SpankyMcFarland

Americans wouldn’t be getting their milk without all the undocumented workers in that sector and yet Trump a) promises to send all these people home and b) demands that we accept more of this illegally-produced product.

Is that surprising, though, given our particular vulnerability to the US and Trump? Any blame for this needs to start with our enemy in the WH who speaks more fondly of Xi than Carney these days. France, Germany and Italy are protected to some extent by being in the EU.

Trump threatens tariffs on 60 trading partners including UK and Canada over ‘forced labour’ https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jun/03/trump-threatens-tariffs-60-countries-forced-labour Proposal for 10-12.5% levies, to also include EU, Taiwan and Australia, would allow US president to skirt court-imposed limits Is Mr Greer aware of the hundreds of thousands of undocumented workers in the US agriculture sector and the effect on the playing field they have?

Our economy is under attack by our largest trading partner. A recession would hardly be surprising under such peculiar circumstances.

Secular liberal democracy is the best form of government if a country is developed enough to support it. Let’s not forget that the Shah was a dreadful tyrant. The mullahs are worse but that is scant praise for him.

Why not assess a person on their individual skills and knowledge? At the moment, the system makes it very difficult for foreigners to a) sit Canadian exams and b) even access the courses they are required to do to sit them. On multiple occasions I have seen truly excellent foreign candidates turned down from training programs for weak reasons that have little to do with how the candidate would turn out, eg, time out of clinical practice for an application to a pathology residency. They are going to spend the rest of their careers out of clinical practice for crying out loud. We have set up a Catch 22 situation where after the person has arrived here they will often become ineligible on this requirement because they are being blocked from further training. The Canadian training is good but it is not miraculously good. Much of this knowledge can be acquired online if a person is sufficiently motivated to do that. What we need is a genuine effort by the medical establishment, including the medical schools, to help IMGs get to the standard required by greatly increasing the training spots available and facilitating online learning wherever possible. Perhaps IMGs can pay for such training? I’d say many of them would be open to suggestions. Of course, more doctors will mean more costs. I’m afraid this means the private sector will have to expand if we want to cut those ER waiting times and not bust our health budgets at the same time.

But that’s a huge deal. What matters is what China can do now with drones and similar technology and what they will be able to do in coming decades. Quantity and cost are crucial in contests between nations. Britain pioneered the Industrial Revolution but was overtaken by other countries who copied its innovations. More recently, they were the leaders in the science around CT and MRI and where are they now? Being the first to invent something doesn’t entitle a country to anything in the future.

We can argue about what a fascist is for the rest of our lives. The more basic point is that the MAGA cult is deeply authoritarian and tribal. Its supporters yearn to return to a past that was whiter, simpler and less diverse.

So do the pro-Alberta independence crowd here think Canada should have the same rules on secession that the US has for its states?

Iran has never been an outcast country. West and South Asia have always looked to it for cultural sustenance. Even today, India has deep links with Iran and has no desire to see it destroyed.

The Americans haven’t learned the lessons of the drone age yet which events in Ukraine illustrated; the side with the cheaper kit has a decent chance if it can survive the initial assault. Methinks China is taking notes.

Both sides in that war are using Chinese drone technology. Look at what Hezbollah are doing with ultra-cheap FPV drones in Lebanon. Near future wars will also use tech that is mass produced and inexpensive. America is woefully unprepared for this revolution as many serious people on the right have already noticed. Its model is focused on tech superiority rather than volume and is ruinously expensive.

As I say, talk to anyone with real expertise in a particular area, eg, scientists, engineers, classical musicians. They are going to tell you the same story: China is where it’s at. I’m afraid that’s how things are.

How ill have you ever been? Serious brushes with death of any sort profoundly affect judgement, perception and the rest. The brain isn’t walled off from the rest of the body. Are you saying people with schizophrenia are chronically incompetent to make decisions about their own lives? What about people with cerebral palsy, stroke or MS?

I think I have answered it. I have spent a considerable period of time in my life with people who have suffered these chronic illnesses. Such patients usually have long episodes where they are competent to make decisions for themselves by any legal criteria; when they have a settled wish about their future it should be respected. I’m talking about times when they are not hallucinating or delusional and can answer reasonable questions about the reality around them. Grant them at least some agency to manage their own lives.

I have been advocating for better care for the mentally ill, especially for those with chronic psychoses, for a long time so I have no argument there. But again, at what age would you allow a person to apply for MAID who has suffered from a debilitating mental illness for decades? Sure, make it a complex process that protects the vulnerable and promotes informed consent as far as possible but shouldn’t this be an option at some age?

Let’s take a simple example: a 60 year old man who has been suffering from recurrent episodes of disabling, psychotic, paranoid delusions and auditory hallucinations for forty years. There’s no doubt about the diagnosis. His quality of life is very poor by any measure and has been so for decades. He’s in an extended interval of recovery and has repeatedly expressed the wish to end his life. I have no desire to see young people brought into the MAID program but at a certain point a line has to be drawn as it is with laws in many situations. Nobody should have to suffer indefinitely.

Remind me how easy it is for American states to secede.

Again, how long should somebody who has suffered from schizophrenia be prohibited from using MAID? I wouldn’t want to see people in their twenties using it but a sixty year old has surely reached a point to decide about their life?

There’s a pattern here. Of course, China is selling more of its own cars internally but it’s exporting like hell too including to developing countries:

Romanticizing? What are you talking about? The defence of the Gulf states was inadequate. That’s a simple fact. America and the West in general have been able to been watch a new form of warfare taking shape in Eastern Europe for years now but have failed to respond adequately.

Criticism is merited here. Concealing the truth does not help the US. America underestimated the damage Iran could inflict on the Gulf states and that was a key factor in this war. Given the vast difference in capability, I would expect the US to be far better able to do this job against a barely viable state like Iran than Ukraine is against a former superpower whose army is within its very borders. Imagine what the Ukrainian army could achieve against drone and missile attack if supplied with greater resources.

Business is a funny business. Just as the guys who own land around airports can see a better return than those building the actual airplanes, late night comedy shows seem to be making easier money for YouTube than their own investors these days. The model has to change.

The country to be tough with is China. That’s the key threat to freedom everywhere. Instead Trump was all cute and palsy-walsy over there. America needs a stable relationship with China but not one that obscures the profound differences that exist between the two countries.

It’s like arguing about whether Trump was found liable for lies about rape or ‘only’ sexual assault. There’s no point debating the matter with somebody like that.