Minor things that DON'T bother you

[texaskdog]

The United States.

In Canadian media, and amongst people (at least in my age group), there seems to be a general dislike of the US, constant US-bashing, portraying the US as a third-world-country, "Canada is so much better than the US in X category", etc.

I don't know why this is, but I am not bothered by the US as my peers, in fact, I love the country (but I won't say that to them or else I'll get cancelled)

Part of that may be because Canada is measurably better than the US in a number of ways... The US isn't the worst place in the world, by far. But where the will exists, it's not very hard to improve on our system, either, and Canada has done so in a fair number of areas.

The sad reality is the reason we don't have things like the metric system is Americans are too lazy to learn something new.  Lots of other things to like about Canada too.

The metric system is whatever. Canada does very well on various quality-of-life issues due to simply prioritizing other things as a country than the US does. But, as TheHighwayMan394 notes, that isn't true for all things.

They are pretty smug about some things like military when they are basically protected by us.

[Scott5114]

Yup, but we don’t use either.


Also I like Canada that they have more than two parties unlike our country.  Having more choices to represent all parts of the spectrum unlike us who have only two which makes those in the middle in an awkward position.

Most everyone agrees that more parties would be good.

That's why the two parties work hard against any third party candidate.

The two parties barely have to do diddly; first-past-the-post voting ensures that there will always be only two viable parties.

Suppose you have an election with a Green, a Democrat, and a Republican. The Green and Democrat candidates are both left of center and the Republican is right of center. Let's say the electorate is 60% left-wing and 40% right-wing, and there is nothing special about any of the candidates, like unique experience, difference in name recognition, or scandal, that would tempt them to cross party lines. The left of center voters will be split between the Green and the Democrat, so the final vote could be something like 40% R, 35% D, and 25% G. The Republican wins even though 60% of the voters didn't want them.

Thus, politicians that actually want to get elected have an incentive to eschew minor parties and sign on to one of the major parties to prevent the other side from dividing and conquering. The result is that you have one amorphous blob of left-wing ideas called the Democrats (which include liberal, neo-liberal, progressive, green, and socialist ideas) and one amorphous blob of right-wing ideas called the Republicans (which include conservative, neo-conservative, libertarian, and fascist ideas). Works great for the parties and the politicians, but it means that while voters can pick from left or right, their say is kind of limited in what kind of left or right they get. I might want to put progressive Democrats in power, but doing so means that I am also required to also put more centrist corporate Democrats in power, which I might be unhappy about, but choosing to abstain from voting or voting for a third party means that I am actually more likely to put a Republican in power, which would be even further from my desired policy than the part of my party I don't like.

One way of mitigating this that is starting to gain traction in some states is the concept of ranked choice voting. In ranked choice voting, instead of marking one candidate with a vote, you go down the list and number them, starting with 1 for your favorite candidate, then 2 for your next-favorite, and so on down the line. If no candidate has a majority, the candidate with the lowest number of votes is eliminated, and all of their voters are instead moved to their next-most-favorite option. This process repeats until someone has a majority. So in the case of the 40% R, 35% D, and 25% G election, the G candidate would be eliminated first. If all of those voters marked the Democrat as their second choice, the Democrat would win with 60% of the vote. The result accurately reflects that more voters were against the Republican than for them.

Another benefit of ranked-choice voting is that candidates elected in such a way tend to be more open to compromise, since they may well need second- and third-choice votes to be re-elected. Even if you aren't a voter's favorite candidate, you may be able to become their second choice by compromising with someone that shares their views.

[hotdogPi]

Ranked choice voting does not eliminate two-party domination.

[Roadgeekteen]

Yup, but we don't use either.


Also I like Canada that they have more than two parties unlike our country.  Having more choices to represent all parts of the spectrum unlike us who have only two which makes those in the middle in an awkward position.

Most everyone agrees that more parties would be good.

That's why the two parties work hard against any third party candidate.

The two parties barely have to do diddly; first-past-the-post voting ensures that there will always be only two viable parties.

Suppose you have an election with a Green, a Democrat, and a Republican. The Green and Democrat candidates are both left of center and the Republican is right of center. Let's say the electorate is 60% left-wing and 40% right-wing, and there is nothing special about any of the candidates, like unique experience, difference in name recognition, or scandal, that would tempt them to cross party lines. The left of center voters will be split between the Green and the Democrat, so the final vote could be something like 40% R, 35% D, and 25% G. The Republican wins even though 60% of the voters didn't want them.

