# So just what is the 'meaning' of Canada? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 2, 2017, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-just-what-is-the-meaning-of-canada/790340 "2017-07-02T10:49:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Showing post:** 54
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2017, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-just-what-is-the-meaning-of-canada/790340/54 "2017-07-07T21:28:48Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > You couldn’t ask for a better next door neighbor but the U.S. gets the raw end of the deal. We get to spend trillions on North American regional defense while Canada can just sit back and blow money on stupid things like health care for its own citizens. Canadians live longer than Americans: 79.3 years = Canadian life expectancy (2001) 77.0 years = American life expectancy (2001) Canadians enjoy better health longer than Americans: 69.9 years = Canadian healthy life expectancy (2001) 67.4 = American healthy life expectancy (2001) Canadian individuals and insurers do not pay as much as American individuals and insurers: 28 = Canadian private expenditure on health as % of total expenditure on health (2000) 55.7 = American private expenditure on health as % of total expenditure on health (2000) Canadian taxpayers do not pay as much for health care as the American taxpayers: $1826 = Canadian per capita government expenditure on health in international dollars (2000) $1992 = American per capita government expenditure on health in international dollars (2000) Less of Canada’s GDP is spent on health than the USA’s: 9.1 = Canadian total expenditure on health as % of GDP (2000) 13 = American total expenditure on health as % of GDP (2000) World Health Organization stats: [http://www.who.int/whr/2002/annex/en/](http://www.who.int/whr/2002/annex/en/) So you’re ignoring the obvious and defending the indefensible when you blame your health care woes on your perceived need to start needless wars. --- _[View the full topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-just-what-is-the-meaning-of-canada/790340)._