Welcome to the USA

[GodLovesTheUSA]

Without going into details, why do you Albertans not join the union of 50 states. If you and your Yukon joined then it wouldn't it be better for all?

From what I can tell you Albertans are just like family to us.

Your healthcare might be effected, but we have excellent health care here, its just different. The pharaceutical issue here is coming around. Who would you rather have for a leader, President Bush or PM Martin? Neither is perfect. PM Martin is struggling I hear.

If you were part of the union, then softwood lumber, BSE and other concersn would not be an issue. Foot and mouth disease would not effect our domestic markets.

The USA would probably welcome you.
You would have an elected senate, better representation, your currency would be accepted all over the world.

OH I know there will be naysayers. You would have to give up your RCMP, your colourful money, your well respected Canadian passports.
But all of a sudden your ag surplusses would have a secure home.

[ALLFARMER]

Although I respect your opinion, I doubt if many Albertans would consider your suggestion.
The US would do nicely with the royalties from our resources in this province so of course it would be an attractive idea for the US Government.
As far as the Yukon goes it is only one of the areas to consider in Canada's north, and although I certainly cannot speak for the residents of the NWT, Yukon and Nunavet, I personally doubt that they would be the least bit interested.

As far as the RCMP go, you would certainly be asking a lot for any red blooded Albertan to turn our backs on the force that tamed the west !!!~

[cowman]

Count me in Ted! Give us the same deal on oil and gas that Texas got and promise us our children/grandchildren don't have to participate in your insane wars?
As far as the RCMP...no problem! Never thought we should have a national police force. Can you say police state?

[WoolyBear]

GodLovesTheUSA........ then he must be blind and dumb.

Beware Albertans........the only reason the USA might be at all interested in Alberta and the Yukon is for their oil and water!

I guess by suggesting that you become the 51st would save them money in the long run by not having to invade you like they did in Iraq.......

Granted we've been trashed and abandoned by our government that dodes to the frenchmen in Quebec...... Maybe we should look at a Western Canadian Alliance and say adios to Ottawa.

[grassfarmer]

No thanks mate, I can think of plenty other chicken sh## banana republics I'd rather be aligned to before we joined the USA. It's only in the imagination of the largely uneducated and unworldly Americans that they are a global haven that everyone would like to join.
I suggest you read the post by Dalek entitled "USA No 1?" posted April 12. It might give you some global perspective on the sorry state your country is in.

[kato]

Anyone here watch Star Trek? Reminds me of the Borg .... resistance is futile, you will be assimilated. LOL

Notice the Yukon was included into the invitation? Gotta put that pipeline somewhere eh?

Thanks but no thanks.

[grassfarmer]

Captain Kirk was a Canadian wasn't he? I guess if they had all been Americans they would have been attacked by all the other tribes in the Galaxy.

[grassfarmer]

I stuck my neck out and responded to this topic first, but I guess I wasn't too far off base !!!!
cowman, when are you leaving ?????????
You don't like a national police force that was in place long before you were born unless you are the oldest man walking !!!

[blackjack]

...why would we join the US when the states are spending 2 billion per day just on interest payments...Alberta is looking pretty good debt free...I imagine most jurisdictions would like to have Alberta has one of theirs...

[cowman]

emerald: Now why would I want to leave Alberta. My people were here before there was an Alberta. They fought the weather, the depression, the wars, the eastern thieves! They are all buried here...other than two at Vimy Ridge, one in the Somme and one at Monte Casino!
The fact is Alberta is more "American" than "canadian"? I would suspect we do more trade with the US than the rest of Canada? Who do you think developed and financed our oil and gas industry, that has made us so wealthy? Hint: It wasn't the eastern establishment or the eastern banks!
Now I don't endorse a wholesale union with the USA but I sure could see Alberta having a very cozy relationship with them, as a seperate country, where basically the border is meaningless?
Love them or hate them the fact is Americans have that "can do" attitude that has made them some of the most successful entrepreneurs in the world?
I really believe we have more in common with the people in the Pacific Northwest than we do with eastern Canada?
As for the mounties....they are a National Police Force and thus will always enforce the rules from a "National Perspective"....read that as an "Toronto/Ottawa/Montreal perspective"! Thus we get the spectacle of the RCMP and CSIS spying on western based parties and working to undermine regional aspirations! Notice that Ontario and Quebec both have provincial police forces? Alberta needs to become master of it's own house instead of continuing to be a colony for a federal government that represents the "golden triangle"? Part of that solution, means we need our own police force to enforce a "made in Alberta" justice system?

