this post was submitted on 05 Mar 2025
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[–] CitizenKong@lemmy.world 188 points 1 month ago (8 children)

I'm still convinced he only wants Greenland because it looks big on a map.

[–] grue@lemmy.world 100 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (2 children)

Somebody's feeding him grandiose ideas about global warming and northern sea routes. Probably some flattering lies about splitting said routes between them and dominating world trade too, once Canada and the EU are out of the way.

[–] federalreverse@feddit.org 19 points 1 month ago (3 children)

To be fair, China has been investing in thawing sea routes for a while, though largely to free themselves from having to pass through the US-controlled South China Sea.

[–] Nay@feddit.nl 20 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Excuse me? South America Sea*

[–] jaybone@lemmy.world 7 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Wait… South America is already a thing.

[–] Nay@feddit.nl 5 points 1 month ago

But not a sea! I'm guessing it works like email addresses... As long as someone else doesn't have it, you can make it your own

[–] federalreverse@feddit.org 3 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Can't imagine Trump would be happy keeping the word "South". I think you may need to iterate on that.

[–] Nay@feddit.nl 2 points 1 month ago

Trump loves the south. It's where he gets all his rubes.

[–] gnutrino@programming.dev 4 points 1 month ago (2 children)

I don't see how thawing seas help China unless they're planning on retaking Outer Manchuria from Russia?

[–] SplashJackson@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 month ago

I believe the correct term these days is Personchuria

[–] federalreverse@feddit.org 1 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Not sure what Manchuria has to do with it ... the Chinese are looking for a sea route to deliver goods to Europe.

[–] grue@lemmy.world 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

So they would go north to avoid US control, passing through [checks notes] the US/Japan-controlled East China Sea and the US-controlled Bering Strait?

[–] federalreverse@feddit.org 2 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

Thereby avoiding multiple tight spots and shaving over two weeks off the travel time, yes. And it's not a secret either.

[–] grue@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago (1 children)

If it's just to avoid navigation hazards and save time, what was your point in mentioning that the South China Sea is "US-controlled?"

[–] federalreverse@feddit.org 1 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Because the South China Sea is a US-controlled tight spot and such spots are obviously easier to control than the proposed Bering Sea passage.

[–] grue@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I don't understand. Are you saying that the US has a hard time controlling the waters just off the coast of Alaska? I mean, I get that we don't necessarily "need" to patrol them heavily right now because of the ice, but I don't think that means it would be hard to do so if it became a priority.

[–] federalreverse@feddit.org 1 points 1 month ago

But look ... One of these is going to be easier to patrol:

[–] ECB@feddit.org 5 points 1 month ago

True, same reason he's hung up on the Panama canal (and why they always get brought up together)

It has room to move people into as climate change makes living in the equatorial regions difficult.

It has a bunch of minerals the USA could use.

It houses a NATO base that if it were in Russia's hands would make it easier for Russia to eventually project force westward.

There are reasons for America to want Greenland. They all happen to be evil which Im fairly positive is a side benefit for the current administration.

[–] misk@sopuli.xyz 12 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (2 children)

Or, he recognises that arctic and subarctic territories are going to be worth much more in the future because of global warming. Trump is a major scatterbrain but in general it looks like he’s acting impulsively based on pieces of trivia, some of them being correct. Not that I agree with proposed solution to the issue but not everything he does is entirely dumb and those are very rarely inconsistent with his own interests.

[–] angrystego@lemmy.world 11 points 1 month ago (1 children)

He's not acting entirely on his own, he had handlers with a plan.

[–] misk@sopuli.xyz 4 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

He’s filthy rich now that he’s running a crypto scam for taking in bribes, so I wouldn’t say those are handlers rather than revenue streams. Other people are not in control of Trump, he’s a human wrecking ball that confuses theatre for politics, similar to general population that elected him.

[–] doodledup@lemmy.world 7 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

Perfect plan: support fossile fuels, eliminate renuables, buy Greenland, gain the profits from global warming and melting ice.

[–] Empricorn@feddit.nl 10 points 1 month ago

Putin wants it. That's why this is happening.

[–] Lazycog@sopuli.xyz 6 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Damn you web mercator projection! If only Robinson projection was the default on google/apple/whatever trump uses -map.

[–] bdonvr@thelemmy.club 12 points 1 month ago (2 children)

To be fair even on a globe Greenland is still massive. Just not quite as bad on Mercator.

[–] Lazycog@sopuli.xyz 9 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Yeah but on mercator it looks bigger than Africa. Africa is actually really huge

Edit: wording.

[–] 8fingerlouie@lemmy.world 9 points 1 month ago (2 children)

It is also mostly ice. The entirety of the central Greenland is covered by 1.6km to 3.7km thick ice.

Settlements are around the coast, as Greenland has about 100km roads in total, no railroads and no inland water.

[–] wer2@lemm.ee 2 points 1 month ago

Republicans hate railroads, so that's actually a plus for them.

[–] M0oP0o@mander.xyz 0 points 1 month ago (1 children)

no railroads

Well that is not technically true

[–] 8fingerlouie@lemmy.world 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

TouchΓ©.

Its going to be a small invasion using that though.

[–] M0oP0o@mander.xyz 1 points 4 weeks ago

If they bring their own small train, that one fjord is done for.

He is dumb enough for that to be utterly believable.

Gaslight Obstruct (Mercator) Project