Very interesting read. Very articulate.Canadian median wealth per capita you quote is news to me, but wikipedia agrees with you, so bravo on the find. I'm an investor, I go where the data leads me, and have no problem adjusting my views, but I will say the findings are at odds with personal experience. Compensation is night and day Canada vs the US in my line of work (I worked 5 years in NYC in a prior life) and the job market is shallow to the point of feeling provincial. I have similar feedback on compensation from friends in other professional fields... doctors, and techies. Ultimately, everybody's decision is based on what works individually for them, not country medians and averages. Before you ask why I'm even in Canada, there were a unique set of personal circumstances
Regarding the US, "obsession" is a strong word, but I do like the country having gone to grad school, worked a few years, and met my wife there, lol. I would urge you not to see an entire nation through the lens of Trump's most hard-right followers. America is a great country, with heaps of generous people, and incredible diversity. As is Canada, I hasten to add, before you threaten to deport me south, haha.
Ultimately, I see myself as a global citizen of Indian origin, and we raise our kids to think that way too. We have close friends in over a dozen countries, and many of those would make wonderful places to live, work and raise a family. Canada happens to be one of them. We will go where life and opportunities take us, and try to be productive members of any society while we live there. This fixation on nationality is a bit jarring and tribal. The "nation state" is a pretty recent idea within human history, the only reason it matters is because policies and governance reside within national boundaries. The EU is already showing that need not always be the case, and there is a more inclusive way forward.
I would love for Canada to be successful, and mine are professional observations. For example, *I think* Canada will have a far harder time printing money indefinitely compared to the US. I could be right on this, or I could be wrong. But every investor also needs to be a risk manager, and the risk manager in me suggests I should steer clear of the loonie. The last time the loonie was at parity, check what energy prices were on the chart from TD I linked above. Any bet the loonie could get there again, is a bet that oil goes above $100. I'm not a speculator, so that's not a call I can make.
Btw, I'm in agreement with your observation on Japan. If you look at the last 40 years per capita, Japan has performed only slightly worse than the US, including its 80s boom and 90s bust. It actually did better than Canada (and your favorite country NZ) during that period. But guess who did better than the US... Germany... so the problem is not with "socialism" (whatever that means) but what flavor you adopt. We have close friends in Munich, and have seen first hand how strong Germany's school system is. In comparison, Canada is dumbing things down for our kids at school, it's the saddest thing about the country. When we first came, we were really keen on public schools, and sent our eldest to one of TDSB's top-rated schools per EQAO and Fraser. The expectations from students and quality of instruction were so dismayingly low, that we felt compelled to move to a private school. Now the public schools in the US aren't great overall, but we have friends in NJ, TX, CA, MI who send their kids to good school districts, and each of them is happy. What on earth are we paying taxes for when a Toronto public school rated 8.5 by Fraser is so appallingly bad?!
I fear this is turning into a pointless conversation, so I'm going to post no further. Fully prepared for an onslaught that I'm an opportunist and not deserving of Canada's acceptance, lol. The one country for which I have tenderness in my heart is India, but sadly our kids may not feel that way. Such is life. Peace.
I don't even know where or how this particular 'argument' started, but it is refreshing to see an individual present his points in an informed and mature manner.
