I want to say this loud and clear in a post here for everyone to see, but there is an issue here with people having this giant hate boner for Albertans. Not the government, not UCP voters, but Albertans.
It doesn’t matter if you’re politically on the same side as people elsewhere in the country, it doesn’t matter if you present facts to people who are provably wrong on the most basic of things they say, it doesn’t matter if you treat them with dignity and respect by mentioning things with good intentions and not insulting people. You will still get labelled as the bad guy for the very fact you’re Albertan.
I made a response to a comment on this post in the community. My comment was responding to someone who called Albertans “HUGE pussies” for “giving up our rights”.
In my response to said comment, I basically said that the notion that we’re “simply giving up” is completely false, using the following facts:
- Students have been staging walkouts:
- CBC: Calgary students among thousands across Alberta taking part in provincewide walkout
- Global News: Alberta students walk out of class in support of teachers forced back to work
- OkotoksOnline: High River students walkout in support of teachers
- The AFL (Alberta Federation of Labour) has stated that they will retaliate against the back to work order with a “general strike if necessary”
- Global News: ‘General strike if necessary’: Alberta unions declare intent to bring down UCP government
- CPAC: Alberta Union Leaders Respond to Smith Government’s Back-to-Work Legislation
- CityNews Calgary: No general strike yet as Alberta labour unions mobilize against Smith government
- The UCP has faced a dip in the polls resulting from the back-to-work order
- CTV News: Majority of Alberta Gov’t Report Card respondents feel province headed in wrong direction
- Angus Reid: Teachers’ Strike: Most Albertans side with teachers as they criticize UCP’s handling of education
- Calgary Herald: ‘Reputational challenges’: New poll shows public support for Smith, UCP has dipped amid teachers’ strike (Yes I know it’s PostMedia, it’s still relevant and correct in this case)
I went ahead and said that statements like this that blanket Albertans as lazy, dumb, and inept do not help relations between the province and the rest of the country, especially when the actions being taken showcase the exact opposite.
For this, I was labelled as a conservative myself when I’m registered with the NDP provincially and federally, had myself and those around me insulted, and was told I was uneducated by someone who spewed blatantly incorrect information as they did so, and I was the one looked down upon in the entire interaction simply for where I’m from.
I suggested that in order for the NDP or Liberals, or anybody to win over Albertans, they need to address issues here. I gave the example of canola farmers suffering, and how the feds can tariff imported cooking oils to encourage consumers to choose a domestic alternative and/or have marketing campaigns to support canola farmers by increasing their domestic sales.
For this, someone insinuated that I am dumber than them simply based on what they assumed to be the school system I attended. The very same person who said this confidently made another comment where they claimed that the NDP was in charge for a “long time” before Peter Lougheed, and that Lougheed ran on diversifying the economy, and ditched the effort afterwards.
This is provably false. The NDP formed government for the first time in 2015, it was the Social Credit Party who came before Lougheed’s Progressive Conservatives. Lougheed also established the Heritage Fund , which was made specifically to save money for investments in other sectors of Alberta’s economy, the disaster of the fund came with the following leaders.
However, calling someone out for getting their facts wrong, and showcasing a current example of tariffs working to protect domestic goods gets you downvoted if you’re Albertan, with the very people insulting your intelligence getting upvoted as they spew their nonsense.
Apparently explaining working-class issues and what left-wing parties can do to better reach those who normally vote Conservative is treating Alberta as “special” and forcing “everyone else to adapt” to us. Clearly the “majority” of people in Alberta are “hateful morons” and “insular xenophobes” .
Why do people continue to blanket me with the thoughts of a few bad apples they met? Are they more prominent here, sure, whatever, I can agree to that. I can agree that people here can be some of the worst you’ve met, I would know, I live here.
But me and the good, well-meaning people I know, especially those here who are marginalised or among the over 750,000 people who voted for the NDP the last election, do not appreciate having blanket statements made against us simply because we live here. I am pro-abortion, I am pro-immigration, I am pro-expanding healthcare, pro-creating public alternatives, pro-trans rights, anti-privatisation, anti-separatist, and yet sure, I’m a Conservative tip-toeing a line because my thoughts slightly deviate from the norm.
