Canada vs. U.S, what's in it for the citizens?

[Creative One]

What I don't understand is why so many Americans think Canada sucks so bad, and that the U.S is just the best. So I was just wondering, what makes the U.S so much better? I want to know your thoughts.

The first thing that comes to mind is that Canada gets free healthcare.

[rdowns]

What I don't understand is why so many Americans think Canada sucks so bad, and that the U.S is just the best. So I was just wondering, what makes the U.S so much better? I want to know your thoughts.

The first thing that comes to mind is that Canada gets free healthcare.

Um, there is no such thing as free health care. High taxes pay for it.

[MyDesktopBroke]

Yes. I'm sure our conservative members here will pick up on the healthcare thing, despite an overwhelming amount of Canadian support for it.

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/251/story/72229.html

[mkrishnan]

Who in the US is insulting Canada? You know that the movie Canadian Bacon was a joke, right? They didn't really believe Canada a nefarious neighbor. ;)

[Zombie Acorn]

Who hates Canada?

As for what we have better, military.

[rdowns]

Who in the US is insulting Canada? You know that the movie Canadian Bacon was a joke, right? They didn't really believe Canada a nefarious neighbor. ;)

We even welcomed Celine Dion and Brian Adams with open arms. The way I see it, those hosers up north owe us big time.

[rhett7660]

And Canada gives us crap beer. Labat(SP) Blue, Moosehead..... oh lord. :D

But it is a truck load of tainted beer,,, but it is a truck load of beer! Aye

[mkrishnan]

We even welcomed Celine Dion and Brian Adams with open arms. The way I see it, those hosers up north owe us big time.

Well, maybe Bryan Adams. Celine Dion, after that Titanic song, whoo, I dunno. :(

[No1451]

And Canada gives us crap beer. Labat(SP) Blue, Moosehead..... oh lord. :D

But it is a truck load of tainted beer,,, but it is a truck load of beer! Aye

Budget brands? If you drink that you have other issues buddy;)

I've spent a bit of time in both Canada and the US and I can't really say that it feels all that different, aside from some of the govn programs and such, meh, it's kind of a wash.

[leekohler]

I love Canada. I would like to retire there someday. I think it's an awesome place. The people are great, the cities are clean. There isn't much not to like.

[yg17]

They have Tim Hortons. If we're nice to them, maybe they'll open up more Timmy's in the US.

[dmr727]

I don't have a problem with Canada. I really enjoy Vancouver.

Celine Dion pissed me off, though. That's a nukable offense right there.

[quagmire]

Who hates Canada?

As for what we have better, military.

+1

Look at their Navy.

http://www.code7r.org/Bintoons/canadian_navy.jpg



:p

[yg17]

http://icanhascheezburger.files.wordpress.com/2008/04/funny-pictures-moose-jet-planes.jpg

:D

[NoSmokingBandit]

I've never heard an American seriously say they dislike Canada. I make fun of Canadians whenever the topic arises (as any gentelmen should), but i would love to live up there. The whole country just seems nicer than the US.

[colourfastt]

Canadians ... with their little beady eyes and their big flapping heads. :D

[entatlrg]

The majority in Canada HOPE Obama "de-Bushes' USA FAST.

[Desertrat]

I've never heard anybody around me bumrap Canada. I've travelled through parts of it a good bit, and enjoyed it. Not a lot of difference between the people I met up there and the folks around me here at home.

Heck, in a lot of ways, western Canada is a lot like Texas--just colder. Since I don't like cold weather, I'm happy down here in my desert.

[Creative One]

Okay, I'm sorry to word it that way that ALL americans hate Canada, as it seems alot of you like it. But ill share A little thing that just got me kinda ticked off at some.

So I'm at work, doing my job and some tourists arrive from the U.S. They say I need to help them with the change because they have no clue with our apparent "monopoly coins" are (when its clearly printed on them), but either way thats still understandable. What just made me face palm was when they said we must be so lucky this week! Whenever we go to a restaurant, on our way out we always find these toonies ($2 coin) on tables! I stayed calm but in my head... wow I was just saying are you retarded? Thats peoples TIP.

Anyways, just wanted to share my little experience with a couple from Texas.

