Close Reading

A few months ago, I was planning my move to Toronto for my kids education. Both my kids are Canadians and I felt that there will be more options for university in Toronto for both of them. But after the last 2 months seeing and hearing all these issues in Canada, my inner voice is telling me not to make the move. It’s scary hearing abt the healthcare crisis, crime and housing cost. Comparing to what I have now in Singapore, I’m not too sure anymore if Canada has a bright future ahead. Will Canada bring in privately run medical to support the medical crisis? And I read that Canada is in deficit now, how is it going to come out of it and solve all these problems at the same time.

I was just in Toronto yesterday and I noticed how many homeless there were compared to when I was there in 2019. It breaks my heart because I spent so much time in the city growing up.

Housing costs are crazy here in Toronto...I lost my apt ...(740 sq. ft. - one bedroom)...which I had in Etobicoke at the end of Covid Jan. 2022 ...( My rent started at $940/month in 2016 and to just a tad over $1000/month in 2022. I Was on welfare during Covid 2020-2022)... Welfare only pays $733 for a single male (Welfare recipients weren't eligible for that CERB that paid every 2 weeks so I had to sell most of my furniture and cherished antiques to survive...Lost my apt...couldn't afford it anymore and I ended up in my sister's basement for 3 months but moved to a rooming house in the east end of Toronto at the end of April. Thank God that I got a job working in a hospital as a janitor...Still, I pay $650 a month for a room that is about 75 square feet....I've seen closets bigger...I share 4 washrooms and one laundry room with one washer and dryer and a laundry tub (This is the main source of water for cooking) with 26 other roomers...There is no kitchen and no lounge area...So yeah Housing is Fuked Up here in Toronto!... I was so close to being homeless...I do not work full-time. I am only on-call so I am at least able to make ends meet but still, it's hard surviving here in the big city...I was born here and grew up here and this city may have changed on the surface but beneath it, it's rotting to the core and it's getting worse every day!.... Love your vids by the way :)

There was a time I thought of moving to a major city like Toronto but a lot of cities in many countries have these problems... Safety is the main issue that keeps me up at night if I did move...

Hate to disrupt the narrative, but in the mid-2000s on my series of trips, there was an armed robbery in a small business on Yonge street. And I vaguely remember an attack in the Eaton Centre. I somehow learned of such things after returning home. I think that was Harper time, and his attitude about personal firearms may not have been helpful. I just think these overgrown cities are sold by the excitement, but not only good people are attracted.

I enjoyed my time in Canada when I was there, always had banter with the Canadians as I am\nBritish! It’s a beautiful place full of amazing people.

The most depresssing factor of canada is it's weather...\nIntially i was not realizing it bt it just dawned on me that how important is sunlight for your body and also for your mental health especially in winters......yahan pe sirf 3 mahine hi suraj rehta hai..june july and August .... september se leke may mid tak.rarely you will get a glimpse of sunlight...\nI mean you wake-up every morming nd its always dark and gloomy outside from September end till april end....you dpnt feel like doing anything...especially in winter's you wake up at 9 o'clock and 4 oclock its dark.....you have no idea how much it effects your mental health...people get depressed mentally and also gets deficit of vitamin d...also government have legalized Marijuana and saying oh it will make your mind feel happy and you will not get stressed anymore...i mean how come...government is killing you softly..they dont want you to think higher..they want you to leave behind....i realized most of the people suffer from knee pain..joint pain bcoz they dont get enough sunlight ....\nI read somewhere that most of the suicide case happens inthe month of January bcoz this is the month when people get more depressed....i must say comparatively to canada india is the best place to stay ....you will get sunlight whole year... also in Toronto there is no such social life as india ...so much taxes by the government...houses are getting expensive.....all you r doing is just work , come home. Sleep and go back to work again...you work 12 crazy hours here and your 7 hrs work salary goes staright to the government as taxes...and on top of that car insurance...home insurance ..morgatege payments...phone plans ...property tax..gas bill...water bills...hot tank bills...electricity bills and so much more ...ye sab bulls bharne ke liye ek single person ko double job karni pad rahi hai bocz of which he gets sick mentally and physically...\nAlso the health care sytem is the worst here..if you r sick and call for an appointment they will appoint u after 6 month's....\nDoctors have become more corrupt nowadays.....\nI know india mein middle class family itna afford nahi kar sakti bt alleast india mein log satisfied hain ..khus hain.bhale hi paisa kam ho...atleast they spare some time to spend with their families..friends...bt yahan aisa kuch nahi hai...yahan log paisa bana lete hain bt wo khusi nahi milti..wo satisfaction nahi milta india jaisa........\nAgain i must say canadas weather is the main cause for your sick mental health and also your bine health....if you want to be in a good health....your mind should be in a healthy state first ....and as you all know health hai to wealth hai\n..

