In a language they understand

Fairness is not a language understood by officialdom in the United States; I don't think it ever was. This is a land infuriatingly self-assured that it knows what is best for other countries better than they themselves know; moreover, that it is above or outside the rules of common international intercourse, even those ones it has official agreed to, such as the North American Free Trade Agreement.

How many times now have various bodies told the United States that Canada's lumber policies do not constitute dumping, and ruled that the US must admit our lumber and return the duties? And yet, time and again, the US, supposedly our best friend and closest neighbour, flouts the rules and ignores the rulings, and has announced it has every intention of doing so once again.

Clearly, no agreement concluded with the United States is worth the paper upon which it is printed. And so...

It's time we got out of NAFTA.

Call up Washington, and give notice. Start diversifying our trade. I, as I've expressed previously, am of the opinion that greedheads in the US have allowed the American economy to be hollowed out... jobs, technology, expertise, production... they have all been leeched off to other countries, particularly China and India, over the past 15-20 years. I believe that China, which holds huge amounts of US currency in reserve and a vast share of US foreign debt, will eventually lower the boom on the US when the time comes to humble it as a rival. The weapon has been placed in their hands by the Americans themselves. We need not be standing any closer to them than necessary when it goes off.

Secondly, it's time to start talking with some teeth. None of this nonsense about countervaling duties on breadcrumbs and swizzlesticks. Enough of that. It's time to place an embargo on the US. Deny them our oil. China wants it, desperately. Let's sell it to them instead. If they want to get tough with us, they'd better remember we're in NATO, and anything above and beyond would shatter the Atlantic alliance and truly and finally utterly isolate the United States. We are also in NORAD. Their secrets are, by and large, our secrets...

It'll be hard, but I think the time has come. If Canada is to survive the coming collapse of the US as the preeminent power in the world, we need some distance, at least economically. We're dependent on a guy who's due a massive heart attack. We better start finding other patrons. And also reminding him we're a friend due respect and due process.

There are a lot of fine people in the United States. But unfortunately, they're not calling the shots. They're not the ones who need the message we have to send.