Andrew J. Olson

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

Booing the national anthem of “real allies that fought and bled alongside” Canadians when neither the players nor the fans have anything whatsoever to do with U.S. foreign policy is the utter height and depth of disrespect.

Meanwhile, the American taxpayer has had to make up the difference where Canada has failed for decades in its obligations under both NORAD and NATO all while living under the protection and safety of the U.S. nuclear deterrence.

Fully one-third of Canadian GDP is due to trade with the U.S. Yet Canada can’t even bother to show up for trade negotiations.

It is undeniable that Canadians are the greater beneficiaries of the relationship, yet some Canadians, cannot muster a fraction of an ounce of gratitude for the good fortune of their proximity, and act as if they are entitled to anything and everything the U.S. has to offer. They may soon find, much to their dismay, that they have no such entitlements.

But now I’ve had the great misfortune of skimming some of the posts on your 3 month old account, and I have no time for religious bigotry irrespective of whether it targets Christians, Muslims, Jews, or any other group. And as a Holocaust-denial adjacent antisemite edgelord, I won’t waste another second on you.

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

Nonsense. A majority of Canadians now recognize that Trump’s “annexation” and “51st state” comments are political rhetoric and not actual threats according to recent polling done in Canada. (Google it.)

Carney and the Liberals understood this at the time, but used the rhetoric disingenuously (yet effectively) to stoke actual fear and return their party to power.

Trump’s tactics are straight out of “The Art of the Deal.” The words are meaningless. There is ZERO intent behind them.

However, did you know that had Doug Ford acted on his threat to cut off electricity to millions of American customers, it could have imperiled the lives of hundreds or thousands of people? Did you know that in most contexts that would be considered an act of war?

Having said all that, are Canadians really prepared to substantially impair their own economy over some pointless remarks?

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

@TopTierPucks Are you seriously bragging that Canada’s first knockout round match was SCHEDULED earlier than the U.S. match?

Wow. Yeah, man. You really “owned” us.

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

Cool story, bro. Unfortunately, it’s incorrect.

In-stadium enumerated attendance was 98.2% of capacity (69,237 counted of the possible 70,492).

The CBC estimated that 25,000 of the >69K in attendance were Canadian. (You have heard of the CBC, I presume?)

South African fans were present but far fewer (yellow kits “sprinkled throughout,” with only small noticeable groups, according to USA Today).

While there were other international fans present, it’s estimated that about 50% of attendees were from the U.S. (~35,000).

So there were more Americans than Canadians in attendance.

Yet the whole stadium sang along to O Canada with zero reports of booing.

I hope you can cope with the fact that Americans just don’t hate Canadians. “Sorry.”

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

Now I see where you’re coming from. Yes, it’s stupid. It’s childish. It’s unserious. And ultimately, it’s ineffective. It’s also straight out of “The Art of the Deal.”

So people should stop getting butthurt and take it for what it is: meaningless.

Are Canadians really prepared to substantially impair their own economy over some pointless remarks?

It’s been said that the best way to train dogs is to ignore the bad behavior and reward the good.

Do that.

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

Well, let me think about that. When I lived in Canada for 5 years in the mid-90s I was stunned to discover how utterly obsessed Canadians were with the United States. It wasn’t a healthy obsession by any means.

I would often be pressed to defend U.S. foreign policy. (This was during the Clinton / Jean Chrétien years. I lived through the Québec referendum too. In Montréal. That was fun.)

I’d have to share with people that I wasn’t actually responsible for U.S. foreign policy. The U.S. dominated Canadian news coverage. It was crazy.

I asked many Canadian friends what it was all about. Here are some of their explanations:

They’d often give the Pierre Elliot Trudeau comment, “Living next to you is in some ways like sleeping with an elephant. No matter how friendly and even-tempered is the beast, if I can call it that, one is affected by every twitch and grunt.”

Others said U.S. ignorance of, or indifference to, Canada was maddening.

Some said it was jealousy, (which I thought was absurd).

But the most common reply was, “Inferiority complex.”

It seems that the Canadian identity is defined by differentiating it from the United States—which means that Canadian identity is inextricably tied to the United States. That is insane!

Just be Canada, for crying out loud. Nobody cares. Get over it. Hydrate. Moisturize. You’ll be fine.

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

@bbqguy1962 @JohnSmithgedo @MarkJCarney @CANMNT_Official That’s pretty low effort too. I like to engage.

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

No, not a bot. I just learned how to type words and do online searches like, “What fraction of the Canadian population believes Trump’s ‘annexation’ and ‘51st state’ comments are actual threats versus political rhetoric?” And then I discover all of the polling that’s already been done in Canada. It’s super low effort. You could even do it (probably). But calling someone a bot because you can’t think of a comeback is the lowest of low effort.

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

You are apparently unaware that even polling in Canada finds that the majority of Canadians recognizes Trump’s “annexation” and “51st state” comments as rhetoric. (See Ipsos, Pollara, Angus Reid, Leger, Abacus, and others.)

However, Carney and the Liberals disingenuously but effectively weaponized this rhetoric to stoke real fear in Canadians to give their struggling party election victories. The effect is waning for most. (Present company excluded.)

Also, were you aware that neither the players on the field, nor the fans in the stands, are responsible for U.S. foreign policy?

So Canadians booing the U.S. national anthem simply demonstrates a lack sportsmanship. Certain Canadians are clearly not what they have been purported to be. (Present company included.)

