The Gordie Howe Bridge as metaphor
Last month, I speculated that the chaos of the Washington Reflecting Pool had become a metaphor for the incompetent hubris of the Trump administration. Now the Gordie Howe Bridge has become a metaphor as well, this time about how the Trump administration turns success into failure with its ineffective bullying and how other nations have had enough.
That bridge opened today, at last.
I don't understand people like Jen Gerson who seemed to think Carney betrayed Canada because he didn't flip out over Trump's bridge extortion. In reality, Canada will have many other chances in the next two years to get into more important conflicts with Trump - throwing away billions just because Trump is acting stupid isn't worth it.
In The Walrus, David Moscrop says the bridge is what American betrayal now looks like
Today's Wildfire Update
That bridge opened today, at last.
I don't understand people like Jen Gerson who seemed to think Carney betrayed Canada because he didn't flip out over Trump's bridge extortion. In reality, Canada will have many other chances in the next two years to get into more important conflicts with Trump - throwing away billions just because Trump is acting stupid isn't worth it.
In The Walrus, David Moscrop says the bridge is what American betrayal now looks like
...We ought not to romanticize the political order that made it possible. The implicit, or explicit, threats of American hegemony and power weren’t invented in 2016 with Trump’s arrival on the scene, but the Trump administration set about erasing a baseline of trust that existed for decades. His team favoured the mafia school of negotiation: make an offer no one can refuse. He slapped tariffs on Canada, mused about leaving North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies to fend for themselves in the event of an attack, bullied Ottawa into spending more on defence, and all but called Canada a fake country (à la Vladimir Putin and Ukraine) while he “joked” about annexing us.I thought this was priceless:
Having gone all in on US investment, supply chain integration, and defence partnerships, Canada was brought up short, terrified of what the abrupt departure from the baseline would mean for the future. On foreign trips and through diplomatic efforts, Prime Minister Mark Carney has been making the case that the US is unreliable to the point of existential risk. Previously considered by global elites as the guarantor of the liberal world order, the home of the reserve currency, and the economic engine of the planet, the American empire is now sowing uncertainty that borders on chaos. So, Carney is organizing a middle-power strategy to adjust to, and thrive within, the new world order. Other countries are listening.
The Gordie Howe Bridge fiasco stands as a reminder why such a strategy is necessary. A six-lane span condemned to scenery—for no good reason and several that verge on the criminal—is what Aristotle might have called a failure of teleological realization. That is, a bridge being denied the very purpose it was built for. The fact that Canada managed to strike a deal doesn’t mean that failure ends with the bridge. Even though it’s better to have it open than not, the deal is suspect at best. Of course it is. The iron law of contemporary life is that things may seem grim, but they will get worse...
In the New York Times, Chrystia Freeland writes about the broader picture, and I'm very glad to see she is speaking out:Listen you little sh!t, we’ve moved on! 💪🇨🇦
— 🍁🇨🇦Team Canada Forever🇨🇦🍁 (@teamcanadaforever.bsky.social) July 26, 2026 at 1:29 PM
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...The only thing a bully understands is strength, [gift link] and Mr. Trump is keen to establish himself as the world’s apex predator.
Self-defense works best when you do it as a team, and that is why my friend and former Liberal Party colleague Mark Carney, the Canadian prime minister, has struck such a chord around the world with his call for middle powers to act together.
That’s the right thing for the rest of us to do, and it is happening faster than Americans may realize. But the big unknown remains what happens in the United States.
Mr. Trump has made his view plain. His Washington doesn’t have allies. It has only satraps, enemies and equals — the latter a singular group that includes just China and on some days, perhaps, Russia.
That’s what makes this fight such a critical test for the United States and Americans. The countries of the world, especially America’s erstwhile allies, are watching U.S. politics almost as closely as Americans themselves are.
Inside the United States, the pressing question is whether the country will remain a democracy. That matters to the rest of us, too, of course. But even if democracy eventually prevails inside the United States, America’s old friends will wonder whether Trumpism permanently reshaped Washington’s relationship with the rest of the world.
Will a post-Trump America try to rebuild genuine partnerships with its like-minded allies, based on the idea that win-win outcomes are possible and that even superpowers need to honor their treaty commitments? Or is Mr. Trump saying out loud what most Americans have really thought of their allies all along?
...Would-be future American leaders who recognize the value of allies and think all will be forgiven when the White House has a new occupant need to appreciate the depth of the damage being done by its current resident. They can limit the harm and create the option for the United States to make a different choice in the future by speaking out now.
If they don’t, the rest of the world will be right to think that all Americans actually agree with the current bully in chief. The only winners from that outcome will be the world’s despots.
