Basically Canadian

[Centropolis]

Originally Posted by someone123

I don't really find that this is true. I've spent lots of time in different parts of the US.

One difference is that the progressive parts of the US tend to be ostentatious in their support of political causes (put Black Lives Matter and Free Tibet signs up all over your lawn, etc.) and intolerant of the US right wing, which barely has a counterpart in Canada. The whole political spectrum in the US is shifted more in the libertarian or small government direction. A lot of US political issues don't readily translate into anything similar north of the border. Some of the rhetoric unfortunately leaks up here even when it makes no sense, but that is still a relatively small part of the overall political landscape here.

I find there is a weird circularity in the way a lot of Americans view Canadians. Many Americans unthinkingly model Canada as the upper Midwest in their minds.

most of the canadian-like population (in the sense of what do we want as a country) is the opposite of ostentatious. i think american media (all around) has distorted this reality in a really extreme way and i would really caution against consuming too much of it.

[Centropolis]

as some of the assumptions here seem to reveal, i think (generally) the view of americans from canada is more distorted at this point than the other way. theres too much noise/garbage to sift through coming from this end. it’s unfortunate.

[SaskScraper]

Originally Posted by Acajack

I have always found that Australia is an incredibly comfortable fit for me, and am surprised that it hasn't been mentioned by other Canadians here.

Originally Posted by suburbanite

Played in a hockey tournament in Minnesota growing up and I think they were more Canadian than us. I get the feeling that they are more receptive to conversations with strangers than us though. Like a blend of Southern hospitality in the great white north.

Originally Posted by SignalHillHiker

...
I think Minnesota is probably basically Canadian. The English have some similarities, especially in world view. It's sort of like Vienna is so much grander than Austria's size, there's a similar sort of self-importance for Canadians generally - especially given we could all be wiped off the earth tomorrow and there'd be little impact to what's left.

But Canada is definitely an outlier to me in terms of atmosphere. It's like KW thinking I'm just describing the urban/rural divide

There's so many variables to what makes me feel as a Canadian similar socially, in comparison to other countries. Rural/urban, young/old, str8/gay, racial, socioeconomic differences can play a part in how similar it can feel between Canadians and elsewhere.

I've often mentioned to people that Australia feels like another Canada (basically Canada), just on other side of the planet, There's a lot of comparisons that always make me feel like i'm at home there each time I go. Money, language, food, ease of getting around, culturally similar, etc.

People in New Zealand and South African are even more open with ease to talk with while traveling there I felt too. American's can be just as open and welcoming as any other nation's people, just depends what kind of social interaction. The UK and EU can be a bit of a mixed bag, once you get past their inability to queue politely, depending on who & how you meet people determines how welcoming they will be. I've mostly travelled by myself aboard but have never felt lonely in other countries, also being relatively good looking and having a friendly demeanor, people tend to be at ease with me right from starting with small talk. One thing I have noticed in our own country is that people are condescending to me when they find out what province I grew up in. alternately, it doesn't make a difference to people in other countries where in Canada i'm originally from.

My husband is from England and while we're in Canada he often says how glad he is being in such a open/welcoming country, especially in Saskatoon. Even before he opens his mouth & speaks with an accent, he says Canadians are way more friendly and accepting than in the UK, even more so when they eventually find out he's not str8.

As far as the comment 'Canadians could be wiped off the earth tomorrow and little impact in the World', seems very short sighted.

Even for a province like Saskatchewan that produces (& that originally developed) Canola and now produces 10% of World's Canola, produces 39% of the World's Durum Wheat, Saskatchewan produces 55% of the World's peas, 65% of the World's Lentils. What agriculture that isn't produced in Saskatchewan, the Province plays a part in fertilizer for growing agriculture else where, producing 30% of the World's Potash (the 3rd number in your garden centre bag of fertilizer). That's just Saskatchewan and it doesn't include Cattle exports to other countries.

Considering that hundreds of millions of people rely on Saskatchewan for food to eat, & for that reason alone, i'd say it would make an impact on World's populous if the country were wiped off the earth.

• Video Link

[Centropolis]

Originally Posted by Pinus

Have you ever travelled outside of North America? Specifically to Western Europe or Australia/New Zealand? I'm guessing no, and probably why you feel Canada =Untied States, which it doesn't. Lots of people fall into that trap when they don't travel outside of their home country or continent.

here’s my new zealand thread from this year if you are interested. i never posted my auckland thread i guess but if i ever have time i’ll post those. i think this is heavily south island.