[IntheNet]

What I don't understand is why so many Americans think Canada sucks so bad, and that the U.S is just the best. So I was just wondering, what makes the U.S so much better? I want to know your thoughts.

The first thing that comes to mind is that Canada gets free healthcare.

Uh... no you don't... your healthcare is by no means free... it is paid for by high burdensome taxes on Canadians.... worse, based on the number of Canadians I see coming down here to United States for surgery treatments, your healthcare up north must be real bad and rationed.... Other than that I see nothing wrong with Canada... large resource rich nation with great people... but it is sad your health care program is such a problem... we're trying to avoid that down here in the states!

[Blue Velvet]

I want to know who makes the best maple syrup.

[No1451]

Uh... no you don't... your healthcare is by no means free... it is paid for by high burdensome taxes on Canadians.... worse, based on the number of Canadians I see coming down here to United States for surgery treatments, your healthcare up north must be real bad and rationed.... Other than that I see nothing wrong with Canada... large resource rich nation with great people... but it is sad your health care program is such a problem... we're trying to avoid that down here in the states!


You don't live here, keep your commentary and speculation to yourself, it's by no means perfect but a lot of people are very appreciative for the healthcare. There are some issues with wait times(can't lie on that count, people DO wait), but life/death situations are pushed to the fore, and if someone doesn't want to wait, let them go and spend their dime, less burden on the system.


The biggest reason we rock:
We know how to spell colour, favour, labour and cheque!:p

[Eraserhead]

And Canada gives us crap beer. Labat(SP) Blue, Moosehead..... oh lord. :D

Its better than Bud Light :p.

So I'm at work, doing my job and some tourists arrive from the U.S. They say I need to help them with the change because they have no clue with our apparent "monopoly coins" are (when its clearly printed on them), but either way thats still understandable.

They just sound like people who've never travelled before, and who for some reason think US money is "superior".

What just made me face palm was when they said we must be so lucky this week! Whenever we go to a restaurant, on our way out we always find these toonies ($2 coin) on tables! I stayed calm but in my head... wow I was just saying are you retarded? Thats peoples TIP.

Yeah, they sound pretty stupid, don't people leave coins on the tables for tips in the US?

There are some issues with wait times(can't lie on that count, people DO wait),

Its not as if people don't wait in the US too...


The biggest reason we rock:
We know how to spell colour, favour, labour and cheque!:p

True.

[iBlue]

I haven't come across any Americans that truly dislike Canada. Most that I've encountered are either indifferent or jealous.

When I've gone I found it to be a remarkably clean and friendly place.

Webbers - As for the obnoxious tourists, I know you probably get those a lot. :o I drove up from Washington state with a few friends and we probably made asses of ourselves. :o I won't elaborate though because it was a very strange trip. I'll just say for how flippant we may have seemed about it all, every one of us thought it was an awesome place - even if we were confused a little about the money and metric system.

[Eraserhead]

I drove up from Washington state with a few friends and we probably made asses of ourselves. :o

I certainly have done the same from time to time :o. These tourists do seem to be particularly silly.

[chstr]

What I don't understand is why so many Americans think Canada sucks so bad, and that the U.S is just the best. So I was just wondering, what makes the U.S so much better? I want to know your thoughts.

The first thing that comes to mind is that Canada gets free healthcare.

umm are you smokin crack? :p Why do people make ridiculous sweeping claims about what EVERYone from a country think about an entirely different country? In other words, why are people stupid?

[balofagus]

Haha, over the summer I worked at a local Boston Pizza and one night I had an american couple (older), their son, and his fiancee in for dinner. When I ended up bringing them the bill they were astonished at the tax they had to pay. What's this "GST"? What's this "PST"? … We have to pay 10% on our liquor too?!? Lol, it was pretty funny.

Then when they paid they wanted me to bring them back dollar and two dollar bills because that's what they had used last time they visited and the loonies and twonies were confusing them. I had to explain to them that we haven't used dollar bills since before I was born or two dollar bills since '96.

The older lady opens up her wallet and busts out a stack of crisp two dollar notes and asks "So, these are collectibles now?". She had bought them after their last trip because she thought they were "cute" but decided she'd spend them on their new trip. I told her, basically yes, but we'll still accept them if she wanted. They paid with Visa and left me 5 crisp and in series $2 notes as a tip. Made for an interesting night :P

[charlesbronsen]

I just wanted to chime in on behalf of Canadians as we sincerely apologize for Celine Deon.
And BTW ya'll Yankees have the metric system backwards.

