trump apparently thinks that the gordie howe bridge is ripping america off because canada is not paying to access america's market. but there are already two international crossings in windsor (an aging tunnel and an aging bridge) and bridges in sarnia and niagara falls. there's also an ancient underground rail line. this is not a new border crossing, it's a replacement for aging infrastructure that has been in place for 100 years.

further, i think he doesn't realize that canada paid for this unilaterally because it's actually the other way around. the united states sees canada as an exporter of raw materials, but canada is actually a net importer of almost everything and the 401 is the single artery that the windsor-quebec corridor, which has something like 70% of canada's population, relies on. almost all canadians import almost everything from detroit.

canada didn't build this bridge because it needed an export route, it built it because it wanted to control how goods are entering canada.

the importance of detroit to canada's economy is difficult to understate. if we ever do get into a war, i would assume that capturing detroit would be canada's single largest strategic objective. i'd rather try to get detroit to join canada willingly, by enthusiastic consent.

do i think it's the end of american hegemony?

no. in truth, i think america is more powerful than it's ever been. it is fighting successfully in several major theatres. even in world war two, it did it one at a time. at no point in america's history could it do what it's doing now. the chinese are a longterm threat, but not right now, and not for a long time. 

who does actually think it is the end of american hegemony?

vladimir putin.

i've been cleaning the last few days.

the bedroom is pretty organized and pretty clean and i'm happy about that.

i pulled out the shop vac this afternoon and cleaned up the laundry. i also moved the dresser in. there are minimal signs of anything in there, after i put the bowls of bleach down. in fact, i haven't heard them, either. that suggests they're either gone, dead or....down here.

i'm looking carefully and so far see nothing. 

i should be able to get my laundry done and away in the next 24-48 hours, do some work in the bathroom and reclean the kitchen. the next thing is cleaning up the in-unit garage / work space and rearranging the living space but i think that can wait, so long as i'm able to get a good clean done in here.

i want to focus on being done cleaning by this time tomorrow morning, so i can get the garbage out, and get back to the court documents for a bit.