Hate the government, hate the jerks, do not hate me simply for where I’m born and the fact that I live here. I do not do this to you, I do not insult people for where they live or were born, and don’t make blanket assumptions about the entire population of an area based on who’s in power where they live. Why then is it seen as acceptable for this to happen to me?
I am an Albertan who doesn’t want special treatment, but for fuck sake, it is reasonable to want to be treated with respect.
Edit: I don’t know why the numbered lists are showing all as 1’s, I have them properly numbered in the text of this post.
I was born in Calgary. I lived in Alberta for 27 years of my 49.
In my lived experience: a lot of this disdain is earned. Albertans are entitled as fuck.
I see the Albertans the same way as I see any defined group of human beings. Some are assholes but most are good people who would help you out if you needed it.
Thats true in the real world. Just not sure its true when people can speak anonymously. And these days I dont even know if Im talking to a human or a shill from a non friendly nation.
Also consider a lot of online comments are bots designed to make people angry. Even on this site, though I don’t think it’s as bad here as some other places.
At the risk of looking like a simpleton, isn’t Alberta separatism basically just a US psyop to colonize oil rich land by gaslighting Albertans into voting to leave Canada and ultimately join the US?
Sort of, it’s not about joining the US but about becoming a separate Union and having control over their resources and rights. They do have the backing of the US with this movement just because of the oil.
EDIT: I am not an Albertan, I just live beside them in a very closely politically related are, They are like our removed cousins… 🤣 Joking Of Course.
A lot of maple MAGAs in Alberta got into their heads that they wanted to join the US, I wonder where that came from…
Also, Smith et al are uncomfortably close to Trump.
All of this is conspiracy theory land for now, but it smells way too strongly of a US psyop campaign, the CIA has done this before to other countries, and Canada is not immune. The CIA has been known to mess with Canadian affairs in the past to some extent:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CIA_activities_in_Canada
Here’s a r*ddit (ew) thread about the speculation, the linked video is food for thought and the conversation is interesting, approach the topic with a critical mind.
OP, I took a look at your post history to see what you’re referring to. I found one thread where, indeed, some people are hating on Albertans. Others aren’t. I also found other posts, including in the Canada community, with people celebrating the Albertans going on strike.
I’m not saying you’re misrepresenting the situation, and I’m not saying there’s not a problem. But I do think there is a selection bias going on here, and if we were to instead strive to interpret comments charitably and as obviously rhetorical in many cases, I think we’d find that there’s a lot less hatred against every single Albertan (and by sole virtue of being Albertan) than this post makes out.
I’ve been treated fairly so far here when I mention I’m from Alberta.
People referring to Alberta as a whole I think the majority are cognisant that there’s not 100% maple MAGA living here. It just doesn’t need to be said every time for the sake of efficiency.
I suspect those dumb enough to write off everyone like that to be in the minority and they’re most certainly clowns.
Ontario elected Doug Ford twice. That doesn’t mean I hate everyone in Ontario.
Quebec copied our embarrassing malicious decision to charge for covid vaccine shots. I don’t hate everyone in Quebec.
I’m a middle-aged hard-left Albertan, and I don’t exactly know where to stand on this point.
On the one hand, I’ve been fighting against the UCP (and fucking Klein before that) for my entire life. I’ve marched with my gay friends in the '80s, stood against racists and transphobes on the streets of Calgary, demanded meaningful responses from my conservative MP/MLA/Councillor, tried to affect elections with information, and more - and I’m not fucking done yet! Better yet, there are MILLIONS of us in this province!
At the same time, I look at the US and think “OK, you tried and weren’t successful. Time to quarantine the entire fucking country until it grows up.”
So do I apply the same logic to my own province?
Look, we don’t deserve the support of the rest of Canada after an almost unbroken streak of shithead conservatives, but neither does Ontario or Saskatchewan or Nova Scotia. What we NEED is for people to remember the rest of us fighting, and to help us so we can help N.S. and fight against fascists EVERYWHERE!
I’m not looking for sympathy, I’m looking for someone to have my back so I can have theirs.
We’re better together. As a progressive nation. As a world leader. As a line in the sand against fascists.
