If Canada and the United States were to merge into one country, what best demonstrated practices of each country should be adopted by all?

I’m sure Americans would appreciate some better healthcare, and I’m sure Canada would appreciate our hardcore, unregulated capitalism lol…..Ok I’m just kidding, but I’m having a hard time thinking of something good the United States could offer….

Doesn’t Canada have that thing that most civilized countries have: universal healthcare? Let’s start there.

We’d be a lot friendlier in the South, eh?

And how could Canadians possibly be better, I wonder?

That is my nightmare, actually. We wouldn’t have a chance to maintain our identity before being overwhelmed.

The things I love about my country are the things that seem to be reviled by many in the States: universal health care, a penal system that tries to rehabilitate, a healthy respect for unionized workers, a general skepticism of politics, an understanding that immigration can be good and healthy for your country….

Per Canada: full marriage rights for same-sex couples.

Per USA: see the first quip in this thread. ;-)

I’m still thinking…

Oh, we don’t really care what the hell our politicians do in their free time as long as it isn’t gravely illegal. We care more about how they run our country. A Bill Clinton scenario would never have happened here.

Oh, yeah, here it is. Canadians could become trilingual (or more), and start “Para continuar en Español marque número dos.”

Canada makes a cool two dollar coin.
They have only two seasons-Summer and Hockey
Other than that, I like the US

This is a depressing thread.

@WasCy Are all Canadians bilingual? If so, I didn’t realize that. And if they are, then it sounds like US should take a leaf out of their book.

The Canadian health care systems has some good aspects. Canadian unemployment is too generous. it tends to encourage people to only work part of the year.

Some population redistribution to fill up the empty spaces of Canada would be good.

@Pied_Pfeffer not all Canadians are bilingual, probably not even close, but a good percentage of us had at least 4 years of French.

@marinelife we love those wide open spaces.

How easy is it to become a Canadian citizen?

@Blackberry You read my mind.

I already loved Canada, but this thread made me want to move a few hours north even more than I already did.

We have apple pie?

@tranquilsea Thank you for the clarification. I would consider that one more tic mark for a Canadian BDP.

@marinelife those empty spaces of Canada are empty for a reason.

I, for one, welcome our Canadian overlords.

@Blackberry Try this link

My neighbours are newish immigrants from Israel. My good friends are newish immigrants from South Africa. Another set of friends are immigrants from New Zealand. I love that I get to talk to and get to know people from all over the world.

@Pied_Pfeffer

I would never say “all” of anyone are anything. Well, maybe I shouldn’t even say ‘never’. But the government is officially bilingual in French and English because of the ‘special status’ of Quebec.

Canada can show the US how to have better cheaper health care.

The US will show Canada how to have more prisons, waste money on wars they cannot fund; outsource part of the fighting to paid mercenaries; use sex to sell everything, outwardly complain about the high rate of teen sex and pregnancies but with a wink and a nod insinuate to the youngsters if you are not boinking like bunnies you are missing out because you are some hideous geek or troll no one wants to see naked. We can show the Canadians life is boring unless you are drunk or high and how to stay stoned 80% of the time.

@Hypocrisy_Central

Dude- is that you, or did ET Pro hijack your account?! ;-)

I know a doctor who moved to the US from Canada because he was not allowed to live and work where he wanted to. I have also heard nightmarish stories of people in Canada with their “awesome” health care system who were required to wait so long to be treated they actually died before treatment. I don’t believe there is a solution to this mess. This link discusses how the Canadians are beginning to look to the USA for help, and the USA is looking to Canada for solutions. http://www.city-journal.org/html/17_3_canadian_healthcare.html

That we all have Genuine 100% Maple Syrup (no additives) for our pancakes.

@ANef_is_Enuf

I could be wrong, but I heard that Seelix or Jude will give you lodging if you bring apple pie.

Few Canadians would tolerate, let alone welcome such a merger. I hope Canada continues to learn what not to do by following what happens in other countries. We are not perfect and we have a lot of growing up to do. We will do it in our own time and in our own way, thank you very much!

^ @Dr_Lawrence Hey buddy – long time no see – how are you, eh?!

As some of my friends above have already said – Canadians can’t get any better. Americans might get a better healthcare and welfare system, become a little more patient and tolerant, stop throwing gum on their sidewalks (pay big fine, eh?) and get to drink at 18. Yay!

If the Canadian health care is so great, why has every Canadian I met know someone who had to come to the States for some type of health care, because the Canadian system wouldn’t provide it? Canada can keep their high taxes too.

Canadians are fine. The Canadian government is worse than the one we already have, though.

What’s apple pie? I, as a Canadian, have never heard of it.~

Also, I’d give @ANef_is_Enuf lodging no matter what she brought me. She could bring me a pile of poop and I’d still give her tons of hugs.

Let me just say that I really hope this merger scenario never, ever happens.

@rts486 – Hi! I’m a Canadian who doesn’t know anyone who went to the US for health care.
Also, I’ve never heard of some type of health care that our system “wouldn’t provide”. From what I know, most Canadians who hop the border for health care do so to avoid wait times.
Aaaand, if you’re ever unemployed or if you want to see the roads fixed (which heave and get nearly destroyed every winter because of intense freezing and thawing) or maybe need some free health care, you’d appreciate those taxes.

I’ve never heard of someone dying because the wait was too long. We have a triage system which means if you are that sick or that injured you go to the front of the line. Now if the lineup was so long that I felt I needed to head to the US to get treatment I may have a valid claim against my local health authority. On top of that when there is an urgent/critical procedure that health authorities cannot do, for whatever reason, but they cover it here and agree it needs to be done they will pay for you to have the procedure done in the States.

We don’t have a perfect system but everyone gets covered. You will not find yourself impoverished if you have the bad luck of getting sick or being in an accident.

@WasCy how is our government worse? I’d call them fairly even.

Here’s a story about a pregnant mom who had cutting edge surgery in the US because it was not available in Canada and Ontario paid for it.

Just for the record, I would never bring @Seelix poop. :)

@tranquilsea

I withdraw the comment. I don’t know nearly enough about the Canadian government to make such a statement.

@WasCy thank you :-)