The American polity is cracked, and might collapse. Canada must prepare

[Nevilledog]

Link to tweet

Tweet text:
Neil Lewis, Jr., PhD
@NeilLewisJr
A sobering analysis of the state of our union, from the vantage point of our neighbors up north.

https://theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-the-american-polity-is-cracked-and-might-collapse-canada-must-prepare/?utm_medium=Referrer:+Social+Network+/+Media&utm_campaign=Shared+Web+Article+Links…
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6:07 PM · Jan 2, 2022

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-the-american-polity-is-cracked-and-might-collapse-canada-must-prepare/

No paywall
https://archive.fo/NaZrU

*snip*

I’m a scholar of violent conflict. For more than 40 years, I’ve studied and published on the causes of war, social breakdown, revolution, ethnic violence and genocide, and for nearly two decades I led a centre on peace and conflict studies at the University of Toronto.

Today, as I watch the unfolding crisis in the United States, I see a political and social landscape flashing with warning signals.

I’m not surprised by what’s happening there – not at all. During my graduate work in the United States in the 1980s, I sometimes listened to Rush Limbaugh, the right-wing radio talk show host and later television personality. I remarked to friends at the time that, with each broadcast, it was if Mr. Limbaugh were wedging the sharp end of a chisel into a faint crack in the moral authority of U.S. political institutions, and then slamming the other end of that chisel with a hammer.

In the decades since, week after week, year after year, Mr. Limbaugh and his fellow travellers have hammered away – their blows’ power lately amplified through social media and outlets such as Fox News and Newsmax. The cracks have steadily widened, ramified, connected and propagated deeply into America’s once-esteemed institutions, profoundly compromising their structural integrity. The country is becoming increasingly ungovernable, and some experts believe it could descend into civil war.

*snip*

[Tumbulu]

1. Exactly how I have seen it happen

A few weeks ago I posted about the terrible price that we are now paying because the rhetoric of Rush Limbaugh all these decades was allowed to go unchallenged. And how it was then amplified, but continually ignored by the general populations in more urban areas. And seems to still be.

I live in a rural area, and see the cost of ignoring always.

I am not confident the nation can survive it. At all.

Thanks for posting this.

[GoodRaisin]

7. Pretty easy to see this scenario now, but not the civil war part.

Seems like it can just get done through red state legislation being prepared now; also, the majority of the country is so apathetic and ignorant of government/politics that it will be years later before they even realize there is no more democracy. I’m still hopeful we can fight it off. But we’re in a fight, for sure.

[certainot]

24. he caused more destruction and death than hitler and stalin

global warming denial, the deliciously ironic "smoking doesn't cause cancer", covid denial, just for starters

and that's what sucks with all the doomsday scenarios - all americans have to do to turn it around is stop ignoring rw radio - the biggest political mistake in history and the ONLY unique advantage the fascist republicans have

when the fuck are democrats and media finally going to start polling for the connection.

it would be so easy to fix this - every advertiser, ad agency, university, and pro sports team that uses rw radio shares responsibility

[Tumbulu]

26. So true, you should have seen how full of denial

many people were to my post a few weeks back.

I honestly do not understand how it is that this nightmare of hate media beginning with Limbaugh has been so ruinously ignored and allowed to destroy us.

So cheaply no less.

[Tumbulu]

27. And here is the link to my post

which did not do much to encourage me that people take the threat from this media seriously enough.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100216174804

Although, I think my OP was a bit off in the title.

I just was in a state at the time.

[certainot]

67. thanks for the link/post. rw radio should not be considered part of the free speech spectrum

many people who underestimate and ignore it, such as many commenting on your post, have fallen for that RW bullshit about it being a representation of 'market demand' - as if 95% of americans who would tune in want to hear the lies and hate and stupidity. it's an insult to americans. it's bullshit.

it's a well protected monopoly. and it should not be considered part of the free speech spectrum. fox OAN and social media and internet are - with free easy alternatives a click away.

i think there are plenty of people who could sue those stations but the solution is much easier

start with the 87+ universities that crap all over their mission statements when they broadcast sports on 260+ xlimbaugh stations. they are by far the best places to protest nearly any issue.

when one or two merely begin discussing it, advertisers will notice and head for the hills. the ad industry will notice. other schools and pro teams will be shamed into following.

couple that with AI making stoprush x 100 for all RW radio possible, along with limbaugh's death resulting in RW radio losing central messaging control and it would be easy for a progressive org doing these things to destroy the only unique advantage the republicans have

[Tumbulu]

79. You have been posting these great ideas for many years now

which I appreciate so much.

