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Re: Canada

#21

Post by danans »

> When I think about the counterfactual me that grew up in a large American city, New York or L.A. instead of Toronto, I see someone who's more stunted than me, in important ways. No skating classes, libraries too far to walk to on a regular basis and more poorly stocked. Student debt. Without generous public incentives, that version of me would only have the life that her own parents can afford to provide for her.

America has long been a place where hardship or trauma for a subset of the population has been seen as the system working "correctly".

It's just that the makeup of that subset has shifted over time (although much less so for black Americans).

You'll find many people here that will believe that without deprivation of basics and even comforts, nobody would want to pursue or achieve anything.

This is often believed by people living in communities that - because of wealth clustering -provide basics and comforts, as well as growth opportunities, and sometimes especially by the few people who escaped deprivation into comfort and security through their grit, thereby assuming that is the best route for all of society.

We think we did it all ourselves, without any helping hand up, while often being ignorant of our own privilege.

Re: Canada

#22

Post by footy »

abernard1 wrote: post #11

> When I think about the counterfactual me that grew up in a large American city, New York or L.A. instead of Toronto, And just think, those are the American areas most common to Canada. There are places in America where those counterfactuals do not exist, where the necessities aren't locked behind counters, where community is thriving, and where the normality of civic life is an expectation. I expect no honors for t…

ah yes, the places where women can expect to die if they happen to need medical care while pregnant and where LGBTQ people are not treated the same as most citizens. Sounds lovely.

Re: Canada

#24

Post by cornmandeeznuts »

Im dying in the US. My wife and kids are too.

Achedemics recently claimed that herodtudus was wrong when he wrote in 500bc that the pyramids were built by slaves. Their evidence: archeolgy shows that the builders were given food, housing, and medicine. Were they "slaves" or did we just adjust the meaning of the word to conform to the barbarism of colonists?

so, if they WERE slaves...what would that make me in the modern US?

Re: Canada

#25

Post by neilv »

> There are many things wrong with Canada. It has a go for bronze mentality, the smartest of us keep going to the US because there is not enough opportunity here, much of its public infrastructure is crumbling and the housing prices are frightful. The nation is very obviously sick.

Is anyone currently moving from Canada to the US?

If so, are they the "smartest", or do they simply have different priorities than a lot of equally smart people?

Re: Canada

#26

Post by tavavex »

lifetimerubyist wrote: post #6

Canada is far from perfect but there is no other country in the world I would ever consider leaving it behind for.

As another Canadian, some Western European countries have a compelling argument, assuming you're proficient in their languages. Nowhere's perfect, and the grass is always greener. I think Canada is definitely up there, but there are places where you could trade our set of downsides for a different one and be well off.

Re: Canada

#27

Post by lifetimerubyist »

CamelCaseName wrote: post #16
jonapro wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The only other country I'd ever consider to live in would be Quebec. :D. So much potential here. The author implies that the country is broken, this isn't true by any stretch of imagination. Things aren't perfect as you've pointed out but we've got the energy, the universities, the social net and all that we need to live a decent life. The author implies the best ones are leaving for the states. I find it quite amusi…

I admire Quebec's taxpayer funded (or subsidized?) daycare. The GDP impact really speaks for itself. I hope that comes to the rest of Canada (and does not get abused)

There is a federal program for subsidized $10 per day daycare but some provinces have been a bit stubborn in signing up and making agreements with the federal government.

Re: Canada

#28

Post by jdswain »

light_hue_1 wrote: post #10

I grew up in Canada and live in the US now with kids. The US is not one country. It's two that are radically different. There's wealthy America. The top 5% to 10% that have healthcare, have their own safety nets, don't need to worry about money, their kids go to select schools that they can buy into (mostly by buying into the right neighborhoods), an amazing pension plan, etc. My kids go to a fancy library with readi…

There's a selfish case for the wealthy to care about this: rising tides lift all boats, including theirs. When the bottom 80% are struggling with housing insecurity and desperation, the consequences don't stay contained to poor neighbourhoods. San Francisco seems like a good example—the visible decline in public spaces, safety concerns, and urban decay affect everyone who lives there, regardless of income. The wealthy can insulate themselves to a degree, but they can't fully escape a deteriorating society. They'd be better off in a city where everyone has a baseline of stability.

Re: Canada

#29

Post by beached_whale »

garbawarb wrote: post #17

I like to think about what Canada would be like if it could take the best qualities from the US and leave the rest. What if Canada's capital markets were so robust that it was just as good a place as the US to start and scale a company? What if it could match the US in economic productivity? PM Carney seems to have made it a goal to get Canada there but time will tell whether that happens. Some other countries like S…

There are some examples of companies that scaled really well in Canada but move to the US subsequently for better access to their market. Shopify is the first example that comes to mine.

Re: Canada

#30

Post by amrocha »

jonapro wrote: post #20
CamelCaseName wrote: post #13

My personal story echos the author. Parents immigrated here under the skilled worker visa and worked hard to shield me from our poverty. Despite this, like the author, I was able to have an incredibly well rounded childhood full of activities through our recreation centers, a short 10 minute walk from my home (not so short in the winter!) There are many times I look with frustration at the payroll taxes I incur payin…

Going for bronze is absolutely perfect as well. I understand the folks here have a different opinion that lines up with technosolutionism or adjacent to it. There's nothing wrong with living a good life, doing honest work and not think that your latest SaaS idea is a game changer. Also, let's not feed the trolls. Lutke is a lunatic.

Money changes people. He used to be a cool guy.
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