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| Subject: "Sick and tired and ready to pack" |
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Today´s article in the Toronto Sun--- Guys make sure what you want before you immigrate.. grass may just seem to be greener on the other side.. have a solid plan or you may be just one of these stories
"Sick and tired and ready to pack"
This 20-something-year-old, well educated, currently unemployed, black, immigrant Canadian drowning in student loan payments and a series of short-term jobs that provide absolutely no benefits is sick and tired of the constant bad news from the Gomery inquiry and the whole Canadian political scene.
Sick of politicians who cater to their needs and not my own. Tired of political parties that bicker among themselves about stuff that has nothing to do with me, or ignore the things that do, while constantly finding creative ways to take what few pennies I´ve got.
I suppose I could be happy about having the government´s hand in my pocket if I could just see where my money goes. Instead I get to hear about AdScam, bad subs, a weak army, a crappy transit system (if you think TTC is bad, try taking Markham transit ... the buses come every 30 minutes), immigrants with PhDs who drive cabs, marijuana grow ops in my community, an unfair immigration system, Canadians dying in hospital emergency rooms while waiting for a doctor, and how good we are compared with those evil Americans.
Who cares about the "evil" Americans when I am unhappy with my own government? Are we so preoccupied with the rest of the world and the Americans that we have failed to notice how much trouble we have in our own backyard?
Our government has done good things for our country, but it has also left me scratching my head at times. What I am looking for (and I´m pretty sure you are, too) is a government that cares deeply about the average Joe. People like you and me. I want leaders who understand that we work hard and want our taxes to do great things for our nation. I am hoping and praying for leaders who can inspire me and make me proud to be a Canadian. I want leaders who inspire me to the point where I would stand in rain, sleet or snow just to shake their hands. I have heard about our great Canadian leaders of the past, now I am waiting for greatness while I´m still breathing.
Lately and sadly I have been asking my parents why they chose to bring me to Canada. I, for one, am dumbfounded. Please don´t bore me with the usual Canadian pat-ourselves-on-the-back phrases. You know those lines, don´t you? They usually go something like this: "Canada is a multicultural, free, democratic country. We have the best, free (it´s not really free ... it´s called high taxes) health-care system (unlike those poor Americans). We also are really blessed because we are very tolerant, generous and blah, blah, blah ..." Enough already! I am Canadian. I know what the benefits of living in this country are. But who are we kidding? We have some serious problems.
When I, like most immigrants am struggling to make my way in this country, hear how our hard-earned dollars are wasted I become infuriated. How can I feel good about a country that allows its citizens to sleep on the streets, its children to starve because their parents can´t make a decent wage, or that allows its black youth to drop out of its public school system at an alarming rate? How can I feel proud under the Maple Leaf when I know that the guy who is driving me down to Union Station in his cab is really a family doctor who came to this country because he was duped into thinking that he was really wanted? Why should I feel that my government is doing right when I must step over homeless people to get to my destination in downtown Toronto? Why should I feel good about a country that allows criminals to roam the streets shooting innocent women and children?
How can I feel great about a country where statistics show that, because I am black, I am more likely to earn a lower wage or be unemployed despite having all the education in the world? Come on, Canada! It´s time to live up to your ideals. Or have we set our ideals so high that we cannot live up to them?
When we speak of multiculturalism, do we mean the kind that only exists on the map but not in positions of power? If so, I reject that type of multiculturalism. When we speak of equal opportunity, are we talking about the kind of opportunity that exists only if you have the right skin colour, religion, language, political friends or the right amount of money in the bank? If that´s your idea of equality of opportunity, I don´t want it. When we say that all Canadians are equal under the law, I hope that´s true because it saddens me to hear people of colour bring complaints of racism (call it racial profiling if you wish) against police, teachers, employers and border officials.
It is time that we practise what we preach. If we truly are a nation that values democracy, equality, transparency, honesty, fairness, peace and social justice, then let us demand the same from our leaders and ourselves.
If not, I´m packing.
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Keron Cato is a member of the Star´s community editorial board.
[22-05-2005,18:55]
[**.149.33.180]
anonymous |
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"Rethinking immigration goals" (in reply to: "Sick and tired and ready to pack")
More from the Toronto Star - sorry for putting it the earlier post as one from Toronto Sun.
I have been doing a lot of reserach and have come to belive that skilled immigration is not as much of a necessity or requirement from a shortage standpoint that Canada might be seeking. Not to say that one may not be able to settle through entrepreneurial activities or finally finding a job in the field of skill sets.. but one must not think ..its gonna be a piece of cake.. inspite of the best global experiences that some of us might alreadyhave. The main reason for this is that the skilled migration is more of a government mandate rather than the mandate f the industry. That´s socialism 101 for us!!