Thus, politicians that actually want to get elected have an incentive to eschew minor parties and sign on to one of the major parties to prevent the other side from dividing and conquering. The result is that you have one amorphous blob of left-wing ideas called the Democrats (which include liberal, neo-liberal, progressive, green, and socialist ideas) and one amorphous blob of right-wing ideas called the Republicans (which include conservative, neo-conservative, libertarian, and fascist ideas). Works great for the parties and the politicians, but it means that while voters can pick from left or right, their say is kind of limited in what kind of left or right they get. I might want to put progressive Democrats in power, but doing so means that I am also required to also put more centrist corporate Democrats in power, which I might be unhappy about, but choosing to abstain from voting or voting for a third party means that I am actually more likely to put a Republican in power, which would be even further from my desired policy than the part of my party I don't like.

One way of mitigating this that is starting to gain traction in some states is the concept of ranked choice voting. In ranked choice voting, instead of marking one candidate with a vote, you go down the list and number them, starting with 1 for your favorite candidate, then 2 for your next-favorite, and so on down the line. If no candidate has a majority, the candidate with the lowest number of votes is eliminated, and all of their voters are instead moved to their next-most-favorite option. This process repeats until someone has a majority. So in the case of the 40% R, 35% D, and 25% G election, the G candidate would be eliminated first. If all of those voters marked the Democrat as their second choice, the Democrat would win with 60% of the vote. The result accurately reflects that more voters were against the Republican than for them.

Another benefit of ranked-choice voting is that candidates elected in such a way tend to be more open to compromise, since they may well need second- and third-choice votes to be re-elected. Even if you aren't a voter's favorite candidate, you may be able to become their second choice by compromising with someone that shares their views.

Rank choice has been put in place in several US states and I am a big fan of it. Unfortunately Massachusetts voted it down.

[andrepoiy]

Yup, but we don't use either.


Also I like Canada that they have more than two parties unlike our country.  Having more choices to represent all parts of the spectrum unlike us who have only two which makes those in the middle in an awkward position.

The thing is, the left's vote in Canada is split amongst the Liberals and the NDP. When the right had two parties back in the early 2000s due to a schism (Canadian Alliance/Reform Party and Progressive Conservatives), they never won anything, so they merged back again. However, the left hasn't merged, but the Liberal Party is dominant, and therefore it's still a de facto two-party system. (The NDP has never formed government at the federal level, and was only the Official Opposition I believe once).

One example of vote splitting at the provincial level was recently, the Alberta Election of 2015.

The two right-wing parties (Wildrose, and Progressive Conservatives) split the vote, and so the Alberta NDP was able to form government, marking the first government in 44 years that wasn't Progressive Conservative (and the 4th change in government in the whole province's history). The Wildrose and PCs then merged to form the United Conservative Party, which won the next election in 2019 and is currently in power.

[SSOWorld]

Mind the politics everyone!

[Roadgeekteen]

Mind the politics everyone!

Should we stop the politics or just keep it civil?

[interstatefan990]

Roundabouts (single lane), the driver ahead of me choosing not to make a right on red, diet soda instead of the original or vice versa, pod coffee/Keurig instead of drip coffee, the food at a restaurant taking longer than usual as long as the restaurant is busy, and people being stupidly drunk in public (I think it's actually kinda funny to walk by them and see their reaction when they don't get any attention or eye contact from you).

[jakeroot]

People not signalling lane changes. Turning is one thing, but I don't mind slalom driving moving straight-on. Plus using your blinkers gives your moves away to the enemy 😂

[Takumi]

Virginia's radar detector ban.

[Roadgeekteen]

Virginia's radar detector ban.

How many people actually use a radar detector where it's legal?

[TheHighwayMan3561]

Speed limits.

[Roadgeekteen]

Speed limits.

Do you follow them?

[SSOWorld]

Speed limits.

Do you follow them?

depends on if there's a pace car on the road or a pit road enforcer on the median.

[SkyPesos]

I got a middle finger pointed at yesterday on I-75 in KY, because apparently 80 mph in the left lane to pass a semi is too slow (speed limit is 70 for reference).

[kphoger]

The use of Dollar coins and two dollar bills.

Canada no longer uses $2 bills – they use $2 coins now. Their lowest bill in current use is $5.

Yup, but we don't use either.

Speak for yourself.  I use dollar coins and two-dollar bills.

[kphoger]

The two parties ... [politics]

It wouldn't be as terrible of a problem if both major parties were toward the center.  Instead, as it is, a conservative voter who might be swayed to vote Democrat has to stomach a bunch of too-far-left positions–or a liberal voter who might be swayed to vote Republican has to stomach a bunch of too-far-right positions.



