Active winery owner from the Beamsville Bench who loves good food and wine, cares about the environment and people who care.
Joined November 2011
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Every American should read this before the vote next week. An honest response to American exceptionalism from down under.
This Australian's reply to Trump's rant about “NATO not being there for America” is perfect.
"Mate. You run a country with 600,000 homeless people sleeping on the street tonight. A country where 40% of adults can't cover a $400 emergency without borrowing money. A country where insulin costs more than a car payment and people are rationing it to survive. A country where medical debt is the number 1 cause of bankruptcy. A country where women are dying in hospital car parks because doctors are too scared of abortion laws to treat a miscarriage.
You lock up more of your own citizens than any nation on earth. More than China. More than Russia. More than North Korea. The land of the free has 2 million people in cages, and a quarter of them haven't even been convicted of anything. They're just too poor to make bail.
Your life expectancy is going backwards. You're the only developed nation where that's happening. Your infant mortality rate is worse than Cuba's. Your kids do active shooter drills between maths and English while you sell the gunmaker's stock to your mates.
Your minimum wage hasn't moved in 15 years. You've got teachers working 2 jobs and veterans sleeping under bridges and you just spent a trillion dollars flattening a country that didn't attack you.
And you’ve got a convicted felon, adjudicating raping, paedophile protecting, porn star shagging insurrectionist running the biggest dumpster fire war campaign since the Taliban in Afghanistan thanked you very much for losing again.
And you're calling Greenland poorly run?
Greenland has universal healthcare. Free education. One of the lowest incarceration rates in the world. Nobody goes bankrupt there because they got sick. Nobody dies in a waiting room because their insurance said no.
'NATO wasn't there when we needed them." When exactly was that, champ? September 11? Because NATO invoked Article 5 for the first and only time in history FOR YOU. Soldiers from dozens of countries deployed, fought, bled, and died in Afghanistan FOR YOU. Australia wasn't even in NATO and we still showed up. For 20 years.
And you pulled out at 2am without telling anyone and left them to deal with the mess.
So maybe before you start calling other countries poorly run, have a look at your own backyard, you spray-tanned aluminium siding salesman. The only thing poorly run in this picture is your f----- mouth."
Credit to: Jim Keller
Donald J Trump and his cabal of a cabinet are the most ignorant people to have ever occupied the White House ! Americans should be embarrassed and vote blue and if not they will get the democracy they deserve !
It is impressive how bad you are at understanding the basic elements of your job or the simple truths of the country you are privileged to live in @USAmbCanada
The USA can no longer be trusted and is a pariah nation under the Trump administration. TIme to send the GOP to the curb! Trump and his cabal need to be neutered.
The recent Starlink / Starshield incident in Ukraine has created a dangerous precedence for the US export industry, many haven't yet grasped. The sudden deactivation respectively curtailing of those systems without warning not only cost precious lives, but also equipment worth millions.
Though the blame game between the White House (Trump) and SpaceX (Musk) is going on, ultimately it doesn't matter. It showed the world that the USA are not a reliable partner any more. Pointing at some obscure "violation of terms of services" without providing the exact passage are just increasing that notion that this was a political move.
The explanation that Starlink must not be used for "offensive" means is nonsense, too. Starlink has never been turned on over Russia, and using it in Ukraine is by definition defensive in nature. You can even argue that hitting Russian targets in Russia is defensive, since you don't have to wait for an attack to be conducted. Even the intention is enough to warrant action and to eliminate the threat at the source. But this is a different topic.
Furthermore, SpaceX has been fully aware that its Starlink terminals are being used by Ukrainian forces. Especially when considering that Ukraine only recently had to white-list their Starlink terminals for the Ukrainian military so that Russian forces, who have been abundantly using Starlink as well, were locked out. It has always been clear that those Starlink terminals are used for and by the Ukrainian military, and Ukraine has always been thankful for that.
Coming up with this bogus story, now, three weeks before midterms is therefore as transparent as it is shameless. It is obvious for everyone that this was just figleaf statement so that a political agenda can be pushed, an agenda which runs counter to the strategic nationalist interests of the USA, both political and economic.
