Close Reading

It’s been 5 years for me here and I honestly can say I have achieved nothing in my life yet. It scares me when I think I can’t return whatever my parents had invested in me. The fact is you’ll never have a good paying job in Canada being an immigrant. When I say this trust me I mean it. Most you’ll get is a minimum wage job which can make you survive the life here. Taxes are high definitely and what I feel is you’re working to make someone else’s life easier. \n(P.S: people who’ve stayed in Canada will understand who I’m implying to)\nNo one wants to be your freind, scope of socializing is zero coz mostly it’s cold round the year so everyone hardly come out, especially in Northern provinces like Yukon, Saskatchewan, Manitoba.\nHealthcare is a joke. If you feel sick and not well and you wanna see a doctor be prepared to wait for hours and hours. I once had stomach infection and I had to wait 5 hours till someone could see me. I asked for painkiller at-least so I could bear the pain but they refused that as well. You might well see someone you love dearly and with whole heart die in-front of you and you could do nothing. (I’ve experienced it myself hence saying)\nYou’re a lone survivor who’ll always keep fighting. \nThe only person who can make money here is businesses and high paid jobs which are reserved to Canadians. That’s how Canada’s job market is. Canadians’ first and if there’s something left they’ll look at you. By the amount of money people invest here they can establish a nice business back in their country itself and earn accordingly on own terms. \nMost importantly you’ll cut yourself from all emotional supports like family, freinds etc.\nI was social person back in India who liked making new freinds and memories but it’s nothing like that here. \nAnd it’s the same life, no different.\nYou wake up, dress, eat, go to work, come back, eat, sleep. No different.\nNo fun and nothing. You actually don’t live in present, you live in an expectation of a better tommorow.\nYou’ll always have a smile when you greet someone but I guarantee you no one’s gonna check on you to if you don’t start a conversation even with a simple “Hi”. Mostly Canadians are nice but again some will systematically judge you and say nothing but you’ll see in their actions, the way they’ll talk in a twisted way etc.\nYes I’m not saying that Canada’s bad or it’s no good but trust me it will take forever to build a life here especially with the number of people moving here from round the world. \nIf you’re well off financially from back home Canada’s a paradise for you. Indeed it’s a beautiful country with lots of beauty and lots to explore but remember everything comes with a cost here. Everything comes with a cost. People need to stop believing in this fake illusion and come only if they got a purpose here. The only reason why they’ll let you in the country is for money and once you’re in you’ll have to keep spending, doesn’t matter if you’re broke or whatever you have to.\nOnce I earn I’ll happily give up my PR status and go back to India as i very well know what the situation is how it’s gonna be in future.\nSo just one piece of advise to every middle class person like me, guys please invest and spend your money wisely coz we know how hard it is to earn and it’s high time Canadians start appreciating what immigrants like us do for them by burning ourselves day and night and start realizing that their past generation once came from some other part of the world as well and settled here. Being white doesn’t make you a nice Canadian, you’re actions defines you more than your words. \n90% of this country is built by immigrants and that’s how it’s gonna develop in future, so if they keep treating us the same way good luck to them ?.\nAlso a plus note to anyone thinking that Asians are stealing your jobs, go get outside and have the balls to face them and take it away from them. Staying home and ranting and abusing us that we’re taking your opportunities and blah blah isn’t gonna work. We are so successful round the world because we are hardworking, honest and respectful to everyone. Even if we’re earning minimum and barely surviving here we always make sure we’re not burden on the government or anyone else and won’t keep crying.\n\nA big shoutout to all you guys who came here in the hope of a better future but are still struggling.\nKeep hustling and you’ll reach there, if not step down and go back and start your life again on your home soil. There’s no shame in experimenting continuously rather than sitting ideally and crying about future. \n\nAll the very best my people and lots of love to you ❣️

Canadian ruling class markets the country as a bastion of freedom and equality. We immigrated, believing in that notion . Then, slowly came to realize that that belief is false .\nTruth is, canada is a fake democracy. The capitalist ruling class possesses all the rights and power in this country, and we immigrants are not seen as equal, but are being used to keep wages low . For canada to become the country it says it is , there needs to be an expansion of true democracy, into the workplace where we spend most of our time, and where the same ruling class invests very little of there's. \nSo say no to capitalism for a better canada. And yes to real democracy!

After receiving government support, these immigrants take the money and leave. Immigration policy is screwed up. Why not take that money and invest it in Canadians who need it the most to help develop Canada.

