Re: Western business leaders warn of economic declineThose outside Alberta think Albertans are having our usual post-election temper tantrum. In reality, the feds have been targeting the West since before Alberta was formed.Alberta and Saskatchewan were created in 1905. The debate at the time was about whether to create one large province, or two smaller ones. Then-prime minister Laurier wanted to dilute Western power in the House of Commons, and to generally weaken the Western voice in federal politics. He later claimed he wanted to “prevent a new rival” to Ontario and Quebec.At the time of confederation, Alberta and Saskatchewan didn’t control their natural resources. Canada owned the rights as of 1870. Other provinces were given control of their natural resources, but Alberta and Saskatchewan didn’t get control until 1930. This colonial-style imposition was Ottawa's way of exploiting the West..Then, in 1980, Pierre Trudeau’s government wanted to retake control of Alberta’s resources. Trudeau Sr. wanted to redistribute ownership of Alberta’s resources to all of Canada. This gross overreach created massive losses for Alberta’s economy. Even now, the federal government is driving in Alberta's lane.And finally, the most annoying oxymoron, the inequality of equalization. Enshrined in the constitution, with the vague description of ensuring all provinces can provide “reasonably comparable levels of public services at reasonably comparable levels of taxation, it nevertheless means that from 2007-2018, Alberta contributed $240 billion more than it received in spending. Quebec gets about $13 billion from equalization per year. What’s wrong with their public services that $13 billion every year won’t cover it? Maybe the untaxed portion of Hydro-Quebec could help.It isn’t your leader, or your party, or even your politics. It’s systematic and willful inequality. It’s the discrimination and the ‘berta bashing. The problem is that the colonial version of Canadian democracy was designed to limit the freedom of Albertans.Albertans need something new.John HowieStrathcona County, AB
