Is Alberta's dream to emulate Texas?
I think so. I'll tell you why.
I firmly believe all the folks here in Alberta that are "well to do" in financial matters, are all against "socialized government", because it uses THEIR money to help others without their permission.
In other words, they are against providing funding for poor people, or even middle class folks because they feel that they are being charged that tax money to fund the poor folks ONLY!. That its a "everyone for themselves" world.
Lets look at the USA.
They dote so much on "Democracy" that all the poor farmers are being bought up by big conglomerates for pennies on the dollar. Democracy does not care about the people - only the bottom line, which usually is how much money do the Investors reap when Dividends are paid out. Period. They don't care how many kids were working 12 and 14 hour days to provide raw product for their factories. They don't care that it costs them $1 to produce a Widget, but will push to sell for $10 or $20. There are no laws supporting the family farmers because big corp tells the government not to create legislation because "America loves Freedom" from oppressive laws!!! That is exactly why Trump is removing any and all "overwatch" agencies which police the government itself, and the mechanisms in which funding is handled by recipients and civilian agencies. Non partisan. Well, used to be...
This is all part of Trumps "clearing the swamp" of useless, oppressive and to the GOP, invasive laws that control the Economy.
This is all part in parcel of their white paper that Rob Anderson, a well known Alberta Separatist, Barry Cooper, a Political Science Professor in Calgary and an avid advocate of Western Canadian Separatism and Constitutional Lawyer Derek From
wrote in 2021. It was totally radical, involved all schools being "dumbed down" with "adjusted curriculum", while Charter and Private Schools will remain with the best teachers and most honest data being taught.
So, you can understand my reluctance after reading that White Paper, which was "cleaned up" for public viewing, and is now available on the UCP Website. However, it too also states that the "end goal" is to separate from Canada and go their own way. When the "Project 2025" paper came out in the USA, I almost shit myself because I think it was closely modeled upon the 2012 White Paper (which has since disappeared from the web...). I had downloaded a copy back in about 2015-16 just before Trump was elected, but now have no idea where it ended up.
Look at it from my POV. The UCP wants to:
1. Take as much of CPP from Canada for Alberta's coffers as possible. Tell Albertans it's for our citizens. Centralize all funds in Alberta. [In Progress]
2. Take away much of the current curriculum in elementary and middle schools to teach "alternate theory" on Alberta natives, Canada's corrupt laws, push Christian Dogma in Public schools, deny any other religion equal status to that of Christianity. [Started under Premier Kenny] [Kenny even had his "uncle", a musician, mentioned in history classes. Big whup...] [In Progress]
3. Take away the powers of elected City/Municipal leaders as possible - concentrate power within the Legislature, and control all other councils with a firm commitment from elected officials, or find some way to remove from that council. [Done.]
5. Migrate Alberta Healthcare to private health providers. Gutting Alberta Health of competent middle management was the first step (Done - thousands of years of "corporate knowledge" of middle managers were let go and Alberta Health was told to "adapt or be fired". This meant in many cases, over-worked staff, poorly completed paperwork due to time constraints, patient comfort will suffer, medications will be delisted to save money.)
The goal is to encourage the average citizen to take their ills to a private clinic. Initially, until a critical load is carried by private contractors, they will conform to Provincial guidelines for Healthcare treatment.
Once the Legislature is happy that we have gone past the no-return point, all services will then become Private Providers Only, at which point, they will begin charging "extra" fees for small things like tongue depressors, wipes, cremes used in office treatments, and other services will gradually increase in price above the Alberta Guidelines, but since these Private Providers are backing the UCP, the UCP will say nothing, and citizens will have to pay more and more, and then, not surprisingly, Alberta will announce Health Insurance to cover costs above regular healthcare coverage.
Eventually, we WILL end up with a system similar to the Health Insurance Scam happening in the USA.
This is a no-shit move that was discussed back in 2012, and again in 2017. In 2021, these three gentlemen re-released the White Paper as the "Free Alberta Strategy" with some "edits" that were too controversial for the average citizen, and were omitted from the White Papers from previous years.
