Photograph by Gage Skidmore/Flickr.Earlier this week, president-elect Donald Trump—a man who has promised to “restore our nation to full prosperity,” and who also lost money owning casinos—mused about the United States taking control of Canada, a sovereign nation he has previously joked (?) should become the “51st state.” While Trump also said he would not use military force against our northern neighbors (only “economic force,” which, uh, sure), that hasn’t stopped members of the AskCanada subreddit to ponder a preposterous question: How would Canada fare in the event of a US invasion? As it turns out, the country that hosted filming for seasons three to six of TV’s MacGyver isn’t exactly scared of the most powerful military in the history of the world. (Coincidence? We think not). To the contrary, they like their chances! Here’s why: They remember the War of 1812 It’s true, and you can even look it up: Once upon a time, the US and Canada fought a war. And the good ol’ red, white, and blue got absolutely wrecked. Back in 1812, we declared war on Britain and tried to invade Canada, a campaign Thomas Jefferson predicted would be “a mere matter of marching.” Bad beat. By 1814, the British had captured Washington and set the White House on fire; when the war ended late that same year, Canada remained in British hands—eventually developing, as Britannica.com puts it, “its own national identity, partly from pride over repulsing U.S. invasions.” Is time a flat circle? Reddit poster Strict_Jacket3648 sounds a note of caution: Didn’t end well for the U.S. last time they tried. They also remember Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan In the eyes of Canadian posters, the US looks a lot like the Dallas Cowboys: favorably resourced, generally formidable on paper, boasts some dusty victory banners hanging somewhere in the rafters, and hasn’t managed any meaningful Ws in a long, long time. From poster Agile-Tea_2333: Let’s not forget a bunch of Vietnamese farmers with rifles managed to humiliate the United States. While Canadian Redditors are under no illusions that their nation could win a straight-up, military-on-military fight with the US—poster randocadate writes let’s not pretend Canada wouldn’t roll over in a few hours—they also expect to outwork and outlast Yankee occupiers in a protracted guerrilla war, akin to, well, basically every country that has taken on the US in a protracted guerrilla war. Poster 902s, who might be actively studying or teaching at a war college, puts it best: Canada could use smart, unconventional tactics to make the occupation unsustainable. The sheer size and harsh terrain of Canada would work in our favor, making it hard to control supply lines or enforce authority. Guerrilla warfare, like ambushes and hit-and-run attacks, could stretch their resources thin, much like Vietnam or Afghanistan. At the same time, sabotaging infrastructure—railways, bridges, and communication systems—would create chaos and slow their operations, just as the French Resistance did during WWII. The fight wouldn’t just be on the ground. Canada could leverage cyberattacks to disrupt communications and target U.S. infrastructure, while cutting off key resources like oil and minerals to hit their economy hard. Diplomatically, Canada could rally global support, framing the invasion as unjust and using international pressure to isolate the U.S. politically. The key would be to make the occupation so costly, chaotic, and prolonged that U.S. public support collapses. History shows that even the most powerful armies can be defeated when the cost of control outweighs the benefits. This isn’t about brute force—it’s about strategy, persistence, and turning every disadvantage into an opportunity. Adds poster My PlantsEatBugs: Not having any nukes and fighting a country with nukes sounds irresponsible, but it’s cold up here and I’m ready for some radiation. By contrast, Canadian Redditors don’t believe the US has the stomach—or the basic competence—to successfully prosecute another Forever War. Says poster TwinFrogs: One taste of Saskatchewan mosquitos and they’d call it quits. From Responsible-Rub-2215:  The Americans couldn’t even protect their own Capitol against a horde of unarmed human-looking jars of mayonnaise. Their military might is just theater and they would get their asses handed to them. From rickety-rackets: I don’t think the U.S. has actually ever won a war. So far as I can still the North and south are still feuding. Ooof. Hard to argue that last point! They expect lots of help—including from us Canadian Redditors don’t believe they’d be fighting the US alone. Writes poster endavourist: I’d like to think we could also count on NATO and Commonwealth countries assisting us as well. The US could conceivably be fighting 30+ countries at once, all while trying to hold itself together. Poster Bishime believes China might join the party: I can’t help but feel like China would get involved one way or another “in defence of the world order” whether that be economically or with military assistance, then it turns into a whole thing and China becomes the new super power and it’s exactly what happens in WWII (give or