Canada, Greenland, Mexico, etc - USA Tariffs / Trade War commencing March 2025 #5

[Cedars]

Thank you @detective.moon for posting this. Ruth Ben-Ghiat is an expert on this subject. I just finished watching this and I encourage/implore EVERYONE to do so, even (especially) Trump followers. This is a historical discussion of dictators. It is not an attack on Trump. She barely mentions him, but it’s easy to see the connections. An interesting point she explains is why people are drawn to support dictators.

JMO

Sorry, I couldn't listen. She is a professor of Italian history, therefore is only qualified to talk about Mussolini in the 1920s -1940s. He, Hitler and Franco imposed their different doctines on newly formed nations carved out of the ruins of WWI, that had never experienced a functioning democracy, amid widespread fear of communism spreading from the Russian Revolution.

There are many type of authoritarianism. This video features 2 scholars who have studied current politics, not that of 100 years ago;

JMO

 

[LovesPeace2]

#4,693 example of Trump's unintended consequences.......( call it fate ,call it karma, call it human nature... )

Trump effect leaves Canada’s Conservatives facing catastrophic loss

Pierre Poilievre had hoped to be the next PM, but a sharp change in mood amid Trump tariffs has the party in turmoil

www.theguardian.com

Trump effect leaves Canada’s Conservatives facing catastrophic loss​

Pierre Poilievre had hoped to be the next PM, but a sharp change in mood amid Trump tariffs has the party in turmoil....

As recently as February, Poilievre enjoyed a 25-point lead over the governing Liberals. Pollsters estimated he and his party were on track for an unprecedented victory.

But with less than two weeks before Canada’s federal election, one of the sharpest polling shifts in the country’s political history now has the Conservatives trailing well behind the Liberal party. The abrupt change in the country’s political mood – largely the result of Donald Trump’s tariffs and threats to annex Canada – has prompted infighting within the Conservatives party as it faces what is likely to be a catastrophic loss.

(more at this website)

I think PP's biggest mistake was talking about our gun laws and changing it to how the USA's is .that's biting him in the butt. Most figure he would be worse then Harper was. Jmvho

 

[Lilibet]

Sorry, I couldn't listen. She is a professor of Italian history, therefore is only qualified to talk about Mussolini in the 1920s -1940s. He, Hitler and Franco imposed their different doctines on newly formed nations carved out of the ruins of WWI, that had never experienced a functioning democracy, amid widespread fear of communism spreading from the Russian Revolution.

There are many type of authoritarianism. This video features 2 scholars who have studied current politics, not that of 100 years ago;

JMO

Oh, I’m so sorry you couldn’t listen. I’m quite surprised at your unwillingness and disparaging attitude toward Ben-Ghiat. Ben-Ghiat’s expertise extends far beyond what she has been hired to teach, as is true of most professors. She has written a well-received book “Strongmen—Mussolini to the Present,” clearly having studied politics more recent than “100 years ago.”
Description:
Ours is the age of the strongman, of heads of state who damage or destroy democracy use masculinity as a tool of political legitimacy, and promise law and order rule - and then legitimize lawless behavior by financial, sexual, and other predators. Covering a century of tyranny, this book examines how authoritarians use propaganda, virility, corruption, and violence to stay in power, and how they can be opposed.

Strongmen | Ruth Ben-Ghiat

ruthbenghiat.com

What I appreciated about Ben-Ghiat’s video is that she is answering questions posed by regular people.

I will certainly watch the video you have linked.

 

[Trooper]

I think PP's biggest mistake was talking about our gun laws and changing it to how the USA's is .that's biting him in the butt. Most figure he would be worse then Harper was. Jmvho

In a parallel universe, if only Trump was as good a business man as his fans shout about.. In this other universe , which a wiser man than Trump but with the same vision, would wait until Pierre was elected, which was quite on the cards, Trump has stirred up enough trouble for Trudeau, who read Trump like a book , he'd moved him sideways and Pierre was now in the pole position, if that had gone smoothly, he might have got Canada , and Canada's oil, and 90 day wheat and water and electricity and whatnot in one smooth bundle. But he was too impatient.

