The Case for Sticking Around (albertaviews.ca)

submitted 3 months ago by streetfestival@lemmy.ca to c/canada@lemmy.ca

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By Senator Paula Simons

So I’m calling on us to do something un-Canadian: to put aside our habitual self-deprecation and stand up for the country we love—and reject the idea of a sovereign Alberta whose founding principles seem to be miserliness, xenophobia and transphobia. We need to raise our voices to denounce the dark fantasy of a landlocked, petulant petrostate dedicated to hoarding wealth, denouncing immigrants, denying climate change, spurning vaccines, protecting patriarchy and endangering queer kids. Because Alberta’s current crop of separatists don’t just want to leave Canada. They seem to want to opt out of the 21st century entirely.

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[-] CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org 21 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Neither. Albertans overwhelmingly think the idea is dumb. The far-right party in power, on the other hand...

The Quebec thing is as old as Canada. We basically started as two British colonies, one ethnically American and one ethnically French/Acadian, and we were forced together to fend off the US. The French half, being smaller, was always extra uncomfortable with this, and came very close to voting to leave in the 90's. Currently the idea of separating is waning in Quebec, though.

[-] definitemaybe@lemmy.ca 5 points 3 months ago

Notably, in the "close" referendum, polls at the indicated many (the majority, I think?) of "leave" voters thought they would still be using Canadian money, still be part of the Canadian military, and thought there wouldn't be a border crossing/customs to travel to other provinces.

Sounds very similar to what's happening in Alberta, except that it's not at all close.

There was also the Clarity Act that explicitly requires much more precise language in any future separation referendums. Alberta is explicitly not pursuing a referendum right now, and the cynic in me expects that's because the Clarity Act would make a referendum result laughable at best. And risk causing a schism in the already-wobbly ~~Wild Rose~~ Alberta Cons Party.