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I want to be Canadian!!

Brooker

Anjin
Contributor
10 Apr 2004
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This is really just a rant....

I'm interested in traveling around to many different countries and I'd like to be able to get a job in some different places and have an extended stay. As an American it's difficult because many countries don't offer work visas to Americans (I realize that's because America doesn't give work visas to nationals of other countries, and I understand why other countries would extend the same offer, or lack thereof, to Americans that America offers them, I'm not whinning but it still sucks). For citizens of Commonwealth countries (including Canada) it's much easier to get a work visa in many different countries all over the world, making the world a little more open to them. It seems like America still has a bit of a seperativist policy because people can't come in and work (easily) and American citizens can't leave and work (easily) especially in other English speaking countries such as England.

So my grandfather on my mother's side was born a Canadian citizen. I checked with the Canadian Consulate in Seattle to see if I might be able to get dual citizenship or something, but to no avail. The process is quite complicated and in the end the answer was that I didn't qualify. I wonder what I would have to do to become Canadian. Vancouver is only about a three hour drive from here, maybe I could move, it's a nice town. Besides, it seems that many people become Canadian because they actively don't want to be Americans, and sometimes I think I'm getting pretty close to feeling that way. Maybe I'm already more Canadian than I thought.

I've always thought of myself as being a citizen of the world and it sucks that I'm limited by being American (although I realize being born in certain other countries could have limited me a lot more). It just seems like the world is a little more open to Canadians and being Canadian doesn't have the same stigma that being American does.

Just thinking aloud.
 
I agree with a lot of what you say, Brooker. I think living in Vancouver would be just heavenly. I've always thought of Vancouver as a great place to live. It's beautiful, it's very diverse(culturally speaking), has a nice climate, etc. I kind of get tired of carrying the stigma that goes along with being American too. It's getting to where everyone, the world over, thinks all Americans are brainwashed, illiterate, redneck, violence glorifiers, etc. Sometimes I think moving would be better, but then I think I like where I live now and feel that it's not so bad, so... :?

It would be so neat to travel the world, stopping in different countries(Europe especially--for me) to set up shop for awhile, though. It is one thing that I always dreamt of doing, but then I got married... :rolleyes:
 
I can fully understand that you don't want to be an American anymore. If I was in your position, I'd certanly do the same. Isn't there anything else you could try to become Canadian?
I think you should first try finding a job in Vancouver. If you found one, you can have a talk with your employer, and he could help you becoming a Canadian faster. If they see you already found a job in Canada, they'll probably take you more serious about wanting to be a Canadian.
 
A few years ago, I knew some Americans who lived in Canada because they liked Quebec, an "European" province in North American, and they applied jobs from American companies in Quebec (I guess higher chances for Americans to get hired by American companies). Or some just waited tables illegally.

However, under the treaty of NATO, if you get hired by a company located in Canada, you're automatically given the right to live and work in Canada. The company which hires you would sponsor you for the working visa.

Many Americans I knew before would just pack their stuffs, move here and look for work (but they were young and some had Canadian girl friends at the time so living costs weren't high while seeking employments). Actually, one of the major concerns of the Canadian government is how these people pay their taxes. Some pay half of it to the US government and half to Canada. For Canadians, if a tax payer gives up Canadian residence, then he or she is only responsible for taxes in the residing country. But this is not your main concern right now...

From what I've seen, it's not difficult for American professors, doctors, CPAs, nurses, high school teachers and tax-lawyers to get a job in Canada.

For how to become a Canadian, you can check out http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/index.html.

However, most Americans I knew didn't even apply... They just drove up and lived here... and then things just worked out for those who sticked around. But many of them are still American citizens today...

So far I didn't know any American who wanted to give up his US citizenship because an American citizen is allowed to be a Canadian permanent resident and get to enjoy all the health care and social benefits in Canada. The only thing they are not entitled to is - the right to vote.

Last year, an American soldier who didn't want to go to Iraq seeked political shelter in Ontario and today he is still living in Canada.

Good Luck !
 
From what I've seen, it's not difficult for American professors, doctors, CPAs, nurses, high school teachers and tax-lawyers to get a job in Canada.

Actually, from what I hear (and I AM Canadian, in the process of getting dual citizenship with Ireland through marriage) quite a lot of Americans do have immigration-related problems. The border crossing stories can be horrific going both ways.

Also, be forewarned that because Canadians are much better informed about the US (the government structure, election platforms, foreign policy...) they may pick fights with you once they discover you're an American citizen, attempting if not to find you personally accountable, at least to force some sort of reasonable justification for the negative aspects of the US image that's perceived by the rest of the world.