But frustration is with the fact that to date I know of no progressive organization who has picked up on your excellent plan and acted on them.

I think that they are so blind fully negligent about this issue in particular.

Thanks for continuing to educate and advocate for a way to stop them from blasting the propaganda.

[certainot]

83. thanks, i can't believe how much analysis goes on as if rw radio doesn't exist. a lot of it is

useless. like tonight the two monday political analysts on PBS judy woodruff show agreed that republicans live in an alternate reality but they live in the city and have no clue where that alternate reality came from

[Tumbulu]

84. Exactly

If it were only just frustrating….. but the hate RW AM radio propaganda has been catastrophic.

[Frasier Balzov]

55. A lot of the advertisers on those shows absolutely depend on gullible consumers.

[appalachiablue]

62. +++

[Jedi Guy]

71. More death and destruction than Hitler and Stalin? Not even close.

Limbaugh was by no means a good guy, but between them Hitler and Stalin have millions of deaths racked up. Your assertion is frankly absurd, even if meant as hyperbole.

[certainot]

74. absurd?? the delay in global warming action alone will kill millions, accelerates species extinction

and that is already baked into our future

hitler and stalin didn't themselves directly killl millions.

COVID denial, "smoking doesn't cause cancer", "sadam has weapons of mass destruction", holding back health care, delaying gun reform, environmental deregulation, drug war, and so on

he set the tone for 600 radio stations which set the tone for another 1000. whether he was serving US industry (tabacco, fosssil fuels) and later russian think tanks, or actually believed his lies, limbaugh was the closest thing to an intellectual and moral leader of the republican party for the last 30 years.

on ANY of those issues he could have NOT lied and made the difference, and sent the GOP in a totally different direction

on global warming alone, if he had not been duped or paid into using russian-hacked climate scientist emails to create 'climategate' in 2009 they would not have derailed obama at copenhagen. how many years did we lose there? how many millions with starve? how many species will disappear?

when trump wanted to call COVID a hoax and politicize masks and vaccines he got limbaugh to do it.

[Deuxcents]

2. I'm reading these posts and wondering..

What can we do besides throw our hands up and watch it all go away? As citizens with all these warning signs, there has to be more than just vote. How can we rid these people who wish to tear down our country? I can’t believe it’s too late. I guess I just don’t want to and don’t say I’m naive ..There just has to be a way to preserve what we have n make it stronger

[marie999]

11. If the worse happens, we have 3 choices, accept it, fight it, or leave the country.

I figure by 2050 only the rich will have good lives in all countries. Countries that have will be attacked by countries that don't have. If nuclear weapons are used then we won't have to worry about anything ever again.

[yobrault1]

30. organize, get involved in local politics.

get informed and help others to organize.

[Deuxcents]

34. O, yeah..

I will be working the elections, marching n calling my elected. Both of them. I’m gonna go down fighting even if I’m not as young as I used to be. I never dreamed we would be so disheartened about our country as some seem to be now. Negativity is contagious..we gotta see this in a brighter light n do something..never, ever give up. ✊ I just cannot accept this ..I don’t have any other choice so, fight it is.

[certainot]

66. every advertiser, ad agency, university, and pro team oner on rw radio shares responsibility and

they need to be boycotted and protested until rw radio falls apart. and without it republicans are doomed. it is the only unique advantage they have

artificial intelligence makes stoprush x 100 possible now- recording, transcribing and listing advertisers with very little listening required

predictions of political doom are very premature and a lot of it is republican and russian trolling and idiot analysts who are ignorant of what rw radio has done so they ascribe the effects to 'popular opinion' or 'public sentiment' instead of coordinated very loud repeated lying to often captive audiences that should not be considered legitimate constituencies - like the ones enabling manchin and sinema

trumpism rots with limbaugh and if progressive leaderss and orgs finally stop ignoring that rw radio advantage the republican party will become a severe minority for many years

[Cosmocat]

72. Manage it

I seriously have had heartburn over this since the 90s, saw what the right was doing to tear the country apart, and it has gotten worse and worse with time.

