treat with the fairness
and respect that we deserve
self-defeating move
Amid a trade war and a deepening rift between the United States and its northern neighbor, Mr. Trump said that he would “not allow” the opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge, scheduled to open early this year for traffic between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, “until the United States is fully compensated for everything we have given them, and also, importantly, Canada treats the United States with the Fairness and Respect that we deserve.”
The Canadian Chamber of Commerce, the nation’s largest business lobbying group, denounced the president’s threat in a statement, writing that “whether this proves real or simply threatened to keep uncertainty high — blocking or barricading bridges is a self-defeating move.”
It was not immediately clear how Mr. Trump would block the opening of the bridge. Its construction was paid for by Canada, and a public-private arrangement , under which Canada and Michigan would jointly operate the crossing, gives Michigan part ownership.
From the article, Trump Threatens to Block Opening of New Bridge to Canada in the New York Times on Feb. 10. 2026.
I first heard the story on the drive into work while listening to NPR’s Morning Edition.
The story quoted the above quote, “until the United States is fully compensated for everything we have given them, and also, importantly, Canada treats the United States with the Fairness and Respect that we deserve.” and added … it is not immediately clear what that means.
I could focus this essay on the old saying about getting what you ask for and couple that with the admonition, … treats the United States with the Fairness and Respect that we deserve but that would be too obvious.
What we deserve in the way of fairness and respect when we are shooting our own citizens, blowing up speedboats in international waters and imposing huge tariffs … but I digress.
If you have never seen it, the movie Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is a nice escape for a couple of hours.
The story opens with the British Prime Minister needing a feel good story to splash on the current news cycle.
The Press Secretary gets her orders to come up with a story and she goes back to her office and walks into a room of staffers and computers and announces “We need a good news story” and the staffers dive into their computers and start searching.
For the sake of the story, the best they can come up with is that an rich Sheik from Yemen would like to fund an effort to introduce salmon fishing on a river in Yemen.
Even tho the Press Secretray says, Is that the best you puffed-up Oxbridge-educated moronic buffoons can come up with?
They say yes and off the movie goes.
HERE IS THE POINT.
At the white house is there a room of people, sitting at computers, searching for the next story for that guy in office to make an issue of?
Is someone yelling, come on, come on, find something.
And with a news cycle filled with protentional land mines did one of those people notice that the new bridge in Detroit was nearing completetion.
And for that person did the dots connect in their brain that the bridge in Detroit went to Canada and that Canada was currently on the naughty list, (bad people in Canada, bad, very bad, Gordie Howe was not an American) and presto-chango, there it was.
Did the staffer yell, I GOT I GOT!
And someone calls out TELL US TELL US.
BLOCK THE NEW BRIDGE TO CANADA THAT IS ABOUT TO OPEN IN DETROIT! the staffer yells.
LOVE IT LOVE IT the room cheeers.
AND, contributes another, WE KEEP IT CLOSED UNTIL THOSE CANADIANS TREAT US WTIH THE FAIRNESS AND RESPECT WE DESERVE.
THAT’S PERFECT they all yell.
TYPE IT UP someone shouts.
Really?
Seriously?
Who comes up with this stuff?
It would be funny if it wasn’t so sad.
No Haiku For You 