Ooi, what are the biggest differences between Canada and the USA?

Please, be serious ;)

well, the culture of the two countries is vastly different... in the States, they have politics which concentrate heavily on the right side of the democratic spectrum, whereas Canadians are much more European in flavour, with broad political and social intrests... for example, we Canadians have long treasured our (surprisingly efficient... i've seen the numbers compared to the States, it's amazing) Health Care system, where in the 'States talk of such a system is "very liberal" (which is an INSULT in the States, meaning you are TOO free, TOO big government)
actually, Canadians are far more European than Americans, especially the Quebecios... our culture is also far more ingrained with the primary industries which origionally brought wealth to the different regions...
for instance, out here in British Columbia on the west coast, lumber, and Pacific salmon fishing, and the Rocky Mountains are a part of "who we are"...
likewise, on the praries through the middle of the country, grain raising, and other sorts of farming, and the vast, open, flatness of those praries are a part of "who they are"...
on the east coast (this region is famous for its accents and local sayings, stories, and grammar) is heavily influenced in its identity still by fishing the Grand Banks, mining coal, and a general marine economy... the coast is rocky, violent, and cold, with huge swings in the tide over the day... this is a very big part of "who" atlantic canadians "are"...

this is only scratching the surface of Canadiana, but i just saw this HUGE EXPANSIVENESS OF THE FORUM!!! HOOORAY!!! NO LONGER WILL I SIT AND GROAN THAT THERE IS NO ONE TO REPLY TO AGAIN!!! HOOORAY!!!! :D

thank you, thank you god... oops, i mean BOOSTD7

Hey guys!

I just have a slight issue with the comparison between US and Canadian health care. I have Canadian collegues and I can tell you that you are right.....Canadian health care is more efficient.....financially. I don't believe that it is more efficient as far as health care. Health care in the US is RAPIDLY available to everyone....albeit at the expense of cost.

The US has been afraid of anything that resembles Socialism since Stalin. And in our society, nothing could be "bigger government" than nationalized health care.

Back on topic

I also agree that Canadians are more European. I would say that a different way. Americans are much more up tight. Less political of me...but true.

Anyway, congrats on the forum!

Originally posted by Aesculapius
Canadian health care is more efficient.....financially. I don't believe that it is more efficient as far as health care. Health care in the US is RAPIDLY available to everyone....albeit at the expense of cost.

i don't wanna get into a debate about what system is better, care for cost, but i'll just say that almost nothing we Canadians have is as good as you Americans, albeit at a lower cost. roadways, railways, military, etc etc etc... just don't forget our population is about 1/10 of the US's (our 30 million to your nearly 300 million).

a few of the things, MattFast, that're better in Canada is the beer, the cost of housing, and the cost of cars. thank god for Molson, Labatt, and low demand!! :D

You forgot hockey! We RULE! :D

and you forgot moosehead!!

there is a similarity in how we travel. when you canadiens travel oversees you have a mapleleaf on your backpack, coat, hat etc. and now when we americans go we wear one to. nobody wants to shoot at you folk ;)

you forgot igloos

There's a lot more in common between us than there are differences. Canadians are smothered by US culture and have difficulty holding their own. (how many Canucks would recognise Wayne & Schuster over Ginger & MaryAnn?)
Despite our 'European' bent, remember that all of North America was founded and still suffers under a stifling puritanical religious fundamentalist blanket...even after 400 years.
Things that are commonplace in Europe can still be taboo here...erotica in advertising, lenient soft drug laws, goverment-controlled prostitution, and even having a glass of wine at dinner as a 3-year-old.
We're really nothing like Europe at all, unfortunately.

Originally posted by MattFast
Ooi, what are the biggest differences between Canada and the USA?

Please, be serious ;)

It's not that hard to tell the differences. Guess which ones are the Canadians in the picture. ;) :D

Well, excellent replies, all. To which I would like to add the following:

I just got back from Chicago visiting my best friend who is a Canadian working in the fine U.S. of A. He has been there for about three years. He is a fairly observant sort, and definitely on the right, or Republican, side of the political scale. His observation on the single biggest difference between Americans and Canadians:

GUNS, GUNS, and more GUNS.

