Slapshot: How Canada Is Getting Its Groove Back
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Slapshot: How Canada Is Getting Its Groove Back
CANADA
Canadians are known for being nice.
But recently, they have decided, enough is enough.
As a result, the new prime minister of Canada, Mark Carney, recently had some fighting words for Americans who believe their neighbor to the north should either pay hefty tariffs on goods they export to the US – or become the 51st state.
“America is not Canada,” said Carney, according to the Business Standard, an English-language Indian newspaper. “Canada never, ever, will be part of America in any way, shape, or form. We didn’t ask for this fight, but Canadians are always ready when someone else drops the gloves. So, Americans should make no mistake. In trade, as in hockey, Canada will win.”
Dropping gloves is an allusion to hockey players discarding their cumbersome gear so they might trade punches on the ice with a rival player. Carney was also alluding to how Canada’s national team recently defeated the Americans in the 4 Nations Face-Off trophy, too, as National Public Radio explained.
The sharp-tongued, 60-year-old former governor of the Bank of England – Carney’s background includes Harvard and Oxford Universities and Goldman Sachs – noted that squaring off against the US would not be simple, however.
“But this victory will not be easy,” he said. “We are facing the most significant crisis of our lives. We will have to do extraordinary things together.”
As the Liberal Party leader who recently replaced outgoing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau – the young, handsome son of a former prime minister who has long been viewed as an empty suit – Carney is expected to call an early election on April 28.
Carney’s choice is savvy politically. Technically, he has until October to call an election. Until recently, he might have waited. But now Canadian nationalism is surging – and so is the Liberal Party’s popularity in the polls after having sunk to shocking lows.
“This is a stunning reversal related directly to what is widely known in Canada as the ‘Trump Effect,’” McGill University political scientist Daniel Béland told the Associated Press.
If he wins, Carney will receive a mandate to govern at the same time the White House is seeking to disrupt the US-Canadian relationship. President Donald Trump has already imposed 25 percent tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum exports to the US, the BBC reported, and has threatened to impose 25 percent tariffs on all Canadian goods not covered under the current trade laws.
The rifts are more than economic.
Canadians are deeply angry – booing American sports teams and the national anthem, boycotting American goods and travel, and renaming Americanos as Canadianos – to illustrate their displeasure. And instead of just waiting out Trump’s term, Canadian diplomats have decided to forge closer ties with Europe, for example, including in defense policy, to balance out their foreign policy ties and gain independence from American influence, added the Canadian Broadcasting Cooperation (CBC).
It may not be able to offer much in the way of defense help, but Canada has other commodities in play. For example, despite efforts to wean itself off Russian gas after the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Europe is still very dependent on it. Meanwhile, half of its liquefied natural gas imports come from the United States, making Europe vulnerable to a trade war.
But Canada has offered gas and green hydrogen, it says, something the Germans have already expressed interest in.
“It remains unclear where Canada will fit into that new world,” the CBC wrote. “But there are hints of what could be the path forward for this country as it grapples with the painful realization that its strongest and closest ally has turned on it.”
THE WORLD, BRIEFLY
The Impeachment Tango: South Korea in Limbo as Court Reinstates Leader
SOUTH KOREA
South Korea’s constitutional court on Monday reinstated Prime Minister Han Duck-soo as acting president, overturning his December impeachment as the country braces for more court rulings and continued public unrest, the Washington Post reported.
The court struck down the impeachment motion against Han in a 5-1 decision, with two of the court’s eight justices rejecting the motion entirely. The lawmakers in the opposition-controlled parliament impeached Han on Dec. 27 over his alleged role in President Yoon Suk Yeol’s declaration of martial law earlier that month – a decree that was revoked hours after it was issued.
Han assumed the role of acting president after parliament impeached Yoon on Dec. 14.
The prime minister has denied involvement, claiming that Yoon informed him of the plan less than two hours before it was issued and that he opposed it.
