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EU chief opens door for Canada to become 'associate member'

bbc.com

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Re: EU chief opens door for Canada to become 'associate member'

#731

Post by SyneRyder »

fidotron wrote: post #291
SyneRyder wrote: post #216

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Also, being a European Broadcasting Union (EBU) "Associate Member" is the name for the mechanism that allowed Australia, Canada and other countries to be admitted into Eurovision. If you've been around the ESC scene, you know there's a lot of embassy involvement (parties in embassies are a thing), the scene is catnip for those interested in politics, the politically active, and to some extent politicians. Eurovision…

> If you've been around the ESC scene This is a euphemism on par with attending parties in parts of the SFO AI community.

lol, this took longer to land with me than it should have, being the token "not in the target demographic" guy. And now I know more than I wanted to know about the AI scene ;)

Re: EU chief opens door for Canada to become 'associate member'

#732

Post by llm_nerd »

AlexandrB wrote: post #663
pyrale wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> One thing that is common about middle democracies is that prioritize a bureaucratic elite structure over an entrepreneurship culture No, that's just the 2010s propaganda fed to you by people who assert that not letting them do whatever they want is "bureaucratic". These very same people are completely fine lobbying legislature for more moat when they benefit from it. The difference between "middle democracies" or w…

You clearly don't pay attention to Canadian politics. Canada basically let McKinsey run their immigration policy[1][2] for 10 years and has now appointed the former CEO of McKinsey[3] to a business development role in government. I wouldn't say that Canada is just a satellite office of McKinsey, but it's getting closer. Canada is corrupt as hell, just no one cares so it doesn't make international news. Edit: Oh yeah,…

It's pretty clear the echo chamber you emerge from (protip - move to the US. I am 100% serious), but this is comical.

When your examples of Canada being "corrupt as hell" are such chickenshit nonsense, it betrays that you're just a partisan zealot that has literally zero sense of scale or reason.

McKinsey, a massive consulting firm, had a whole $32M in business with the government? Holy shit, basically the deep state! Sounds like the globalist infiltrated the government!

The SNC thing was embarrassing, but it was over its behaviour overseas (Libya, to be precise, where a dictator's family got wined and dined), and the government was concerned about a massive, major Canadian firm being crippled by domestic hand wringing.

When that is what you have to offer up for Canada being "corrupt as hell", in comparison to criminal shitholes like the US (which you think is much better, as you've explained elsewhere), wow. Back to shitty subreddits where your tiny group of laughable farces have your discussions about how dire things are.

I say it with absolute conviction that I desperately want every "Canada is broken" jackal like you to pack up and move South of the border.

Re: EU chief opens door for Canada to become 'associate member'

#733

Post by dragonwriter »

whisperenjoyer wrote: post #690
Fnoord wrote: post #360

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, the Brexit campaign was manipulated by a state actor (or rather: 'a criminal actor disguised as a state'). None of the alt-right nationalism is in the long-term benefits of the country. This is globalism, the end game. You either team up, thereby reducing your costs, or you get swallowed. Ask Ukraine, Tibet, Hong Kong how it worked out for them not belonging to a bigger team. So divide and conquer is a logical…

> Ask Ukraine The whole political course of Ukraine in the last ~20 years is mostly about teaming up with EU and NATO, isn't it?

> The whole political course of Ukraine in the last ~20 years is mostly about teaming up with EU and NATO, isn't it?

Not, on the NATO front at least, the part between NATO bending to Russian demands not to extend Membership Action Plans to Ukraine and Georgia in 2008 (followed immediately by the Russian invasion of Georgia)—when Ukraine abandoned pursuit of NATO membership—and the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2014, only after which did it resume pursuit of NATO membership.

The resumption is sometimes tied to the Revolution of Dignity preceding the Russian invasion, and even occasionally claimed to be a reason for the invasion, but the decision to abandon the neutrality position was well after and a response to the invasion rather than the other way around.

Re: EU chief opens door for Canada to become 'associate member'

#734

Post by WarmWash »

mcv wrote: post #660
enoint wrote: post #620

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The important categories are oil and potash. Consumer actions might not influence those much.