However, the basic intent is still spelled out, but in a more "wishy-washy" word-salad. Sovereignty Act is a precursor to cutting all Federal ties. APP is a precursor to remove the RCMP and install some of our own "forces" to control the public, away from Federal Scrutiny. Independent Banking Act - that is, control all of Alberta's money within Alberta.
Now, I'm not too against that, as I would really like to move to a Credit Union of some type, but the Big Guys just keep offering me better interest rates.
Judicial appointments made only by Alberta - ensuring that Alberta's Lawyers are picked to helm the courts, and not some chump from Ontario, for instance. Or even Saskatchewan, fer cryin' out loud!
Y'know, keep all judges on the same level, so they say.
Establish international Trade separate from the Feds.
Ending Equalization. I really think the UCP is screaming "The Sky is Falling".
Everyone in Canada pays Federal taxes. Once Ottawa has all that money, they can decide where that money goes. As Canada has a Social Contract with all Canadians, it behooves the Feds to ensure all Canadians have equal access to government services including Social, Healthcare and other Federally funded institutions, thus the equalization equation was created.
Jason Kenny
I mean, Jason Kenny was one of the supporting folks who was in Ottawa as an MP when Equalization was created, and later on, negotiated with Alberta to receive an additional $1Bn in Healthcare transfers! Any changes to the Equalization would also affect Healthcare and Social Transfer systems.
Alberta does not send money to Ottawa in an envelope labelled "Equalization Payment Money". Equalization funds comes out of Ottawa's General Revenue's, the same as Social and Healthcare funds come from - Personal and Business Taxes across Canada. Fisheries, Border Control, Military, Emergency Services. And so on. Basically everything the Government does initially comes out of the General Accounts into specific accounts I just listed above.
Equalization is just another account the Federal Government manages.
In the past, Alberta was even a recipient of Equalization funds, which was used to develop the oil industry, so the system works, right? When a Province received Equalization funding, it goes into a General Revenue to help that government provide services to their citizens. And not to fund "Quebec's day care services", because in fact, there was no way to prove that. So, yet another Fiction.
Not one Province was asked to pay into the Equalization Payments. This all came out of Federal Tax Money, not Alberta's coffers. The UCP just used "creative" accounting to state that Alberta is paying way more than other Provinces. Really? Can anyone show me where every exact Albertan Dollar went? How do they know that it might have gone to Defense, Dept of Fisheries, National parks, Environmental Conservation, etc. There is no way. It is a Fiction, and therefore a sad political move that like any other political complaint, scream it loud enough and often enough, and folks will believe it, even when they know the facts refute the complaint.
It's all a Fiction, spread by emotional messages that are in of themselves, fiction.
This is how Trump won in the USA - tell lies long enough, have others repeat lies often enough, and eventually folks, even intelligent folks, will start to believe against their own better judgements. Psychologically, this tends to manifest itself once the individual buys into the lie so much that they will begin to rationalize the lies with their own made-up lies to conform to "popular belief". In between all these lies, toss in some semi-truths, so that when elected and the government starts doing crazy things, they will say that they campaigned on that - when all folks thought it was also all lies as well. Pick and choose your knowledge. Choose wrong, live in a police state. Choose right, and prices drop, freedom flourishes, and everyone can travel any damned where they want.
But, America choose poorly...
And this is how the UCP wants to do things here in Alberta.
But wait for it - near the end of the current Free Alberta Strategy is the push for "The Republic of Western Canada", with the goal of Alberta, Sask, Man and perhaps all or parts of B.C. to join in this grand endeavour. Did you know that if we don't have access to an ocean port, we will be screwed for any international trade with anyone other than the USA. Forget Europe, China, Malaysia, Japan, Africa and South American, Australia. Everything will come with a Premium Price, once all the international shipping, handling, customs, port fees (international) and so on. The cost of living will likely triple. Alberta will be like another Ukraine, with it's only viable water access being the Hudson Bay, when it is not frozen over...IF we can talk Manitoba into joining our Grand Illusion.