As an older person who migrated decades ago after protesting in my old country, I encourage young people below 45 to FIGHT for your countries. Fight bad goverments. 7 billion people on the planet cannot move to the few western countries that seem to work and appear attractive on the surface, it’s not possible. The taxpayers in those countries are feeling it. Look at the folks sleeping on the floor in NY! The homeless citizens don’t have places to sleep but politicians are lodging new border crossing migrants in hotels at taxpayers expense, creating resentment! \n\nFight those oppressing you in your countries. Black America “fought” to eliminate Jim Crow so we can even move here. Black America and the White allies who struggled for civil rights ARE the reason the west has even been tolerant of the amount of immigration in the last 40 years! \n\nThere is no peace without a fight… even after the civil rights fights including the million man March 60 years ago? by MLK, the struggle against racism continues. \n\nHe left because of his children but will find out in 25 years time that they will want to connect with their roots even after succeeding in the West. \n\nYoung folks, take African, Latin American, Caribbean and Asian countries back from oppressive greedy corrupt rulers to reduce the need to leave our places of birth. I “fought” oppressive corrupt regimes with other like minded folks when I was younger before leaving! I wish we were more that were interested in protesting! Now folks are giving up without a serious protest, distracted by entertainment and the illusion of utopian countries which is not true. They find out too late! \n\nWestern politicians and governments need to stop cooperating with oppressive governments in these areas if they truly want to tackle immigration. Freeze their stolen loot like we did to the Russian oligarchs, force them to return the loot into their various economies and create good middle class jobs! \n\nThe west works because most work is assembly line in nature, glorifies slavery. A doctor has a target of about 15 to 20 patients to see per day and rushes you out of his office because the corporation he works for only cares about money and KPIs! You really aren’t allowed to interact with patients and provide personalized service. A pharmacist has to fill anything between 200 to 350 prescriptions, give a certain number of immunizations and see a certain No of patients per day. There is no time for niceties! A corporate professional May work remotely but has to deliver on so many projects he is up till 10pm and only gets up to eat. We have beautiful homes, drive nice cars etc but MUST work like the clock in an assembly line fashion! Most of us pay so much of our income as taxes we end up with less than 70% as paychecks! Things aren’t always what they seem!

As a second generation Nigerian immigrant (parents were born in Nigeria and I was born in the US). I 100% agree w/ his perspective. I’ve spent consider amount of time in Nigeria w/ my side of the family that’s doing well and the other side that aren’t. Aboard should only be for people who have no opportunity back home as in they have tried everything and nothing worked for them. If you are doing well in Nigeria, try and give birth to your kids in the US so they can retrieve citizenship. There is no reason a successful person back home should sell their things and move aboard even for kids as you can send them aboard to receive an education and help them gain citizenship and from their they can file for you. The amount of systemic racism, odd jobs you will have to work (God forbid you don’t have a degree and you move aboard for non degree purposes that’s when aboard will show you pepper), cost of surviving is expense here especially now as inflation is high. It’s just not benefiting especially if you were better off in Nigeria. However, this shouldn’t stop you from coming just know that the road isn’t easy and some places are worse than others. I’ve never been to Canada but have been to the UK and by far would advice anyone from back home to avoid UK at all cost. Not even sure how Nigerians are even making it there lol (it’s a never ending cycle of poverty plus citizenship is very difficult to gain and the discrimination in my opinion is much worse than the US. UK society has a class system and it only really empowers British people. The UK is so bad that they even discriminate against Eastern Europeans that should let you know a lot.) Also why do you think most Brits Nigerians come back to Naija hoping to secure job compared to American Nigerians and let me tell you it’s not because the UK is close to Nigeria, there is a true lack of opportunity. There are more opportunity in the US and possibly Canada compared to the Europe.

You got to think to yourself what if that was you with your children on the other side with no place to sleep no food no water in the hot heat and they got to sit there and wait and wait and wait and wait do you know how frustrating that would be probably trying to get over the border to I ain't going to lie I agree with them... I don't agree with them going over the border but I agree that he'll it's time to figure this out..

Respect their journey and experience but I also somehow got my Australian PR around the same year they completed their studies. The difference is that they completed bachelors and I did my masters there. I agree to some of things but overall it isn’t tough to get PR in australia if you have right skill and knowledge. Never had issue in finding part time job, had to groom myself a little for the permanent jobs, but eventually got into corporate jobs easily. Yes, had to do IELTS a few times to get 7 each but eventually got it and the points were completed because my age was appropriate. Basically I thought that they just wasted so much time just like that because they didn’t plan their migration properly. Wasted so much money and time in moving here and there just like that.