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=231783

[Loco101]

Originally Posted by Acajack

While we are not like the Italians of course, I find Quebecers are a huge exception to the legendary Canadian "reserve" and the whole "sorry" thing.

Newfoundland is an exception to the "reserve" as well but perhaps not so much to the "sorry" thing.

Overall I find the dominant temperament quite similar over a huge swath of the country whether I am in Lower Sackville, NS, Belleville, ON, Saskatoon, SK or Kamloops, BC. It's actually quite remarkable when you consider the distances and how most people in these places have probably never been to at least two of the other regions I've mentioned.

Quebecers are pretty much in line with other Canadians though when it comes to general outlook on life such as minding one's own business (Canada is a huge MYOB country IMO), or the need for a balance between mercantile interests and having a healthy somewhat egalitarian society, etc. No area of Canada can truly be said to be predominantly dog-eat-dog in its mindset, for example. Not even Alberta!

I agree with you Acajack. Your observations are very accurate. I've done a lot of travelling within Canada including Quebec.

I would say that most Franco-Ontarians are much less reserved than the average anglophone in Ontario. ( Many of my francophone friends and colleagues at work will mention that they find me reserved and that I'm less willing to share intimate things about myself. I find that they are more open about family issues, health issues including mental heath, sex and relationships. At work, they are much more likely to have cell phone conversations about sensitive issues in the open without going to a private room. There seems to be much less shame than compared to how anglophones deal with those things. (I have to add that among anglophone there are a number who are quite open who are often from specific backgrounds such as Italian or Eastern European for example)

I also agree that most Canadians across Canada are very good when it comes to minding one's own business. I find that campgrounds are good places to test that. In the U.S. we almost always had people stop at our site just to make conversation. Sometimes they would just want to show off their RV or trailer by inviting us over to their site. We did get a number of invitations in Newfoundland to campsites for beer but overall most people even there minded their own business. I always find that Quebec is ideal because people there are amazingly good at respecting campsite privacy but will be very friendly and open if you start a conversation.

[Architype]

Originally Posted by Pinus

It was never a purely Canadian show. It was meant for a North American audience, so predominantly Americans.

Try watching Royal Canadian Air Farce, This Hour Has 22 Minutes, The Mercer Report, Kids in the Hall, Seeing Things, Beachcombers, King Of Kensington, Mr. Dressup, etc. Those are/were geared specifically for Canadian audiences.

You forgot the Republic of Doyle , which should have been called "The Parliamentary Democracy of Doyle" in order to be properly Canadian, unless it was meant for American audiences too. I think it's a common thing for entertainment produced in Canada to aim for an American audience as well.

[someone123]

Originally Posted by Centropolis

most of the canadian-like population (in the sense of what do we want as a country) is the opposite of ostentatious. i think american media (all around) has distorted this reality in a really extreme way and i would really caution against consuming too much of it.

I don't consume much American media. My opinion is based on visiting cities like Seattle and San Francisco. I go to the US 8 or 10 times a year.

[Centropolis]

Originally Posted by someone123

I don't consume much American media. My opinion is based on visiting cities like Seattle and San Francisco. I go to the US 8 or 10 times a year.

fair enough. regardless, theres a substantial element of the american population that gets shouted down by others...by the war-profit motive, by amplified coastal perspectives, by all kinds of insane things in this weird, giant thunderdome down here that a lot of us have grown weary of.

[kool maudit]

Bit of this going on in here

[kool maudit]

Americans make Canadians weird. There is a whole complex.

Danes make Swedes weird too. I forgot about this during a recent conversation in Gothenburg when a bunch of Swedes were discussing things that frustrated them in Sweden and I made a fairly tepid positive reference to Denmark.


YEAH BUT THEY SOUND ALL LIKE WOOLGOOLROOLILOOL AND THEY'RE DRUNK AND WHY DON'T THEY MAKE ANYTHING EVER WE HAVE VOLVO WE INVENTED THE ADJUSTABLE WRENCH

for like 20 minutes.

[kool maudit]

(I got us out of those weeds by faux-patriotically noting that a Dane invented the female condom, which mollified them somewhat)

[kool maudit]

Anyway... the US as a lived experience is different from the US as a spectacle. A lot of Americans scan as basically Canadian to me, unless they are from a region/regional culture/group we don't have (the South, most African-Americans) or they are deeply involved in something specifically American (thinking State Dept. types I met in Kosovo here).

