Cdn's opinion of U.S.

[goodbasil]

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/0...al/poll_cda_us

[TimH]

nice


"There are underlying, enduring currents of skepticism, distrust and even perhaps anti-Americanism in Canada which (Obama's) election has not fundamentally changed," said Andrew Cohen, president of the Historica-Dominion Institute.

[Jim Bow]

"force for good in the world. Canadians split almost down the middle on that"

What country, other than Canada, would Canadians give a rating higher than 48%?

[TimH]

If it wasnt for us Canada would be taken over by Mexico.

[BrianW]

USA's opinion of Canada...

"It our favorite National Park, but the Rangers dress funny."

[TimH]

They gave us Bob and Doug McKenzie!

you hoser. Take off eh?

[peter radclyffe]

no one can presume that 1'000 people speak for several million people

[johnw]

Hey, don't beat up on the Canadians! That's who our left-leaning celebrities aspire to be (well, those who weren't Canadian to begin with, which means the unfunnny ones.)

[Brian Palmer]

What do you call a single 20-something with a life threatening illness (e.g., cancer) and health insurance?
























A Canadian.

Brian

[TomF]

Hmmm.

Well, Canadians are pretty evenly split on whether the US is a "force for good in the world." And 48% of us don't feel "at home" in the US.

Fair enough - I don't think the US is an unmitigated force for good in the world ... you've a lot which has piled up historically on both sides of that equation. A change in President one way or the other won't change history, or the collective orientation which has produced those good and bad impacts. The same is true of pretty much every hegemonic power, through history.

I do think you're a better force for good than if the other side had won the Cold War, hands down.

Almost half of Canadians don't feel "at home" in the US? Well, it isn't our home ... so why would we? We've got different cultural traits, different histories, different values expressed in our politics, foreign affairs, domestic policy etc. Different approaches to things like the market too, for a sizeable number of us.

This is bad? We wouldn't feel "at home" in Belgium either, or Australia, or Ireland ... because we wouldn't be "at home."

Before anyone gets their shorts in a knot, I wonder how Americans might answer analogues of the same questions.

• What proportion of Americans think that the US is "a force for good in the world." Unmitigated, I assume.
• What proportion of Americans feel "at home" in Canada?

I suspect that the numbers might vary somewhat on the first question, but that a whole bunch of Americans wouldn't feel desperately "at home" when visiting a place where they weren't at home.

[pefjr]

What proportion of Americans feel "at home" in Canada? TomF

The wife and I took a short trip into Canada 2 years ago. I saw all positive on Canada. She saw mostly negatives. ??

Basically I don't see much difference. I probably take Canada for granted. I play tennis with a lot snowbirds. You can tell a lot about a person after playing tennis. They are not as aggressive a personality, sorta like you Tom. BTW that's a positive. Americans are aggressive as a whole. One tennis facility has 4 courts. Two of the courts are filled with Filipinos, 2 courts with whites and blacks. In 14 yrs I have witnessed only 1 argument and no fights with the Filipinos. The other two courts have several arguments daily, and a couple fights a week. The snowbirds are more like the Filipinos, hardly any arguments or fights, and enjoy the game of tennis more.

[Tylerdurden]

Canucks are cool.

Well generally cooler than Americans. Its all geography I guess.

[Domesticated_Mr. Know It All]

Canadian's have strange opinions on just about everything.
Take this story for example.....


One day an Englishman, an American, and a Canadian walked into a pub together. The proceeded to each buy a pint of Molson Canadian. Just as they were about to enjoy their beverage three flys landed in each of their pints, and were stuck in the head of the beer.

The Englishman pushed his beer away from him in disgust.

The American fished the offending fly out of his beer and continued drinking it as if nothing had happened.

The Canadian too , picked the fly out of his drink, held it out over the beer and then started yelling "SPIT IT OUT, SPIT IT OUT YOU BASTARD!!!!"

[cbcc]

The more basic question is why does it matter what Canadians think of America?

[pefjr]

Originally Posted by Tylerdurden

Canucks are cool.

Well generally cooler than Americans. Its all geography I guess.

Well, dang, I have seen it all now!! TD has turned to humor.

