Sendecki’s Blog

Which raises an interesting question: Why are more Americans now emigrating to Canada—relative to the number of Canadians moving southwards? Have economic conditions in Canada improved significantly relative to those in the United States in recent years? Take a look at the housing market in major Canadian centres, for instance, compared with the subprime fiasco in the US.

Or is it an ideological move—and if it is why now? Via ABC News:

“There has been a definite increase in the past five years — the number hasn’t exceeded 10,000 since 1977,” says Jack Jedwab, the association’s executive director. “During the mid-70s, Canada admitted between 22,000 and 26,000 Americans a year, most of whom were draft dodgers from the Vietnam War.”

The current increase appears to be fueled largely by social and political reasons, says Jedwab, based on anecdotal evidence.

“Those who are coming have the highest level of education — these aren’t people who can’t get a job in the states,” he says. “They’re coming because many of them don’t like the politics, the Iraq War and the security situation in the U.S. By comparison, Canada is a tension-free place. People feel safer.”

Read the rest of the article here. Discovered via Digg (sort of).