My Swedish gf felt like she could tell through how people spoke of their lives that Canada had a 'Swedish-type system' in place for a lot of things, and noticed that Canadians were more polite but less warm than her experience in the states (lived there for a long time). Overall, though, the country hit a lot of the 'big and a bit disorderly' marks for her that the US did and I think they are both 'America' for her in the way that both Sweden and Denmark are 'Scandinavia' for me.

I thought before spending a lot of time there that Germany would seem more familiar than it does.

[SignalHillHiker]

Originally Posted by kool maudit

(I got us out of those weeds by faux-patriotically noting that a Dane invented the female condom, which mollified them somewhat)

The fact it was the female one... man, you came out swinging.

*****

I summarized the question of this thread to my mother (she's been basically everywhere at this point) and asked her which places she's been have felt like the mainland.

She said Portugal was very similar in a lot of deep, meaningful ways to all of Canada, including Newfoundland. The thing that struck her most is that residents of Lisbon truly love their city. It's not just confidence like New York, it's genuine love, which is an attribute she feels St. John's shares in common.

She said nowhere in the United States or England feels the same as Canada because they're too insular. "Even New York feels claustrophobic and isolated after a few days. You never hear anything about the outside world, it's all-America, all-the-time." She said that's impossible in Canada and she never gets that feeling anywhere in continental Europe, even in places that come close - like France and Italy. "The local Paris news stations will still have Berlin and Shanghai in their weather forecasts. You never feel like you've fallen off the face of the earth."

[kool maudit]

Lisbon and St. John's... I know your mom's thing was on the spirit level, but... I can see it!

[Centropolis]

Originally Posted by SignalHillHiker

She said nowhere in the United States or England feels the same as Canada because they're too insular. "Even New York feels claustrophobic and isolated after a few days. You never hear anything about the outside world, it's all-America, all-the-time." She said that's impossible in Canada and she never gets that feeling anywhere in continental Europe, even in places that come close - like France and Italy. "The local Paris news stations will still have Berlin and Shanghai in their weather forecasts. You never feel like you've fallen off the face of the earth."

with the exception of my experience as just a tourist of london (living there should be different of course and i have a really distorted early twentieth idea of london in general), i’d agree. new zealand/oceania has the same sort of planetary awareness thing going on, and it really feels like you’re going back into a kind of shielded, shadowed superstructure heading back into the united states to me.

[Centropolis]

edit: my post spawned X2

[esquire]

Originally Posted by SignalHillHiker

She said nowhere in the United States or England feels the same as Canada because they're too insular. "Even New York feels claustrophobic and isolated after a few days. You never hear anything about the outside world, it's all-America, all-the-time." She said that's impossible in Canada and she never gets that feeling anywhere in continental Europe, even in places that come close - like France and Italy. "The local Paris news stations will still have Berlin and Shanghai in their weather forecasts. You never feel like you've fallen off the face of the earth."

Kind of reminds of me of years ago, when I spent part of a year working at a software company in Wuxi, China. Much like with the US, the general culture and media were all-China, all-the-time.

It was a little strange at first, because up until that point I thought only the Americans did that sort of thing. It hadn't occurred to me that any other countries would do that. But in hindsight, I guess it shouldn't have been that surprising that such a huge country would be focused so heavily on itself.

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by Centropolis

with the exception of my experience as just a tourist of london (living there should be different of course and i have a really distorted early twentieth idea of london in general), i’d agree. new zealand/oceania has the same sort of planetary awareness thing going on, and it really feels like you’re going back into a kind of shielded, shadowed superstructure heading back into the united states to me.

You appreciate something that I think many do not.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by niwell

I mean I saw KITH as quintessentially Canadian comedy when growing up, but it’s interesting when someone from St. Louis assumed it was American. Also I would hesitate putting shows like royal air farce or this hour has 22 minutes into even close the same category. KITH was farrrrr superior, and holds up to this day.

I actually think he was saying it stood out as something *non-American*.

Back when I paid attention to such stuff, I also found Kids in the Hall to be noticeably Canadian, certainly compared to stuff like SCTV and Bizarre which were basically American shows made in Canada - except for the 2-minute Great White North segment of course.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by Pinus

It was never a purely Canadian show. It was meant for a North American audience, so predominantly Americans.

.

It was actually a local community TV show in Ottawa for the first couple of years, and that's what the U.S. comedy network simply picked up originally. It didn't have to be American-focused at that point, though it may have been anyway as anyone who's watched or listened to any number of "made for Canada only" programs can attest - they're often difficult to distinguish from U.S. stuff.