I want to say this loud and clear in a post here for everyone to see, but there is an issue here with people having this giant hate boner for Albertans. Not the government, not UCP voters, but Albertans.
It doesn't matter if you're politically on the same side as people elsewhere in the country, it doesn't matter if you present facts to people who are provably wrong on the most basic of things they say, it doesn't matter if you treat them with dignity and respect by mentioning things with good intentions and not insulting people. You will still get labelled as the bad guy for the very fact you're Albertan.
I made a response to a comment on this post in the community. My comment was responding to someone who called Albertans "HUGE pussies" for "giving up our rights".
In my response to said comment, I basically said that the notion that we're "simply giving up" is completely false, using the following facts:
- Students have been staging walkouts:
- CBC: Calgary students among thousands across Alberta taking part in provincewide walkout
- Global News: Alberta students walk out of class in support of teachers forced back to work
- OkotoksOnline: High River students walkout in support of teachers
- The AFL (Alberta Federation of Labour) has stated that they will retaliate against the back to work order with a "general strike if necessary"
- Global News: ‘General strike if necessary’: Alberta unions declare intent to bring down UCP government
- CPAC: Alberta Union Leaders Respond to Smith Government’s Back-to-Work Legislation
- CityNews Calgary: No general strike yet as Alberta labour unions mobilize against Smith government
- The UCP has faced a dip in the polls resulting from the back-to-work order
- CTV News: Majority of Alberta Gov’t Report Card respondents feel province headed in wrong direction
- Angus Reid: Teachers’ Strike: Most Albertans side with teachers as they criticize UCP’s handling of education
- Calgary Herald: 'Reputational challenges': New poll shows public support for Smith, UCP has dipped amid teachers' strike (Yes I know it's PostMedia, it's still relevant and correct in this case)
I went ahead and said that statements like this that blanket Albertans as lazy, dumb, and inept do not help relations between the province and the rest of the country, especially when the actions being taken showcase the exact opposite.
For this, I was labelled as a conservative myself when I'm registered with the NDP provincially and federally, had myself and those around me insulted, and was told I was uneducated by someone who spewed blatantly incorrect information as they did so, and I was the one looked down upon in the entire interaction simply for where I'm from.
I suggested that in order for the NDP or Liberals, or anybody to win over Albertans, they need to address issues here. I gave the example of canola farmers suffering, and how the feds can tariff imported cooking oils to encourage consumers to choose a domestic alternative and/or have marketing campaigns to support canola farmers by increasing their domestic sales.
For this, someone insinuated that I am dumber than them simply based on what they assumed to be the school system I attended. The very same person who said this confidently made another comment where they claimed that the NDP was in charge for a "long time" before Peter Lougheed, and that Lougheed ran on diversifying the economy, and ditched the effort afterwards.
This is provably false. The NDP formed government for the first time in 2015, it was the Social Credit Party who came before Lougheed's Progressive Conservatives. Lougheed also established the Heritage Fund , which was made specifically to save money for investments in other sectors of Alberta's economy, the disaster of the fund came with the following leaders.
However, calling someone out for getting their facts wrong, and showcasing a current example of tariffs working to protect domestic goods gets you downvoted if you're Albertan, with the very people insulting your intelligence getting upvoted as they spew their nonsense.
Apparently explaining working-class issues and what left-wing parties can do to better reach those who normally vote Conservative is treating Alberta as "special" and forcing "everyone else to adapt" to us. Clearly the "majority" of people in Alberta are "hateful morons" and "insular xenophobes" .
Why do people continue to blanket me with the thoughts of a few bad apples they met? Are they more prominent here, sure, whatever, I can agree to that. I can agree that people here can be some of the worst you've met, I would know, I live here.
But me and the good, well-meaning people I know, especially those here who are marginalised or among the over 750,000 people who voted for the NDP the last election, do not appreciate having blanket statements made against us simply because we live here. I am pro-abortion, I am pro-immigration, I am pro-expanding healthcare, pro-creating public alternatives, pro-trans rights, anti-privatisation, anti-separatist, and yet sure, I'm a Conservative tip-toeing a line because my thoughts slightly deviate from the norm.
Hate the government, hate the jerks, do not hate me simply for where I'm born and the fact that I live here. I do not do this to you, I do not insult people for where they live or were born, and don't make blanket assumptions about the entire population of an area based on who's in power where they live. Why then is it seen as acceptable for this to happen to me?
I am an Albertan who doesn't want special treatment, but for fuck sake, it is reasonable to want to be treated with respect.
Edit: I don't know why the numbered lists are showing all as 1's, I have them properly numbered in the text of this post.
The AB gov't effectively just told Albertans that they have no rights, just privileges subject to the UCP's whims by using the not withstanding clause twice. Where's the pushback beyond talk? Smith is trying to normalize its use, and contribute to stripping our rights federally, straight from the playbook down south. Poilievre literally just said he'd use it.
We're in an uncertain time and suffering at the whims of an American madman, and AB has sided with him. I think it's safe to say YOU haven't, and honestly most Albertans haven't, but your gov't has.
We live in a democracy, and like it or not, we're defined by our gov'ts. The majority may not have voted for Danielle Smith's UCP, but the majority absolutely did not vote to stop it.
Ya gotta understand, you live in the most American province in a time when America just started a trade war with us and threatened annexation.
For fuck's sake you guys are up for a referendum next year to separate which could lead to the destruction of both AB and Canada. Honestly, I think there's a good chance it'll pass simply due to voter apathy. We're in a threatened country, and even within our country, Alberta is threatening it.
Alberta has made it clear, maybe not you or yours, but Alberta has made it clear it doesn't want Canada. I lived in AB for over a decade, and it's full of good people. But good people mean nothing when they do nothing.