I AM an Albertan, and I have a hate boner for Albertans. The hate is 100% brought on by ourselves, and 100% deserved. The absolute manure that spills out of our legislature on a daily basis is embarrassing, and what is even more embarrassing is that a majority of Albertans keep voting for it, over and over. Don’t want the world to see you as inbred Maple MAGA hillbillies? Maybe quit acting like inbred Maple MAGA hillbillies then. Simple as.
I am Ontarioian and i have a hate boner for my fellow Ontarioians repeatedly voting in Doug Ford, a lying populist politician who thrives on corruption. We’re all in this together. The actions of the voters don’t always represent the actions or sentiment of the entire province. Vote for voting reform to have the people better represented by our premiers.
All true but Ford doesn’t regularly threaten the rest of Canada. I don’t recall him giving a laundry list of conditions to the federal government, or else. I don’t think he’s threatened Canadian unity over the Ontario auto sector for example. Only one Canadian premier went to make photo ops with Trump and it wasn’t Ford. Ontario does look stupid for electing Ford three times in a row, but I don’t think we appear antagonistic towards the rest of Canada.
This guy Ontarioiates
deleted by creator
Which just means you’re not an older Albertan or a rural Albertan. WE keep voting conservative because we ARE conservative. And outside of the the two main cities, this province is radically conservative. Thats not gonna change.
Legit question: Why do you stay in AB if you hate it so much?
Great question, I haven’t convinced the other half just yet. Working on it.
I love the lifestyle and the life that we’ve built out here, but I also believe in decency and promise. Neither of which exist here anymore. I ideally don’t want my kids growing up in this place. It’s turned into fucking Utah, a place with extraordinary beauty but controlled by wackadoodle religious cults that bring nothing but misery, anger and darkness.
Alright, so despite it being clear that you specifically are against this, but still have a single minor tidbit of information I disagree with, it’s then fine for me to call you a fucking idiot because “this is brought on by ourselves”, right?
Clearly people have the ability to distinguish the “good” Albertan if they’re literally out here asking to be called names, so why do they have a hard time distinguishing that I’m not someone who supports the stuff happening here when I’m clearly in support of unions by the nature of my comments, my profile description states I have certain instances blocked for transphobia, and my linkstack is on an instance that’s queer-friendly based on the domain name alone?
Because we all know how much Conservatives and the UCP support… reads notes, unions, trans people, and the marginalised.
In BC, Rustad makes Smith look smart and diplomatic. Yet the last election had these mouth breathers losing by a handful of votes.
Foreign influence, social media, lies damn lies, and the failure to implement media literacy in schools in the 1990s led us to this. Well, add the flapping tatters of colonial settler ideology as a base layer, I guess.
Québec: “Première fois?”
And as Quebec would say, 50% + 1 is all you need to be declared a shitty province.
Not the government, not UCP voters, but Albertans.
Sorry, I lived too many years in Alberta to distinguish between how Alberta treats the rest of Canada, and how Albertans treat the rest of Canada. Y’all got a cultural problem out there, and I was subjected to it for the better part of a decade.
So you’re hating on all of us because one person generalized? Curious.
I have absolutely no stake in this, but that’s not how I read it.
They are stating it’s something they are encountering with some frequency and then they are giving a concrete example and analysis to hopefully illustrate what they are experiencing.
I’m sure you are familiar with the experience of being frustrated with someone’s behavior or actions, but then have a hard time coming up with more than a couple of examples when prompted.
I haven’t been keeping score, but everything OP said matches what I’ve noticed. I used to come here on my Beehaw account and literally couldn’t see the downvotes since Beehaw ignores them, but since I switched, the mass downvoting anytime anyone from Alberta posts is very noticeable. More broadly, people seem to largely be doing one of the shitty things I left Reddit and moved to Beehaw for: using the downvote button as “disagree” instead of what it should be: “not contributing to the conversation”.
I wish more instances removed downvoting; it just accelerates the move to an echo chamber, furthering polarization. I honestly don’t understand what they add.
If it’s hateful/prejudiced, then report it for removal. If it’s incorrect, then ratio them in the comments with your thoughtful response.
More broadly, people seem to largely be doing one of the shitty things I left Reddit and moved to Beehaw for: using the downvote button as “disagree” instead of what it should be: “not contributing to the conversation”.