You miss the point about school shootings. Just the prevalence of weapons in the US makes the possibility of a shooting far greater, so in my Canadian eyes, there is NO safe place in the states. I have American relatives, and the first time my sister showed me the hand cannon she carried in her car it freaked me out. I’m not a shrinking violet when it comes to weapons. I was in the military for 6 years and spent 33 as a federal parole officer. Truth. be known, I owned a .357 for years prior to the birth of my first child, and although I kept it in a locked box with a trigger guard and the ammunition in a separate locked box after the birth of my first child I couldn’t countenance keeping it in my house.

Our son (22 yo) was in a traffic accident 3 years ago. Heavy multi-trauma that necessitated 18 surgeries, the latest was 2 months ago. He still has complications that forces him into long hospital stays. If we were living in the US, not only the whole family would have been bankrupt, but he most certainly would have died from lack of fund to pay for his care. Being Canadians living in Quebec, we didn't pay a dime, and his medical care wasn't even entirely paid for by the universal national healthcare. Most of it was paid by the Société d'Assurance Automobile du Québec (provincially funded, single payer automotive insurance).\n\nEverything, including renovations to the house to make it suitable for a wheelchair user and so much other things he now needs has been paid for. All in all the cost of all the medical care, prothesis, equipments, surgeons (6 of them, diffrent specialies), multiple MRIs, scans, stress-tests, ect. is most certainly in the 7-figure by now. The single payer automotive insurance granted him a pension for life, calculated on the base of the salary he would have made in his future job, had the accident not cut short his university education.\n\nJust typing this to show a very valid reason why it makes absolutely no sense for a Canadian to move to the US, makes me tear up for families down south going through a similar situation, knowing that unless they are millionaires, they're probably going through hell. Each time we hear about the health care system in the US, we have feelings I can't even describe.\n\nEdited to add: Our son is covered by his father's complementary health insurance he has at his job. We didn't have to claim anything there yet.

I want to apply for postgraduate study in Canada but there is something I want to be sure of.\n\nI had an agreement with an agent to do work visa for me but the agent went and did visitor visa instead of the work visa that we agreed. Although she got a visa for me but it was not the type of visa we discussed. So I decided not to pay her the complete money, which resulted into serious quarrel.\n\n\nNow I am planning to start applying for study visa but I don't know the information the agent uploaded about me during the time she applied for the visitor visa.\n\nI am afraid that if I should apply for the visa, that there maybe conflicting information about me on IRCC database.\n\nWhat should I do about that?\n\nThanks for anticipated response.

I am a Canadian and lived in the US from 1980-1992. I was a teenager and I enjoyed all the places I lived there. Mass shootings were not yet common though we did have a disgruntled employee with a gun on campus during my time in college. No one was actually shot.(This was in a very small town.) I did not get sick in the US. I have lived in Canada since then and enjoy it here too. I enjoy not having poisonous animals in the area where I live. I don't like the winters, and every winter I wish we could re-draw the border and make it go north and south! I have used the medical system up here and have been very thankful for it. The past couple of years with covid I have been especially glad to be in Canada because I preferred our response to the situation over that of the US. Most of the people in my workplace were not happy about it though and I believe 2 or 3 families actually moved to the US once the border re-opened. They like the feeling of having less governmental control in the US.

I have travelled to the US often for work for close to 25 years, visiting client sites. While I live in Canada, I had witnessed so many experiences and differences that it became impossible to consider a move there. There are obvious tax advantages (most states, though not all, combined with fed taxes have a lower tax rate, as well as write off benefits of owning a house). Racism is a problem here too, towards black people (among others) and including violence and systemic racism towards our indigenous population (e.g. police and healthcare), but the level of systemic and societal racism in the US towards black people is difficult to comprehend.\n\nIn my work experience in the US over the years, my team was in Utah at the time of a mass shooting in the mall that we'd typically go for dinner. An employee at the company shot and killed his wife in the church parking lot. I've been at a conference in Nashville that had to be locked down because there was a shooting in the mall next door (to the Grand Ole Opry), which was across the highway from the restaurant were there was the shooting where a black man took down the shooter earlier that year. As an employer our company couldn't believe the costs the company had to pay. California was ridiculously high, but so even was Texas.\n\nWith Obamacare the US is making huge strides in healthcare. It's not just about the health insurance coverage, but the fact that the legislation is forcing insurance and healthcare providers to standardize their systems, and make the data flow much better. This will allow for more innovation, faster handling of transactions, and transparency of costs (an example is people not knowing their cost until AFTER going through the procedure). I believe the US will outstrip Canada (which is only in the middle of the pack of developed countries) in service for cost in about 10 years.

