Meme of the Day

[bobquasit]

Canada accepts skilled workers.

Here's my score:


My duty, now, is to keep on top of the news (as much of it as is covered), and get my family out of this country once it's clear that the final steps to full fascism are about to be taken. Fortunately we're not too far from the border...and by that point, Canada may offer refugee status.

Comments

[unquietsoul5.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately Kiralee and I don't have this opportunity - our lack of French Language skills and college degrees means that we score below their rules.

So if we were to consider Canada we would have to raise the $10k each minimum 'grubstake' needed to get in under the other regs. Not easy in our current financial condition.

I suspect there are a lot of folks thinking the same way...

[bobquasit.livejournal.com]

I don't speak French, either - took a few years of it in high school, and mostly got F's. But I can pick out phrases and get the gist of things, sometimes. I was surprised at how much I understood of the Cyrano De Bergerac movie, for example.

Couldn't you learn French? Do either of you have an ear for languages? This could become a matter of life and death over the next few years; as relatively well-known pagans, you guys are, well, I just worry.

[klyfix.livejournal.com]

As problematic as Total GOP Control is, and for all that I'm angry at the American People for being willing to ignore a record of failures on the part of the Bush administration, realistically things aren't quite that bad. Yes, Bush will stack the Supreme Court. Yes, we can kiss abortion rights good-bye, at least in most states (assuming they make it a state matter). Yes, law enforcement will gain new powers. Yes, the economy is going to stagnate. Yes, social programs will be attacked.

But the system is to an extent self-correcting. It is still hard to amend the Constitution. And there is another election in two years. I'm going to grant that there may very well be a lot of GOP supporters who would be quite happy to never have meaningful elections again, but I do think that a majority of the American people can be opposed to the current regime.

Let's keep in mind that while we all know that there are problems an awful lot of the populace is doing just fine. If you have a good job, haven't had anybody you care about killed in the wars, and aren't in a group that is negatively affected by Bush's policies and you don't follow anything deeper as far as news and events goes you might well not have an incentive to vote or to vote against the status quo. Remember, if the real unemployment rate is say 8% that means over 90% of the people are employed. Superficially, for most people things are going just hunky-dorey fine.

The problem for the Administration will be when the chickens come home to roost. When they either have to cut programs that their constituentions care about (why do Farm Subsidies do well, after all?) or raise taxes because the economy remains stagnant and the Chinese and Japanese quit buying our debt, they're in trouble. When they stumble into another war and have to bring back the draft (Iraq won't do it; they'll pull out right after the elections, declaring victory) and people see their relatives going off to war against their will, they're in trouble. When the rest of the world drops the Dollar as the international currency and embraces the Euro out of a desire to lessen their control by the US, they're in trouble.

So this isn't going to last. This isn't a true coup or revolution. The problem is that it might be a bit rough until we get a course correction.

[unquietsoul5.livejournal.com]

I'm definitely worried.

We don't have an ear for languages.... Kiralee might be able to pick up on German with effort, but we had lots of problems when her cousin Mumfried came to visit a few years ago in just doing things like giving him directions to get around in Cambridge (and he had some English speaking and reading skills). But germany would not be a prime choice for us.

The French end of things is annoying, because we would more likely aim for the Victoria Area (a ferry ride north from Seattle and thus accessible to Kiralee's relatives), which isn't a large french speaking area, but the requirements don't care what part of Canada you are entering.