Here's something that doesn't bother me:  little acts of preferential treatment to police officers and military personnel.

For example, on my honeymoon, my wife and I were in a car rental office in Bucerías, Nayarit.  While we were doing business, a police officer came in to rent a car for a visiting official, and the clerk told my wife and me to hold on a few minutes while he took care of the officer first.

Even though I'm kind of meh about police, and even though I don't put soldiers on a golden pedestal the way some others seem to, I still think it's perfectly fine to give them some preferential treatment now and then.

[roadman65]

The use of Dollar coins and two dollar bills.

Canada no longer uses $2 bills — they use $2 coins now. Their lowest bill in current use is $5.

Yup, but we don’t use either.

Speak for yourself.  I use dollar coins and two-dollar bills.

Yup but the average American prefers paper and if they obtain one they will spend it just to get rid of it.   Many Americans find no use for coins either of other common denomination as well.   Being most things cost over a dollar, coins seem outdated to some.    Then with plastic, which the world governments want us to use by 2030, is another reason to hate coins and an irritation to many as well.

[kphoger]

The use of Dollar coins and two dollar bills.

Canada no longer uses $2 bills – they use $2 coins now. Their lowest bill in current use is $5.

Yup, but we don't use either.

Speak for yourself.  I use dollar coins and two-dollar bills.

Yup but the average American prefers paper and if they obtain one they will spend it just to get rid of it.   Many Americans find no use for coins either of other common denomination as well.   Being most things cost over a dollar, coins seem outdated to some.    Then with plastic, which the world governments want us to use by 2030, is another reason to make coins and irritation to many as well.

Only applies to dollar coins.  Does not apply to $2 bills.

When I accompany my wife to vendor events (she has a direct-sales business), customers light up when their change includes a dollar coin or two-dollar bill.  I've never had anyone express frustration or dismay..

[jakeroot]

And a third angle: those of us that don't use cash in any capacity. All of my coins and cash either sit unused or go to my bank. I keep some cash for the two or three places where it might come in handy (tips, generally) but I never pay with cash, ever.

[kphoger]

And a third angle: those of us that don't use cash in any capacity. All of my coins and cash either sit unused or go to my bank. I keep some cash for the two or three places where it might come in handy (tips, generally) but I never pay with cash, ever.

Same here, generally.  Tips are the main thing, but also small family-owned stores where I try to keep their card fees to a minimum when only spending $5 on avocados or whatever.

[1995hoo]

....

When I accompany my wife to vendor events (she has a direct-sales business), customers light up when their change includes a dollar coin or two-dollar bill.  I've never had anyone express frustration or dismay..

Heh, I once tipped a bartender in Honolulu with a two-dollar bill and she was thrilled, showed it off to all the other customers. It pretty clearly made her day.

[Scott5114]

The use of Dollar coins and two dollar bills.

Canada no longer uses $2 bills – they use $2 coins now. Their lowest bill in current use is $5.

Yup, but we don't use either.

Speak for yourself.  I use dollar coins and two-dollar bills.

Yup but the average American prefers paper and if they obtain one they will spend it just to get rid of it.   Many Americans find no use for coins either of other common denomination as well.   Being most things cost over a dollar, coins seem outdated to some.    Then with plastic, which the world governments want us to use by 2030, is another reason to make coins and irritation to many as well.

Only applies to dollar coins.  Does not apply to $2 bills.

When I accompany my wife to vendor events (she has a direct-sales business), customers light up when their change includes a dollar coin or two-dollar bill.  I've never had anyone express frustration or dismay..

$2 bills, in my experience, are genuinely appreciated. Most people are of the assumption that they're not printed anymore and that they're rare or something. Dunno how they get that impression when it clearly says "SERIES 2017 A" on the bill, but whatever.

$1 coins tend to make people grumpy. People will think you shorted them $1, then you have to admit you gave them a dollar coin, then sometimes they'll complain and ask why can't you give them a paper bill instead. And sometimes will demand you open the drawer up and give them a bill.

[formulanone]

Clowns (the professional ones)

[kphoger]

$1 coins tend to make people grumpy. People will think you shorted them $1, then you have to admit you gave them a dollar coin, then sometimes they'll complain and ask why can't you give them a paper bill instead. And sometimes will demand you open the drawer up and give them a bill.

Never had that happen, personally.  Then again, you've dealt with a LOT more customers than I have.