Something on my Mind: Albexit

As we continue to stagger under the mismanagement of Alberta's greatest resource—its people—I am amazed at the similarity of what Great Britain did recently about their past bondage and future freedom..

Britain has chosen, by the slimmest of margins, to leave an alliance that was choking them to death economically. Alberta is in much the same situation, only it's an internal battle, not an external one.

Britain voted to get out of the European Union, a conglomeration of nations, of which Britain was only one. Here, common Albertans need to think of doing the same with its local, provincial government. Alberta's thinking people need a way to push back the bullies in Edmonton, short of an election in two years.

That, of course, is easier said than done, but it does make for good newspaper column fodder. A referendum comes to mind, but would it work?

I have in front of me a paper that delineates the thousands of jobs lost, the scores of plants and head offices closed or moved, all because of the over-bearing meddling of the European Union. In other words, the people of Britain were abused by outside forces, with little input on their part.

The Union has bled Britain dry (directly and indirectly), and by doing so, has now become a real life lesson (read: warning) for what is happening in Alberta. The chief connection between the two scenarios is simply this: How do we deal deal with abusive authorities that bully their people?

"Brexit," as you know, is a blending of the words Britain and exit, much like smog is a blending of smoke and fog, and motel is a blending of motor and hotel. Grammatically-speaking, , the technical word for this is "portmanteau." Hence, "Albexit" is a combination of Alberta and exit.

While many people individually are fleeing from Alberta (thus creating their own Albexit) for a host of reasons, Alberta itself isn't going anywhere.

"Alberta isn't going anywhere" can be taken a number of ways—take your pick.

And leaving Alberta isn't an option for a lot of us. This is our home. Why should we be be forced to flee like fiscal and moral refugees because we have a government that is hell-bent on destroying our fair province? And for some reason, if this destruction is not intentional, I'm not sure if suffering under this bumbling leadership is any more comforting.

So the land is here, the people are here, and the government is here. One of them has to give. Well, the earth and dirt that make up Alberta cannot be moved.. And many of us, Alberta-born or Alberta-adopted, have no intention of leaving—though a second mandate for the NDP in 2019 may change that.

So the government itself needs an exit plan--their own Albexit, if you will. Not government itself, of course. You need law and order, governance, and all that. It's the type of government that we have that needs to go. We need a conservative, free enterprise, and competent government.

Voting them out is the most civil, legal means to do it, but can we afford (literally) to wait that long?

We need to be very careful here, then, that we don't fall into the same trap that Britain has, namely take action long after the irreparable damage has been done. Hopefully it's not too late to stop the moral, economical, and environmental bleeding here, brought on by systemic incompetence.

Just wondering if some European country could use 54 politicians and their bureaucratic minions? Maybe somewhere in the European Union: I hear there's an opening for a new country.

Something on my Mind: Another Civil War?

I have been "enjoying" a DVD mini-series on the American Civil War. Even though it was just a documentary—you know, talking heads, still shots, dull music, and old news—I found it fascinating. It filled in some gaps in my American history, especially the Civil War era, 1861-1865.

God bless America, but like 91.5% of Canadians, I really need to bone up on my own Canadian history.

Apart from the entertainment, historical, and academic value of watching the who, what, when, and why of that not-so civil war, I have found an uncanny parallel to what is happening today, 150 years later. In case you're not there, it's the election of one Donald Trump that has brought this on.

In addition to that, there are a whole lot of lines being drawn in the States as I write. (Maurice, some are more "lyings" than lines.) Only a naive bimbo would think that Trump's election was the reason for the unsettledness. Not quite: I think there's a deeper reason.

The first Civil War was essentially about slavery, you know, white people owning and demeaning black people, a very evil practice. Between you and me, considering the possible coming clash, I think there was a lot more at stake, but that was certainly one of the root causes.

Roughly 150 years later, I sense trouble brewing south of the 49th—again, it's not very civil either. This time, though, I suggest that it will be over a different form of slavery: It will be over the vices that people (black and white) are enslaved to, be it worldview or lifestyle,

I cannot fathom the blatant opposition that the left has towards Donald Trump, along with its calculated disgust, public vitriol and venom, and uncontrolled hissy fits. This is coming from the academics, celebrities (more than entertainers, too), and youth.

You know, these are the same clowns that live in ivory towers of inexperience, entitlement, and selfies. My reaction to their outbursts lies somewhere between irritation and fear, if I took their threats seriously.

Believe it or not, I am not even a huge fan of Trump, for a host of reasons. A lot of his principles are suspect, no doubt. As stated here in an earlier column, I was a big supporter of Ted Cruz and Mike Huckabee. But Donald Trump is definitely (and infinitely) better choice than Hillary Clinton.

The left with all their gross inconsistencies and failures are acting like a horde of pouting teenagers. There are threats of disrupting the inauguration, of protesting for 100 days after Trump's election (thanks, Michael Moore). We have retailers banning Trump voters, university profs denouncing Trump-supporting students, and the left mugging "Trumpites" for the same reason.

We even have Hollywood bellowing whenever and wherever they are within yelling distance of a mike. They are a brave bunch, aren't they, mouthing off to their own people?

All I know is Trump is surrounding himself in office the same way he surrounded himself in business—with competent, conservative men and women who will get the job done. That surely doesn't sound like a dictator to me.

I have lost count of the thousands of jobs that are now in the works because Trump will be in office shortly. He is not creating these jobs; he is simply creating the atmosphere for big corporations to create jobs. That speaks volumes for the need to have a free market government in power.

The left speaks of their outrage over his bigotry, fascism, and obnoxiousness, with his lack of diversity and tolerance—all the while being bigoted, fascistic, and obnoxious, disallowing diversity and tolerance themselves. Go figure.

I cannot fathom how simplistic, stupid, and shallow they can be.

I hate to see a re-enactment of another Civil War. You would think America would have learned what true freedom is. After all, anything is freer than the bondage of the past eight years.