Following Han’s impeachment, Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok briefly served as acting president and filled two vacancies on the constitutional court – appointments that became a point of contention among lawmakers, noted CNBC.
On Friday, opposition legislators submitted a motion to impeach Choi, but the effort was overtaken by the court’s ruling to reinstate Han.
Since December, South Korea has been paralyzed by a political crisis that has polarized the country and fueled daily protests, with rival demonstrations swelling over the weekend.
The crisis comes as Seoul is also navigating global tensions and economic uncertainty following threats by the Trump administration to impose tariffs and reduce military support to the United States’ allies.
Monday’s verdict comes ahead of an upcoming ruling by South Korea’s supreme court on Lee Jae-myung of the main opposition Democratic Party. Lee – who ran against Yoon in the 2022 presidential elections – was found guilty in November of violating election laws.
Some analysts expressed concern over these back-to-back efforts to impeach the country’s top leaders during a critical period. They warned that such moves could set a dangerous precedent in which parties abuse impeachment proceedings to target political opponents and paralyze the opposition.
On Monday, the presidential office welcomed the constitutional court’s decision, while accusing the opposition of abusing impeachment powers. However, Han urged “bipartisan efforts so that South Korea can overcome the current crisis and move forward and upward.”
Even so, South Korea remains in political limbo as the constitutional court has yet to rule on Yoon’s impeachment. The court has until June to issue a decision. If Yoon is removed, Han will remain as acting president until a new election is held within 60 days.
Police are preparing for possible unrest on the day of the Yoon ruling, and schools near the court are set to close.
No Welcome Mat: Greenlanders Criticize US Trip to the Island
GREENLAND
Greenland’s leaders criticized an upcoming trip by a US delegation led by US Second Lady Usha Vance to the semi-autonomous Danish island, which the US has said it wants to annex, as an ill-timed pressure campaign, Reuters wrote.
The official goal of the delegation, which includes White House National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and Energy Secretary Chris Wright with the mission scheduled to start Thursday, is to visit a US military base and watch a dogsled race sponsored by the US.
Brian Hughes, spokesman for the White House National Security Council, said the visit aims to strengthen partnerships respecting Greenland’s self-determination, advance economic cooperation, and learn about its culture, history, and people.
But Greenland’s outgoing Prime Minister Múte Egede said that the visit cannot be considered a “harmless visit” and that the only purpose of including the US national security adviser as part of the delegation is “to demonstrate power over us,” according to Politico.
Greenland held a parliamentary election on March 11 this year with the center-right opposition Democrats taking first place in the vote. Next month, it will hold municipal elections. Meanwhile, Egede said no meetings with government officials can take place until the new governing coalition is formed.
Meanwhile, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, leader of the Democrats party and who will likely become the new prime minister, urged Greenlanders to remain calm and described the visit as a “pure charm offensive.”
Trump initially expressed interest in Greenland in 2019 but has recently repeatedly said the US needs the island for “national security purposes” and will take it “one way or the other.”
Anders Vistisen, a Danish far-right Member of the European Parliament, criticized the Vance-led delegation’s visit to Greenland, calling it “provocative” and an “interference” in their democratic process as it comes just before the local elections.
Greenland became a self-governing territory in 2009 but Denmark still controls its foreign and security policy. A majority of Greenlanders say they want independence from Denmark and most reject the idea of becoming the 51st US State, the BBC noted.
Last week, protesters gathered outside the American Embassy in the capital of Nuuk with signs expressing their opposition to the annexation of Greenland, according to the London Economic. The governments of both Greenland and Denmark have also voiced opposition to any US takeover.
Taking Out the Competition: Mass Protests in Turkey Over Rival’s Arrest
TURKEY
Turkey has arrested more than 1,100 people for participating in anti-government demonstrations, which broke out after the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, the main rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, France24 reported Monday.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan said Monday that protests over the jailing of İmamoğlu had become a “movement of violence” and were illegal. He added that the main opposition party would be held accountable for injured police officers and damage to property.