The one constant is how this county relentlessly indulges their lunacy.

How they treated Clinton.
How the politicized 9-11.
How they lied the country into Iraq.
How they indulged all the craziness against BHO, like the hyperbole over his not wearing flag pin.
How they let the Rs throw an enraged temper tantrum over Ds passing the REPUBLICAN version of health care reform.
How because of that, they gave them the biggest mid term win in our lives in 2010.
How the Rs nominated someone caught on tape taking about grabbing women by the P______ that was a complete and total sociopath, and the country elected him POTUS over a decent and highly capable public servant.
How they threw fits massively disproportionate fits over Benghazi and emails.

I mean, if you are paying attention to that you know where this headed, because there is literally nothing the Rs can do or say that this country won't accept, while being just as relentlessly dismissive of "liberals."
"

[sellitman]

3. If Canada would accept this old duffer I'd love to retire there in a few years

My cousins family lives there now. His wife has Canadian Citizenship.

[James48]

22. They'd have to change their laws.

Immigration laws in Canada now pretty much prevent senior citizens from obtaining Canadian citizenship. All their laws are geared to take in young skilled people. Best we can do is try to go visit.

[NullTuples]

39. Their immigration process is, well...wonky

They want skilled techies...right out of school. True tech geeks...but no autistics. It's like they've never visited a tech company.

And even if you get every point on their checklist if you can't speak French fluently you'll likely be just a few short. Or you can just speak fluent French and throw a dart at a target for the rest of the points and get in.

Also, trans people need not apply even if everything expensive health care wise has already been taken care of.

[Fiendish Thingy]

46. Not true- I don't speak a word of French and was granted a PR visa.

You must speak either English or French well enough to pass a fluency test.

[NullTuples]

53. I've walked through the points system & despite being a "skilled tech" - have I missed something?

I want very much to be wrong.

Although I very much doubt I am wrong about the trans or autistic parts.

[Fiendish Thingy]

65. You must have scored lower on some other item, language shouldn't be a barrier

As for exclusion of trans or autistic, that would likely only occur at the medical exam phase, where those who are likely to be a high demand on the healthcare system are denied visas, such as pre-surgery trans people, or those with diabetes, cancer, or other conditions requiring lots of services.

[NullTuples]

81. See, that's the thing - how does one explain that

a) most autistics are different, not defective, and have no healthcare needs other than anyone else
and
b) pretty much the same for some trans people

[Fiendish Thingy]

82. Again, it's not a blanket exclusion, it's based on the medical exam

I used to work with autistic kids who required a lot of services and support.

I don’t know where you’re getting your information from- mine is from first hand experience.

[Fiendish Thingy]

45. I emigrated to Canada when I was 55, and if you have family to sponsor you, age isn't an issue. Nt

[elleng]

4. Let's take what actions we can locally, and within our states (and regions,) to inform and awaken.

*Which brings me back to resilience. We have been through a difficult time. We wanted and expected it to be over — challenges overcome, perpetrators brought to justice, pandemic ended, nation healed, politics transformed. But none of it is over. The larger goals we are fighting for continue to elude us.

Yet we must continue the fight. If we allow ourselves to fall into fatalism, or wallow in disappointment, or become resigned to what is rather than what should be, we will lose the long game. The greatest enemy of positive social change is cynicism about what can be changed.'

Resilience
Why we shouldn't be discouraged, by Robert Reich

https://robertreich.substack.com/p/resilience?fbclid=IwAR1iOluOgdsd8D-zugF8fUmElvsOIfGe-sJ-zkqkokMxMNdsBo3lzwOVoCE

[yobrault1]

31. this...

more of this…

[NullTuples]

40. The biggest problem I see with that is...

We're concentrated in the states with the least congressional influence per voter and in red states we are concentrated in cities that are now split between up to ten different electoral / representative districts so that rural Republican voters in the same district outweigh them by a comfortable margin. We can fight all we want locally but that won't affect the larger picture, by design.

