Americans not accepting Canada's welcome
There hasn't been the boom that was anticipated and immigration has actually declined. I wonder if the lack of an organized campaign didn't contribute to this. Americans went to the websites but didn't have all the information they needed to figure out how to move.
Americans didn't flock to Canada after Bush win
OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canadians can put away those extra welcome mats -- it seems Americans unhappy about the result of last November's presidential election have decided to stay at home after all.
In the days after President Bush won a second term, the number of U.S. citizens
visiting Canada's main immigration Web site shot up sixfold, prompting speculation that unhappy Democrats would flock north.
But official statistics show the number of Americans actually applying to live permanently in Canada fell in the six months after the election.
On the face of it this is not good news -- Canada is one of the few major nations seeking to attract immigrants -- but Immigration Minister Joe Volpe was philosophical.
"We'll take talent from wherever it is resident in the world. I was absolutely elated to see the number of hits and then my staff said 'You know what? A hit on the Internet is after all just a hit'," he told Reuters on Thursday.
Last year, Canada, which has a population of about 32 million, accepted 235,808 immigrants from all over the world.
posted by James @ 8/04/2005 06:47:00 p.m.
3 comments
3 Comments:
That's really sad to hear, though in some senses not that surprising. Having lived in the US for a long time, I know how desensitising the American Bubble can be.
In the days and weeks following Bush's re-election, people would have undoubtedly made passionate resolutions that they were going to leave "that bloody country" - hence the dramatic increase in hits on Canadian Immigration sites - only to succumb to the drudgerous monotony of everyday American Life. In effect they would have forgotten about how bad it really is there.
Here's an analogy: if you throw a frog into a pot of water that is already boiling it will sense the danger and hop out immediately; but if you place it in luke-warm water and slowly increase the temperature, it won't realise the threat until it's too late.
Unfortunately people aren't aware that life is better elsewhere. Everything on TV, in the newspapers, and in schools leads them to believe America is the "Land of the Free, and the Home of the Brave." After a while they just accept it as the gospel truth. What a shame...
Perhaps calling American Life "drudgerous monotony" isn't quite accurate - insular would be far more accurate.
You got THAT right. As a lifelong American (who wishes she lived in France), I would LOVE to move to Canada or elsewhere someday. I honestly can't afford to move and that's probably the only reason why I haven't.
I think the reason I can see the country is going down the tubes is because I'm only second generation european (Irish & Polish) so somehow my upbringing was a tad different than many people who have been here for generations -- the insular theory would apply there.
BTW, I love the boiling frog analogy.
Cool blog!! I'm going to visit often.
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