Hi Tyler, born and raised Cdn here. I have American relatives and ancestors. I spent a lot of time going to the States to visit them when I was young and US felt like our big brother back then. Nice, clean, safe, fun and just big. Heck, when I was 15 I even took the Greyhound bus from Toronto to San Francisco. I've been back a few times but last was in 2015. Lkg to come back maybe this Christmas. I know media is biased but to give you some explanation, we don't have guns up here to the extent you guys do. Of course we have crime and sick things do happen up here but, we don't have to fear that every single person we come in to contact w is packin a gun. And the news intensifies our fear of that one aspect of your country's culture. And yes, the amount of mass shootings at schools terrifies us. I am sad to also see the political extremism in the US now. I miss the US of my childhood and certainly do agree, small town rural people are salt of the earth there. I even found New Yorkers nicer than Torontonians.

NO WAY!! I send my kids to school and don’t worry about them getting shot. My teenage daughter gets pregnant and I wouldn’t be bankrupt. \nIn Canada, there was a time when the federal government’s official opposition party had, as its platform the separation of one of our provinces out of the Canadian nation. That’s freedom of speech! That would never be tolerated in the USA.

I went to school and lived in the US for a year, and I enjoyed my time there, plus my dad lived in New Orleans and Houston at different points so I was in the States a lot growing up. The US is great in many ways and it's an exciting place to be at any time... but if it was a permanent choice, I don't think I would give up the Canadian citizenship in trade. Yes health care, and it is just a little less, for lack of a better word, paranoid.

Hell no! And that is coming from someone who has family members living in the States, was married to an American and has spent a lot of time there in New England, and in Florida. Titusville area of Florida is like my second home, but I would never move there. Not a fan of people having to carry guns with them everywhere they go, and healthcare for profit is wrong on so many levels. I have firsthand experience with that and it was as frightening as the gun culture down there.

I'm Canadian and worked in Dertoit for almost 10 years, I crossed the border daily working for GM. I've also done work in Louisiana, Indiana and all around Michigan. \nAmerica has some of the nicest people I've ever had the pleasure of knowing. It's a beautiful country and has a ton to offer anyone with an ounce of drive. The variety you have in your economy is amazing, we don't have a lot of choice when we buy stuff, you guys have so much more to choose from, take restaurants for example, I've never seen so many chain restaurants in one place, we have a handful of them. \nFrom what I've seen, there's also a lot of poverty, crime and violence, but that's literally everywhere right now, even here in Canada, we don't prosecute violent crime anymore. The gun issue is probably the biggest problem...I always felt extremely vulnerable out in public, especially driving, because I assumed everyone had a gun on them, I seen so many random guns on people, it just blew my mind. I always had to keep in mind when I was driving not to road-rage...That's how you get shot. The health care industry in America is nothing but a business model designed to bankrupt people. Our system isn't great at all...nothing to boast about. If you have to visit the ER at any hospital, you'd better bring food and water, you'll be there at least 8 hours before you're even seen by a doctor. Our health care is free yes, but we're taxed to death here because of it. I do indeed wish we had a 2-teir health care system, I want the option to pay to get seen soonest. America and Canada have free(ish) speech. We're both being ruled by leftist loonies, but that's all changing in our next respective election cycles. Biden and Trudeau will be shown the door and we can hopefully get back to healthy debate and more conversation in society...Instead of automatically dismissing each other, vitriolic badgering one another and hating each other. We had unity for a brief time, we all saw it, after 9/11 happened. We put our petty crap aside and saw each other as brothers and sisters. That didn't last very long and we've been in a constant state of crisis ever since. The media has driven a huge nail right through society, and takes a blow at every single issue we face, making it Left vs Right...\nIt's unfortunate to say, but it's going to take something truly devastating, possibly on a biblical scale, for us to come together again.

@polymatter: \nI have enjoyed your videos for a long time. You do great job in explaining the finer details.\nThis video particularly hits hard to me as I am Indian living in USA on a H1B visa. I did my masters here in US and have been working for past 5 yrs, in total 7 years. My company just initiated my i140 application which will take around 3 yrs to complete then the wait for GC will start for 15yrs (for Indians only). During this time we are at the employers mercy. We do get high salaries. But we are in a perpetually limbo. Its hard to find a spouse, start a family or invest in property as your future here is uncertain. \n\nThe H1B lottery system was introduced to keep the selection fair, as there are limited number of applications accepted each year. Hence it is a gamble for immigrants wanting to come here to study and work. The chance of getting H1B is almost 50/50. H1B visa is a temporary work visa, it was designed to be applicable for 3-4yrs until one gets the GC. But because of GC country backlog folks are on it for 15-20yrs.\n\nThe Greencard country limits were introduced in 2009 as the US government felt they needed diversity in the country. They were scared that US will be filled with Indians and Chinese immigrants. Hence the country caps on each country on GC. So if one is born in Nepal, Sri Lanka or Pakistan they get their GC within 1-3 yrs. Where as Indians need to wait 15-20yrs. But here is the wired part, they only consider the country of birth NOT citizenship. Ex: My friend was born in Oman and was raised in India, he is Indian and has Indian citizenship. He got his GC in 1 yr. \n\nThese H1B policies are not a priority to the US government as H1B folks do not have voting rights. They do not have any incentives to change the legacy policies. And we as immigrants in US have no voice except to sit back and pray we get lucky. \n \nThanks for shining a light on this issue. Appreciate it!!

