Let us no longer fool ourselves – Canada has been a divided nation from the beginning, only becoming more divided over the decades. It is, frankly, a miracle that it has hung together this long, given the division, disparities, and bullying unfairness from the ROC against the Prairies.
Alberta, and the entire Prairie Region, was a colonized region under the hegemony of the Confederate government of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. It was seen, back at Confederation, as simply an area rich in resources to be exploited by Upper and Lower Canada and the East. And a pathway across the barren prairie to connect with its port on the Pacific Ocean in British Columbia.
Even the Maritimes claimed to “own” it, at times. “Ottawa wanted a colony, docile and rich” to line the pockets of the elites in the East ~ and that’s what the Prairies were forced to become. While all other provinces retained control of their natural resources when they joined Canada, Ottawa kept a firm grip on those of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. The Central government kept strict control over the vast wealth of this Region, defying and alienating both the settlers and the Indians at the time – and SINCE.
If there are those of you out there who are still under the delusion that Canada is a blessing to Alberta and that this province is better as a part of this divided country than on its own, this historical perspective, Let the Eastern Bastards Freeze in the Dark: The West versus the Rest Since Confederation, by Mary Janigan, will give you pause.
Sharon Maclise, Interim Leader, Alberta Freedom Alliance
https://books.google.ca/books?id=95cQONMQcK8C&pg=RA1-PT80&lpg=RA1-PT80&dq=cartoon,+Albertans+ever+will+be+slaves,+Confederation&source=bl&ots=2jkF5ZymhI&sig=rD8zWju3gUewdHrBPTSCUGauifc&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiv-pzLjMXaAhVU_oMKHa27DBwQ6AEIKTAA#v=onepage&q=cartoon%2C%20Albertans%20ever%20will%20be%20slaves%2C%20Confederation&f=false
So, Easterners ceded Albertans the land and the resources, and now you want to take them and run out on the country. Is this a correct interpretation?
Oh my – Easterners ceded nothing to Alberta. When exactly did they OWN Alberta, or any of Western Canada for that matter? Only four provinces were signatories to the BNA – Ontario, Quebec (Canada), New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Perhaps you are still stuck in the notion that Colonization of the West gave the British automatic authority over Rupert’s Land?