You don’t have to love your government to love your country.
Heck, you should separate the two altogether.
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Sure, it can be hard to love the latter when the former is royally ticking you off, when policy decisions or the general attitude shown by the prime minister or cabinet makes you think, “Well, perhaps we’re better off without them.”
In this case the “we” is Alberta. And on Monday, Albertans get to decide whether we’ll continue to move forward with Canada, or start down a potentially darker path. A path that brings with it uncertainty, and upended security that we’ve all come to enjoy being a member of Confederation.
Whether it was the railway more than a century ago, or the Trans Mountain Pipeline today — not to mention the RCMP, Canadian Armed Forces, the CFL, the Canada Pension Plan and national parks — Alberta shares in the fabric of the country.
Our shared values have helped make Canada what it is today, and Albertans have fought as part of Canada to uphold those values.
Now is not the time to give up on those values and leave.
Sure, past federal governments have seemed to have been, at best, dismissive of Alberta and, at worst, obstructionist and harmful.
We all know the letters NEP, and PET and JT. Federal programs, and legislation have hampered Alberta’s economic driver.
But, as premier Danielle Smith has said, we’re seeing a change in attitude from the federal government. Co-operation is the spirit of the day.
Why not seize on the co-operation and work to make the relationship stronger to the benefit of Alberta, rather than cut ties?
There is too much at stake to leave things to chance. There are no guarantees that we will be wealthier going it alone.
Not to mention the prospect of a resource-hungry U.S. eyeing Alberta as ripe for the picking.
For all of the criticism of the government you’ve seen in these pages, it has come from a position of wanting Canada to be better.
A vote to remain in Canada, while still working for positive change for Alberta, is the best course.