this post was submitted on 13 Feb 2025
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A war would be disastrous for both countries. Especially the US.

As President Donald Trump relentlessly threatens to annex Canada, some Canadians are worried that an American invasion could one day become a reality.

How would that scenario play out? Looking at the sheer size of the American military, many people might believe that Trump would enjoy an easy victory.

That analysis is wrong. If Trump ever decides to use military force to annex Canada, the result would not be determined by a conventional military confrontation between the Canadian and American armies. Rather, a military invasion of Canada would trigger a decades-long violent resistance, which would ultimately destroy the United States.

But in this nightmare scenario, could Canadians successfully resist an American invasion? Absolutely. I know this because I have studied insurgencies around the world for more than two decades, and I have spent time with ordinary people who have fought against powerful invading armies.

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[โ€“] [email protected] 16 points 5 days ago (1 children)

The US would initially run over Canada. Let there be no mistake there, it always does. Saying this as a proud almost Canadian, this US armed forces will overwhelm any country in the world.

Having said that.

The US hasn't won a single war since WWII. It'll overwhelm whatever country it invades and then inevitably gets it's ass kicked from here and back to the US again. Anyone remember Vietnam? Afghanistan? Iraq?

If the US decides to invade Canada, it will sign it's own death certificate.

[โ€“] Majorllama 2 points 5 days ago

The piece you're missing is that all those wars after WW2 they weren't fighting to save the world. They were fighting to line the pockets of the military industrial complex (and big oil) that sprouted up around post WW2 America. The goal wasn't to "win" it was to funnel as much money into the pockets of several already rich and powerful cunts as possible.

If there was actually a threat to American citizens and we wanted to delete that threat entirely we would have absolutely no issues completely leveling pretty much any foreign nation with or without nukes.

Canada's actually military would be a speed bump for ours. Nothing.

But dealing with the global backlash and potential escalation to nuclear war would be an unmitigated disaster for not only the US but the whole world.

We may not know exactly what would happen in the fallout after the hypothetical invasion but I think we can all agree it would be very bad for pretty much everyone on the planet.

[โ€“] [email protected] 36 points 6 days ago (1 children)

First he'd need to convince the army to follow his orders. It's a lot harder to paint Canadians as "evil minorities" in order to get the rank and file to "just follow orders".

[โ€“] [email protected] 1 points 3 days ago

We've seen it happen 1000s of times in history. Soldiers do as their told. If Trump says invade, it will happen. They are purging any internal resistance as we speak do in a few months, if he says invade we will get invaded.

[โ€“] [email protected] 25 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (3 children)

Resistance is not futile, the USA has not prevailed (single-handedly) against resistance movements in any country of our size in their history. IEDs are cheap, effective, and relatively easy to make. Canada has farms with fuel oil and fertilizer, and lots of firearms.

[โ€“] [email protected] 16 points 5 days ago

It's even worse. The US hasn't won against an insurgency ever in its entire history. And really, it hasn't won a single conventional war since WWII either to be honest.

While one side would be forced to fight for its right to exist, the other would be forced to weigh the costs of doing an occupation for decades. Not to mention the hit to moral and public support, which in turn translates to support from your own military.

Frankly speaking, I think the US's own military would refuse to move if ordered, and Trump'll have to replace most of the leadership to make them comply. And even then, there's the thought that most of the soldiers themselves wouldn't want to raise arms against their longest standing ally.

[โ€“] [email protected] 18 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

I have always been a peaceful and patient person, but there is no way I'm letting a fascist foreign government take over. I would gladly even suicide bomb a foreign invader if it thrwarted their advance and protected my adult kids , and fellow country members, future.

[โ€“] FireRetardant -4 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Many of Canada's firearms are outdated in a military sense and the government has been continuing to ban more guns. Many fire arms currently owned by canadians would have already been considered obsolete by the cold war, especially if we are comparing our stockpile to America's.

[โ€“] [email protected] 5 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

You're just as dead if you're shot by a Ross rifle or Lee-Enfield as by a whizbang gizmo-addled wank-rifle with 10 attachments and a CDROM drive.

[โ€“] FireRetardant 1 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Sure, but a magazine of 5 in a semi automatic is still a lot less shots than a magazine of 30 in a fully auto rifle. Modern military body armor has come a long way and being a neighbour, america has many naval and air bases already built and fully loaded within striking distance. A surprise strike could significantly cripple canadian military resources.

[โ€“] [email protected] 5 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

Yeah, I don't think anyone is arguing that the Canadian military wouldn't get roflstomped in hours. It's more about the insurgency afterwards, I'd say.

Not all the American occupiers can be armed and wearing body armour 100% of the time. They have to sleep and piss occasionally.

[โ€“] [email protected] 3 points 4 days ago

Asymmetric war is just so asymmetrical.

[โ€“] [email protected] 22 points 6 days ago

Yep, people will fight hard to defend against a foreign invasion. We're seeing it with Russia and Ukraine right now.

[โ€“] [email protected] 18 points 6 days ago (2 children)

If you think about it, all we have to do is each Canadian has to eliminate 10 Americans. Not necessarily kill, just remove from combat. That can be through befriending so they stop fighting, incapacitating through a biological agent against which, as Canadians we have been vaccinated, diverting to another enemy, or actually taking out. And really, we'd only have to target the white combatants, the way they're going nowadays.

