I think that that betrayal by the Feds had a long term effect on the way the West views the role of the Federal government. People see less Federal control as better. Whether it is enviromental regulations or gun control there is little trust that the Federal government has our best interests at heart.
I was at an all canadates meeting last friday in Creston B.C. One question from the floor was what each canadate would do to see a vacant Old folks home in Creston reequiped to provide space for senior's assisted living. The Liberal canadate didn't show up. The independant and NDP canadate wanted a meeting to gather more information. And finally the Conservative canadate spoke and simply pointed out that the allocation of those funds is a provincal matter. He than pointed to the governments record on transfer payments and their future plans.
For a Western Canadian his answer was best. We want less federal government. We want less taken from us and less outside interferance in our lives. People who vote Liberal and certainly those who vote NDP want the Federal government used as a tool to fix everything that goes wrong or isn't right. Western Conservatives want clear limits on what the Fed involves itself in. Less is better. We don't trust them.
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