oceanMDX

By the way, the Indians are free to move to the US of A at any time to live and work due to the Jay Treaty. I don't know of too many who are moving out of Canada - even though they all very easily could.

dingbat

OKA happened ages ago, 1990, but there are many more incidents that go unreported. Everything was not settled peacefully, by any stretch of the imagination and there were two deaths, one unreported, of a forty year old woman. She was beaten to death as she tried to leave the Mohawk side. Civilian casulaties were also high. In the interests of the balance our two resident Canadians want, read it for yourself from the Native perspective.

http://www.peacetree.com/akwesasne/wamoac3b.htm

The issue arises again that those who seek to challenge the "Canada is the best country in the world" mentality get slammed. It is NO different here to anywhere else, except the attitidues are about ten years behind the times. In case anyone is missing the point, this is an EXPATS site, which means although we welcome Canadian views, the constant Canadian flag waving gets somewhat tedious when many of us live the reality of an immigrant life in this country. Anecdotal experience is often the most untainted experience for potential immigrants to listen to. If I believed facts and figures put out by the government(s) here and the immigration machine, I might as well join the ranks of those who swallow the dross in the newspapers and the local gossip that passes for news. IF you have a good life where you are, have travelled and have an interest in world politics, once the novelty wears off this place will bore you to death. People can make their own opinions up when they get here, but I for one wish that this site existed when I made the move so long ago. Keep posting the links Squarepants.

iaink

What a completely pointless thread, with a rather nasty subtext of haranging others for there viewpoint (a VERY uncanadian thing to do).

What, are we all going to stop driving on the 401 because some guy was shot on it? Sure there are bad things happening in Canada, just as there are in every country in the world. On the other hand it is possible to make a life here where you are extremely unlikely to come accross anything like this, which is more than I can say for the many places I lived in the UK. Jees, they still report stolen cars on my local radio news, can you immagine that if you live in the UK!

No one is pretending bad things dont happen here. Does it have any impact on my day to day life? Have I seen any violence here in nearly 7 years here? BIG FAT NO!

As others have said, rather like moving within the UK, do your homework on where you are going to live, and youll be fine. I find using the "ignore user" feature helps too!

Maybe I should start posting random links to newsreports of acts of random kindness and firemen rescuing kittens

my 2c

Iain

MikeUK

This seems a very sensitive subject to some…

So city life in Canada is not all sweetness.. yes I’m sure rural life is much much tamer and safer… but the jobs are in the cities and that where many of us live… and it also happens to have all the shìt as well….

So somebody posted it up….

Big deal It happened… and will happen again…

Yep you can choose to avoid the crime, or you can choose to live with it….

What I refuse to do is pretend it doesn’t happen

iaink

Show me ONE member, just one who is pretending it doesnt happen? Go on, I dare you!

I may live in the country now, but I've spent enough nights in downtown Toronto and Montreal after dark, and it carries nothing like the undertone that you feel in Leeds, London, Liverpool, even Norwich.

To say Canada is just like any other country in terms of crime / violence based on a couple of news stories simply does not hold up to close scrutiny. Look at the crime statistics for an overview, Canada is head and shoulders above most other countries, Japan is about the only other place I can think of off the top of my head that feels safer.

oceanMDX

"Unreported" incidents? We can use "unreported incidents" to prove anything we want.

Please attempt to insert at least a modicum of fairness in your posts. Where has anyone on this entire forum ever claimed that Canada is "the best country in the world"? I think you're watching too many government-sponsored TV commercials.


Just who do you think you are to proclaim who is welcome here? People who have lived in Canada all of their lives have brought a good deal of knowledge about Canada to this forum -time and time again. Obviously, we know a good deal more about the country than any Britexpat here - and don't you forget it!!!! It gets a little tedious for some of us to read newcomers to this country explain what Canada is all about - when we know a good deal more about the subject matter than they do.

Personal experience is "untainted" ? That certainly doesn't necessarily follow. Personal experience is rather subjective. Another person may go through the same experience and interpret the event quite differently. You're personal experiences as a social worker working on skid-row in Vancouver has severely skewed your views regarding Canada to cite just one example.

Like they say, life is what you make it dingbat. You and I live in essentially the same area. I love it where I am, yet you are unhappy here. The question is: why do you stay?

oceanMDX

Exactly!!!

MikeUK

Well my list of UK cities I'd compare to would be Glasgow, Newcastle, Manchester to name a few of the rougher cities I’ve worked in..

And if you bother go to the places I have in Toronto you’ll feel just the same way..same can be said of Montreal, and even parts of Vancouver....


head out to places like High Level Alberta... and I'd rather be found in Govan Glasgow wearing an England shirt..... That place scared the pants of me!!


It all depends on where you bother to look.... my job takes me to the rougher industrial areas... it always has done.. and it's from this viewpoint I see Canada too..

and it doesn't look any better or worse than the UK!

dingbat

Four kids. Ex husband. No money. Simple.

iaink

So its not exactly a fair and balanced view of the country as a whole is it! My point was that anywhere I have been in the UK, there is an uncomfortable feeling that something could happen, whether thats your car radio being nicked or something worse. Sure there are parts of Canada like that too, but they are few and far between.

You need to visit some of the nicer places out there, your view is getting a bit tainted by what you see at work

iaink

Much as I appreciate your many knowledgable posts here, when it comes to comparing Canada to the UK, which is what happens here a lot, then the Britpats have you beaten all ways up

We may not be explaining what Canada is really all about, but we are doing our best to explain it from a British perspective. And dont you forget it!!!!It gets a little tedious for some of us to read canadians explain what we should think Canada is all about - when we know a good deal more about being newcomers to canada than they do.

See how rude that comes over???

Iain

willmore

Not to change the subject - but has anyone noticed how absent Squarepants has been from this thread since he initially started it - seems strange to me and again makes me wonder his motive in starting it in the first place....anyone else wondering if he's sitting in his easy chair with his feet up, having a beer and a good laugh on us!!!!!!!!

MikeUK

No… I know where the nice areas are too…. And that one of the reasons I’m here.. I have just spent the day driving around the escarpment country today… (would rather have been flying but it was too windy for my paraglider)

I just feel for those that come to the big cities, that they should come with there eyes open… running from the crime in Glasgow to end up in an area of Toronto that’s just as bad would be soul destroying..

I still remember at an expat-bar in London ON when I first came over several years ago listening to those that had left the UK in search of a new life and had just ended up recreating the same old life just in a new location.. I’ve never forgotten that night…so many dreams shattered…
Which is why I think its fair to balance the view points.. we all hear the horror stories from the UK why not a few from Canada..




[edited in.....I however can say I am sitting here having a good Canadain beer... ]

oceanMDX

Playing your smart-ass role again eh?

Actually, you're contradicting yourself here. You've just spent most of your efforts on this thread stating how all the other Britexpats (on this thread) have not represented the issue of crime in Canada versus the UK fairly. Now you're trying to tell us that these Britexpats are expert when comparing Canada to the UK. My statements and analysis have been objective wherever possible. Too often, posts on this forum are no more than biased opinion.

I have always stated - and continue to do so - that people have a right to their opinions. However, I will continue to point out that people don't have a right to their own set of (fallacious) facts - even if they happen to be British.

oceanMDX

While it's correct to state that Toronto has areas where crime is a very significant problem, Toronto is one of Canada's cities that does the best on Canadian crime statistics. Regarding crime, Toronto is much better than Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, or Regina for example.