FIRE to Canada

[tozz]

(scratching Burkina Faso off my retire abroad destination list...)

well said.

check out

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0778562.html

Canada has actually dropped a bit from a few years back.  Still rates high, however.

 

[HFWR]

Have - did you consider the train and did you know where you were going? 

Didn't really give it that much thought, since the draft more or less ended in '72; besides, I would have most likely joined if faced with being drafted.

Would still like to ride the Canadian Railway!

 

[nfs]

Anyone know of a US Property site where you can SEARCH based on a specific address, street name or full zip code?

Curious if MLS past price histories are available on the net, or is this restricted to realtors only?

You might check out the websites of local papers. For example, the Chicago Tribune has an online database searchable by street going back to 1997 of every transaction in metro Chicago here.

 

[Calgary_Girl]

Apropos of nothing, it is sort of startling to see a population density map of Canada.  Virtually the entire county is huddled within a couple of hundred miles of the southern border, shivering, trying to warm themselves.

Mmmm....partly true.  

BUT, I'd venture to say that this is the case because you guys are our biggest trading partner and vice versa.  

 

[Calgary_Girl]

Calgary_Girl:

"beer" caught my I while scanning messages .  Hypothetical:  Say an American  couple was interested in moving to Canada but didn't want to jump thru all the hoops of acquiring Canadian citizenship.  If they divorced each other and then found a similarly willing couple in Canada, could each American marry a Canadian, get full citizenship, divorce again, and then remarry the original spouse while retaining full Canandian citizenship?  If so .

This is not about some dirty, sqaulid foursome in freezing temperatures.  It's about a loftier pursuit of an ideal future in a land of freedom--and better beer. 

--Greg

Hey, if homosexuals can now get married in the land of freedom, I'd say anything is now possible!!

 

[nfs]

"beer" caught my I while scanning messages . Hypothetical: Say an American couple was interested in moving to Canada but didn't want to jump thru all the hoops of acquiring Canadian citizenship. If they divorced each other and then found a similarly willing couple in Canada, could each American marry a Canadian, get full citizenship, divorce again, and then remarry the original spouse while retaining full Canandian citizenship? If so .

This is not about some dirty, sqaulid foursome in freezing temperatures. It's about a loftier pursuit of an ideal future in a land of freedom--and better beer.

a) What have you got against dirty squalid foursomes?
b) Freedom is an ethereal thing. You're not free to carry concealed, buy cheap booze, get mail delivered six days a week, or be too politically incorrect. You will almost certainly pay higher taxes.
c) Mass market Canadian beer is swill on a par with mass market US beer and a lot more expensive.

 

[bosco]

c) Mass market Canadian beer is swill on a par with mass market US beer and a lot more expensive.

Not only that, but micro-brews, in my opinion, are on par in either country. The "better beer" thing was a lot more true before the micro-brew revolution. But hey....it sounds good! And it's really hard to beat the Quebec Belgian knock-offs (Unibrou I think).

 

[greg]

a) What have you got against dirty squalid foursomes?
b) Freedom is an ethereal thing. You're not free to carry concealed, buy cheap booze, get mail delivered six days a week, or be too politically incorrect. You will almost certainly pay higher taxes.
c) Mass market Canadian beer is swill on a par with mass market US beer and a lot more expensive.

a) Nothing for others (kinda), but definitely not in snowbank.

b) Don't forget the mind control. You get what you pay for I guess. Taxes? I had the 'political correctness' in my youth to be conservative with money. That has afforded me the luxury of having the choice to be a liberal in my golden years. A friend of mine, who voted for you know who, is in bondage to the tax cuts (and ideas) offered by that elected official. To my mind, he sold his soul for about $200/yr. That's about 30 pieces of silver/yr.

c) You're probably right. I'm not a big imbiber of that catagory of spirits. I prefer my spirits a bit more distilled.

--Greg

 

[Calgary_Girl]

Not only that, but micro-brews, in my opinion, are on par in either country.  The "better beer" thing was a lot more true before the micro-brew revolution.  But hey....it sounds good!  And it's really hard to beat the Quebec Belgian knock-offs (Unibrou I think).

I find U.S. beer too watered down for my taste.  DH can only drink Canadian beer in moderation.

 

[Danny]

I find U.S. beer too watered down for my taste. DH can only drink Canadian beer in moderation.

My Czech boss would say American beer was water put through a horse, as we sipped Pilsner Urquells...

 

[bosco]

I find U.S. beer too watered down for my taste. DH can only drink Canadian beer in moderation.

Ah, but are you drinking good American beer, or Buttwiper? Try an Anchor Steam, or an Alaskan Amber, or an Arrogant Bastard. They certainly are not watered down and have more flavour than a Kokonee, Alexander Keiths, or Molsons. On the other hand, Maudite or Trois Pistolles are to die for (yes, there are some good things about Quebec!), and some pretty darn good stuff coming out of Penticton and Revelstoke (can't remember the brands right off hand).

If we consider top-tier microbrews of both countries, neither is watered down and both is good. If you want to compare, say, Molsons with Budweiser, then I agree with you. Although for my tastes, both are watered down :

Hey CG (or anyone else that knows), how about steering me to a couple of good brewpubs in the Calgary area? I found a pretty good one in Canmore, but I'm sure there are some dynamite ones in Calgary. I especially like brew on premises. Steamboat in Vancouver has some pretty good brews.

