Why Canada and the U.S. Should Merge, Eh?

[crazy canuck]

These are run by the provinces, right? No reason they'd be forced to get rid of them.

To correct what CC posted, all provinces receive Federal transfer money for healthcare...

sigh. You fail at basic reading.  If you had not been so quick to mouth the Quebec separatist line you might have read further into my post where I said

In addition all provinces recieve a significant contribution from Federal tax dollars through other payment schemes under the Canada Health Act

Its funny that you think equalization has nothing to do with have not provinces paying for their health care.  Lets make a deal.  Lets stop all equalization payments if they dont do anything for Quebec or the others.  I know we could use our tax dollars more effectively than you do.

[viper37]

Its funny that you think equalization has nothing to do with have not provinces paying for their health care.  Lets make a deal.  Lets stop all equalization payments if they dont do anything for Quebec or the others.  I know we could use our tax dollars more effectively than you do.

Equalization is based on the fiscal capacity of a province, i.e. how much taxes they can raise to fund their services to achieve a canadian average.  What they do with the money afterward is no one's concern.

I've been to kown to advocate a stop to equalization payments... We take our taxes, you take yours.  You get what you want, we get what we can pay.  No indirect subsidies or federal tax breaks to one particular industry either, like say, automotive or oil industry.  No centralization of all finance in Toronto via a Federal regulatory agency either.  Equal split of government spending per capita throughout the country every year

Let's compete on equal and may the best one win the race.  If Quebec is to become a dump where no one truly wants to live, so be it.  But let's at least pretend we start equal.

[crazy canuck]

Its funny that you think equalization has nothing to do with have not provinces paying for their health care.  Lets make a deal.  Lets stop all equalization payments if they dont do anything for Quebec or the others.  I know we could use our tax dollars more effectively than you do.

Equalization is based on the fiscal capacity of a province, i.e. how much taxes they can raise to fund their services to achieve a canadian average.  What they do with the money afterward is no one's concern.

Like I said, I know that is the separatist party line.  But the political reality in this country is that our Provinces contribution to your Province is really only saleable here because it helps you fund your health care.  We dont really have much interest in giving you free money for much else.

[OttoVonBismarck]

IIRC the yard was originally based on the length of an arm.

BTW, isn't hectare a metric measure?

It is, my mistake I meant to pair some other little known measure with acre and accidentally picked a metric one. Acres are a bit strange, though, in that they were originally defined on the basis of being a furlong by a chain; a furlong is 660 feet, a chain is 66 feet (so a furlong is ten chains and 80 chains to a mile) so a traditional "true" acre must always be a rectangle with two sides ten times the length of the other two sides. But as the term acre is used today it applies to any plot or lot of land regardless of shape, as long as it is 10 square chains (43, 560 sq. ft) in total area.

It's also useful to know that a chain can be divided into four rods or 100 links (each link being 33/50ths of a foot, with 8,000 links to a mile, 1,000 to a furlong, 25 to a rod.)

[Admiral Yi]

Goddamn useful.

[grumbler]

People aren't equal in foot size, IIRC.  Last time I bought a pair of shoes, there ware various sizes...

Yes, and that's why the length of a "foot" (and inches, etc) has varied over time and by country/region, exactly as I said.  Reading comprehension issues, or just being contrary?

That is just silly.  Stronger humans can raise bigger cups, big drinker will have bigger cups compared to non drinkers.

Huh?  Reading comprehension issues, or just being contrary?

wich is why it is antiquated.

No, that's not why it is "antiquated!" 

[jimmy olsen]

Yeah, a true political union would be unworkable.  No Canadian would want to give up their single payor health care system (other than perhaps BB) and few Americans would want to adopt the Canadian system.  Even if we could ever get past the numerous other issues, this would always be the deal breaker.

Why would they have to give that up?

Vermont has single payer doesn't it?

EDIT: Seems you've answered the question already.

[jimmy olsen]

IIRC the yard was originally based on the length of an arm.

BTW, isn't hectare a metric measure?

It is, my mistake I meant to pair some other little known measure with acre and accidentally picked a metric one. Acres are a bit strange, though, in that they were originally defined on the basis of being a furlong by a chain; a furlong is 660 feet, a chain is 66 feet (so a furlong is ten chains and 80 chains to a mile) so a traditional "true" acre must always be a rectangle with two sides ten times the length of the other two sides. But as the term acre is used today it applies to any plot or lot of land regardless of shape, as long as it is 10 square chains (43, 560 sq. ft) in total area.

It's also useful to know that a chain can be divided into four rods or 100 links (each link being 33/50ths of a foot, with 8,000 links to a mile, 1,000 to a furlong, 25 to a rod.)

Wow, I don't even remember ever hearing of chains as a unit of measurement  before.   

[Capetan Mihali]

Wow, I don't even remember ever hearing of chains as a unit of measurement  before.   

Ignorant SOB. 

[Sheilbh]

I remember my teachers telling me back in the day that we'd be fully on the metric system by the 90s

I think it's weird how usage varies here. Not sure why but in the UK we still use miles, inches, feet and pints (Lord how we use pints), for body weight most people still use pounds and stone. Some people still use pounds for food, but that's mainly the old now. But I'd guess most people use metric for cooking, temperature and metres.

I imagine the US would be much the same.

[Grey Fox]

Yeah, a true political union would be unworkable.  No Canadian would want to give up their single payor health care system (other than perhaps BB) and few Americans would want to adopt the Canadian system.  Even if we could ever get past the numerous other issues, this would always be the deal breaker.

Why would they have to give that up?

Vermont has single payer doesn't it?

EDIT: Seems you've answered the question already.

Re Vermont :  Not yet, they need a ACA waiver first. Once they get that, they will go full Single Payer, they expect to do that by 2017, iirc.

[Admiral Yi]

Do eggs come 10 in a carton in metric countries? 

[Grey Fox]

In this country, no.

In the UK, yes.

[Sheilbh]

In this country, no.

In the UK, yes.

Normally by 6 or 12, so by the dozen

[Capetan Mihali]

(US)American, voted no.  Variety is the spice of life.