Canadian here - I've lived and worked in NYC and graduated university from Gonzaga in Spokane. I wish the US won the war of 1812 and Canada was part of America. I think Trump is unpleasant but Trudeau is worse. The legal system here sucks. The RCMP are soldiers not police. I'd move to the US in a heartbeat. I like the gun laws there and hunting wild pigs down south would be fun. Maybe I will one day spend more time there.

I have a different perspective… as I’ve lived in Canada since I was 2 years old (same with my wife). I’m in my early 40s and my wife is in her late 30s… the other thing is… we are of Sri Lankan decent… Tamils… BTW, I didn’t understand a thing from this interview… I’m going by what is said in the comment section.\nBut, hear me out… before you say… “Oh no… this guy has nothing in common…”\nJust so you know… I was born in Germany in 1980… my wife was born in Sri Lanka in 1985.\nWhat I noticed is all my uncles, grandparents would rave about the fact that if the war in Sri Lanka was over they would go back and live there… well… truth be told it’s been over for a while… and they go visit… but they built a new life here in Canada… and they’ve come accustomed to the luxury lifestyle here. They go back and realize that it’s not the same as it was when they were growing up… things changed… people don’t recognize them or pretend to recognize them only to take advantage of them because they know they are from Canada.\nThere is also the factor of advancement… both Sri Lanka and India is really catching up especially from the time the internet and the smartphone came along… nobody would believe… but the difference between Canada and Sri Lanka or even India in the early 90s… jeez… night and day… now it’s more equal especially in the major cities… but before… malls and escalators… people would literally ask what is that??? Elevators didn’t even have doors we had to manually close it lol…\nAnyway… that’s my point of view…\nAlso… way safer in Canada than India… how many rape cases do you hear about in Canada vs India???

The dream was, when I retire I was going to joint the snowbirds and flock south to Florida or Arizona. Winters for seniors in many parts of Canada are pretty rough. However since 2016 the US has gone so far off the rails, I have looked at other countries to warm up in the winter. I used to visit the US every two years, but now, I don't want to visit let alone live there. Canada is not perfect, but the overall quality of life is much better, the fear-factor of just about everything from Government, to gun-violence is just so ridiculous, I have given up on the US turning around any time soon.

I was born and raised in the US and immigrated to Canada as a young adult. I have lived here for 45 years, am now a citizen, and would never move back to the States! I don't even holiday there (Europe, Asia or Mexico instead). It is so unsafe and unstable; there's no draw for me to want to spend time there.

As a Canadian from the Maritimes I have to agree with all the reasons he read. Any time I travel south I have the highest travel insurance to fly me back to Canada if something happens. I have visited the US many times and enjoyed it while I was there but was VERY happy to be home. I agree the small towns are safER but I saw people driving around with 5 LARGE guns in the roof rack of their truck, I DO NOT mean hunting rifles. NOPE! Got in the rental car and headed North out of Georgia right away. The South IS beautiful to see and may people were very sweet but I did not feel safe there. I prefer the Northern states. I was thinking about my yearly vacation options recently and the US was NO WHERE on my list. Mostly Northern Europe, Italy, and Greece. Sorry, but that's my opinion of my travels there.

Some Sikhs are very nice this one time I went to a river and there was a 8 year old girl in the middle of the river and a Punjabi man came and took his turban off to make a rope for her to rescue her.

I lived in the US for most of my adult life, so until around 10 years ago. I lived in the South, including Florida (which I loved at the time although the residents there had a crappy attitude). My husband was a refugee in the 70s and is a Canadian, so we moved up here after marrying. I would NOT consider moving back willingly. The politics, the racism, the anti-LGBTQ, anti-women, anti-intelligence, the lack of health care...it all just makes for a really ugly existence. That said, it's also getting tough to stay here due to housing prices.

Lived in Canada while working in the US for almost 20 years. Sadly although I had many friends I was often shocked by the attitudes of my colleagues. They almost all looked at other countries as inferior. Racism is absolutely a thing .There was no curiosity about other cultures. I knew people that died because of their hesitation to seek health care. The school shootings, although maybe they don’t happen ‘all’ the time there seems to be no desire to fix that. The US is going the wrong way regarding voting rights. My town actually sends out extra busses if you need a ride to vote. The support of the LGBTQ community and women’s rights are also problematic. US is good if you want to get yours but I personally don’t want to take two, when others aren’t even getting one. I am happily no longer working in the states.