Facetiousness aside, I agree with your point. And thanks for sharing. What we probably have to watch out for is thd cultural warfare that recruits Canadians against Canada.

[โ€“] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago

Nah

Canada has to kill only a few thousand soldiers and the US population will be ready to revolt

[โ€“] [email protected] 7 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Idk how it wonโ€™t end well for him given how he ran out the clock and didnโ€™t see a single day of justice.

[โ€“] [email protected] 10 points 6 days ago (2 children)

That was Trump v. The American legal system.

If it comes to a head on confrontation; it'd be Trump v. Canada in gorilla warfare. We'll bring our own justice, and probably add a few more pages to the Geneva Conventions while we're at it. We're good at that.

[โ€“] [email protected] 7 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Wait. We have gorillas in canada for warfare? Or is that US?

[โ€“] [email protected] 4 points 5 days ago (2 children)

Apologies,

Guerrilla* warfare

Though gorillas could be a good wildcard...

[โ€“] WhiskyTangoFoxtrot 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)
[โ€“] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago

I understood that reference! Bonus points for Canadian content.

[โ€“] [email protected] 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)
[โ€“] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

Do we have any rules against gorillas in war?

Would you like some? ๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ฆ

[โ€“] fourish 1 points 5 days ago

The next thing will be trump visiting Canada and another staged โ€œassassinationโ€ to galvanize the less intelligent Americans into supporting โ€œpeacekeepingโ€ in Canada.

Or theyโ€™ll just dress someone up as what they think is Canadian in the US and try the same line down there.

[โ€“] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago

I never thought I'd say this, but bring back George Dubya

[โ€“] [email protected] -2 points 5 days ago (2 children)

This is a hopeful expression,but it's written from a dreamers perspective.

Canadian civilians don't know what this means. Canadians don't have a culture of resistance, there is only a dream that rights and values are immutable.

Compare that to the Finnish, or to the Baltics. Ask a Finn what they will do when the Russians come, and you will get a detailed response, with both vigor and realism. Balts will either stand or falter, but with a true understanding of the reality of their situation. Those people have been defending their sovereignty for decades - like the Ukrainians.

I'd love to see the Canucks resist, like I'd l9ve to see the Yanks hold ... but they haven't even seen the examples of Belarus and Hungary- they don't even u.dersrand what they are fighting.

In a fight, the Americans will roll in and take Toronto, and Montreal, they'll bomb a few bases, they'll blockade Victoria and Vancouver and the block the passes, then they'll blockade the Eastern shipping lanes. The prairies will cheer, poorly treated migrants will shrug, sofa warriors will fizzle ... them what is left? US supply routes will be stable and simple, and they'll attack without risk. What can guerilla tactics do in that scenario?

[โ€“] [email protected] 11 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (2 children)

Canada is five large cities, which are easy to capture, and an entire USSR-size back-country of rough terrain, which would be nearly impossible to patrol and hold in the face of even a mildly resentful populace. You don't have to have the entire population actively fighting - passive resistance would make it difficult to do anything in the face of shrugs and "I dunno"s.

Resistance fighting can be picked up pretty fast, and in the face of brutal American reprisals and repression, I think it would be. Their history in Afghanistan and Vietnam shows that they'd create an entire generation of people out for revenge VERY quickly.

We would hide our insurgents, and they would fade into the mountains and forests. You don't need a lot of active insurgents to cause a huge problem.

We have cheap drones and abundant weapons. We're one of the more gun-infested countries per capita, and have a porous border with the USA.

It'd be a hell on Earth. They'd never hold the Rockies.

Resource extraction operations. Forestry and mining are easy to disrupt, especially if the local labour doesn't like the occupiers. There are a thousand ways to gum up the works, and a thousand more to attack them and fade away into the surrounding forest.

[โ€“] [email protected] 4 points 4 days ago

I'll give you the forest guerilla function. They can be close to the resource targets that the Americans will immediately move to appropriate. I will also give that they will get popular support, so they won't starve.

I do think that you underestimate the impact on rural and small town populations that the American propaganda has had. There're full maga & 2A groups in Lindsay and Nelson who are flying their F Tr flags at this.

[โ€“] [email protected] 1 points 4 days ago

Who will our insurgents comprise of? (Honest question). Aside from a small percentage of the population that has had weapons training (active and reserve military, police force, hunters) the vast majority have never touched a weapon before...

[โ€“] [email protected] 8 points 5 days ago

Yeah, you'd think it's easy for the US.

Just as people thought Iraq would be easy

And Afghanistan

And Vietnam

And yeah, the initial invasion is easy, it waltzes over anything as a hot knife slices through butter.

Then, however,.comes occupation. What is it worth invading and blockading if you can't own it? And this is where the US always has failed and will continue to fail in the future too. You can bet your furry Canadian butt that Canadians will resist and hard.

Same goes for Mexico btw. If the US decides to invade there as hinted as multiple time, expect US soldiers to be hanging from bridges with their private parts stuffed down their throats, they have quite a bit of experience with how to handle that.