This is splitting straws. This distinction never made sense anyway
Nah bruv. There’s a world of difference.
4. Upvote and Downvote Responsibly
Upvote: Content you find useful, interesting, or entertaining.
Downvote: Content that is off-topic, unhelpful, or violates community guidelines—not just because you disagree with it.
Why it matters: Misusing the voting system can lead to valuable posts being buried.What’s the fucking point of comments at all if anyone who raises a contrasting opinion is downvoted into invisibility?
The point is that the usefulness of a tool is determined by how people use it, not what it was created for. Downvotes will always be used as “i dont like this” unless their mechanics change
anyone who raises a contrasting opinion is downvoted into invisibility
Also this a great exaggeration. We’re defending contrasting opinions right now and that’s not happening.
Sorry, I thought the context of that quote was clear:
I was referring to raising a contrasting political opinion in defense of Albertans, as that’s the context for this entire discussion.
I understood the context, doesn’t change what I’m saying
Lemmy could fix this by making each of your downvotes cost you 2 upvotes. Obviously enabled by admins of instances.
I think when most people say “Albertans” or “people from Alberta” (etc.) they mean “the democratic majority of people from Alberta”, or “the stereotype of the right-wing Albertan”. It’s easier than saying "the majority of Albertans… " or “the stereotypical truck-nutting coal-rolling Albertan…”
I’m not saying it’s right, but people do it all the time. Let me rephrase: many people have done it and it often happens. Even you said “people here have a hate bone for Albertans” because some percentage of people upvoted a post saying Albertans are pussies and a further (smaller) percentage downvoted your response.
I guess my advice would be to accept that they’re “on your side” and not attacking you personally. But I know that’s not easy. I have my own things I am (or was) a part of that get “hated” as a whole, so I know what it feels like to read those comments. (aka, not all programmers use AI to write their code, and even for ones that do, they don’t necessarily want to.) And I can’t say I’ve ever gotten past it - sometimes it’s easier than others. But, I hope what I’m saying might help you.
Also, in general on upvote/downvote forums, I find it very easy to get a few downvotes for saying anything. Responding to explain why they’re wrong to say that and that you’re “one of the good ones” will always, always, get a bunch of downvotes. It doesn’t matter what you’re talking about.
Building on your comments, I just want to point out that Alberta’s ridings need to be adjusted. At this point the regions are totally overweight against the cities, and they don’t account for population growth. Those of us not in the democratic majority are already painfully aware that we’re all probably being gated by the UCP, the very same party that has probably been captured or compromised.
Perhaps Canadians feel like we should be able to protect our house. But also understand we’re fighting against people who have the powers of government, and are literally barring the doors shut behind them as best they can.
We are fighting a siege out here, and I’ve said as much elsewhere.
There’s the recent news about the Auditor General getting canned. Plus the Unions pushing Operation Total Recall have Elections Alberta asking for more funding, and the UCP is basically slow dripping the money needed to slow the public backlash their party is experiencing.
I’d agree if my intelligence wasn’t insulted with people near immediately saying “oh, you’re just stupid because you’re Albertan” when they disagree with me because of a minor comment about tariffs.
Alright, so because of what you just said, I went back to look at the thread you posted again… and, I tried to read through your responses and what was said to you… and tbh, I wouldn’t really have your back.
I don’t see where anyone is specifically “calling you stupid because you’re Albertan.” I might have missed it though, I found it to be a really annoying read from both sides and mostly skimmed it. That said, you seem to be taking people talking shit about the “majority of Albertans” and “conservative Albertans outside Calgary and Edmonton” as a direct insult. You seem to be trying to distance yourself from that current majority, so I’m not sure why you’re taking it as an insult. They’re insulting the people from which you’re trying to distance yourself (I think, correct me if I’m wrong) so why are you insulted by it?
Also, you’re responding emotionally and then claiming you’re just giving facts, and then you’re completely discounting what everyone else says as insults, even when there’s actual substantive arguments (but unfortunately also insults) just because they’re wrong/you disagree. That’s not how debate works. Just because they’re wrong/you disagree, you can’t just discount what they’ve said completely. Then you’re responding to insults and blanket statements with insults and blanket statements. I’m sorry, but you’re just not going to get a lot of sympathy by doing that.
