Should the UK and Canada trust the USA today

[Kathryn]

As an American, and a well read one at that, I can assure you that I've never - NEVER - heard any HINT of aggression toward Canada from any American. Ever. Or toward the UK either, for that matter. I mean, you'd think that if it were a REMOTE concept or possibility, I would have heard someone, somewhere "on my side" express that interest.

It just seems so far from reality. I guess anything could happen down the line, but I think we all have a lot more to worry about than this when it comes to world peace.

 

[Alceste]

The USA would love to own Canada and its resources. in the mean time it tries to control them.

And it's pretty successful at that. US companies are free to exploit our resources as if they belonged to the US already, and export the profits back to the states with little interference.

If the US already controls our resources, why would they bother to try to control our people? It would be too expensive.

Anyway, I trust the US to behave exactly as I expect the US to behave. That's the only kind of trust I know.

 

[Kathryn]

Canadians are taking over the oilfield industry in the Ark La Tex! OMG!

 

[Alceste]

It has been a long term aim of the USA to annex Canada, ever since the war of Independence. So far they have lost any battles or supported the wrong side, or circumstances have shelved their plans. One does not need to be paranoid to suspect it is still on the back burner.

They are obsessed with obtaining access to the world's remaining oil reserves and don't believe in climate change. It will not occur to them that they desperately need to secure a reliable supply of fresh water, and they will be preoccupied with the ME and Venezuela for the foreseeable future. We have oil, but it's dirty, expensive to refine and politically unpopular. They won't want it until the low hanging fruit is entirely gone, by which time they will not have the resources to wage a war.

Whether or not they try to annex the opening North will greatly depend on whether or not significant oil reserves are discovered there.

Anyway, I recommend Gwynne Dyer for insight into this topic. So far, he seems to have a pretty good track record for predicting international foreign policy actions and outcomes. Nobody's perfect, but he does a better job than most analysts.

 

[Kathryn]

I do know this - Canadian oilfield services companies are buying up US oilfield services as fast as they can. They then have this annoying habit of laying off the US workers and bringing in Canadians to take their place.

This competition probably goes both ways. But one thing's for sure - the tug o war is NOT one sided.

 

[Alceste]

As an American, and a well read one at that, I can assure you that I've never - NEVER - heard any HINT of aggression toward Canada from any American. Ever. Or toward the UK either, for that matter. I mean, you'd think that if it were a REMOTE concept or possibility, I would have heard someone, somewhere "on my side" express that interest.

It just seems so far from reality. I guess anything could happen down the line, but I think we all have a lot more to worry about than this when it comes to world peace.

Not a South Park fan, then?



[youtube]0SDrqa-eTXU[/youtube]

 

[Kathryn]

No, I'm not a Southpark fan and I don't take anything on that show seriously.

Of course, I'd have to be hogtied with a piece of duct tape over my mouth and my eyelids super-glued open in a hardback chair placed directly in front of a television set to make it through an entire episode of Southpark.

 

[Alceste]

I do know this - Canadian oilfield services companies are buying up US oilfield services as fast as they can. They then have this annoying habit of laying off the US workers and bringing in Canadians to take their place.

This competition probably goes both ways. But one thing's for sure - the tug o war is NOT one sided.

Maybe not any more now that the US economy is weak and ours has not yet caught up with the decay. OTOH, for most of the last 30 years, the US has overwhelmingly been the beneficiary of our suppressed dollar and freedom from meaningful trade barriers.

If it gives you any comfort, US corporations behaved exactly the same when they took over our resource exploitation industries in the 80s and 90s.

 

[Kathryn]

I guess that makes it OK. But to me it looks more like a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

Otherwise known as "hypocrisy."

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

I do know this - Canadian oilfield services companies are buying up US oilfield services as fast as they can. They then have this annoying habit of laying off the US workers and bringing in Canadians to take their place.

This competition probably goes both ways. But one thing's for sure - the tug o war is NOT one sided.

Really?

I wonder if all the Newfoundlanders in the Alberta oilfield have pushed the Albertans out and into Texas.

 

[Kathryn]

Really?

I wonder if all the Newfoundlanders in the Alberta oilfield have pushed the Albertans out and into Texas.

Well, not being Canadian and "in the Canadian loop" I really have no idea what you're talking about.

All I know is that Canadians are moving to Texas and buying oilfield companies and recruiting Canadians for US jobs - in droves.

(shrug) I'm not complaining, just observing.

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

Well, not being Canadian and "in the Canadian loop" I really have no idea what you're talking about.

Historically, Newfoundland has had high unemployment and Alberta's had huge demand for people, so Alberta attracts a lot of Newfoundlanders, especially for oilfield work.

There's a running joke that Fort MacMurray, Alberta is the largest Newfoundland city.

All I know is that Canadians are moving to Texas and buying oilfield companies and recruiting Canadians for US jobs - in droves.

(shrug) I'm not complaining, just observing.

Hmm. I hadn't heard anything like this before. I'll have to look into it more.

 

[Kathryn]

Historically, Newfoundland has had high unemployment and Alberta's had huge demand for people, so Alberta attracts a lot of Newfoundlanders, especially for oilfield work.

There's a running joke that Fort MacMurray, Alberta is the largest Newfoundland city.


Hmm. I hadn't heard anything like this before. I'll have to look into it more.

Well, here's a real life company like the one I just described - you can start here:

Trican Well Service

From the site:
In the United States, Trican operates as a regional fracturing company with operations in Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana and Oklahoma. We believe strongly in the opportunities to expand Trican’s full complement of services and geographic exposure over the next number of years, particularly in the area of Unconventional Resources and Industrial Services. Trican US continues to see growth both in its service lines and geographically.