Rethinking immigration goals
CAROL GOAR
Canada brings in approximately 14,000 engineers a year under its highly selective immigration rules. Roughly the same number of engineers graduate annually from Canadian universities.
The country has more engineers than it can possibly employ.
Meanwhile, trucking companies are desperate for drivers; slaughterhouses can´t get enough meat packers; and construction bosses knowingly hire carpenters, drywallers, electricians and heavy equipment operators who are in Canada illegally.
None of these workers qualifies for entry under the government´s strict admission criteria.
If ever there was a made-in-Ottawa problem, this is it.
The good news is that Immigration Minister Joe Volpe knows about it and has a plan to fix it. The bad news is that it probably won´t see the light of day.
The Liberal minority government is in its death throes. And Volpe has scarcely spoken about ? let alone done anything about ? the mismatch between Canada´s needs and his department´s policies.
But one recent afternoon, the 57-year-old Italian immigrant sat down for an hour or so and talked about what needs to be done.
Volpe left no doubt that he considers the current regime, put in place by former immigration minister Denis Coderre in 2003, elitist and ill-conceived. Not only does it keep out the kind of immigrants who built this country; it squanders the skills of those who get in.
"We secure ? some would even say we steal ? someone else´s investment, then we don´t even use it in Canada," Volpe said. "Let´s do a mea culpa. We weren´t ready for these people. We´ve got to put our political and moral muscles to work to make sure their talents can be utilized.
"At the same time, we´ve set the bar so high we aren´t getting the people we need to fill the gaps in our workforce. We have skill shortages all over the country. You can´t possibly draw up an appropriate immigration program if you don´t know what the labour issues are."
Volpe then outlined his five-point plan to get the immigration system back into alignment with Canada´s needs and traditions. Chances are it won´t survive the political turbulence of the coming weeks. But it would be a good starting point for whoever ends up in charge of the nation´s entry gates.
First, he would change the admission criteria.
Volpe didn´t say precisely how he would reconfigure the rating system, but made it clear that university degrees and fluency in English or French would no longer be given priority over jobs skills that are in high demand.
Next, he would "regularize" undocumented workers.
Granting an amnesty to the roughly 200,000 immigrants working illegally in Canada would be "like cracking eggs," Volpe acknowledged. But allowing a culture of casual lawbreaking to become entrenched would be worse.
Third, he would make it easier for immigrants to rebuild their family networks in Canada.
This, too, can be controversial, as Volpe discovered last month when he tripled the number of parents and grandparents allowed into the country. "But if we want skilled workers, we have to offer them a psychologically healthy environment," he insisted.
Fourth, he would encourage communities outside the Golden Horseshoe to sell themselves to immigrants.
If Canada is to keep its smaller centres alive and sustain the growth of flourishing communities in the West, it will have to tap into newcomers´ sense of adventure, Volpe said. "An immigrant, if he represents nothing else, is a personification of entrepreneurship and risk-taking."
Finally, Volpe would combine immigration and human resources into a single federal department (as they were until 1993) that can match the country´s current and future labour needs with its international recruitment programs.
"What this country needs is a demographic policy rather than an immigration policy," he said.
Canada has seldom had an immigration minister whose vision extends beyond the next crisis, upheaval or election. Most politicians are content merely to manage the troubled portfolio.
"There´s a lack of critical thinking by the senior people in that department," said Phil Mooney, a Burlington immigration consultant. "Volpe strikes me as somebody who really wants to move."
He hasn´t made much headway in his four-month tenure and he is quickly running out of time.
But Volpe will leave behind two valuable assets: an accurate diagnosis of what is wrong and a good set of tools to begin the repairs.
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Carol Goar´s column appears Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
[22-05-2005,19:15]
[**.149.33.180]
anonymous |
(in reply to: "Sick and tired and ready to pack")
I 150% agree with the second post.
[22-05-2005,19:21]
[***.20.170.23]
sharon |
(in reply to: "Sick and tired and ready to pack")
I totally agree with this article. No matter what people say, believe me, some of the (more educated) immigrants who are desperate to migrate into Canada can lead a far more better life in their own countries than the (less educated) labor class in the 3rd best country to live on earth.
[22-05-2005,20:26]
[**.113.191.176]
Raj |
(in reply to: "Sick and tired and ready to pack")
But who in charge of Human resorce department? Do you know that?
That´s Belinda Stroach!!!!! She is billionaire, do you think she gonna stay over that position for a long time? No way, she can dump boyfriend and conservative party at the same time, she gonna dump Paul Martin soon!
[22-05-2005,23:29]
[**.66.78.235]
departure bay |
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