The irony is that in 2028, a state with the same population as Canada might hold a referendum about leaving America. This trade dispute just might push California over the edge, and I am not talking about earthquakes.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/01/24/country-of-california-secession-newsom-trump/77907859007/

and more recently

https://theharvardpoliticalreview.com/calexit-california-independence/

If America is so out of control and beyond the reach of the Rule of Law and the Constitution that it can elect Trump (recall that he is considered to be potentially a traitor to the Constitution by the Supreme Court), then it is definitely within the realm of possibility that California could separate.

  • Dead_or_Alive@lemmy.world
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    23 hours ago

    This is dumb, making any part of Canada a state would bring a laundry list of unfunded liabilities such as universal healthcare, retirement benefits etc. etc. The same goes for California, I doubt Canada wants to pick up the liabilities for Social Security benefits.

    • SpaceCowboy@lemmy.ca
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      17 hours ago

      In Canada when a budget doesn’t pass, the government doesn’t shut down. Instead all of the politicians are fired and they face an election where they have to explain to the voters why they couldn’t do their fucking jobs and pass a goddamn budget.

      The US would have to make significant changes to their political system so it doesn’t suck. Also change to the Canadian flag, the US flag is tacky as fuck.

        • SpaceCowboy@lemmy.ca
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          15 hours ago

          People aren’t liabilities. Thinking this way is why US doesn’t really have healthcare. Healthcare is a service, not a liability.

          Do you consider infrastructure and the legal system to be liabilities because the budget of these things scale with the population size? Or are they just things the government is supposed to do?

          So anyway, I don’t want to live in a country that thinks my health is a liability.

          • Dead_or_Alive@lemmy.world
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            6 hours ago

            Morally you are right but fiscal reality is, both governments are going to take on a lot of unfunded liabilities that don’t mix well with their current financial structure. Making the talk of absorbing parts of Canada into the US or Canada taking on California or other states a moot point. No population is going to give up their current benefits.

    • gramie@lemmy.ca
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      23 hours ago

      And it would burden Canada with a share of your $40 trillion debt. No thank you.

      • Dead_or_Alive@lemmy.world
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        23 hours ago

        Maybe, but it’s hypothetical. The point is neither side really wants to inherit the liabilities that would go along with integration. You aren’t going to just convince that population to go with out free healthcare or their social security either.

      • scrodumb@lemmy.ca
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        2 days ago

        Oh yes. Relentlessly vote against government spending then elect whoever is going to secure your region the most government spending. Classic USA right wing voter. If they learned literacy at an appropriate age this would still happen, they’re that stupid.

  • Lemmayng@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    Meanwhile, Trump wants the benefits of being a president without doing the duties of one.

    • shirro@aussie.zone
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      2 days ago

      There are 300 million more morons who either support him or are doing nothing serious to get rid of him. At some point we have to question if Trump is the problem or a symptom of a wider issue.

      • helpfulcamel@lemmy.ca
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        1 day ago

        This is the question. We pretend that is a MAGA thing or a Republican thing. But this is a deeply systemic concern with America – a hegemon finally opening acting like it. We’re learning the hard way, that sharing a bed with an elephant, friendly or not, is a danger one way or the other.

    • orbitz@lemmy.ca
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      2 days ago

      He only knows how to bully to get his way, without his previous handlers no way he’d give to some sort of deal that doesn’t make him top dog.

      So yes he’s a moron. Someone smart would make a good trade deal to appease certain producers of their country to make it seem likes he’s helping them.

      Nah eff that says Trumpy Dump since he’s unable to do one thing that doesn’t massage his ego and get glorious rewards. Amusing cause he could do so much to help and thought of better and bask in it (like you’ve seen him when he walks on stage with that fucking stupid smile), but nope be a jerk make your billions, screw everyone, then bitch when people don’t like you.

    • ILikeBoobies@lemmy.ca
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      2 days ago

      Yeah, trade has only ever benefited them and hurt us. That’s why we’ve been trying to get out of it since the 80s.

    • trebach@sh.itjust.works
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      2 days ago

      He has no concept of a mutually beneficial deal or how international relations work. Any deal where the other side walks away happy is a bad deal to him.

    • Jay@lemmy.ca
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      2 days ago

      Yup He doesn’t want a deal, he just wants our resources for free.

      • FreeBooteR69@lemmy.ca
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        2 days ago

        It’s worse than that, he wants us to pay him to take our resources. fdjt 86 47

        🍁True North Strong and Free 🍁

  • n7gifmdn@lemmy.ca
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    2 days ago

    How in the world do you come to the conclusion we want benefits of being a state?

