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If you are serious, it sounds as if you need to do a bit more research.
First, you need to find out how realistic it is for you immigrate to Canada. Clearly, you have no family or employer to sponsor you. Canadian employers are legally obligated to hire citizens or Landed Immigrants before they look elsewhere. There are more than enough Canadian IT people. Your wife, on the other hand, might have better luck, particularly if she's a specialist. Alberta used to advertise in the states for nurses; don't know if that's still the case.
Alberta routinely goes through oil-related boom and bust cycles. Unfortunately, it is currently in a bust cylcle and jobs are being slashed right and left.
Canada is a great country. However, it is a very bad choice for libertarians.
I suspect you need to find out a little more about the Canadian political system, given the concerns you express about the U.S. The federal government (aka central government) actually plays a much larger role in people's day to lives than is the case in the US. Canada has CSIS (sort of like the NSA): I can't remember if the War Measures Act (Prime Minister can declare martial law) is still on the books. The nation has as many regulations as any first world nation. There's quite a bit more to discuss on this topic; the comments on similar threads might prove a useful starting point.
In my experience, Canadians, even the conservatives, find very right-wing Americans somewhat vulgar. Don't take it personally if you're not all that warmly-embraced should you be allowed to immigrate.
Hey! Shhhhhhhh... don't listen to this guy ^
Op, Canada is perfect for you, rural Alberta would be a good place so you can install an underground bunker or something.
If you are serious, it sounds as if you need to do a bit more research.
First, you need to find out how realistic it is for you immigrate to Canada. Clearly, you have no family or employer to sponsor you. Canadian employers are legally obligated to hire citizens or Landed Immigrants before they look elsewhere. There are more than enough Canadian IT people. Your wife, on the other hand, might have better luck, particularly if she's a specialist. Alberta used to advertise in the states for nurses; don't know if that's still the case.
Alberta routinely goes through oil-related boom and bust cycles. Unfortunately, it is currently in a bust cylcle and jobs are being slashed right and left.
Canada is a great country. However, it is a very bad choice for libertarians.
I suspect you need to find out a little more about the Canadian political system, given the concerns you express about the U.S. The federal government (aka central government) actually plays a much larger role in people's day to lives than is the case in the US. Canada has CSIS (sort of like the NSA): I can't remember if the War Measures Act (Prime Minister can declare martial law) is still on the books. The nation has as many regulations as any first world nation. There's quite a bit more to discuss on this topic; the comments on similar threads might prove a useful starting point.
In my experience, Canadians, even the conservatives, find very right-wing Americans somewhat vulgar. Don't take it personally if you're not all that warmly-embraced should you be allowed to immigrate.
You're more familair with Canadian government and culture than I am but it doesn't sound like you actually understand what's driving the current American libertarian movement. it was not born out of a wholesale rejection of all forms of governance. It acutally stems from the fact that the American government is now and has been for quite some time a corrupt, oppresive evil force in the world. How many countries has Canada invaded in the past 20 years? How many times does Canada stand up on the world scene acting as if they're the only ones that matter? How many Canadian politicians are responsible for trillions of dollars of debt while politicallty grandstanding al the time?
Beyond our corrupt tyrannical government is our shallow, materialistic ignorant society. I used to think Europeans were just being snobs when they'd refer to Americans as ignorant but there more I look around the more I see that it's true.
You claim that Canadians do not think highly of "very right-wing" Americans. What is your definition of very right-wing? There are some in my country that you'd probably consider very right-wing that actually sicken me. They are the type that can usually be found in the South, waving their flags around screaming USA is number 1 as they buy into the military industrial complex hook, line and sinker and send their sons off to die face down in the sand in the middle east and then tell everyone how proud they are. I also do not care for bible thumping fundamentalists either.
I have talked to a lot of people who claim that while there is more government in Canada it is better government and that Canada on the whole is a more free and more rational place than the US. In any event I'd probably visit to see for myself before making such a big life decision.
We know what you don't like about America, you've said so here and in a couple of other topics where you've run your country down. In another of your posts in a related topic you said "the reason that the the idea of moving to Canada seems so appealing is not because Canada is some kind of utopia but rather because America is on it's way to complete ruin and anything would look great in comparison."