One last note - as proud as I am to be Canadian (and no, I would never choose to be an American, even if I end up working and living there again...) Canada is NOT a Utopia - it has its own set of (separate) issues by being a small country - 31.5 million vs. what, over 290million people in the US? And quality of healthcare does vary between urban vs. rural areas.
 
Jean-Francois said:
Last year, an American soldier who didn't want to go to Iraq seeked political shelter in Ontario and today he is still living in Canada.
Would've been good if more would've been that clever... better for the soldiers, and better for the Iraqis. If Dubya wants to fight the Iraq so much, let him go down there and fight himself! :D
 
hehe. I love the title of this thread.
Brooker, I agree that the world is a little more open to Canadians than Americans. Canada does have a pretty peaceful reputation......*raises Canadian flag.

This is going on a tangent, but there's something I find interesting. I think there's a custom of sticking American flags in the grass under mailboxes, at least where i live. Under every mailbox of every house in my neighborhood, there's an American flag. Seeing as I am not American, I took the flag out on day. The next day, lo and behold, a fresh new one had taken it's place. Now this really pissed me off. No one has the right to go sticking things into my lawn. So I pulled it out and left it on the ground. When I walked out the door the next morning, there were TWO flags in replacement. I gave up. I guess flags are a big deal in America. When I lived in Canada, flags in front of houses weren't very common.

Yup. just a little tidbit.
 
nekosasori wrote....
they may pick fights with you once they discover you're an American citizen, attempting if not to find you personally accountable,

I encountered a lot of this from the Canadians I knew in Japan and it really annoyed me. In most cases I agreed with what they were saying, but they kept blaming me personally, I guess in the hopes that I would go back to the states and spread the word to everyone else or something. And I felt a little betrayed too, being from Seattle (very close to Canada), we kind of feel like we have a special bond with British Columbia. I was surprised how many Canadians really don't like America, and the feeling is not mutual. Americans don't feel the same way about Canada. But Canada never really has the opportunity to do things that people from other countries would hate.

michi wrote....
I guess flags are a big deal in America.

Flags are a very big deal in America. We are taught it in our youth. Every classroom has a flag, and in elementary school we would start every day by standing, putting our hands over our hearts, and saying the Pledge of Allegience. Looking back on it, it seems kind of strange, but of course I didn't think so at the time.

In Japan it caught my attention that the Japanese flag was not displayed nearly as often as flags in America.

The flag burning issue in America was huge.

michi wrote....
Now this really pissed me off. No one has the right to go sticking things into my lawn. So I pulled it out and left it on the ground.

Although people shouldn't be putting flags in your yard, be careful about putting them on the ground. Most Americans have a big thing about not allowing a flag to touch the ground, it's considered really really bad, worse than stabbing your chopsticks into a bowl of rice and leaving it there for someone. They may think you're making some kind of political statement and could get really offended. I'm not condoning their behavior, but maybe it's best to continue removing the flags if you don't want them in your yard.
 
kirei_na_me said:
I agree with a lot of what you say, Brooker. I think living in Vancouver would be just heavenly.... has a nice climate, etc.

:) You do know that it rains more in Vancouver than it does in Seattle, don't you? ☔

But, it's true! Vancouver ROCKS!! 👍 :LOL:

And Canadian customs is always soo pleasant! Unfortunately, I think all those US customs people at the border (up in Blaine) live in Lynden (famous for it's historic KKK outfit). The thing I hate most about those drives up to Vancouver is U.S. customs on the way back... never met a group of ornry Americans more a** holic: Welcome to the U.S. ... leave quickly and don't enjoy your stay.

Maybe this will help you through some of the hard days Brooker:

I was born in Seattle. I am from Seattle first. From the Pacific North West second (which excludes obvious regions of Eastern Washington :), and includes Vancouver). Then, I am from the West Coast. And ONLY after that am I "American".

I don't know if you were born in Seattle... but my point here is this: identity is what you make of it.

Good luck with sorting out the more technical issues though. 🙂
 
chiquiliquis wrote....
I am from Seattle first. From the Pacific North West second (which excludes obvious regions of Eastern Washington , and includes Vancouver). Then, I am from the West Coast. And ONLY after that am I "American".

I feel the same way. Unfortunately, that doesn't mean anything to people from other countries and they only see that we are AMERICAN. Seattle and the Northwest is very liberal. I don't think I have much in common with cowboy hat wearing, oil drilling, nature destroying, bible loving, Republicans from Texas and yet I'm lumped into the same catagory as them.

That's why I preferred to have the location listed on my forum ID to just be "Seattle, Washington" rather than the American flag that I get so tired of seeing and don't really want to be identified by. Maybe I should post this tangeant elsewhere.
 
Brooker said:
nekosasori wrote....


