MikeUK

I remember talking to a native elder once about this...
He thought the whites were getting their just deserts

They too have no use for the foreigners that still come and invade their land, and he finds it highly ironic that the whites are currently upset that the people that are coming now show scant regard for their customs and way of life…..

I personaly find it highly amusing, and suitably ironic.
I think the White Anglo Saxon Protestants and other backward thinking groups should move over and get out of the way, as their day is over, This recession will probably wipe the last of their small grip of control away any way

The nation’s economic survival will trump any old traditions brought by an older group of immigrants

JonboyE

It is a story about a man, of Chinese descent and living in Vancouver, who wrote a report about planning issues in Calgary. It also tells of Calgarian business people, also of Chinese descent, saying he is a loon.

I don't think loonies writing reports about things they know nothing about is particularly culture specific. I have no idea how this supports your assertion that multiculturalism is inferior to assimilation.

I am afraid that I start to shut down as soon as someone complains about the thing they are against as being politically correct. However, you chose Richmond, BC as an example of an "island of disunited enclaves and ghettos". That is rubbish. Richmond has a population of Asians, East Indians and Caucasians who coexist quite happily. It is as good an example of the benefits and success of multiculturalism as you could hope to find.

JamesM

Agreed.

Novocastrian

I rather like the suggestion that the distinction between Canadian and US attitudes towards immigrants might be summarized as "enclave versus autoclave".

Lord Vader

You make it sound like all the whites came over at the same time on one big boat and that the Native elder you speak of is 250 years old. I find it ironic to that White's (French and English), Natives and Blacks all share the same view. It was almost like we were born here together or something.
lol, sure
Now, replace "White Anglo Saxon protestants and other backward groups" with "Brown East Indian Hindus and other backward groups" and you can see the different reaction. Basically, if I said that about another group you would be crying racism, you are in fact making a great example of the problem that exists.
Hmm, I think you meant to say economic expansion through population expansion. The country can survive without immigration, Japan and Austria are 2 examples of fine countries with declining populations or stagnant ones. But I am not against immigration, I am against multiculturalism. You are playing the role of lead idiot with comments like the one highlighted above. Same with Jmmie Martindale.

Lord Vader

The point that Mr. Leung (President of Global Retail strategies) was making is quoted in his words from the article,,, "An effort must be made to avoid 'exclusive' cultural-specific retail developments, as they lead to marginalized ethnic enclaves which can diminish overall community cohesiveness." and further down in the article he was quoted "Not just cater to a specific ethnic orientation out there. In fact, they should be open to … population of all backgrounds". I would hardly describe Mr. Leung as "loonies writing reports about things they know nothing about" to describe a successful business person who is president of "Global Retail Strategies" writing a report for a city of a million people regarding a retail mall. How it supports my assertion that multiculturalism is inferior to assimilation is,,,why must there be an Asian only mall? Why can't there be an Irish pub or a mid east rug shop or an Native North American book store in this mall? What if Europeans made a European mall? Multiculturalism is not cohesive to the country or community.

When I visited a friend who lived in Richmond it seemed like people didn't mix at all, only on the surface, for the most part people stuck to their own "kind". My problem with political correctness can be summed up by MikeUk's post above.

Souvenir

I remember visiting Trinidad a couple of times in 1994. That place has just about every ethnic group you can imagine. It struck me that the ethnic East Indians, Africans, Chinese, Europeans etc didn't seem to mix much, despite the fact that they were all born there and had Trini roots going back generations.

little flower

Here here the GRASS IS NEVER GREENER!!!! we moved here for a better life with the kids, we are now looking at moving back :0(
the winters are very long and loanly if you have have "small" children as you cannoy take them out much as its toooo cold...
The bacon is terrible. clothes shoes etc really expencive for kids $75.00 for a decent pair of boots for my 2 year old!!! which you have to hope they fit as no one fits shoes.
Taxes dont get me started you get taxed on taxes lol ...
Shop assistants are very unhelpful and would rather you were not there!!!!
Dont believe its cheaper its works out probably the same as the Uk "over all" but wages less... my shopping is about $250 a week and we dont "splash" out on stuff we used to in the Uk our house is cheaper than the Uk BUT out tax is $3500 a year (like council tax) and you cant pay bills like in the Uk not all companys do direct depit etc you have to GO into a bank and then be charged for paying it!!!! you only ever get ONE make sure you pay it straght away (on line banking easiest) because you will jusk get charged intrest and it just gets added to the next bill.
I could go on but I guess i am boring everyone now...
i do love it here the people are lovely i have made some great friends and the views are stunning but the Uk for us has more to offer for a secure future for us and our children :0(

dbd33

Gibberish.

Still let's see if we can deconstruct it and derive some sort of meaning.

Firstly, putting quotes around exclusive makes a lie of the term, the author knows that there aren't any exclusively cultural-specific retail developments.
One can buy a hot dog, Polish or Italian sausage at the Pacific Mall in Markham. Incidentally that's a place I first knew about because my highly Jewish office manager gets her bootleg Abercrombie scarfs there; a perfect example of cross-cultural synthesis.

Secondly, a mall in which an ethnicity predominates among the stall holders, such as the Pacific Mall, isn't actually culturally specific. The traders are nearly all Asian (Asian in American usage, not English) but that doesn't make them all the same. Even I can distinguish westernized, gadget crazy Japanese or Malaysian bimbos from Laotian Bhuddists.

Thirdly, the cultural orientation of a retail facility derives from the local population, not the other way around. Thus, the Welfare Mall (also called Gerrard Square), for example, once had mainly stores catering to white people, then to Indians and now it has mainly stores run by Vietnamese people. It's not the case that if you put up a perogie store Poles will swarm into the neighbourhood.

Fourthly, well, I was going to take a crack at "diminish overall community cohesiveness" on the basis that there isn't any to begin with but really this is just such a feeble phrase. He's a secret admirer of Jack Layton isn't he?

clynnog

Good luck in your move back to the UK...I hope you find the bacon that is missing in Canada. That is a new one in defining what you don't like about Canada.

BristolUK

I do wish people would stop stating their experiences as fact.

Ten minutes on these forums shows people have many different experiences of (seemingly) the same aspects.

Alphawolf

Thanks for posting a different outlook!!

little flower

I agree thats my experience, we are also a family a four and that is MY bill to feed them in NS. I have had snow boots for$25.00 but not proper leather soft boots for a 2 year old.
May be you could help me were do I get good boots for $25.and have them fitted.
I did say my house was cheeper here I have a house 3x bigger than my one in the Uk in a VERY expensive area of NS but still find $3500 tax expensive.
Sorry
I thought the whole idea of the post was to ask for opinions as to what people dont get told in the "facts" as we were told as a fact that NS is 30 percent cheaper than the Uk and we have found it more expensive. Just our experience which i am please we have been lucky enough to experience as we have now lived the dream and found the grass isnt greener...

dbd33

Not just small children. The whole production of having to put on many layers makes going outside from November to April barely worth the trouble for anyone.

little flower

oh yeah! its takes me 20mins to dress my son 6 mins to walk to the end of my drive to collect my daughter off the school bus :0)
Then we spent the walk back up the drive fighting for him to keep his gloves on :0)