Additionally , he would have only had to wait another 3 days after Canada's election to work on the winner of the AU election, which , if it wasn't for Trump. might well go Conservative, if with less seats, but a win's a win. . Then he could have made his ranchers happy, they could send their defective beef to AU, without breaking a sweat, he'd get no opposition from a AU Conservative..

Patience. Without it, you are a bumbling fool, and if you are unable to see round corners, you are a dangerous fool .

 

[TootsieFootsie]

re boycotting the Olympics being held in the US.
Normally people would have nothing against an Olympics being held in the US

It's the worry that people from other countries, innocent people, have about whether they may end up through no fault of their own in prison and possibly deported to a prison where they may likely lose their life.

If I was an athlete or any of the support team, there's no way I would go.

Edited to add because I've just read the post that said there may be a month or two covering the Olympics where the current deportation system might be paused.

Having seen the current government in action I wouldn't trust that they would keep their word.

 

[MelmothTheLost]

I am not a fan of those mega ships. Just the idea of being on a ship with 5000 passengers gives me the willies. I am most comfortable with PAX of around 2000. They don't have go cart tracks or mega water slides but that's fine with me. Part of the problem for me is when you go on ships that size they have a lot of kids. I'm not against kids when they are well behaved but I feel that parents that take the kids many times think they are in some kind of environment that everyone will be keeping their eyes on the kids while the parents do their own thing. I won't go near a hot tub if lots of little kids are in it. I question the composition of the water - 80% water and 20% pee.

I agree with you about the smaller ships being able to dock at smaller ports. Apparently one cruise line had to radically change their itinerary when doing Scandinavian cruises because of the lack of maneuverability of the larger ships around fjords.

I have never been on a cruise, but from what I know the industry is big enough to cater for different interest groups with dedicated sailings, whether that is families, adult-only, over-50s, furries or naturists. That's more difficult, obviously, with the mega ships but much easier with the smaller ones.

 

[branmuffin]

I have never been on a cruise, but from what I know the industry is big enough to cater for different interest groups with dedicated sailings, whether that is families, adult-only, over-50s, furries or naturists. That's more difficult, obviously, with the mega ships but much easier with the smaller ones.

My main requirements to go on a ship is around 2200 passengers, at least 7 days long to avoid the hoard of kids, and have fair amount of sea days. A lot of people hate sea days. I love them. My favorite is transatlantic cruises. I would like to go on a Holland America Line cruise. Very few kids, and an older clientele. Their usual passengers are described as 'the newly wed and the nearly dead'.

 

[iamshadow21]

Very, very glad I chose to buy my PS5 a few months ago. There's no way I could have afforded it after the price hikes hit and gaming is part of my mental health maintenance.

The cost of gaming is soaring – but for many fans, a game is ‘worth’ more than its price tag

As tariffs raise the price of consoles, is it time for gamers to reevaluate our relationship with new releases?

www.theguardian.com

MOO

 

[Lilibet]

Very, very glad I chose to buy my PS5 a few months ago. There's no way I could have afforded it after the price hikes hit and gaming is part of my mental health maintenance.

The cost of gaming is soaring – but for many fans, a game is ‘worth’ more than its price tag

As tariffs raise the price of consoles, is it time for gamers to reevaluate our relationship with new releases?

www.theguardian.com

MOO

I’m not a gamer, but I enjoyed the article. Very interesting. I’m sure many of us will be seeing higher prices for our various forms of “mental health maintenance” (I like that ).

 

[iamshadow21]

I’m not a gamer, but I enjoyed the article. Very interesting. I’m sure many of us will be seeing higher prices for our various forms of “mental health maintenance” (I like that ).

Like mobile phones, console systems are one of those things that is a truly international product, from the raw minerals, to the components, to assembly, to distribution. Sony (PlayStation) and Nintendo are both Japanese companies. Xbox is part of Microsoft, a US company.

