Every Value Village I've been to is either over priced or just picked over junk. There's never anything worth buying. The overpriced stuff is all originally from Walmart or one of the Dollar stores and always priced well over the new retail price.
The same thing happens at Once Upon a Child. Kids clothes are all George (Walmart brand) and price at least 2x new.
I've got this with my Canada Life coverage. I can get prescriptions at any pharmacy at 80%, but if I go to Costco pharmacy it's 90% covered.
The US Regular Army (RA) was founded in 1775. State militias supported the RA through the various wars fought on what is now US soil (including the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812). In the Civil War, the RA was supported by volunteers and fought on the side that ultimately won. The Confederate Army was similar to the RA at the time. Currently, the RA has been absorbed into the US Army (including Army Reserve and National Guard).
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regular_Army_(United_States) and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_United_States_Army
So... yes there was a federal military, but it was a different thing than the US Army is now. How that would play out if things went bonkers in 2025... who knows. There are a LOT of people around the world watching VERY closely though... and really hoping (not that confidently though) that sanity will prevail.
Yeah I see it (as a not American looking in from outside the country). Every time I visit the USA, the changes in things are more and more visible.
There’s probably not going to be a civil war.
So.... there's still a chance then....
I can afford my house even at 5% because I intentionally bought WAY under what I was approved for. I knew the lower interest rates wouldn't hold... and there was no way I was willing to buy into a multi-million dollar home at 1%. Rates go up and down over time. I bought based on the assumption that a renewal would be in the 6-8% range. At 5% I can afford it just fine... question is, do I want to?
A LOT of people I know bought right at the max they were approved for, and at 1-ish percent interest. Renewals are coming up within the next 12 months or so, and they are already panicking. That $2M home is going to suddenly become VERY expensive... well beyond their ability to pay for it.
I plan to sell this year... and take that equity, whatever we get, and set ourselves up elsewhere outside of Canada.
Amazing isn't it? There are people saying these insane things... and the audience is lapping it up. Agreeing. Begging for more.
I'm not American. I'm looking in with horror, confusion, and sadness.
This is what they are telling each other... technologically advanced mermaids are out to get you: https://twitter.com/patriottakes/status/1657868909716951041
“marriage is between a man and a woman before God!
Ummm.. but what about all the men in the bible with many wives. There was no one man one wife thing in almost the entire Bible. Almost all of the people who are touted to be amazing examples of God's peopel... were polygamists... and since that wasn't enough, they would have the concubines on the side. Point that out and they run away.
Won't the iron dome that Trump wants to build be sufficient? https://twitter.com/baldwin_daniel_/status/1746617449246581129
It's not any better in Alberta. :-(
In BC you can "play games" with the medical and go to smaller communities and find a Emergency Care Clinic that serves a smaller community.
Family doctors are impossible to get. There are more than a million people on the waiting lists.
To be fair, the government is making some progress on improving things. They've made changes to allow more doctors to be certified. They've pumped money into training programs (they pay a full salary and all tuition at university for some certifications). It's not perfect but it is something.
Edit: fixed some words that got mangled on mobile
Can I join your club? I'm in my 50s. I have worked since I was 14 years old... full time since I was 17. I worked most of my adult life outside of Canada, so I do have some state pension saved up outside of Canada, but it's nowhere near enough to live on in Canada. I moved back to Canada a few years ago with a "seemed like a good idea at the time" decision. In total, I have worked less than 10 years of my life in Canada... so my CPP is basically zero. I look at what Canada has to offer me and think... what the hell am I doing here? It's fucking expensive to live here... I have nothing to retire on... and only homelessness ad starvation to look forward to.
So... while I'm still employable, fit, and healthy, I'm planning on getting back out.... this year actually if all goes to plan.