[No1451]

So I'm at work, doing my job and some tourists arrive from the U.S. They say I need to help them with the change because they have no clue with our apparent "monopoly coins" are (when its clearly printed on them)


This has always confused me. Money in any country is easy, they state an amount and you match it. If it's a straight figure(like $ or euros or something) there is absolutely no reason to be confused, I mean come on, we share all the same denominations as american currency. Only real difference is that we have $2 coins and no $1 bills anymore.

[yg17]

This has always confused me. Money in any country is easy, they state an amount and you match it. If it's a straight figure(like $ or euros or something) there is absolutely no reason to be confused, I mean come on, we share all the same denominations as american currency. Only real difference is that we have $2 coins and no $1 bills anymore.

Yeah, they're just idiots. I've never had a problem with foreign currency. Although when my dad first paid with cash in Canada and got change, at first he thought he was shortchanged because he got a bunch of coins back, until I explained that they're $1 and $2 coins.

I do have to admit, I like your money. The Canadian dollar and the Euro are both very colorful and lively, better than our money. Although I hate $1 and $2 coins, I prefer bills myself, they're less weight to schlep around in your pockets. ;)

[Raid]

The biggest reason we rock:
We know how to spell colour, favour, labour and cheque!:p You forgot neighbour (what is it with Americans and the letter u?) and of course toque... some don't even know what it is. ;)

What just made me face palm was when they said we must be so lucky this week! Whenever we go to a restaurant, on our way out we always find these toonies ($2 coin) on tables! I stayed calm but in my head... wow I was just saying are you retarded? Thats peoples TIP.

Anyways, just wanted to share my little experience with a couple from Texas. Just wait till you get the people from Ohio in the summer... so close to Canada, yet a disproportionate number of them have the hardest time going over that 'mental border'. Maybe some American visitors have a hard time because we are so similar they expect everything to be the same. <shrug>

Also I think it's fair to say that Canadians have an advantage when cross into the United States simply because we are more aware of the differences.


They paid with Visa and left me 5 crisp and in series $2 notes as a tip. Made for an interesting night :P That was actually kind of cool of them eh? :)

[OttawaGuy]

Look out ;)

[Eraserhead]

The most complicated foreign currencies are probably Japanese, where one of their coins doesn't have roman numerals in it and Chinese where below ¥1 (around 15¢) they split into 10 units (and then a further 10 units) rather than 100.

[leekohler]

Uh... no you don't... your healthcare is by no means free... it is paid for by high burdensome taxes on Canadians.... worse, based on the number of Canadians I see coming down here to United States for surgery treatments, your healthcare up north must be real bad and rationed.... Other than that I see nothing wrong with Canada... large resource rich nation with great people... but it is sad your health care program is such a problem... we're trying to avoid that down here in the states!

You need to travel more before you open your piehole. First thing you realize when you go to Europe or Canada is that the US is NOT the greatest country on Earth. We have a lot of problems that need fixing. Actually, I'm embarrassed that we're still dealing with things that most of the rest of the world has figured out.

[IntheNet]

You need to travel more before you open your piehole. First thing you realize when you go to Europe or Canada is that the US is NOT the greatest country on Earth. We have a lot of problems that need fixing. Actually, I'm embarrassed that we're still dealing with things that most of the rest of the world has figured out.

The thread starter asked for input...

I want to know your thoughts...

And that is what I gave; if you want to lie about the United States and criticize this nation, why not join the Administration? Additionally this thread is about Canada...

I haven't come across any Americans that truly dislike Canada.

True enough... As mentioned most visitors to Canada enjoy its natural resources and rural and wild settings... I also enjoy hunting and fishing in Quebec each year and contribute to its economy. Yet, Canada does have real issues; its bad health care for one. Moreover, Canada relies far to much on U.S. military for its domestic and international defense...

[Iscariot]

its bad health care for one.

Rated 30th by the WHO to your 37th, with our life expectancy and infant mortality rate putting yours to shame.
Moreover, Canada relies far to much on U.S. military for its domestic and international defense...

