Dit is een Tesla batterij. Om het te maken heb je nodig: 12 ton steen voor lithium 5 ton kobalt mineralen 3 ton mineraal voor nikkel 12 ton kopererts Verplaats 250 ton grond om te verkrijgen: 12 kg lithium 30 pond stuivers 22 kg mangaan 15 pond kobalt 100 kg rammen 200 kg aluminium, staal en plastic. De Caterpillar 994A gebruikt voor grondverzet verbruikt 1000 liter diesel in 12 uur. Eindelijk krijg je een “zero uitstoot” auto. Grootste oplichting in de geschiedenis.

. @RealPNavarro , you left out the best part!…😂

There is a particular kind of negotiation familiar to anyone who has ever tried selling something on Facebook Marketplace. You list your truck for $12,000. A man named Darren messages you at 2:17 a.m. and offers $6,500. Instead of saying no, you panic and reply: “I could probably do $10,000. And I’ll throw in the winter tires.” Darren says nothing. So naturally, you send another message. “And the spare rims.” Still nothing. “Full tank of gas?” Nothing. “I’ve got two gas cans in the garage. I can fill those too.” Darren has not technically agreed to buy the truck yet, but at this rate you’re about three concessions away from offering him free oil changes for life and a Petro-Canada gift card. Welcome to Canadian trade negotiations. Prime Minister #MarkCarney spent much of the last year assuring Canadians that his government would negotiate with Donald Trump from a position of strength. The elbows were up, Canada would not roll over, we were diversifying and we were building the strongest economy in the G7 didn’t you know? There were speeches and there were slogans. There were probably several very serious briefing binders involved. And then came the concessions. Canada scrapped its Digital Services Tax in June 2025 after Trump suspended trade negotiations over it. The federal government explicitly said the tax was being rescinded to advance negotiations with Washington. That was supposed to get things moving and things, indeed, moved. Unfortunately, they appear to have moved toward the spare rims. Canada subsequently removed many retaliatory tariffs on American goods. Then this week, Canadians learned Ottawa is reportedly considering still more concessions to Washington as Trump threatens another round of tariffs. Among the issues reportedly on the table? - Canada’s Buy Canadian procurement policies. - American vehicle access. - And provincial restrictions on the sale of American alcohol. At which point Saskatchewan and Alberta can probably be excused for quietly looking around the room because they’re among the provinces that didn’t maintain the broad American booze bans in the first place. But the truly magnificent part of this story arrived Thursday. Because while reports of additional concessions swirled around Ottawa, Carney assured Canadians that his government’s approach to the United States was already “quite firm.” Quite firm. And that right there, is Canadian diplomacy distilled into two words: not firm, not very firm… QUITE FIRM. The diplomatic equivalent of your mother telling the neighbour’s kid, “I’d really rather you didn’t set fire to the shed again.” Carney also indicated Canada could become tougher if an agreement isn’t reached, while insisting he wants a comprehensive deal rather than a partial one. So let’s review the negotiating philosophy here: 1.Concede. 2.Wait. 3.Concede something else. 4.Announce firmness. 5.Threaten the possibility of future firmness. 6.Continue negotiating. 7.Repeat as necessary. To the untrained eye, however, it looks remarkably similar to our Facebook Marketplace truck negotiation from earlier. Darren still hasn’t agreed to buy the truck. We’ve lowered the price, thrown in the winter tires and spare rims, filled the tank and topped up both gas cans. And somewhere around Ottawa, somebody is probably looking out the window at the utility trailer and thinking: “You know... Darren might like that.” And here’s where the comedy stops being entirely funny. Because these aren’t winter tires and gas cans sitting on a driveway. They’re Canadian industries and Canadian farmers. They’re Canadian manufacturers employing Canadian workers. Dairy farmers are already warning Ottawa not to offer further concessions involving supply management. Their message is remarkably uncomplicated: Canada’s food sovereignty isn’t something government should bargain away simply to get another meeting. Meanwhile, Washington continues threatening Canadian exports with tariffs, which raises an awkward little question. If the other guy keeps threatening tariffs after you make concessions... what exactly did the concessions buy? Because that’s generally the point of a concession. You give something, they give something… that’s why it’s called negotiating rather than gradually emptying the garage to persuade Darren to please, for the love of God, buy the truck! And yet here we are. The truck is still technically ours. Darren still hasn’t agreed to the price, but we’ve now apparently decided free car washes for a year might finally demonstrate our negotiating strength. #PierrePoilievre seized on exactly that weakness this week, accusing Carney of making “pre-emptive concessions” before serious negotiations have produced results. That’s the question Canadians should actually care about: What has Canada received in return? Not what might happen. Not what officials hope will happen, and not what could eventually happen after another round of intensive discussions involving seventeen deputy ministers, four working groups and enough catered sandwiches to stock a soup kitchen. What did we get? Because Canada’s relationship with the United States is enormously important. Nobody serious disputes that. Trump is also an extraordinarily aggressive negotiator. Nobody with functioning eyesight disputes that either, which is precisely why Canada’s bargaining chips matter. You don’t strengthen your hand by playing your cards before the other guy has placed his bet. And you certainly don’t keep tossing cards onto the table while announcing that your tone is becoming increasingly stern. There is another deadline approaching on August 19. Perhaps Canada gets an agreement, or maybe Washington backs away from some tariffs. What if the concessions prove worthwhile? If that happens, Canadians should judge the agreement on its merits. But until then, Canadians are entitled to ask one very simple question every time Ottawa announces another accommodation… what did Canada receive in exchange? Because patriotism isn’t measured by how loudly politicians say “Canada Strong.” It’s measured by whether Canada actually emerges stronger. And if August 19 arrives without a deal, perhaps someone should check Facebook Marketplace. Darren very well could be standing in the driveway beside that $12,000 truck he never actually agreed to buy. The winter tires are in the box, the spare rims are stacked beside them. The tank is full and two topped up gas cans are strapped down in the back. There’s now a utility trailer hooked to the hitch and he’s got free car washes for a year. And there stands Mark Carney, holding Darren’s new CAA membership card, explaining that there will be absolutely no further concessions. Quite firmly. Melanie melanieinsaskatchewan.substa… 👇🏻 buymeacoffee.com/melanieinsa…