Or, as the great Canadian songwriter and poet Leonard Cohen presciently put it, “You aren’t going to like what comes after America.”
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Today's Wildfire Update
Wildfires merge near Clinton, B.C.; 70 Mile House residents told to prepare to leave https://northfeed.ca/cluster/27766 #canada #climate #environmentalprotection #publicsafety #BC #weather #humaninterest
— northfeed.bsky.social (@northfeed.bsky.social) July 28, 2026 at 12:30 AM
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Things are absolutely crazy in France and Spain now.
France, Spain fight wildfires ahead of fresh heatwave https://www.europesays.com/spain/61875/ BORDEAUX Firefighters attempt to suppress a blaze in a forest as wildfires rage near Le Las, outside Bordeaux,…
— eu-es.bsky.social (@eu-es.bsky.social) July 28, 2026 at 1:30 AM
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Just a little bit more about the World Cup
Is anyone else, like me, still missing the World Cup? I saw another story worth sharing today:
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Commonwealth Games Update
Stories at the Commonwealth Sport Canada website
-Sunday
Ellie Black Gold and Lia-Monica Fontaine Bronze in Women's Gymnastics All-Around
Felix Dolci silver in Mens Gymnastics All-Around
Felix Dolci silver in Mens Gymnastics All-Around
-Monday
Ethan Katzberg Gold and Rowan Hamilton Bronze in men's Hammer ThrowA banner day for Canada 🇨🇦 at the Commonwealth Games with 12 medals won on Day — including four gold medals. There were so many inspired performances by Canadians in Glasgow. And they’re back in action tomorrow looking for more. Resting up for now. Good night sports fans.
— Devin Heroux (@devinheroux.bsky.social) July 27, 2026 at 5:02 PM
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Michael Barber Silver in men’s T20 1500 metres
Zach Gingras Bronze in men’s T38 100 metres
René Cournoyer Silver in men's Floor Gymnastics
Lia-Monica Fontaine Gold in Women's Vault
Ellie Black Silver in Women's Uneven Bars
Jordan Carroll Gold in Men's Pommel Horse
Felix Dolci Gold and William Émard Silver in Men's Rings
Ann-Sophie Taschereau Silver in Women’s 58kg Weightlifting
Rebeka Groulx Bronze in Women's 53kg Weightlifting
6 comments:
Today's Tyee has a story about the need for the BC gov't to provide more timely advance warning of possible road closures due to fires and floods. It's worth a read. Here is my comment I posted there:
I agree with the writer.
This is just the beginning of climate change.
We are going to have to get better at all of this as the sea rises, the Earth burns and everything gets washed away in flood plains.
The methane spike that started in 2006 with the fracking revolution is gaining steam and is goosed from methane-calthrate release in the wild and the latency of CO2 means this is all just getting started.
So gov't action to help us flee the disasters we've created?
All for it.
Gov't assited mitigation activities to survive the changes?
Yes!
At the same time we need to force our gov'ts to cease and desist all fossil fuel expansion and rapidly decarbonize our societies.
https://thetyee.ca/Opinion/2026/07/28/BC-Highway-Closure-Warnings/
I don't really get this "FIFA best Xi" thing. I mean, I didn't think Xi Jinping even PLAYED footy.
I hope FIFA drops the hammer on Argentina over their disgraceful sportsmanship in the last two WC games. In the semi against England, the players were holding a banner that said the Falklands belong to Argentina. This is the second time they've done this - they got a paltry fine the first time about eight years ago.
The final was a right shitshow. Argentina's Fernandez was sent off after a violent tackle during the game. When the game was over, Paredes got a red card for grabbing the throat of Spain's Garcia. Strangely, the red card disappeared and wasn't in the ref's match report. Argentine coach Ayala punched Spain's Olmo, and Molina struck Spanish captain Rodri. Argentina stood with their backs to the podium during the medal and trophy presentation to Spain. And, contrary to FIFA's rules, none of the Argentine players were made available for post-game interviews, a stunt they were fined for after the last World Cup.
FIFA has opened an investigation, and they really need to put an end to Argentina's violence and poor sportsmanship. No more turning a blind eye because Messi's so popular.
And don't even get me started on Argentina being the only team in the Americas without a single black or brown player.
I hadn't realized that.
Argentina seemed to think they were entitled to a win, didn't they.
Thanks I will check that out.
We are long past the time when wildfires in summer could be considered as just unexpected one-off events.
All communities also need a fire mitigation plan now, with help to homeowners or renters on things like making sure brush is cut back around the house, creating community fire-break areas, and so forth.
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