And this is the real scandal. It is not new that the US had to lock out its technology or supplies to nations with which it had previously good and even cordial relation. Iran under the Shah, South-Vietnam and Cuba before Castro are just three to name it. But as you can see from them, it made perfectly sense back then. Those nations switched sides or disappeared altogether.
Ukraine on the other hand didn't switch sides and even helped the US in the most recent and botched Iran war, despite being short on ammunition itself. The Ukrainian government accepted every possible compromise and offered an unconditional ceasefire from the start. Russia on the hand refused all of it and is demanding surrender. Yet, it gets this treatment? Unbelievable.
This will be noted by all clients around the globe who purchase US weapons and technology. If agreements are not honored and can unilaterally and even clandestinely be altered based on the whims of a few, who only follow their own motives or election lies, then the all concept reliability falls apart.
Whether it is Starlink, the F-35, Tomahawk missiles or HIMARS. All those systems run on software and in many cases can only properly operate with recent updates. You don't even need have a kill switch. You can only refuse to update and many of those systems lose more than 90% of their effectiveness within a short period, making worthless.
This is why we see the blame game between Musk and Trump. I'm sure that people around those guys told them how absolutely shortsighted and stupid this step was. It will fall back on the entire US industry. Not even those two guys are worth that losses and backlash. A functional US Congress would immediately start subpoenas and hearings, asking questions in order to mitigate the damage, but here we are.
Trump and Musk have given the best reason why not to buy American. Customers - governmental and private alike - around the globe will take note of this and act accordingly, and I wouldn't be surprised if this won't be limited to US military products only. An absolutely senseless and avoidable own goal.
ALT F-35 (Credit: Von U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Donald R. Allen - http://www.dvidshub.net/image/935698/aerial-refueling-f-35-lightning-ii-joint-strike-fighters-eglin-afb-fla#.UZyEMrVU8QY, Gemeinfrei, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=49689165)
ALT Tomahawk Missile (Credit: US Navy)
ALT M142 HIMARS /Credit: Spc. Russell J. Good - http://www.defenselink.mil; exact source, Gemeinfrei, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4233985)
When you vote in the mid-terms do not forget that this agreement was put in place but the leader of the GOP!
OMFG!
Trump called his Venezuela agreement the “BIGGEST OIL DEAL IN WORLD HISTORY.”
Now ProPublica has obtained the previously secret 18-page agreement, and some of its provisions raise serious questions about what Americans were told.
The Pentagon is set to acquire 35% of a private Venezuelan oil venture through warrants exercisable for ONE PENNY per share.
The man running it, Alejandro Betancourt, has faced money-laundering investigations in THREE countries. Reuters reports that U.S. prosecutors were discouraged from investigating him further. Senior Trump administration officials also reportedly intervened with foreign governments on his behalf.
It gets stranger.
The company’s parent is registered in Barbados, where its other investors can remain hidden from public view.
The contract protects Betancourt’s position as CEO, requiring FIVE of seven board votes to remove him. People familiar with the negotiations say the structure was designed to prevent future administrations from undoing the deal.
And remember Trump’s promises?
He touted a century of American energy dominance. The actual U.S. oil purchasing rights expire after 50 years.
The White House promoted $200 BILLION in payments to Venezuela. The agreement doesn’t explicitly guarantee those payments.
And the company’s current production of 200,000 barrels per day? That’s equivalent to approximately FOURTEEN MINUTES of America’s petroleum consumption.
Who are the other shareholders? Why was this particular businessman chosen? And why did the administration keep the agreement’s terms from the American public?
Those are questions Congress should be demanding answers to.
Harald Thiel retweeted
a (kinda silly) accusation from trump admin re: canadian interference in the midterms
meanwhile congress is warning of russian covert influence against pro-ukraine candidates and israel is buying ads in iowa…
Harald Thiel retweeted
Canada Holds the Line: Prime Minister Carney Stays Firm as Trump Calls Under Midterm Pressure-
Prime Minister Carney and Trump held a lengthy phone call this morning to tackle pressing trade issues.
