The 'Land of the Free' really is in North America.......

[marmar]

.....just not in the country that claims the mantle





America may call itself the "Land of the Free," but it's hardly the freest nation in the world, according to a new report from the Legatum Institute, a London-based think tank.

The group's annual prosperity index, which ranks the prosperity of 142 countries, has ranked Canada the best country in the world for "personal freedom."

According to the study, Canada is the most tolerant of people from other countries, with 92 percent of Canadians thinking the country is a good place for immigrants. In addition, about 94 percent of Canadians believe that they have the freedom to choose the course of their own lives, the study says.

Did we mention they might legalize pot soon?

America, on the other hand, ranks 15th for freedom, just behind Costa Rica and the Netherlands. .................(more)

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/canada-is-the-freest-nation-in-the-world-legatum-study-says/ar-BBmN10d

[MADem]

1. A lot of people like them for their age of consent laws.

I don't think that's terribly recommending, but that's just me.

http://news.nationalpost.com/news/canada/florida-sex-offender-who-had-relations-with-16-year-old-granted-refugee-status-in-canada

But Canada does have some nice aspects, too. One nice thing that it doesn't have anymore is Harper at the helm.

[marmar]

2. Bizzare response to the article in the OP, but whatever.

[MADem]

5. I always found that particular "freedom" aspect a little creepy, to be honest.

I think shielding a 47 year old teacher from the legal consequences of inappropriate sexual contact with a 16 year old student is just ... odd.

[marmar]

7. There are a whole bunch of US states where the age of consent is 16, and quite a few lower.

[appalachiablue]

3. Very interesting article & great photos of scenic Canada. I just posted the article in Good Reads.

The Legatum study's information for 142 global countries and rankings in various categories is in an interactive format in the article.

Justin Trudeau, Canadian prime minister-designate at the Oct. 19, 2015 federal election Liberal Party decisive victory.

[GreatGazoo]

4. In my imagination Canada is kind of like what the US could be if Reagan was never elected

If Carter had a second term, and his solar panels were still on the White House. If we had proceeded with Carter's plan to transition to the metric system (like every other country in the world btw).

When we stayed at suite hotel in Montreal there was a magazine in the room encourgaing us to immigrate permanently to Canada. They have a quota and actively recruit immigrants.

They had no banking crisis, no recession/depression/correction. And those cars that say "Imported from Detroit" are actually made in Canada because universal healthcare is good for business and working people.

[marmar]

8. Actually now they're more often made in Mexico.

[MADem]

10. They just finished up a decade of their very own Reaganish Bush.

If you want to immigrate now, you'd better bring special skills or money and plenty of it They want earners, not drains on their economy. They're picky, as they've every right to be. If you're over 54, you need to be rich.

It's not as easy to get in there as it was in the old days:

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/skilled/apply-who-express.asp

[willvotesdem]

6. They can play poker online....oh to be free. But it's soooo cold. If I wasn't so old and

married for 44 years I'd seriously consider Belize. Actually the married part is the issue my smarter half will never leave the US.

[marmar]

9. The heavily populated parts of Canada really aren't that brutally cold, except in short spells.

Vancouver's climate is actually quite mild.

[willvotesdem]

11. LOL compared to FL? I like the heat these old bones require it to move.

[Nitram]

12. Looks like the US got dinged in Safety and Security.

Looking at the data spreadsheet available on the Legatum web site, there were a number of variables in both the Safety and Freedom categories which indicated they were unable to provide the data for the variable for the U.S. because of restrictions on the use of the data. In other words, data from the US was protected in various ways, so those variables were not factored in the final result. I don't know if the issue is protection of privacy or what.