The dark juncture and my letter to the Seattle Times
Last year, on February 12, 2025, Seattle Times reporter Danny Westneat penned an article titled, There’s not much to say, Canada, except: Sorry which laid out his response to Trump’s economic tariffs, and Canada’s unsavoury response. He said, “The awkward reality is I don’t know what to say to Canadians at this juncture in our shared history” and winced at the suggestion America was our enemy. “Ouch. The enemy? What can I say to that in return?”
Excerpt from The Seattle Times, Feb 12, 2025
In the article, Westneat repeats his internalized idea of an America that no longer exists. He says, “Would it count for anything if I pointed out that we were as blindsided as you by Donald Trump’s suggestion of annexing your country, and making it the 51st state?” and then admits that, Americans weren’t blindsided. They simply chose to ignore the “bitter truth” that Trump “loves to bully his allies more than his enemies.”
Canada’s response wasn’t to take that bullying on the chin. Westneat says he admires how Canadians were “rallying to our threat” and even admits a touch of envy. “You’re behaving as we ought to be,” he says. But the real sobering moment comes a bit later in the article.
“You called us quiet cowards, which hurts because it’s true.”
Westneat doesn’t attempt to defend the inaction of his fellow Americans. He apologizes. He says he is sorry.
In the days following, Westneat received hundreds of emails in response to his story, including one from me. I wrote:
We can’t accept your apology, but we get it.
Date: Sunday, February 16, 2025 at 4:39 PM
To: dwestneat@seattletimes.com
Subject: We can’t accept your apology, but we get it.
Dear Danny;
Reading your article has been the first moment where I have felt as though one single person in America understands the collective sentiment. Ever since the US President declared a trade war with Canada, announced sweeping tariffs, subsequently backed-off, then came right back on – Canadians have confirmed what we have long suspected. The United States doesn’t give a fuck about us. Themselves. Or anyone else.
Of course, not all Americans agree with Trump’s agenda. We get it. We are capable of holding two simultaneous and conflicting ideas in our heads. But, the long-standing suspicion that the US could never really be trusted has arrived. When it suited America’s sinister ego, it is no great surprise to Canadians that our neighbour would stab us in the back. Well, that day is here.
Canada’s swift and stark reaction might seem stunning but, America should know this: you only had one shot. One shot over our bow. One rocket’s red glare. One bomb bursting through air. One about-face, one bullet with butterfly wings, and the minute it happened—it was over. On your end, things might seem still okay, a bit tense, but the relationship might seem salvageable, right? Tennessee is running tourism ads. I’m getting emails for President’s Day discounts. Oof. The fight started when you dropped gloves. Not when the first punch hit. For many Canadians, any relationship with the US is now six feet under. America could barely be trusted in the first place, and now? How could we ever trust again?
Canadians don’t see the self-drawn divisions. There are no blue states or red. No liberal voters and MAGA’s. There is one country, under God, with knives pointed at our necks. Booing the anthem is a snooze alarm blaring. It digs at the patriotic feelings ingrained in the American consciousness, but it’s harmless. It’s a warning. Wake-up. Get your house in order. Get your democracy under control. Or you are going to lose it and go down with the ship. The sobering thought that you so eloquently convey in your article says what we most fear: you will do nothing. The America we knew is gone. Some want to be put out of their misery. Others want to join Canada. Still, some are salivating with glee at the prospect of ruining two peaceful nations. The shocking betrayal is made more shocking by Americans being so clueless about it. Being so insular means that there is a genuine belief that this is a good thing – that other countries are desperate join you. That somehow, other nations have it worse. It couldn’t be farther from reality.
Your article is the first sign of admission, of courage, that the mirage of the United States is a faulty picture to those within it. You are telling a story you don’t want to admit is true. That in fact, America is now a bad friend. An enemy-in-the-making. Too tired to care about itself. Too distracted to care about anyone else.
Canadians feel very differently about our nation. We are energized. We are not afraid of Trump. Of Americans. Of anyone. That’s the scary thing. What’s more? Wordlessly, as if sharing one singular idea, Canadians understood the assignment. Strip US products off the shelves. Cancel all flights. Drop media subscriptions. Make a playlist. Have a bit of fun. Put googly eyes on those hockey sticks. But don’t mistake the silliness for idle hands. Collectively, we are going to pull a rabbit out of our hats, pivot the entire economy, even if it means never drinking orange juice again – and cut the US out of our hearts and lives forever. It’s a plot twist some may not see coming. And it will take all of us, collectively, to make it happen.
Your apology, while appreciated, can’t be accepted in good faith. I hope you know this. Things are about to get worse for both of us. I can only wish that at some dark juncture, Americans with a sense of things-gone-terribly-wrong, admit so much. Quiet and cowardly is no way to live. It’s an even worse way to let a nation die.
Prairie Mountain, Alberta
I’m quoted in his follow-up article titled From Canada: We’re sorry, but apology not accepted, posted three days later on February 19.
In the text, he summarizes the range of responses and reactions he received. There were emails from American’s criticizing him for apologizing, and many others suggesting that he stuff his apology where the sun don’t shine. Canadians chimed in too – some angry, others apathetic. It’s complicated.
I wrote that letter nearly one year ago, and now only eight days into 2026, with Trump’s decision to kidnap the corrupt leader of Venezuela, and threaten the invasion of Greenland (a Danish territory and NATO ally), I decided to write Danny again.
The dark juncture is here, Danny.
From: Lexie Angelo
Date: Thu, Jan 8, 2026 at 7:33 PM
To: dwestneat@seattletimes.com
Subject: The dark juncture is here, Danny.
Dear Danny,
We are here, my friend.
We are at that dark juncture where things have gone terribly wrong. And you were right. Americans have done nothing.
And now the US government, the president, and his administration are salivating for war. Venezuela. Greenland (Denmark). Canada. We know there are war plans.
Americans are pleading for a saviour again. I understand. Ordinary people feel powerless, and they believe (rightly) that if they stand up to the US government they might be killed. Most militaries protect their citizens – but in the US, it’s an unspoken understanding that the military will murder you, and that tends to force compliance. Even though compliance doesn’t guarantee you’ll be spared.
But there is more to fear than just weapons. SNAP benefits are gone. Abortion too. Healthcare is so expensive that medical debt follows people to the grave. Schools unexpectedly become crime scenes. Movie theatres too. Even politicians are being shot in their own homes. The system, I’m afraid, is working as it was designed. One big pool of blood.
It’s almost laughable to remember those early days when Americans were cheering for Canada to become their “cherished 51st state” thinking the insult would get under our skin. Others were confused. Wasn’t America the greatest place on earth? Shouldn’t Canada feel honoured?
Trump thought those jeers made America look tough. But, instead, Canadians saw a population of easily distracted fools. And then we saw something else. A threat. And we collectively chose to respond with boycotts. Bourbon sales got decimated. Wine and travel too. Supply-chains pivoted. Tennessee, Colorado and California put up billboards, begging Canadians to return. But still, Danny – you are the only one who has ever apologized.
And I have to wonder, what will become of us now?
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