The timing of the call is highly critical, with the U.S. midterm elections just weeks away.
This upcoming vote puts immense pressure on the American administration, making the president’s sudden outreach look like a move to lock down a deal.
Observers note that control of Congress and the Senate are at stake, which could completely reshape the president's political agenda and future trade negotiations.
...despite the intense urgency coming from Washington, Canada is refusing to back down.
Canadian leadership has established a rock-solid stance, making it perfectly clear that they will NOT be rushed into a bad agreement.
In fact, Ottawa has already stated that if the deal does not directly benefit Canadians, they are fully prepared to walk away from the table entirely once again.
The president initiating this 'long' discussion highlights just how much pressure his administration feels as election day closes in.
Apparently, while both leaders covered several key trade topics, Canada’s refusal to budge shows that our government holds the REAL leverage.
This conversation perfectly highlights Canada's strong, patient approach to protecting its economic independence against a rushed American administration.
Canada and Canadians will come first in this. 🇨🇦
We have the right government to put us ahead of anything else.
Especially this administration.
Stay strong, Canada.
🇨🇦
#canpoli
#cdnpoly
#Midterms
#Canada
#MAGA
#Republicans
#trump
Harald Thiel retweeted
Now would be a good time to remind everyone of these Trump facts, because apparently some people still need the refresher.
Please meet the President of the United States:
Flew on Epstein’s plane at least seven times. Just friends, I guess.
Pleaded the Fifth more than 400 times in a single deposition. Nothing says “innocent” like refusing to answer a single question about your own business.
34 felony convictions. A record most people would call disqualifying. And 91 criminal charges.
Accused of sexual misconduct or assault by at least 26 women. But sure, tell me again how he’s a great guy.
6 corporate bankruptcies. The self proclaimed greatest businessman alive somehow keeps running out of money.
5 draft deferments. Funny how the toughest guy in the room never actually showed up for duty.
4 criminal indictments. Not two. Not three. Four.
2 impeachments. A club of exactly one president.
2 of his own companies convicted of criminal tax fraud. Convicted. Not accused. Convicted.
1 fake university shut down. 1 fake charity shut down.
Even his charity was a grift.
Paid 25 million dollars to settle the Trump University fraud lawsuit because scamming people who believed in you costs money eventually.
Ordered to pay 5 million dollars in the first E Jean Carroll sexual abuse verdict, then hit with 83.3 million more in the second.
A jury said it twice so nobody could pretend it was a fluke.
Ordered to pay 2 million dollars for looting his own so called charity.
Stealing from a charity with his own name on it.
Found liable for business fraud and originally slapped with a penalty topping 450 million dollars, later thrown out on appeal while the fraud finding itself stuck to him anyway.
First president in modern history to increase the deficit every single year of a full term. Fiscal responsibility, apparently, was always just a talking point.
Kept the debt to GDP ratio above 100 percent for his entire first term.
Presided over the largest single day point drop in Dow Jones history at the time. So much for the guy who claimed to be a genius with money.
Set the record for the longest government shutdown in US history in his first term at 35 days, then couldn’t resist beating his own miserable record in his second term with a 43 day shutdown, followed by yet another shutdown just months later. Encore nobody asked for.
Added roughly 2.25 trillion dollars to the national debt in his first year back in office alone, pushing the debt past 39 trillion dollars.
Somebody remind me who the party of fiscal discipline is again.
Pushed through the largest defense budget increase since World War Two while the debt kept climbing anyway.
Purged more than 300,000 federal employees in his first year back.
Efficient, if your goal is chaos.
Pardoned nearly 1,600 January 6 Capitol rioters.
At least 40 of those pardoned rioters have already been rearrested, charged, or sentenced for new crimes since walking free. Shocking absolutely nobody.
His family’s crypto ventures, including a meme coin and World Liberty Financial, pulled in more than 1.4 billion dollars in disclosed earnings while he sat in the Oval Office.
Draining the swamp was apparently code for filling his own pockets.
Sent the National Guard into American cities at a cost of nearly 500 million taxpayer dollars in 2025 alone.