 

[Calgary_Girl]

Hey CG (or anyone else that knows), how about steering me to a couple of good brewpubs in the Calgary area?  I found a pretty good one in Canmore, but I'm sure there are some dynamite ones in Calgary.  I especially like brew on premises.  Steamboat in Vancouver has some pretty good brews. 

Hey, I personally like The Barley Mill (Eau Claire) or Brewsters on 17th Ave.

 

[ER@40]

You might check out the websites of local papers. For example, the Chicago Tribune has an online database searchable by street going back to 1997 of every transaction in metro Chicago here.

Thanks nfs!

 

[laurence]

Arrogant Bastard is brewed a mile from my house, the state university is a mile from my house, too. Bad combination!

Karl Strauss is another fine beer from the San Diego area. Their Amber Lager is, I think the best beer I've ever had, and I've had hundreds.

 

[REWahoo]

I find U.S. beer too watered down for my taste.

Anyone recall the old Monty Python skit where a bunch of Aussies say that American beer is "like making love in a canoe"...?

REW

 

[Zorba]

Anyone recall the old Monty Python skit where a bunch of Aussies say that American beer is "like making love in a canoe"...?

REW. That would be the Bruces skit: http://tinyurl.com/chzdu



While I am at it, here are the "Reasons to Fear Canada" by Sean Carman

Ninety percent of population is massed within 100 miles of northern American border.

Seems not to mind that one of its provinces has turned almost entirely French.

Excessive politeness only makes sense as cover for something truly sinister. But what?

Citizens seem strangely impervious to cold.

Decriminalization of marijuana and acceptance of gay marriage without corresponding collapse of social institutions indicate Canada may, in fact, be indestructible.

Has infiltrated entertainment industry with singers, actors, and comedians practically indistinguishable from their American counterparts.

Consistently stays just below cultural radar yet never quite disappears.

Parliamentary government and common-law judiciary appear to function acceptably yet remain completely inscrutable.

Never had a "disco phase."

Seemingly endless supply of timber, donuts, and Scotch-plaid hats with earflaps.

Keeps insisting it "has no designs on America" and "only wants peace."

Plays a mean game of pond hockey.

 

[AltaRed]

I can vouch for Calgary Girl's assessment of microbrews. Brewsters is my fav, whether on 17th Ave or in the suburbs

 

[bosco]

Hey, I personally like The Barley Mill (Eau Claire) or Brewsters on 17th Ave.

Thank you! Will make it a point to try both.

 

[BunsGettingFirm]

The usual Canadian tax complainer is a fellow who makes over a hundred grand a year, has a stay-at-home wife, a bunch of kids, and a fat mortgage payment. The hundred grand puts him in the top bracket (39% where you are but as high as 50% elsewhere in the country) with no deductions for wife, kids, mortgage interest, or provincial taxes.

Even at fifty grand, your tax bill in any province is going to be at least ten grand. In the US, you start with 50, deduct 15 as personal exemptions, 10 as mortgage interest, 5 as property tax, and are left with a taxable income of about $20k. I don't have Pub 17 in front of me but you can't pay more than a couple of thou on that in the US.

To be fair, the income tax difference never gets worse than about $10k and, for most people, it's a lot less. Toss in cheaper houses, lower property taxes, never having to worry about medical insurance - even if you do have to worry about medical care - and it's close to a wash.

But, shhhh, don't tell anyone. You'll ruin it for all of us.

With Alberta awash in oil sands and natural gas money, you also don't have to pay any provincial sales tax.

I'm reviving an old thread because I'm going to go to Montreal next year for school. I don't know if I'll find a job in Montreal because of my level 102 French, but just in case, I'm exploring all possibilities.

I would say that for a single guy like myself, I don't mind not having deductions for kids and wife though I may change my tune in the future when I do acquire the wife and the kids.

Not having to worry about paying potentially ruinously high medical insurance premium in a huge load off my mind. Consumption I can control because I have a choice how often to eat out, etc. Besides, even in Canada, there are ethnic restaurants where taxes are "wink wink" included. They, however, insist that you pay in cash. I wonder why.

 

[Chaps]

Being an ex-Canadian and new to this board I read through this entire old post with interest. To each his own but I would never consider moving back and given the opportunity most of my relatives would join me down here in the USA in a heartbeat . . . could say more but that's enough . . . do your own due diligence before you take the leap north IMO.

 

[Calgary_Girl]

Being an ex-Canadian and new to this board I read through this entire old post with interest. To each his own but I would never consider moving back and given the opportunity most of my relatives would join me down here in the USA in a heartbeat . . . could say more but that's enough . . . do your own due diligence before you take the leap north IMO.

That's interesting because most of my American relatives (aka husband's family) would consider moving to Canada in a heartbeat.

 

[rmark]

Canada = Cold. Although I enjoy my visit to Victoria years ago.

 

[Mr._johngalt]

Canada = Cold. Although I enjoy my visit to Victoria years ago.

I can't think of a single reason that I'd want to go to Canada,
even temporarily. OTOH, Toronto was my fav. big city at one time.

JG

 

[ShokWaveRider]

We are spending Xmas here in Canada. It is Cold. But We are Canadian, English and American Citizens, with 3 passports. No problems there.

SWR

 

[Mr._johngalt]

We are spending Xmas here in Canada.  It is Cold. But We are Canadian, English and American Citizens, with 3 passports. No problems there.

SWR

I don't quite get this. Why are all of those passports so important?
So you can get to better weather? I have never held a passport
and I can easily get to better weather. Did I miss something?

JG