USA or Canada?

[Sci_Girl]

I have not checked in awhile but does anyone know where Canada ranks on the standard of living list vs. the USA and other countries?

[Chi]

(you need an account to see links)

Canada is 7th
USA is 12th

[maksimilian]

Canada obviously. I can't stand anymore the horrible economy down in United States, the ignorance and the hunger of power. They want to be the big-shot of the world and rule everything. Canada is better due the healthcare and education system but there is some racism, but nothing too important.

[I_royalty_I]

Canada obviously. I can't stand anymore the horrible economy down in United States, the ignorance and the hunger of power. They want to be the big-shot of the world and rule everything. Canada is better due the healthcare and education system but there is some racism, but nothing too important.

You think the Canadian economy is that much stronger than the US economy.
Our currencies are /almost/ equal at the moment, that doesn't really put you ahead by that much.. if at all.

I think it's funny how the only reasons people have said Canada is because the US is apparently a bunch of ignorant ass holes who think they own the world.
When in reality, that's not really true anymore of the US than any other country.
Do we think we own the world? No.
It's kind of a "youre fucked either way" situation.
If bad shit starts going down and we stay out of it.. people wonder why we are such ass holes and why we didn't help them.
If bad shit starts going down and we get into it.. people say we are doing things all wrong and we just need to gtfo and mind our own business.

That's one of the reasons I think we need to reevaluate our foreign policy. Stop giving money and helping all these other countries and get our own stuff in order. Obviously we aren't going much good, eh?


EDIT: Also.. this is the debate section guys, so if you are going to be posting 1 word replies, it will start to be deleted as spam.
Post your opinion, but back it up and make it a worthwhile post please.

[maksimilian]

You think the Canadian economy is that much stronger than the US economy.
Our currencies are /almost/ equal at the moment, that doesn't really put you ahead by that much.. if at all.

I think it's funny how the only reasons people have said Canada is because the US is apparently a bunch of ignorant ass holes who think they own the world.
When in reality, that's not really true anymore of the US than any other country.
Do we think we own the world? No.
It's kind of a "youre fucked either way" situation.
If bad shit starts going down and we stay out of it.. people wonder why we are such ass holes and why we didn't help them.
If bad shit starts going down and we get into it.. people say we are doing things all wrong and we just need to gtfo and mind our own business.

That's one of the reasons I think we need to reevaluate our foreign policy. Stop giving money and helping all these other countries and get our own stuff in order. Obviously we aren't going much good, eh?


EDIT: Also.. this is the debate section guys, so if you are going to be posting 1 word replies, it will start to be deleted as spam.
Post your opinion, but back it up and make it a worthwhile post please.

I agree, but it most be something personal. I've met many americans and their educational system, and their economic structure could work much better. The debt is so high that they use money they don't have and might never be able to pay it off.
I have to admit, the United States have changed the world throughfully, both technologically and socially. What do you say about the technological advances, trips to the moon? Yeah. America. But still, in my fair opinion I think that Canada has worked harder to forge a more sane spot. Both communities have their good thing and bad things, but in my point of view, Canada has more good things than the former.

It may be a bit dull in Canada, the society and the community (from what I heard). My uncle told me how people become older in less years, and doing parties in night time would bring you trouble, funny because where I live the police joins the fest (althought I don't live in North America)! But it's a whole lot more safe and stablished place (as how I see it).

[winston_tiu]

Just because I'm bias USA has the Hollywood, and NYC... I love city life and movies. Can't sleep at night without the lights and the noise... and Canadians are socialist, boo...

[ratero]

canada

[janikanicolepi]

I know my answer will sound bias because I live in the U.S. And I'm sure I haven't fully cover every single aspect of the debate as much as I would like to.

US and Canada have great benefit that they offer to their citizens, but neither of them are what I would consider to be perfect because utopia does not exist.

Resources are always abundant in large countries such as U.S. and Canada. I sincerely don't really believe the media's representation of amount of resources available for consumption in U.S. are accurate. I know for a fact that U.S. has plenty of reserves resources, whether its military arsenal or natural resources such as petroleum. Much of these resources are untapped for a reason (personally, I don't know the reason; environmental? military tactic? business?... etc). It is true that environment had been a concern for many people, but I think it just an excuse used by the government to keep resources as reserve. There are always news headline stating that U.S. is depending too heavily on foreign oils, and goods, and it is costing the U.S. an arm and a leg. Let's shift the perspective a little toward military strategy. If you were to... let say engage in a war with a foreign country, wouldn't it be a smarter strategy to consume the available resource such as [oil] of the market/ or your enemy? Another thing I can think of is business. Let's disregard the price that U.S. is paying for oil for now. Once the oil reserve of foreign country has been deplete, U.S. would then access to their own reserve, and monopolize the petroleum market.

It is true that Canada does have an abundant amount of land, however how much of these lands are actually desirable for development and consider habitable by normal means? Canada have less population because the population is limited by the environment constrain. U.S. have an abundant amount of lands that are actually habitable for development.

Good term is such an abstract way of looking at it. Good term only applies if both party gets an equal share of the pie, which we all know it's impossible. Regardless how much goods/ benefit that U.S. tries to provides for other countries, there will always be a country that dislike U.S. because the cultural/political difference.

A better education system, I got nothing here. I have to agree that U.S. education standard is pretty mediocre.

Health insurance is a big issue for a United States simply because the large segment of the population can not afford them, but because this exact reason, previous generation of health care "quality" are much better. The ratio of doctor to patients are probably (1 to 10...this is only an estimate, not a factual number). Since everyone in Canada have access to health care, the number of doctor to patients are probably (1 to 20~50....this is only an estimate, not a factual number), this actually drive down the quality because the number of time per patient that the doctor can spent goes down. There is also an issue of "waste", where as the patient may not have an actual illness, but go to hospital for no particular reason because health care is freely available. I understand that Canada offer health care to their citizens, but the cost of these so call "free" health care are not really "free" like you have stated, but rather subsidize heavily by the government through other means; taxation. Hence why taxes are so much higher in Canada. In the past decades, health insurance are paid privately to a health insurance company in U.S. The health insurance company also have a power to provide or deny coverage, even those who are wealthy may not be insured. The amount of "health care aid" that is contribute to the Canada health care system greatly out pace the amount that U.S. is spending. U.S spend billions on military and only a fraction of that goes into health care. If U.S. were to divert the money spent on military to health care, then I'm sure U.S. health care will be just as great if not better.

I don't know why people consider U.S. ignorant. U.S. is a country founded by all sorts of immigrants, and immigrants are still flooding into U.S despite all the negative things that media depict.

[kgs]

I'm from the US but I would say Canada. I just don't like the direction the US is headed in - I feel like living in Canada would be safer financially in the long run. Also, a lot of the Canadians I have met are super friendly like people are in Washington or Oregon. Maybe I just have met a weird subset of Canadians but in general, they seem much nicer than Americans.

[Mr. 49]

There are so many things to pick out of the main post, I'm going to just go with the one you seem to love most:

6. We have a better healthcare system (FREE)

Your healthcare is not technically free since you pay for it with taxes. Besides that, it's very hard to find good specialists since most dr.s get paid around the same amount; a lot of Canadians will come to the US for things like surgeries, transplants, and tests, because our medical research is a hell of a lot better.
Not only that, but any socialist healthcare is flawed in that quality suffers, the waiting times are crazy and people will abuse the hell out of it and go to clinics for things like a cold, clogging up the system for those who NEED it.