Invoking Vaclav Havel, he said it was time to stop pretending that what the western powers called a rules-based order was not a self-serving sham.
“Great powers can afford, for now, to go it alone. They have the market size, the military capacity and the leverage to dictate terms. Middle powers do not. But when we only negotiate bilaterally with a hegemon, we negotiate from weakness. We accept what’s offered. We compete with each other to be the most accommodating,” he said
“Being a happy vassal is one thing, being a miserable slave is something else,” he said.
“If you back down now, you’re going to lose your dignity, and that’s probably the most precious thing you can have in a democracy, it’s your dignity.”
The speech is here. It’s really good. It is perhaps the most incisive and important speech I’ve ever seen from a modern politician, and I think it may be considered something of a turning point in the future.
I have seen this speech many times. I think it is going to go down in history, as the speech that correctly identified the end of the american golden age. It is the first important speech in the western world, that was given not by an american for freedom and order, but against america for freedom and order.
America has literally never been a force for freedom nor peace and anyone who believes as much is a victim of propaganda.
Absolutely. It’s insane.
Wow, someone who pays attention. Cheers!
Indeed a great speech… hopefully it’s not just words
Here is a version with better quality audio
Carney has always spoken like this when dealing with chaotic situations. He did when he led the Bank of Canada during the '08 financial crisis and again during Brexit when he led the Bank of England.
He doesn’t lie or use platitudes when speaking on important issues … which is why Canadians are hopeful we can survive the current maelstrom.
We really need to be strong in this. When Trump starts to turn his attention to Canada again, I want all of Europe to back up Canada the same way Canada backed up Greenland. We can’t let this shit keep going.