September 5, 2003
Golden oldies
By LINK BYFIELD -- Calgary Sun [via AOL online]
The release of a report two days ago by the Canada West Foundation had about it something of the nostalgic.
There it was -- how to solve western alienation in 10 easy steps.
[. . . . ]
The CWF replay was like a whole album: Less party discipline in Parliament, a fairer distribution of Commons seats, annual first ministers' conferences, more provincial say in federal decisions and programs, more westerners (i.e. fewer Quebec francophones) in the federal bureaucracy, monitoring of the regional benefits of federal spending, provincial input into appointment of senators,etc.
[. . . .] how many western recommendations has the federal government actually implemented?
Not one. The country has become more centralized, not less.
[. . . .] It's an undemocratic country run by people who think it works just fine the way it is and who have no interest in sharing power with the West. "Sharing" to them means siphoning Alberta money to the voters in eastern Canada who elect them.
They weaken the West with federal taxes to weaken the East with federal subsidies.
The only people who actually come out ahead all work for the federal government. [and speak French]
It's called "fiscal federalism," and it's been going on since the 1960s.
Between 1961 and 1997, Albertans contributed a net $167 billion to the federal government, and Quebec consumed a net $202 billion.
And during that time, how many Prime Ministers from Quebec have we had? It has been called racist (incorrectly used, of course) to even mention it but I don't really give a hoot for the Liberals and their Human Rights Police so . . .
[. . . .]
A common response now is, "OK, let's just separate." Or "Let's threaten to separate. That's how Quebec always gets its way."
[. . . .]
Recall that back in the 1960s, there were Cuban-trained Quebec crazies running around blowing up mail boxes, kidnapping and even murdering.
[. . . .]
There's a much better approach, but it would require a serious Alberta government to pull it off. Alberta should take over three federal operations.
Instead of the Canada Pension Plan, we should have an Alberta Pension Plan. . . .
We should stop using the RCMP, and establish a provincial police force called the Northwest Mounted Police.
. . . start collecting our own provincial personal income tax.
We do not need Ottawa's permission to do any of these. Quebec does all three for itself already. We should follow its example.
The Maritimes is so used to government strings attached to handouts and something-for-nothing programs that they no longer know there is any other way. The Maritimes, it seems, will never take a stand—it might interfere with the pogey--but I WOULD LOVE TO SEE THE WEST DO THIS! LINK, KEEP ON TRUCKIN’!
