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Taxation, healthcare, workers' benefits, environmental regulations, government vs free market, mass transit. Some of these aren't shared with Canada, but they are where Europe swings more left than the USA.
Taxation in the EU has been steadily going down, on fiscal issues the EU is significantly more conservative than the US, member countries cannot exceed 3% of budget deficit (and with a 60% debt/GDP maximum ratio, albeit theoretical at the moment), the US at some point reached 10%
Furthermore, the EU has been becoming increasingly more market oriented and the mythical European job security is increasingly becoming a distant memory. Even in Scandinavian countries the "cradle to the grave" model is under pressure.
The United States run one of the largest and generous welfare system in the world.....the US Armed Forces.
I do not agree with Manitopiaaa with some of his/her criticism of European cities, on some aspects they are far more modern than American ones (including Canadians), public transportation for example....however I agree that many European big cities suburbs are depressing.....Paris for example.
Last edited by saturno_v; 07-09-2017 at 10:40 PM..
Taxation in the EU has been steadily going down, on fiscal issues the EU is significantly more conservative than the US, member countries cannot exceed 3% of budget deficit, the US at some point reached 10%
Furthermore, the EU has been becoming increasingly more market oriented and the mythical European job security is increasingly becoming a distant memory. Even in Scandinavian countries the cradle to the grave model is under pressure.
The United States run one of the largest and generous welfare system in the world.....the US Armed Forces.
I do not agree with Manitopiaaa with some of his/her criticism of European cities, on some aspects they are far more modern than American ones (including Canadians), public transportation for example....however I agree that many European big cities suburbs are depressing.....Paris for example.
Europe definitely still has the upper hand over the "New World" (US, Canada, Australia, NZ) when it comes to public transportation as many small cities have rail infrastructure which I consider key in mobility, since they can bypass the hurdles of traffic jams.
That being said I do believe the US, Canada and Australia are catching up. Some 20 to 30 years ago, only a few key cities had subway/light rail transit, but nowadays new systems are popping up everywhere.
Europe definitely still has the upper hand over the "New World" (US, Canada, Australia, NZ) when it comes to public transportation as many small cities have rail infrastructure which I consider key in mobility, since they can bypass the hurdles of traffic jams.
I absolutely agree.
Quote:
That being said I do believe the US, Canada and Australia are catching up. Some 20 to 30 years ago, only a few key cities had subway/light rail transit, but nowadays new systems are popping up everywhere.
Yes, there are definitely some non European cities (in particularly Asian) that are the envy of the world in public transportation.
I also find Sydney excellent, far above any North American city.
Canadians in some cities are forced to live smaller, it is not their choice...at all.
Furthermore, the suburbs around Toronto don't look much different than those around New York City, except that the construction tends to be more recent on average. In terms of house size, lot size and street layout, I wouldn't know the difference. Same types of cars in the driveways too. As far as living in large cities in the US, most people scale back size unless they have a pile of money to spend. Maybe Canadians talk about living smaller, but many don't.
Canadians in some cities are forced to live smaller, it is not their choice...at all.
Of course it's their choice. They can always move the burbs, and some do. I can get a place twice the size of my current places for less than half the price a 45 minute drive from downtown.
Furthermore, the suburbs around Toronto don't look much different than those around New York City, except that the construction tends to be more recent on average. In terms of house size, lot size and street layout, I wouldn't know the difference. Same types of cars in the driveways too. As far as living in large cities in the US, most people scale back size unless they have a pile of money to spend. Maybe Canadians talk about living smaller, but many don't.
Some parts of the burbs sure, but don't Toronto's burbs have more high-rise condo's?
Also, that's just Toronto. In Vancouver our suburbs, besides the older sprawl, has condo's and office towers galore.
It's been discussed to death on CD, but Canadians suburbs overall are much more dense than US ones.
Of course it's their choice. They can always move the burbs, and some do. I can get a place twice the size of my current places for less than half the price a 45 minute drive from downtown.
Same options in the US......you have to be 45 minutes away to have a place twice the size....you said it.....again living smaller is not (mostly and up to a point, I'm not talking a 5000 sq/ft mansion here which does not appeal to me at all) a choice but you are forced to...now if you can have a bigger place without moving out too far a lot of people would jump at it....a family living in a 800 sf/ft condo in Vancouver does not do that by choice in most cases....they are forced to, pure and simple.
You are having a comprehension issue. I said the attitudes, not the cities and not every attitude.
Things that I and my friends from Europe find in common, that isn't quite the same. Attitudes towards living smaller, attitudes towards public transportation, attitudes towards universal healthcare, attitudes in regards to government, attitudes in regards to workers rights such a paid vacation, maternity/paternity leave etc.
Yes there are those in the US who have the same attitudes as Canadians and Europeans, but overall, I find Europe more progressive in most areas than the US.
The US isn't more progressive on gay marriage than Canada. On LGBTQ rights overall, Canada is ahead of the US.
Marijuana is only legal in a few states and definitely not legal federally. Canada will be ahead of that game next year when it becomes legal country wide. Europe is a mix and hardly taking a backseat to the US.
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