Do you even do a modicum of research or even process a single thought before you say these things? Canada is one of your biggest allies in the Afghanistan conflict both through her contributions to command and ground forces. We've lost 133 Canadian lives aiding you in your international defense.

[Desertrat]

"Rated 30th by the WHO to your 37th, with our life expectancy and infant mortality rate putting yours to shame."

Irrelevant comparison, since it does not take behavior and lifestyle into acount. B&L have far greater effects on such parameters than the quality or skill of facilities and practicioners. Any health system with lengthy waiting times for treatments is in serious difficulty, regardless of who pays or what the costs may be.

Webers, I live in a tourist area. We have coined the word "Tourons" for some of our visitors: The cross between a tourist and a moron.

We get questions like, "Does anybody really live here?" (No, we commute daily from Houston.) Or, "Now, which side of the River is Mexico on?" (The other side.)

Some are from Canada. :D

Sorry. Couldn't help it...

[Eraserhead]

Irrelevant comparison, since it does not take behavior and lifestyle into acount.

How do behaviour and lifestyle increase infant mortality? And how do they make healthcare worse in the US than Canada according to the WHO?

[Iscariot]

Any health system with lengthy waiting times for treatments is in serious difficulty, regardless of who pays or what the costs may be.

Boston's wait time to see an OB/GYN is 70 days, 63 to see a family physician. 59 in Los Angeles. The biggest contributing factor to wait times in the US? Insurance. Canada? Rural areas.

[Eraserhead]

^^ What are the equivalent wait times in Canada?

EDIT: Expecting decent wait times in rural areas in Canada is fairly unrealistic as there are so large. I'd expect the same is the case in rural Australia.

[Creative One]

^^ What are the equivalent wait times in Canada?

EDIT: Expecting decent wait times in rural areas in Canada is fairly unrealistic as there are so large. I'd expect the same is the case in rural Australia.

Personally, in my town there is a scarcity of doctors, but I can still get in same day. And my town services the rural towns in the area.


And to those who say we pay ridiculous taxs... Your health insurance is a killer. What goes for the people who are uninsured?

[Iscariot]

^^ What are the equivalent wait times in Canada?

Couldn't tell you with any certainty; Statistics Canada didn't collect data in an equivalent fashion.

[leekohler]

The thread starter asked for input...



And that is what I gave; if you want to lie about the United States and criticize this nation, why not join the Administration? Additionally this thread is about Canada...


And you shot your mouth off about things you obviously no nothing about. Do some traveling. It'll give you some perspective. Trust me, I'm not lying.

[Eraserhead]

Couldn't tell you with any certainty; Statistics Canada didn't collect data in an equivalent fashion.

FWIW In the UK its 60 days for hospital visits according to the NHS (source (http://www.nhs.uk/news/2009/03March/Pages/NHSwaitingtimesQA.aspx)). Its probably about 24 - 48 hours for an appointment with a GP.

[djellison]

it is paid for by high burdensome taxes on Canadians..

You DO realise that you, in the USA, are ALREADY spending more, per capita, than ANY OTHER NATION IN THE WORLD on state funded healthcare. And yet the statistics show that the USA is less healthy.

State funded healthcare is more burdensome on YOUR taxes, than a Canadians taxes.

Do you even think before typing?

Are you for real? Seriously?

[Eraserhead]

You DO realise that you, in the USA, are ALREADY spending more, per capita, than ANY OTHER NATION IN THE WORLD on state funded healthcare.

...

Do you even think before typing?

Are you for real? Seriously?

To be fair if you only watch Fox News you probably wouldn't know that ;).

204937

[Eraserhead]

And you shot your mouth off about things you obviously no nothing about. Do some traveling. It'll give you some perspective. Trust me, I'm not lying.

Actually this isn't true, my house downstairs actually has a mud floor and I have to kick the chickens out from underneath my bed before I go to sleep.

And Shanghai's main shopping street the Nanjing Road for example doesn't really look like:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/59/Shanghainanjingroadpic4.jpg

But actually still looks like this:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/73/Xinhai_Revolution_in_Shanghai.jpg

:p.

[Tower-Union]

What I don't understand is why so many Americans think Canada sucks so bad, and that the U.S is just the best.