Saying that (quoted loosely) “the rest of the country just shuts its brain off and says Albertans are stupid Conservatives” is not any better than the people you’re arguing with saying Albertans are pussies or that it’s a joke province.
You’re coming in angry, responding with clear emotion, and antagonizing people by insulting everyone in the country, then getting upset when you get downvoted. I’m not sure you’re going about this argument in the best manner possible.
Except I am giving facts? The guy said that the NDP was in control of the province for a “long time” before Lougheed was premier. The Alberta NDP never held government before 2015, the Social Credit Party was the ruling party in Alberta for nearly 40 years before Lougheed was premier. This is something that can be easily found through a Google search. He also claimed that Lougheed ran on diversifying the economy, and did nothing to do so afterwards, which is also provably false. The Heritage Fund was founded by Lougheed’s government to save money for investment in sectors, and it was following premiers that squandered that fund to the infamy it holds today.
So in the midst of implying my intelligence is lacking by stating that the schoolboards here have somehow failed me because I made a simple comment he disagrees with, he also spouts outright misinformation. I gave facts. I gave facts about the current state of affairs in regards to the teacher’s strike in response to someone falsely accusing people here of doing nothing, followed up with my opinion on what can be done, and then was greeted by further insults by someone who was blanketing Conservative views on me from the start for the very nature of where I’m from because they met some people that hold those beliefs.
Me saying “the rest of country turns it’s brain off”, may have been a little more loaded than I realised, I will take accountability for that, honest mistake on my part.
Except I am giving facts?
I’m not saying you’re not giving any facts. I’m saying you’re also loading you’re arguments with emotion and insults. That’s the problem. You’re upset that they are loading their arguments with insults, but you’re doing the same.
You’re being very selective with which parts of other people’s comments you’re responding to and taking offense to.
For example, you’re upset that the person who said that the NDP was in control etc. etc. was getting up voted, but that specific comment is (currently) in the the negative. But you’re still fixated on it. Their other comment which was upvoted was about the tariffs and I guess something that you’re taking as an insult about your intelligence. I didn’t read it that way originally, but I can see how you might interpret it that way. It’s hard to say if people are up voting the tariff part or the insult. In any case, you’re very fixated on that and blaming a hell of a lot of other people for it making you feel that way.
And I’ll point out that there was another person you were arguing with who made a whole bunch of points, offered what they considered a solution, and finished with a dumb insult. You ignored everything but the insult and said they weren’t offering any arguments or solutions. (this one sorry not sure how to link comments properly.)
Me saying “the rest of country turns it’s brain off”, may have been a little more loaded than I realised, I will take accountability for that, honest mistake on my part.
That’s healthy. But if you can be this generous with yourself, try doing it for others too.
The AB gov’t effectively just told Albertans that they have no rights, just privileges subject to the UCP’s whims by using the not withstanding clause twice. Where’s the pushback beyond talk? Smith is trying to normalize its use, and contribute to stripping our rights federally, straight from the playbook down south. Poilievre literally just said he’d use it.
We’re in an uncertain time and suffering at the whims of an American madman, and AB has sided with him. I think it’s safe to say YOU haven’t, and honestly most Albertans haven’t, but your gov’t has.
We live in a democracy, and like it or not, we’re defined by our gov’ts. The majority may not have voted for Danielle Smith’s UCP, but the majority absolutely did not vote to stop it.
Ya gotta understand, you live in the most American province in a time when America just started a trade war with us and threatened annexation.
For fuck’s sake you guys are up for a referendum next year to separate which could lead to the destruction of both AB and Canada. Honestly, I think there’s a good chance it’ll pass simply due to voter apathy. We’re in a threatened country, and even within our country, Alberta is threatening it.
Alberta has made it clear, maybe not you or yours, but Alberta has made it clear it doesn’t want Canada. I lived in AB for over a decade, and it’s full of good people. But good people mean nothing when they do nothing.
Where’s the pusbback beyond talk?
https://operationtotalrecall.ca/
Someone made a list of all the MLAs who voted in favor of forcing the teachers back. Some are in various processes like they are at the Gathering Signatures point for Demetrios Nicolaides.
