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U.S. blocks Canadian access to iconic Stanstead border-straddling library
- xnx 2y agoThe message from the current administration is clear: the rest of the world, and half the US are considered adversaries. Do everything you can to reduce interactions and/or dependence on the US. The administration cannot be trusted.
- ty6853 2y agoThis may sound a bit nuts but I honestly think Trump is doing this because immigration, foreign policy, and commander in chief are the three areas where he has nearly dictatorial powers, so he simply chose to turn those cranks because those were the ones available. If you look at how he is turning the cranks it doesn't make sense, virtually no modern economic thought supports this kind of tariff and customs war with friendly Canada. It seems like a child playing at the wheel of a car with no idea how to drive but by God you will hear him honking that horn.
- DanHulton 2y agoDoesn't sound nuts at all, the facts fit the theory.
- jkmcf 2y agoTell that to Fisher of Fisher investments. He's humping Trump's leg and is totally gung ho about the tarrifs. On the plus side, my investments have doubled. On the downside, I feel dirty.
- ty6853 2y agoDoes fisher own a grey market import export business? Massive profits will be there made.
- finnthehuman 2y agoCurrent? Derby Line/Standstead has been fucked since Bush 43. The library access was cold comfort after all the other changes "because terrorism." Yeah, it's discouraging that it too is now gone. But if someone wants to be mad at Trump, just be mad at Trump. They don't need to suddenly pretend to care about Derby Line to have a legitimate gripe about Trump.
- thimabi 2y agoThat’s such a petty move by the U.S. government. I hadn’t heard about this library before, but it seems something so innocent and devoid of problems that I wonder why the government bothered to mess with it.
- pupppet 2y ago[flagged]
- nwroot 2y ago[flagged]
- pupppet 2y ago[flagged]
- ty6853 2y agoWhy not build another entrance, and host free parties and liquor. Only on the Canadian side lol.
- InsideOutSanta 2y agoAdd a glass wall so the Americans can see what they're missing?
- jmclnx 2y agoThis is in VT, so people there already know what they are missing. In fact, it use to be in border communities with Canada (at least in NE), crossing the border was like walking across the street. Trump wants to destroy that and it seems to be working. People in the US needs to raise up and end this MAGA trend fast.
- ty6853 2y agoPassports were much rarer before WW1, it is indeed a bit bizarre as the world allegedly embraced liberalism and moved away from imperialism that the real crack down treating humans as property of government that need hall passes and permission slips really went into gear. This may be the byproduct of more robust social benefits, it requires brutal totalitarian control of immigration to smite the 90% of earth that would be better off in North America.
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- acc_297 2y agoboston globe article about Kristi Noem incident some weeks ago: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/02/27/nation/rising-border-tensions-threaten-library-straddling-vermont-quebec-line/ https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/02/27/nation/rising-border-... line from the archived website: "The Haskells wanted Canadians and Americans to have equal access to the Library and Opera House and so they chose to build on the border. Construction began in 1901; the Opera House opened in 1904 and the Library in 1905."
- xnorswap 2y agoWhat's going on with the US government? They're doing so many things which could normally be described as "Cartoonishly Self Destructive" that it's hard to keep up with their actual objectives. What's even less clear to me is why the apparatus of state seems so willing to go along with these whims of the executive. I'd imagine every EU/UK company is re-thinking any US based conferences they have booked right now, because who knows if your field will suddenly fall under their whims.
- toomuchtodo 2y ago“Semi incompetent bully” is the persona you should imagine it operating as.
- Hizonner 2y ago"Semi"?
- toomuchtodo 2y agoSome of the damage is sticking.
- piva00 2y agoSelf-destruction of the US government is kinda the point for Curtis Yarvin and his followers to implement their vision, same for all the cyberlibertarians in Silicon Valley. That's the only way so far I've managed to make sense of what the USA is doing to itself, the destruction is the point.
- tharmas 2y agoYes, this explains a lot of the "logic" behind the behavior of this Trump administration. I also think that its not just an end goal but that they enjoy the means to this end. "There is a class of men whose sole delight is in destroying" William Blake
- InsideOutSanta 2y ago
- eigenspace 2y agoAs a Canadian, I really can't express the amount of frustration and anger I feel towards the USA these days. More than a century of incredibly close partnership and interdependence thrown away for nothing more than stoking American egos, looking for an easy target to bully. The ugliest part of all of this is that if voters completely reject Trumpism in 2 or 4 years and go back to a sane path, they won't have done it because they were convinced of the gross immoral capriciousness of the Trump administration. The only reason American voters would reject Trumpism is if they decide he's bad for business, and caused serious economic harms.
