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The week's question
In December 2024, in the thread "Re: BRK: Why Not XOM?", BreckHutHigh asked the members: "What about the long road trips with kids?" This week it is put to everyone again. The button below opens the small thread re-asking it - read what others have said so far, then give your own answer as an ordinary reply.
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Stocks A to Z / Stocks B / Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A)
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Author: mungofitch 🐝🐝🐝 GOLD
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Number: of 21944 
Subject: Re: War, currencies and jurisdictions
Date: 06/10/25 1:22 PM
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This is a very nice thought, but given that the US government has stated the precise contrary repeatedly and most emphatically, it sounds a lot like wishful thinking. Or, more bluntly, just plain denial.
...
That was just Trump trolling & dissing Canada.
Doesn't ANYBODY read The Art of the Deal?


There is, alas, no evidence for your belief, but much evidence to the contrary. The official US policy stance has been clearly stated.

The Art of the Deal, the book by Mr Schwarz, has no relevance, other than perhaps suggesting that taking over ALL of Canada is a maximalist demand that will be backed off to settling for only a few provinces? There is another similarity: the book isn't about trolling and dissing, and neither is the plan to take over Canada.

Like Mr Trump or not, surprisingly often he means exactly what he says, and does exactly what he says he will do. The rationality of the stated intent seems to have little predictive power.

The process for statehood you mention has no relevance to the current administration, as they intend simple conquest and annexation. The intended method is causing a depression from economic embargo, forcing the otherwise unwilling populace and government to surrender. All out in the open and clearly stated policy, not a secret or a conspiracy theory or a jest. As should be rather obvious, the orderly provisions of the US constitution are not relevant.

As I mentioned, it is indescribably annoying for a non-US person to see Americans mistaking serious stuff for jokes, like chainsaw-cheering the deaths arising from the termination of USAID. It's certainly true that the US congress has the right and power to end it--foreigners have no right to that gift money--but equally true that they haven't.

The average American believes that foreign aid is 20% of the US federal budget, and when asked, the average of their responses is that it's too much and should be cut to 10%. The actual figure is very close to 1% in a typical year. It seems likely that some Americans are able to have estimates of what's serious that are similarly off by a factor of 20, which can similarly lead to real world deaths.

This won't blow over quickly. I certainly intend never to set foot in the US again. No offence.

Jim
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This community has written 21,448 posts about Berkshire Hathaway. The article-length ones it recommended most:
BRK: Why Not XOM? · 62 recs · 2024
Second quarter comments · 60 recs · 2023
Berkshire's Profit Contributors · 57 recs · 2023
Summary of 2Q 2026 · 54 recs · 2026
3Q Summary · 53 recs · 2024
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