To be fair some Canadians think the same way about the USA, I mean you try to have a nice friendly conversation aboot how awesome we are, and they have to go make it all about them and their healthcare debate! :p

[DoNoHarm]

Uh... no you don't... your healthcare is by no means free... it is paid for by high burdensome taxes on Canadians.... worse, based on the number of Canadians I see coming down here to United States for surgery treatments, your healthcare up north must be real bad and rationed.... Other than that I see nothing wrong with Canada... large resource rich nation with great people... but it is sad your health care program is such a problem... we're trying to avoid that down here in the states!


Actually, this notion that the USA has lower taxes than Canada is exaggerated. I remember starting work in Pennsylvania a while back and I almost cried when I got my first paychek. you had federal and state taxes, then there was all these other crappy deductions like disability, social security, and then another collum for dental/health. If you compare the per person cost of healthcare in the states vs. canada, you'll find that canadians actually spend less on healthcare, not more.

In terms of other differences, sometimes it seems that Americans are driven by fear more than Canadians. Terrorism this, homeland security alert that. Perhaps it's a result of what had to be done to get a public to support a war that the United Nations had declared "illegal" and the world now looks at as a lie.

In terms of advantages of the states, I think you'll find a better climate, innovative corporate sector, and cheaper gas. Also, the American system of government, while constantly complained about since it doesn't offer the broad representation of a parlimentary democracy, seems to do a pretty good job of staying fresh and most importantly stable. You get new faces that are different every 4-8 years that don't shake things up too much.

[Desertrat]

Lifestyle and infant mortality? Well, crack babies come to mind as an example. It's but one of many.

Dunno what to tell anybody about waiting times in Boston. From the time I walked in to tell my doctor I had colon cancer to do something about, I never at all felt that there was any undue waiting for anything. Most needs were met in a matter of days. South Georgia, FWIW.

The Canadian snowbirds I meet down here do a fair amount of bitching about the greater delay periods there than here. It's a fairly common complaint in bull sessions at the social-breakfast gatherings at local cafes.

[sushi]

The most complicated foreign currencies are probably Japanese, where one of their coins doesn't have roman numerals in it and Chinese where below ¥1 (around 15¢) they split into 10 units (and then a further 10 units) rather than 100.
What? You definitely are confused.

Japanese currency is extremely easy to use and it's friendly to blind people -- both coin and cash money.

We have coined the word "Tourons" for some of our visitors: The cross between a tourist and a moron.
Thanks 'Rat. I need to remember that one.

Lot's of Tourons visit Japan. :p

Do some traveling. It'll give you some perspective. Trust me, I'm not lying.
I think that this is good advice to all to heed.

I've lived and visited many places around the world and need to do more. Nothing like living in a place like a local to see how a country really is.

The Canadian snowbirds I meet down here do a fair amount of bitching about the greater delay periods there than here. It's a fairly common complaint in bull sessions at the social-breakfast gatherings at local cafes.
My step-mom was Canadian. When I visited her family I would hear similar complaints. At the same time, there would be a story of how well the system worked. But those were few and far between.

[Eraserhead]

What? You definitely are confused.

Japanese currency is extremely easy to use and it's friendly to blind people -- both coin and cash money.

I believe one coin doesn't have roman numerals on it, but has a hole in the middle instead.

When I'm talking about ¥1 I'm talking about Chinese money - as they use the same symbol - but it was confusing :o.

[Desertrat]

I was at a party on Grand Turk, years back, and fell into visiting with some Canadians who were looking to set up business and use the Turks & Caicos as a winter home. I always remember one lady's comment, "The U.S. is a lovely place to shop, but I certainly wouldn't want to live there." I broke up. :)

Met neat folks around Lake Louise and then up at Banff. The old hotel there is neat. Fell in with a guy from the Canadian equivalent of the US Fish & Wildlife, and got to visiting over beers. Talked about critters for a couple of hours. On west, Victoria, BC, is neat. I was startled to see madrone trees there; we have those in Big Bend National Park as well as over in Mexico. Met some more friendly people around Vancouver and Victoria.

But, generally, I've met good folks in just about every country I've ever visited or lived in. I've just played the ancient game of, "When in Rome..." and don't worry about the differences.

