You're quite ignorant. I suggest you visit these places prior to placing judgement on them.
The US and Canada are vast geographically and culturally spanning countries with an absolutely huge and diverse population. To simply say that everyone in these countries is a consumer-whore is inaccurate and dishonest.
I find it sad that you have to emphasize a 250k home as "nice" since people around here are used to million dollar single bedroom apartments crammed in to a city. In many, many places in the US, you can easily own 3000+ sqft of land and home for 250k.
Your comment is overly simplistic to the point of nonsense. Where exactly do you expect us to get food if you decide to just rid the world of agriculture?
40% effective tax rate? Impressive, I've never gone above 15% and I'm in a 6 digit salary.
Hundreds of hours to prepare a tax return? I guess if you can't read or something. No idea how it takes longer than a 2-3 hours (less if you're filing a 1040EZ).
And I'm pretty sure that the government is responsible for more than predicting the weather.
Move somewhere with a good local job market and affordable housing. After purchasing my house a few years ago, my mortgage payments will remain exactly the same every year for 30 years.
Salaries vary greatly depending on where the employee lives. You're generalizing far too much to the point where your comment is not useful. 80k is a healthy salary in some states that have very low costs of living. In fact, asking for 150k+ (even with years of experience) in some states will just get you laughed at.
The US and Canada are vast geographically and culturally spanning countries with an absolutely huge and diverse population. To simply say that everyone in these countries is a consumer-whore is inaccurate and dishonest.