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Posted on 07/09/2005 12:18:50 PM PDT by ConservativeStLouisGuy
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A University of Alberta professor I know sent me a lengthy article he's trying to get published, entitled: "Let's get while the getting's good."
In it, Leon Craig, professor emeritus of political science, lays out a case for Alberta to declare unilateral independence. And he lays it out well.
Craig makes no bones about it.
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Alberta, he says, should go it alone.
Almost overnight, we would become one of the most prosperous nations in the world.
But -- and this is his key point -- the main reason to secede is not because Albertans would have more money. Not that there's anything wrong with money.
More importantly, we would create a country that reflects our own political and social beliefs, values and traditions, and our understanding of the common good.
Canada, says Craig, has been so badly governed since the Trudeau era, it has doomed itself to a Third World, banana republic fate.
We will become -- are in fact becoming -- the Argentina of the 21st century.
Political corruption gets rewarded instead of punished, productivity slides, and the opportunistic politics of envy becomes the basis of our whole system of national government.
The only promising place left in Canada, he concludes, is Alberta.
And Alberta owes it to itself, to its future citizens, and to like-minded people in the rest of the country to save itself.
As a sovereign and independent nation, he suggests, our population -- viable to begin with -- would double in 10 years, even allowing for a welcome exodus of Albertans who would be happier back in Canada.
Far more good people move to take advantage of opportunity than flee from it.
Our social policies -- marriage and family matters, medicare, civil and religious freedoms, etc. -- would no longer be imposed by the Supreme Court and a handful of Ottawa mandarins.
We could establish our own laws to deal with crime and punishment, and our own separate relationship with the Americans.
If we don't do these things now, he says, we'll sink with the Canadian ship.
The professor dismisses the idea of "refederating" Canada along its original lines of strong provinces and a small central government.
He thinks the rest of the country is too far gone to change back to what it was.
He even gives short shrift to the "West."
Any attempt to create a new federalism, even in the West, he believes will fail. If other western provinces, or parts of provinces, want to join Alberta, by becoming part of it, they should be welcomed.
All that binds Albertans to Canada, he concludes, is sentiment -- an attachment to Canada's once-illustrious military and pioneer past, and to our own provincial part in it.
We must now face the fact that the old Canada is gone forever and the new Canada is disgusting.
So what are we to make of all this?
It's hard to argue against his analysis of the problem.
The Trudeau delusion that you can build a credible nation with "national social programs" is so shallow it's absurd.
And given the stern rejection of the Reform party by eastern Canadians, it's impossible to refute that the only forceful thing Albertans can do is to separate.
Where I disagree with my friend is whether we owe any allegiance to other Canadians.
What is driving more and more Albertans towards separatism is the fact that our original constitutional arrangement -- the political bargain on which Canada was built -- has long since been obliterated by the national government.
Had that not happened, Canada would not be in its present ugly mess.
Alberta is the only province with both the means and the motive to force a restoration of those original terms. Not by asking. By telling.
But we owe it to our nine federal partners -- the other provinces -- to state the terms on which we would be willing to stay. This is something we have never done.
Only if those terms are refused should we decide on independence.
California has more conservatives then any other state except Texas. The problem is we also have the most democrats.
California will never leave the USA. We might split in two and give Mexico the south, but northern California will not leave.
Holtz
JeffersonRepublic.com
:-)
Even when good people are caught 'twixt and 'tween, they recognize the difference between right...and wrong.
Something I was allways keen to follow up on was the nick names workers were given.....theirs allways some telling reason why they are named so.
We had one guy who incidentally was a tradesman for like 2 decades.
His nick name was Boom Boom...and it fit.
Guess the guy had a total brain fart.
He was setting the shop oven up to cook a vessel.....heat it to glowing for stress relieving.
He turned the 20 burners on and had the oven door open a 1/4 way.
its a big oven...the vessel goes in on a special train car.
Anyhoo...he was supposed to lite the burners pilots.
instead..he had a smoke and then walked toward the oven with a propane torch.
Kaaa Boom!......knocked worker 100 ft away over like bowling pins.
workers on ladders welding were sent flying.
a few who had harnesses were swinging upside down from vessels.
I arrive for afternoon shift and notice the shop is nearly empty.
"Where is everyone"....a friend laughs and answers..."All dead"!
well no...not all dead.....but nearly.
So ya...your having coffee and someone calls a guy light bulb.
I'm musing to myself...."Oh I just gotta hear this"
Funny but correct reply.
The Canadian government can't defend itself much less keep a way ward province in line.
“Alberta is THE red province of Canada”
Blue.
I say: Decapitate this pygmy thing in Ottawa and do business with what's left.
Quebec was never anything but a glorified crew!
That animal - Trudeau - I can't even say his name!
I wanted an American steak! But I compromised: I ate poutine off a radiator instead!
Regards,
17 years later.....no reason to change the status quo unless you start to get desperate.
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