Canada

Overview

Canada is a country located in the northernmost part of North America that spans from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. Due to its historical ties to the Commonwealth of Nations and geographical proximity to the United States, Canadian culture is often characterized as “progressive, diverse, and multicultural,” having been influenced by European customs and traditions, namely British and French, American culture and its own indigenous cultures. As of 2016, Canada ranks as the 21st country in global internet usage with 32.4 million users; its internet users spend more time online than anyone else in the world, an average of 45 hours per month, and has the largest number of file-sharers per capita in the world.

Online History

Canada first received internet in 1981 when it was covered by the International Packet Switch Service.^[18] No provider of Broadband offerings in Canada is currently nationwide. The largest DSL provider in Canada is Bell Internet. In 2011, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission approved a request by Bell Internet to begin to apply a bandwidth cap on the users of smaller independent internet service providers who use Bell’s infrastructure. This billing structure, called “usage-based billing” or UBB, caused controversy for being too restrictive. The CRTC was criticized for allowing Bell to use anti-competitive practices to favor its own Internet and television offerings. Several internet service providers in Canada charge surplus charges if users go over the service’s cap.

Websites

The most popular websites in Canada are Google, Facebook, and YouTube. Popular Canada-specific sites are for Canadian news outlets, including Quebecor Media and CTVglobemedia. The most popular social media websites in Canada are Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram, respectively.^[19]

Usage

Online, Canada ranks as 21st in the world in internet users, with 32.4 million users (92.9% of the population).^[17] As of 2015, it ranks first in internet use, as users average 36.9 hours per month,^[20] and have the largest number of file-sharers per capita in the world.

Highlights

Steven Blaney’s Korea Gaffe

“Steven Blaney’s Korea Gaffe” refers to an incident in which Steven Blaney, the Canadian minister of Veteran Affairs, spoke about Canada’s international military contributions, stating that without the Canadian armed forces fighting in the Korean War, PSY’s 2012 viral hit K-POP song “Gangnam Style” would never have existed.

2012 Quebec Student Protests

The 2012 Quebec student protests refer to a series of demonstrations and strikes that began on February 13th, 2012 in the Canadian province of Quebec in response to a college tuition hike proposed by Liberal premier Jean Charest. The protests lasted for more than 200 days, well beyond the end of the school semester. The protests ended in early September 2012, after the newly-elected Parti Québécois government pledged to abandon the plan to hike tuition fees. On the web, a number of viral videos and images have emerged from the scenes of protest.

Memes

Polite Canadians

In pop culture and online humor, Canadians have been often portrayed as exceptionally nice and polite people. While the origin of the stereotype remains murky, one of the earliest such notions can be found in a 1985 New York Times^[15] article about the atmosphere of Toronto as the World Series championship between the New York Yankees and Toronto Jays approached near.

A burning issue at Cap’s today was whether Jays fans will reciprocate when the Yankees come to town for a season-ending series. Fans here have been so polite that they routinely even go to the effort of carefully making what they believe are the best All-Star selections, rather than trying to stack the deck with local heroes.

The stereotype has been also further mystified by a number of Canadian-born comedians, including Mike Myers and Samantha Bee, through comedy shows like Saturday Night Live and The Daily Show, as well as dozens of humorous listicles.^{[2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10]}

In Canada, Milk Comes in Bags

“*In Canada, Milk Comes in Bags*” is a catchphrase that highlights the unique method of packaging milk in plastic bags, which is still commonly practiced in Canada.

“Boot to the Head”

Boot to the Head is a comedy trope and catchphrase mainly associated with the Canadian performance group The Frantics. Since being introduced through the group’s classic hits “Last Will of the Temperament” and “Tai Kwan Leep” in the 1980s, the joke has grown into a popular subject of parodies and re-enactments on YouTube.

Moving to Canada

In February 2016, after Donald Trump effectively became the Republican presidential candidate in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, Google search queries for “moving to Canada” saw its first huge surge. Coincidentally, the official website of the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) became inaccessible as a result of an internal technical issue, though many took that sign as possible evidence of an exodus by Americans who are against Trump.

Search Interest

External References