Just before I leave, here is a paragraph taken right out of the Strategy paper:
"An ancillary feature of the Free Alberta Strategy is that it will better prepare
Alberta for national political sovereignty should it become necessary. The
Strategy’s cornerstone initiatives involve recovering and consolidating the
majority of all economic, environmental and resource governance, revenue
collection, social services, law enforcement, judicial powers, and other
institutions, and placing them firmly under the authority of the Provincial
Government. It also involves a great expansion of our provincially regulated
financial institutions and intergovernmental affairs, which would naturally be
required should independence become the only viable option for the province."
"Should independence become the only viable option..."
Now, to be fair, this is a move of "last resort", however plans are continually being drawn up with this end goal in mind. This was a secondary purpose of the "War Room" that Kenny created. So if this "last resort" is actually the real goal, then is there ANY chance of staying in Canada? Not according to the 2012 paper. That is the plan all along, and damned the torpedo's, lets get this thing going now!
Premier Smith - She's a sharp one, I'll admit that. I do find her cloying, though - she's dismissive, rude and controlling, and to me, actually micromanaging the Legislature and the rest of the Province. Taking power away from Municipal elected councils really struck me hard - a classic move invented in Europe, and utilized by every autocrat, including Hitler, when advocating for control/power.
Politicizing local town councils by allowing Political Parties to be represented in town/city councils - and you know these folks will have way more advertising funding than any independent seekers of office. This will be another "control" method, to ensure that even the smallest communities will be controlled by the Provincial Government.
I call that "overreach". It is also a darker side of Socialism, tipping over a bit into Communism - even with Oligarch's standing on the sidelines with their hands out "...or else". I'm not joking - look up the definitions of these, and that quote 5 paragraphs above, come right out of the UCP's Strategy paper, even the current one found online.
Just like the American Project 2025. I am not kidding. Folks are too close to the "action" in Alberta Politics because everyone has some kind of beef about something going wrong (or even right) in Alberta. Everyone has their brands in the fire. No one wants to step up in the current political climate because everything and most everyone will contradict you with lies, innuendo and made up facts and stories.
What is important is that Alberta thrive in a win/no win manner, to ensure that Alberta remains strong. Problem is that Politics and Canada is not a win/no win kind of political system Canada is the epitome of Compromise. Not bullying. Building Bridges.
But evoking a win/no win mentality is the exact same mentality that drives President Trump down in the USA. There is NO compromise. No previous Treaty exists in his eyes because he did not sign it, so in his mind, that issue is still open for discussion. And he is all for winning, not losing. No. Matter. What.
Wait for it, he'll do something crazy, well, more crazy than every other day.
Premier Smith is going in that exact same direction, albeit at a much slower, and stealthy pace, so as to not alert/affect the populace - walking zombie-eyed forward so in love with the "Party of UCP" that they do not see the final goal - or even have any concept of that final goal. Changing certain wording in existing laws that will enable separatists to more easily insert a referendum question into the next election cycle is one recent example. Again, not kidding. Check out:
https://policyoptions.irpp.org/magazines/june-2025/alberta-separatism/I find these folks egotistical - they think their existence is the only thing that matters, that society as a whole is BS and does not need their active participation to keep the country/province as a whole, healthy and prosperous. All the money they have earned is THEIRS, and will fight to not pay taxes, or to ensure any taxes they pay benefit themselves.
I mean, they live in one of the top ten countries in the world and they bitch about it, but offer no solution to National or International issues other than ones that cater to their own personal whims, and not support the country, because it is "not MY Province". FFS....I actually heard that one said out loud!
So much for a welcoming province. Helping everyone else is what makes Canada great, but apparently, not so much for Alberta.
Under Premier Smith's MAGA-supported government. (Yes, even the Ottawa Senate knows about MAGA funds coming over the border for Right-Wing governments!)
I hope I have passed on before such a tragedy happens to my Alberta!
Peace!
