Allies Divided: Canada and the United States
Once upon a time, my country had a brother.
He was a loud brother, somewhat arrogant and prone to beating his chest and cranking the music volume too high, but he had our backs and we had his. The United States is a powerhouse, and owing to our shared border and long history of cooperation, our relationship has always been strong.
Well– except for a few brief rocky periods in the early days of nationhood, like the War of 1812 or the Lumberjack War. We weren't even technically Canada yet when that happened, so do they even count?
Still, a few scuffles in the distant past don't negate the strong degree of trust we've built.
In many major wars, Canada has stood by the United States. We're more cautious than you are, often looking to the United Nations to grant purpose before joining the battle, but we've never been far behind.
We're especially keen to offer help when our brother nation comes under attack.
When the attack on Pearl Harbor happened in 1941, Canada declared war on Japan even earlier than the United States. We stated our intention to retaliate the day it happened, a full day before the President of the United States did. Our declaration of war was approved by the King the next day, making our nation the first to act.
We did our fair share of horrible things during the conflict, too– both of our nations built concentration camps for Japanese citizens. It's a mark of shame on our country's name.
Nobody messes with our brother. We'd been in the war even longer than they had, owing to our membership in the Commonwealth, but we took time out of the fighting to stick up for our family.
When the 9/11 terrorist attack grounded planes from the United States, those Americans who landed in Canada were greeted by the locals with open arms and doors. Every American stranded in our nation found free room and board, a warm place to sleep and a hot meal.
We value hospitality, we value freedom, and we try to take care of our own. We don't always do it right, but we try.
And we do consider Americans to be 'our own.'
Most Canadians know people on the other side of the border. Many businesses operate on both sides of the line, with strong trade connections between our countries keeping a constant flow of shipping back and forth.
More than $3.5 billion in goods cross our border daily, with America being our largest trading partner and Canada being one of America's most reliable allies.
But the bond is not just built on business; many of us have friends and family that cross the border, too. Many people have immigrated back and forth, cementing familial ties. My partner is one of them; he has ties to Canada, not just through me, but also through marriage. His brother-in-law is Canadian by birth.
Many Canadians move south for the winter, living part of the year in America where the weather is warmer and more hospitable. In turn, many Americans vacation here in Canada to enjoy our wintry landscape and beautiful unspoiled wilderness trails.
We share quite a bit of our culture, too; we're distinct, but most Canadians watch American TV and movies and I've never met an American who didn't love Timbits.
They adore our inventions, too. Canadians invented everything from insulin to half of the sports Americans love– the sports that dominate the playing field of popularity originated in Canada.
Yes, even American Football. You're welcome.
Our two nations are truly siblings, born of rebellion against a domineering parent. Canada might keep in contact with Dad back home, but even so, we still turn to our brother first when times are tough.
We hang with each other through thick and thin. Our bond has always been unbreakable, built on the bedrock of solidarity and mutual sacrifice and gain.
Until now.
Our brother has fallen in with the wrong crowd these past ten years.
We forgave the first major rift easily enough; arguments about money and politics are going to happen from time to time. He made some new friends, got exposed to some new ideas and apologized. We set to work rebuilding the closeness we had lost.
Things were going great and we thought the bad years were behind us. Then the bad friends came back around, and here we go again.
Allow me to depart from the 'brother nation' metaphor, because at this point it no longer applies. America isn't our brother any more.
The President-Elect of the United States has picked battles with us before, slapping us with tariffs and demanding a renegotiation of trade agreements. We rode it out, dealing with economic strife and waves of sickness from imported produce as the Republican President stripped regulations and safety expectations.
And now, once again, he has come out swinging against our country– except this time, he's ditched the golf club and showed up with a sledgehammer.
25% tariffs on all of our goods? That's bad enough to shatter our friendship. Adding insults to the pile is just icing on the cake.
When our Prime Minister – our elected leader, the guy who runs the country of Canada– tried to explain to Trump how his tariff plan would damage our economy and ruin our friendship, he was met with extortion.
Trump 'joked' that Canada could avoid tariffs by becoming the 51st State.