[pefjr]

Originally Posted by cbcc

The more basic question is why does it matter what Canadians think of America?

matter? too deep

[Domesticated_Mr. Know It All]

Originally Posted by cbcc

The more basic question is why does it matter what Canadians think of America?

They have all the good wood and their our neighbors?
Canadian beer and BC bud?
They build all the cool boats?
The list goes on and on man.

[bob winter]

I don't spend a great deal of time contemplating my feelings towards the US. I could do with a lot less of the idiot TV shows that clutter up the airwaves but, in all fairness, we have more than our share of idiot home grown shows. As far as I am concerned, US foreign policy is not much better than no foreign policy at all.

When I am in the US, I feel comfortable enough but I find the whole thing a bit odd. Once again, in all fairness, my primare exposure to the US in recent years has been Florida and it is a bit wierd. I feel a hell of a lot more at home in Barbados than I do in the US.

As to your system of government, I am amazed by it.

[Three Cedars]

Originally Posted by TimH

If it wasnt for us Canada would be taken over by Mexico.

Really , the mexicans I know can't handle the cold

[Bruce Hooke]

I'm going to get a first-hand experience of how a few Canadians feel about this particular American (meaning me) and how at home I feel in Canada because I am going to Montreal for a couple of days soon! I'm looking forward to it...

[paladin]

I've spent 4 years in "Canada"......A year in St. John's Newfoundland where it seemed all the damned wimmins were looking for a husband.....and if one gal had one all the others were trying to take him.....
A year at Cut Throat Island, Labrador, where there were no wimmins.......
A year in and around Montreal, 90 days at a time while attending school....
and the same around Vancouver, 2-3 months at a time...and as soon as they found that you were unattached, they were trying to convince you that it was the place to stay.....and I was tempted.....oh...lordy was I tempted....

[TimH]

Canadians are more laid back.
Id rather be more laid back, but as an American I have to worry about corruption and white collar crime and terrorists and health care and....

Maybe I should move to Canadia.

[Domesticated_Mr. Know It All]

The freshwater fishing alone makes me wanna move there.

[Captain Blight]

TomF's post reminds me what i like most about Canada: That it is populated by some of the most fair, common-sense, level-headed people on the planet. And they manage to do so with a population at least as racially diverse as our own, and with two official languages. Certainly I like the idea that our closest neighbour has never started a war of aggression.

I bet they wish they could say the same.

[Bruce Taylor]

"Living next to you is in some ways like sleeping with an elephant. No matter how friendly and even-tempered is the beast, if I can call it that, one is affected by every twitch and grunt."

Pierre Trudeau, to the Washington Press Club, 1969

[Donn]

Trudeau probably knew exactly what sleeping with an elephant was like.

I've always enjoyed my visits to Canada. It's never felt like home, mostly for reasons stated above, but also because it is one of the most flatulent countries I've visited. I don't know if it's the Molsons, the meat or the French, but Whew! You guys must have some secret recipes for Beano, because fishing camps in Canada positively glow with ripeness!

[Tylerdurden]

Originally Posted by pefjr

Well, dang, I have seen it all now!! TD has turned to humor.

Have to, still have family in Montreal.

Still will kick their arses if they decide to invade.

[novass]

Originally Posted by Donn

I've always enjoyed my visits to Canada. It's never felt like home, mostly for reasons stated above, but also because it is one of the most flatulent countries I've visited. I don't know if it's the Molsons, the meat or the French, but Whew! You guys must have some secret recipes for Beano, because fishing camps in Canada positively glow with ripeness!

Brahahahahahaha...thats funny stuff right there, I dont care who you are

[LeeG]

that's Donn, under layers and layers of curmudgeon, is a curmudgeon with a sense of humor

[JimD]

Originally Posted by cbcc

The more basic question is why does it matter what Canadians think of America?

It hardly matters at all. We went to Hawaii two years ago when you still had the stupidest president ever. And we're going back this winter. Maybe we'll make a pilgrimage to Obama's birth place .

[TimH]

Somehow I think I would feel more at home in Canada than the US.
I listen to Canadian radio and it suits me better than US radio stations around here.

http://www.theq.fm/

it sux 23% less

[Don Kurylko]

Yup, we’re friendly folk alright. But sometimes we just get a little overwhelmed!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sekLEG8xsOs&feature=fvw

[TimH]

must be rabid