How much oil is Europe still importing from Russia? I'd rather have Canadian.

You know how despite climate change being very real, in day to day discussions with other level headed people, they still very regularly say stuff like

"We ran the numbers for an EV, and right now gas is still cheaper, so we are holding off on the switch until it makes financial sense"

Canadian oil would need to be shipped halfway around the world. It would be more expensive. Price is always the top factor for everyone.

Re: EU chief opens door for Canada to become 'associate member'

#735

Post by bryanlarsen »

boringg wrote: post #685
bryanlarsen wrote: post #492

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The biggest trade barriers between Canadian provinces are labor licensing laws. The biggest trade barriers between American states are labor licensing laws. The second biggest trade barriers between Canada provinces are liquor regulations. The second biggest trade barriers between American states are likely car emission laws. Fairly comparable, IMO.

Not comparable at all. The US is one market unless you have a compelling reason to protect your state market. Canada is 10 separate markets with provincial agreements between them - all protecting themselves. Easiest example is Quebec. I.e. Opt in vs Opt out but more complicated.

The US is the opt-in system where the States regulate everything not specifically allocated to the federation and Canada is the opt-out system where the federal government regulates everything not specifically allocated to the provinces.

Of course it's more complicated -- the US's inter-state commerce clause has been broadly interpreted by the courts.

Re: EU chief opens door for Canada to become 'associate member'

#736

Post by ndiddy »

gpvos wrote: post #304
xyzsparetimexyz wrote: post #249

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They're very clearly aligned

Not really with the US anymore. Anyway, I think you missed this reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-Aligned_Movement

There are over 30 US military bases in EU member states, so I would classify that as alignment with the US.

Re: EU chief opens door for Canada to become 'associate member'

#737

Post by IAmBroom »

teekert wrote: post #404
neom wrote: post #75

No idea what this actually means, if it means easier trade, I'm all for anything that reduces our dependency on the yanks, as long as we don't need to be involved in their regulatory or legal regimes. The Americans are no longer our friends, Salut, mes amis Européens. :)

Just want to chip in: I love you "yanks", not so much your politics and your imperialistic tendencies, but nearly all Americans I met were nothing but kind (coast to coast, left or right).

Am Yank; feel the same about our politics and imperialism.

Re: EU chief opens door for Canada to become 'associate member'

#738

Post by RugnirViking »

altern8 wrote: post #268
RugnirViking wrote: post #183

Earlier quoted context omitted.

of course. Ive not met a person that doesn't like them, either. I love hiking and have travelled pretty wide across europe. Solar panels are similarly lovely to see. I'd just as rather see them than a uniform field of corn or maize or somesuch thing. I can't understand the mindset that objects to such things? is it just a straight up childish nimby "I don't want ANYTHING to be built" or would you prefer natural gas+c…

I mean... Different people have different opinions. I would prefer nuclear

I'm sorry I came off a little hostile. I do find it hard to understand how people can be so opposed to such clearly necessary infrastructure on purely aesthetic grounds.

Compared to all the things that could be built, it seems like the aesthetic harm is so small (a six lane highway, an industrial plant, a train line, sewage processing plant, refuse pile, the list goes on and on) - all of these must be built in places too. I can't see how anyone can think themselves anything but lucky that they get wind turbines near them instead

Re: EU chief opens door for Canada to become 'associate member'

#740

Post by IAmBroom »

ttul wrote: post #691
teekert wrote: post #404

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just want to chip in: I love you "yanks", not so much your politics and your imperialistic tendencies, but nearly all Americans I met were nothing but kind (coast to coast, left or right).

Every "yank" I know is also pretty great. The problem is a political system that has entrenched an advantage for a party that would otherwise be consistently in the minority, reducing the ability of the center to moderate policy. Canadians are right to be skeptical that the next presidency will be significantly better than the current one. A serious amount of goodwill has been burned and I think the average view up n…

It doesn't even fix things if the next POTUS is the exact opposite. The world has been shown what we are capable of doing. Any four-year stretch could be governed by a joke hired to "own the libs".

Caligula's horse can't be elected solely because horses don't live past 35.

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