The Greatest Country

If you were about to raise a child, and could choose any country in the world to raise this child, no strings attached, which country would you choose and why? Which country provides the optimum balance of political stability, opportunity, freedom, social climate, weather and other ideals to raise a child?

[edit on 25/2/06 by mytym]

Not positive but Norway comes up on many tops in SO many of these catogories. Possibly the most livable country on Earth, minus the weather

soon as i win the lotto i'm off to spain, buy one of those villa's - sun all year round.

living the dream.

I wouldn't say there is such a thing as a "greatest" country on Earth, and there can be no objective judge of that... there are countries that present different combinations of ideal and less ideal conditions to live in.

I for one would very subjectively choose my own country, Canada, to raise my kids in. We may have our problems, but I think we're a tolerant, compassionate society where individuals and families can lead a good life.

Otherwise... French being important to me as my mother tongue, I would probably go to Switzerland... which would also have the advantage of having snow, which I need at least once a year. Plus, it's a stable country with a good standard of living a strong reputation for tolerance...

Yeah, I've heard a lot of good things about Canada. Aparrently it is commonplace to leave your house open when you go out. Is this true? The cold is probably the biggest obstacle I would have with Canada.

Um... I wouldn't leave my house open in any major or semi-major city in Canada. Not Ottawa or the suburbs, and most certainly not Toronto or Montreal.

But I've seen small-town places in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, where people leave their cars parked overnight with the doors unlocked... as I'm sure also happens in small towns in Nebraska or Wyoming. I think it's more of an urban vs. rural thing.

I think I heard about the Canada thing on one of Michael Moore's expose's. I suppose Australia isn't too bad a place to live in, but it seems to have a very strong force driving it to follow the way of the US. This has got to be a bad thing.

[edit on 3/3/06 by mytym]

If people vote with their feet than the US must be the best place since it is where most people want to go.

I think the crime-rate in the US would rule it out straight off the bat.

Well, I personally consider Japan, the Netherlands and Switzerland to be the greates countries.

If I was going to choose one to raise a child in, it'd be a close race between Japan and the Netherlands, but I'd choose the Netherlands.

extremely biased view of course but i would have to say australia, great weather, very good education system, public health system that works(compared to some others, uS and Britain spring to mind).

But yes im concerned about our present govt's seeming to want to follow everything american, not that its all bad.But not at the expense of our own culture and that of indiginous australians.

I have an aunt who moved to canada to work for a couple of years,she has now been their for 25 yrs, so i would rate canada a close second based on her experience.

For the times that I have been there (BC, Montreal and Toronto), the people have been very kind, generous and rather open. Strange thing is, as an American, we are usually taught to look over our shoulders and be suspicious of everyone. In Canada, no one does that. The other thing is that people on the streets and in the cafes say hello.

The only other place that this was common was in San Francisco.

That is why I think that Canada would be utterly great.

As an American living in Canada, all that I can say is that Canada is, indeed, a great place to live. Of course Canada has a crime problem but, for example, Canada's murder rate barely equals that of a small American city. Canada is, for the most part, safe, clean and a very pleasant place to live.

Yes, there is more crime in the larger urban centers like Vancouver, Toronto or Montreal but I can honestly say that there is no where in Canada that I would feel "unsafe" walking around after dark. Coming from Detroit, my hometown, I'd be hard pressed to say the same thing about the Motor City.

I live in London, Ontario Canada now....a mid sized town of about three hundred thousand people. I havn't locked the door to my home in years! I feel that secure here!

I would agree with mojo4sale...Australia is the best country to live and raise kids in.
There is no ther place in the world right now that I would feel secure in.The education system,working health system and our social security system all seem to be of the highest order and seems to do the job that it is set up to do...namely...looking after the population.I believe the old aussie motto of giving everyone a "fair go" is alive and well ,ensuring our diverse culture to appreciate the differences and enhancements that each other can give...just like looking through a window at the world.

I think the biggest problem with Australia is that everyone here seems to think that we really are all great people that give each other a fair go. I see much racism here, especially towards aboriginals. The government seems to be heading down the same path as the US and we seem to all just be too content resting on our laurels as a perceived fantastic nation to live in.

The multiculturalism is one of the greatest aspects of Austrlaia in my opinion, however even this is not free from the illusion, for it seems that there is a strong pressure for cultures to conform to the "Australian way", rather than just being free from ridicule to continue on the way they wish.

There is certainly much to like about Australian life, but through my eyes, it falls well short of an ideal nation.

Originally posted by mytym
I think the biggest problem with Australia is that everyone here seems to think that we really are all great people that give each other a fair go. I see much racism here, especially towards aboriginals. The government seems to be heading down the same path as the US and we seem to all just be too content resting on our laurels as a perceived fantastic nation to live in.

The multiculturalism is one of the greatest aspects of Austrlaia in my opinion, however even this is not free from the illusion, for it seems that there is a strong pressure for cultures to conform to the "Australian way", rather than just being free from ridicule to continue on the way they wish.

There is certainly much to like about Australian life, but through my eyes, it falls well short of an ideal nation.

dont know where in oz you live but where im at i have many friends of different backgrounds,asian, aboriginal, ethnic, white. We all go to the footy 2gether, out drinking, work 2gether.
Sure there are some racial issues in Sydney in particular at the moment but i think that has more to do with whats happening in the middle east than any problems with our aussie culture. And no more so than anywhere else in the world imo.
And whats wrong with expecting immigrants to a country being expected to conform to the ideals, values and the laws of the country in which they wish to live. Isnt that why their coming here, to escape persecution,religious or political, or for improved living standards for themselves and their children.
And being as this thread is about the best place to live, all you have done is slag off at ours and not posted your answer to the original question.

I apologise if I caused offence, that was not my intention. I wasn't trying to personally attack your opinions, I just wanted to express mine also. I did in fact suggest Australia as a candidate in an earlier post.

With the multiculturalism, I think this is what defines an Australian way of life, thus there should be no need to conform. That's where I was going with that.

Perhaps there is no ideal nation, they all have there faults, and in that regard, there are a lot worse places to live than here.

no offence taken, just wanted to stick up for my way of life.I have traveled extensively both here and abroad and truly believe this is the place to be,particularly if you are raising a family, the only downer i have is that we are so far removed from most of the rest of the world.And in the current climate perhaps thats not such a bad thing.

Love
M4S

The United States of America.

Oportunities, freedom (yes, I said it), and big cities.

New Zealand. Paradise on Earth (according to numerous freinds living there), one day I will go and see for myself.

But for the present, the NW United States, thanks very much. SW, and central Washington State to be more precise. Rural, and small town america at its finest, save for the meth problem, but thats everywhere now.