Yo

What's up hos, how have you been?

Anyone from Australia, please respond, I need help with a project.

 

You most propably was hardly aware of my existance up to this moment, but me recalling you is enough for my humble self to say "Welcome back!". Are you planning to stay or will it be just a "I need help and after I get what I want I'm out of here" gambit?

You shouldn't have too much problem with the project thingy for to be frank, we're having a shitload of active Australian members lately.

 

You probably don't remember me, but you were the first person to reply to the first post I ever made, with the first account I ever registered. I curse you for forever entwining my soul with this cursed forum.
Other than that, long time no typy, how ya been bucko?

 

BLINKY! *snuggles* Where have you been? Your presence has been sorely needed lately.

 

You probably don't remember me because we never actually spoke. Yeah I'm Australian.

 

Yep.
Blinky needs an Australian.
Someone killed his last one with a ray.

What?
Too soon?

 

Hiya Blinks, welcome back.

 

I thought Richard was helping you out?

 

I'm not from Australia, but if the help you need is someone who can drive a tanker filled with sand as a decoy while a bus full of innocent people and petrol escape count me in.

 

Australians: Don't do it, he just wants to pull you into the tree with him.

 

What can I say? I'm generous that way. Hell, if he wants to fly me off this fucking island I'll climb into the tree.

 

Seconded. (Well, maybe not, I'm quite happy to stay here till I finish my courses at least. Then... to CANADA!)

 

Canada isn't really all that different than any other Commonwealth Western Nation. I don't understand why people from other developed countries are willing to undergo the expensive and arduous immigration process just so they can live in a land that was the same as before, but the culture revolves entirely around pretending there is no American influence.

But hey, we need our immigrants. If you don't mind toughing it out for a while, the Atlantic Provinces desperately need an influx of immigrants. Much like when we first started colonizing this place, however, you will face much racism and prejudice, even if you are a Caucasian. My girlfriend's Newfie parents dislike me, for instance, because I was born in Vancouver and now live in Ontario. Don't worry, though, it's a passive, silent racism. They will probably pretend they like you while they communicate with you directly, and then complain "those damn Aussies are taking over our town" five years after you purchase a failing business and bring it back into profitability again, helping to bolster local economy.

Fun Fact: According to Canada's Census, there are 10 Asians living full time in my old town. They are all in the same family. They run the local Esso station. People there are genuinely terrified that the Asians are taking over their town. All this despite the fact that the only ethnic group that actually has heritage rights to the region have been squeezed onto a hodgepodge of land between the mall and the army base.

Trust me. It's not any different than what you're doing now. And the test you have to write to get Citizenship is hard as balls, most Canadian-born Citizens can't pass it.

 

Goddamnit, I forgot half my HECTS for the maritime college next year has probably already been payed. Another 4 years, then...

Grakelin, I, wow you're taking it way too seriously. What's in Canada though, Xiao?

What's this "project" Blinky?

 

It's been my experience that Canadians can be/are just as annoying/racist/whatever as the worst of the Americans out there, but it's just that nobody cares about Canada on the international stage so you never hear about it.

And yeah, I hear you Grakelin, there's some kind of faux "We're Not America So We're Better!" mentality up there that I find annoying. However, it's possible that that might be so only because I myself am American. It's so much a part of their national identity (ironically so, actually) that it's inescapable.

 

Canadians don't have a drastically different culture from Americans (though we have different political values, which is why I still think we shouldn't unite into a continent-nation like Fox News often suggests), but it is almost a slur to be called 'American' (possibly because of the USA's reputation on the global scale). There is a truth to the statement that we're treated better than Americans when we visit Europe, however. Especially by people in Dutch countries, who love us because our military force liberated them during World War II. A friend of mine anecdotes that while living on the military base in Germany, some German kids followed he and a friend around town swearing at them for being American. When they found out he was Canadian, they apologized profusely and tried to make it up to him.

I'm digressing, however. The point I'm getting at is that a major staple of Canadian culture is simply in not being American, even though we move in that direction every day. Until recent years, our news media was of a significantly better quality, less prone to random acts of propaganda than the major American networks, but this has changed. Also, despite constant disputes, both the USA and Canada rely heavily on eachother for trade (though patriotic rednecks on both sides argue endlessly that one or the other could survive without).