His own tariffs are projected to cost the average American household more than 2,500 dollars this year.
You’re paying for this. Not China. You.
No more foreign wars. Peace deal with Russia and Ukraine on Day One.
None of this is a conspiracy theory, a rumor, or something you saw in a group chat.
It is the actual, documented record, sitting in plain sight for anyone willing to look.
So the next time someone tells you to relax and give him a chance, ask them how many more indictments, judgments, and shutdown records he needs to rack up before that chance runs out.
Credit: Charles Curtis Rone
We are not interfering just sharing the facts and making Americans aware of the reality of the trade relationship with Canada. Stop making this a partisan issue.
🚨 MAJOR BREAKING: The US Embassy in Ottawa has issued an official fact sheet accusing Carney's government of INTERFERING IN AMERICAN ELECTIONS.
It quotes Melanie Joly five times.
It names Doug Ford.
It names a Liberal MP who campaigned in Florida.
Days earlier, Carney and Joly both SWORE Canada would never interfere in another country's elections.
The US just put the receipts on letterhead.
It ends: "Americans decide America's elections."
This is insane.
THE LIBERALS ARE INTERFERING IN US POLITICS.
Ain’t going to happen!
Picture this:
Alberta successfully secedes from Canada and becomes the 51st US state.
It becomes the 3rd largest US State, by landmass, and it currently holds the 4th
largest oil reserve in the entire world.
Greenland, Denmark, and the US have already signed a tri-lateral security agreement.
The American hegemony would stretch from the Pacific, to the Arctic, through Canada, and to the Atlantic.
The USA will have its eyes on the Caribbean next.
Long live the American Empire!
Yes as Canadians, we sign agreements that we adhere to, respect the rule of law and the international order. The reputation of the USA has been squandered for generations ! NO ONE ! Will ever trust the US again except maybe Putin !
The French are arrogant, the Dutch moreso thinking they are still a major power….. but the Canadians take the cake.
Rarely have I ever seen a whole country divulge into hysteria and combative rhetoric against the U.S. thinking we actually care what they think.
Truly, Canada isn’t even top 200 things we think about or care for.
The USA is a morally bankrupt country if they meet with Putin and Xi to force Ukrainian capitulation! America has lost its way.
Trump is so full of shit his eyes should be brown!
NEW : Trump UNLOADS on Canada at a Kentucky rally
called out Trudeau by name, and made it clear he’s done subsidizing our system.
Key quotes:
“Canada’s taken advantage of us for 50 years… we lose $90 billion a year and I don’t like losing money on anything.”
“We had Trudeau who’s a not a good guy. Loser.”
“Your current guy is a nice guy, but he’s not nice when it comes to trade… they’re learning and they’re suffering.”
“I do not want to lose $90 billion for the privilege of allowing Canada to have a health care system… They spend our money very unwisely.”
He also noted Canada does 95% of its business with the U.S. while we do very little with them by comparison.
He's right about a lot, especially that Trudeau is a loser.
That guy ruined this country as the world's largest virtue signal.
As you are !
NEW : Trump UNLOADS on Canada at a Kentucky rally
called out Trudeau by name, and made it clear he’s done subsidizing our system.
Key quotes:
“Canada’s taken advantage of us for 50 years… we lose $90 billion a year and I don’t like losing money on anything.”
“We had Trudeau who’s a not a good guy. Loser.”
“Your current guy is a nice guy, but he’s not nice when it comes to trade… they’re learning and they’re suffering.”
“I do not want to lose $90 billion for the privilege of allowing Canada to have a health care system… They spend our money very unwisely.”
He also noted Canada does 95% of its business with the U.S. while we do very little with them by comparison.
He's right about a lot, especially that Trudeau is a loser.
That guy ruined this country as the world's largest virtue signal.
Harald Thiel retweeted
putin is a dictator and a war criminal. he has done more damage to the fate of his own nation than any major world leader in generations.
zelenskyy’s crime? the defense of his fellow citizens.
america’s allies understand this, every one of them.
president trump stands alone.
