USA / Canada Pros & Cons?

Question

Where would you rather live?

Answer 1

I see this question all the time on this category. Search "USA or Canada?" and you'll find that the question has been asked hundreds of times.

I think both countries have their pros and cons, just like anywhere else.

EDIT:

I would also like to mention that judging a country based on billboards and different styles of traffic lights is extremely ignorant. I'm referring to one of the answers below.

Answer 2

I would say Canada. But maybe thats just me cuz this is what I'm used to. A lot of people say Canada and the US are so similar but really they're not. I have friends that lived here then moved to the states and its interesting how different things are.

I've noticed alot of differences too when staying in the U.S. The food is VERY different. Not a good as Canada's in my opinion. The traffic lights and intersections work differently. Theres more crime in the states... a lot more! Whats really funny is I find the states have a lot of billboard ad's lol. We have them in major cities and whatnot but I find in the states they're plastered everywhere! The laws are different too. The states have more strict drug laws and traffic laws.

Overall though... Canada. We may have some harsh winters but our food is better, we have way lower crime rates, we have a better healthcare system.. although I heard doctors in the US give more of a d**n. But no one over here is going bankrupt because they needed any treatments or surguries. And I also like that our government isn't so scandalous. And by that I mean you don't ever hear much in the tabloids or magazines... but in the U.S. the whole Obama and Clinton thing is crazy and not to mention Bill Clintons major scandal or shall we say s***w up.

If you really want a good comparison of Canada and the U.S. I suggest you watch Sicko. Its a Michael Moore documentary. Also I think "Bowling for Columbine" has some comparisons too about the gun laws and whatnot.

Answer 3

Both countries are very large and have good things and bad things about them. It is hard to judge an entire country by the little segment you have seen or lived in.

I have been accused of being biased towards preferring Canada based on some of my past comments in this category, and I probably am a bit since I am Canadian. However, I would say that someone who is asking this question in the Travel - Canada section of Yahoo! should be expecting a bit of biased info from the people responding.

Regardless, here are some of my observations from having visited over a dozen states and four provinces.

I don't think anything matches the southern hospitality of places like Tennessee and Texas. People seem genuinely friendly and are not afraid to start up a conversation with you on the street, even if they don't know you.

I liked the weather and the sites to see in California, but they do have a noticeable homeless problem around Los Angeles and San Francisco.

The nightlife and atmosphere in Quebec, especially around Montreal and Quebec City are fantastic, with great architecture, good public transit, and great food and music. On the other hand, every decade we seem to have some sort of language debates, referendums, and irritation that develops between the French and the English.

Ontario is just so hustle-bustle and no one seems very friendly. Everyone is always polite, because that's the Canadian way, but the people are all in their own little world, even in some of the smaller towns. You have to get to places like Port Perry or Brockville to have a quieter friendly small town feeling.

Alberta is a nice place, with that midwestern feel to it, but with the modernization and more excitement for the younger crowd, especially around Calgary area. Lots of things to do especially outdoors.

The only place I did not really enjoy was New York City (just way too big, too many people, too noisy, and seemed dirty, especially the subways and in parts of town around MSG. But at least I had good friends to keep me company.

There are many places that are probably great to live in all over both our countries, you just need to find the place that you fit in best with. If you are a country person at heart, you may not like living in a place like Chicago. On the other hand, if you are used to all night bakeries and bars open until 3AM then Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin is probably not for you.

Answer 4

It all depends on how you look at things and what you like better. I live in New Brunswick, Canada, but was born and raised in Wisconsin. I prefer Wisconsin over NB. My family is there, my friends are there, and there is way more to do there than there is here. Not to mention it's cheaper. Taxes in Canada are higher, but you also get universal health care, if you're a resident or citizen of course. Depending on your province and even doctor, you could be waiting a bit for treatment or surgery. My husband and his friend both had to wait 4 years for a knee surgery, it's not serious so it's not that big of a deal. I have heard that here (from my mother-in-law who is an RN at the hospital rehab) that doctors don't come in very often to check up on their patients once they get out of surgery nor do they really give a c**p about them. I haven't experienced that with my doctor, but I have heard of it. Almost reminds me of seeing a doctor in boot camp, you wait a few hours to see the doc, then they rush you out. It may be because they have a doctor shortage here and they have many people to try to see.

As far as food, the food is generally the same. However, because the city I live in is small, there's not much to choose from. It's either stuff like Taco Bell, KFC, Burger King or  places like a bar and grill type deal. Other than poutine, I have no idea what "Canadian" food would be, because every time I went out it was like American food. Here they have one Mexican restaurant and one or two Italian places and several Chinese places. Where I'm from, you can find all kinds of restaurants, anything from Japanese, Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, Korean, Mexican, Cuban, Puerto Rican, German, Italian, Middle Eastern and even a few African restaurants and that's just within a few blocks of each other downtown. To me, their food isn't better, it's really generic. They do have really good seafood here though.

The whole thing about advertising that the poster above me said, I see just as many billboards here as I would in my old neighborhood in Milwaukee. It's really sad when someone brings something as petty as that up. Next I'd expect the whole "all Americans carry guns around" when in most states it's illegal. I guess it's all about where you go. The reason Canadians hear so much about American politics a lot is because they follow it more than Americans do. If you saw how my husband is following the whole race, you'd think he was getting ready to vote in November. He checks literally every day to see how things are going. He doesn't even have American citizenship.

There's obviously going to be more crime in the US because the population is much higher. Moncton has a population of 126,424 while Milwaukee has one of 602,782, which do you think would have more crime? Those numbers were both taken from a census done in 2006 though. The estimate for populations in both countries is 33,286,000 in Canada and 304,259,000 in the US, so please tell me, logically, which country would have more crime?

If you like big cities, I'd say stay in the US, if you like more rural ones, then Canada would be good. There are large cities in Canada also like Vancouver, Montreal, and Toronto just to name a couple.