New poll says 27% of Canadians view the United States as an 'enemy' country

How am I stuck in the country?

My government won’t issue me a passport.

Aside from the extreme financial and planning difficulties involved with emigrating, It’s exceedingly difficult for trans individuals to get a passport right now. The department of state has been destroying identity documents of anyone who is currently or has previously requested an official gender change and they are not providing any recourse or remedy to the issue.

Just a “please leave or you will be arrested” when asked what can I do to get a passport..

Have you ever considered how expensive it is to emigrate to another nation? And then there’s the acceptance part, which anyone who has gone through it can tell you, is VERY difficult.

The uncertainty surrounding it is just far too much for most people.

I don't have the financial wherewithal to pick up and move to another country. If I did I'd be out of here.

Money.

Also, people tend to have things like friends and family.

If I could gather all my friends and family with me and move out of this backwards ass shithole, I would. It's not that simple.

It's kind of weird, but I'm not surprised. Mexico is exotic and just has a lot more historically going on IIRC.

Canada's history goes something like: The French start trading furs with the natives, the colonial British show up, the British take New France from Napoleon the French, they decide to shotgun-marry the two into a new country after the US civil war, and then the country slowly transitions from being in a geopolitics-free bubble run by the British to one run by the Americans (with a period of worrying about the two fighting each other).

So, the big picture isn't exactly action-packed - in a way, we're having the most eventful period in the country's history now. (Of course, there's tons of other stuff if you want to look closer, including migrations, minor rebellions, the various schemes the British tried to thwart American expansion, constant flirtation with splitting apart again and Newfoundland joining)

Edit: Oh shit, I forgot the vikings. Yeah, they came and did viking stuff, and left some house foundations. Then all died out. And I should mention it had stuff happening the whole time before Europeans arrived, just no literate cultures to record it, so it's prehistory.

The Commonwealth of Nations, often simply referred to as the Commonwealth is an international association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire from which it developed. They are connected through their use of the English language and historical-cultural ties. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Commonwealth Secretariat, which focuses on intergovernmental relations, and the Commonwealth Foundation, which focuses on non-governmental relations between member nations. Numerous organisations are associated with and operate within the Commonwealth. It is known colloquially as the British Commonwealth.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_of_Nations

They are compromised.

Do I foresee little ProfessorNougatScience babies in the future...?

I understand that options aren't available to everyone

A mixture of emotions. In my case,

1.) I live in Illinois and bought a home in 2020 when the interest rate was 3.2% as a first-time homeowner. If I were to sell and look for a new home, the interest rate in Canada would be somewhere around 4%, plus the cost of living is higher compared to where I live. That's ignoring the complications that could come from obtaining a permanent work visa as a foreign citizen.

2.) I love my job as it is now and it may be difficult to find a job in the same field. Also, my wife recently found a job in her career field and for the first time wants to stay at her employer for the foreseeable future; working in public health and helping the people this horrible healthcare system is failing to care for.

3.) Family and friendship ties to the area.

4.) There's some semblance of hope if we stay. I do still want the best for everyone that I share this earth with. Even if it were financially viable for me to leave, there's millions that aren't so lucky. If I pack up and leave that's one less person voting for progressive policy and advocating for empathy in a country that has real projective power in the world.

5.) Illinois, as a blue state, is temporarily insulated from damaging policy that Trump is trying to enact. JB Pritzker has remained steadfast in his opposition to Trump and regressive political action.

I liken it to French opposition during the period of Nazi occupation. (Clearly it's not a 1:1 comparison.) The french resistance hampered Nazi wartime efforts just enough to keep Nazi logistics from being able to cross the channel and occupy Great Britain. If that were to happen, the United States wouldn't be able to set up any sort of staging area on the other side of the Atlantic ocean. Amphibious assaults would have taken place on the western coast of GB where there's cliff faces rather than the sandy beaches at Normandy. Maybe Germany is then able to allocate more troops to the eastern front in that scenario, who knows. But thankfully that's just a hypothetical and isn't something we have to ponder.