Claiming that nobody cares about Canada on the international stage is rather incorrect. Canadian government was responsible for initiating the first peacekeeping missions after the United Nations formed (basically saying, that whether or not you believe the UN is useful, most of its use has been generated by Canada). Canada also produced Pierre Trudeau, who, besides being possibly the most famous Canadian, also shook things up on a major scale. He was kind of like a Canadian Obama for his time, in that everybody was completely split on their opinions of him and had a celebrity stature. Canada is also a member of the G8, a group which surprisingly lacks several developed nations.

In order to actually reach a level of understanding between people from two nations, one has to avoid being outright prejudiced against the actual nation itself. The idea that nobody cares about Canada is a popular notion in the United States, but is not shared by most of the world.

The subject of Canadian racism/annoyingness/whateverness does not concern Canada's role on an international scale anyway. The Government (which has been in turmoil for a few years now and rarely does anything but smear eachother anymore. They just called another election) deals with that sector. No matter how racist Joe from Manitoba is, it won't affect international policy. Our Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, was criticized for trying to help out pig farmers by calling the H1N1 virus by its suggested alternative name of 'Mexican Flu', recently, however. Because, after all, it's better to discriminate against Mexicans than Pig Farmers. Priorities. Also, he told the press that the Atlantic Provinces are poor because they are lazy. So yeah, I guess racism has permeated strongly in Canada.


Canada has always been a racist, discriminatory country. During the early 20th century, we shut our doors to immigrants when we decided we'd had enough. We herded our Aboriginals into special boarding schools and raped them until they forgot their languages. We attacked several legal immigrant ships which tried to dock at our harbors. We denied Medical Doctors the ability to continue their practice in our country. We allowed a megacorporation to subjugate an entire group of people who had to form full scale rebellion against us just to survive. We denied Holocaust Victims access to our country. And then, to top it all off, we made an immigration system that was impossible for the working poor to pass through. We're only considered 'immigrant-friendly' because at the dawn of the 20th century, a government official decided we needed some cheap labour to work factories and farms, so we imported millions of Eastern Europeans.

Anyways, I've gone into way too much detail about this. I'll conclude by saying that while I still enjoy living in Canada, and would rather be here than most other places (including the USA, because I agree more with the Socialist-leaning system than the Capitalist-leaning system. And the hospital lines aren't actually nearly as long as people say), this isn't exactly Mecca. It has as many issues as any other developed nation. Xiao, unless your life really is shoddy in Australia, you should make immigration a secondary priority to trying to relocate inside your own developed nation. I fully support new blood coming in to replenish this dwindling population, but it might actually be in your best interest to ensure that you really want to go to Canada.

We have Australians here, though. A nice one was working security at an event here a couple months ago, he was the friendliest one there.

 

You could move to the U.S. If I had/have the room, I'd happily put you up for next to nothing (and by that I may or may not mean what you should wear).

 

I'll admit "nobody cares about Canada" is an untrue, blanket statement, but it's actually something I wish the USA would get as well. The problem is we keep sticking our nose where it shouldn't, combined with being something of a powerhouse (for better of for worse) means America makes waves whether it wants to or not.

Every country has it's horrible history, and Canada has some pretty terrible shit (what's this about denying MDs the right to practice? Never heard of that one) just like America does.

That whole post was mostly set off by a douchebag Canadian I met a few days ago who was anti-American to the point of bringing it up randomly to people on the street unprovoked and going off on rants. I realize you can't blanket judge based off of one person, but man, that guy irritated me.

But yeah, I've been to Canada and enjoyed myself there. On an individual basis I believe we're a lot, lot more similar than either countryman would like to admit.

 

I want to live in Canada because it's cold, it's pretty, they have two national languages, all the Canadians I've met through archery and my uncle's political connections have been friendly, charming and intelligent, and for a decent chunk of the year Montreal turns into comedy heaven.

As opposed to here in Australia where the weather's fucking schitzophrenic, it's big flat and red, our national language is being mauled more and more severely every year, we're still stuck firmly in America's back pocket (although I will admit it's been more tolerable since the leadership of both countries changed), people are becoming dumber by the day and most of our comedians think swearing is an excuse to be completely retarded and unfunny.

Vive la Canada!