my take on the 3m thing.

i agree that it's not a great idea to retaliate in terms of cutting off the supply of pulp; that's easily recoupable, and largely pointless. but, i'm sure there are some items that we export to the united states that could be rationed for internal use.

i think the more pressing concern is trying to find a way to manufacture the damned masks.

why is trump doing this? because he needs a bad guy, and canada's an easy bad guy. i think he may have been insulted by the request for a border closure, as that's when he started acting erratically; regardless, we're just a pinata, an illusion, something to kick around. it's enraging, but there's no strategic logic in it, it's just lashing out. so, escalating directly isn't a rational choice, when faced with that kind of psychology, which is just looking for easy meat. it's better, perhaps, to respect the assertion of sovereignty and plan around it, as is necessary.

perhaps we could eventually find ourselves in need of the currently exported pulp for use in a domestic factory, and see fit to redirect it there.