KEYSTONE: BETWEEN A ROCK AND A U.S. PLACE
Nov 8th, 2011 by haileyrae
The recent contretemps
over the routing of the
Keystone Oil Pipeline from the Alberta Tar Sands to Texas brings the whole business of sending
Canadian resources south into focus again.
Whether we agree to supply the US with electricity and water, or the US, China and the Pacific Rim countries with our oil and natural gas, once the taps are turned on, they can never be turned off except by mutual agreement.
Should the US economy continue to decline and threaten their ability to pay, Canada would either be left bleeding resources without payment in return, or would have to cork the flow and brace for a clash with the strongest military nation in the world.
It must be said, that the US have never fully abandoned the concept of Manifest Destiny; viewing Canada as a kind of repository of resources to be tapped when needed.
So what do we do?
The proposed scheme to pipe natural gas and Tar Sands oil across to a BC port for shipment to China and the Pacific Rim countries might be seen as a viable business alternative, but unless the Keystone Line was already in place, the US would see this as an act of aggression and Canada would be made to pay through obstructionist trade policies.
Canada is going to have to accept the fact that its resources, and quite possibly its identity, are caught between a rock and a U.S. place.
Mayeda, Andrew; Quinn, Greg. “U.S. Review Delay May Doom TransCanada’s Keystone Pipeline.” Bloomberg. Nov 10, 2011 9:02 PM PT