On Nationality
Feb. 10th, 2003 12:53 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
hkellickQuery: Why is it OK for Americans to bash America but not Canadians?
Obvious Answer: Because they don't live here.
Query: Is that reason good enough?
It's fascinating, the long and odd history that Canada and the United States has. We are possibly the most bitter rivals close friends can be.
It's funny, because, when it comes down to it... it seems that Canada is desperately waving it's hands going "LOOK! We're Not America! Look! We have our own culture! We have our own politics! Our own viewpoints!" And.. that's true.. Canada is NOT America... but it's pretty damned close.
We aren't too different, Canada and the United States.
What's REALLY the difference between The Kids in the Hall and The Royal Canadian Air Farce?
Or...Barenaked Ladies and Sugar Ray?
Not much.
If a Canadian makes it into the Top 40, it's a BIG DEAL! (That Shania Twain, she's a Canadian) not just in Canada, but in the US either.
It's not such a big deal if the singer/band is NOT Canadian, though.
Quick, what nation did U2 come from? ABBA? AC/DC?
Do you know?
Oh, but I bet you know that Bryan Adams is Canadian.
So why the bitter rivalry?
Part of it is blatant misunderstanding.
For example, and I ask all my Canadian friends out there (Especially you,![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
rhayden).. have you ever LISTENED to the words to "Blame Canada"? or did you just hear the words "Blame Canada" and go "Oh god, more American shit."
It's funny, because I HAVE listened to the words. They're not really anti-Canadian, they're more anti-people who need to blame scapegoats for their own problems.
Part of it is a certain small-mindedness, on both side of the border. Sort of an "I'm better than you" attitude. But that's prevalent everywhere. When last I checked, we didn't have this sort of bitter rivalry with Britain or Australia or any of our other close allies. So I'm not sure that's REALLY it.
I'm not sure that the United States is any better than Canada, in any way. Our government is one of the best (which I suggest as true due to the number of rights we have compared to other countries), but theirs is good as well.
Are Canadian people better than American people? As a group? I doubt it. Person by person... depends.
Our culture... I don't know.. where does American Culture end and Canadian or British or Australian or whatever culture begin?
How do you define that?
The problem is... our world is getting smaller. Thanks to the Internet, we can talk to people all over the world.
Some think that this is a good reason to get to know each other, to find that we are not so different, to become more open-minded.
The fact of the matter is what the internet is REALLY GOOD for is for allowing people with similair interests to get to know each other, whether it's Star Trek, Cats or Anti-Americanism/Anti-Canadiasm.
In actuality, I think we're no more open-minded now than we were before. The internet is just another forum for hate to breed, whether in the petty machinations of a community like![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
canadakicksass (which is at least as concerned with mocking Americans as discussing how Canada kicks ass ) or in more private conversations.
Though, between you all and me, I know plenty of otherwise intelligent Canadians mocking America, but few otherwise intelligent Americans mocking Canada. That's not to say there aren't any, just that I don't know of any. We're too busy being disgusted with other things (such as our own government) to really care what's going on in Canada and, hence, to mock it.
Anyways... this is a little rambly (aren't all my entries?) but hopefully I made my point.
Obvious Answer: Because they don't live here.
Query: Is that reason good enough?
It's fascinating, the long and odd history that Canada and the United States has. We are possibly the most bitter rivals close friends can be.
It's funny, because, when it comes down to it... it seems that Canada is desperately waving it's hands going "LOOK! We're Not America! Look! We have our own culture! We have our own politics! Our own viewpoints!" And.. that's true.. Canada is NOT America... but it's pretty damned close.
We aren't too different, Canada and the United States.
What's REALLY the difference between The Kids in the Hall and The Royal Canadian Air Farce?
Or...Barenaked Ladies and Sugar Ray?
Not much.
If a Canadian makes it into the Top 40, it's a BIG DEAL! (That Shania Twain, she's a Canadian) not just in Canada, but in the US either.
It's not such a big deal if the singer/band is NOT Canadian, though.
Quick, what nation did U2 come from? ABBA? AC/DC?
Do you know?