It would be EXTREMELY rare for a Canadian to EXPECT that his neighbor owned a hand gun. In the United States, however, it would be extremely rare to expect that one's neighbor did NOT own a hand gun. The citizens of each country quite simply hold a vastly different view on the right to bear arms, or perhaps more accurately at this point in history, the NEED to personally own a hand gun.

Personally, I spend about 60 days a year in the States, and (with due respect to the fact that various States have differing laws on where and when a hand gun can be carried) it rarely occurs to me that some of the citizens I encounter might in fact be carrying a gun. In all liklihood, I would expect that the majority of the people I would encounter in the States probably own a hand gun. In Canada, I am pretty sure that ordinary citizens are not allowed to carry a hand gun on their person under any circumstances, and it is rare for a Canadian to own a hand gun.

Strangely, though, my buddy owned a registered .357 Magnum which he kept at his place in Toronto when we were going to school... yet he has no gun at his place in Chicago!

Originally posted by edv
There's a lot more in common between us than there are differences. Canadians are smothered by US culture and have difficulty holding their own. (how many Canucks would recognise Wayne & Schuster over Ginger & MaryAnn?)
Despite our 'European' bent, remember that all of North America was founded and still suffers under a stifling puritanical religious fundamentalist blanket...even after 400 years.
Things that are commonplace in Europe can still be taboo here...erotica in advertising, lenient soft drug laws, goverment-controlled prostitution, and even having a glass of wine at dinner as a 3-year-old.
We're really nothing like Europe at all, unfortunately.

it's true that we are more similar than different, and we ARE being smothered by their culture, but it's more of the shared experience of the white, anglo, North American that we get the most from them...
erotica is quickly spreading through all media, and is becoming increasingly racy for our youth (me), so i don't think it'll be all too long before it's the same here...

btw, i KNOW who Wayne&Schuster are, but Smith&Smith was way better... LONG LIVE RED GREEN!! ;) and "The Daily Show" will never come close to touching "22 Minutes", or ever have a comic as genius as Tom Green or Jim Carrey (although they're pretty Americanized now... ;))

another thing that i contend is that Canada isn't half as puritanical as the US, with the exception of the Reformers (country folk, and tighty-whities), with wide support for things like safe injection sites becoming increasingly popular here in BC, legalization of marijuana (something the US would NEVER EVER do...) inching closer and closer... legal recognition of homosexual marriages, talk of getting rid of "God Keep Our Land" from our national anthem... the whole concept of being a mosiac rather than a "melting pot"... Canada is still quite different from the US

Originally posted by Buger


It's not that hard to tell the differences. Guess which ones are the Canadians in the picture. ;) :D

Hey Buger...isn't South Park in Colorado? Like, is South Park close to Aurora?? Do you KNOW those guys??? Can you get me Cartman's autograph???? :D ;)

Originally posted by 73JPS
Hey Buger...isn't South Park in Colorado? Like, is South Park close to Aurora?? Do you KNOW those guys??? Can you get me Cartman's autograph???? :D ;)

Hi 73JPS,

It's a bit southwest of Denver and Aurora. I haven't been there yet but if you pay me some $, I'll send you Cartman's autograph. ;) :D

Originally posted by wakeech
...another thing that i contend is that Canada isn't half as puritanical as the US, with the exception of the Reformers (country folk, and tighty-whities)... Alot of that also depends on where in the States you're talking about. It's quite different between the San Francisco area and Utah, for example. But even with the "range" that there is in the States, it is still a relatively narrow range compared to the rest of the world. And I'm not referring to "extremes" either.

---jps

don't get me started...

-We have "poutin". There is nothing like gravy and cheese on deep fried pototoes to clog your arteries... But, hey it DOES taste good!

- Our cars are faster :D (it's colder here so we get a denser air/fuel mixture in the engine, kinda like a poor mans turbo...).