Not liking what's happening with the politics and society in your own home country is not a good enough reason to be thinking of Canada as just any old port in a storm and thinking of it as a port in a storm won't win you any friends. Nobody will care what your complaints are about America ..... seriously, nobody cares ..... what you like about Canada are the only things that should be important to you if you're going to come to Canada.
So I'm thinking before you start asking about locations to move to there's some more important questions you need to ask yourself, and that you will be quizzed about if you apply to immigrate - like why do you want to become a Canadian and not a citizen of some other country? How much do you actually know and love about Canada and what do you feel you have to bring to the table to make you an asset to Canadian society? What can you contribute to Canada and Canadian society instead of what can Canada contribute to you? How much do you know and how do you feel about the things that are important to Canadians, like our Canadian monarchy, our parliamentary government, our several political parties, our rich history, our multiculturalism, our gun laws, our educational systems, our laid back liberalism, our judicial system and our constitution and charter of rights and freedoms? Those are just a few examples of Canadianisms that you will be expected to know about, there is more.
]My wife and I currently live in New England in the US but are considering moving to Canada for a number of reasons such as: too many people in the US are ignorant, materialistic, pop culture obsessed morons, the fascist American government is bankrupting the nation and bringing about a police state, the US dollar is going to collapse in the near future and the US society is basically going to fall apart on at the seams etc etc ...all the usual complaints..... right?
Can you please provide advice as far as jobs and culture inthat area? We're basically a middle class family looking to escape the impending disaster here in the states and find a decent, middle class English speaking community, where we can enjoy mother nature and not have to worry about a corrupt government micromanaging our lives
Well, I have to agree that I think you should do a bit of research on Canada before worrying about which city might suit you best. Much of what you take issue with is an issue everywhere, including here. But I think there is a difference in how Americans and Canadians define certain words - I don't recall any Canadians talking about libertarian views - you will certainly find government involvement in people's lives here as well, and depending on your definition of freedom and how you define your libertarian views, you might decide you have jumped from the frying pan and into the fire. Canadians generally want a bit more government involvement than Americans do.
I don't think anyone would call Canada a libertarian's idea of paradise. Noam Chomsky said that what Americans view as libertarianism, non-Americans call anarchy.
You claim that Canadians do not think highly of "very right-wing" Americans. What is your definition of very right-wing?
Americans who fly their flag at every opportunity, saying, "these colours don't run," who salute the American flag at every opportunity (is there any other country--except possibly North Korea--that makes schoolchildren pledge allegiance to a scrap of cloth?), and other such assorted patriotic bull-crap. Those who seem to feel that their constitution is somehow sacred, akin to a religious text, and who feel that the American constitution is better than every other political system, constitutional or otherwise, on earth.
The American right-wingers are also those who come into the Canada forum wondering why we have a Queen, why we don't celebrate Thanksgiving on the same date as Americans, and why we feel we have an independent and free country (because, after all, we're under the jackboot of the British monarchy, which--according to them--can tell us what to think, can dictate our speech, and can collapse our government on a whim).
OP, you may not be such, and I'm sure a good number of Americans are like you, but you asked.
In the C-D Canada forum, we seem to deal with many right-wing Americans, as described above. Speaking only for myself, I'm tired of it.
I didn't start this thread in the Canada forum to complain about America. I think it is well known by now how I feel about my country. I am genuinely interested in learning more about Canada specifically as a place to raise a family.
It's important to consider all possibilities here, not to extend the US/Canada debate, but for example, I have a 3 year old who is currently on an 18-24 month waitlist for his autism treatment. This is a reality of living in a place where there is "free" (taxed, of course) healthcare for all, and the professionals all work within the public system. Surgeries have serious wait times as well, and the Canadians with money are starting to go south for help. If you are moving here with a family, consider the medical issue. Unfortunately, our health care tends to be romanticized.
The government is much more involved in your daily life here. In health care, education, government services. You don't really "shop around" - you get ICBC insurance, like everyone else. You pay your BC Hydro, like everyone else. You pay your taxes into health care, like everyone else. Nobody really talks or debates it, but it's there in practice, because it's accepted.
As I said earlier, you will probably like the Okanagan. Keep in mind though, politics are not really talked about here either. So, go for the every day life changes and not for political motivations. If you even mention the terms "libertarian" "republican" "democrat", the vast majority of Canadians will simply tune out.
Alberta is much closer to your general way of thinking than BC. Not that it is a value judgement one way or another.
