Jean Chrétien, who was Prime Minister of Canada during 9/11, spoke at a commemorative event in Gander, Newfoundland, on Friday. I’ve cued up the above video to the interesting part. Chrétien is 92, and has no fucks left to give, so he laid it down:
I would like to conclude with this personal message. The people here, and the people across Canada know me. I’ve been around [laughter] … a while. They know that I like to speak up my mind. Today I’m not representing any government. I’m just a former prime minister, 92 years old and a very proud Canadian. But I have seen a few things in my lifetime, and I know this country and the people from coast to coast to coast.
I have a message for our American friends. Yes, Canada is generous, and Canadians are tolerant and kind. But never mistake our generosity for weakness. [standing ovation] Never mistake our tolerance for lack of determination. And never, never mistake our kindness for softness. We know who we are, and we are proud of it. Building a country like this, with this climate and this geography, is a sign of toughness, not of weakness.
Welcoming people from all over the world, caring for each other, including the weakest in society, is a sign of strength. We embrace our friend and we help them in their moment of need, but we bow to no one. And the more we are insulted, threatened and abused, the more we will stand up for ourselves, and stand united.
The bald head in the left of the frame in the video is US Ambassador Pete Hoekstra.
A few weeks after 9/11, I traveled to Toronto on business, and I remember the American flags that were taped in windows in houses there. A newspaper had printed the flag for that purpose, and many still displayed them. This is the goodwill that Trump and MAGA are throwing away.
I’ll also note that this is the place for senior politicians — using the respect that’s been accumulated in their lifetime of service to say something important at a key time in the history of the country. Unfortunately, our gerontocracy has forgotten that.
Moving on to Saudi Arabia,
[…] When the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, it responded with missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states, and effectively shut down the Strait of Hormuz, bottling up their oil and gas exports and jolting the world economy.
Saudi Arabia escaped some of the worst effects by piping its oil across the Arabian Peninsula to the Red Sea, where it could be exported to Europe via Egypt’s SUMED pipeline and the Suez Canal, or to Asia via a route running through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, and toward the Indian Ocean.
Over the last two days, the Houthis have seized the port city of Mokha and a Red Sea island from Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces, enhancing the rebels’ ability to block Saudi shipments through the Bab el-Mandeb.
On Friday, Saudi Arabia said it shut down the pipeline leading from major oil fields in the east to the Red Sea in the west because of drone attacks originating in Iraq, where Iran supports powerful militias. Regional officials recently told The Associated Press that the Houthis have helped the Iraqi militias carry out attacks.
Houthi attacks have already caused a plunge in Saudi oil exports to Asia, from around 3.4 million barrels a day in June to 128,000 in August, though they have recovered somewhat this month to 700,000, according to figures compiled by Kpler, a global trade monitor.
The story goes on to point out that Saudi Arabia has issues responding to Houthi attacks because of lack of interceptor missiles, that Houthi weaponry has gotten more sophisticated over the years, and that Trump has shown less interest in helping the Saudis than other US Presidents, notably including Biden.
No matter how much they’ve bribed the Trump family, including Jared Kushner, the Saudis, like Canada, are learning that we are an unreliable ally, and presumably they’ll end up allied with China in the long run. In a little less than two years, Trump is speed running the end of US influence across the globe. Maybe if he renames the Red Sea the Sea of America, the Houthis will back off.
I’m in Salt Lake City right now, and I walked past the same gas station twice in three hours. Regular gas was around $4.89 when I first walked by, and it is $5.09 now. All the big pickups with Trump stickers are soon going to be completely unaffordable, not just mostly unaffordable.