Final comment on the health thing: No matter what system is in place, it does not cope with detrimental effects of lifestyle. Think obesity, and couch potatoes who spend all day in front of a TV or on the Internet. Me, I'd just as soon not have to pay for their health problems, thank you. They're in bad shape from their own decisions and they alone are responsible for the problem.

[KingYaba]

I don't always drink beer but when I do, I prefer du Monde. <3 Canada

[anjinha]

IFinal comment on the health thing: No matter what system is in place, it does not cope with detrimental effects of lifestyle. Think obesity, and couch potatoes who spend all day in front of a TV or on the Internet. Me, I'd just as soon not have to pay for their health problems, thank you. They're in bad shape from their own decisions and they alone are responsible for the problem.

The problem is that in the U.S. most people can't afford medical care without insurance. And people with pre-existing conditions can't get insurance, even if they can afford it and they are willing to pay for it. What are they supposed to do then?

You're also ignoring the fact that the U.S. healthcare system is so broken that you pay more for healthcare than people in countries with universal healthcare.

[Thomas Veil]

I love it. OP asks why Americans have a problem with Canada, and everybody is like, "I have nothing against Canada"...until IntheNet steps in. :rolleyes:

Until recently, I had only one problem with Canada: you guys could get ketchup chips up there, and with the exception of some of the New England states, we couldn't.

That problem was recently alleviated when K-Mart started carrying ketchup chips. So I'm all good with Canada. :p

Now if we could just get you to take Mike Myers back....

[juanster]

Now if we could just get you to take Mike Myers back....

LOL you can have him back. He is a douche in real life..

[sushi]

I believe one coin doesn't have roman numerals on it, but has a hole in the middle instead.
That's the 5 yen coin. It's value is on the coin but in Kanji.

BTW, the 50 and 5 yen have holes in them. It's fairly easy to feel coins in your pocket to pick the correct change. However, now with the cash cards I'm getting lazy. :o

[Zombie Acorn]

Im hoping to intern in Canada this spring/summer. :) If I am willing to travel to your country it has to be worth something.

[Tower-Union]

Where are you hoping to stay?

[mkrishnan]

Im hoping to intern in Canada this spring/summer. :) If I am willing to travel to your country it has to be worth something.

I'm a bit envious... I'd really like to live a time in either Toronto or Vancouver.

[Zombie Acorn]

Where are you hoping to stay?

Originally i was hoping Montreal, but they only offer internships during the summer so I will have to figure out where I want to be this spring for a while. Most of the people I know from Canada are from Toronto so its pretty high on my list. This experience should push me over the top for immigration standards so I may even stay there after I am done.

[leekohler]

Originally i was hoping Montreal, but they only offer internships during the summer so I will have to figure out where I want to be this spring for a while. Most of the people I know from Canada are from Toronto so its pretty high on my list. This experience should push me over the top for immigration standards so I may even stay there after I am done.

I'm jealous! If you can stay- do it. It's a great country.

[Iscariot]

Originally i was hoping Montreal, but they only offer internships during the summer so I will have to figure out where I want to be this spring for a while. Most of the people I know from Canada are from Toronto so its pretty high on my list. This experience should push me over the top for immigration standards so I may even stay there after I am done.

Montreal is a great city to visit, but I wouldn't recommend living there. There's a Quebecois elitism that runs pretty deep.

[leekohler]

Montreal is a great city to visit, but I wouldn't recommend living there. There's a Quebecois elitism that runs pretty deep.

You'll have to learn some French. ;)

[william sire]

What I don't understand is why so many Americans think Canada sucks so bad...
Where did you hear this?

[Zombie Acorn]

Montreal is a great city to visit, but I wouldn't recommend living there. There's a Quebecois elitism that runs pretty deep.

Thats what draws me to the place. :D

[freeny]

I forgive the Celine Dion export because Canada also gave us RUSH :)


Oooooh, and hockey :D

[DoNoHarm]

I love it. OP asks why Americans have a problem with Canada, and everybody is like, "I have nothing against Canada"...until IntheNet steps in. :rolleyes:

Until recently, I had only one problem with Canada: you guys could get ketchup chips up there, and with the exception of some of the New England states, we couldn't.

That problem was recently alleviated when K-Mart started carrying ketchup chips. So I'm all good with Canada. :p

Now if we could just get you to take Mike Myers back....