On Sunday, tens of thousands of people participated in the fifth consecutive day of demonstrations, the biggest street protests in Turkey in more than a decade.
Also on Sunday, a court jailed İmamoğlu pending trial, even as he won a primary vote that same day to become the opposition Republican People’s Party’s (CHP) nominee for the 2028 presidential elections, the BBC wrote. If convicted, he would not be able to legally run in the elections.
That’s what Erdoğan wants, said Ozgur Ozel, chairman of the CHP, adding that Erdoğan feared facing the mayor in a vote and wanted to “take him out of the game.”
İmamoğlu has been charged with “establishing and managing a criminal organization, taking bribes, extortion, unlawfully recording personal data, and rigging a tender.” He denies the charges.
Dozens of other people including politicians, journalists, and entrepreneurs were also detained by police, according to Radio Free Europe.
These arrests have heightened political tensions, with protesters gathering near Istanbul’s city hall and in at least 55 provinces to support the popular mayor. The demonstrators have been met with tear gas, rubber bullets, and water cannons.
Analysts say that while Turkey’s government insists the courts are independent entities, many believe İmamoğlu’s detention is politically motivated. Erdoğan has made no secret of wanting to remain in power. However, opinion polls show İmamoğlu’s approval ratings are often higher than Erdoğan’s and he is often cited as the only candidate that could beat the incumbent.
Erdoğan has served two terms as president, the most he is allowed under the constitution. To stay in office, he will have to amend the constitution or call early elections.
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on social media that there would be no tolerance for those who attempt to disrupt societal order, threaten public peace and security, or incite chaos and provocation. He said some of the protesters belonged to “terrorist organizations.”
Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavas – a member of the CHP – said İmamoğlu’s arrest was a disgrace to the judicial system while the chairman of the party said it is an “attempted coup against our next president.”
Meanwhile, Istanbul University revoked İmamoğlu’s degree over alleged irregularities, potentially jeopardizing his presidential eligibility. His lawyers plan to appeal the decision to the Constitutional Court and the European Court of Human Rights.
DISCOVERIES
Round of Applause
Scientists may have found a way to recognize people by the way they clap their hands.
A new study researched the physical mechanism and fluid dynamics of clapping hands to understand how different people clapping produces different sounds.
Senior author of the paper Sunny Jung was inspired to research the physics behind hand clapping after watching the film “X-Men: The Last Stand,” where one character claps her hands to send out shock waves and takes out the opposing army’s weapons.
“It made me curious about how the wave propagates when we clap our hands,” said Jung.
Clapping hands is a common human activity and form of communication. To study it the researchers used high-speed cameras to track 10 participants who clapped hands in different ways – by cupping their hands, by keeping them rigid and flat, and by clapping their fingers to the opposing palms, Cosmos Magazine explained.
They also considered the size, shape, and texture of the hands, the force, speed, and pressure used to clap, and the sound produced. They sprinkled baby powder on the participants’ hands to see the airflow produced by the clapping.
Researchers discovered that the sound of a clap is produced by air being pushed through the space between the palms and the gap between the thumb and index finger.
Clapping with cupped palms leaves a larger gap between the palms, which results in a lower frequency and a deeper sound compared with other methods.
The geometry of clapping hands and the resulting airflow patterns resemble those of Helmholtz resonators, which create sound by blowing air across the opening of an empty bottle. The more liquid in the bottle, and therefore the smaller the cavity left for air to circulate, the higher the pitch of the sound produced.
The team confirmed both experimentally and computationally that the Helmholtz resonator can predict the sound of clapping.
However, claps are much shorter than the sound made by the resonator because the soft tissues of the hands vibrate after impact, absorbing energy and dampening the sound. The more vibrations in the material, the quicker the sound attenuates.
“The hand clap is actually a very characteristic thing because we have different sizes of hand, techniques, different skin textures, and softness – that all results in different sound performances,” said first study author Yicong Fu. “Now that we understand the physics of it, we can use the sound to identify the person.”