I encountered a lot of this from the Canadians I knew in Japan and it really annoyed me. In most cases I agreed with what they were saying, but they kept blaming me personally, I guess in the hopes that I would go back to the states and spread the word to everyone else or something.


thats because some Canadians are assholes, but really we all like to think the country we live in is the greatest if infact we think its great. Most Canadians do love Canada and that is why they pick of America. I guess its how we show are patriotism..instead of having flags on our lawns and huge parades.(we still have parades..just not crazy ones)
 
Also, be forewarned that because Canadians are much better informed about the US (the government structure, election platforms, foreign policy...) they may pick fights with you once they discover you're an American citizen, attempting if not to find you personally accountable, at least to force some sort of reasonable justification for the negative aspects of the US image that's perceived by the rest of the world.
Sorry, I don't see any of that going on around here.. I don't pick fights with Americans and never will.. It may happen elsewhere, but I doubt it is very common..
I was surprised how many Canadians really don't like America, and the feeling is not mutual. Americans don't feel the same way about Canada.
I wish that were true.. but it isn't.. Americans insult Canadians WAY more than we insult them.. In every American TV show/Movie I've seen that involved something Canadian they always make fun of Canadians in an ignorant fashion, Acting like we're all farmers or something, claiming we say "Eh" at the end of every sentence, when in fact I never say it, ever lol.. For example I've had in the past week even an american friend on AIM saying stupid crap like "canadian women are ugly" and "you have a bunch of moose".. lol.. He's my friend so it's nothing major but he does really thikn this is true.. So trust me.. Americans dislike/make fun of Canadians much more than we dislike Americans.. Only time we say something is when Americans have said something stupid about us lol..

But Yeh lol.. Canada is not perfect, nowhere is, But I definitely prefer it compared to America.. I welcome you to Canada if you would like to come Brooker 🙂 lol

P.S. I'm not trying to pick a fight with anyone lol.. just stating what I've seen
 
There are advantages of being a Canadian. I mean, you get free health-care, a better social-security net, and less violence in the streets (even though it is getting worse over the years :unsure: ). In terms of the job-market, I would prefer the States. Getting a decent job up here is more difficult than down south. However, you'll find that the people here are not as gung-ho about their nationality as the neighbour to the south. I also find that Canadians have a significantly more liberal and tolerant perspective on things. Btw, whoever said that Canadians insult the Americans more than the Americans insult the Canadians is dead wrong. Canadians don't do much America bashing as our southern neighbours do to us.
 
King of Tokyo wrote....
I don't see any of that going on around here.. I don't pick fights with Americans and never will.. It may happen elsewhere, but I doubt it is very common..

Well, you may be a good Canadian, but I assure you that it happens quite often. The town I lived in in Japan had a lot of Canadian teachers and they would often gang up on the few Americans in the area. Maybe they took advantage of the situation because usually the Americans outnumber the Canadians. Usually it was just in good fun, but much of the time I knew that their (many) complaints were quite genuine. Others who I talked to had similar experiences with some of the Canadians they met.

Americans insult Canadians WAY more than we insult them.. In every American TV show/Movie I've seen that involved something Canadian they always make fun of Canadians in an ignorant fashion, Acting like we're all farmers or something, claiming we say "Eh" at the end of every sentence,

Maybe it's just my impression, but when Americans say bad things about Canadians it's just friendly teasing. But the Canadian teasing often seems to be much stronger. I will admit that Canadians might have more to complain about Americans than Americans have to complain about Canadians, but there's a big difference in severity between saying that you say "Eh" a lot compared to saying that your country is just plain evil (which I've heard Canadians say about America).

Maybe the problem is that in America there is more to hate. Who hates Canada?? No one. Why would anyone ever hate Canada? They wouldn't. There's no reason to. Why would anyone ever hate America? We could start three new threads on that, but it's already been done. Maybe it's just the way of things. But I did meet a lot of Canadians who had a real chip on their shoulder about America and I'm pretty sure I didn't do anything to bring it upon myself - I usually tried to avoid such conversations. The thing they seemed to hate the most was the fact that Canada is often compared to America.
 
Brooker said:
King of Tokyo wrote....


Well, you may be a good Canadian, but I assure you that it happens quite often. The town I lived in in Japan had a lot of Canadian teachers and they would often gang up on the few Americans in the area. Maybe they took advantage of the situation because usually the Americans outnumber the Canadians. Usually it was just in good fun, but much of the time I knew that their (many) complaints were quite genuine. Others who I talked to had similar experiences with some of the Canadians they met.



Maybe it's just my impression, but when Americans say bad things about Canadians it's just friendly teasing. But the Canadian teasing often seems to be much stronger. I will admit that Canadians might have more to complain about Americans than Americans have to complain about Canadians, but there's a big difference in severity between saying that you say "Eh" a lot compared to saying that your country is just plain evil (which I've heard Canadians say about America).