Hi Lynn, this is a very interesting conversation. I moved to Canada in 2003 went to college and became a nurse. First of all it was not easy paying for college I was lucky that husband was supporting with the bills as I went to school. So I would say that I have skills that are very marketable. Our combined family income was over $100,000 CAN. We mortgaged our first home which was very basic for a LOT of money. We had our kids and we had to struggle with childcare as most young families do. By North American standard, we were doing good. We each had a good car ( loaned), we made trips to Kenya every so often but in 2016 we decided we wanted to move back home and we sold our home and we did. I HAVE NO REGRETS. There were several things that made us reach our decision. First, I truly believe that for the Canadian system to work as it does, it has to entrap its residents. Even after 10 years of work we did not have money in the bank. Everything we owned really belonged to the bank. The light bulb moment for me came when I evaluated my net worth. A primary school teacher in Kenya after 10 years of work with good financial management will own a plot, a simple house and will start to invest for retirement. After 10 years of work, there wasn't much in the account, our house would need 25 years to finish paying mortgage and to be honest there wasn't much to show for those years of work. Quality of life really sucks the amount of stress will definitely send you to the grave sooner. This is the case for most first generation immigrants. You might say you are sacrificing and building a future for your children but, my observation was since our diaspora children have not grown in Kenya to see the need for money and what life really looks like without the comforts they are used to, they do not have the same drive as the parents so they often do not excel they are just ordinary. There is also the struggle of growing up as a minority group. A lot of our children because they are seeking acceptance will struggle with self esteem, will have depression or will join the LGBTQ community where they get sense of belonging regardless of their colour. The morals are also different from their parents and they are shaped by the society they grow up in. When I looked at what my life would look like if we kept living there, lets say we eventually pay off our mortgage, when we are old and requiring care, our children will not be able to support themselves and support us because they have to work to sustain themselves so we would to move to assisted living or nursing homes. The cost of senior care is not covered by the government unless you have no money. so we have to sell out home which would be old and outdated but still very expensive and we would have to pay $5000-$10000 per month depending on the type of care we need. so as you can see if we ended in a nursing home for 5 years we will have depleted all the money we made from the sale of our home. So by the time we die, we would not have money to leave for our children. So we worked really hard, supported the economy, and die leaving not much at all for our children, we sacrificed our quality of life, and ended up with children who don't think much of themselves or have very distorted morals. I still remember in my mind as we drove to the airport on our way back to Kenya, I thought of the story of Lot. He was pretty successful in Sodom but I'm very sure on his death bed he had lots of regrets why he ever went there. I know its tough being in Kenya but if you have a job or any way to make ends meet, be like Abraham. God will bless you regardless of whether you are in the dessert.

First of all, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to you Lynn! Continue being the good person you are boo❤️. \nHere are my two cents on this matter: Not only in Canada, but people who get an opportunity to come abroad, should \n1: Know where you are going before you get there (stop doing things out of desperation). Know where you are going to work, know your host company, if you can’t find out by yourself, please ASK people who have been there, they can help you. \n2: Use appropriate agents (can you use eligible organizations instead of these one to one agent’s?) \n3: Make sure you follow the government procedures guys!!! (This keeps you on a safer place!!!!!!) many people skip this in the name of ‘janja janja’ just to get there. But if you follow the procedures and do the paperwork, guys huwezi tu kuenda mahali.\n4: KNOW YOUR HOST COMPANY! (Do research ? make sure it’s a legal company), UNDERSTAND YOUR CONTRACT before you choose to travel. Please this is very important. You can seek deep information about what you are going to do, information is everywhere guys. SEEK information. Many people just want to go ‘majuu’ but they don’t seek information yawa??‍♀️\n5: Lower your expectations (you can’t just blossom in two months). Usikuje na idea at ohhh I will be investing home blah blah! Manze, pia huku kuna bills, the rents, the TAXES, you still need to eat and your whole welfare! \nAnd don’t go majuu thinking things are easy there, NOOO guys It’s never easy! People just SURVIVE ?.

