I am confused.
It's true, this is not the first time. In fact, it happens quite often, but usually, I can ask a few people, do a little research and come away with an answer that helps me better understand. Sometimes, however, you come across something that defies all logic.
This is one of those times.
Although I have heard many comments about how I come from a socialist country and how "those poor Canadians pay such ridiculously high taxes", I have mostly taken this as a sign of ignorance. But since Obama has been elected (which restored my faith in the U.S.), I have heard these opinions not just from people around town, but now in the newspapers and other media.
Today, I read a newspaper article where the writer (who unfortunately for me, shares my first name) compared Obama to the Wizard in the Wizard of Oz (which in and of itself is not a kind comparison) and said that she was not going to wait for him to make the U.S. a socialist country.
What?!?!
I read it twice thinking that I must have missed the joke that was surely pointing fun at those who might actually believe this ridiculous notion. Nope. No joke. Just one person's opinion which represents the tip of the iceberg, unfortunately.
So, my fellow Canadians (and Australians) who follow this blog... let's open up the discussion. With all evidence to the contrary (including the facts that, on average, Canadians live longer, are healthier, are more highly educated, more well-read, and all things considered, pay taxes on par with their American counterparts), why is it that there is such fear in the U.S. of more government involvement in healthcare and education?
When I first arrived here, I too believed some of the hype. I was sure that Canadians must pay much higher taxes then Americans, since we receive subsidized university education and national healthcare. However, after seeing both my husband's and my own pay cheques, I can no longer say this is true. (Actually, I believe my reaction was "Woah!! Then where is it going?!")
My second stereotype, that of America having a terrific school system, was shot down after learning that Americans pay more per student for grade school education then any and yet test scores upon graduating high school fall well below the norm.
So... why do these stereotypes and fears persist and who benefits from them persisting?
My little brother and his wife had a healthy baby boy this weekend. I am officially an aunt. In addition to having a gorgeous little one to take care of, they will receive many presents, lots of attention, and a little tax money from the Canadian government. What they will not receive is a bill for the many months of prenatal care, the hospital stay, or the follow-up visits from their midwife and to their doctor. Our 'socialist' government, and the people such government is responsible to, believe that this is one of their most basic rights and the responsibility of all Canadians. We pay into the pot, we elect the government who oversees it, and as needed, we draw on it. Surely, there must be some who take advantage, but it is the will of the people to by and large take care of those who are in need. There is a definitely understanding that each healthy, educated Canadian helps to make the collective nation stronger.
So how is it that patriotism, something that the U.S. is world-renowned for, competes with collective strength? Incredibly high numbers of Americans do not graduate high school, and with further education being so costly, those in the lower classes find it ever harder to break into the middle class.
How can anyone believe that Obama's government spending and reallocation will push the U.S. into a socialist structure, when surely they must have to come to terms with the fact that Bush's spending almost (and it remains to see if it already has) destroyed this country's economy. Am I to believe, as the earlier mentioned newspaper reporter obviously does, that unregulated spending by a government is simply a part of democracy, but having the people request that the new leadership take steps to get the country back on track, is socialism? And how is it possible for anyone in this day and age to deny that the Bush legacy will affect the world's economy for years to come?
Obama is not the Wizard of Oz. He is, however, the unfortunate one who had to pull back the cloth for the world to see that there was not a great and all knowing one after all. There is no Wizard. Instead, there are 306 million people who are being asked, for the first time in a long time, to take part in their government and the rebuilding of their nation.
Electing Obama was not the end of this crisis. It was the beginning of a dialogue. It is an example of democracy and an education of what that word actually means.
306 million people help to decide what happens from here on in. But certainly, for whatever disputes and discussion the future decisions will raise, everyone now has the ability to be involved.