[elleng]

42. and we can give up, I guess.

[NullTuples]

51. I can't do that. But apart from contacting my reps & donating time & funding...?

I live in California. Turns out we have exceedingly limited effect or influence on anything.

[elleng]

52. 'contacting my reps & donating time & funding' sounds good to me.

[NullTuples]

54. I do that. I've done that. For decades. It's...not giving me much hope. But I'm not giving up!

[Bev54]

5. We are concerned about the state of your country, and as a Canadian, I don't know

what we can do, we only want it fixed. I think that is why so many of us are watching your politics daily. I do know that some of our politicians have brought it up but not sure if they have a plan or not. We are not ready to give up on you just yet.

[Dan]

9. To your Country.,

Knowing our Country, if we fall apart, rest assured that we will try and drag everyone else down too.

The Right Wing crazies won’t be satisfied with destroying our nation, they will want to spread the joy.

[Bev54]

10. Well we have always joked that the US was going to invade Canada next.

I would very much like that to just stay as a joke.

[Dan]

12. If the crazies take over.... WW3 is coming.

[smirkymonkey]

15. You can count on it.

[roamer65]

60. Rest assured, Canada has millions of friends in the United States.

They will have to get through us before they get to the border.

[Moebym]

16. Unfortunately, they've already begun to spread the "joy" n/t

[PatrickforB]

29. Thanks for that! Not being ready to give up on us, I mean.

It's getting pretty bad.

[roamer65]

58. Expand the confederation by extending an invitation to northern border states...

to become provinces.

Political union with northern blue states may be the only way to solve it.

https://www.macleans.ca/news/canada/is-it-time-for-canada-to-annex-blue-america/

[Bev54]

68. I think if it were to extend and bring in provinces it would include

the east coast states and the west coast states, not sure we want the likes of Idaho and Montana, no disrespect to dems in those states. I would say just move to a dem state. It is a pipe dream but it would be fun to take the most financially productive states and wonder who is going to pay for the red states then? Just think, you would have instant healthcare and maternity leave (1 year), assisted dying, no private prisons. Oh well we can all dream for you.

[roamer65]

69. Provinces of New York and New England would happen immediately.

It would give Ontario a land bridge to the Maritime provinces, bypassing Quebec.

[Bev54]

70. Hahaha, we all try to avoid Quebec, but it is a nice place to visit.

[Joinfortmill]

6. We are going to beat these traitorous bastards.

If Joe Biden hadn't been elected I would agree. If the bipartisan Jan 6th Committee hadn't been formed I would agree. If the DOJ hadn't just released a statement announcing they are going after everyone involved I would agree. If the Jan 6th Committee wasn't soon to begin public hearings I would agree. Keep the faith. VOTE.

[elleng]

13. HOPE we can;

May take more than voting.

[Dan]

8. I have one regret, that Rush Limbaugh didn't live long enough to experience this - if it happens.

Cause, I would sure like to visit his ass and let him taste what he has encouraged on the nation.

[monkeyman1]

14. Total b.s. !!

[Jarqui]

17. If Trump and the Republicans who enable him snatch power,

the whole world is a more dangerous place.

Maybe Canada or Mexico is to Trump as the Ukraine is to Putin.

It's not Trump that is the real problem.
Ron DeSantis is probably more capable than Trump of pulling off authoritarianism.
The real problem is the party that enables these men with their lies.

Maybe I'm naïve but I still believe that if the majority of America was accurately appraised of the real facts, collectively the country would make the right decisions the vast majority of the time. But the six companies that control about 90+% of American media don't want the vast majority of Americans to know the truth - that would cost them their precious tax breaks. The shortsightedness of these companies is the direction they're headed could allow an authoritarian to take over their company.

[Stuart G]

18. I don't believe the U.S.A. is falling apart. Biden & Company will do everything to keep it together.

...Everything means ...Everything..

How does one define ...."falling apart"?....