I guess because Toronto is so huge and because I stayed in the main touristy areas I only noticed a few homeless people during my trip. They were more noticeable to me in Calgary in the spring. But the worst I've seen is Portland, Oregon and Seattle, WA and in 2021 Washington DC was pretty bad off...though the encampments I saw then had been cleared out by DC when I returned in 2023.\n\nI really really enjoyed my stay in Toronto over Labor Day weekend, my first time ever to visit. But just looking around me I got the same sense I did in NYC...it's a beautiful place to visit but living here would be ungodly expensive. The luxury apartments across the street from my hotel seemed to have rather low occupancy, from what I could see from my hotel room window at night. A lot of rental real-estate are speculative investments and any thought of addressing housing needs, keeping occupancy rates high, etc. are purely secondary concerns...zombie buildings with unaffordable rents that remain sparsely occupied while the need(s) are so dire is morally offensive and government should step in with rent controls and occupancy requirements and tax those owners more heavily who have occupancy below a minimum threshold. The increase in crime is a completely expected outcome of economic desperation. The US answer is usually more police & harsher penalties but I hope Canada is more rational and humane in addressing these societal ills.

The truth is, it's too expensive to do business in Canada and we're not making use of the incredible talent we have here (largely due to the government). As mentioned in the video, we need high capital investments to get businesses up and running. We have so many investment firms like Canada Pension Plan, Ontario Teacher's Pension that have billions but they're choosing to invest in businesses abroad because government regulations are not supportive - that's why so many move to the states. Don't get me started on the waste of talent - we take in so many talented immigrants, but instead of giving them support and help them get connected with well paying jobs that match their expertise, we're saying: hey start as an uber driver for 5 years and then well see...

Ford taking away rent control in 2019 to encourage more investors to build more properties killed the lower and working class. Built nothing but condos that mostly investors bought. Now rent is $2,500 for a 1 bedroom. Even with a modest 50k salary you barely getting buy. You need to make 100k in Toronto just to live a basic life. In Canada, more than half of people's income goes to rent or mortgage. This country has been bought and sold to the real estate. This is what happens when everyone treats real estate as an investment instead of a basic necessity. But enjoy your sky high property values. A house costs 1 million dollars now. Guess Canadians are all millionaires.

For me, I need to tap into resources to develop Africa, I have been to the US several times, looking to visit the UK, Canada, and Australia and attract investment back home in Africa.

Immigrating to Canada is a scam designed to relieve immigrants of their life savings That's why it's so easy to get in here compared to just about anywhere else. These days, it's like the only growth industry in Canada is to make money off hopeful immigrants. After all, why would a backward county with little manufacturing and one of the lowest rates of business investment of the OECD need to increase its labor force by 2-3% a year?

I think this was a great video. I’m glad you mentioned the difference in wages because what that really indicates is that Canada doesn’t suffer from a shortage of skilled labour if anything we have the opposite: a glut. What we need is more business investment in our economy but the federal government seems completely uninterested in that topic. Well at least for the immigrants that do come here once they get their citizenship it becomes much easier to work in the states under NAFTA so I guess we’re kinda a back door.

Not entirely accurate. It's pro-wealthy immigration here in Canada absolutely. It's citizenship for sale. Not necessarily wealthy in terms of really wealthy (like Switzerland) but it's definitely citizenship for sale, so if you don't have money, don't bother. Newcomers with medical and engineering expertise can't get jobs here in Canada, in spite of our healthcare system being on the point of collapse and our supposed hi-tech push. Regulatory boards here have made it impossible. Estimates are around 175000 qualified, internationally trained doctors and nurses who gave up trying to practice here and moved into other careers. Ukrainian doctors, for eg, with extensive trauma experience and willing to staff our emergency departments have been told they have to requalify by going to Canadian medical school to retrain for at least 4 years. Same story in engineering. By IT, our government seems to mean low-paid call center IT work, moving the IT sweatshop racket from India onto Canadian soil. If you can afford to buy a business - I believe the total business investment was 500 000 pre-pandemic - that's another way in. Not sure if thats gone up now. So many of our franchise businesses are essentially being used as citizenship tickets. The big ticket item: If you can afford 4 years of postgraduate or undergrad university program, or 3 to 4 year college program - and if you don't have the cash, loan sharks in India will distribute debt across the whole family for decades so one student can go . There us a very good documentary by an Indian filmmaker on the Canadian college/University recruitment drive in India and its consequences. Several of our colleges have student enrollments at over 70% of the entire student body, direct entry from India. Additional problems like grade inflation, different education standards, and outright fraud on ESL testing also mean that Indian students are not well prepared for school here. Many do not have enough English to succeed in their studies. They either need to spend for additional tutoring, take a qualifying year or two ESL (on top of the 3 or 4 program), or fail courses. Universities and colleges keep the tuition though. Honestly our colleges and universities are staying afloat because of Indian students. They're being treated like cash cows - and Indian recruiters are scamming the system, taking fees on their end with unsuspecting students getting falsified documents, or being told they passed their ESL when they didn't. It's a national disgrace. I'm a prof here, I've seen all of this firsthand. Your data may be correct, but the narrative you've constructed for it is not the real picture.

