An immigrant's prayer

I'm a Christian. You probably knew that if you've been reading here for a bit. I thought tonight I would offer up a prayer for all of you who are in the same process I and my love are in - attempting to immigrate to a new land. Maybe you can use it for your own. I hope this prayer is a blessing to you:

Dear Lord, thank you for hearing my prayer. Thank you for every blessing you bring to my days; the ones I can see and the ones I can't. Thank you Lord for placing on my heart the desire to continue my life in a new country. Lord, I know that you order my every step, and I believe you have ordered this one too - that I leave my home and make a new one in a new country. You led the Israelites out of Egypt to a new land, and you have convicted my spirit to do the same. Father, please bless and protect my efforts in this immigration process; please make the way clear for me; please walk with me, because I can't do this alone. Father I ask that you will bless me with a positive outcome to my immigration journey; but I trust in you for whatever result you have planned for me, and that your will always be done in my life. Lord, please bless those that seek the same goal as I do, and bless all those who you have put in power to review and process my application and submissions. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Globe and Mail - "Stop immigration crime at its source"

"Canadians should be well aware of the lengths some people are willing to go to forge a better life: the harrowing trans-Pacific journey by Tamil refugee claimants made that clear. So Immigration Minister Jason Kenney is right to go directly to source countries in the fight against scam marriages, unscrupulous immigration consultants and human smugglers. Indeed, it will take a government-wide strategy, domestically and internationally, to combat the crime and fraud associated with the journey immigrants make to Canada, and Canada can’t do it alone."

Read about Jason Kenney's globetrotting on behalf of immigration fraud here.

Humidity

It's been humid in Seattle, which is unusual for September. If you're from this part of the country you understand that while it is rainy here (not as much as you might think), it's rarely humid. So these last few days have been odd that way and with the humidity I am once again missing my home in Toronto with my love. Toronto is humid. I can see in my mind's eye and feel with my memory the warm damp mornings walking across College St. to get a coffee. I can see the fog of humidity blur the horizon as I drive the Gardiner out of town, around the Golden Horseshoe to Niagara. Humidity and the mist of memory - they sort of go hand in hand. Do you think maybe God is conditioning me for my return to Toronto? I think tonight I'll believe that's exactly what's going on. It's 10pm here; it's raining; it's near 21C outside. I want to go home.

Expat Arrivals - A great resource for potential immigrants

If you're just getting started in your journey from your home country to Canada as an immigrant, I suggest that you check out Expat Arrivals. This site provides a solid overview of what to expect when moving to Canada. The site does a good job in helping expats get a grip on the core issues of living and working in Canada, with content provided my experts with detailed knowledge of issues like health care, finding a job, tax planning, housing and more. Check out their info on Canada, and their detailed guides to Toronto And Vancouver.

Is Canada obligated to welcome immigrants?

Dow Marmur, in a September 6 editorial in the Toronto Star, wrote:

"Canada has often been welcoming to newcomers, including refugees. The positive reception of the Vietnamese boat people in the 1970s comes to mind. But it hasn’t always been consistent. Writing about the ship of Tamil refugees that reached our shores recently, Professor Michael Byers of the University of British Columbia refers to two tragic instances when Canada turned away people in similar circumstances."

Read the entire editorial, "Our duty to welcome strangers" here

Canada needs immigrants as boomers retire

Glen Hodgson, author of “Canada’s Future Labour Market: Immigrants to the Rescue?” published in the July-August issue of Policy Options ( www.irpp.org) is senior vice-president and chief economist at the Conference Board of Canada. In an opinion piece for The Toronto Star, he wrote:

"The baby boom generation in Canada is about to start retiring in growing numbers. Who will replace the boomers in the workplace? The answer, increasingly, will need to be more immigrants."

Glen makes a strong case for improved immigration opportunities in Canada as being critical for the sustained economic growth of the country.

Read the entire article here

I couldn't put it any better

This letter was published in today's Toronto Star:

Lots of room for everybody

I have again realized Canada is a great big place with nobody in it, having just returned from a “skate” through Atlantic Canada and a visit to the Pacific coast. We need to foster immigration to fill in the gaps, not inhibit it!

Immigrants, rather than being a drain, very quickly create greater wealth for everyone. Witness the English, the Irish, the Ukrainians, following the French. Witness the Italians, East and South Asians — thriving, all. Witness the culture added by the Haitians in Montreal and the Islanders everywhere. Witness more recently the entrepreneurship of the Persians, Russians, Bosnians and Afghanis (do, please, fly your kites). Welcome all. Our economy grows after every wave.

Canada, don't be worried and don’t listen to Mr. Harper and his baying dogs, evidently taking their script from the fear-mongering, talking-T-bags. We have nothing to lose but a few, mostly empty acres and everything to gain by opening our doors to the world. It surely needs the safety valve.

We have the room, the resources and the ability. I believe we have the goodwill, too — it’s part of us, ever since the Underground Railroad.

If only our leaders could muster the vision to fulfill this multicultural dream, instead of appealing to base fears, pandering to ignorance in search of quick votes.

- Chris Way, Mississauga

Canadian Government uses Tamil refugees to further Tory agenda

Last Friday, The Sun Sea docked near Victoria after being at sea for almost four months. The ship carried nearly 500 Tamil people, including women and children - all of whom are expected to make refugee claims to remain in Canada.

The Tory Government doesn't like it one bit - and they are making their position clear with alarmist headlines about for-profit human smuggling and the possibility that the refugee seekers include terrorists.

The Torys seem to view this event as an opportunity to tighten even further the immigration policies that have been slashed left and right since Harper took power.

“It’s is not the first time that the Canadian government has whipped up public anxiety at the arrival of asylum-seekers,” said Myer Siemiatycki, a professor in immigration settlement studies at Ryerson University.

It has happened numerous times but most recently in 1987 when 174 Sikhs landed by boat in Charlesville, N.S., and again in 1999 when some 600 Chinese migrants arrived at the shores of British Columbia.

There was mass hysteria then, just like it is now.

“When the government uses words like smuggling, Tamil Tigers and terrorists, most Canadians assume there is evidence,” said Siemiatycki. “But there isn’t … and making statements like that is irresponsible and does terrible injustice to the people on the boat.”

The Canadian government is partially responsible for stoking this mass hysteria, he added.

What’s playing out “is the sixth or the seventh sequel of some Grade B horror movie called Here Come the Boat People,” said Siemiatycki. “It’s the same thing every time … it’s tiresome, unworthy of Canada.”

Read the article in The Star here

Fatigue

I am fatigued. Our current immigration application has been going on over 2-1/2 years with no end in sight right now. The black hole of the CIC has swallowed us up. Our last contact with Buffalo told us nothing new - of course they have no idea when we could expect an answer. So here in August, I'm tired of it all. I'm tired of the waiting and being apart from my love. I'm tried of the nightly phone calls and trying not to talk about what will happen if we aren't successful. I still have faith, but I'm just so tired of this whole process.

I can't promise the rest of this month will have much coverage. I think I need some time off.

Update - CBC news video links

One thing about the Internet is - it's always changing. In many cases, where you once could find information, it's missing - 404 - file not found. This happens for a lot of reasons: web designers change the organization of a site, content is past its shelf life, resources get moved and no one bothers to update the links, technology changes.

This is the case recently with the CBC and its online news video content. A while back, I posted links to all the daily news feeds of "News at Six" for the different Provinces. Well, that info is now outdated, because CBC has redesigned its video player. The good news is, all the media is in one place now. So update your links to the following - http://www.cbc.ca/video/#/News/Canada and you can once again learn about the latest going on in the part of Canada that is of interest to you.