Having lived in two European countries, I am always puzzled when I hear people — Americans, usually — say that my hometown is “so European.” That probably explains why I loved this article:
The truth is, Montreal isn’t like Europe at all. But don’t let that dissuade you — most of the other places you could go are also not in Europe! And while you may have hoped that visiting la belle ville would give you the chance to improve your French, you’ll probably have a hard time finding someone to humor you. And why should they, with that accent?
But you haven’t wasted your plane ticket yet. Montreal does have many lovely attractions — and I’m not just talking about those Alouettes cheerleaders (amiright!). What you need is a more authentic way to experience the city: gamboling with a friendly, English-speaking local who can show you her favorite places and tell you what she loves about this town — and why she has found it so darn difficult to leave, come hell or near-complete lack of career opportunity.
Here’s more, from Maisonneuve Magazine.
American Attitudes toward Big Business
How can we reconcile the apparent contradiction between the outpouring of positive emotions caused by Steve Jobs’ death and the Occupy Wall Street movement? What does this say about American attitudes toward big business?
My colleague Ronnie Chatterji speculates on the answer in a News & Observer op-ed:
My conclusion is there is widespread agreement that getting rich in America while creating value for your company and for society is still a great thing, despite worries about resurgent populism and class warfare. Politics, bailouts and budget deficits have not changed this consensus around the nobility of good business.