I will come to canada to work for a period of maybe 4 years then return home . All i need is to save and invest home. I love my Kenyan weather .

Canada desperately needs American investment and technology especially in there natural resource sector. They will go a long way to funding your socialist policies.

Canadas biggest problem is over relliance on US. If they allow themselves to trade with Asia it would be beneficial. Not only that if they stop being US bitch and let Chinese businesses in it might help them. They are playing a game where they will always loose. Canada need policies that incentivize investment from outside. Making Vancouver a tax haven (not for residential property but investments in business) if you invest in business you wont get taxed or taxes are competitively lower, something like ireland and give incentives for startups. 0% tax on startups and keeping low and competitive tax for local industry even later on would help. Vancouver has potential to become something like Singapore or Hong Kong. As of right now Canada has all the policies that discourage investment.

Canada needs to put crazy amount of tax for owning a second+ properties for individuals and corporations in a way that it is no longer worth to purchase real estate for investment. You'll see how quickly people will start investing in businesses, stock market, etc quickly

while I agree with a lot of this video theres one crucial aspect this video neglects and same with the commenters here.. POPULATION. \n\nCompared to countries like denmark, sweden, japan, france, uk, etc. we have a much bigger country to maintain landmass wise. Infrastructure. USA is similar but they have 10x the population as us. Our population in canada is pathetic. Problem is everyone stays in ontario or BC which is stupid, im in sask I want population. Another thing about infrastructure is our climate. We have such drastic events in our climate across our huge country that takes a toll. Climate problems with our low population is not a good thing. I mean most people outside canada and even within Canada dont believe me but Saskatchewan goes from like -45 to +45C with windchill/humidex. Our forests are on fire often, that is not normal. That costs so much money to fix as well. In summer sometimes, Nunavut or NWT will be warmer then here, we talk about it here when it happens. Think about that. Weather is HUGE in saskatchewan. We talk about weather daily. I never realized until internationals pointed that out that we are obsessed with weather in sask lol. \n\n Our housing market is a joke and I agree we need to invest more in buisnesses but at the same time we need affordable housing, we are in a weird spot. As far as working etc goes people commenting here lol the golden years of the 80s are gone old timers, my parents realize this that you guys were spoiled in one of the greatest time periods in human history - post WWII boom and the effects. I could go on and on how the 70s-90s were one of the best time periods in modern history for various reasons but I wont. There are problems internationally, we live in a globalist world. We still have it good. Go travel and make international friends. This is nothing that we are dealing with at the moment. All I will say though is leave the huge metropolitans like Toronto and Vancouver. Everyone wants to go there because they think 'theres more opportunity' ugh. Theres opportunity across canada but if everyone things like that there will be problems. The idea of Ontario or BC is just a big nope for me (although I go to BC every couple years, love it there I would not want to live there).

Instead of investing Canadian taxpayers money into making Canada grow and a better place to live the government is too busy stuffing it into their pockets as well as their friends and families! Canadians need to clean out all the corruption in government, courts, military, police, science, education and the list goes on!

Totally agree. More business investments is much needed in Canada.

This whole situation is untenable. It is devastating to the migrants that have to leave their homes and try to enter either the United States or Canada to apply for asylum. No amount of border protections or treaties or walls will solve the problem. And that problem is the political, economic, and social conditions in their countries of origin. In my opinion, Canada and the United States (more so the United States) need to step up to see if there’s any way to help politically and economically stabilize those so people would not need to leave their homes in search of a better life. Yes, it would cost money… But there would be definite dividends in the future as we would no longer have to invest as much money on our borders. I very much realize not only the complexity of the problems in Latin American countries, but also the complexity of what I am suggesting. But everything we have done so far has been useless, so we need to change our thinking.

I moved to Canada in 2003, I think over the past few years things really took a turn for the worst and alot of the issues we're encountering now are mostly a result of government incompetency \n\n1) Instead of focusing on treatment and recovery we prioritized harm reduction and drug decriminalization which largely results in the current mental health/addiction crisis \n\n2) Instead of seeing housing as a public need, policies make housing investment vehicles (notably for rich folks in foreign countries) and locals can't really afford to buy or rent as a result\n\n3) Instead of building mass transit infrastructure including subways/light rail we continue to be extremely car-centric, most Canadians can't get around without a car but also can't really afford one due to all the costs associated with ownership. \n\n\n4) Government continues to cut back on healthcare spending despite an aging population across the country\n\nAnd one nongovernment-related aspect which is NIMBYism -- endless delays/protests on all major projects because someone is afraid their backyard views might be obstructed or some old trees might be cut.

