Canada 51st State
- Thread starter B00Mer
- Start date
And there's even MORE than he's done!! You can laugh all you like but it's true. I know, I know, orange man bad. That's too funny!!
Where is a well thought out reply with examples?
American't is rapidly sliding towards a dictatorship with strings pulled by a foreign and domestic terrorist cult. NOBODY BENEFiTS
Most scholars and democracy monitors don't say the U.S. is a dictatorship, but many say it's backsliding faster than almost any democracy in recent history. This is contested, and the answer depends partly on how you define the term.
What the main indices say:
Pew's April 2026 roundup of V-Dem, Freedom House and the Economist Intelligence Unit found that all three showed a decline in U.S. democratic health in 2025. Freedom House still rates the U.S. as "free," with a score of 81, down 3 points. (pewresearch)
V-Dem's 2026 report dropped the U.S. from 20th to 51st on its Liberal Democracy Index, its largest one-year fall for the country. It still classifies the U.S. as a democracy, though, not an autocracy. (Substack)
International IDEA reported no downgrade, and Freedom House's country profile notes strains but no change in overall status. Indices don't agree on how severe the decline is. (lenz)
Where the disagreement lies: Critics of the current direction point to the concentration of power in the presidency and weakened checks from Congress and the courts. V-Dem says legislative constraints on the executive fell to their lowest level in over 100 years. Others argue that these indices overstate the problem, or that vigorous contestation, elections, courts and a free press are still working. The Cato Institute, for example, argues that V-Dem may overstate the U.S. decline. (Substack) (lenz)
A dictatorship usually means no meaningful elections or opposition, and the U.S. hasn't clearly crossed that line. Whether it's on a path toward it is the real dispute. If you tell me which aspects worry you (elections, courts, press freedom), I can go into what the evidence and each side say.
You’re going off the deep end buddy . If you want to see a country sliding into dictatorship start looking at Ottawa .
**Neither the USA nor Canada is a dictatorship.** Both are established liberal democracies with competitive elections, independent judiciaries, multiparty systems, and strong formal protections for rights. Ranking them on “dictatorship characteristics” means comparing relative democratic quality, institutional constraints, civil liberties, rule of law, and any recent backsliding—not claiming either is authoritarian.
### Key comparative data from major indices (most recent available as of 2025–2026)
**Freedom House Freedom in the World**
Canada: 97/100 (Free)
United States: 81/100 (Free)
Notes: USA had the sharpest decline among Free countries (−3 points in 2025); 12-point drop over ~20 years. Canada stable near the top.
**EIU Democracy Index**
Canada: ~9.08 (Full Democracy, ~9th)
United States: 7.65 (Flawed Democracy, ~34th)
Notes: Canada improved; USA declined and remains in the “flawed” category.
**V-Dem Liberal Democracy Index**
Canada: Significantly higher (remains in liberal democracy range)
United States: Dropped sharply to ~0.57 (lost long-term liberal democracy status; levels comparable to 1960s)
Notes: USA showed the largest annual decline among tracked countries in 2025.
**RSF World Press Freedom Index**
Canada: ~20th (~78.8)
United States: ~64th (~62.6)
Notes: USA declined amid political pressure on media, funding cuts to public broadcasters, and other actions.
**WJP Rule of Law Index**
Canada: 0.79 (rank ~13)
United States: 0.68 (rank ~27)
Notes: USA declined more notably.
Sources: Freedom House Freedom in the World 2026, Economist Intelligence Unit Democracy Index 2025, V-Dem Democracy Report 2026, Reporters Without Borders 2026, World Justice Project Rule of Law Index 2025.
### What the data show
- **Canada** ranks consistently higher on political rights, civil liberties, electoral process quality, constraints on executive power, press freedom, and rule of law. It is classified as a full democracy by the EIU and remains near the top of Freedom House scores.
- **The United States** has experienced measurable democratic erosion over the past decade-plus (across administrations), with sharper declines noted in 2025. Drivers cited in the indices include legislative dysfunction, greater executive dominance, pressures on free expression and media, weakened anticorruption safeguards, and polarization. It remains a democracy with robust formal institutions, but scores lower on several liberal-democratic metrics than Canada or most peer high-income democracies.