And:
Trican - Operations - United States

Eight acquisitions in Oklahoma, Texas and Arkansas in the past ten years or so.

Here are their current job postings:
Trican Well Service

Look at all those Canadian company job openings in Texas, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and Arkansas.

By the way, notice the web address - libpp.com. The reason for that web address is that the company's FORMER name was Liberty Pressure Pumping -owned and operated by US citizens who sold the company to Trican, out of Canada.

 

[Kathryn]

Here's another one that's quite pervasive down here in Texas:

Encana

Our five natural gas key resource plays in the United States are long-life formations where we apply our resource play strategy to maximize production and generate value that was previously unrecognized. We have an interest in approximately 3.5 million net acres of land in the U.S., of which 2.9 million net acres is currently undeveloped.
In addition to our key resource plays, we have interests in natural gas gathering and processing assets, primarily in Colorado, Wyoming, Texas and Utah.

Our key U.S. natural gas resource plays are: East Texas
Fort Worth
HaynesvilleJonah
Piceance

 

[Alceste]

I guess that makes it OK. But to me it looks more like a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

Otherwise known as "hypocrisy."

What are you talking about? Are you perceiving my neutral observations as criticism or something? Capitalists on both sides of the border are entirely self-interested. I've never denied it.

 

[Alceste]

Well, here's a real life company like the one I just described - you can start here:

Trican Well Service

From the site:
In the United States, Trican operates as a regional fracturing company with operations in Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana and Oklahoma. We believe strongly in the opportunities to expand Trican’s full complement of services and geographic exposure over the next number of years, particularly in the area of Unconventional Resources and Industrial Services. Trican US continues to see growth both in its service lines and geographically.


And:
Trican - Operations - United States

Eight acquisitions in Oklahoma, Texas and Arkansas in the past ten years or so.

Here are their current job postings:
Trican Well Service

Look at all those Canadian company job openings in Texas, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and Arkansas.

By the way, notice the web address - libpp.com. The reason for that web address is that the company's FORMER name was Liberty Pressure Pumping -owned and operated by US citizens who sold the company to Trican, out of Canada.

If Canadian companies have the capital and the desire to exploit resources in Texas and prefer to hire Canadians to run the operation, what difference does it make? Neither of us are going to see any of the profits, and Texas is just as economically screwed with or without Canadian investment, thanks to Rick Perry.

Why should they hire Texans?

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

Well, here's a real life company like the one I just described - you can start here:

Trican Well Service

From the site:
In the United States, Trican operates as a regional fracturing company with operations in Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana and Oklahoma. We believe strongly in the opportunities to expand Trican’s full complement of services and geographic exposure over the next number of years, particularly in the area of Unconventional Resources and Industrial Services. Trican US continues to see growth both in its service lines and geographically.


And:
Trican - Operations - United States

Eight acquisitions in Oklahoma, Texas and Arkansas in the past ten years or so.

Here are their current job postings:
Trican Well Service

Look at all those Canadian company job openings in Texas, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and Arkansas.

By the way, notice the web address - libpp.com. The reason for that web address is that the company's FORMER name was Liberty Pressure Pumping -owned and operated by US citizens who sold the company to Trican, out of Canada.

I'm confused - you said that they're dropping American employees and hiring Canadians, but I don't see how you get that from what you've posted.

From what I gather, a Canadian company bought an American one and is now hiring more staff, most of whom will probably be Americans.

I don't see it as all that different from what I've been through a couple of times here: two different engineering consulting firms I've worked for have been bought by big US firms. They didn't lay off the Canadian staff and replace them with Americans; they kept on doing business with Canadian employees. A few staff transferred up from the US, but a few Canadians transferred down there, too.

I guess I'm not seeing the basis for your concern.

 

[Kathryn]

If Canadian companies have the capital and the desire to exploit resources in Texas and prefer to hire Canadians to run the operation, what difference does it make? Neither of us are going to see any of the profits, and Texas is just as economically screwed with or without Canadian investment, thanks to Rick Perry.

Why should they hire Texans?

Well, actually, Texans WERE seeing the profits in the form of paychecks and stock options, till the Canadians bought the company, and began replacing Texans with Canadians.

Good thing my husband got out when he did. He's now working for a US owned company and making three times what he did after the pay cuts the Canadians handed the US citizens (which for some reason dissappeared when they quit and a Canadian was hired in their place).

Just an aside note: The company has gone dramatically downhill production and quality wise at the Texas location since the acquisition. Not sure why exactly.

They did replace the new red white and blue trucks and equipment that Liberty Pressure Pumping had, with pinkish beige trucks and equipment.

That was a bad read on their part from the get go! Pink - well, mauve - oilfield services fleet - in Texas?

Come on, man!

 

[Alceste]

Well, actually, Texans WERE seeing the profits in the form of paychecks and stock options, till the Canadians bought the company, and began replacing Texans with Canadians.

Good thing my husband got out when he did. He's now working for a US owned company and making three times what he did after the pay cuts the Canadians handed the US citizens (which for some reason dissappeared when they quit and a Canadian was hired in their place).

Just an aside note: The company has gone dramatically downhill production and quality wise at the Texas location since the acquisition. Not sure why exactly.

They did replace the new red white and blue trucks and equipment that Liberty Pressure Pumping had, with pinkish beige trucks and equipment.

That was a bad read on their part from the get go! Pink - well, mauve - oilfield services fleet - in Texas?

Come on, man!

So you are talking about one isolated incident, which you hold a personal grudge against, and which you have no direct experience of given that your husband quit as soon as a Canadian firm bought the business?

Not exactly the systemic transformation you originally described, is it?

 

[fenrisx]

That was within my life time.

if you surrender that big clock there wont be any trouble... kidding