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8 things Americans need to realize about Canada

By Becky Hutner On September 18,
2013 · 7
Comments

Image via the upcoming documentary Being
Canadian

Canada. Cold, vast, smells
like maple syrup. We Canadians know that the usual associations with our country
don’t exactly fire the imagination, but here are a few things that might.

1. It’s multicultural.

In fact, Toronto is the most multicultural city on Earth. The classic pasty
lumberjack still exists, but in our major cities you’re more likely to run into
a Tibetan expat or a fourth-generation Russian Jew.

Toronto’s Caribbean street party Caribana draws two million people
annually, and Winnipeg’s Folklorama is
the world’s largest and longest-running multicultural festival. To see just how
varied we are, check out this video of Vancouver’s Canada
Day Parade.

2. Many of your favorite Americans are actually Canadian.

The secret’s long been out on Mike Myers and Jim Carrey, but did you know
Captain Kirk, Ryan Gosling, Seth Rogen, Pamela Anderson, Neil Young, James
Cameron, and the creator of Saturday Night Live are Canucks too?

Since Hollywood’s early days, we’ve had this uncanny knack for inserting
ourselves into America’s most iconic roles. The original “America’s Sweetheart”?
Toronto-born Mary Pickford. The father of American satire? Montrealer Mort Sahl.
Peter Jennings was Canadian. As was almost every comedic actor in the ’80s and
’90s, including Dan Aykroyd, Martin Short, Leslie Nielsen, John Candy, Rick
Moranis, and Michael J. Fox.

It’s not becoming to brag, but I ask you — if we don’t toot our own horn, who
will?

3. We have oil.

More than Iran, the United Arab Emirates, and most other places in this
world. And that’s not necessarily a good thing (see item #4).

4. Canada is dirty.

Yes, it’s the birthplace of Greenpeace and home to vast swathes of unspoiled
nature, but even most Canadians don’t realize our carbon emissions per capita
are second only to the US, close at that. Why? Not only are we as fossil-fuel
dependent as our gas-guzzling neighbors, we also operate the controversial Athabasca
Oil Sands, a far more toxic operation than its conventional counterparts.
Rare cancers have emerged in nearby communities, and oh…a flock of ducks landed
on a local lake and promptly died!

Along with being top polluters, we try to bring other nations down with us,
sabotaging an international agreement on global warming at the UN Climate Change
Conference in 2010 and 2011. On a lighter note…

5. Mounties are less common than you think.

In fact, the first cop I ever saw on horseback was in Los Angeles. According
to their website, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) discontinued mounted
policing in 1936.

But if you’re dead-set on seeing one, the RCMP Musical Ride tours the country
in a flurry of equine pinwheels and synchronized flag tricks. See
for yourself.

6. Canadians are sexy.

Since the ’80s, catwalks have been filled with a disproportionate number of
Canadian supermodels, from Linda Evangelista and Shalom to Coca Rocha and
Jessica Stam. And Montreal has some of the world’s best strip clubs. So I’ve
heard.

7. Canada has gangs, serial killers, and subterranean knifings.

In some parts, our violent crime and sexual assault rates are comparable to
those of the US. We have all manner of street gangs, a deep-rooted Italian Mafia
presence, and several branches of Hells Angels. Toronto-born child rapist Paul
Bernardo and his accomplice wife Karla Homolka are two of the most brutal serial
killers in recent history. And on my last visit, my subway commute was stalled a
half hour as law enforcement dealt with a neck stabbing on the train ahead of
us.

Ending on an aptly neutral note…

8. Canada is the second-largest country in the world.

After Russia. This seems like an obvious one to Canadians, but I couldn’t
possibly count the number of Americans whose eyes bug out when I tell them we’re
bigger. Geographically speaking, of course. Population-wise, we’re smaller than
California, which means, hey — less traffic on the mooseback ride to work.

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About The Author

Becky Hutner

Becky Hutner is a Canadian
writer and editor based in Venice, California. For the past ten years, she's
been working on documentary films and television shows, traveling whenever she
can and indulging in some of her favorite things: movie marathons, music
festivals and cheese. She is currently working on production of an upcoming
documentary called Being
Canadian.To follow her adventures in Los Angeles and beyond, check out CanadianinLosAngeles.

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view all → Becky
Hutner

http://www.candicedoestheworld.com/ Candice
Walsh

My favourite thing about TBEX was all the confusion with money among the
Americans. They all kept thinking, “I only have change left! I’m broke!” and
then realizing their change added up to like a million dollars. It was
great.

Rebecca Hutner

Haha, that’s another good one Candice. One of the things I miss about
living there…you’re always richer than you think!

Deano

yaa good one, cant wait for my next visit!

http://www.thehungrysuitcase.com Steven
Muzik

Cool list. I noticed you didn’t include Justin Beiber among your list of
Canadian celebrities. Please take accountability for
that.

Oldcamerman

Alex Trebeck. Arthur Hiller, Tommy Chong (Cheech and Chong?) Marshall
McLuhan …..

myopinion448

You forgot the fact that Canada is a cold country, so yes we use more oil.
And the ducks landed in a tailings pond(you have lots of those in your adopted
country too!)
Way to take a fun list and make it
political.

Sam

Canada doesn’t have a bigger landmass than the US. Their territory is
bigger but only because it counts rivers, lakes, and coastal
waters.

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