- Joined
- Aug 30, 2007
- Messages
- 13,881
Having grown up in Europe .. working in many places across the globe including the US, and now living in Canada for the last 50% (or 25 years) of my life I have come to appreciate both models of governments, pensions, taxes, wages etc. ..
Canada for the last few decades by and large has implemented a fair compromise between a "too socialistic plus too high taxes" Europe and a "too capitalistic plus too low taxes" US model !
However, as I look around here in Canada, talk to investors and fellow citizens, and read articles like the one linked here on
a) vastly increased government payrolls,
b) more and more unwillingness of immigrants to integrate into Canadian values,
c) inappropriate and often costly demands by new immigrants,
d) falling social systems in Europe ,
e) human rights abuses and
f) lack of calls for rejection of extremism (like in the UK or Australia)
and elsewhere I AM GETTING CONCERNED, that Canada too will have problems like the US or Europe as none of the issues are being addressed in earnest here at home !
Specifically:
a) public servants make too much money and have way too generous indexed pensions
b) the deficit is growing as is the debt
c) too much free health care and not enough user-participation
d) a growing expectation of "the government will take of me" as baby boomers age
e) too much entitlement demands by immigrants, pensioners and even students
f) increased multi-culturism i.e. people of different faiths or ethnic origins living side by side increasingly isolated as opposed to in more harmony with shared core values or even language
g) lack of enforcement of white collar crimes
h) lack of freedom-of-speech due to increased potential for defamation law suits and human rights tribunals with quasi-judical powers
I think Canada needs to do more .. MUCH MORE .. to address these issues that we now see emerging in Europe or the US .. as otherwise a formerly healthy Canadian society will end up much like Europe with too much debt, a far lower living standard and far less freedoms !
What are your thoughts on some of these issues ?
Canada for the last few decades by and large has implemented a fair compromise between a "too socialistic plus too high taxes" Europe and a "too capitalistic plus too low taxes" US model !
However, as I look around here in Canada, talk to investors and fellow citizens, and read articles like the one linked here on
a) vastly increased government payrolls,
b) more and more unwillingness of immigrants to integrate into Canadian values,
c) inappropriate and often costly demands by new immigrants,
d) falling social systems in Europe ,
e) human rights abuses and
f) lack of calls for rejection of extremism (like in the UK or Australia)
and elsewhere I AM GETTING CONCERNED, that Canada too will have problems like the US or Europe as none of the issues are being addressed in earnest here at home !
Specifically:
a) public servants make too much money and have way too generous indexed pensions
b) the deficit is growing as is the debt
c) too much free health care and not enough user-participation
d) a growing expectation of "the government will take of me" as baby boomers age
e) too much entitlement demands by immigrants, pensioners and even students
f) increased multi-culturism i.e. people of different faiths or ethnic origins living side by side increasingly isolated as opposed to in more harmony with shared core values or even language
g) lack of enforcement of white collar crimes
h) lack of freedom-of-speech due to increased potential for defamation law suits and human rights tribunals with quasi-judical powers
I think Canada needs to do more .. MUCH MORE .. to address these issues that we now see emerging in Europe or the US .. as otherwise a formerly healthy Canadian society will end up much like Europe with too much debt, a far lower living standard and far less freedoms !
What are your thoughts on some of these issues ?