- adingus 2y agoMany of us in New England share your feelings, along with frustration and anger about feeling powerless to stop it.
- sundaeofshock 2y agoIt’s up to us in the US to stop it. No one else well. Don’t give into despair! We have power; we just need to use it. At a bare minimum, call your congress people at least once a week. It does make a difference. Here are some links that may give you some ideas: https://thewhitepages.net/p/thirty-lonely-but-beautiful-actions https://thewhitepages.net/p/thirty-lonely-but-beautiful-acti... https://chopwoodcarrywaterdailyactions.substack.com/ https://chopwoodcarrywaterdailyactions.substack.com/ https://handsoff2025.com/?SQF_SOURCE=indivisible https://handsoff2025.com/?SQF_SOURCE=indivisible
- eigenspace 2y agoPeople not in the USA also have the power to affect this. The American electorate has decided that their wallets are the only thing they care about when voting, so we can hit them right there. I'll be doing everything I can to no longer purchase or support US products whenever possible. I've also sold all the stocks I hold in US corporations.
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- ferguess_k 2y agoOK, states are like 3-year old Muffin who loves throwing tantrums given the chance. P.S. Muffin is a character in the Aussie show "Bluey".
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- orwin 2y ago> ```According to Boudreau, when Noem visited she stood on the American side and said "U.S.A. No. 1" and then, after crossing onto the Canadian side, said "the 51st state." Boudreau told CBC News she did this multiple times. ``` I mean, that's what i expect from a US cartoon character like Homer Simpson, not from a real, living person. Are the average republican like this, or are those comportment limited to republican representatives?
- vtfave 2y agoAs someone who lives a few hours away on the Vermont side, this is a real heartbreaker though not surprising based on the last few weeks. The border literally goes through the children's wing of the library and is marked with some electrical tape on the floor. French books on one side, English books on the other. So it's hard for me to understand how the US has the authority to deny Canadians access to their own land. Not that the US government cares about legality these days.
- betaby 2y agoU.S. people "just following orders" it seems.
- thrill 2y agoThe pettiness of the administration somehow continues to boggle my mind.
- rich_sasha 2y agoRegular Americans are probably used to being liked around the world. Sure, we all make jokes, but in general "American", a mere few weeks ago, stood for something attractive. American music, American values, American companies - things most people around the world would like the sound of. Not everyone, sure, but a majority. Very quickly and for no clear reason, America is saying FU to all these people. Americans will have a rude awakening when they realize they are now disliked rather than treated with a mild admiration. Just not sure what that's for.
- readthenotes1 2y ago"Regular Americans are probably used to being liked around the world." Regular Americans are used to being seen as a source of money around the world. Being disliked, but tolerated, has been the lot of Americans for decades
- rich_sasha 2y agoWell then, welcome to "keep your money and F off" world then.
- readthenotes1 2y agoWith the Trump presidency cutting off a lot of foreign aid, it'll be interesting to see which country fills the void. With the troubles at the border, it will be interesting to see how other countries respond. Are they willing to forego US tourist money? At a personal level if I were a tourist from the US, would I be shunned by touts or denied access to nice places ("sorry mate, not allowed in the Tate. Cheers")?
- ASalazarMX 2y ago> Very quickly and for no clear reason, America is saying FU to all these people This is not something new, just more evident nowadays. Things that USA has done for decades that have alienated other countries: - Always has been at war, preferably asymmetrical, brutal wars for profit while claiming democracy and freedom. - Many Americans are ethnocentric, ignoring much of the world outside their country. For example, its national baseball cup is still called the "World" Series? Or ask any American abroad which country they are from, and most will name their state. - Not so ethnocentric Americans usually choose to do tourism abroad, and those are the ones most people in the world encounter. Obnoxious American tourists are a minority, but they're the most memorable, unfortunately forming the stereotype. - Has appropriated the "America" name from the whole continent. United States of North America would be its proper name. Gulf of USA is small compared to that. - Remember "Manifest Destiny"? It's still alive, just frequently changes names. I could go on and on. I don't deny the blooming of USA after WW II was beautiful, bringing hope to a ravaged world, it seemed like everything it did was awesome. Unfortunately, it was superficial, and its flaws have become more evident as the luster vanishes. USA needs a whole makeover, right down from its constitution to their electoral system, and up to the international arena, to materialize the promise that it showed before.