I downvoted you after your edit, because you're a little bit of a dick about it.

You're probably being down voted because of the presumption that we're not doing things. Protests, calling representatives, boycotts, mutual aid networks, etc. Some of us work directly in politics or directly in government, and do what we can in those spaces, too.

It's kind of irritating to get a finger-wagging admonition when you're exploring all options short of outright assassination. And if the suggestion is to just start shooting, well, I think it's asking more than you think for someone to choose to become a killer.

Those who are really going to do things about stuff shouldn't yap about it on social media. Loose lips sink ships.

Right now I'm in a holding pattern. There's a non-zero chance that Trump will be distracted by something shiny and we'll move on to the next fucking fever dream crisis. There's also a really, really good chance that if he does order to invade Canada, real shit will start to pop off here.

The reason you're getting downvoted is it's a problem even here in the country. It's the "Why aren't you doing anything about it?" to all of us.

In the case of me, I live 1000 miles away from the seat of power, our representatives actively are dismantling things we voted for, not national I'm talking, state level, because we're outright surrounded by the people who are actively cheering for this. (and the example of the voting against, state voted to get rid of the most strict abortion law in the country, legalizing it... and now the representatives on state level are trying to get a pregnancy registry "to try to stop preventable abortions." while the state rep at national level is trying to get a national abortion ban going. This is one of many many many things in the state by itself. Hell, I just learned the state just gained police control to the other city after they managed to vote that out.)

I didn't downvote, but I want you to read "What are you going to do about it?" out loud. Hell, you yourself said it's the apathy. But the fuck am I going to do? Show up and wave a sign at the people who already have shown they couldn't give a flying shit about our opinions? Or be there when the fight starts and be a martyr. The second option the best case scenario is getting to be like Tank Man, but honestly demographics I'd be one of the many forgotten in the Tiananmen Square Massacre. And that's what it's going to look like, because this administration you better believe is looking for an opportunity to go full martial law, and if we don't do it, their brownshirts will for them.

So the best I can fucking do is stock up, prepare, keep my head down, keep in contact with the people who are in the same boat as I am being in effectively enemy territory and use the privilege I have of looking like a standard white conservative to see how many I can keep safe when being that demographic is important.

Nice try. How long have you been working at DOGE?

There's a good chance that wherever you live, far-right candidates are making headway in your government. What are you doing about it?

What do you want people to say to you on the Internet that is owned and monitored by the same people doing this?

I don't know about them, but I've been attending protests and getting more locally involved. I live in a very blue state so haranguing my local reps won't do much since they're already on the same page.

Vote Yes when secession comes up?

As a Californian, I'm hella stoked for the future nation of Pacifica.

If NY and California just split off or joined with Canada...

Patrolling the Mojave? Nah, a stroll around the Night City should be nicer even.

Yeah, that's like the one part of America that holds mystique for me too. I guess American Samoa has the weird timezone.

It's 1933 Germany at worst. Give them some credit. /s

What part of the country already felt hostile? The South or some flyover state?

I have relatives who moved to the states, they tend to come down once a year since they have their own business and can easily take off time whenever, whereas for me as a full-time employee it's not so simple. I've already not visited the states in quite a few years so that part isn't a loss for me at least.

I dunno if they will visit this year though, that will be interesting to see what happens with that.

I think there’s concern about the fucking plane crashing on the way. 100% legit concern.

Wow friend, that's really reassuring buddy.

misinformation farms from Russia, China and North Korea

For those unfamiliar:

• Internet Research Agency

The Internet Research Agency, also known as Glavset, and known in Russian Internet slang as the Trolls from Olgino or Kremlinbots, was a Russian company which was engaged in online propaganda and influence operations on behalf of Russian business and political interests. It was linked to Yevgeny Prigozhin, a former Russian oligarch who was leader of the Wagner Group, and based in Saint Petersburg, Russia.

