Why Do So Many More Canadians Move To America Than Americans Move To Canada? (live, law)
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This is far from the truth, although Canadians tend to believe so.
Most immigrants didn't move to Canada for "opportunities" or "rights". They came here for a higher quality of life, and these two can be quite different.
for example, about 300,000 Hong Kong Canadians choose to live in Hong Kong, instead of Canada. Why is that so? I also know many Chinese continue living and working in China after sending their wives and children to settle in Canada, because Canada doesn't have the "opportunities" they want.
Canada has a high quality of life because it has a lot more resources and a lot fewer people to compete for the limited resources, especially compared with immigrant originating countries such as China and India. But opportunities? Nah. One can easily make more money and have a better career in Hong Kong or Shanghai than in Toronto.
I've actually heard similar stories from people originally from China and India. I've worked with a couple of guys and they said they were working in the US for growth - both professional and personal cultural experiences. They told me they could have a better career back home and some had set plans to return. But they could also see the benefits of living in the US or Canada because it is less corrupt, less cut throat, cleaner, safer, more space, less go go, etc. It's somewhat of an easier life which could translate into higher Quality of Life for many.
I think some people do move to Canada for additional opportunities if they are coming from more stagnant, poorer countries - my mother was in that boat. But some do not.
Last edited by johnathanc; 10-08-2014 at 10:03 AM..
A total tangent, but I've often wondered, can kids really damage your lawn simply by walking on it? I am talking about a kid going on your lawn to retrieve their kite or their ball, not about 200 high schoolers using your lawn as a shortcut every morning and every afternoon.
Well .. that depends on the shoes. Are they flat or have spikes?
I'm not sure why...amerikkka is getting so corrupt,with it's executive orders to shoot people plus it's sinking economy etc. That's enough for me to get out...
This is far from the truth, although Canadians tend to believe so.
Most immigrants didn't move to Canada for "opportunities" or "rights". They came here for a higher quality of life, and these two can be quite different.
for example, about 300,000 Hong Kong Canadians choose to live in Hong Kong, instead of Canada. Why is that so? I also know many Chinese continue living and working in China after sending their wives and children to settle in Canada, because Canada doesn't have the "opportunities" they want.
Canada has a high quality of life because it has a lot more resources and a lot fewer people to compete for the limited resources, especially compared with immigrant originating countries such as China and India. But opportunities? Nah. One can easily make more money and have a better career in Hong Kong or Shanghai than in Toronto.
There are some exceptions but I have a hard time believing that people don't come to Canada for more rights and freedoms.. For example my husband came here for exactly the reasons I specified.. Try being gay in Venezuela and get back to me about it! He has a higher QOL now because he has more rights and freedoms + opportunities not less so not sure why Canadians would be living in denial about such things really. Sure, Canada isn't the only country that offers much to those who immigrate but its up there.
I'm not sure i'd want to hang my hat in HK or Shanghai even if I could make more money in those places.. I think the economic opportunities are there in a country like China because it is the second largest economy in the world now and there are over 1.2 Billion people but bastions of progressive and advanced human rights/freedoms - not so much.
I can see why it would be an uncomfortable place for Fusion to relocate to though. I have a gay friend who lives in Dubai and he has to be very discreet when his boyfriend visits him from Boston. I would never want to live anywhere I couldn't freely be myself. Both Canada and the US offer people a standard of life and personal freedoms that you actually come to appreciate more once you move around a bit, both places are doing quite well overall in my view.
Really, if you are a person who supports the rights and freedoms of all individuals than I think it is a noble stand to give a finger to a place and say i'm not going to support your repressive regime, even if you pay triple my salary! Its not a bad thing to take a stand for something greater than a dollar bill in life as far as I'm concerned. Sheesh, and people say I need to grow and expand my horizons - seriously lol...
Really, if you are a person who supports the rights and freedoms of all individuals than I think it is a noble stand to give a finger to a place and say i'm not going to support your repressive regime, even if you pay triple my salary! Its not a bad thing to take a stand for something greater than a dollar bill in life as far as I'm concerned. Sheesh, and people say I need to grow and expand my horizons - seriously lol...
Good post. On hand I totally agree that going to Dubai as a gay man is not high on my list on things to do. But at the same time I totally undertand Edward's ambition to travel and experience different places and cultures. Edward from what I understand is extremely well traveled and knowledgable about the world. In the end I see no problem at all in visiting a place a s foreign as Dubai and spending time there. While their culture appears very backwards to us, they also probably look at is the same way. At the end of the day, the cultures are simply different an there are always two sides to the coin. Here is a funny comic that reminds us of how relative our cultures are:
So I think our cultural biases are very relative with a few and it is difficult to see from a lens other than our own. But on the plane of homosexuality I think that western culture has proven to be far more tolerant and accepted than the East, regardless of cultural interpretation. There is no argument to be made that Saudi Arabia is more tolerant of homosexuality than Toronto were being bay appears to be where thankfully it seems to be treated as just another fact of life. But for the great majority of things relating to culture, there isa great deal of misunderstanding as people refuse to look outside of their lens. I think being black in Canada vs, the US is an excellent example of this, where many blacks complain that well meaning white Canadians "just don't get it" when it comes to black people.
