Memo to Donald Trump and his supporters: Canada is NOT for sale. Canada is a sovereign country. Our sovereignty is non-negotiable. We love our country as much as you love yours. We do not wish to be the 51st state. We are your neighbour and your ally. It is disconcerting, to say the least, that the United States has elected a man who disrespects and insults our country. Canada has always been a loyal friend to the United States. Yet, Trump has never had a good word to say about the True North Strong and Free.
I guess Trump doesn't remember how Ken Taylor, the Canadian Ambassador to Iran, helped six American hostages escape from Tehran by procuring Canadian passports for them so they could pose as a Canadian film crew scouting locations. I guess he doesn't remember how the good people of Gander, Newfoundland provided hospitality to Americans travellers stranded during the 9/11 terrorist attacks? Has he seen the musical Come From Away? If he hasn't, he should.
Trump has threatened Canada with tariffs and "economic coercion." As I write this, there are reports that he will not impose the tariffs right away. However, that does not mean that he has changed his mind. He could impose the tariffs at any time. Canadians are preparing for a response to whatever he decides to do. After all, Trump has had the unmitigated gall to refer to the border between Canada and the United States as an "artificial line." We must be ready to respond to tariffs that will not only hurt Canadians, but will also hurt American consumers.
How dare Trump threaten a sovereign nation like Canada this way! Has he ever criticized his buddy, the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin? Never! Ha he ever said a bad word about another brutal dictator, North Korea's Kim Jong Un, to whom he has written "love letters." Trump really doesn't have any idea who America's real friends are.
Today is only the first day Trump's presidency, but he has already created chaos around the world. Americans will deeply regret allowing him back in the White House. He is a sick man, a dangerous man. He is dangerously unstable. Such a person should not be making decisions concerning wars and nuclear weapons.
Trump has not ruled out forcibly annexing Greenland and seizing control of the Panama Canal. You can be sure that Putin and his Russian oligarchy have been paying close attention to Trump's revival of Manifest Destiny. If they succeed in seizing control of Ukraine, the Russians now have the excuse to annex other countries such as Poland, since the American leader also advocates annexing other territories.
As Joe Biden warned in his farewell address, an oligarchy is forming in the United States. Trump has surrounded himself with billionaires, men such as his co-president, the unelected Elon Musk. Other billionaires, such as Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg and Rupert Murdoch are happy to do Trump's bidding. In return, he will deliver tax breaks to them.
For me, this is a very sad and tragic day. I am upset, and I have a right to be. I am appalled to see my neighbours to the south under the control of an authoritarian and undemocratic leader. Some will say that Trump was elected democratically, whether I like it or not. They will say that he won the election fair and square. Here is my reply to them. Donald Trump should not have been permitted to run again as president because he does not respect democracy. In 2021, he supported a violent insurrection against the duly elected government of Joe Biden. That alone should disqualify him from running for public office.
When Biden won the 2020 election. Trump refused to admit defeat. He screamed that the election was a scam, even though there was no evidence of widespread fraud. Not surprisingly, Trump isn't calling into question the legitimacy of the 2024 election. Hmmm. I wonder why.
Today is Martin Luther King Day in the United States. Just imagine how Dr. King would feel about a white supremacist becoming president for a second time. I wonder how Bobby Kennedy would feel about his son, RFK Jr., supporting a man who want to trample over civil rights, a man who plans to deport millions of undocumented Americans and separate them from their families.
Trump has shown no respect for women. He and J.D. Vamce seem to regard them as second class citizens, only useful for reproduction, housekeeping and child rearing. What a terrible setback for the female sex! How wonderful for Alpha males and men with a locker room mentality!
Canada and other countries must remain vigilant. We must not succumb to Trump's bullying. We must not run to his Mar-a-lago palace to kiss his ring. Sadly, the entire world all have to pay the price for the folly of many of the American people.
- Joanne
