A View from the North

Jillian Fragetti

Sara Ozege just started her senior year at Carleton University in Ottawa, Ontario. Her perspective on OccupyPhiladelphia revealed a Canadian’s outlook on a current US event.

Me: As a Canadian, how often/how many times have you come to the US?

Sara: 10+, it’s easy to go back into Canada so we go for shopping often.

Me: Do you get a lot of news and info about things going on in the US on a daily basis?

Sara: Yes, we get your news all the time.

Me: What have you heard about OccupyWallStreet?

Sara: Lower income people are telling the higher up people in banks and economists that they are responsible for the economic crisis in the States.

Me: Have you heard as much or anything about the same happening in Philly?

Sara: We know that it's spread but not specifically to Philly.

Me: What is your personal opinion of what is going on?

Sara: It's in reality there is no one to be held responsible and no one that can really fix the situation that they are in.

Me: Do you think it is something that should continue or would there be a better way to go about what they are trying to accomplish?

Sara: Yes, reasonable solutions need to be addressed, but this is not a productive way of going about it 

Me: Is Canada going through similar economic problems?

Sara: Nope, our economy has remained stable. Our currency is actually worth more now than the US, which hasn’t happened in awhile.

Me: Why do you think your economy is doing better than ours?

Sara: Everything is more stable here and we’re a lot smaller so it is easier to control.

Me: Has the US economy affected your daily life in Canada in any way? (If so, how)

Sara: No, we’re pretty independent from the US. Everything is run differently so the same things don’t affect us.

Me: Do you think your government has a better way of being run than ours to prevent these sorts of problems?

Sara: It’s definitely different but not necessarily better because it’s under greatly different circumstances. Size differences, the way we were established, all of those things affect how your government is set up.