The separation referendum is being stalled by a referendum to stay within Canada, where the petition to start it has already received enough signatures to start the referendum at 456K signatures.
Polling for separation is laughably low. This is not something that will happen, and not something legally feasible because of Treaty rights, and other numerous legal barriers. Smith herself has admitted she herself does not support separation, but has felt backed into a corner by her base as she fears a party split handing the NDP a win next election cycle more than she does the referendum succeeding, as she sees the former as a far more likely scenario. This can already be seen with the variety of right-wing parties in Alberta as opposed to the province's left-wing being much more unified behind one party. Basically all this is an issue that could solved by implementing proportional representation in the province.
The pushback is currently being coordinated, it has only been a week since the back-to-work order, I personally feel it is way too early to judge a lack of action, but regardless students have been pushing back in the meantime the labour movement sorts things out on their end.
I do appreciate being distinguished as an individual and not as a part of the government or the worst of the crowd that voted them in.
It stalled nothing. If either got enough votes it would go to referendum, they just beat the separatists to the punch to turn the question into a positive (from our perspective) from a negative. If neither got enough votes it wouldn't go to referendum.
The danger now is that the positive got enough sigs, almost 200k more than necessary, that I'm worried Albertans will become complacent as Canadians do, and figure "it got so many votes it won't pass so why bother". Just. Like. Brexit.
We've literally seen this play out less than ten years ago. Don't let your guard down, this isn't about the number of people who want to separate, it's about using the apathy of the majority.
Also, if you believe Smith is only trying to 'placate' her base and you believe her, ~~wake the fuck up.~~ don't let your guard down.
Edit: Apologies for being harsh there, I'm tired of this world and it gets to me sometimes. Nothing against you. I understand where you're coming from and truly hope you're right.
No, the reason that a volunteer army of 6000 was able to collect 456,000 signatures to STAY in Canada is exactly because Albertans are NOT apathetic. The only reason you even hear about the 'separatist movement' and the wingnut Republican Party of Alberta is because the press giving them oxygen. There is very LITTLE appetite for separation here. Disgruntlement about the way AB gets treated by the federal government, yes, but separation, no. Its already dead. They wont get enough signatures to cause a separation referendum and this silly movement will die once and for all.
I've lived here more than 40 years and I have yet to meet ONE person who thinks separation is a good idea. And Ive seen a site promoting it, but the whole site used AI "Albertans" to present its arguments - not a single real Albertan. No one will even admit to creating the site, and no one is willing to go on national media and say they are heading up this movement. Its bullshit from a few wingnuts who are pretending they have momentum. They dont.
This IS a separation referendum, it's just framed as a positive statement (stay) instead of a negative one (leave). This petition wasn't about Alberta staying in Canada, it was literally about "do you want the question of separation framed this way on the referendum ballot?" Whether the seperatists got their way and got sigs to ask "should AB be it's own soverign nation?" or the stay group got sigs to ask "should AB stay in Canada?" the result is the same: next year there will be a question on the referendum ballot about separation. It's much better having this question than the alternative, but it's still a risk.
My concern now is that the stay crowd got well beyond the number of signatues they need, which suggests Albertans don't want to separate. This is great, but the danger is the same danger in every election in Canada: the non-voters. There's every chance that when this question is up for referendum, too many Albertans are gonna think "why bother voting? There's no way it's gonna pass, look how many sigs they got" and stay home. Mark my words, every single separatist is gonna vote. This is literally how Brexit passed. We've seen this happen. Voter apathy is very real, and might end up sinking the province.
I dont think most people saw it as a separation referendum. They saw it as a 'lets shut up those silly separatists cause we're Canadians now and forever.
The question, exactly as written, was "Do you agree that Alberta should remain in Canada?"
Im not worried about apathy. When our place in Canada was questioned, we came out in droves, far more than actually needed. That'll happen again when its time to vote.
This is the application.
"Therefore, we as represented by the signatory and applicant below propose a referendum on the following question: Do you agree that Alberta should remain in Canada?"
I understand most people didn't see as a separation referendum, but that is what it is. Arguably, if a referendum is called regardless (as the application suggests) it's better to have this question rather than the sovereign one, but I'd much prefer separation didn't go to referendum at all.
I really hope Albertans get out and vote. The last referendum in 2021 (equalization and daylight savings) only saw 38.71% of eligible Albertans vote. Smith once said, if I remember correctly, that separation has about 20% approval (which I suspect is bullshit). If true though, there's a chance that this referendum could see the same turnout, 39%. Every separatist will vote 'no', so potentially 20% of that 39%, which is the majority.
The danger that I see here is that the petition got so many more votes than necessary that Albertans will just assume it won't pass and won't bother voting.
The silly bitch is the one handing the election to the NDP on a silver platter with her ridiculous posturing over education and social conservatism bullshit. If she acted like a statesman, she wouldn't be facing this prospect.
She's just padding her nest and looking for the soft landing when she gets ejected.
:) The UCP are very popular in AB. Smith is standing up for a lot of things that Albertans want, which is why we have voted conservative for the last 50 years except for that small window with Rachel Notleys NDP.
https://operationtotalrecall.ca/
Someone made a list of all the MLAs who voted in favor of forcing the teachers back. Some are in various processes like they are at the Gathering Signatures point for Demetrios Nicolaides.
An article on it here:
https://calgaryherald.com/news/politics/recall-efforts-targeting-ucp-mlas-momentum-notwithstanding-clause
In fact Elections Alberta asked for additional funding and the UCP blocked it.
https://edmontonjournal.com/news/politics/elections-alberta-urges-government-to-reconsider-13-5-million-funding-request-for-recall-petitions-and-citizen-initiatives