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Canada's immigration website crashes on election night

ctvnews.ca

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Re: Canada's immigration website crashes on election night

#31

Post by robotresearcher »

baby wrote: post #3

People are not going to move. After every single election in France people say they will move to the US, or to germany, or to... I've never seen anyone moved anywhere. ps: parts of my family moved out of Hong Kong when it became Chinese again. But that was quite a different situation.

I moved to Canada from the US because of the G.W. Bush presidency. I'm not claiming it's statistically important, but my family moved. I'm lucky enough to be employable wherever I choose to live, so I exercised that power. Maybe you can too.

Re: Canada's immigration website crashes on election night

#32

Post by PhasmaFelis »

rpeden wrote: post #10
retreatguru wrote: post #2

I wonder how this might affect startups in Canada? Will it be easier to hire American programmers? Will more investors come up north?

As it stands now, I doubt that many American programmers would be willing to take the pay cut they'd have to accept if they came to work here. I like it here, and I'm happy with what I make, but when you factor in the exchange rate, a typical US developer would take a huge salary haircut working here; probably 40-50%.

Sure, but (depending on the area, at least) you can live very comfortably on 50% of what a west-coast US developer makes. Techies tend to forget that our pay rates are way above the national average.

Re: Canada's immigration website crashes on election night

#33

Post by mahyarm »

M_Grey wrote: post #15
colmvp wrote: post #5

Canada seems appealing to Americans until you realize you could be earning more in the U.S. while spending less on a bunch of other things. Don't get me wrong, I love living in Canada and I mostly don't miss living in Bay Area, but most of my friends lament the fact that their salary and career opportunities are a joke compared to what they could have in the U.S. (even adjusting for cost of living).

Canada would be an odd choice for many reasons, but is probably attractive for the combination of proximity, and cultural/linguistic similarities. For me, I've been looking at Ireland, Denmark, or the Netherlands for a while, and I'd say they're looking far more attractive today than yesterday. Besides, money isn't everything. There is something to be said for not having to deal with the insane evangelicals, bitter u…

Thing is you can move to pretty much any western state or large city and not have to deal with most of that. Portland, Seattle, SF, LA, LV, etc.

Re: Canada's immigration website crashes on election night

#34

Post by rpeden »

retreatguru wrote: post #18
rpeden wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As it stands now, I doubt that many American programmers would be willing to take the pay cut they'd have to accept if they came to work here. I like it here, and I'm happy with what I make, but when you factor in the exchange rate, a typical US developer would take a huge salary haircut working here; probably 40-50%.

That is true. But there are also a number of perks such as universal health care. So maybe just a certain type of developer would move - one motivated by values rather than money. Perhaps similar to the draft dodgers who came up in the late 60s.

That's definitely true. And don't get me wrong, salaries aren't terrible, all things considered. If you're a dev with a few years experience here, you're likely making significantly more money on your own that they average Canadian family earns.

Re: Canada's immigration website crashes on election night

#35

Post by xienze »

jgh wrote: post #26
xienze wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, because it turns out you can't just waltz over the border to Canada and expect to be greeted with open arms as we do in the US.

I assume you're American and have had no experience with the US immigration system? Because they definitely do not do that in the US.

"Waltz over the border" implies illegal immigration. Which we kinda have a soft spot for in US.

Re: Canada's immigration website crashes on election night

#36

Post by chongli »

adomanico wrote: post #4
retreatguru wrote: post #2

I wonder how this might affect startups in Canada? Will it be easier to hire American programmers? Will more investors come up north?

Software professionals might get to Canada, see the smaller paycheck and run back home!

The pay may be a lot less here but real estate is way cheaper. For the price of a 1 bedroom apartment in San Francisco you could buy a 4 bedroom house in Waterloo. We have a nice startup scene here that's really expected to take off when the LRT opens up in 2018.

Re: Canada's immigration website crashes on election night

#38

Post by hawngyeedun »

baby wrote: post #3

People are not going to move. After every single election in France people say they will move to the US, or to germany, or to... I've never seen anyone moved anywhere. ps: parts of my family moved out of Hong Kong when it became Chinese again. But that was quite a different situation.

Those who have not lived outside of the US (or NA) don't realize how hard life is for the rest of the world; most will just move right back within months.

Been there myself. Life ain't easy out there.

Edit - A little bit of context here: I am speaking as someone who was born and raised in a developing country rife with racial and political problems. My point is, a lot of people who are yelling about immigrating due to the election result are overly naive with their outlook. It takes an incredible amount of effort to adjust to a new environment, not to speak of giving up the connections and comfort they have in the US. It's not as easy as just "moving to another country".

Re: Canada's immigration website crashes on election night

#40

Post by ajmurmann »

davidw wrote: post #28
baby wrote: post #3

People are not going to move. After every single election in France people say they will move to the US, or to germany, or to... I've never seen anyone moved anywhere. ps: parts of my family moved out of Hong Kong when it became Chinese again. But that was quite a different situation.

Things mostly have not become bad enough to move. I think Trump will be more Berlusconi than Mussolini. I hope so at least. I also wonder what it'd take to make us grab what we can and get out. If things start heading that way, it's a decision you really, really don't want to put off too long.

I can't believe this is the first time I've seen anyone compare Trump to Berlusconi. It's spot on.
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