Suppose a little kid wants another little kid’s bike, and thinks he can just take it. His mom points out that you can’t just take other peoples’s stuff.
“But I want it Mommy!” the kid screams, “Jimmy’s bike should be mine!!!!”
Our brat knows he also needs some leverage. So he adds “If you don’t give me Jimmy’s bike, I’m going to hold my breath until I turn blue!”
Clearly he is confident that his threat of self-harm will win the day. But that doesn’t mean he will end up getting what he wants.
This is pretty much what we are currently witnessing on the world stage. Our bratty president really, really wants Greenland. The fact that it already belongs to another sovereign nation doesn’t seem to bother him.
“But I want it Mommy!” you can almost him him screaming “Denmark’s territory should be mine!!!”
Our president knows he also needs some leverage. So he adds “If you don’t give me Greenland, I’m going to impose a 10% additional tariff on goods from Europe!”
Now as we all know, a tariff on goods from Europe is actually a tax on American consumers. We’re the ones who end up paying that 10%. In effect, the president is trying to force Europe to give up territory by threatening self-harm.
Clearly he is confident that his threat of self-harm will win the day. But that doesn’t mean he will end up getting what he wants.
If our president were capable of listening to reason, I would tell him “Don’t hold your breath.”