Wow. I know I'll be sharing this vid with my irish friends in a few hours. This illistrates well how incredibly brainwashed you bunch are. Ive lived up here all my life, but did live there a few months, at which time my suspicion was proved correct: the only significant difference between US & Canada is that the US citizens have been conditioned from birth to believe they're superior. Therefore: the US is superior.\nHow many media follow-ups have we all heard: I can't believe this happened in our quiet little town/suburb-? Relisten to your responses on gun 'control you consumer/pawn/tool.

From Montreal here, I,ve been to Florida on five consecutive winters, before Covid, stayed in Pompano (Deerfield area), on day time, I never felt unsafe, but, I was told to never wander outside the resort for an evening walk, sometimes, in the night, we,d hear gunshots popping . This fact itself gives you something to think about. This whole gun violence situation is keeping people from enjoying Life like we should, .I was there (10 minutes away from( when parkland school shooting took place, enough to reinforce our feeling of Insecurity. NO, I would never consider moving to the States

Hi there, loved your explanation. I am about to apply for a super visa for my mother. We tried visitor visa initially, but was rejected before. Can you please let me know what all changes do i need in my application when applying this time. Coz she already did her biometrics last year. And do we require any additional documents this time. Your reply is much appreciated

So every talk so right, but same in india was very nice . I am here 35 years in NY. But today if I can go back I will go. I fill alone. Children went there life ,we both husband and my self , fills so alone. After returning to spent time I started to learn new language. Now days internet is good , so I can learn and spent time.

lived in Peirce County(mostly Tacoma) WA State almost my entire life. I just wasn't born there. I was born in Kennewick, WA, state. I have lived in a couple of other states not as long as I have lived in Peirce County Tacoma Washington State. I have only lived in Seattle, WA state since 2014-2023 that's only the past 9 years. I never had a driver's license except of 2002 in Guthrie Job Corps Center Oklahoma. I never renewed it. I also never owned a car. I have earned a permit only in Washington state, and Alisha Badger allowed me to drive her car with her in it because she was allowing me to drive. The last time I owned a driver's permit was 2007. I never had a bad driving record. Only 1 ticket for speeding, but Alisha Badger and her husband payed it that was 2007. The only other USA states I have ever lived is Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, and Georgia in my younger years. I'm 36 years old and I never left United States of America ??

I lived in the US; Virginia for 13 years. For the most part the people are lovely... just like a lot of places. If you treat people with kindness; they usually return that kindness. At least that is my experience. Mind you, I came home in 2006. When I lived there the political climate was completely different. I would absolutely NOT move back to the US. When I came home to Canada; I was so grateful because I had to endure 2 years without Healthcare when I really needed it. I lived on pain pills at that time. I was in a wheelchair by 2008 and so grateful that I was home where my country took care of me when I was unable to work, or even walk. \n\nPolitics has changed so much since then. It was always kind of poler, but when Donald Trump entered the scene; it has become just awful. Again, I love the Americans for the most part, however there is so much racism, homophobia and hate displayed in the country right now. I pray every day that Donald Trump does not become president again. I fear for the United States. I love her as a sister to Canada; she is. I want her people safe...

Not only would I not move there...visiting is also a no. Last time I was in the states was in 2016 in CT for work. The first morning me and my coworker were having breakfast and a very well dressed lady in her 60's stopped at our table because my coworker had a Canadian jacket on. She quickly asked what we thought of the new president. I said yeah that's so crazy right? Her face turned sharp and she said Well I think he speaks for a lot of us. My immediate thought was when is my return flight again?

I split my time between Canada and the US. In the 1980s and 90s, there was very little difference. Far right extremism was left in the most fundamentalist churches and if any of it made it to the larger public sphere, it was either laughed at or ignored. All that changed with the rise of the Tea Party movement, social media, and now MAGA. Now, far right extremism and the Christian theonomy movement are mainstream..sucking in about 1/3 of the country down the rabbit hole of rage and just pure craziness that's just taking over more and more.\n\nI'm looking forward to being able to move entirely out of the US before it's too late. Hopefully I can do so before the 2024 election, but it seems unlikely.

There was a time I would have. My father and Grandfather grew up in New York city as children and spoke highly of the States. Since 2016 I would seriously not consider living there. The gun violence that occurs their has gotten to the point that it has to be especially eggregious before it makes the news. The cavalier attitude towards guns and gun saftey is disturbing even from your politicians. it would be a recipe for loosing your privalege to own a firearm in Canada if you did what many of us see americans do with their guns. Open carry. Not allowed. Concealed carry. Not allowed. There are courses you need to take and pass on firearm saftey and gun use here, before you are given the privaledge of owning a firearm. Those firearms need to be stored properly or carried in cases at all times when not in use \n\nThat being said I have done those courses and I own guns. Rifles to be precise and a shot gun I use for hunting food. Pistols are not easy to get here and you can only use them on a range. The only people legally carrying pistols in public are the police.\n\nHealthcare is fine if you are young and healthy, with a job. If i showed up at 53 with a handfull of pre-existing conditions, I would be in bad shape.\n\nYour record on lgbtq+ and a woman's right to bodily autonomy is back slipping to the 1950's. Some politcians (not sure what level, state or federal) are looking to even reverse the position on interracial marriages for pete sake.\n\nI think if Voter appathy is allowed to continue, the vocal minority of people who want this will get their way despite the fact that the polls suggest the majority of americans hate what is happening

