SHF ... I'm sure Kevin would agree, since he's back there in Sunny Alberta .... the downside of it is that Canada is ruled by John Cretin (he spells his name Jean Cretien becoause he's dyslexic or something) and his Looney Left party - otherwise known as the Red Liberal party. Think of a country ruled by Clinton ... but you couldn't impeach him or vote him out since you never voted him in (the Prime Minister is "elected" by members of the party).
Also, as my wife points out ... there are 4 seasons: Early Skiing, Cold Skiing, Late Skiing and poor skiing .... at least that's her jaundiced Texan view of it ....
The only real downside, if you want me to be serious, is the cost of mild socialism .... costs a lot to keep those welfar (cash) subsidies going to all the indians, unwed mothers and (not that I'm biased or anything ....) east-coasters who like to fish for 3 months and relax for 9 months ...
Taxes ... both local and income ... are quite high, and - except for Alberta, there's Federal and Provincial sales tax ... which can really bite you when you buy a car.
On the plus side .... which I found hard to believe until I moved here (and I'm speaking of Alberta in general and Edmonton area in specific) ... most everything is cheaper ... especially when you consider the exchange rate. Food costs me about 25% higher here, I have less choice of fresh fruit and vegetables here, clothing is costs more here ... and electronics and stuff like that are about 10 - 15% higher. (They raised my slaray to make the move a break-even). Housing is cheaper, energy is cheaper, insurance is much cheaper. Medicine and medical care is significantly cheaper ... which may or moy not be a good thing .... lost my previous wife to poor care and neglect ... but not anywhere near as bad a people like to fantasize about. My wife ... who spent all her life in Texas until I uprooted her ... was exstatic about the doctor in the small town near our farm ... and has sorely missed the level of care he provided ... even though this company town we now live near is over-medic'd to the hilt!
But ... like I said before ... home is where you make it ... and what you make it .... even though both my wife and I had said we'd rather be dead than working at headquarters .... we're both very happy here in Michigan! Do I miss Canada? Well, it may sound so .... but I have no time to miss it .... haven't has a chance to get back there for 2 years. Maybe this summer ...
I can't remember what the current laws are about foreign ownership of land in Canada ... but it never was too onerous ... however, unless it's pretty close to town it's unlikely to appreciate much ... so is not usually an "investment".
On the distaff side ... fewer roads and many more unimproved roads. Services are concentrated in the larger centres and becoming more so .... the biggest shopping mall in the world is in Edmonton (about 20% larger than the Minneapolis one, if memory serves me).
too bad that common sense ain't