Maybe the problem is that in America there is more to hate. Who hates Canada?? No one. Why would anyone ever hate Canada? They wouldn't. There's no reason to. Why would anyone ever hate America? We could start three new threads on that, but it's already been done. Maybe it's just the way of things. But I did meet a lot of Canadians who had a real chip on their shoulder about America and I'm pretty sure I didn't do anything to bring it upon myself - I usually tried to avoid such conversations. The thing they seemed to hate the most was the fact that Canada is often compared to America.

Any Canadians who had something to say about America probably had bad experience with an American before.. because, usually, it is Americans who have a chip on their shoulder, thinking they are superior, calling Canada "America Jr." :eek: , but what they were saying was most likely not meant to personally attack you, probably just built up desire to tell an American off for something another American said.. since they can't find the American who said it, And you are unlucky enough to be there, you get the rant, lol.. And like you said, Canada really has done nothing to be hated, so when we are insulted, it may anger us, because, everything I have heard an American say about Canada is blatantly untrue, and just their belief/stereotype, where as America is easy to hate.. So yeh, don't take it personally, I don't know any Canadians that would start anything with you unless provoked with American ignorance (From you or someone else, Lol)
 
my grandaunt [she is only 17,but shes my grandaunt,born in America,came to Vancouver for a short holiday]
just made fun of me saying 'Eh'

she said 'he just said eh,it made me laugh so hard!! it is so Canadian!!'

then I said 'hey I am a Canadian,we also make fun of how you guys pronounce the letter Z,it is Zed,not Zee,its Zed'!!

in the theater she also said our commercials are weird :D
then I said 'hey this is Canada,not the US :D '

just friendly teasing
 
I do feel aswell what Kirei says, carrying the stapled name tag that comes along with being an American gets very annoying at times. And I also would not mind living in Toronto, be it as I like big cities.. :)
 
Molson Canadian commercial

http://www.tylersroom.net/molson-canadian-i-am.mov



Hey.

I'm not a lumberjack, or a fur trader,and I don't live in an igloo or eat blubber, or own a dog sled, and I don't know Jimmy, Sally or Suzy from Canada, although I'm certain they're really, really nice.

I have a Prime Minister, not a President. I speak English and French, not American, and I pronounce it 'about', not 'a boot'.

I can proudly sew my country's flag on my backpack. I believe in peacekeeping, not policing. Diversity, not assimilation, and that the beaver is a truly proud and noble animal.

A toque is a hat, a chesterfield is a couch, and it is pronounced 'zed' not 'zee' ... 'ZED'!!!

Canada is the second largest land mass! The first nation of hockey! And the best part of North America!

My name is Joe!! And I am Canadian!
 
Heh, that's a pretty funny commercial. :D I was almost proud to be Canadian! :D :D Of course, the point about proudly being able to sew his nation's flag on his backpack was a good point. I can't imagine running into too many problems when people find out that you're Canadian (excluding in America, of course).

By the way, about stereotypes and regionalism (I think I made that word up :)), I'm from the American south, so I've had my fair share of retarded things said to me. Especially after that wonderful movie "Waterboy" came out and showed everyone exactly what it's like down here. :eek:
 
Dream Time said:
Molson Canadian commercial

http://www.tylersroom.net/molson-canadian-i-am.mov



Hey.

I'm not a lumberjack, or a fur trader,and I don't live in an igloo or eat blubber, or own a dog sled, and I don't know Jimmy, Sally or Suzy from Canada, although I'm certain they're really, really nice.

I have a Prime Minister, not a President. I speak English and French, not American, and I pronounce it 'about', not 'a boot'.

I can proudly sew my country's flag on my backpack. I believe in peacekeeping, not policing. Diversity, not assimilation, and that the beaver is a truly proud and noble animal.

A toque is a hat, a chesterfield is a couch, and it is pronounced 'zed' not 'zee' ... 'ZED'!!!

Canada is the second largest land mass! The first nation of hockey! And the best part of North America!

My name is Joe!! And I am Canadian!

Haha I remember that commercial.. whatever happened to it ?? They should still show it.. the best ones are where the Americans get attacked by beavers lmao..
 
Brooker - as a Vancouverite I can tell you it is a wonderful place to live. It's very beautiful, and extremely multicultural. <--my favorite part about my city. ^_^

The only downside is all the tourists in the summer. Luckily they tend to visit places that us locals rarely go.

:D I haven't heard that rant in so long! All of the molson commercials are hilarious. Though it always makes we wonder what an american person would think when they see them. Some of them can be pretty mean.
 
I agree with Glenn full on, it is amazing how people have this image about how it is down here in the south.. Now I wouldn't say that there is not parts of Louisiana that are like that but Baton Rouge, Baker, Zachary, Central, etc... Are far from what movies make the south look like.
 
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