- We claim to be a bi-lingual nation, but are no more bilingual in English/French than the US is bi-lingual in English/Spanish

- US has a president, that has the balls to make a stand (rightly or wrongly), . We have a Prime Minister that only can make a decision after a public opinion poll is taken.

- Loonie (ie Cdn$) will soon be referred to as the "Northern Peso", unless the US decides to waste trillions on another 10yr Vietnam style war and we stand on the sidelines in the name of peacekeeping and being impartial...

- Contrary to popular belief cars are more expensive for us... Prices appear cheap on US/Cdn conversion, but don't forget Canadians are generally poorer than their US counterparts (last time I checked I did not get paid in US$, so converting a cars price to US$ does not make sense to me, as a basis to argue we are getting a great price), plus we pay more tax on the purchase price (GST/PST/HST), and don't forget we pay more income tax so we have to earn more "before" tax dollars to buy that car...
PS. Merceces-Benz made me sign this piece of paper saying I would pay them 20% of the retail price of my car if I sold it in the US within 1yr. Which I thought was very strange, b/c I am leasing the car, thus do not own it, and thus cannot sell it. Personally I think it is just a scam to make me think I was getting a GREAT price...

- We are much more socialistic... (eg. healthcare, housing, education, unemployment benefits, maternity benefits, etc).

- We can't kick a deadbeat tenant out on the street during winter, which means most of the year...

- We pay much more tax and also have much more waste. How does a $1 Million gun registry cost $1 Billion? I still want to know.... but see next point...

- Canadians are... hmm... I'm hunting for the word... Shall I say more "passive" than Americans. Where are the protests in the street demanding accountability in the wasting of our hard earned money? What's the saying "a Billion here a billion there, pretty soon we're talking real money..."

-We no longer pull our weight to maintain freedom. Personally I'm embarassed... In the World Wars, Canada did a tremendous contribution, perhaps bigger than the US on a per capita basis. eg. We stormed 1 beach in Normandy, an equivalent per capita contribution for the US would have been 10. Now, we can only send snipers because we can no longer afford to send something significant like fighter planes (in fact we're trying to unload fighter planes to newly minted Nato countries...), but a rifle and scope is within our military budget...

-Disney World is nicer than Wonderland...

-and lastly before people think I am un-Canadian (but then again having an inferiority complex would be very Canadian...), Canada is consistently ranked by the UN as a better place to live and raise a family than the US....

Originally posted by loungeliz
- We pay much more tax and also have much more waste. How does a $1 Million gun registry cost $1 Billion? I still want to know.... but see next point...

- Canadians are... hmm... I'm hunting for the word... Shall I say more "passive" than Americans. Where are the protests in the street demanding accountability in the wasting of our hard earned money? What's the saying "a Billion here a billion there, pretty soon we're talking real money..."

Don't even get ME started.. I love Canada but this apathy towards Jean Cretin's Liberal Government is driving me nuts.. What the hell will they have to do before people wake up?!

i don't wanna get into a shouting match, but our (relative) price level IS lower: cars, houses, the cost of living in general IS lower here... i know that per capita GDP is lower here, but that doesn't mean it's not comparatively cheaper to live.
our government isn't perfect, but what is?? i'm not trying to apologize for it, but everywhere you look, in every country of the world, EVEN the magnificent US of A, there is gargantuan waste... at least our health care system is slick, and is "free" and open to every citizen, rich or poor.

our dollar also isn't that bad, and it's not "always dropping though the floor", the US's is just propped up by high future expectations, and general distraction from the economy by the government... Canada has seen steady, and high, growth through the US's troubles...

as per Canada's involvement on the international scene, i'll say "no comment". it's not up to me to decide, or judge what exactly is the right thing to do, as i haven't all the information or experience in such matters.

I wasn't going to do this but you forced me to it.. :) This is exactly what I'm talking about.. The "other places are worse" Canadian attitude.. So does that mean the Liberals can waste OUR hard earned taxpayer money?! Why do we accept this mediocrity? Why shouldn't we strive to be the BEST country to live in and pressure our government to govern our money in a smart, responsible fashion?! :mad:

Here are some tidbits on the latest 1 Billion Gun Registry fiasco.. I hope our US brethren don't laugh at us too much.. :(

Canada's billion-dollar gun registry employs 1,800 bureaucrats, who spend their days tracking down duck hunters and farmers.