I would still take our medical system over the American system without a second thought. Though I would be in favour of a parallel paid tier that's integrated with the public tier so that the public tier benefits from the profits and investments.\nRegarding financial technology, the perspective here is slightly short sighted, although to some degree, I agree. Compared to the US we have had debit (Interac) at retail point of sale since the late '80s/early '90s, and email money transfers (Interac eTransfer) since the late '90s/early '00s, long before the US had anything comparable such as PayPal, and apps like CashApp or Venmo effectively have no marketshare in Canada because of the long history of having email money transfers.\nLastly, for the cell phone plans, you are 100% correct, though we still don't have true unlimited, and only on plans including 5G service. However, there are some mitigating factors such as the high ratings of the network quality and stability for all major cell carriers despite wide swaths of our geography having little to no population and rugged topography. It's not an easy country to cover properly or reliably without it being expensive. Though Canadian telecom and cableco profits are through the roof, as are those of the big 5 banks. We definitely need more competition, though I'm not sure foreign companies coming in are the way to go with this.\nAlso, technologically speaking many important technological and scientific R&D is being conducted here and innovations are made here all the time, but in many ways, these companies get traction outside of Canada long before they get traction here.

Great content, but a string of clichés.\nI think some facts should be brought to the table here;\nCanada is beautiful, and welcoming. Leaving Canada is usually a choice which has little to do with canada, and canadians.\n1. Reasons for boredom and depression are individual and subjective.\n2. Worklife balance? Data shows Canada is ranks between Top 5 and Top 10 in global ranking. \nMost people do multiple jobs not to cope, but to afford their desired lifestyle.\nA single job can pay your bills and afford you a decent vacation.\n\n3. Tax? Canada isn't among Top 20 most taxed countries in the work. We just don't like paying taxes ?.\nI. AVE Income Tax; Canada: 33.00%, US 37.00% UK 45.00% GER 45.00% JPN 55.00%\nII. AVE Sales Tax: Canada (5%-15% GST/HST) US 2.9-7.25.00%, UK 20.00% GER 19.00% JPN 18.00%\nIII. AVE Corporate Tax 26:00%, US 21:00%, UK 19.00% GER 19.00% JPN 25.00%\n\n4. You don't necessarily need to start from the bottom or get additional certifications to suncced, you just need to upsell yourself, or reinvent to integrate.\nI and a bunch of people I know didn't step down to start from the bottom, we actually took a step higher, without investing in education or experiential learning. Left home country in a midsenior role, landed a senior role when I got here . Can't say the same for medical fields and the likes.\nThat said, that is not 100%.\n\n5. Racism is infinitesimal here. I've almost always been sole black member in my team, and I sometimes forget I'm black. \nNever felt profiled or abused even while walking through the mall or streets.\nMy accent doesn't bother anyone. The idea of racism is mostly implied, and these are born out of a pre-conceived notion, or insecurities.\nThat is exactly the reason why immigration don't loose their accent quickly here like they do down in the US.\n\nBonus:\n\nThe welfare in Canada is great. That is why Canada is continously ranked top 5 in Quality of life, and best countries to live in.

You're not correct about the Quebec government banning the hijab - actually they ban all forms of religious expression in clothes worn at work by public servants - so don't criticize us unless you get the facts straight. All countries are facing public health crisis especially in the aftermath of a global pandemic, you mention how long it could take to get an MRI - weeks/months, but it's no worse than in the UK, or other western countries. I do agree with you about limited competition in banking and tech - but we're still a young and growing country, however, look at the global recession that took place in 2007 - Canada was least affected by mortgage default, the US was hit the worst and hundreds of thousands had their homes foreclosed by the Banks, yet in Canada because of our strict banking policies we were saved and the Banks worked with defaulters to try to keep their homes. Taxes, well most countries require you to file your own taxes at the end of the year - what's so strange about that? Yes sales tax is added onto the sales price depending on what province and what you are purchasing, same as US, just because it's not the same in Europe doesn't mean it's worse! Listen, when you're a newcomer to any country you need to fit in when looking for a job, put in the effort, take the time, do the work, any country is going to expect you to be able to speak the language and know the lingo, so I don't agree with your analysis that Canadians are risk adverse! You are 100% correct about the housing crisis, listen it's been going on everywhere for decades, and international investors in the past 10 years or so woke up and noticed that Canada was a great bet for investment, so the problem got really bad. The government just passed a 2 year moratorium on non Canadians buying real estate - as have many other countries, so fingers crossed no more new foreign landlords just regular Canadians buying their first homes, let's hope so!! I've lived many years in Europe - and I loved it! But the quality of life in Canada is better. If you don't live in the crowded city you can have a nice property with lots of space, good roads, not bad school system, very friendly and helpful people. Quebec has some of the best food on the North American continent, we have clean air and lots of water in Canada - I'm very happy here, so don't be so negative please!

