Fleeing to Canada? A few helpful facts for disgruntled Americans

Canada’s official immigration Web site has been getting a lot more hits from the United States since the election. Apparently some people are so disgruntled over President Bush’s re-election that they are considering leaving the country.

People threaten before every election to move to Canada or Australia or Outer Mongolia or somewhere if the election doesn’t go to suit them. Four years ago it was Hollywood luminaries like Barbra Streisand and Alec Baldwin. Apparently they changed their minds.

Since the 2004 election, some despondent Democrats right here in Wayne County are threatening to migrate to the polar regions. A privately sponsored Web site in Vancouver might be helpful to them. It’s www.canadianalternative.com.

The site lists the top 10 reasons for moving to Canada. They are:

1. Canada has socialized medicine. (Just over a decade ago, there were two MRIs in the entire country, while in the United States nearly every local hospital had one.)

2. Canada has no troops in Iraq. (Canada is not pursuing the war on terror, either.)

3. Canada signed the Kyoto Protocol environmental treaty. (Fine. But the United States would be nuts to sign it since it is harsher on the United States than on any other country. That is why President Bush hasn’t signed it. Neither did former President Clinton, even though it was negotiated by his vice president, Al Gore.)

4. More than half of Canada’s provinces allow same-sex marriages. (So does Massachusetts, in case you want to stop short of the border.)

5. The Canadian Senate recommends legalizing marijuana. (So, the grass is greener on the other side of the border.)

6. Canada has no law restricting abortion. (Ever hear of Roe v. Wade?)

7. Canada has strict gun laws. (Does this mean a disgruntled American couldn’t take his .38 with him?)

8. The United Nations has ranked Canada the best country to live in for eight consecutive years. (On the other hand, the United States is the best country to live in for a lifetime.)

9. Canada abolished the death penalty in 1976. (All right, so it’s a better place for murderers.)

10. Canada has not run a federal deficit since 1996-97. (Canada also has a 7 percent surtax on everything — including other taxes.)

If you find these reasons for moving to Canada compelling, go ahead. But remember, barbecue is awfully scarce up there.

Published in Editorials on November 17, 2004 9:44 AM