3 ms·

Very big hiccup that this policy might possibly run up against: the American border. Given the 280,326,500,000 USD in exports that Canada sends to the US [0],

Very big hiccup that this policy might possibly run up against: the American border. Given the 280,326,500,000 USD in exports that Canada sends to the US [0], even a minor disruption at the border could wreak devastation on Canada's economy. If an American administration even hinted at an increase in border wait times due to newly enhanced searches as a result of legalization, any Canadian federal government would have to think very hard about the pros vs the cons of legalizing pot. [0] http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/balance/c1220.html#2015 http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/balance/c1220.html#2015

grecy 11y ago
What you say is true, though it would be a sad day when the future of what Canadians want Canada to be is limited by the financial pressure of another country. Of course, to prevent this problem, Canada could just hint at slowing down or limiting the 12410000000 barrels of oil it exports to the USA [1] (see, two can play that game, and nobody wins) [1] http://business.financialpost.com/news/energy/canadian-oil-exports-to-u-s-reaches-highest-level-ever-as-shale-production-falls http://business.financialpost.com/news/energy/canadian-oil-e...
- kobayashi 11y ago
  Agreed that nobody wins in a trade war, though, the threat of limiting the oil flowing south isn't very credible. Canada is already hemorrhaging money due to the downturn in oil pricing and the subsequent devaluing of the Loonie. Also, Canada doesn't really have any other options of where to send the oil, as thanks to a variety of political actors, Canada hasn't been able to build a pipeline to the west coast to move the oil overseas to places like China. Lastly, I don't even think that the Canadian federal government could reduce the flow of oil, as the sector is in private hands. I suppose something might be able to be done with cross-border rail movement, but I'm not sure. Regardless, it would be cutting the nose to spite the face, so the point is pretty well moot. As for the ability of Canadians to create their own policies of self-government solely on internal politics without regard for geopolitical implications, I'm not going to pout over it. Geopolitics and international relations effect the internal politics of every country, and American concerns are not without merit. If a Democrat wins the WH, I'd be surprised if that threat were levied, as it would anger much of the Democratic base. However, who knows what the future will hold. Law enforcement agencies certainly hold a great deal of policy sway in the US (as in most countries), and my take is that they're more anti-legalization than the average American voter and politician.
- MustardTiger 11y ago
  >What you say is true, though it would be a sad day when the future of what Canadians want Canada to be is limited by the financial pressure of another country. That day happened like 50 years ago and has been that way ever since. As much as Canadians define themselves by being "not Americans", we're very heavily influenced by the US.
  - kobayashi 11y ago
    Great username.

grecy 11y ago

What you say is true, though it would be a sad day when the future of what Canadians want Canada to be is limited by the financial pressure of another country. Of course, to prevent this problem, Canada could just hint at slowing down or limiting the 12410000000 barrels of oil it exports to the USA [1] (see, two can play that game, and nobody wins) [1] http://business.financialpost.com/news/energy/canadian-oil-exports-to-u-s-reaches-highest-level-ever-as-shale-production-falls http://business.financialpost.com/news/energy/canadian-oil-e...

kobayashi 11y ago
Agreed that nobody wins in a trade war, though, the threat of limiting the oil flowing south isn't very credible. Canada is already hemorrhaging money due to the downturn in oil pricing and the subsequent devaluing of the Loonie. Also, Canada doesn't really have any other options of where to send the oil, as thanks to a variety of political actors, Canada hasn't been able to build a pipeline to the west coast to move the oil overseas to places like China. Lastly, I don't even think that the Canadian federal government could reduce the flow of oil, as the sector is in private hands. I suppose something might be able to be done with cross-border rail movement, but I'm not sure. Regardless, it would be cutting the nose to spite the face, so the point is pretty well moot. As for the ability of Canadians to create their own policies of self-government solely on internal politics without regard for geopolitical implications, I'm not going to pout over it. Geopolitics and international relations effect the internal politics of every country, and American concerns are not without merit. If a Democrat wins the WH, I'd be surprised if that threat were levied, as it would anger much of the Democratic base. However, who knows what the future will hold. Law enforcement agencies certainly hold a great deal of policy sway in the US (as in most countries), and my take is that they're more anti-legalization than the average American voter and politician.
MustardTiger 11y ago
>What you say is true, though it would be a sad day when the future of what Canadians want Canada to be is limited by the financial pressure of another country. That day happened like 50 years ago and has been that way ever since. As much as Canadians define themselves by being "not Americans", we're very heavily influenced by the US.
- kobayashi 11y ago
  Great username.