Fortis et Liber

By Alan Clark

    Alberta's motto: "fortis et liber", strong and free. Undoubtedly strong but we are certainly not free. I won't re-hash all the issues that illustrate our continued subjugation by Canada as I have covered them well in other articles. This article is devoted to showing just how strong we Albertans are, in a global sense.

    First off, we have all become well aware that those people, the Canadians, aren't like us and don't like us. We are constantly and consistently on opposite sides of every issue. We favour capital punishment, they oppose it. We would like to be able to buy private health services, they oppose. We favour stiffer punishments for criminals, they oppose. We support free enterprise, they would rather have government services. We support our American friends and allies, they oppose. They support gun control and property confiscation, we oppose. The list goes on and on. The long and short of it is that we have virtually nothing in common. Our problem is that they, the Canadians, decide all matters cultural, political, financial, and international and we Albertans simply live with the consequences and pay the bills. This one sentence completely sums up Alberta's existence in Canada. When some Canadian tells you that your motives for becoming independent are purely financial and selfish, the correct answer is "Bullshit"!

    An independent Alberta would be the second most prosperous nation in North America, behind the U.S.A. and ahead of Canada and Mexico. Our per capita GDP would be $26,780. Second to America's $35,831 and ahead of Canada's $23,322 and Mexico's $8,981. Moreover, among the nations of the world, Alberta's per capita GDP would rank us in 15th position, behind Austria and ahead of Japan. Canada, without Alberta's contribution, would drop from her current position at 17th to 21st. Not only would Albertans kick Canada's GDP ass, some other notables who would share the distinction of eating our dust include: France, Holland, Germany, Australia and the United Kingdom.

    An oft heard parable about Alberta's unsuitability for nationhood goes like this: "Alberta's a one-trick pony. I wouldn't want to be around when the oil runs out. Then you'll be begging to be back in good old Canada." In reality, petroleum accounts for only 35 percent of Alberta's GDP and with the continued growth of other industries including manufacturing, chemical processing and tourism, that percentage will continue to decline. As for the oil running out, the largest known oil reserve in the world is the Athabasca Tar Sands with 2.5 trillion barrels of black gold. Yes, that's trillions with a "T" which makes the second largest known reserve of 300 billion barrels in Saudi Arabia look like a puddle. Eventually, Alberta's oil will run out or petroleum will be supplanted by some new technology but that's not likely to happen in the next century or two. Considering the fact that Albertan's would have at least an extra 10 to 12 billion dollars a year at their disposal, it's safe to consider that by the time that oil is no longer flowing or useful, Alberta will have become a banking, high technology, manufacturing and tourism Mecca populated by libertarian millionaires from all over the world.

    Make no mistake, Albertans can govern themselves. We can have a political system which suits us completely. We can make our own decisions be they economic, political, cultural or international. We don't need the Canadians to tell us anything. We can learn nothing from them. Albertan's must cast-off Canada entirely. Canada can only serve as an example of how not to do things in the future. Canada is bankrupt, morally, politically, culturally and economically. Alberta however, is Fortis et Liber. It's a great dream.