Maybe that first jab could be let go. But then he did it again. And again. Repeatedly calling our Prime Minister 'the Governor of the Great State of Canada' and mocking our status as a sovereign nation.
And then the flavour of his comments took a turn for the far less funny, and far more alarming.
In a message to his followers on Truth Social, Donald Trump repeated his nonsensical belief that the United States 'subsidizes' Canada. He says this because he doesn't understand what a trade deficit is, and he views international diplomacy as a zero-sum game.
He told his followers the following:
"No one can answer why we subsidize Canada to the tune of over $100,000,000 a year? Makes no sense! Many Canadians want Canada to become the 51st State. They would save massively on taxes and military protection. I think it is a great idea. 51st State!!!" – President Elect Trump, on Truth Social
Note the difference in tone. Where's the 'joke' here? Who is he poking fun at?
Because as a Canadian, this doesn't sound like a joke we're supposed to be laughing at.
This sounds like the elected future leader of a foreign state trying to drum up support for annexation.
Before I wrote this article, I had a conversation with a friend of mine who served as an American soldier. He's a veteran, and he has lived on both sides of the border. He's familiar with the backwoods near where I grew up, and we've exchanged stories of adventure in the same mountain hills.
He asked me about how things were going here. He asked me if Canadians – the government and the people – are afraid.
I thought about that question for a little while. I read the news. I spoke to other Canadians. I looked at our government's response. And after all of that, I can only come to one conclusion.
No, we aren't scared. We're outraged.
Canada is presenting a united front against this hostility from a foreign power. Our Premiers are working in near-lockstep, planning retaliatory tariffs and defensive postures.
The Canadian people are similarly engaged. I've asked others how they feel, and I've listened to them vent. Insulted, furious, offended and sick of putting up with the manic behaviour of a schoolyard bully.
We aren't a particularly patriotic bunch when you compare us to the Americans, but when an external threat appears, we close ranks and put up our hands.
And I feel the same way. Decades of friendship, of mutual gain and fostering close ties and beneficial partnerships, and this man throws it all away for a few cheap political points with his ignorant voting base?
And they seem to think it's funny. They won't be laughing when we snap back.
Because here's the thing; the United States is a powerhouse, but so are we. Literally. We're your largest source of imported energy resources.
There've already been talks between the Premiers about turning off the lights for millions of Americans who benefit from our energy reserves, including hydroelectric, oil, and natural gas.
We're a manufacturing, mining, lumber and extraction economy. You depend on us for oil, metals and minerals. You're going to miss out on a lot of your vehicles and nuclear materials, too. There are other sources, but not nearly as friendly and accommodating as we've been in the past.
Did I mention plastic? That's our export, too. Oh– and pharmaceuticals. And agriculture products and equipment.
We aren't a pushover, and we do have clout.
A few days ago, our federal government launched a plan to build up the border in an attempt to head off Trump's tariff threat at the pass. One last attempt to appease him, cool the temperature and keep the lines of communication open.
Whether that'll work is anyone's guess, but knowing Trump, his ego won't let him take the win and sit down.
He can pull all the stunts he likes; we're prepared for his next tantrum.
There's a stereotype in the U.S. that labels Canadians as polite, friendly, pacifists who always look to cooperate and wouldn't hurt a fly. They consistently describe us as chill and easy-going and insist that we barely even have a military.
They're half right. We're generally easy to get along with.
As long as you treat us like family.
When we're pushed into conflict, we have a different reputation. Ask wartime historians about Canada's military history. We built an army from nothing during World War I and became a force to be reckoned with within a few short years.
Canada has teeth.
We prefer to be friends and make peace when we can, but nobody stays quiet forever. Nobody endures hostility forever. Nobody withstands bullying, insults and mockery forever.
“There are three things all wise men fear: the sea in storm, a night with no moon, and the anger of a gentle man.”– Patrick Rothfuss, The Wise Man's Fear
Solidarity wins.
There was at least one other period where Canada was wary of our southern neighbor's motives. I was a bit young, but with the oil embargo of the 70's there was a concern over take over. It was a time of The Guess Who's "American Woman" and Richard Rohmer's "Exxoneration".
Go Canada, many of us in this nightmare stand with you. Trump speaks for a very small contingent of nutcases.