Kmart sells ketchup chips?!?!?!? OH MY GOD!!!!! *grabs wallet*

[scottness]

You need to travel more before you open your piehole. First thing you realize when you go to Europe or Canada is that the US is NOT the greatest country on Earth. We have a lot of problems that need fixing. Actually, I'm embarrassed that we're still dealing with things that most of the rest of the world has figured out.

Like how ridiculously high taxes are wonderful? :D

[djellison]

Like how ridiculously high taxes are wonderful? :D

I've been comparing the tax burden on a salary for my job both here in the UK, and the US.

It's about the same. I'd earn a bit more in the US. As a result, I'd be taxed a bit more. Net result - about the same. There is certainly no means by which one could describe the UK taxes as 'ridiculously' high in comparison.

Corporate taxes in the US are among the highest in the world.

And the UK spends less per person on state healthcare than the USA, but provides full healthcare for all. The problem is that the US system is broken, massively inefficient, and infested with corruption, profit margins and shareholders.

[scottness]

I've been comparing the tax burden on a salary for my job both here in the UK, and the US.

It's about the same. I'd earn a bit more in the US. As a result, I'd be taxed a bit more. Net result - about the same. There is certainly no means by which one could describe the UK taxes as 'ridiculously' high in comparison.

Corporate taxes in the US are among the highest in the world.

And the UK spends less per person on state healthcare than the USA, but provides full healthcare for all. The problem is that the US system is broken, massively inefficient, and infested with corruption, profit margins and shareholders.

And I've been comparing the tax burden on a salary for my job from both here in the US and Canada...

Not the same.

I'm talking about income taxes, not corporate.

[djellison]

£30,000 UK
http://www.incometaxcalculator.org.uk/index.php?yr=2009&age=0&time=1&ingr=30000

Income deductions : £7,376.35


£30,000 is $49580

http://us.thesalarycalculator.co.uk/salary.php
Federal tax + social security is $10663.
California State Tax is $2308
are there local taxes as well? I've not added that
Total - $12971.


US - 26.1%
UK - 25.0%

I have not added council tax to the UK bill, as in covers things that are billed locally in the US such as refuse collection. It is based on properly value in the UK and would typically push the UK %'ge to about 28%, just under $1000 more than the US - but of course it would be less of an increase for higher wage earners on the same property

'Ridiculously high'

Hardly.

Looks basically, the same. From what I can see for Canada - the same calculations are coming roughly the same.

[Eraserhead]

On the Canadian Income tax calculator (http://lsminsurance.ca/calculators/canada/income-tax) for C$52354 (which is £30k) you pay C$13211 in tax in Quebec (which is the province with the most tax) which is 25.2% or about the same as the other two.

[djellison]

Other tax burdens... fuel. But of course, whilst there's a lot of tax on fuel in the UK - we get through it a lot slower. Typical MPG with a US rental doing lots of nice efficient freeway driving? 15 mpg. MPG last night driving back from London on the M1? >45mpg in our awesome new (well, 18 month old) 2.0 TDi Seat Leon DSG :) I'd have spent the same on fuel doing the journey in the US than in the UK just about. ( Accounting for the different sizes in gallons, the different fuel prices and the exchange rate - it's 11p/mile here - 10p/mile there )

Sales taxes vary from state to state - 15% here at the moment, 4.5% in Canada, over 9% in some parts of CA.

"ridiculously high" still not a phrase I'm seing justification for. It's a phrase I'd use to describe US health insurance prices though.

I pay less tax to fund the NHS that the average American already pays for state healthcare - yet here we ALL have access to the any medical needs without charge.

Extraordinary.

[SactoGuy18]

What frustrates me about the US health care debate is why hasn't someone considered merging Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security into a one-stop social services agency that could become the basis of a national health care plan? That way, you deal only with one bureaucracy, and that right there could save potentially trillions of dollars in costs.

But as for Canada, one good thing about Canada is all those Tim Hortons stores out there for a decent cup of coffee and doughnuts. :)

[Raid]

Originally i was hoping Montreal, but they only offer internships during the summer so I will have to figure out where I want to be this spring for a while. Most of the people I know from Canada are from Toronto so its pretty high on my list. This experience should push me over the top for immigration standards so I may even stay there after I am done. Montreal is a great party city, I'm not too sure about living there full time. But it's always fun to visit.

