Usually the Canadian regime is very stable, but this month the government collapsed. The reason: suspicions of corruption (illegal money transfers) in the leading Liberal party. Yes, there is corruption also in Canada, and it is a reason for elections. It reminds me a conversation I had two years ago with a Jewish student. He asked me about an Israeli politician (it is irrelevant who) that seemed to him to be talking like a snake. I said he is talking like a snake. He asked me what this style is doing to his credibility. I answered that in Israel credibility is not a major issue for voters. In fact, a proven record of breaking promises (without admitting of course) is a proof of being a premier league politician. The guy looked very puzzled.
This month I will be writing something about Canadian banks. Different people have different attitudes to these institutions. Ask yourself: when you enter a fancy bank branch, powered by expensive computers and IT department, does it make you feel good or do you ask yourself what is the crime of robbing a bank compared with the crime of founding one (Bertolt Brecht).
In general bank branches in Toronto are neither fancier nor bigger than branches in Israel. Their system is to spread many small branches all over the city. Maybe the only noticeable difference is that in a Canadian bank the clerks have two systems on their computer. They have internet connection and will check all the publicly available information at the bank's web site. Their second system is a terminal to the bank's program, with text-arrows-numlock user interface. It is amazing how faster it is compared to graphical user interfaces. Speaking of systems, while I was here the Royal Bank was down for three days because of inconsistencies in their database.
On my first week in Toronto I stayed in a guest house, and had to open a bank account. I went to CIBC, the closest bank to the university. They agreed to open an account, but at some stage they asked "what is your permanent address?". I said I don't have a permanent address. They said they cannot open an account without a permanent address. I went to the Royal Bank. The clerk asked for my permanent address. I said I don't have one yet. He asked if I can give him another address. I gave him the address of the department (for graduate students it is very permanent), and asked why he needs a permanent address now. He said that after opening the account they send a "thank you" letter. But in a second thought, he can print the "thank you" letter and give it to me now.
The other use of an address is for customizing cheque books. People usually print their address on the cheques. After the cheque is deposited, the bank mail it to the client so he can see all the cheques deposited on his name (the bank keeps an image of the cheque).
When an account is opened they issue a client card. This card is useful for identification at the bank (that is, they don't ask for your name, identity number or identity card, they just ask you to swipe your card). It also serves as a Debit card, which is similar to credit card except that when you swipe it in a store you have to enter a personal identification number and the transaction is approved and carried out or rejected on the spot. However, it is really hard for a foreign student to get a real credit card. You probably don't think of a credit card as a big thing, but here it really makes people second rate residents. Many things just cannot be done without a credit card (e.g. renting a car, booking a hotel room, renting skis, shopping on the internet). To be more specific, the Royal Bank wanted me to lock 15,000$ for the period the card is valid to get one. Last year I heard the TD bank gives credit cards to international students. I opened an account, and they asked me if I am an MBA student. Just to let you know, MBA students pay 35,000$ a year, not including the suits. It turned out that some (presumably rich) international MBA students couldn't get a credit card in Canada, and using some connections in the management department the TD bank agreed to give credit cards to international students.
Last week I got a letter from the bank. To make it clear, I didn't initiate it and the whole thing is about 50$. When you finish reading you will look puzzled if you are not used to the level of Canadian credibility.