Good report, but the main issue is missing: they need to bring their tent for accommodation. Our people cannot afford to buy, let alone rent a place. So what have those new 400,000+++ let in this year been told about the prospects?\nYes, Canada is very generous with those numbers, but charity begins at home. Our seniors who have made this place so desirable, being born here or old immigrants, those are left in the cold. They are hit with all kinds of taxes on the money they saved with sacrifices, no longer allowed an investment pad, to supply rentals for those new lots coming in today. \nHowever, many others are making a killing in real estate. \nOh! Canada!

Yes the racism is very high here. \nMany people come here for a better life but that is very hard to find now days in Canada. Governments here, on every level have let Canadians down . They stopped investing in affordable housing. They haven’t provide enough placement for education of medical staff over decades and now we don’t have enough nurses and doctors. \nWe need better educated voters but of course they don’t put enough money into education. It’s seems people prefer voting for bullies rather than people who actually care about the people and the land that feeds us. Jagmeet Singh is s good leader but would Canadians vote in a person of colour with an agenda to actual help the people and the environment, probably not. It really is sad because Canada did provide a lot more for people in the past. But it’s always been a racist country unfortunately, just look at its history. \nI love this country and I see the politicians saying oh free healthcare doesn’t work while behind the scenes they are the ones not providing the training of medical professionals. They line the pockets of corporations Like the fossil fuel industry. Those are our resources. Taxes paid is our money. We need to be smarter voters and louder voices to demand our governments do their job. Protecting and caring for the land and the people and animals that live here. It really comes down to us the people. \nWhy does a country as rich as Canada have homeless people , because the leaders don’t care and the voters don’t care enough to demand more. \nI can’t blame immigrants for leaving. Plus it is bloody cold here lol

Africa Governments and private companies need to invest in education based on the indigenous natural resources . This could be achieve by employing overseas and local lecturers. Africans don't need to go to country like Canada.

To me, the problem is threefold. a) Toronto and Ontario in general - and perhaps the whole of Canada - are accepting way more immigrants than they have quality jobs for. If you need taxi drivers and plumbers, maybe this experience should be valued way higher than education as part of the existing immigration programs (which is not the case). At least then potential immigrants know this before they come and get stuck in low-paying or relatively OK-paying but repetitive and demoralizing jobs with debts and mortgages that become a trap preventing them from leaving. It's also partially on immigrants themselves who come to Toronto to only find out there's 100 people competing for one spot and that you need to be exceptional - or connected through your ethnic network - to work regular white-collar jobs. b) The official bipartisan policy of non-integration. The naive expectation that having people live in ethnic enclaves will somehow make the overall culture richer is not what happens: instead, people tend to stick to their own communities and the common culture thus gets eroded and limited to economic and financial matters. This makes some cities feel like one large business with everyone networking 24/7 instead of socializing normally. And arguably, having the right culture / social life is what motivates already successful people move in the first place. So when they come and they find out there's nothing but money talk and hustling, they leave (if they're smart). Quebec is doing better in that regard, but then Quebec is not really Canada and it's been pressured to cave in to the same money-centred, uncultured and disconnected society by the feds for decades now. The States is smarter in that it actually makes sure to integrate its immigrants (and let's be honest, many immigrants like being part of a new culture if it fits them) c) Treating real estate as an investment and not as a basic necessity (as Japan or some Nordic countries do, for example). That coupled with a lot of Asian money being laundered in Canada through immigration channels and private equity firms buying whole apartment blocks for rental purposes has led to the highest housing price increase in all of the developed world in the past 20 years or so. The median price of a condo in Toronto is higher than in New York despite the massive gap in salaries and the fact that New York is one of the most expensive cities in the world to begin with. Some draconian measures are needed here to prevent foreign - or even out-of-province ownership -, second property ownership and corporate ownership for renting purposes.