Spent a fair amount of time in America, in many area's. \nOptically, when well positioned in the US, life can be lived at the highest standards available.\nMy American friends are congenial, courtley, generous and caring, excellent neighbour material.\nWould I consider it, as a seasonal choice....perhaps?\nMoving there full time, nearly came up professionally a few years ago, and I was willing to explore it.\nThe gun culture, the health care, the cultural divides, and its insulation from world awareness, make it a no for me.\n\nCorporate America clearly dislikes, and is disengaged from the American people, do anything to not pay them resonably, or outsource their positions.\nThe homeless, the substance issues and the crime are all core related to outsourcing the livelihoods of mainstream American's.\nFinally, I have a Canadian passport, which anywhere in the world is access to at least a neutral welcome, but more often a genuinely receptive one !

I had a friend whos family split up and all 4 children and their mom ended up down in Philadelphia somewhere (some cult/religious thing she got into that started the whole divorce ect) and they would come back to Canada for visits. When he would explain going to school, having to walk through metal detectors on the way in, guarded by cops with SMG's I just couldn't fathom what he was talking about or why it would be needed. Luckily I managed to convince him to stay one time when he came and visited and still lives here. Personally I'm considering moving with how hostile my government here in Canada has become to anything oil/gas/nuclear/fertilizer. My trade (Steamfitter/Pipefitter) is being reduced to shut down work only and I have some family down in Texas and its pushing me more and more to start looking elsewhere for work. However I'm single, if I had a family there would be no way id leave. As good of healthcare you have down there (way better than most if not all of Canada in relation to wait times and expertise), one long illness or something and they drop your health care? Your screwed. Plain and simple.

I love that you have taken interest in our country Canada. The one thing I found interesting was you kept talking about safe spots in your country where you don't have to worrie about gun violence and school shooting. Where are they? I live in Canada near the boarder and everyday we hear about this shooting or this one. Seems to be happening more is small and medium size towns then major city's. I saw an interesting stat in feb At the time there where 3080 people kill so far that year by shooting. Only a month in and more people had died from shootings then in 9/11.

With your gun culture, politics and health care system in no way would I ever move to the US. There are way to many mass shootings happening all over the US and I can't see your gun culture ever changing to lower and make it safer to live in most parts of the US. Our Canadian political system may not be perfect but it's WAY Better then the US, how in HELL can Donald ever be allowed to run again for President after what he has done and have people still support him ??? \nJust a little over 20 years ago I met and became good friends with a young woman while we were playing an MMORPG. We spent most of our free time playing different RPGs over the years together. Around 9 years ago she came down with some kind of a illness and thank goodness she had healthcare through her job. The thing is though the system couldn't/wouldn't identify what was causing her decline in health. She went through all kinds of tests but became sicker and sicker in years to come. She died in October of 2021 but before she died we both wondered if the health care system was just milking her insurance and not really taking proper care of her. BTW she lived in SLC Utah. Going back to your gun culture though she felt safe living in SLC the mall she went too had a mass shooting and she also carried a pistol in her purse. ( she had a permit ) I have never known any woman in Canada who felt that she needed to carry a gun in her purse for safety.

I ‘ve met so many Americans on trips and through living in San Francisco for 3 months for a course. They were very kind, thoughtful and knowledgeable people. I also love many beautiful places in the States. I find though, that the media ignores Canada to a great degree only reporting negative issues . I don’t care for the super nationalism of the government, the gun laws, the many wars they’ve been involved in, nor do I like the racism and the present divisiveness of the country given that a person like Trump could be voted in and have so much power! That is frightening! I could never have afforded my two hip and knee replacements as well as other surgeries and the birth of four children had I lived there consequently, I would make friends with Americans who move here withthe same principles, but no to moving to the United States OF America.I was happy to return to beautiful Vancouver Island, (which was voted one of the top Islands in the world by CNN, Time magazine and Conde Nast, )

I don't live in the mountains, but I don't deny they are there. Small towns are safe you say.....until easily accessed guns are used to kill so many kids, like in Uvalde . So lets not include THAT small town then. As for the batshit crazy comment, are you kidding that you don't see it. The entire world sees it and comments on it. I have 6 kids, and not one cost me a cent when they were born. Don't get me wrong, I have been down through the usa many times, and met great people. Last year I was in Livingston Texas, at a gas station, and a guy beside me was carrying a handgun out in the open, filling his car while smoking.....I was not about to confront him, and just stopped getting gas and left. So ya...that's not normal in my world, or 95% of the civilized world. So, for the love of god, stop trying to convince the world that the US is the greatest country on earth. Every time I hear that I cringe. I love your channel Tyler, and I don't aim my comments at you personally. One of my boys I named Tyler. He is 30, so sorry he was not named after you.