### Context and caveats
Dictatorship characteristics typically involve concentrated unaccountable power, abolished competitive elections, systematic suppression of opposition and media, no independent judiciary, and arbitrary rule. Neither country fits that description. Both have free elections, opposition parties that win power, courts that can check executives, and vibrant (if polarized) civil societies.
Canada has faced criticism on issues such as online speech regulation proposals, past use of emergency powers, and Indigenous rights. The USA has longstanding challenges with polarization, campaign finance, gerrymandering, and institutional gridlock, plus recent concerns about executive overreach and media pressure. These are real democratic deficits, but they occur within systems that remain fundamentally democratic and far removed from actual dictatorships.
In short, **Canada currently exhibits fewer characteristics associated with democratic backsliding or weaker institutional constraints** according to the leading independent indices. The gap is real on the metrics, but both countries remain liberal democracies. Rankings can shift with future political developments.
As long as America keeps faking elections theyll keep Flawed Democracy status at 34th.
The impact of Hasbara....
**RSF World Press Freedom Index**
Canada: ~20th (~78.8)
United States: ~64th (~62.6)
Notes: USA declined amid political pressure on media, funding cuts to public broadcasters, and other actions.
### Key comparative data from major indices (most recent available as of 2025–2026)
**Freedom House Freedom in the World**
Canada: 97/100 (Free)
United States: 81/100 (Free)
Notes: USA had the sharpest decline among Free countries (−3 points in 2025); 12-point drop over ~20 years. Canada stable near the top.
**EIU Democracy Index**
Canada: ~9.08 (Full Democracy, ~9th)
United States: 7.65 (Flawed Democracy, ~34th)
Notes: Canada improved; USA declined and remains in the “flawed” category.
**V-Dem Liberal Democracy Index**
Canada: Significantly higher (remains in liberal democracy range)
United States: Dropped sharply to ~0.57 (lost long-term liberal democracy status; levels comparable to 1960s)
Notes: USA showed the largest annual decline among tracked countries in 2025.
**RSF World Press Freedom Index**
Canada: ~20th (~78.8)
United States: ~64th (~62.6)
Notes: USA declined amid political pressure on media, funding cuts to public broadcasters, and other actions.
**WJP Rule of Law Index**
Canada: 0.79 (rank ~13)
United States: 0.68 (rank ~27)
Notes: USA declined more notably.
Sources: Freedom House Freedom in the World 2026, Economist Intelligence Unit Democracy Index 2025, V-Dem Democracy Report 2026, Reporters Without Borders 2026, World Justice Project Rule of Law Index 2025.
### What the data show
- **Canada** ranks consistently higher on political rights, civil liberties, electoral process quality, constraints on executive power, press freedom, and rule of law. It is classified as a full democracy by the EIU and remains near the top of Freedom House scores.
- **The United States** has experienced measurable democratic erosion over the past decade-plus (across administrations), with sharper declines noted in 2025. Drivers cited in the indices include legislative dysfunction, greater executive dominance, pressures on free expression and media, weakened anticorruption safeguards, and polarization. It remains a democracy with robust formal institutions, but scores lower on several liberal-democratic metrics than Canada or most peer high-income democracies.
### Context and caveats
Dictatorship characteristics typically involve concentrated unaccountable power, abolished competitive elections, systematic suppression of opposition and media, no independent judiciary, and arbitrary rule. Neither country fits that description. Both have free elections, opposition parties that win power, courts that can check executives, and vibrant (if polarized) civil societies.
Canada has faced criticism on issues such as online speech regulation proposals, past use of emergency powers, and Indigenous rights. The USA has longstanding challenges with polarization, campaign finance, gerrymandering, and institutional gridlock, plus recent concerns about executive overreach and media pressure. These are real democratic deficits, but they occur within systems that remain fundamentally democratic and far removed from actual dictatorships.
In short, **Canada currently exhibits fewer characteristics associated with democratic backsliding or weaker institutional constraints** according to the leading independent indices. The gap is real on the metrics, but both countries remain liberal democracies. Rankings can shift with future political developments.
Canada. A sold 9 in the top 10. A Full Democracy
As long as America keeps faking elections theyll keep Flawed Democracy status at 34th.
The impact of Hasbara....
**RSF World Press Freedom Index**
Canada: ~20th (~78.8)
United States: ~64th (~62.6)
Notes: USA declined amid political pressure on media, funding cuts to public broadcasters, and other actions.