycheque to paycheque, they rub their hands in glee. The plan is working. You cannot afford to protest their take over of the government. You are a slave in almost every way. It is by design.
Oh, there are definitely protests here, you just aren’t hearing about them. They just aren’t making the international news. There are regular, frequent protests on the West Coast of the US, including Hawaii. Pro-federal worker protests, pro-union protests, anti-Trump/Musk protests, pro-canadian protests/celebrations. It’s on our local news often, but it rarely makes international news. People have been doing good work around here too, if you know what I mean. Stuff that enrages the fascists.
This goes for every country, except maybe Russia. Arrogant prick thinks the US doesn’t need anybody else. Those who aren’t rich who think that way will be doing the finding out as a result of his fucking around.
Our era of close ties with Russia has been over for a damn hot minute. Trump thinks he’s friends with Putin, but Putin just wants to cripple the US.
He’s so fucking stupid. I always like when reporters glaze on him before asking a question, since they know he’s so manipulateable to this kind of shit. Ofc they don’t mean any of what they say but he’s way too dumb to realize it.
Regardless of motivations, if the US government is friendly with Russia’s, it’s a close relationship.
I guess if you’re just looking at one side. To me a close relationship requires mutual commitment, like we used to have with Canada. Our appeasement of Russia isn’t closeness, it’s obsequiousness.
Good point.
Trump had permanently altered relations with the United States and that, regardless of any future trade deals, there would be “no turning back.”
“The old relationship we had with the United States based on deepening integration of our economies and tight security and military cooperation is over,” Carney said.
that sounds pretty bad, but it’s not very specific
As it has to be. What Trump does next and what happens in Europe will play a big role in the details.
This really sucks for the still sane Americans
True but honestly we kind of deserve it.
I guess but a lot of us have been fighting against this rise of Nazis but we’re up against a multibillion dollar brainwashing machine and billion dollar facist think tanks. I don’t think a lot of us deserve this because we have been trying. I don’t see this ending without violence and unfortunately our side is losing so we better get our shit together.
We deserve to no longer be able to boss everyone around with our “soft power,” but it shouldn’t have taken a fascist takeover to get there.
Border states, snowbird states, and dual citizens are going through it. This is likely the worst diplomatic move in recent American history.
Sucks for us Canadians, too.
I want to leave but cant even imagine any country that would take me.
As well it should be. Even if we get our act together and elect another sane president, we’ve demonstrated that we’re happy to burn every single bridge we’ve spent so long building, and that it isn’t some one-off fuckup either
The US will have to crawl through the door on the right if they ever want to have any kind of decent relationship with other countries again. And we will NOT be getting our favored status that we’ve enjoyed since the end of WWII back. As the British Empire went, so too does the American Empire.
The US shouldn’t even continue to exist as the single entity it is today. I think five to eight large states is probably ideal. Cascadia, Rocky Mountains, Great Plains, New England, the South, the Great Lakes region, and something needs to be done with the Alaska, Hawaii, and our various non-state territories like Puerto Rico and American Samoa.
It’s simply too big and diverse to effectively govern.
The problem is that the cultural divide is largely urban vs. rural, which is spread out all over the country.
That’s one level of the divide, yes, but it’s reinforced by the rest of the structure. “Bioregionalism” suggests that cultures are more stable when they are contained within bioregions of climate and geography. People are more invested in what they perceive as their local environment and they are more likely to “feel heard” by others with that same stake. The current political borders, arbitrary as they are, push people to seek that connection in either protective isolation or a broader social identity.
It’s a relatively new idea (1970s) as far as political science goes but I find it compelling.
The other problem is that we let a right-wing propaganda apparatus operate unchallenged that began with the Nixon fallout and accelerated with Rupert Murdoch’s creation of Fox News in 1996 and that’s gonna take a few generations to unfuck no matter what else is going on.
I don’t know why Canada and Mexico haven’t done a press conference where they rip up the USMCA agreement.
MEXI-CAN trade agreement?
Very difficult, as most traded goods pass through US boundaries via train/truck.
More “regular” trade agreements between individual states is generally more likely going forward I imagine, but the sort of integrated supply chains that we’ve all benefited from in North America for like… decades and decades… is pretty well toast.
Eg. the US wants to build their own cars, in country. This means Canada and Mexico will likely also need to build their own cars, in country. Mexico has a bit more of an opportunity to build up integrated supply chains with countries in south america, though they tend to be a bit less stable – the proximity is a win. It’d be really cool to see if they did though – not sure what sorts of free trade agreements are around in the south, honestly.
Canada is busy trying to shore up agreements/trade with areas like asia and europe, as those are ‘sorta’ the same distance/calculus as shipping things via sea to mexico / south america.
It’d also be interesting if the waning of the US hegemony results in more western countries trading with traditionally ‘blockaded’ countries. Cuba has long been a Canadian vacation spot, but trade with Cuba has been limited due to US pressure. Given the current state of things, I don’t see why Canada wouldn’t increase trade there. And given the state of Cuba currently, it could be really beneficial for both country’s people.
Better than a Mexican’t.
Over 80% of exports go to the US, and without those exports Canada’s debt load will implode the country. Its not actually an option to just accept the tariffs.
I’ve got a sign up sheet going for New England secession if anyone wants in
Northeast South Canada, checking in here! My people moved into this land just a few generations ago. The motherland calls…
It’s where my great grandparents came from! Homeward bound!
Elbows up, buddy!
The USA can gargle my balls.
You’d trust them to?
Chomp
Well this got me off the toilet.
The government and its supporters, anyway.
That’s over 75 million people.
Which means 265 million people remain who don’t.
Nah those who didn’t bother getting off the couch to vote ushered in Trump, so they can gargle balls too.
Okay, that leaves 175 million people, then. More than the population of any country in Europe. Including Russia.
Well, yeah, what else would the US expect? Sincerely, a pissed off hoser
This is it gentlemen. A new era begins!
I vote we all change the name officially to the United States of Mexico.