I live just outside of Montreal, pretty near the border. One of my good friends used to live in Vermont, right near the border and we would visit each other several times a year. She moved to Tennessee, and I flew down to visit her a few years ago (haven't been down since COVID) while Trump was still president and I'm not even joking when I say that as soon as I left Nashville I was highly anxious 100% of my time there. And I'm white, I'm not a visible minority, I suppose if I kept my mouth shut nobody could tell I'm not from there, it really hit me how sad it is that I even felt that. All these patriotic gun toting Americans I feared would shoot me for whatever reason they could come up with. I understand that that's not ACTUALLY likely, I was glad I left my husband and children at home, and while I enjoyed my weekend there I couldn't WAIT to get back home. New England was easier to handle, but I'm not cut out for the openly racist, homophobic, anti women's rights, you name it kind of discussions. I was horrified that not only do people ACTUALLY think like this, but those who are being oppressed, or those who simply support those being oppressed are having to keep quiet for fear of being murdered because of this. Nashville was really cool, I loved it, but I truly feared for my safety outside of the city, despite being a straight white woman. I can't imagine what it's like for the minorities, it's so sad. I think you hit the nail on the head when you said that you're just numb to it, because being on the outside looking in, it's hard to believe what's actually going on, it looks as though the country is regressing,

I went to the Atlanta suburbs a few years ago for corporate training (I was working in Canada for a US based company). There were people from all around North America there, who did not know each other before meeting there. What shocked me the most, even more than the constant subtext racism between people, in the news, everywhere basically, more than the senseless political debates where people take for one side just because, no matter the truth and lies, the arguments or even the crimes comitted by one side or the other, is the fact that 2 americans, never having met before, were talking about their prefered gun makes and ammunition types literally 5 minutes after having met the first time. THAT is unhealthy! THAT is scary! I just went with the flow and accepted it, and I kept noticing it for the 2 weeks I was there. In Canada, we talk about the weather to break the ice with strangers. In the states, you talk about guns. That is what we call gun culture and that, more than anything else, is why I'll never live in the US.\nOh, and just to make it worse, when I tried to explain why we did not feel like we had to have guns on our person in Canada, not a single American I talked to could ever begin to understand. Not centering your life around the fact that you can or cannot have a gun is just impossible for Americans, it seems.

I dont have a problem with the average American but life in Canada is everything you could ask for. Health care of course but here you can truly do what you want and live your dream if you work for it. Every single person here stands a chance to do amazing things if they have the drive and motivation. We take care of each other here and there are always lots of jobs. \n99% of Canadians would never move to the States unless it was ridiculous to turn down a huge opportunity. But your average person, never. We have it way better here. I have spent a fair bit of time in America. While I have enjoyed it and met some great people there is no comparison when it comes to overall quality of life in every regard.

Hey Tyler! As a Canadian who lived in the US (and all over the US) for over five years, I just wanted to comment on this video. \n\nIn your video, you seem to be shocked with Canadians reactions to school shootings and health care in the US. Much like Americans paint all of Canada with one brush, Canadians do the same. We watch American news channels more than Canadian news channels, and we read news from American sources more than Canadian sources. American news really is designed to scare people, and Canadians are easily scared! Not all of us consume only American news sources, but most of us do, and that’s just simply based on the fact that Google, Facebook, CNN, ABC, etc. are American companies. Yes of course there are safe communities and cities in the US, and yes of course if you have a good job you probably don’t have to worry much about health care.\n\nDuring my time in the US, I lived in Miami, Chicago and Seattle. I didn’t like Miami. It’s kind of another world down there. Seattle was ok. Chicago though… I absolutely loved living there. And if given the opportunity, that is where I would live for the rest of my life. People will say “Chicago! It’s so violent and problems blah blah”, but like you said, there are areas, even in big cities, that are super safe and fun to live in. \n\nI live in Toronto now, and I wouldn’t hesitate to move back to Chicago if given the opportunity. The food scene, the music scene, the sports scene, and the unbelievably friendly people. Such a great town.\n\nAnyway, love the videos. Keep it up!

There are places in the States that I love to visit (although not right now, because I've never had a passport). I used to be in a drum corp, and we did a lot of parades and field shows down there in New York State and Pennsylvania, and had a great time. But I would never move there. I probably couldn't afford health care there anyway. My niece married a lovely guy from Maine, and he was planning on moving up here, but for unexpected family reasons, they ended up staying there. But he is increasingly worried about the political climate.