Oh, but I bet you know that Bryan Adams is Canadian.
So why the bitter rivalry?
Part of it is blatant misunderstanding.
For example, and I ask all my Canadian friends out there (Especially you,
rhayden).. have you ever LISTENED to the words to "Blame Canada"? or did you just hear the words "Blame Canada" and go "Oh god, more American shit."It's funny, because I HAVE listened to the words. They're not really anti-Canadian, they're more anti-people who need to blame scapegoats for their own problems.
Part of it is a certain small-mindedness, on both side of the border. Sort of an "I'm better than you" attitude. But that's prevalent everywhere. When last I checked, we didn't have this sort of bitter rivalry with Britain or Australia or any of our other close allies. So I'm not sure that's REALLY it.
I'm not sure that the United States is any better than Canada, in any way. Our government is one of the best (which I suggest as true due to the number of rights we have compared to other countries), but theirs is good as well.
Are Canadian people better than American people? As a group? I doubt it. Person by person... depends.
Our culture... I don't know.. where does American Culture end and Canadian or British or Australian or whatever culture begin?
How do you define that?
The problem is... our world is getting smaller. Thanks to the Internet, we can talk to people all over the world.
Some think that this is a good reason to get to know each other, to find that we are not so different, to become more open-minded.
The fact of the matter is what the internet is REALLY GOOD for is for allowing people with similair interests to get to know each other, whether it's Star Trek, Cats or Anti-Americanism/Anti-Canadiasm.
In actuality, I think we're no more open-minded now than we were before. The internet is just another forum for hate to breed, whether in the petty machinations of a community like
canadakicksass (which is at least as concerned with mocking Americans as discussing how Canada kicks ass ) or in more private conversations.Though, between you all and me, I know plenty of otherwise intelligent Canadians mocking America, but few otherwise intelligent Americans mocking Canada. That's not to say there aren't any, just that I don't know of any. We're too busy being disgusted with other things (such as our own government) to really care what's going on in Canada and, hence, to mock it.
Anyways... this is a little rambly (aren't all my entries?) but hopefully I made my point.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2003-02-10 01:05 pm (UTC)We both have the right to freedom of speech and thought.
We both have the right to choose what religion we are.
We both have the same basic rights for men and women.
We both have the right the choose what kind of life we want to live and what careers we want to choose.
We both deal with the same issues: Crime, Drugs, Freedom, Terrorism, Pollution.
Life in Canada is much like Life in the USA. You get born, you go to school, you work, you have a family and you die.
So what's the major differences between Canadians and the US?
Re:
Date: 2003-02-10 02:05 pm (UTC)Differences I see:
Canada has socialized medicine ... and so do pretty much all other "first world" countries, while the US does not. As I see it, this is a bug. There is enough wealth in this country that no one should be without health care, but I know a LOT of people that have no health care or that have substandard crappy health care. OHIP isn't great, but it's better than even the health plan I had at UB.
I personally do not believe that the (as I see them) liberal gun laws here are a good thing. It bothers me horribly that I can walk into Wal-Mart and leave with a gun, and I don't think that the waiting period or background checking for gun licenses are thorough enough.
(Personal beef) The drinking age being 21 is silly. The people that will drink underage are going to drink underage whether it's 21 or not. Why waste money enforcing something that isn't working? Why not stick with the federal drinking age of 18 and make it like everything else, you'll end up saving money in silly enforcement costs.
Americans are more attuned to race and have more issues with race than Canadians do, as a culture. It weirds me out how much emphasis is placed on race here.
And Americans, as a whole, generally tend to generate more weird lawsuits over silly little things than any other group of people on earth. I don't know why that is, but I'd welcome any ideas.
(no subject)
Date: 2003-02-11 08:36 am (UTC)The race thing is spot on. We do tiptoe around that alot.. as for the fact that America, more than any other country is run (in part) by corporations.
As for the lawsuits... heh. yeah. The weird and utterly useless lawsuits. That's part of why I truly detest lawyers. Lawyers have their place in society.. and they do some good, but when they take these stupid cases like Big Fat GUy vs. McDonalds.. I'm sorry... you look like a dumbass.