I looked at every bit of packaging from the accessory I bought for my PlayStation last week (the only thing I hadn't bought earlier, I bought it now knowing prices are going to go up sharply) and every bit was made in China. I haven't looked at my Nintendo Switch packaging, but I bet it says the same.

Yes, consoles are used for gaming, but they're often used as a multimedia device for playing DVDs or Blurays, or streaming television using apps, too. They're important for a lot of people's mental health. Lots of people use them to play games with other people, either friends or strangers. I don't, I prefer solo games (or couch co-op with my partner), but I understand it. If gaming becomes even more unaffordable than it already is (I buy most of my games secondhand or buy tiny indie titles for a reason) then a lot of people are going to be left out in the cold. This is on top of the fact that the tariffs on China are going to kill the tabletop gaming industry.

Tabletop industry in full panic as Trump tariffs are poised to erase decades of growth

‘Devastating consequences’ on the way, says trade group

www.polygon.com

So, people who rely on games for social, emotional, and imaginative survival and support are facing the very bleak possibility that on multiple fronts, there is a future where that release is inaccessible to them.

MOO

 

[Lilibet]

Like mobile phones, console systems are one of those things that is a truly international product, from the raw minerals, to the components, to assembly, to distribution. Sony (PlayStation) and Nintendo are both Japanese companies. Xbox is part of Microsoft, a US company.

I looked at every bit of packaging from the accessory I bought for my PlayStation last week (the only thing I hadn't bought earlier, I bought it now knowing prices are going to go up sharply) and every bit was made in China. I haven't looked at my Nintendo Switch packaging, but I bet it says the same.

Yes, consoles are used for gaming, but they're often used as a multimedia device for playing DVDs or Blurays, or streaming television using apps, too. They're important for a lot of people's mental health. Lots of people use them to play games with other people, either friends or strangers. I don't, I prefer solo games (or couch co-op with my partner), but I understand it. If gaming becomes even more unaffordable than it already is (I buy most of my games secondhand or buy tiny indie titles for a reason) then a lot of people are going to be left out in the cold. This is on top of the fact that the tariffs on China are going to kill the tabletop gaming industry.

Tabletop industry in full panic as Trump tariffs are poised to erase decades of growth

‘Devastating consequences’ on the way, says trade group

www.polygon.com

So, people who rely on games for social, emotional, and imaginative survival and support are facing the very bleak possibility that on multiple fronts, there is a future where that release is inaccessible to them.

MOO

My son-in-law is a gamer, but we’ve never lived close enough for me to know much about it. It’s sad to think about what the tariffs are doing in just this one area of interest. I’m sure there are lots of people sweating this out. I’ll have to check with him.

 

[MelmothTheLost]

I’m not a gamer, but I enjoyed the article. Very interesting. I’m sure many of us will be seeing higher prices for our various forms of “mental health maintenance” (I like that ).

It's going to be interesting to see how the tariffs play out in the consumer metal detector market.

There are some long-established US brands which manufacture their machines in the US, such as Garrett, Teknetics, Quest and White. I don't think Quest or White are exported in any numbers. We do see quite a lot of Garrett machines aimed (mostly) at the beginner to early enthusiast end of the market, and Teknetics which are mid-range.

However, the big players internationally are Minelab (Australian) and XP (French) at the top end of the market. Nokta (Turkish) are becoming popular in the mid-range. Then there are the long-established British manufacturers, C-Scope and Viking which rather traditional macines mostly sell in the UK at the beginner end.

One problem for the US brands is that they have been designed for the US market to be used in the sort of conditions that American users use them. Some have been designed for gold prospecting, but Minelab machines are better at that. Others are designed to be sensitive to modern (milled) coinage, modern jewellery and modern artefacts. What they are not very good at is finding old coins and the enormous variety of much older relics we find in Europe, such as bronze Roman brooches, lead pilgrim badges, 17th century shoe buckles and suchlike.

What we have seen over the past decade is Minelab and XP machines, especially XP's Deus, making real inroads into the US enthusiast market because of their versatility and innovation. It's possible that tariffs may make foreign machines too expensive and send US users back to US brands, but I suspect that if this happens the US brands will continue to do what they have always done while the rest of the world continues to innovate.

