Top 8 Reasons Canuck's List is Flawed

Canada Immigration Forum (discussion group)

Subject: Top 8 Reasons Canuck's List is Flawed

Canuck?s Top 8 Reasons list is flawed and here, point by point, is why:

#8. ?Points are good enough for immigration?they are not good enough to get a job in your field.?

There is some truth to this. It is rather sad that the point system does not align with your chances of obtaining employment. On the other hand, It would take a blind man to not see the many doctors, pharmacists, engineers, lawyers, politicians, clergymen, police officers, ambulance attendants, bankers, etc. who have obviously immigrated to Canada and did quite well for themselves. Does anyone reading this think a Canadian could immigrate to his or her country and run for political office? How many countries is this possible in? Did you know that RCMP (Canada?s federal police force) allows turbans to be worn in lieu of our TRADITIONAL uniform? Why would they do this if no immigrants were being accepted into the ranks? How many countries would alter TRADITIONAL uniforms so that every religion would be treated equally? Not too many!

#7. ?It is estimated that compared to most countries around the world, the cost of living in Canada is on average five times greater.?

Really? Who estimated this? Can Canuck provide a source? Notice the chart below showing the top 50 most expensive cities in the world. Isn?t it strange how not one of them is in Canada? Did Canuck pull the ?five times? out of a hat, or does he have a source from which this ?statistic? came from?

Top 50 World´s Most Expensive Cities:
City/ 2004 Rank/ 2003 Rank
Tokyo 1 1
London 2 7
Moscow 3 2
Osaka, Japan 4 3
Hong Kong 5 4
Geneva 6 6
Seoul, South Korea 7 8
Copenhagen, Denmark 8 15
Zurich, Switzerland 9 9
St. Petersburg, Russia 10 12
Beijing 11 5
New York 12 10
Milan, Italy 13 17
Dublin, Ireland 14 21
Oslo, Norway 15 13
Shanghai, China 16 11
Paris 17 23
Istanbul, Turkey 18 42
Vienna, Austria 19 34
Sydney, Australia 20 67
Rome 21 41
Stockholm, Sweden 22 48
Helsinki, Finland 23 36
Abidjan, Ivory Coast 24 35
Douala, Cameroon 25 31
Amsterdam, Netherlands 26 52
Los Angeles 27 22
Berlin 28 58
Hanoi, Vietnam 29 14
Shenzhen, China 30 18
Taipei, Taiwan 31 29
Guangzhou, China 32 18
Tel Aviv, Israel 33 40
Budapest, Hungary 34 37
Chicago 35 25
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam 36 16
Beirut, Lebanon 37 25
San Francisco 38 30
Luxembourg 39 66
D?sseldorf, Germany 40 63
Glasgow, Scotland 41 74
Frankfurt, Germany 42 65
Munich, Germany 43 62
Bratislava, Slovak Republic 44 56
Jakarta, Indonesia 45 38
Singapore 46 32
Dakar, Senegal 47 56
Riga, Latvia 48 27
Prague, Czech Republic 49 49
Athens, Greece 50 71
Source: Mercer Human Resource Consulting

#6. ?Health Care Crisis.?

OK, health care in Canada could sure use an overhaul. Waiting lists for elective surgeries are getting ridiculous and it?s true that many people have a hard time getting a family doctor who is willing to add new patients to his full roster. But if you get cancer in Canada and are in need of radiation treatments and chemotherapy, you will be treated free of charge, regardless of how poor you are. You will never have to mortgage your home to take care of a loved one, and you will not be billed for medications you receive while in hospital care. While it?s true that Canadian doctors don?t get paid what their US counterparts do, they are certainly not working any more hours than doctors in other parts of the world, and they are definitely living comfortably. While US doctors are paid very well, too many Americans will never be able to afford to visit them ? not so in Canada.

#5. ?Very High Taxes.?

It is no secret that Canadian taxes are high. I agree we are being ripped off and not getting enough out of what we pay in. That being said, we don?t pay for garbage pickup; we have very few (almost non-existent) road tolls; water is cheap, plentiful and clean; and medical coverage is either free or very cheap. If you lose your job through no fault of your own and can?t afford to feed your kids, the government will assist you until you can get back on your feet. Yes, in Canada we believe this is fair. I?m still amazed at how Canuck managed to spin this into a reason NOT to come (??).

#4. ?Canadian Embassies around the world lie to foreigners, painting this picture that Canada is Utopia.?

Is Canuck saying that every person on this site is dumb enough to fall for such deceit? Is everyone on this site a sucker, then? Has Canuck visited all these embassies around the world and seen all the ?lies?? I currently live in Asia and have been to many embassies over the past five years. While it?s true that Canada does not advertise its short comings, neither does any other country. Of course Canada wants immigrants. We welcome people from every corner of the globe. Like any Country, industry, company, or product, we highlight our best aspects and invite newcomers to help us become better. Please specifically list a few of these ?lies.?

#3. ?Unlike almost every other country in the world, Canada has no culture.?

Canuck has managed to insult every First Nations person in Canada in one sentence. Has he never seen Native art displays throughout every city in Canada? Are these wonderful people not part of Canadian culture? Does our new Olympic logo not reflect Canadian culture?

?People living in Canada, still identify themselves as to where they ?originally? came from.?

Does this not reflect one of the most beautiful aspects of our culture ? the fact that we celebrate the individual heritages of every single citizen? Is this anther reason NOT to come to Canada??

Do the RCMP?s TRADITIONAL uniforms not merit mention? How about hockey and lacrosse? How about the TRADITIONAL fiddle music throughout the Maritime Provinces and the songs of lost ships off the Atlantic coast? How about Poutine (invented in Quebec)? Do Maple Syrup and Canadian Back Bacon not qualify?

#2. ?Canada has the worst weather conditions of any country in the world.? This one is just ridiculous. Let me think of a few places Canuck would prefer the weather: How about Saudi Arabia, North Korea, Northern Russia, anywhere in North or East Africa, Northern China, Scotland, many parts of the US? Shall I continue?

Although most major cities In Canada experiences a few weeks of extreme cold during each winter (not unlike Any northern state of the US), how often do you hear about death and destruction or misery due to tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, drought, heat waves or cold snaps? Internationally these tragedies happen almost daily. In Canada they almost never do.

#1. ?No Jobs?

Pleas see #8 for examples that yield quite the opposite of this assertion. As of May 6th, 2005 the unemployment rate in Canada was 6.8%. While I agree this is too high, it hardly translates as ?no jobs.? And there just aren?t enough taxi cabs, pizza delivery drivers, or factory workers in Canada to employ the entire immigrant population (as Canuck claims) when 93.2% of Canadians have a job.

[14-05-2005,11:10]
[***.96.184.65]
Mike