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Originally posted by MarchHare+May 1 2005, 11:47 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (MarchHare @ May 1 2005, 11:47 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'>
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Originally posted by flamingchina@May 1 2005, 11:42 AM
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@May 1 2005, 05:32 PM
Think of it this way:# Alberta currently has 10% of the seats in Parliament, and people here are crying bloody murder.# You want to switch to a system where our representation in the senate would be...10%.
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Ummm, we already have 10% of the senate.
The issue is is that our senate is about the same as the Peoples Congress of China. aka a rubber stamper selected from party representives from various places in the country to show the people that they are represented.
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But you seem to think equal representation by province in the senate is going to fix your woes. It's going to do nothing for Alberta.
What it would do, though, is give the Atlantic Provinces unprecedented power. A region that makes up less than 8% of Canada's population would have a 40% voice in the senate. How can anyone actually advocate that?! [/b][/quote]
Don't forget these Senators will also be elected by party lines as well, and that could help Alberta too. As will the need for compromise and favors in voting. (ie: you vote for this, we'll vote for that)
That being said, it could expose a very critical flaw in the makeup in this country and show that we might all be better off as 3 or 4 countries.
Either way, its something that should be attempted. We may get a relatively harmonious result where all provinces can be satisfied with a tolerable amount of compromise. Or, we may get bedlam that forces the West and Quebec to the sidelines and consequently out of Confederation... either way, its better than the appointed and useless thing we have now.