In the end I see no problem at all in visiting a place a s foreign as Dubai and spending time there. While their culture appears very backwards to us, they also probably look at is the same way. At the end of the day, the cultures are simply different an there are always two sides to the coin. Here is a funny comic that reminds us of how relative our cultures are:
So I think our cultural biases are very relative with a few and it is difficult to see from a lens other than our own. But for the great majority of things relating to culture, there isa great deal of misunderstanding as people refuse to look outside of their lens. I think being black in Canada vs, the US is an excellent example of this, where many blacks complain that well meaning white Canadians "just don't get it" when it comes to black people.
That comic is bang-on! I've never bought this argument that Muslim women who choose to wear the hijab or burka in the West are being coerced or brainwashed to.
I think it's quite the opposite. I lived for years in Michigan, which has the second highest Muslim population in the Western Hemisphere (second only to Paris). IMO, the vast majority of Muslim women in the US (and Canada) at least, are strong, confident, and highly opinionated.
Their choice to cover themselves to any extent is, without question, both a statement of individuality and an act of defiance against what THEY see as the oppression and control of women in the West. And they're NOT entirely wrong.
Last edited by newdixiegirl; 10-09-2014 at 05:31 AM..
That comic is bang-on! I've never bought this argument that Muslim women who choose to wear the hijab or burka in the West are being coerced or brainwashed to.
I think it's quite the opposite. I lived for years in Michigan, which has the second highest Muslim population in the Western Hemisphere (second only to Paris). IMO, the vast majority of Muslim women in the US (and Canada) at least, are strong, confident, and highly opinionated.
Their choice to cover themselves to any extent is, without question, both a statement of individuality and an act of defiance against what THEY see as the oppression and control of women in the West. And they're NOT entirely wrong.
Bingo. I've made that point a few times on this forum, as I recall, to a chorus of boos. It's ironic that a bare body is seen as some sort of liberation, and covering one's self, head to toe if desired, as subjugation. Unless you are within that culture, you don't usually have a clue how different perception and reality can be.
I think westerners apply a western moral code to the rest of the world plus the media sensationalizes differences and different socio economic circumstances are just not comprehendible to people in the west. So what if people want to wear a hijab. So what if some people want an arranged marriage. So what if some people eat intestines or bugs. So what if some people hold a cow as sacred. So what if some people are open to one-night stands and some are not. Etc. Not everyone in this world is wrong or lesser just because they don't think, act and dress like a westerner. I wouldn't dismiss an entire region or culture just because it is different or I can't comprehend some aspects in my eyes. That being said, I think people should respect the local culture of where they live and do have some more onus to adapt to it than it does to adapt to them.
Last edited by johnathanc; 10-09-2014 at 07:17 AM..
Good post hobbesdj, what people need to realize is just because you do not understand another way of life, it does not automatically make it wrong.
Fusion, what you said I agree with on principle and respect anyone who abides by those standards. The question is, how many of us actually live by those principles 100% of the time? If we struck nations or groups that have committed human rights violations off our list of places to go or support, we basically could not go anywhere.
Do you take to task your friends in Toronto when they hop on a plane and go to Cuba for a week? Castro's view on homosexuality evolved in his later years, but the treatment of gays in Cuba was terrible for many years. Should we also encourage people not to visit Jamaica? Time Magazine named Jamaica the most homophobic country on earth and some gays are granted asylum based on sexual orientation because the situation is so terrible. I recall you personally love visiting Thailand, what about the turning of a blind eye towards sex trafficking of underage girls and pedophilia? Should we stop visiting Bangkok? Even in your own country we see a tainted history of treatment towards the First Nations community and even in your own city the carding of young black males and racial profiling. See where I am going with this?
Not that I have to defend myself to you, but do you have any idea what type of projects I work on in the Middle East or what I am working on currently? Here is a link to my company's website and the project I am assigned to: (Health System Development for the National Healthcare System of Qatar | Partners International) This project is advancing the treatment options available to women in Qatar. This has been an under served and under treated group for many years and it feels pretty good to have a small part in improving those conditions for women. Don't get me wrong, I am no Saint. The pay is good, bonuses very healthy and career advancement possibilities endless and that is a major motivation. None of us are more holy than the other at the end of the day.
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