Should you book that trip to the U.S.? Philosophy prof breaks down ethics of retaliating against Trump tariffs

CBC News

· Posted: Mar 16, 2025 9:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

Since U.S. President Donald Trump made it wide helium was superior astir levying tariffs against Canadian goods, a question to boycott U.S. question and products has taken hold.

But not each Canadians are convinced that's the mode to go: immoderate reason that the radical of the United States should not beryllium punished for what their authorities is doing, and others don't privation American authorities dictating however they walk their wealth and vacations. 

Peter Deitsch, a philosopher and economist, said it's a double-edged sword.

"Our anticipation is erstwhile we disengage, we're signalling to not conscionable our chap Canadians, but particularly to Americans: 'Hey, this is not normal. We request to alteration thing here,'" helium said.

But the consequences of our ain actions are a gamble, helium said. 

"How are the mean Americans … going to respond to that?"

Deitsch spoke successful extent astir this with CBC's Stephen Quinn connected The Early Edition.

This interrogation has been edited for magnitude and clarity. 

Some radical are saying, 'I don't privation to beryllium spending my wealth successful the United States,' while immoderate accidental it's truly not the radical of the United States that we're disquieted about, it's the policies of the U.S. government. How bash we marque the distinction?

It depends however we framework the concern that we're faced with.

I deliberation the optimistic framing of this, judge it oregon not, is that we are faced with a commercialized war. The question is: what should I bash arsenic an idiosyncratic successful that commercialized war? If you framework it successful those presumption and you besides deliberation that we should bash what achieves the close consequences successful this context, and we could accidental that those are promoting amended relations with the United States, you mightiness deliberation that, yes, we bash person an work to amusement solidarity with Canadians successful this context. Why? Well, due to the fact that we privation to awesome to the Trump administration, via the colonisation of the United States, that we privation to determination toward a world, again, wherever determination are nary tariffs imposed and a much co-operative satellite arsenic we knew it before. If we framework it successful that way, we person an work to possibly not question to the United States, bargain less American goods and truthful on. And if we don't bash that successful a way, we're escaped riding connected the efforts of our chap Canadians who are doing that.

The much pessimistic speechmaking is that this is not conscionable a commercialized war, but we're faced with, unfortunately, the emergence of an authoritarian regime. So the Trump medication is trampling implicit idiosyncratic rights successful the United States, it's dismantling institutions that are expected to enactment arsenic checks and balances successful democracy, specified arsenic the courts, specified arsenic the media. If you framework it successful those terms, past that raises the stakes. I deliberation past that makes the work to disengage adjacent stronger, due to the fact that looking back, if we don't, we mightiness individually and collectively deliberation that we were connected the incorrect broadside of past connected this one.

We're besides successful a concern wherever we person a commercialized statement with the United States and Mexico that is inactive successful effect, that was signed by the existent president of the United States, and that statement is not being honoured. What tin oregon should we bash astir that?

That's the happening erstwhile we're faced with the concern wherever institutions get dismantled; it creates uncertainty. Uncertainty is atrocious for galore things, but it's particularly atrocious for trade. And truthful again, you could deliberation of these 2 framings. Is the full commercialized kerfuffle, is that conscionable a distraction from what's truly going on? 

We can't trust connected agreements anymore. Even from time to day. Politicians learned precise rapidly that the Trump medication says 1 day, 'We're going to instrumentality the tariffs away,' and the adjacent time they mightiness beryllium back, and the alteration continues. The uncertainty is destabilizing.

We've been proceeding a batch from radical who person cancelled their plans to question to the United States. We haven't heard arsenic overmuch from radical who person decided that they're inactive going to go. Is determination immoderate shame that plays into this?

Well, truthful independently of however you framework it, whether conscionable arsenic a commercialized warfare oregon arsenic thing worse, erstwhile we effort to bash the close happening and disengage, determination is simply a corporate enactment problem. We're lone going to beryllium capable to nonstop that awesome if capable radical really bash it. One of the ways to enforce the solution to a corporate enactment occupation is done shame. So if idiosyncratic goes, and we amusement them that we disapprove due to the fact that we deliberation it's a atrocious idea, that has an effect. 

I'm definite tons of Canadian families are talking astir this astir the meal table. My household is nary different. We person obligations successful the United States. Are we going to spell done with those? 

There mightiness beryllium immoderate obligations you person that are stronger. But again, the framing matters. If it's astir the commercialized war, past your idiosyncratic obligations mightiness transportation the day. If it's astir the authoritarian regime, little likely.

There's been a large propulsion to bargain Canadian. But an equivalent Canadian merchandise mightiness beryllium hard to find, and mightiness besides beryllium overmuch much costly.  How bash you measurement your ain values erstwhile it comes to the practicalities of trying to bash the close thing?

I would accidental present that the obligations of those who tin spend to bargain Canadian are stronger than those who, you know, unrecorded manus to rima and are faced with a Canadian merchandise oregon a cheaper American product. I deliberation it mightiness beryllium excessively demanding to inquire them to set their depletion successful definite cases. But those of america who tin spend to bash so, again, it's a awesome that we send, and the much radical nonstop that signal, the stronger it is. It's that corporate enactment occupation that matters. 

How are you framing this personally? 

Unfortunately, I deliberation the existential menace arguments are stronger. But you know, here's the thing, I deliberation we each effort to bent connected to normality. But that's precisely the problem. Things are not mean close now. I deliberation we request to pass that, and we request to awesome that to others who possibly haven't realized that.