There's no way that Panama is not preparing on sabotaging the canal. Yes, it can be repaired, but it'll probably take a year. And I'm sure that having the Panama Canal down for a year won't affect the American economy (nevermind the rest of the world's.)
Also, this article is clearly a "Diplomacy Through Media" article, with the intent of letting Panama know of the "options" they have, a) more US troops in Panama asserting some control over the canal, b) US Troops in Panama with complete control over the canal or c) US troops in Panama overthrowing the government and taking over the canal. What options!
But again, this seems like an intentional leak from the White House to put pressure on the Panamanian government. And like all things trump white house, it's heavy handed, unsubtle, and poorly done.
But now the Trump sycophants will come out and tell us how this is 4D Chess. At the same time screaming: Break up NATO! Stop supporting Ukraine! No more world police! No more foreign wars!
Yay America, well done in electing this a-hole.
( Except Panama, Greenland and Canada!)
JoshTko 4 days ago [-]
Such a neutral term of such an insane decision
latentcall 4 days ago [-]
Malcolm Nance suggested the administration has decided to invade Panama, Greenland, and Canada. I guess the destruction of our country is “America First”.
jfengel 3 days ago [-]
I'm hard pressed to see that going well for them. They were elected in part by isolationists who want to keep the US out of war at all costs. The administration's allies have a remarkable ability to change their minds when told to, but I feel as if a actual bloodshed would be a step too far even for them.
They're used to having the administration say all sorts of absurd things with little to no intention of actually following through. It keeps their opponents fighting against things that don't matter, while making making the things they're actually doing seem like trivial matters in comparison.
There are certainly members of their party who would be thrilled to see the US engage in expansionist wars. But they'll also tolerate not getting it. They're happy enough to see the US send the contradictory messages of both isolation and saber-rattling. Like the isolationist wing, they are used to hearing the contradictions and believing that the ones they like are real -- and yet won't check back later.
zonian 4 days ago [-]
I was born in the Canal Zone while it was still a territory of the United States. I’m a natural born U.S. citizen. Few Americans have a better claim to the Canal Zone as I do and I absolutely don’t have a legitimate claim to any part of it.
As sometimes happens between nations the Canal Zone was given to Panama by the United States. It is theirs. We don’t have a moral right to claim it back 25 years later. Picking on a much smaller and defenseless nation does not make America strong. We have become an infantile super power. This is a disgraceful time for America.
matthewmcg 4 days ago [-]
Zonian: my father was born to an American family but outside the Canal Zone (Panama City). I asked my Dad whether they considered themselves Americans or Panamanians growing up. He said his parents (my grandparents) considered themselves Panamanians and that they strongly supported handing over the canal during the treaty negotiations. What was the feeling like among the “Zonians”?
We just had a family reunion of sorts in Panama and needless to say the relatives that still live there (all over the political spectrum) were not enthused by the new U.S. posture.
zonian 4 days ago [-]
I was a kid when the Treaty was ratified in the Senate and when the Treaty was first implemented on October 1, 1979. As a kid it was a sad day for us. We all thought that Panama would be incapable of running the canal properly. The railroad quickly went into disrepair when Panama took over so there was some valid reasons for believing this.
In our own way we protested things. We wore shirts that said, “To Jimmy from the Canal Zone” with Gummy flipping the bird. We wrote some graffiti with slogans like “CZ Forever” and “Kiss My American Ass”. The transition was peaceful though and no violence was carried out. It took 21 years for the Treaty to be fully implemented. I came to the United States for college and stayed here in the U.S. ever since.
When I went back to Panama some years ago I could see that Panama made great progress compared to when the U.S. was there. One rabiblanco I talked to put it this way, “When you Americans left we had to grow up.” I could first hand see that we ended up stunting the political and economic progress of Panama.
The Treaty was the right thing to do. I hated it as a kid to lose my hometown and start being patrolled by the Guadia Nacional (PDF) but as an adult I see it differently.
matthewmcg 4 hours ago [-]
Very interesting perspective, thank you.
4 days ago [-]
Rendered at 17:00:20 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) with Vercel.
Also, this article is clearly a "Diplomacy Through Media" article, with the intent of letting Panama know of the "options" they have, a) more US troops in Panama asserting some control over the canal, b) US Troops in Panama with complete control over the canal or c) US troops in Panama overthrowing the government and taking over the canal. What options!
But again, this seems like an intentional leak from the White House to put pressure on the Panamanian government. And like all things trump white house, it's heavy handed, unsubtle, and poorly done.
But now the Trump sycophants will come out and tell us how this is 4D Chess. At the same time screaming: Break up NATO! Stop supporting Ukraine! No more world police! No more foreign wars!
Yay America, well done in electing this a-hole.
( Except Panama, Greenland and Canada!)
They're used to having the administration say all sorts of absurd things with little to no intention of actually following through. It keeps their opponents fighting against things that don't matter, while making making the things they're actually doing seem like trivial matters in comparison.
There are certainly members of their party who would be thrilled to see the US engage in expansionist wars. But they'll also tolerate not getting it. They're happy enough to see the US send the contradictory messages of both isolation and saber-rattling. Like the isolationist wing, they are used to hearing the contradictions and believing that the ones they like are real -- and yet won't check back later.
As sometimes happens between nations the Canal Zone was given to Panama by the United States. It is theirs. We don’t have a moral right to claim it back 25 years later. Picking on a much smaller and defenseless nation does not make America strong. We have become an infantile super power. This is a disgraceful time for America.
We just had a family reunion of sorts in Panama and needless to say the relatives that still live there (all over the political spectrum) were not enthused by the new U.S. posture.
In our own way we protested things. We wore shirts that said, “To Jimmy from the Canal Zone” with Gummy flipping the bird. We wrote some graffiti with slogans like “CZ Forever” and “Kiss My American Ass”. The transition was peaceful though and no violence was carried out. It took 21 years for the Treaty to be fully implemented. I came to the United States for college and stayed here in the U.S. ever since.
When I went back to Panama some years ago I could see that Panama made great progress compared to when the U.S. was there. One rabiblanco I talked to put it this way, “When you Americans left we had to grow up.” I could first hand see that we ended up stunting the political and economic progress of Panama.
The Treaty was the right thing to do. I hated it as a kid to lose my hometown and start being patrolled by the Guadia Nacional (PDF) but as an adult I see it differently.