An article on it here:
In fact Elections Alberta asked for additional funding and the UCP blocked it.
The separation referendum is being stalled by a referendum to stay within Canada, where the petition to start it has already received enough signatures to start the referendum at 456K signatures.
Polling for separation is laughably low. This is not something that will happen, and not something legally feasible because of Treaty rights, and other numerous legal barriers. Smith herself has admitted she herself does not support separation, but has felt backed into a corner by her base as she fears a party split handing the NDP a win next election cycle more than she does the referendum succeeding, as she sees the former as a far more likely scenario. This can already be seen with the variety of right-wing parties in Alberta as opposed to the province’s left-wing being much more unified behind one party. Basically all this is an issue that could solved by implementing proportional representation in the province.
The pushback is currently being coordinated, it has only been a week since the back-to-work order, I personally feel it is way too early to judge a lack of action, but regardless students have been pushing back in the meantime the labour movement sorts things out on their end.
I do appreciate being distinguished as an individual and not as a part of the government or the worst of the crowd that voted them in.
It stalled nothing. If either got enough votes it would go to referendum, they just beat the separatists to the punch to turn the question into a positive (from our perspective) from a negative. If neither got enough votes it wouldn’t go to referendum.
The danger now is that the positive got enough sigs, almost 200k more than necessary, that I’m worried Albertans will become complacent as Canadians do, and figure “it got so many votes it won’t pass so why bother”. Just. Like. Brexit.
We’ve literally seen this play out less than ten years ago. Don’t let your guard down, this isn’t about the number of people who want to separate, it’s about using the apathy of the majority.
Also, if you believe Smith is only trying to ‘placate’ her base and you believe her,
wake the fuck up.don’t let your guard down.Edit: Apologies for being harsh there, I’m tired of this world and it gets to me sometimes. Nothing against you. I understand where you’re coming from and truly hope you’re right.
No, the reason that a volunteer army of 6000 was able to collect 456,000 signatures to STAY in Canada is exactly because Albertans are NOT apathetic. The only reason you even hear about the ‘separatist movement’ and the wingnut Republican Party of Alberta is because the press giving them oxygen. There is very LITTLE appetite for separation here. Disgruntlement about the way AB gets treated by the federal government, yes, but separation, no. Its already dead. They wont get enough signatures to cause a separation referendum and this silly movement will die once and for all.
I’ve lived here more than 40 years and I have yet to meet ONE person who thinks separation is a good idea. And Ive seen a site promoting it, but the whole site used AI “Albertans” to present its arguments - not a single real Albertan. No one will even admit to creating the site, and no one is willing to go on national media and say they are heading up this movement. Its bullshit from a few wingnuts who are pretending they have momentum. They dont.
They wont get enough signatures to cause a separation referendum and this silly movement will die once and for all.
This IS a separation referendum, it’s just framed as a positive statement (stay) instead of a negative one (leave). This petition wasn’t about Alberta staying in Canada, it was literally about “do you want the question of separation framed this way on the referendum ballot?” Whether the seperatists got their way and got sigs to ask “should AB be it’s own soverign nation?” or the stay group got sigs to ask “should AB stay in Canada?” the result is the same: next year there will be a question on the referendum ballot about separation. It’s much better having this question than the alternative, but it’s still a risk.
My concern now is that the stay crowd got well beyond the number of signatues they need, which suggests Albertans don’t want to separate. This is great, but the danger is the same danger in every election in Canada: the non-voters. There’s every chance that when this question is up for referendum, too many Albertans are gonna think “why bother voting? There’s no way it’s gonna pass, look how many sigs they got” and stay home. Mark my words, every single separatist is gonna vote. This is literally how Brexit passed. We’ve seen this happen. Voter apathy is very real, and might end up sinking the province.
I dont think most people saw it as a separation referendum. They saw it as a 'lets shut up those silly separatists cause we’re Canadians now and forever.
The question, exactly as written, was “Do you agree that Alberta should remain in Canada?”
Im not worried about apathy. When our place in Canada was questioned, we came out in droves, far more than actually needed. That’ll happen again when its time to vote.
This is the application.
“Therefore, we as represented by the signatory and applicant below propose a referendum on the following question: Do you agree that Alberta should remain in Canada?”