Many leave their own country, and come to Canada BECAUSE of their dislikes; extremism, culture, religion, laws, identity and in some cases backwards thinking; attempt to turn what we in society would consider as sexist, and discriminatory in some examples….\n\n…however when those same individuals finally achieve citizenship, or in some cases this starts (attempt to change Canadian law(s)) before obtaining citizenship, making moves to force the above, everything they despised, hated or disliked about their own country, into this new country ? Its like, the expectation is that we assimilate to them, not that they assimilate to their new chosen country??\n\nIt appears in some cases, going as far as attempting to rationalize why the the very thing they left their own country for, should now be a part of or have a place in Canadian society….where in any place in the World does this happen? Would it happen? Can you imagine, if I were a guest in someone else’s home, being invited over for dinner, but they had rules…like taking off your shoes when entering their home…or demanded they change their menu that they worked hard making for me to eat..or that I do not put my feet up in the coffee table or furniture…but I said, screw that, I don’t agree with their rules..I’m just going to do what I want! What would be the outcome do you think if I were to disrespect their rules?\n\nWhen Canadians have the audacity to say NO, we’re not interested in adopting …the rules/laws of the country they just abandoned…we’re now somehow insulted, or angered the guest? …the same Canada that has welcomed, provided safety, roof over their heads, food on the table, an education for their children, and provided access to our medical (albeit far from perfect) infrastructure.\n\nTo stomp their feet, bang their fist on the table when discovered that it’s expected to take four years of your life to become a doctor (which btw if you’re smart enough to become a doctor, you should be smart enough to of researched the expectations, PRIOR to coming to Canada) in the Country that YOU have chosen to spend the rest of their lives in, to have to work in a job to help support you and your families transitions,…imho, is NOT an unreasonable ask….that 4-5 years of their next 40-50+ ? Well, if that is considered a hardship, then maybe they need to rethink their intent. Maybe, the grass WAS greener in their former Country?!! \n\nI think to expect or demand to just step into or handed on a silver platter all the goodies without having to except to take the not so good…is imho ignorant, arrogant and selfish.\n\nEven with our flaws, Canada is one of the best places to live on the planet. It’s takes hard work, investment and community to make/keep Canada

