How I Celebrate the Fourth of July

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Every nation celebrates its founding day. Ours is the Fourth of July.

Canadians will not be celebrating the Fourth of July. This may have something to do with the fact that in December 1775, the United States of America, which did not actually exist yet, sent two invading armies into Quebec, which was French Canada, in the hope that they could persuade the French to secede. George Washington thought this was a good idea. It made perfect sense politically, because the American Revolution grew out of the taxes imposed by the British government to pay for the debts it had incurred during the French and Indian War, which had led to the surrender of Quebec to the British by the French government in 1763. That war was started by George Washington in 1754 at the Battle of Jumonville Glen.

The invasion was a failure. It was led by Benedict Arnold. Anyway, half of it was. His half was a strategic disaster.

Americans regard Benedict Arnold as a traitor. So do Canadians. Americans see him as a traitor because he switched sides. So do Canadians.

This is why the Fourth of July is not a holiday in Canada. It is merely July 4.

The Fourth of July was all about war and secession. It is all about avoiding tyranny at the hands of the British. You know. The way Canada suffered.

FALL-BACK CITIZENSHIP

If you have ever thought that there might come a day when you would leave the United States permanently, because of the loss of liberty here, have you given any thought to what country you would flee to?

For most American would-be expatriates, the list is short. First, most Americans want to go to some country where English is the primary language. Second, the ones who have given more thought to these matters want to live in a country in which there is a strong common-law position. Third, they want to live in a country where there is considerable education. Fourth, they want to live in a country that has economic opportunities.

They do not normally think of the Isle of Man.

Most of them think of Canada. They might go to Australia or New Zealand, but those nations are far away. A move to Canada would seem to be a lot less disruptive.

When Americans think of Canada, they think of the welfare state. That is because of the Canadian system of medicine. But with Obamacare looming, there seems to be no particular reason for choosing the United States rather than Canada as your place of primary medical care. Certainly, the distinctions between the two systems are growing vague.

Some taxes are higher in Canada; some taxes are lower. Canadians have this enormous advantage: if they live outside of the geographical confines of Canada, and they earn their income from outside Canada, they pay the Canadian government no income tax on this money. If they live in the Bahamas, they pay no income taxes.

The weather is cold in most of Canada, but you could always live in Vancouver, British Columbia. I used to live right across the border from Canada in northwest Washington State. The weather was great. Back then, real estate was relatively inexpensive on both sides of the border. Those were the good old days. In terms of climate, the border area of British Columbia is terrific. You do not get frozen in the winter, and you do not get broiled in the summer. Humidity is low.

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July 4, 2013

Gary North [send him mail] is the author of Mises on Money. Visit http://www.garynorth.com. He is also the author of a free 31-volume series, An Economic Commentary on the Bible.

Copyright © 2013 Gary North