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

Ah, yes. The “artist” whose work was valued at up to $500,000 while daddy was in office, but then plummeted to $0 as soon as his term ended. Now he has over 200 unsold pieces.

Oh, I forgot that he’s also an expert in the Ukrainian energy market.

House investigations, Senate reports, and media analyses documented KNOWN payments totaling over $20 million to him, family members, and associates from overseas entities including from China, Romania, and Russia—all while being addicted to crack.

Ladies and gentlemen, THIS is the epitome of credibility.

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

This dude started every sentence with “we understand” as an intentional rhetorical device called anaphoric repetition in direct response to the comment by @katcin that “many Americans are unable to understand the issue[s].”

The purpose in this instance is to mirror and invert the accusation of our not understanding.

You may be familiar with other famous examples of anaphora, such as, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s, “I have a dream that one day… [repeated].” Or Sir Winston Churchill’s, “We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds…”

Now, as for my nonsense drivel word salad, I am simply dying to know what I got wrong. By all means, enlighten me.

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

Yes, we understand perfectly well that some Canadians took Trump’s jokes about annexation and “51st state” comments as literal threats rather than the rhetoric it actually is.

We understand that Carney and the Liberals disingenuously but effectively weaponized this rhetoric to stoke real fear in Canadians to give their struggling party election victories.

We understand that Trump implemented tariffs to virtually every country in the world to address trade imbalances and to motivate resolution to longstanding policy disputes. And we are acutely aware that the two countries that invoked retaliatory tariffs were Communist China and Canada. (Why do these two countries appear in the same sentence so often?)

We understand that many Canadians resent Trump’s determination to place the needs of the country he leads before the needs of other countries—just as every nation’s leaders should.

Speaking of looking in the mirror, here are some other things we understand about Canada. We understand that since NATO’s inception, Canada has been one of the lowest spenders on defense—way below its pledges and obligations. We understand that Canada has never met its obligations under NORAD. Therefore we understand that the U.S. tax payer has had to bear a significant portion of Canada’s burdens for North American and North Atlantic defense.

We understand that Canada enjoys the best free trade agreement with the United States compared with any other country in the world, save Mexico. And while Canada proclaims to want free trade with the U.S., we understand that Canada has repeatedly been caught subsidizing (or dumping) softwood lumber into U.S. markets and has retained protectionist policies on dairy and other agricultural products. So does Canada want free trade? Or does it not?

We understand that Canada has been deepening ties with the Chinese Communist Party—not just for just for trade, but also for “public safety and security cooperation” in ways that could impact U.S. security. (With friends like these…) It could also have adverse consequences for Canadian citizens, but no one will release the memorandum of understanding. So even you get to remain in the dark. (There are those two countries together again.)

We understand that Doug Ford threatened to cut off power to U.S. customers, potentially affecting millions of Americans and even imperiling the lives of hundreds if not thousands. In most contexts, this would constitute an act of war.

We understand that 70-75% of Canadian exports are to the U.S., and trade with the U.S. represents 30-35% of Canadian GDP. Meanwhile, trade with Canada represents about 2.5% of U.S. GDP. So, go it alone, if you wish. The real question is: DO YOU UNDERSTAND THIS? Or are you blinded by ideology that precludes logic and reason.

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

Did you know that under Utah Code § 20A-3a-501, the physical location of a ballot drop box is treated as a “polling place.” This triggers the same rules as traditional polling locations. Therefore, it is prohibited within the polling place or within 150 feet of the building where the drop box is located to engage in electioneering, which includes any oral, printed, or written attempt to persuade people to vote for/against a candidate or issue? And since you posted this on your campaign account, it is clearly intended to persuade people to vote for you. This is a class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to 364 days in jail, and/or up to a $2,500 fine.

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

Canada since its founding ad nauseam, ad infinitum: “We are not the United States.”

The U.S.: “Who cares?”

When are you guys going to build an identity that isn’t predicated on your loathing of, and disdain for, the U.S.?

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

@rodmickleburgh It seems many Americans are unable to understand the issue. Based on much of my experience here, they are just incapable of looking in the mirror and are blinded by ideology that precludes logic and reason.

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

The article was about Canadians angry that he attended the U.S. World Cup opener rather than Canada’s, and for the perceived hypocrisy for him traveling to the U.S. despite having called for travel boycotts. Calls for boycotts came mostly from the Left, and his skipping the Canada’s game could upset Canadians across the political spectrum.

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

Wow. This comment—all by itself—made the entire internet stupider. Musk lives in a tiny house, probably smaller than yours. He’s a minimalist as a consumer. His companies employ 170,000 people. Tesla vehicles have prevented 150+ million metric tons of CO2 from being released into the atmosphere. About 10+ million people who otherwise would not have access to high-speed internet do now because of Starlink. He innovates at a scale like no other, and all of his companies, products, and services improve the standard of living for society. And NONE of that $1 trillion is liquid. It’s a valuation on paper. If he started selling off large chunks of it to fund YOUR pet projects, the value of the stock would tank. You are among those who think that because other people exist, you are somehow entitled to what they have. YOU are what’s wrong with society. Not Musk.

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

@JayGenXer Don’t help. Just film.

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

@WayneSzaIinski @Kurt_Steiner That is factually incorrect. Private religious institutions of higher education may require applicants to share their faith even if students receive federal grants or loans. This is due to the First Amendment protections for freedom of religion, and exemptions within Title IX.

[Andrew J. Olson @andrewjolson]

@VeroniqueSemtex @Kurt_Steiner You’re welcome. Enlightenment is my love language.