By comparison, Canada hired only 130 additional customs officers to protect our borders after Sept.11.

Here are a few more eye-rolling facts about the gun registry, mostly unearthed by MP Garry Breitkreuz from Saskatchewan.

Internal audits show that government bureaucrats have a 71% error rate in licensing gun owners and a 91% error rate in registering the guns themselves.

The government admits it registered 718,414 guns without serial numbers. That means either the bureaucrats forgot to write them down, or the guns didn't have serial numbers in the first place. That's as useless as registering a vehicle simply as "a blue Ford Explorer."

To these gun owners, the government has sent little stickers with made-up "serial numbers" on them, that gun owners are supposed to stick on their guns. And everybody at the gun registry is praying that criminals who steal those guns won't peel off the stickers.

Some 222,911 guns were registered with the same make and serial number as other guns. That's not just useless -- it's dangerous. If someone else with a "blue Ford Explorer" is involved in a hit and run, you'll be the one getting a knock on the door by the RCMP.

Out of 4,114,624 gun registration certificates, 3,235,647 had blank or missing entries -- but the bureaucrats issued them anyways.

In the beginning, the government's firearms licences had photographs on them - just like driver's licences do. But after hundreds of gun owners were sent licences with someone else's photo on them, the government decided to scrap photos on the licences altogether, rather than fix the problem.

Private details about every gun owner in the country are put on one computer database, called CPIC. That's valuable information to a peeping tom -- or a criminal. The CPIC computer has been breached 221 times since the mid-1990s, according to the RCMP.

In August of 2002, the gun registry sent a letter to Hulbert Orser, demanding he register his guns, and warning him that it's a crime not to. Orser died in 1981.

Garth Rizzuto is not dead, but he's getting older -- he applied for a gun licence 21/2 years ago. He hasn't been rejected. They're still "processing" his application.

Some 304,375 people were allowed to register guns even though they didn't have a licence permitting them to own a gun.

On March 1 of 2002, bureaucrats registered Richard Buckley's soldering "gun" - that's right, a heat "gun" used for welding tin and lead. No word yet on Buckley's staple guns or glue guns.

Some 15,381 gun owners were licensed with no indication of having taken the gun safety courses -- one of the main arguments for licensing.

Despite the billion-dollar taxpayer subsidy, gun-owners must still pay $279 for the required licences, registration, photo ID and other costs to register a single gun. That's as much as a gun costs in the first place. It's a tax -- a tax on rural Canada.

The government spent $29 million on advertising for the gun registry -- including $4.5 million to Group-Action, the Liberal ad firm under RCMP investigation.

getting away from the gun issue for a second. dont take this as inflammatory but i think i read somewhere recently that with your "free" health care system it costs your government something like $3.00 us for each tablet of tylenol. i can almost buy a whole bottle for that. do you think this is a correct figure?

Originally posted by zoom44
getting away from the gun issue for a second. dont take this as inflammatory but i think i read somewhere recently that with your "free" health care system it costs your government something like $3.00 us for each tablet of tylenol. i can almost buy a whole bottle for that. do you think this is a correct figure?

Uh, no... I don't think that would be a correct figure. It would seem that to price the entire health care system in terms of the cost of Tylenol would be problematic at best. I mean, does that include the cost of the Doctor making his rounds at the hospital who has determined that the patient should come off morphine and down to Tylenol?

Having said that, (honestly, I am not flip-flopping here) it would not surprise me if the government is capable of wasting money in a fashion that would equal them paying for Tylenol at the rate of $3 a tablet... I guess if that is what you meant, then maybe it is true...

On the other hand, I read that something like 80% of all statistics are made up...

And to add to the gun registry thing, this from the Globe today: (going by memory, so don't hold me TOO closely to the numbers...)