• 50 Cent Party

The 50 Cent Party, also known as the 50 Cent Army or wumao, are Internet commentators who are paid by the authorities of the People's Republic of China to spread the propaganda of the governing Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The program was created during the early phases of the Internet's rollout to the wider public in China.

Absolutely. Trump's and the Project 2025's "America First" strategy is essentially turning US imperialism inward on its own citizens now that the former global dominance is waning.

It's not even snark, it's a perfectly accurate statement!

But the majority of people here want this.

I’m honestly not sure this context is winnable.

Precisely the comparison I’ve been trying to make for a while now

Yep. I'm a cishet white dude but even just as an atheist I've never been a "real" American in the eyes of far too many. And now the Christofascists are seizing control.

I don't remember saying shit about us not handling this internally or going to war but you do you.

The idea that the USA is untouchable by global counterparts is absurd. Look at what Russia does to our elections with a couple of script kiddies. We can absolutely be targeted and displaced by outside forces, especially with the current crop of dipshits running the federal government right now.

I think I'm going to invade that ass

Referring to Canada as the "51st State" and their prime minister as "governor" is a direct attack and invalidation of Canada, its culture, and its people's distinct identity. This isn't just about sovereignty. This is about us trying to erase them

I wonder how things will change in the next few months.

It seems to me it would be such an obvious thing for Canadian companies to change their packaging to prominently feature Canadian flags, but that takes time. Until then, it's still a bit difficult to know which products are Canadian vs. American vs. made somewhere else.

There's a small chance that Trump will back down and try to play nice with Canadians. But, I doubt it. So, I don't think Canadians are going to start changing their mind on buying US products any time soon.

I wonder if retailers will make it easy too. They generally try to stay out of politics and don't want to alienate anybody. But, if anger about the US continues, people might expect retailers to make it easier to buy Canadian and easier to avoid US products.

I don't know what to even think anymore. Our neighbour wants to invade us but all our talent just ends up moving to the states anyway (at least in my industry) since they can make way more money. Housing is fucked, wages are fucked, and what does buy canadian even mean? from lablaws? fuck that, everything is a monopaly up here from groceries, telecoms, everything! What does it even mean to be canadian anymore? At least we've got our principals, I'm glad we're pushing back and taking a stance but I hate the direction this country is headed. Things are bad and theres no end in sight.

We've been breaking treaties for as long as we've been a country, just ask the remnants of the native peoples. We've had brief, shining periods as a force for good or scientific achievement, but mostly it's a big, racist shithole.

Also apparently told Europe that they're pulling out of there unless they accept the deal for Ukraine's surrender...

Was, but a joke :)

First of all, I personally did not turn my back on you. Trump and his fellow baddies did. Second, as I said in another thread, he legally cheated and probably illegally cheated as well. He knew he was going to win long before Biden showed he was old and his polls were bad. I think he even said something like, "Don't worry about the election, that's covered." or something like that.

It's probably wise not to trust us completely, especially in rural areas. I would treat us like family you lost touch with for a long time that you used to love to hang with, but you've heard some shady things about.

You have to understand, most Americans have no idea this is going on, or at least the extent. We live in an information dystopia.

Does that make us idiots? Yeah. But I think "disloyal" is the wrong word, and in fact many Americans are just overly loyal to the feeds and influencers warping their heads.

But the speed at which you turned your backs on us, and the lack of internal outcry speaks volumes.

With all due respect...

Canada's problems rank pretty low on most Americans concerns at the moment.

It's like if you're neighbor's house is burning down, and you come out to complain that the fire engine sirens woke you up from a nap and you're upset we haven't apologized yet...

Sorry and all that, but we have bigger concerns right now.

What would you do? He legally cheated and probably had a light mix of illegally thrown in. What exactly should I do?

Okay, tell me how we're supposed to stop the most heavily guarded dude on the planet with the biggest military. He also has every education and financial record on every citizen. Go...

You overestimate our fellow Americans.

I do not:

Trump's Job Approval Rating at 45%; Congress' Jumps to 29%