Also, it's much easier to be suburban in Alberta, and still be close to a major centre. In BC, really, if you're not on the lower mainland, you're in the wilderness. (relatively speaking)
I didn't start this thread in the Canada forum to complain about America. I think it is well known by now how I feel about my country. I am genuinely interested in learning more about Canada specifically as a place to raise a family.
Okay, fine. Let's learn a few things.
The US is not the be-all and end-all of all that is good. Seriously, the US has a lot of faults. Two things come to mind to me as a citizen of a real democracy: your cherishment of guns and your unfeelingness towards your needy
Can I own guns in Canada? Sure. Can I use them for self-defence? No. And why would I need to? Police respond immediately. They have better equipment than I have. Should it need to be deployed, they will deploy it.
As for the unfeelingness towards your needy, I am surprised. I always thought Americans were charitable. I guess not. They would rather see their fellow Americans suffer, than pay one cent towards their care.
I didn't start this thread in the Canada forum to complain about America. I think it is well known by now how I feel about my country. I am genuinely interested in learning more about Canada specifically as a place to raise a family.
Well, I for one wasn't aware of your feelings towards your own country and its issues before this thread. I therefore took the liberty of checking out some of your other posts, including on the Aussie forum.
Speaking for myself, it isn't my intention to dissuade you or even discourage you from attempting to immigrate here if that is what you want. People are sometimes born in countries where they just don't feel they fit.
But I would like to encourage you to read Canadian newspapers online, particularly in the areas of the country that you now think might suit you. Regular readings of local newspapers can give you a feel for an area and its people and issues and just what kind of a 'vibe' there is.
But overall, one thing that drew my attention was your posts in the Aussie forum about despising (I get it that you might be exaggerating your feelings here but I can't think of another word at the moment) people you feel don't work enough but still maintain at least a middle class lifestyle. I think this might be a thing that you would not like about Canada. Canadians in general don't feel that way. That we pay higher taxes in order to support social services even for people who might be lazy doesn't really bother us. At least not enough to talk about it the way I see it talked about by Americans.
So I see at least a possibility here that some of the very same things you don't like in the US but which we generally DO like as Canadians in Canada (our social safety nets, our universal health care) are things you might resent here, only the names of the players changing (despising plain old poor people instead of illegal immigrants as one example.)
That Canada isn't invading other countries as regularly as the US is not due to moral superiority but the fact that we aren't a big player on the world stage. That happens to suit me just fine. I was the kid who liked to sit in the anonymous middle in school - neither at the back where the bad kids sat, nor in the front where the hand-raiser "I know!" I know!"-ers sat. But a position of moral leadership on the part of Canada it is not. It's never a compliment to a person or a place to commend them for resisting temptations they have never have faced.
And secondly, yes, to me as an outsider and to a lot of other outsiders, it looks like pure chaos in the US but to think that some kind of worst case scenario happening in the US wouldn't have an impact on Canada as well is naïve. And in that worst case scenario picture of the US you painted, I would imagine a lot of Canadians would feel like myself - we wouldn't want immigrants flooding into our country spreading paranoid ideas and possibly sending our government into a similar kind of chaos. I don't think any country would want that.
I am not saying that YOU are that type. I don't know what type you are - but I have seen people with some of your expressed views, and some people who see Obamacare as the ultimate in communism or antichristism (I invented that word) stating around the last US election that if Obama won they would move to Canada. While it is always nice to be liked, it is also clear that people who posted things like that knew nothing about Canada because Obama is pretty conservative to most of us Canadians and we have the universal government healthcare that south of here is often called socialism.
Socialism is not a dirty word here. Neither is liberal. And politics is not as polarized. And voters seem to see no contradiction between voting for the NDP (our 'pink' party, as in our most socialist party) during one election, and voting for the Conservative party (our most conservative party but more equivalent to the Democrats in the US than the Republicans) in the next. We have no real equivalent to the Republican party.
And of course you can raise a family here in many safe communities and there are many outdoor activities to enjoy.
So by all means read, ask questions and think hard about whether you'd really want to be here.
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Well, I for one wasn't aware of your feelings towards your own country and its issues before this thread. I therefore took the liberty of checking out some of your other posts, including on the Aussie forum.
But a position of moral leadership on the part of Canada it is not. It's never a compliment to a person or a place to commend them for resisting temptations they have never have faced.