The claimed point of the firearms registry is to cut down on crime committed with the use of firearms.

BUT:

25% of firearm violence in Canada occurs at the hands of the native peoples, although they only account for less than 2% of the population. Yet, Natives are either exempt from or refusing to comply with firearm registration.

The transaction of attempting to purchase ammunition in Canada without the valid paperwork is good for up to six months in jail. However, by virtue of 200 year old law, the Canadian government must supply the native people of this country with ammunition.

Brilliant, eh?

Originally posted by 73JPS
Uh, no... I don't think that would be a correct figure. It would seem that to price the entire health care system in terms of the cost of Tylenol would be problematic at best.

trust me, that figure is not correct. ;)
if one measures the amount of money spent on health care (which includes drugs, doctor's visits, stays in hospital and associated costs, and health insurance among other things) as a percent of GDP, Canada spends in the order of 3-5% (i really can't remember, have to get out my old ECON 282 notes... ;) ) less than the US, while we have more hospital beds per 1000 people, and our average stay in hospital is days longer... supposing that our doctors are just as good as American doctors (which is a pretty fair assumption, looking at how many are moving down there for the $$), one could say that we are getting far more for far less. "just the facts mam, just the facts." :D

on 73JPS's comments on the gun thing, and about how many Aboriginals there are in Canada (~2% of the pop), it's kinda strange that they account for something like ~12% (or was it even bigger than that?? it's at least that big) of convicts in prison (among males, and is much much higher than that among females)... what is happening in Canada in the Aboriginal community is a travesty, and adding onto 73JPS's comments on that 200-year-old law, it's obvious not many people are paying attention.

Originally posted by Quick_lude
I wasn't going to do this but you forced me to it.. :) This is exactly what I'm talking about.. The "other places are worse" Canadian attitude.. So does that mean the Liberals can waste OUR hard earned taxpayer money?! Why do we accept this mediocrity? Why shouldn't we strive to be the BEST country to live in and pressure our government to govern our money in a smart, responsible fashion?! :mad:

I'm in complete agreement about the mediocrity and dishonesty of the Liberals. Their Red Book of election promises in 1993 was a complete sham - 10 years later, they still have not implemented many if not most of them (plenty of which were reiterated in the 1996 premature election, but still aren't fulfilled). Out West, we love to blame Ontario - if they would not have repeatedly elected almost all Liberals for the last 3 elections, we would have some accountability. Despite the obvious Liberal disdain for the people, Ontario continues to love the Liberals. Sheila Copps weaseled for months to get out of her election promise to resign if the GST was not scrapped, and when she was finally embarrassed enough about the ridiculous extent of the weaseling to actually resign, Hamilton promptly re-elected her. Thanks, Ontario! :mad: ;) After all, the Liberal's pattern was well-established in 93-96 - it's just been more of the same since (over 2 more elections, wherein Ontarians have indicated that they love the abuse!)

Regards,
Gordon

please, let's not turn this into a conservatist rant against liberals...

in any case, doesn't matter your place on the political spectrum, all politicians everywhere, no matter who they are, are "dishonest" and "weaselly" at one time or another... they have, and will continue, to make big promises, make up numbers, and claim things that they may or may not be able to realistically do... it's thier job, it's the only way they'll get elected and do the things that they think are important.
the Reformers and Liberals and Tories and New Democrats and Pot Smokers and whomever else are all the same, and they'll all be equally as bad... those who support them say "they're not perfect, but they'll do", and those who are in support of someone else will say "they are not perfect, and will never do" supposing that their own party of choice will be perfect, good, wholesome, and exactly what the electorate needs to reach utopia.

i'm not a liberal supporter, i've never cast a vote in the favour of any one political party, ever (i've been too young, by days in the last provincial election), so please let's not have any personal attacks, or better, any political distractions to this thread which is about canadian culture. no, politics isn't inherently cultural ;)

