Canada should not respond to potential U.S. tariffs with retaliatory tariffs, as this would primarily harm Canadian consumers by driving up prices. Instead, Canada should leverage its industrial and technological capabilities to undermine the monopolistic rent-seeking of American corporations by legalizing and promoting third-party modifications, repairs, and alternative marketplaces for technology, agriculture, and other industries. By dismantling restrictive intellectual property laws—many of which were imposed under the USMCA trade agreement—Canada could become a global hub for jailbreaks, independent app stores, and right-to-repair solutions, thereby reducing dependence on U.S. tech monopolies and fostering a new high-tech economy that directly benefits Canadian consumers and businesses.
Agreed.
Doctrow’s suggestion is a good long term approach and definitely something we should have started when Trump first tried to attack our economy.
But in the short term we also need to react swiftly and in kind. And to focus that response disproportionately on the people and industries that most strongly enable Trump and his supporters.
Working against expanding our markets and suppliers is geography, though. It takes much longer and costs much more to move goods between Canada and Europe/Asia/South America than it does to the US.
When the ruling class finishes melting the Arctic ice cap to get the oil, shipping to the EU/Northern Asia will be much faster and cheaper than now.