Montreal is a great city to visit, but I wouldn't recommend living there. There's a Quebecois elitism that runs pretty deep. Well to be fair Toronto has a reputation for being a bit unfriendly too (well in Canadian terms, which means we won't talk to you or yield our right of way for your convenience). The problem here is that it seems most people tend to think strangers are all crazy lunatics, but Torontoians will be friendly if engaged in a calm maner. :cool:

You'll have to learn some French. ;) Well tread carefully when busting out your French on the Québécois; in most countries give you props for at least trying to communicate in their native language, for some reason many French speakers almost consider it an assault on their ears.

Thats what draws me to the place. :D The girls with the French-Canadian accents will keep you there. ;)

[Iscariot]

The girls with the French-Canadian accents will keep you there. ;)

Amen to that.

[Desertrat]

Aw, Sacto, we're already broke. Combining all that would just make us go broker, faster. No way we can re-establish a GDP that's adequate to support all that Ponzi stuff.

[leekohler]

Aw, Sacto, we're already broke. Combining all that would just make us go broker, faster. No way we can re-establish a GDP that's adequate to support all that Ponzi stuff.

If we would keep our butts out of other countries' business, that might help. If we can pay twice what other countries pay for health care, certainly we can afford to pay what they pay. They have already shown us how, we just need to implement it.

[djellison]

No way we can re-establish a GDP that's adequate to support all that Ponzi stuff.

You've already got enough money - you're just spending it stupidly.

[leekohler]

You've already got enough money - you're just spending it stupidly.

Exactly. I don't know why this point isn't brought up more often.

[DoNoHarm]

Amen to that.

the next time you're in northern ontario, check out Timmins. Mostly French-Canadian and you'll note that Shania Twain was the norm, not the exception.

[Jason Beck]

I want to know who makes the best maple syrup.

mmm..

[scottness]

Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 3_1_2 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/528.18 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile/7D11 Safari/528.16)

Other tax burdens... fuel. But of course, whilst there's a lot of tax on fuel in the UK - we get through it a lot slower. Typical MPG with a US rental doing lots of nice efficient freeway driving? 15 mpg. MPG last night driving back from London on the M1? >45mpg in our awesome new (well, 18 month old) 2.0 TDi Seat Leon DSG :) I'd have spent the same on fuel doing the journey in the US than in the UK just about. ( Accounting for the different sizes in gallons, the different fuel prices and the exchange rate - it's 11p/mile here - 10p/mile there )

Sales taxes vary from state to state - 15% here at the moment, 4.5% in Canada, over 9% in some parts of CA.

"ridiculously high" still not a phrase I'm seing justification for. It's a phrase I'd use to describe US health insurance prices though.

I pay less tax to fund the NHS that the average American already pays for state healthcare - yet here we ALL have access to the any medical needs without charge.

Extraordinary.

Perhaps we're in different tax brackets. According to my CPA, being employed in Canada and earning the same salary will hurt my bottom line by 14%.

[DoNoHarm]

Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 3_1_2 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/528.18 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile/7D11 Safari/528.16)



Perhaps we're in different tax brackets. According to my CPA, being employed in Canada and earning the same salary will hurt my bottom line by 14%.

Like I said in my previous post, my tax bracket meant my taxes were almost the same - my job was a 74k/year engineering job. The only explanation I have for this would be that the US government spends it's tax on bombs while Canada spends it's money on schools and hospitals.

[djellison]

The only explanation I have for this would be that the US government spends it's tax on bombs while Canada spends it's money on schools and hospitals.

Just worth repeating - the US is already spending more on hospitals, per capita, than any other nation on Earth.

It's just doing it in an astonishingly stupid way.

[63dot]

What I don't understand is why so many Americans think Canada sucks so bad, and that the U.S is just the best. So I was just wondering, what makes the U.S so much better? I want to know your thoughts.

The first thing that comes to mind is that Canada gets free healthcare.

Where I am from in the US, the SF Bay area, most people I talk to who are Americans love Canada. If I had to move from Northern California, then my next choice would be Vancouver.

If anybody publicly says Canada is bad or terrible, people just stare at them. With US troops having spent years in Iraq and Afghanistan, it's very hard to put Canada up in the ranks of dangerous or undesirable places to live.