Originally posted by Gord96BRG


I'm in complete agreement about the mediocrity and dishonesty of the Liberals. Their Red Book of election promises in 1993 was a complete sham - 10 years later, they still have not implemented many if not most of them (plenty of which were reiterated in the 1996 premature election, but still aren't fulfilled). Out West, we love to blame Ontario - if they would not have repeatedly elected almost all Liberals for the last 3 elections, we would have some accountability. Despite the obvious Liberal disdain for the people, Ontario continues to love the Liberals. Sheila Copps weaseled for months to get out of her election promise to resign if the GST was not scrapped, and when she was finally embarrassed enough about the ridiculous extent of the weaseling to actually resign, Hamilton promptly re-elected her. Thanks, Ontario! :mad: ;) After all, the Liberal's pattern was well-established in 93-96 - it's just been more of the same since (over 2 more elections, wherein Ontarians have indicated that they love the abuse!)

Regards,
Gordon

Do you dislike the Liberals or the current leader?

What have the liberals done to make the west dislike them?
-i'm just curious, cause they've done a decent job in ontario - for we are the main economic and commercial city in all of canada and without us canada is nothing

go have fun with your alliance clowns

Originally posted by Immi


Do you dislike the Liberals or the current leader?

What have the liberals done to make the west dislike them?
-i'm just curious, cause they've done a decent job in ontario - for we are the main economic and commercial city in all of canada and without us canada is nothing

go have fun with your alliance clowns
Huh? You haven't read about the 1Bilion unaccounted HR flop or 998 Million cost overrun on the gun Registry? The only reason Toronto/Ontario is doing well is because we are the economic centre of Canada ( sorry Montreal, Vancouver).. The provincial government has a lot more to do with that success than the federal liberals..

How about the autocratic Liberal leader Cretin? "a proof is a proof and when I see it then it will be a proof" He's an international joke. I'm ashamed to have him represent Canada, our great country deserves better. Now he's staying in power too long, creating a mockery of the system and weakening/dividing the Liberal party thus weakening the country.. How about the scrap the GST fiasco.. The helicopter fiasco that will cost Canada much more in the long run.. How about the latest Manley ethical fiasco.. I'm gonna stop now, don't want our US friends catching on to how corrupt and inefficient our leading federal party is.. :(

Originally posted by Immi


Do you dislike the Liberals or the current leader?

What have the liberals done to make the west dislike them?
-i'm just curious, cause they've done a decent job in ontario - for we are the main economic and commercial city in all of canada and without us canada is nothing

go have fun with your alliance clowns

Go look up the Liberal Red Book from the 1993 election. See just how many firm, resolute, absolute, guaranteed election promises they broke. See how they made the same promises for the 1996 election ("this time we really mean it!") and then broke them again. Insofar as the leader is a reflection of the party and vice versa, I don't like either. I agree that Chretien is now an embarrassment, long past the best by date. I think the party would do much better with a new leader, even Martin.

As for what the Liberals have done (and let's be clear, it's not a small-l liberal vs. conservative thing, it's specifically the Liberal Party of Canada) to the West, start by looking up the National Energy Plan of 1980, aka the rape of the West. Continue by considering how they pander to Ontario - not because you're the centre of the Universe (as apparent in the attitude implied in your quote above), but simply because there's enough votes in Ontario that if a party panders to Ontario, they're likely to win an election and to hell with the West (or far East). A quote like yours above is what Quebecers love to justify separatism, and the West is none to fond of that attitude either. There's plenty of people here who would love to take our oil revenue (and the massive federal taxation of it that supports Ontario - look up the balances for provincial transfer of payments to see who is supporting who) and join the US, and say "screw you Ontario, freeze in the dark you arrogant bastards!" (I'm by no means one of those, but it is the appropriate response to the "without us Canada is nothing" nonsense). The West sure doesn't need Ontario, sorry to ruin your illusions of superiority! A collaborative, joint effort is what's required for national success, but certainly not a "without us you're nothing" attitude. Sorry, that doesn't fly out here.

OK, I really didn't sign up for political discussions - I hope we're done! Bring on the Canadian info about our RX-8s!