take some details) Poster GotRocksinmePockets thinks the US could face resistance from its southern border, too: [Mexico] might want the American SW back. If the Yanks are tied down in Canada then they might see a chance and take it. On top of that a lot of central American countries might want a bit of pay back for previous meddling by the Yanks. Poster Spellscribe predicts aid from another former British colony: Canada’s little cousin, Australia, is a whole ass country full of ex-convicts who grew up wrestling crocs and playing with real knives. We’ve got your backs. Conversely, poster landlord-eater is confident at least one country won’t be lending Canada a helping hand:  Absolutely no chance of New Zealand invading America for us sorry bud. Sternly worded letter maybe. In addition, many posters—including some self-identifying as Americans—believe that significant chunks of the US population would not only oppose an invasion of Canada but possibly undermine their own government and military. Writes poster AlecStrum: A serious attempt to annex Canada would be seen as a far-right authoritarian project, and on day one we would have tens of millions of allies among American citizens. The French Resistance during the Second World War were a useful source of intelligence and logistical support for the Allies, clogging up the works of Germany and the puppet Vichy regime with personal and deniable acts of sabotage, en masse. This will be an asymmetric advantage. We will have more sympathizers there than they will have here. Meanwhile, poster King-in-Council writes that there are other ways average Americans could support the Canadian war effort: North America is flooded with guns so immediately a lot of America’s [sic] will make quick coin smuggling guns into Canada. Arms will not be a problem.  They think they’re, like, Maple Syrup Sparta or something Are Canadian fighters some of the globe’s fiercest? Redditors seem to think so! Miserable-Chemical96 writes: if you’ve studied any amount of history you’d realize that if you’re looking across a battlefield and see Canadians on the other side you’re pretty much F***ED What history are they talking about? A number of posters, including KingNnylf, brought up the savagery of Canadian troops during the Great War: The Geneva conventions exist partly due to Canada and their willingness to commit war crimes in WWI. Note: this does not seem to be true. But it sounds tough! Fast-forwarding to today, Canadian Redditors also feel that people from their nation—which, for the record, does not treat the Second Amendment as a quasi-sacred text—are simply handier with the steel than their US counterparts. Writes poster starone7: I don’t really have the stats to back it up but I feel like the average Canadian gun owner uses it regularly to actually bring down game. I would wager that the average Canadian gun owner is more skilled than most would think. Husband gets his deer on the opening day of the season every year. He doesn’t use a stand or bait, just tracks them. His sons and buddies are all the same way. He’s so confident we own a fridge just for hanging. Adds poster Tsonmur: I’ve spent a few weeks every season actively hunting for 20 years, I’ve come home without a kill twice, because there was absolutely nothing in the area I went too. I have friends in Texas that I’ve visited, and I set records in their local range without really much effort. The only thing they really have on us weapon wise (for civilians at least) is the ease of access for semi-automatic weapons Again, it’s hard to argue that last point. They’re absolutely not interested in becoming the 51st state Unlike other places seeking a full seat at the table of American federal governance—AHEM—Canadian Redditors would prefer to keep on keeping on with doing their own things, thank you very much, allowing us to retain full and sole custody of both our international empire and all 11 Real Housewives franchises set in US cities. Writes poster msk3rr: I will die for my country and to not be a USA Citizen.. like, I don’t want their garbage Come on! The filibuster and irregular McRib drops aren’t that bad. Adds Adventurous_Crew_178: In a lot of ways our national identity is based around not being American. Nothing makes you feel more Canadian than not wanting to be an American! I haven’t felt this patriotic in years. They might understand better than we understand ourselves Multiple Redditors pointed out that Canadians would be uniquely adept at sabotaging and otherwise undermining a US occupation—they share our language and much of our culture, and can blend in pretty seamlessly. Perhaps more importantly, they understand what makes us tick, as poster Stunning_Working6566 makes clear when considering the initial subreddit question of fighting for Canada if the US invades: It’s a question that doesn’t deserve an answer, because it gives Trump attention, and that’s all Trump wants is attention. Please ignore him and everything he says. Of course, the above is one of nearly 7,000 replies. If only ignoring Trump were that easy!The post In the Event of a US Invasion, Canadians Really Like Their Chances first appeared on Washingtonian.