The iidiot/fool lost the last election, & in spite of a riot in DC, there was a peaceful turnover. The rioters have had their
say in court, and many have gone to jail. Joe & Barack will do everything possible.. We have tens of millions of
patriotic citizens who will do a lot to keep it together. Yes, there are riots and protests.
...Does this feel like the beginning of a ...Civil War?
...Not in my book, look at the beginnings of the Civil War to see ..."falling apart"...means.

...Are states going to suceed?
...Do people pay taxes?
...For the most part do most of us follow the law?
...Do state and local governments work on some level to provide police and fire protection as well as K - 12 education?
...Are jobs available?
...Is inflation contained?
...Is the federal government trying its best to do its job?
...Most states have mask rules and provide free shots, is that enough?
...Are businesses doing OK?
...Yes, emergency rooms are full, but are they working overtime to provide help?
...Exactly what does falling apart mean?
...Stock Market Ok?
...Are savings safe in banks and savings and loan institution?
...Are people kept in the dark about what is going on?
...Do we have a dictator in charge of the federal government?
...Is the truthful news easily available to everyone?
...Are computers easily available to everyone?
...Are libraries open & willing to give out all books?
...Are students graduating from high school, college and other forms of education?
...Do we have a viable military that follows rules and does not rule by edict & manufesto?
...Was there a peaceful turn over of the government from one party to another?...That is did Republicans refuse
to give up control when the new President was sworn in?
...When you go to a stop light, and it is on red, do you stop?
... Are poor people taken care of in some way?
... Do the federal, state and local governments appear to be..."falling apart"?
... In the last national election, did the old president, give control over peacefully to the newly elected president?
...If most of what is said is true, then we are not falling apart.........................

....YES WE HAVE PROBLEMS, & WE HAVE ALWAYS HAD PROBLEMS...BUT WE AREN'T FALLING APART....
...

[Hangingon]

25. Thank you!

We will only fall apart if we talk ourselves into it. The fault can’t be laid at any single source. We all have to fight to save this country. Watch out for the doom sayers

[Jon King]

32. Exactly, the fringe gets all the media attention.

In the end the vast majority of Americans are not going to fight or split or anything. They will go to work, come home, watch Netflix, and type nasty stuff to those they disagree with on the internet. The super loud fringe get all the attention.

[Fiendish Thingy]

48. The US can become a fascist dictatorship without things "falling apart"

Most of the things on your list could continue under fascism.

[mgardener]

19. I would move to Canada in a heartbeart

I live 20 miles south of the border.
My daughter went to McGill. She was there 3 weeks before 9/11.
Always wished my daughter got a job there after college.
I love Montreal

[ecstatic]

38. I think I need to start making my way towards the border

I know Detroit is pretty close but I am scared of the weather.

[roamer65]

59. If you can, yes.

Eventually we will shutoff immigration from southern states when the climate migration turns into a flood.

[dcweed]

20. Not sure when or if...

...But I sense that the next US civil war, if it happens, will not be started by the Republicans. It will be started by Progressives that are left no option but to fight a permanently installed fascist pseudo-government.

[LiberatedUSA]

56. That better not be the case.

We constantly laugh at the notion that red necks and their AR-15s will be slaughtered in a day in a civil war. Liberals with bolt-action and lever-action Fudd Guns would do worse.

[BobTheSubgenius]

21. "sobering"???

If, by "sobering," the writer meant being rolled into a hole in the ice of a frozen lake. I'm not shocked by the analysis, per se; I've been thinking this way for some time. What I'm shocked by is how far from the conclusions of some serious academics that seem to be pretty well-credentialed.

[Baked Potato]

23. I think I won't buy his book, regardless of the hype. Nt

[yobrault1]

28. It's a sobering view for both our countries. The rule of law and holding those responsible

seems to be the last guardrail for American Democracy to survive. Canada can do little to affect the outcome. This will be up to the American people to save and safeguard their democracy, we can only watch and prepare to defend our own democracy. We are in very sad times, but hope has not vanished.

When we allowed the winds of Fascism make strides on our political discourse, we toyed with authoritarianism and now find ourselves down a path we have yet to acknowledge nor begin to address. The media and social media have brought us to the edge of this abyss and we are woefully prepared to counter the daily onslaught of ill informed, misinformed deluge of information. Yet people continue their lives as if this does not affect them.

