Gak! …lol. I’m super jealous of you. I’m a USian who would enjoy little more than to emigrate to Canada. Unfortunately, I’m lacking a degree or in-demand skills. I mean, I’m sure there are a bunch of call centers, office work, and customer service jobs available in Canada, but I can’t really make the argument that I’m better suited for one of those than a current Canadian citizen. Once I get my degree in shark laser application, maybe that will change.
For now, though, my only option is dating across the border until I go back to school. How YOU doin’?
I had in demand skills to become a landed immigrant, and marrying a Canadian (Imp of the Perverse) helped with the citizenship. I will mention your name if I meet anyone in the laser shark industry.
Reading through this thread, I get the feeling people didn’t really read or follow the criteria set about by the OP. If they had, it seems that the US or the UK are the only logical answers. I get why people didn’t follow the OP though. That biased argument for Russia was ridiculous. No country that corrupt is bringing positive change.
That being said, depending on your criteria for greatest nation, countries like New Zealand or Canada, or many of the Scandinavian countries are great choices.
But as the OP is asking for country that has “significant influence” and “brings about positive change” would seemingly, to me, have to be either the US or UK depending on your feelings on US politics.
Personally, I’d say the US best fit those criteria, even though I have many problems with US politics. People hate the US but I’d much much much rather have the US controlling world politics than a country like China, Russia, etc. How could you not?
I can’t see how it is all bad even for an atheist-missionaries do a lot of social work-educating kids, digging wells and that sort of thing and end barbaric practices like cannibalism and racial hatred.
In the pissing match over US and Canadian immigration statistics, I’d only add that every year many more Canadians move south of the border to the US than vice versa (more than twice as many in 2010, if I’m reading the tables correctly: cite and cite [warning - excel file]). Especially amazing when you count the huge size disparity - you’d think it would be exactly opposite, just to be in keeping with the population ratios.
But it doesn’t matter because neither is the greatest country on earth - that title belongs to the United Kingdom. It’s Angophone (sorry to be linguocentric, but it’s a major benefit in this world); it’s a country of consequence politically, economically, culturally, and militarily; it’s got a functioning health care system and a decent work/life balance, but is also entrepreneurial and hard-working. It’s also very beautiful and interesting in parts, and is home to The Greatest City in the World.
It’s also very humble about its accomplishments (am I really the first to nominate it in this thread…?). Yes, yes, it has its problems - but it’s doing better than most of its competitors.
The best country in the world might be Sweden or Denmark or some such place, but for “greatest” (as I understand it) the UK is hard to beat.
Shifting, sure. But it’s got quite a ways to shift to achieve what, in theory, should be normal levels of cross-border exchange, much less be in Canada’s favor!
Anyways, given how similar the two countries are I can only assume it’s about something simple like a desire for a better climate, rather than a serious commentary on something deeply flawed in Canada’s nature. Or maybe not - maybe there’s really something significantly different about the US that is drawing those Canadians in. Or maybe Americans are just homebodies who are unusually loathe to emigrate, and that accounts for the disparity. Still, it’s interesting - and strange.
The UK used to have a great importance worldwide, but today not nearly as much. So it might very well have been the greatest country in the world at some point (the 19th century, for example), but today I’m not convinced.
And what is the importance of it being English-speaking?
