Rich_007

Highly relevant, I think Judy and I must be reading the same literature and background information ?

Comparing the extremes of income [top richest versus bottom poorest percentages], health care expenditure per capita, incarceration levels, etc would be interesting and would certainly reveal the true AB / US comparison angle. Other angles such as an Albertan take on the % of GNP which is funded for thrid world debt/aid etc are all interesting takes. I'm sure it would compare positively with a US public view that the 0.1% of GNP is TOO MUCH (general US opinion poll 2004).

Sadly, though I mentioned :nailing colours to the mast", and Judy mentioned Federalism as a connection to that, Ottawa has dished up so much authority to the Provinces and Territories that the pendulum has swung maybe too much the other way, and when government needs to pull things together to make a Canadian "standard deal" such as enforcing/protecting the Canada Health Act, it now finds that hard to do, too many opt outs, too much hand wringing etc. For example BC might be stronger supporting the CHA but AB would dismantle parts of it and rebuild with private healthcare delivery, etc etc. Therefore what was a standard Canadian experience becomes pocketed depending on local economies etc. Things like that and the AB attitude of "we're OK screw the Federal transfer to the have-nots" is very disappointing to a newcomer to Canada, though I personally view the latter as the opinion of the decision makers and deal takers rather than the wider AB public as a whole, who maybe rememebr the harsher times of the past decade clearer than the high and mighty's do, maybe because few of the latter were around in AB when the times were tough.

I still highlight the fact that 80% of Albertans wouldn't want closer ties economically or politically with the US (recent poll) whatever the take on the issue of AB/US/rednecks/hillbillies in trucks rant is. Klein is just very worrying, in a Bush-like way.

Rich.

dbd33

[QUOTE=CalgaryBlade]Hence your argument isn't based on your experience and is unsubstantiated.[QUOTE]

True but I also don't live in Iraq, Buffalo, Bosnia or Glasgow. I'm confident that I'd prefer not to.

Rich_007

I think the angle involved here is the difference in having a view on something compared to talking from direct experience.

I don't claim to talk from experience but I hope I have a good view on the many issues at stake in this interesting, diverse nation.

Personally I don't think there can ever be enough discussion of Canadian matters on here, even the more complex stuff which isn't immedialtely obvious from an 'Immigration" perspective.

I find a fair few people here to be very enlightening and interesting characters from which I have gained a lot of insight and advice.

Rich.

dbd33

The extremes of income argument is, I think, a weak one. Canada has an extreme concentration of wealth (10% of families held 53% of the wealth in 1999 while the poorest 10% of families had a negative net worth
http://www.policyalternatives.ca/doc...ags_riches.pdf )
but that doesn't consider the tendency of rich Canadians to move abroad. Conrad Black, the Irvings, Celine Dion, Shania Twain, the list runs on and on, by and large rich Canadians don't live in Canada.

syed

Hi,
I've a family in Canada, Torronto. i've visited there in August. i have to tell you that "Arura" is wonderfull place. big houses, nice and clean area. v good neighbours. all professional peoples. u can buy a big house (almost new) only for C$400000.00.
Good luck to u
bye

Rich_007

So how does that compare to the US where the richest 3% have as much accumulated wealth as the lowest 100m ? (circa 30% of head of population).

And interestingly they are working to reclassify poverty so that poverty thresholds are higher.

Rich.

dbd33

I would guess that wealth and also power are more concentrated in Canada but it's very hard to find directly comparable figures. I'm looking .....

on edit :

Nothing to choose really http://www.statcan.ca/english/studie...02001s1a03.pdf

Rachelmark

Just to get back to the original subject of this thread for a minute, I have found a site www.muchmormagazine.com that has in -depth info on many areas of Canada, if anyone else is having the same problems as we are. This month they are looking at Ontario, inc.Toronto and London.

Biiiiink

They might consider it, but it's hard to emigrate to the US as a Brit, isn't it? (yes I know, the US forum's full of those who've managed it....but generally it's not easy).

philcUK

No, let's stays on the subject of the original thread permanently.

I don't think some people in these forums left the UK, I think there were thrown out

dbd33

I don't know that it's harder than Canada, I'd think that, if you have a skill and find a job, you can go most anywhere. I suspect many emigrants choose Canada thinking it's USA-Light, whereas, in fact, I don't find it's all that different.

philcUK

Ssssssssush, a Canadain might be listening.

dbd33

Then I'll say that a big part of finding the US and Canada more similar than I expected is that America is not so awful as I previously thought (excepting Buffalo and New Jersey, of course).

acer rose

Much harder to emigrate to the US than other "top expat destinations" but probably much easier to get in on a work permit IF you have good qualifications.

The US seems to prefer to gather "excellence" into the country on an official basis and rely on illegal labour for the really lousy jobs, whereas other places (UK, Australia, Canada) seem to actually just need to recruit man-power for minimum wage jobs (but select for entry on the basis of "skills" to cut the application paper work down).

Biiiiink

A healthy Brit with some further education/apprenticeship, the required no. of years work experience and the patience of a saint can reasonably expect to get into Canada at the moment, and this isn't the case with the US, is it?

There's no way I could get in (wishy-washy humanities degree) whereas I've taken the Canadian points test for fun and scored more than enough. I'm sure many people don't see Canada as USA-Light rather as USA-backdoor