It was for these very reasons that my parents decided they want to live in a county where respect for basic human rights was a way of life.  So they immigrated to a country they knew little about, Canada.  I’m am so blessed and fortunate to have born in such a great county.  A country which has accorded me every opportunity to succeed and a country where I have the right to voice an opinion. 

Is the American Dream no longer attainable?

“Occupy Wall Street”  protestors are going global.  Their comrades in arms will be protesting in Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver.   The question I have is, why?  I was in New York last week, and I went to Wall Street to see the protest for myself and to get a sense of what the protest was all about.  Reading the home-made protest signs, and talking to few protestors, I walked away thinking these protestors are mad at everyone and everything.  Some of the signs read, “NYPD Works For The Rich”, “Free Palestine”, “Egypt Spring Uprising in America”, “Forgive Student Loans”, “Down with Obama”, and the one that caught my attention, “Arrest Bankers”.  There doesn’t seem to be one issue or cause.   The people protesting are disillusioned and their disillusionment is shared by millions of people in the U.S.  There’s a feeling amongst many in the U.S. the American Dream is  no longer attainable.  On many levels I agree with them.  Their country has let down millions of people in the U.S. and to make matters worse their government has provided little hope.

Correlation between U.S. and Canada?
I struggle to see a correlation or similarity to what is happening in Canada.  To compare our set of circumstances to theirs requires blind solidarity.  Our unemployment rate has been declining, 7.1% compared to the U.S. rate of 9.2%.  One in four homes in the U.S. is underwater (mortgage exceeds home value).  In Canada, home prices have increased for 8 straight months.   The Bank of Canada and Ministry of Finance have sounded alarm bells about our home values and the amount of consumer debt.  There’s no such concerns by the U.S. Government today.  Millions of homes have been foreclosed on in the U.S.  When American’s hear about our foreclosure rate they ask the following question – “do you have the decimal point in the right place?”.  People in the U.S.  are angry because of bank bail outs.  Correct me if I’m wrong but I don’t believe any Canadian Banks received a penny during the credit crisis.  The median family income in the U.S. has been on the decline since 2000.  According to Statistics Canada, that’s not the reality in Canada. 

If the protests in Canada are about solidarity and the power of social media to assemble, I get that.  If it’s to draw a direct comparison to our circumstances and that of the U.S., I don’t get that.  The protestors in Canada have right to have their opinions heard.  But there are millions of people around the world who would gladly trade their problems with those protesting in Canada.  That’s just my opinion, and I have every right to it.

Until next time,

Cheers.