[Jon King]

35. Don't worry, literally nothing will happen.

Sure, a lot of noise will be made. But in the end corporations run the show and they do not thrive if American democracy fails. So it will not happen. We have some very loud people on the right but 99.9% of Americans like their basic lives even though they complain. No one wants any real fighting, they want their kids and grand kids to go to school and get together for the holidays....watch a little Netflix, take a cruise, get some wings and watch the football games.

1-6 showed it all....a few hundred actually stormed the Capitol, a few thousand watched, a few million typed stuff on the internet. And literally nothing has happened since even though the 'anger' about the election being 'stolen' from their god Trump was fresh.

Sure some right wingnuts will makes some dumb things happen in a few states in future elections, then courts will step in like they did this time and life goes on.

Its stupid to compare to past authoritarian regimes, they had military systems that were one race, one religion, etc. Our military, both command and troops is very diverse. Literally impossible to recreate a Germany type situation. Apples and oranges.

[roamer65]

33. The northern border states will need to come to the defense of Canada.

That may involve secession and political union with Canada.

[Jon King]

36. Ha, this is getting comical now.

We are letting some loud fringe idiots make it seem like everything is falling apart. No one is going to actually fight or do a dang thing. Anyone radical enough to do anything real was at 1-6, a few hundred. The rest just stood and watched or typed nonsense online.

Next year, 5 years, 20 years, 50 years from now everything will be the same. Same arguments, same issues, but we will probably be having them as our cars drive themselves.

[roamer65]

37. Canada faces two problems in the near future.

Last edited Mon Jan 3, 2022, 04:08 AM - Edit history (1)

1. Political instability in the US.
2. Inevitable and massive climate change migration northward.

It is a good idea for them to start a discussion of these issues.

Northern border state governors need to open a dialogue with Ottawa as well on the above mentioned topics.

[Metaphorical]

41. Warning Signs

When TFG was defeated in Nov 2020, I watched nervously as he did everything in his power to weaken the legitimacy of the election, and watched the reaction of his followers. We've all seen elections that went badly for our candidates, and even when we personally may have questioned the legitimacy of the process, we also recognized that part of the process involved acknowledging that your candidate lost. Yet what happened afterward, culminating in Jan 6, 2021, was a clear indication to me that we had hit a tipping point.

I think most of us recognized that Biden would face headwinds, but right now we're facing a perfect storm: the Pandemic, inflation, a skin of the teeth majority, and a barrage of disinformation that I suspect stems from the very wealthy doing everything they can to keep from paying taxes. I suspect that some of this should work itself out by election day in 2022 - supply chains are beginning to open up, inflation has stalled and looks to be coming down, and there are encouraging signs that the pandemic might hit a manageable endemic stage by mid-Spring.

Yet, for all of that, I am beginning to believe that the misinformation campaign will, if anything, only accelerate. The country is becoming increasingly ungovernable, because the Republicans have no interest in trying to remain a democracy. The most likely scenario I see happening is for enough conservative states to vote to force a constitutional conference, which will then be used primarily as a catch all for everything they want in the country (https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/584835-conservatives-prepare-new-push-for-constitutional-convention). When the blue states refuse to ratify the new constitution, the red states use it as an excuse to secede under the separate constitution, and the country breaks up. Given that such a convention has been supported by ALEC to me is a good indication that it would be a stalking horse.

When TFG was defeated in Nov 2020, I watched nervously as he did everything in his power to weaken the legitimacy of the election, and watched the reaction of his followers. We've all seen elections that went badly for our candidates, and even when we personally may have questioned the legitimacy of the process, we also recognized that part of the process involved acknowledging that your candidate lost. Yet what happened afterward, culminating in Jan 6, 2021, was a clear indication to me that we had hit a tipping point.

I think most of us recognized that Biden would face headwinds, but right now we're facing a perfect storm: the Pandemic, inflation, a skin of the teeth majority, and a barrage of disinformation that I suspect stems from the very wealthy doing everything they can to keep from paying taxes. I suspect that some of this should work itself out by election day in 2022 - supply chains are beginning to open up, inflation has stalled and looks to be coming down, and there are encouraging signs that the pandemic might hit a manageable endemic stage by mid-Spring.