[cowman]

US based companies may have invested in the oil and gas industry here cowman, and it was mainly because eastern canadian investors weren't interested, but the fact is that the resources are here in Alberta, we are debt free, and the royalites are being tucked away in our provincial coffers . I, for one, would hate to see our resources being spent to finance wars all across the world, pay down US debt, drill our national parks dry of oil and gas without a care for the environment etc.

If I wanted to be an American I would head south or north to Alaska as the case may be.
My family came west from Nova Scotia before AB was a province, and I too have family that went to war and were wounded at Vimy Ridge, and served this country with pride. They would roll in their graves if they thought one of their kin wanted our province to become part of the US !!!

[bombay_43]

I don’t know Emrald, I for one think that Cowman has some very valid points!
Now don’t read me wrong here, because if push comes to shove, I don’t relish the idea of joining the USA either. However, he makes some powerful statements in his post.

It seems to me, that Alberta has always had a struggle with Eastern Canada when it came to finances, and I have yet to see what good they have actually done us. In fact you can go back to numerous posts here and see exactly how much money has come out of Alberta over the years, to be fondly embraced by Quebec!

Growing up, I was very proud to be a Canadian, but over the years, have witnessed too many inequities within our own country, to be outright “proud” of it any more! Trying to elect an alternate Federal Government, is near to impossible, as she’s all over but the crying when the vote hits as far west as Manitoba. So basically it just does not matter what we over in the West believe.

As for our National police force, I think that the beginning of the end for the RCMP came, when turbans, ceremonial daggers, braids, etc. became part of their accepted dress code! We allowed this to happen ourselves.

Yes we are debt free, but I don’t thank my Federal Government for that fact either! We do have more trade barriers between our own provinces borders, than we would like to admit! Maybe we need to clean up our own act in our beloved Canada, before more Albertans start contemplating Cowmans way of thinking!

Incidently, I also appreciate Cowmans twist on this actual proposal, by putting in seemingly unobtainable conditions! It does make you wonder if maybe he isn't also venting his frustrations with a country, which his family obviously has a long and proud history!

[bombay_43]

Canada is made up of people from all over the world. I am also concerned that we seem to now have to change our customs to appease various minority groups, but that is what is happening in society so the RCMP isn't exempt either.
As long as they are allowed to do their job I don't really care what they wear on their head or what religious peruasion they are.

Western Canada has been treated like poor country cousins by the east for years, but of course Alberta isn't a poor cousin just considered to be a country bumpkin as far as our eastern legislators go.
If I were to support any change of governance for our province it would be leaning toward western separation vs becoming a part of the US.

We have everything to lose and not one heck of a lot to gain by selling our souls to Uncle Sam !!! If we think that we are getting hosed by the feds in Canada, what do you think would happen to our Heritage Trust Fund or any other surplus we had if we were the 51st state?

[WoolyBear]

Just think of it..... BC's fisheries, fresh fruit, and forestry, Alberta's oil, water, forestry, Saskatchewan has the potash, oil, coal and uranium, and Manitoba has abundant hydro electricity, several mining operations for nickle, copper, and zinc. All 4 of us have abundant lands for all kinds of agriculture. We have the people to operate manufacturing, and a transportation system that if handle properly could work. We have the resources and trade potential to have a reasonable well respected and successful country ON OUR OWN!

Our reason for less than that is the money draining, scum sucking federal government that claws back resource revenues, stifles domestic investment, (or atleast enourages foreign takeovers), and directs foreign policy with our neighbors (USA) out of the other side of their mouths, with both feet inserted crosswise. If Chretain, and now Martin had kept their PERSONAL views to themselves, I personally think that relations with the US would be at least a little better.

[WoolyBear]

WoolyBear,I tend to agree with you. The US has us over a barrel on the BSE issue and the softwood lumber issue. If we would have had any kind of leadership in Ottawa both of these would have been resolved by now.
The four western provinces are the real jewel in the crown of the country, even though we aren't steeped in the history of the east.
When I read your post and see in print all that the west has going for it, no wonder someone from the US would think that we were a real 'catch'.