    • Routhinator@startrek.website
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      23 hours ago

      Someone please explain what benefits there are to being a state at all? I don’t even want to travel there because of how fucked up their rights and laws are…

    • eurisko@lemmy.ca
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      1 day ago

      Discourse from the tripes incoherently disturbing the narrative at the surface. Trump always tells you what he wants to do. He cannot contain himself. Every idea seeps through his pores in the manner of freudian slips.

    • Nik282000@lemmy.ca
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      2 days ago

      Alberta has a wide-on for InDePeNdAnCe and Ford wants to wire Ontario with cameras. Our politicians send a lot of mixed messages.

      • n7gifmdn@lemmy.ca
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        1 day ago

        but neither of those are benefits of being one of the united states, are they?

  • betanumerus@lemmy.ca
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    1 day ago

    With that kind of spin, it’s only a matter of time before he gets dizzy and falls on his face.

  • reallykindasorta@slrpnk.net
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    2 days ago

    California secession is on the ballot every few years. I would be happy to separate but we probably need to take Nevada with us for water, unless Canada is willing to pipe us some.

    • BillyTheKid2@lemmy.ca
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      2 days ago

      Water is a trick. We have tons in Canada, and absolutely could pipe it, but it’s not cost effective. The length and size the pipe would need to be is too much.

      Desalinization is more effective, even with it’s crazy high cost. Using ultra hv to transmit our power to you and you use that for desalinization would be more effective.

    • oortjunk@sh.itjust.works
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      1 day ago

      Unwilling unless you made an example out of orange county. We will not tolerate any Trump relics in the new world. Period.

    • ProudCanadianCitizen@lemmy.caOP
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      2 days ago

      With the Colorado river drying up, you really think Nevada will be all that important? How much longer do you think you will still be able to get water from it? Desalination, water conservation, and water recycling (treat wastewater and use it for agriculture) and be free of the threat of Colorado water restrictions and climate change.

      But I am sure a deal could be worked out with Canada, in the framework of free trade negotiations. We also have lots of energy to sell!!! California and Canada have been great trading partners, until Trump messed everything up. I am sure a trade deal could be made in months, given enough incentive and cooperation.

      • Em Adespoton@lemmy.ca
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        2 days ago

        There’s already an agreement with Canada about the Columbia River, that Trump just barely avoided totally messing up.

        The problem is, the Columbia, despite the Arrow Lakes reservoirs, will eventually go the same way as the Colorado. For coastal states and provinces, viable desalination is very much the future, as is improved moisture capture for when global warming hits the point where water is dumped at volume where it precipitates at all.

        And despite Alberta, Cascadia isn’t really an advantage for BC; Canada’s strength is in its diversity. And Canada’s entire population is about the same as California’s, so any democratic nation made out of California and other states and provinces… would leave everyone but California at a disadvantage.

        • ProudCanadianCitizen@lemmy.caOP
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          2 days ago

          Unless they want to build dams all along the border, like Trump wants to build his fence, not sure they could stop the water from going where it is going to go.

          • reallykindasorta@slrpnk.net
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            2 days ago

            Hopefully they would be happy to come with us, the other side is a big dessert so not a great trading partner. Either way I’m sure we could muster something to exchange with you guys for water (or energy to get water like you suggest). Aligning with the water kings on the continent honestly seems like a a no brainer for the whole country but here we are.

              • reallykindasorta@slrpnk.net
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                2 days ago

                It occurred to me that I misspelled this while I was offline :D A dessert capital would have great trading opportunities, so my sentence is simply untrue as is.

            • ProudCanadianCitizen@lemmy.caOP
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              2 days ago

              It is my understanding that California ever did actually ‘join’ America of its own free will, it was given to America by Mexico as a ‘prize’. If the gold rush had started a decade or two earlier…

    • mikenurre@lemmy.world
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      2 days ago

      Las Vegas/Clark County will join without question. Washoe/Reno on the other hand… they’ll probably join eastern Oregon in their attempts to join Idaho.

  • MrSulu@lemmy.ml
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    2 days ago

    Not just Canada! The UK, European countries, Asian countries, New Zealand, Australia, African nations and maybe even Greenland are all desperate to be allowed to pay to become US states. Indeed, it’s the wish of every man, woman and child. … /s

  • henfredemars@infosec.pub
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    2 days ago

    Can we not? We’re barely holding together what states we have at the moment, several of which regularly propose leaving.