Anger From Alberta ?

Boo hoo. Anger from Texas North, like it's really a surprise. They're just angry that Canada won't be joining the United States as quickly as they want.

Anger? I'm angry too. I'm angry that enough people were duped by the so-called "Conservative" party. I'm angry that a significant number of voters were completely ignorant of the "Conservative's" real motives. I'm angry that the media didn't do their job exposing Stephen Harper's America Uber Alles past (heck, a simple "google" tells more than all three of the major rags ever did).

Ontario voters restored my confidence in this province. After all the amnesia about the Harris neo-cons that has been surfacing here in light of Dalton's mis-steps, I expected far worse. Ontarians decided that the devil they knew was better than the one they didn't know. And heck, we even managed to get rid of a couple cantankerous Harrisites (like "Lock up the poor" Clement) in the process! Good.

Klein can ruminate over that during his next drunken tirade, I'm sure.

<i>Are the majority of Albertans that upset ?</i><p> Yes Jim, we are. Flashbacks to 1996. The only two Liberal (incumbents) were only leading by a very slim majority last night (100 or 200 votes). The recounts will take a day or so more.<p> We really don't understand, as Preston Manning put it last night during the election coverage, "Why are Ontarians so proud to be tolerant of new Canadians and minorities - but not of the West". We're ticked. Sure, people don't trust Harper - I know I don't; but why then vote for the party that has treated Canadians like a $10 hooker in a back alley? How will they trust Harper if they don't give him a chance? Do they distrust the West that much? <p> Now don't get me wrong, a Liberal Minority with the NDP controlling the swing is probabally the best result from last night - as much will get done now. However, a Conservative Minority would have been forced to do far more from the left wing playbook in order to remain in office.<p> During his rise to the Leadership, Martin said he wanted to include the West. During his campaign, he repeated it. When he was dolling out the campaign cash, he promised nothing. He gave more to the Toronto waterfront than he gave to provinces west of Ontairo.<p> We feel like the family member no one talks about, and never gets invited to Christmas Dinner. It took Duceppe 5 minutes to get back on the separation bandwagon (colour me suprized!!) and Alberta sees how Quebec is wooed and coddled in Canada, and that's what we want. If it takes the separatist chain rattling to get attention, we will. From the stats last night - the Bloc got a total of 12% of the Canadian vote, and ~52 seats. The NDP got 21% of the vote, and ~20 seats. Is that fair representation?<p> <b>We want back in!</b> Bring back the Reform Party! Vive le Alberta Libre!<p><p>---<br>"History does not repeat itself, but it does rhyme" Mark Twain <br />
"The greatest price of not participating in politics is being governed by your inferiors." Plato

The people of Alberta should open their brains for a minute and clue in. The new Conservative party lost percentage of the vote with their new joined party. That says everything - its not the rest of Canada's fault that we dont like what the conservatives are selling.

As well Jim - look at the numbers - Canada is not on a swing to the right - the left gained a larger percentage of the vote this time around and it has been going that way since the last election. Canada is swinging to the left and that is why the dog-chow party is doing so badly. Canada has no wish to be like the Republican version of the US.

Canadians spoke loud and clear last night.

Roy

I'm an Albertan, and most of the separatist talk is from completely uninformed people(mostly in the rural areas, sadly) who are unhappy with the status quo and who see separatism as a good choice because they haven't thought about any of the issues involved. Alberta would do even worse than quebec if we separated; at least quebec has some secondary industries.

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Jesse

What I don't understand is why the rural farmers, etc want to slash their own safety net by wiping out the Canadian Wheat Board & supply management. For the last 10 years Ralph Goodale did a surprisingly good job (as well as he could under the NAFTA anyway) at protecting our farmers from certain bankruptcy, which is what would happen if supply management was abolished. Pretty much every county in the world (not an exagerration) has wanted us to get rid of it since it's pretty much an embargo on foreign perishables (eggs, milk, poultry, etc). It also controls supply so farmers get a fair price for their stuff, and don't have to compete with the US Treasury which helps US agriculture dump (=sell at below cost) all their stuff into other countries, bankrupting farmers everywhere. This is the sort of protection that Harper WANTS TO GET RID OF(!) and Alberta sovreigntist farmers just go along with it, probably not thinking of the consequences. Hard to believe that farmers would want to wipe out the safety nets that they fought for literally decades to get.

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"These Yankee politicians are the lowest race of thieves in existence." - Sir John Sparrow Thompson

Unfortunately, any increase in the leftist vote will remain useless until we have proportional representation.

As Ontario now feels that they have the moral authority over the rest of Canada by electing the liars and thieves (which speaks volumes about their own set of values), I'm sure that they and the provinces East of them wouldn't mind if Alberta just says "bye bye", as we have differences which geography just won't heal.
With the resources we have, and the clout we carry with our friends down South, you in the East can go to hell.

"These Yankee politicians are the lowest race of thieves in existence."

That's a sweeping statement.

<p><i>"but why then vote for the party that has treated Canadians like a $10 hooker in a back alley?--Preston Manning"</i> <p>I'd like to see Preston Manning explain why he used that analogy and how he would know to use that as an analogy. Did Preston come back from Vegas before he made these comments? Kevin is now running away fearing he may have offended someone. Consider it satire <p>Kevin<p>---<br>"Love actually, is all around us" --From the movie Love Actually.

What clout? It's that attitude that keeps us from ahaving any clout down south. That attitude is also the SOURCE (not the RESULT) of western alienation. If we got away from bilateralism with the USA & went back to an east-west trade system (which makes practical sense now that the Pacific Rim is the most dynamic part of the world economically) provinces would trade with each other and not directly with the USA. When provinces trade directly with the USA, Ottawa doesn't have to be involved, and it's understandable that Ottawa could even be seen as an adversary. (especially to Alberta sovreigntists)

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"These Yankee politicians are the lowest race of thieves in existence." - Sir John Sparrow Thompson

Perhaps you should complain to Sir John Sparrow Thompson.<p><p>---<br>"History does not repeat itself, but it does rhyme" Mark Twain <br />
"The greatest price of not participating in politics is being governed by your inferiors." Plato

Wait for the new Liberal/NDP National Energy Program, that will really tick them off! But who cares, there aren't that many seats in the province, the government doesn't need them.

The quote was: "Why are Ontarians so proud to be tolerant of new Canadians and minorities - but not of the West". Which is why it was in quotes . I'll take credit for the $10 hooker part of the comment thank-you-very-much <p><p>---<br>"History does not repeat itself, but it does rhyme" Mark Twain <br />
"The greatest price of not participating in politics is being governed by your inferiors." Plato

I'm an Albertan, too, and I don't sympathize with the Conservative feelings around here. I am disgusted at King Ralph and his attitude towards Albertans and the rest of Canada. He willfully goes about implementing his own policies despite what the majority of Albertans want and yet he keeps getting re-elected... It is almost like voters think the oil is coming out of Ralphie's own ass. Perhaps it is just the company I keep, but I have never met anyone who thinks the Conservatives are a decent party or are happy with anything the Conservatives do. The talk of seperation comes out of Kleinie's mouth and no other. It is not a serious feeling in Alberta, it is whiney Klein trying to threaten Canada to get what he wants - decentralization of government, privatization, and a nice cooshy CEO or Board of Directors position with an American company after he steps down from the Legislature.

I dream of the day we are released from the cold, icy hand of the Corporate Conservatives.

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I try to take one day at a time, but sometimes several days attack me at once.

Amelia from Edmonton