In my considered opinion, Canada is not a serious country, and Canadians are not a serious people. It is an opinion that sparks controversy. And the opinion is not entirely pejorative. Let me explain.Canadians have blithely lived under the protection of the US military presence, yet are now angry with the Americans because they have noticed our little scam and want some recovery through trade policy. In response, our elbows have come up against an economy that is an order of magnitude larger than ours. Where does such arrogance come from? It comes from the more than seventy years of relative peace and prosperity which has bred in us an arrogance that makes us unserious. That is just how human nature works.My thesis is that countries and people who live in a dangerous and rapidly changing maelstrom of violence are serious. Those who don’t, aren’t. I am grateful that we Canadians do not live in such a maelstrom. I will take our unseriousness over the death and destruction of the maelstrom any day.But we should at least acknowledge this fact and stop being so girly about our “elbows up” pettiness. For example..Seniors like me are told by those who oppose Alberta independence that our Canada Pension Plan (CPP) payments will be put at risk if Albertans get serious, man up, and leave Canada. That is a silly argument on the face of it, but, as I know from experience, when there is no paycheque every month, you jealously protect what income you have.But the people who are concerned about the continuity of their CPP payments due to independence are mute when our Prime Minister recycles his 2024 scheme to build a sovereign investment vehicle called the Maple Fund. The recycled idea would have Brookfield Asset Management, his former employer, join with the putatively independently managed CPP to float a $50 billion private equity fund to invest in large Canadian infrastructure projects. This is the same scheme that in 2024 was deemed too politically toxic to be launched. The fund is now being laundered into a "great idea" by removing the Canadian government as an investor. I guess there is nothing to see here. Or is there?Are there no conflicts of interest that should be declared by the fund’s proponents? What about the independence of the fiduciaries of the CPP? Were they pressured by the government to take a high-risk bet with my money? Where is the risk assessment of the Maple Fund by the Board of the Canada Pension Plan? John Graham, CEO of the CPP Investment Board, says, “Canada is entering a period of new ambition to advance major projects and build for the future, creating compelling investment opportunities across the country.”What compelling investment opportunities? How will the Maple Fund invest its capital? Who will be the managers and what sort of fees will they charge? Will they build pipelines and other infrastructure? Well, we have recent experience with that notion. In 2018, the Canadian government bought the Trans Mountain Pipeline to expand its capacity. A project that the private sector wanted to build for $7.4 billion was built by the public sector for $34 billion. Dear fiduciaries and Board members of the CPP, this is not a good investment, and I do not want my pension funds wasted in this way. .Mr. Graham will no doubt argue that his Maple Fund investment is only about 5% of the CPP holdings, but the Maple Fund hopes to attract $1 trillion in total investment. Who will make up the additional $950 billion? Will the CPP be in for “a little more”?I am not opposed in principle to sovereign wealth funds, but let the ambitions of Canada be financed after a full debate in the House of Commons. I know that our regal Prime Minister is not a fan of parliamentary debate and can rely on his clapping seals to deliver the votes in any event, but being forced to talk to his caucus and other MPs and the Canadian taxpayers just seems like the right thing to do. In the meantime, leave my pension alone.Or here is another idea … How about Albertans become independent from Canada to create their own pension plan, thus saving it from the ambitions of Laurentian elites? At the risk of being blunt, failure to do so will confirm my thesis that we are indeed an unserious people.On October 19, be sure to vote and vote for option 2 so we can commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether or not Alberta should leave Canada. The security and integrity of our pensions may depend upon it.