I understand most people didn’t see as a separation referendum, but that is what it is. Arguably, if a referendum is called regardless (as the application suggests) it’s better to have this question rather than the sovereign one, but I’d much prefer separation didn’t go to referendum at all.
I really hope Albertans get out and vote. The last referendum in 2021 (equalization and daylight savings) only saw 38.71% of eligible Albertans vote. Smith once said, if I remember correctly, that separation has about 20% approval (which I suspect is bullshit). If true though, there’s a chance that this referendum could see the same turnout, 39%. Every separatist will vote ‘no’, so potentially 20% of that 39%, which is the majority.
The danger that I see here is that the petition got so many more votes than necessary that Albertans will just assume it won’t pass and won’t bother voting.
The silly bitch is the one handing the election to the NDP on a silver platter with her ridiculous posturing over education and social conservatism bullshit. If she acted like a statesman, she wouldn’t be facing this prospect.
She’s just padding her nest and looking for the soft landing when she gets ejected.
:) The UCP are very popular in AB. Smith is standing up for a lot of things that Albertans want, which is why we have voted conservative for the last 50 years except for that small window with Rachel Notleys NDP.
some commentators here are hating on Albertans. Not all are. I understand it’s a sensitive issue, but try not to generalize large populations.
Some of the commenters here suck. Some are amazing. And there’s everything in between.
I am sorry you’ve had a bad experience, but I can tell you that I do not judge Albertans or reduce them to a single group. Hell, I have family in Alberta, and almost half of them are pretty OK.
What do you mean by “this place”? I see more hate towards anyone conservative leaning than I do towards Alberta. I say this as a Liberal at heart too.
I think that a big part of the problem is that many of the people who publicly identify as Albertans are loud mouthed, unnecessarily huge transsexual pick up truck driving, toxicly masculine, “alpha male”, racist, separatist, “mah rights” spewing sovereign citizen, anti-vax tantrumist maple MAGAts.
I love the rest of you but fuck those guys.
I live in northern BC and there are a lot of those types around here.
I live in rural Ontario. Same here. There are dumbth everywhere.
Southern BC too!
Is there a lot of people like that identifying as Albertan, or do you identify people doing that IRL as Albertan, which would be a self-fulfilling prophecy?
Like, those guys exist and are a highly visible small minority here, but I have a strong feeling Ontarian Doug Ford voters do similar things.
As an aside, have you met Alberta separatists living outside of Alberta? I can actually believe they’d be that dumb and oblivious to irony, but damn. (Again IRL, rage bait doesn’t count)
I feel like an alien in Alberta. I’m surrounded by insanity. Mostly Take Back Albertans too, like the real insane shit. My neighbor thinks that because we don’t prey in schools anymore this is why children are hellions. All the world’s problems start with us not praying in schools, makes the kids go gay. I’m not even making this up. I’ve gotten quite adept at ninja rolling through the bushes to avoid run-ins with them.
Just an FYI, you pray to God and Conservatives prey on school children.
Yeah the UCP is questionably concerned about where my kids go to the bathroom. What is it with cons and bathrooms, anyways?
Modern JCI religious adherents are extremely focused on genitals. You should not touch your own genitals. You should only touch genitals that are not like yours. You should only touch the genitals of the person with genitals unlike yours who you are married to and only for the purposes of procreation. If you are unmarried and anyone has touched your genitals you are not worthy of marriage. Only people with the right kind of genitals can be clergy. You should only use your genitals in the way that they are used for procreation. You should not modify your genitals. If you are unmarried and use your genitals and become pregnant then you should be forced to carry that fetus to term. You should be denied the means to use your genitals with reduced possibility of becoming pregnant or catching a disease. You should not dressed in a way that people you don’t know and will likely every meet don’t think align with the type of genitals the people isn’t at your birth decided you have. No one should be able to read stories about anyone who touches the genitals of someone who has genitals like theirs, or who feels that they have the wrong type of genitals, or who uses their genitals outside of marriage. No one should teach children about their genitals, or the use of their genitals, or about consent because that would make it more difficult for adults to touch their genitals without anyone finding out.
I mean, does that cover it? Are they focused on anything other than what I’ve listed?
