With the increasing rise in the weaponization of our judicial system for political or ideological ends and the use of the police forces as the pointy end of the stick for those eruptions, it is more than ever the time for Alberta to form its own police force.Let me share what was witnessed, with what I will call an overly eager response from various RCMP detachments to the peaceful anti-carbon tax protests that sprang up along several Alberta highways this last month. In one locale in northern Alberta, nearly 70 officers, complete with K9 units, showed up to 'monitor' the 20 or so protesters. The same thing happened along a highway in southern Alberta with similar numbers. Considering the slow response time of the RCMP around break-ins in rural communities, I guess farmers should report anti-carbon tax protests on their property to speed that up.Then there was High River. Enough said, right? Not to be overly simplistic, having an Alberta police force gives teeth to the Alberta Sovereignty Act.I am sure the same RCMP which so vigorously trampled over Canadians during the Freedom Convoy protest would no doubt ignore any mandate given them by our elected provincial legislature when it comes to any showdown with Ottawa. This is a crucial area where Alberta needs to decouple from Ottawa.For the last few years, we have seen an increasing willingness by Ottawa to “colour outside the lines” when it comes to respecting provincial vs federal jurisdiction. Moreover, the rhetoric coming out of Ottawa is caustic and aggressive.In the case of our sister province of Saskatchewan (and good for them, by the way), a refusal to pay the carbon tax on heating because Atlantic Canada got a pass may seem reasonable to us. Still, Mr. Guilbeault is calling it immoral and threatens action. We won’t dwell on the irony here, that this move to give a pass to Atlantic Canada goes entirely against their climate cause and undercuts their credibility. Still, if Mr. Guilbeault decides to arrest those resisting his mandates, who does the RCMP listen to? We will give you one guess: It won’t be the rightfully elected government of Saskatchewan.These issues are but the tip of the iceberg. What if Alberta refused to cooperate on federal programs around fertilizer or potentially on Bill C-63 and the idea that will see people arrested if the government “thinks they might commit" a hate crime? These are becoming increasingly serious issues and severe infringements on our liberty. Depending upon the RCMP to uphold Albertan’s best interest regardless of how we see it puts all of us at a disadvantage.Policies and mandates coming out of Ottawa are increasingly directed against the liberty and prosperity of the citizens of this province. The Alberta Sovereignty Act is a good and essential first step. We encourage Premier Smith to give that act some teeth, uncouple us from the RCMP and their Ottawa masters, and give us an Alberta Provincial Police Force.James Albers is a Calgary-based management consultant specializing in leadership development. He was formerly a school principal and teacher of history and active in conservative politics
With the increasing rise in the weaponization of our judicial system for political or ideological ends and the use of the police forces as the pointy end of the stick for those eruptions, it is more than ever the time for Alberta to form its own police force.Let me share what was witnessed, with what I will call an overly eager response from various RCMP detachments to the peaceful anti-carbon tax protests that sprang up along several Alberta highways this last month. In one locale in northern Alberta, nearly 70 officers, complete with K9 units, showed up to 'monitor' the 20 or so protesters. The same thing happened along a highway in southern Alberta with similar numbers. Considering the slow response time of the RCMP around break-ins in rural communities, I guess farmers should report anti-carbon tax protests on their property to speed that up.Then there was High River. Enough said, right? Not to be overly simplistic, having an Alberta police force gives teeth to the Alberta Sovereignty Act.I am sure the same RCMP which so vigorously trampled over Canadians during the Freedom Convoy protest would no doubt ignore any mandate given them by our elected provincial legislature when it comes to any showdown with Ottawa. This is a crucial area where Alberta needs to decouple from Ottawa.For the last few years, we have seen an increasing willingness by Ottawa to “colour outside the lines” when it comes to respecting provincial vs federal jurisdiction. Moreover, the rhetoric coming out of Ottawa is caustic and aggressive.In the case of our sister province of Saskatchewan (and good for them, by the way), a refusal to pay the carbon tax on heating because Atlantic Canada got a pass may seem reasonable to us. Still, Mr. Guilbeault is calling it immoral and threatens action. We won’t dwell on the irony here, that this move to give a pass to Atlantic Canada goes entirely against their climate cause and undercuts their credibility. Still, if Mr. Guilbeault decides to arrest those resisting his mandates, who does the RCMP listen to? We will give you one guess: It won’t be the rightfully elected government of Saskatchewan.These issues are but the tip of the iceberg. What if Alberta refused to cooperate on federal programs around fertilizer or potentially on Bill C-63 and the idea that will see people arrested if the government “thinks they might commit" a hate crime? These are becoming increasingly serious issues and severe infringements on our liberty. Depending upon the RCMP to uphold Albertan’s best interest regardless of how we see it puts all of us at a disadvantage.Policies and mandates coming out of Ottawa are increasingly directed against the liberty and prosperity of the citizens of this province. The Alberta Sovereignty Act is a good and essential first step. We encourage Premier Smith to give that act some teeth, uncouple us from the RCMP and their Ottawa masters, and give us an Alberta Provincial Police Force.James Albers is a Calgary-based management consultant specializing in leadership development. He was formerly a school principal and teacher of history and active in conservative politics