Yet, for all of that, I am beginning to believe that the misinformation campaign will, if anything, only accelerate. The country is becoming increasingly ungovernable, because the Republicans have no interest in trying to remain a democracy. The most likely scenario I see happening is for enough conservative states to vote to force a constitutional conference, which will then be used primarily as a catch all for everything they want in the country (https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/584835-conservatives-prepare-new-push-for-constitutional-convention). When the blue states refuse to ratify the new constitution, the red states use it as an excuse to secede under the separate constitution, and the country breaks up. Given that such a convention has been supported by ALEC to me is a good indication that such a convention would be used as a stalking horse.

Having said that, I'm not sure a CC would be that bad of an idea IF it was done in good faith. What I see is a country that has increasingly unreconcilable differences, no clear way to resolve them, and the potential for this to turn violent if some other outlet isn't found for the tension.

[Solly Mack]

43. A country has to do what a country has to do.

They don't owe us their confidence. They owe their own citizens and their own country.

[Diablo del sol]

44. Been researching for the last few weeks

I am a west coast guy so looking on Victoria/Vancouver Island. (Not cheap, but I am used to California pricing so can make it work)

Only solid option is to live there 1/2 time. Turn sixty next year, I guess I could look for job openings in my company and try to get citizenship, seems like a stretch though.

[vercetti2021]

47. Honestly

Canada's military would kick our asses if we tried to invade if we did in fact becoming a fascist nation. And those who are against the right wing authoritarian regime would align with Canada I would.

[roamer65]

57. Yes, there would be a lot of us who would sabotage any attempts to invade Canada.

Especially us in northern border states.

[Dial H For Hero]

63. How exactly would Canada "kick our ass" in a military conflict?

Our military is literally 30 times bigger than theirs.

https://armedforces.eu/compare/country_USA_vs_Canada

[Celerity]

64. +1

[vercetti2021]

75. Plus a lot of ours fractionally splitting

And resistance armies would align with Canada if it meant destroying the fascists.

[Dial H For Hero]

76. Even in the event of a US invasion of Canada (unlikely to the point of absurdity) I doubt very much

that there would be significant fighting amongst our troops. And in any case, we have thousands of nuclear weapons, and Canada has, well....none. If the US which is invading Canada is a fascist dictatorship, would they hesitate to use them?

And resistance armies would align with Canada if it meant destroying the fascists.

And what resistance armies would those be, exactly?

[Oneironaut]

49. I'll use the bat signal to alert Batman.

[Dial H For Hero]

80. While you do that, I'll use my signal watch to let Superman know something's up.

[summer_in_TX]

50. "Ain't no river so long as Denial."

It's tough to believe really bad things will happen. And there's a slim chance we will escape the worst. But I sure wouldn't put any money on it.

I worried about it the very first time I heard Rush Limbaugh and thought then he was driving us towards civil war. I wish I'd been wrong.

I'll work my tail off to ensure everyone in my county has all the info they need to register to vote and feel informed enough to do so.

And I trust all of my fellow DUers and all democracy-loving Americans to be working in their own spheres to save our country from fascism.

[RFCalifornia]

73. +1

[PufPuf23]

61. Should the USA go full bull goose looney authoritarian fascist,

Canada would have great reason to worry that the vast area and vast natural resources would be viewed as easy pickings by a large military aggressive neighbor to the south.

[inanna]

77. Yep. This has crossed my mind as well...

[inanna]

78. From the above article:

...

And it’s not inaccurate to use the F word. As conservative commentator David Frum argues, Trumpism increasingly resembles European fascism in its contempt for the rule of law and glorification of violence. Evidence is as close as the latest right-wing Twitter meme: widely circulated holiday photos show Republican politicians and their family members, including young children, sitting in front of their Christmas trees, all smiling gleefully while cradling pistols, shotguns and assault rifles.

...

[Mad_Machine76]

85. Is this the article

that opined that Joe Biden is "bumbling from one crisis to the next"?