Canada is what you make of it. You can arrive rich and end up poor and you can arrive poor and end up rich. In between that, you can have a great life that balances your needs. I’ve seen immigrants succeed simply because they see the opportunity in front of them . They worked hard in their own counties to stay just above the poverty line ,but when they apply that same effort here it pays off ten times greater. I feel that compared to a lot of immigrants, natural born Canadians come across as spoiled and a little lazy…we are. We haven’t had to struggle the same way someone from a poorer country might have. I’ve talked to people who’ve worked ten to twelve hours a day just to stay afloat. If you did that here you could make plenty of money to live and have some left over. As far as owning a house goes,yes it’s expensive . I feel that homeownership in any country is relatively expensive. Here is a tip; use that soaring home prices to your advantage. Houses are expensive but you can make a lot of money buying and selling. I recommend putting together a buyers group and share the house for a few years, then sell at a profit, buy a bigger house or two smaller houses.try to buy the worst house in the best neighbourhood and fix it up slowly . That house could double in value in five or six years in the Toronto market. This is nothing new of course ,the people from India and China seem to do this a lot here ,it drives up prices and profits. On the downside to this ,you are now part of the problem. As the housing prices are driven up the non wealthy can no longer afford to own a house . They are at the mercy of high rents with no rewards of ownership. They are caught in a cycle of hard work and (relative)poverty. This could also be you if you can’t keep up the house payments and are forced to rent.\nHow well you speak English is important but your native language is also useful here because Canada is half immigrants . As a Canadian that speaks only english (Irish descent)I have to say to all newcomers that I’m very impressed that you have learned a new language and that you may even speak more than two! Don’t be embarrassed about your abilities . I find that in my experience , Canadians do not look down on people just because they don’t know English. In fact ,I’ve known people that have lived here for decades and still know very little English. They are comfortable in their communities and they function just fine. Learn as much English as suits your needs and be proud of any gains you make.\nOutside of Toronto are other cities that you might consider when looking at southern Ontario.From my experience,most are generally the same, just not as big . There are large immigrant communities in London Ontario, Hamilton and just outside of Toronto where housing is just a little bit less expensive but the commute to work is probably longer. This is just my opinion but in the small towns there are less people of colour , (which is what people of no colour call everyone else . I wonder if I’m called a person of no colour in some other culture ? LoL ). That might make it harder for you to feel integrated ,if that’s what you want. I’m not saying that people from other cultures can’t make it in a small town , I’m just saying that it’s definitely not Toronto . Here, people of any nationality can feel like they have a place where they can belong . It seems that no matter where you are from ,there is a community already here that’s set up restaurants and stores and clothing shops and newcomer support systems. And if your from Portugal or China or India or Africa or the Middle East, there are large groups of your kin here that have established roots for generations and you probably know this already.\nToronto means meeting place and that becomes evident quickly. I was born here and it’s one of the things I love the most about my city. I’m not going to say that there isn’t systemic racism here ,the people of no colour still kind of keep the top position , but as we become a minority in a decade or so ,I hope that will shift to a broader spectrum. It’s certainly happening already. One good thing is that the police department tries to hire people of colour so that racialism may play a smaller role. We’re getting used to seeing our politicians more and more reflect their constituents.\nI have to talk about the weather. Because I’m from here I’m used to the extremes of minus thirty and plus thirty . Eventually you get used to it (somewhat). Dressing in the right clothes is important. Summer is easy , but winter is different. It’s trying to kill you. Spend the most that you can afford on winter cloths . If you can afford a quality parka you should get one. The hood can be drawn around the face and stay out of the wind.\nIf not ,think of layers with a outer layer that blocks the wind. We have things called long Johns that are basically full length thick cotton or nylon pants that go on under your pants and a pair of extra thick socks. Buy your boots to fit your thick socks. Try to get the best boots you can afford ,it’s something that you might spend a little extra for but never regret.\nAll in all we are a fairly organized and peaceful society. Most people are friendly and will give you a chance . We have a good social safety net here and you don’t have to be homeless or starving if you don’t want to. There are people and organizations set up to help ,that truly try to get people back on their feet. It’s a good investment that pays off in ways that matter for the quality of life in a big city. I’m not putting my American neighbours down when I say they do things differently. They have their ways ,we have ours. This is just something that we do because we’re trying to learn how to help those that society has discarded or can’t find their place. Sure we have one or two areas where the homeless have pitched tents and we have some resources for them if they want. Unfortunately The mayor recently forced a small camp to move from a very visible place to more scattered locations. There were social workers involved as well as protesters trying to protect them. I didn’t like that happening and I want to see even more resources dedicated to them ,but on the other hand ,we are trying to avoid something like what happens on the streets when it’s just ignored. When I see YouTube videos of the streets of Philadelphia I’m extremely saddened. I thank the lucky stars that I was born in Toronto Canada.\nFor all it’s pollution and expense and crowds ,I think it’s a great place to do almost anything your heart desires . For every ugly building there is a beautiful park ,for every honked horn there is a birds call , for every cold and dark day there is beautiful sunny one around the corner.

Okay. A lot of people here have no clue how the immigration system works both in the US and in Canada. “He should just have come here legally”. Well, most of the time a legal path to emigrating to the US/Canada just does not exist, and its getting more and more impossible to be granted asylum. In the US you can’t just apply for a work visa, you can’t just apply for a green card. You got to be eligible to apply for it. For a work visa you need a job offer first, you need proof of income and most of the time the employer will have to prove they couldn’t find an American to take the position. To get a green card you either have to get married to an American, invest at least $500,000 or try applying for asylum (which is almost impossible to get nowadays). ALSO to apply for asylum you need to be either inside the US or at a US port of entry. Try to be less “patriotic” and more empathetic. People flee their countries because of war, violence, cartels, gangs, terrorism, etc. They are desperate and want to protect their families and have a better life. If you were in their shoes and staying in your home country put your family in great harm you would have done the same thing. People need to stop judging, stop being selfish and start leading with empathy.

The problem is the government didn't know how to make enough money in the country...... That's why they want more other people to do investment or have business in Canada in order to bring more money into the country. The fact is the social welfare is too good that government might not be able to afford that big spending. First, Government needs to know how to make money on their own, not depending rich immigrants. Second, encourage citizens to have baby by providing benefits for them, to boost the birth rate. Third, stop being so nice to refugee, stop importing refugee! The biggest problem of refugee is they don't make money to the country, they rely on social welfare heavily.

No Country is forced by it's obligations to sacrifice itself upon the altar of alliance.\n-Bismarck\n\nTake heed Canada, If you're pushing 40 like me you will not be getting any healthcare when you're older. That will be all gone if this continues. The best healthcare investment will be a gun, and a bullet, for your own head. Almost a metaphor for what Canada is doing to itself right now.\n\nJustilyin Trudeau needs to be removed from power by any means, sooner than later.