FWIW your neighbor is unusual. Alberta is actually the second most atheist province. Even the chuddery tends to be the sleazy strip club kind, as opposed to religious.
You do see some of that in Ontario too, but it’s not a major political force here in the same way as Alberta. In Ontario their political will is more offset by the NDP, leaving the Conservatives and Liberals to battle for centrists in the middle.
In Alberta it seems that no one will vote Liberal, leaving the NDP to battle it out with the Conservatives, which mean that most of the time the Cons can just count on the centrist swing votes and pander to their base to win.
I think Alberta seems a lot more dogmatic to the rest of the country mostly because they have only elected PC governments despite their massive failings, until the brief fling with the NDP after decades and decades of mismanagement.
That being said, a lot of the recent extremism in Alberta has to do with that aide to Danielle Smith. She’s a huge pile of crap who originally pushed Doug Ford to be a lot more extreme and divisive, and once they fell out she went to D Smith and D Ford mellowed out somewhat.
The NDP basically is the Liberal party here. It’s headed by Nenshi, who historically wouldn’t commit to a side between conservatives and liberals, and they’re thinking about dropping the name entirely. Forget about the labels and federal politics.
You have to remember that before the 40 year Conservative dynasty there was a 40 year Social Credit dynasty. The elections weren’t contested, and brand loyalty especially in rural areas is still insane. Post-Notley everything is new and different, and crazy promises about having our cake and eating it too are fueling Danielle Smith’s populist movement, which has hollowed out the UCP.
I said somewhere else that I live in rural eastern Ontario and I’m surrounded by maple MAGA dumbth.
Yeah, exactly.
Dude, you’re one of the worst offenders of what OP is talking about here. I’ve lost track of the number of times I’ve seen your “albertamagastan” comments.
Albertamagastan. Hehehe. That’s awesome!
A serious comment, my Albertamagastan comments are about the government. Danielle Smith tried to eliminate the legislature from the process of law making, essentially making herself the Queen of Alberta, like Trump. They are virtue signaling by attacking LGBTQ+ children, like Trump. They tried to ban books that included non-monogamous heterosexual Christian sexuality from school libraries The parallels are numerous and terrifying.
I know that not everyone in Alberta is a fascist bootlicker but there are a lot of them in government and there are a good number of very vocal ones not in government.
Just my observation but it seems your beef with the UCP is personal, not so much political ideology. Theyve done something to affect your life on a personal level? You dont have to answer, just making an observation.
I’m not sure why you would think that but, no, I don’t have a horse in the race other than the fact that the neo-fascist rot in Alberta might spread to infect other parts of the country. My beef with the UCP is purely ideological. I am an anti-fascist born of an ti-fascist stock. My grandfather was in the RCAF as a tail gunner in a Lancaster bomber flying out of the UK into Europe fighting back the Nazi/fascist scourge and I believe, as he did, that fascism must be stopped.
I believe that EVERYONE is equal, not that white, “Christian” men are more equal. I believe in science, not nonsense. The UCP are maple Trumpist fascist bootlickers playing from the same playbook and singing to the choir of dumbth that believe that weapons grade bullshit.
Oh, I’ve seen you paint with a broad brush, but I’m not going to bother to go creeping on your profile to find examples, though “AlbertaMagaStan” stuck out because I saw you use it 3 or 4 times in a day.
Suffice to say, I’ve tried to see some of your comments as just UCP/Smith/PP hate, but it can be tough. And I (and many of the people that I farm near) utterly despise those toxic chucklefucks so getting painted with that brush pisses me off.
Albertamagastan refers to the province, just as MAGAstan refers to the US. Not everyone in Afghanistan agrees with the government but its still Afghanistan. Not everyone in MAGAstan agrees with the Trump fascists and Trumpist bootlickers but its still MAGAstan. You and your farmer neighbours don’t make the policies but enough of the voters in your province voted for the nut job and her party that they formed a majority government. The same thing happened in Ontario. The Ford government is the most openly corrupt government in Ontario history. I didn’t vote for him and I don’t support him but I’m not butthurt when people point out that the Ontario government is corrupt. It is.
The government of Alberta is playing directly from the Project 2025 playbook.