Regards,
Gordon

Personally I voted reform in the last election.. anything but Liberal. I still fail to understand Ontario's love for the Liberals.. :confused:

So has anyone seen an MSRP for the RX-8 in Canada? :D

Originally posted by Quick_lude

How about the autocratic Liberal leader Cretin? "a proof is a proof and when I see it then it will be a proof" He's an international joke. I'm ashamed to have him represent Canada, our great country deserves better. :(

You see, you guys did get me going.... OK I swear, this is my very last post on this topic, but I need to get this off my chest...

I too love Canada, my profession could take me many other places.... but despite my love for Canada there are some things that are just not right and our Cretin Prime Minister is one of them.

I too am ashamed to have Cretin represent us. For example, Cretin has an aide call Bush a moron within earshot of international press. He then tries to defend the aide and stonewalls on the aide's resignations.

Who is the bigger moron I ask? :o

There I feel better already...

Getting back more or less on topic.
Another difference between Canada and the US is that we don't have to import gobs of oil. Is it just me or am I the only one who wish the Venezuelans would strike forever and Saddam would also shut off the spigots? Let the dividends roll in :D

I hope the RX-8 uses gobs of fuel (ooh did I say that out loud...), OK, OK, since I already have one gas guzzler I take that back, I hope it is super efficient.... :D

BTW, the Expedition is not really that bad, on an average 100 litre fill up of mixed driving I can cover about 500km... Ever see one of those Honda Civic Chugalug Chugalug ads? thinking of it makes me crack up every time I fill up...
;)

Fair enough Gord - go have a jolly of a time refining your oil - the west may have a large supply but most of the oil is unrefinable.

I never liked western canada politics and I am a strong believer that Ontario and Quebec would be better off if it were its own country (call me a separatist - i am). The truth IS that Canada is nothing but trees without Ontario, it seems you are the only one to deny that. You may think that the western provinces help balance ontario's budget - but think about this, if Ontario were to seperate what country would others invest in BC, or Alberta??? The potential lies in Ontario bro, ontario is more capable in copying the us's balancing procedures - less risk - thus making your whole 'debt' argument completely redundant.

I think other provinces bring ontario down, saying that other provinces help ontario is beyond ignorant its actually hilarious. Ontario creates a huge percent of the forgein investment in this country.

Ontario votes for liberals because the liberals do something more for ontario - why would ontario vote alliance?? Think about it - they only do it for the benefit of ontario - majority seats dont get voted in by 5+ million retards!!


and join the US, and say "screw you Ontario, freeze in the dark you arrogant bastards!"

than i say go ahead join the us - it'll just be funny when the us says we want nothing to do with you and your crap oil!

GO LEAFS!

Originally posted by loungeliz
BTW, the Expedition is not really that bad, on an average 100 litre fill up of mixed driving I can cover about 500km... Ever see one of those Honda Civic Chugalug Chugalug ads? thinking of it makes me crack up every time I fill up...
;)
OMG! You use 100L/500km! That's 20L/100km... That is terrible.. I have 200hp and on average use 10L/100km. :D Chugalug, Chugalug, Chugalug.. :p

Immi, although the Liberals did get the majority of the SEATS in Ontario, if you look at the actual vote percentages, it wasn't 5Mil to 0. As far as I remember Liberals did not even get the majority of the popular vote in the country.. It's only because of Ontario and the Parlament seat system they have this huge advantage.

Quicklude, i just used the 5 mil to 0 to emphasise a point.
sorry for the confusion

The biggest difference between Canada and the U.S. is that I'm a Canadian, and that's all that matters, lol.

The biggest difference is that Canada has a better view of Niagara Falls that we do in the States ...

;)

Plus the city of Niagara Falls in Canada, around the actual "Falls" area, is a great place to be and see ... (when I use to live in Detroit, I made quite a few road trips up that way and to Toronto too) Great memories!

:cool:

Canadian big cities are usally cleaner of trash lying around the streets than our big cities ...

:)

Hey, and my mother was Canadian!

:D

But I like our "Bill of Rights" better

Edit: The States have warmer weather and better sandy beaches for swimmimg

... I think that's about it!

;)