 

[Kemug]

I’m not a gamer, but I enjoyed the article. Very interesting. I’m sure many of us will be seeing higher prices for our various forms of “mental health maintenance” (I like that ).

Mine is chocolate (and I don't suppose I'm alone!)

 

[MelmothTheLost]

Tabletop industry in full panic as Trump tariffs are poised to erase decades of growth

‘Devastating consequences’ on the way, says trade group

www.polygon.com

MOO

This is interesting, from the article:

“Some people ask, ‘Why not manufacture in the U.S.?’” Placko said in an impact statement. “I wish we could. But the infrastructure to support full-scale boardgame production — specialty dice making, die-cutting, custom plastic and wood components — doesn’t meaningfully exist here yet. I’ve gotten quotes. I’ve talked to factories. Even when the willingness is there, the equipment, labor, and timelines simply aren’t.”

I'm struggling to understand what the issue is with gaming dice. This is essentially moulded plastic with spots or other images on. Is there really no small company or workshop in the US that could produce dice, regardless of how many sides they have?

Maybe I'm missing something, but the components mentioned in the article are pretty basic. Wood. Plastic. Small metal castings. How difficult would it be to make boards for board games? Player tokens? Dice?

 

[SouthAussie]

"The following account is from multiple sources familiar with the meeting. Navarro wanted 25% across-the-board tariffs on all $3 trillion of imported goods. Bessent, who made a career as a Wall Street investor, warned of market turmoil and outlined various scenarios.

Heated words flew.

Navarro sneered: "You're doing the same thing they did in the first term. Don't pull this. Don't be him."

Advisers in the room later told people close to them that they interpreted that to mean don't be like then-Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin or then-economic adviser Gary Cohn, both former Goldman Sachs executives who served in the first Trump administration and pushed back against hardline tariffs ideas."

Trump inner circle warned of tariff consequences

 

[SouthAussie]

"Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) is sounding the alarm on an overlooked but mounting economic threat: the collapse of inbound foreign tourism.

Canadian flight bookings to the US are down a staggering 70% through September.
Accor SA reports a 25% drop in summer reservations from European tourists, citing negative headlines about US airport detentions.
Hotel rates in the Northeast have plunged 11%, a direct signal that international demand is evaporating fast.

Goldman estimates the pullback in travel and foreign consumer boycotts could carve out as much as $90 billion, around 0.3% of US GDP, in 2025. That would mark one of the steepest hits from travel sentiment since the pandemic rebound."

Foreign Tourists Are Boycotting the U.S.--And It's Bleeding $90 Billion from the Economy

 

[MelmothTheLost]

My main requirements to go on a ship is around 2200 passengers, at least 7 days long to avoid the hoard of kids, and have fair amount of sea days. A lot of people hate sea days. I love them. My favorite is transatlantic cruises. I would like to go on a Holland America Line cruise. Very few kids, and an older clientele. Their usual passengers are described as 'the newly wed and the nearly dead'.

I take it you're a fan of repositioning cruises, then?

 

[detective.moon]

Trump blasts Fed Chair Powell, saying his ‘termination cannot come fast enough’​

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/04/17/economy/trump-fed-chair-powell-termination/index.html

scary but unsurprising how trump wants anyone who says something he doesn’t like to hear fired

 

[SouthAussie]

Trump blasts Fed Chair Powell, saying his ‘termination cannot come fast enough’​

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/04/17/economy/trump-fed-chair-powell-termination/index.html

scary but unsurprising how trump wants anyone who says something he doesn’t like to hear fired

Especially when it is someone that Trump appointed who is warning about the economy ...


Powell was first appointed as Fed chair by Trump in 2018 and was later reappointed by President Joe Biden in 2021. His current term ends in May 2026.

(from your link)

 

[Lyanna]

California becomes first state to sue over Donald Trump tariffs

The state - the 5th largest world economic power - says it is being disproportionately impacted by the tariffs.

www.bbc.co.uk