Alberta Politics & Government Thread 3.0

[Johnny Makarov]

Originally Posted by cral12

https://twitter.com/user/status/1828862799692562514

what kind of batkyit crap is this???

Other professions can handle cancer? Yeah my plumber is on call as an ocologist... lol

[octothorp]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

Rural votes are pretty much worthless to the NDP. Every plausible flip is in Calgary (and Lethbridge-East).

The margins are so absurd in truly rural ridings that it's pointless to chase them.

It's pointless on a seat-count basis, but it's not pointless on a wider eletoral strategy. There are suburban voters who empathize more with rural voters than they do with inner-city folk. Right-wing parties have been very good at navigating these heavily polarized climates, particularly with the insinuation that the rural communities are the heart of 'real Alberta/Canada/America', etc. Left-wing parties tend to fall into the trap of accepting those divisions, thinking that they can win based simply on having the policies that benefit the most people. But that often fails because people often aren't voting out of their own self-interest.

If you're the NDP, you don't reach out to rural Alberta to try to win seats there, you do it to try to position yourself as the party that wants to push past division and polarization. The Harris/Walz campaign in the US right now is a great example of this... to win the 'heartland' swing states, it's not enough to just have policies that benefit the majority of the people in those states... they need to actually win the hearts of those states by showing they care about farmers and factory workers, even when those voters will still vote overall for Trump.

[btimbit]

Originally Posted by Cecil Terwilliger

I don’t know where anyone can live that isn’t headed down a dark path. Ontario, Alberta and soon to be BC are all controlled by terrible conservative governments that are gutting health care, pushing privatization and literally ruining the 3 most prosperous provinces. Where else are people going to go? Quebec? Ha! Sask? The maritimes? Good luck finding jobs there equivalent to what we have in the big 3.

It's a very good point and why we're leaving Canada entirely

[MoneyGuy]

Originally Posted by Cappy

Because she is straight up bull####ting.

She’s stupid. I wish she went back to radio; she’d be easier to ignore.

[Fuzz]

Danielle on radio is why we have Danielle in government. She should go back to washing dishes in her train car, even if she isn't quite qualified for that either.

[opendoor]

Originally Posted by belsarius

I always thought they were closer to a PC than a CPC.. but my knowledge is limited.

They had elements of both, but the crazies were generally kept in check and they didn't too anything too weird socially (though that was before the right became obsessed with culture war issues).

Fiscally they were generally terrible, and even when they did introduce good fiscal policy, their base either revolted over it (HST) or came to despise it (carbon tax).

I'm honestly not even sure what BC Conservative voters are even looking for, other than stupid culture war stuff. As of now:

• BC has the lowest income tax of any province for people earning under $175K a year
• real wages are up 10% in the last 5 years
• GDP growth is the highest among provinces.
• BC is the only province to have seen its GDP per capita increase compared to pre-pandemic
• the unemployment rate is the 2nd lowest in the country.

Yes, cost of housing and healthcare access are significant issues, but the current government has taken pretty dramatic steps to fix those long-term problems, and the Conservatives are talking about reversing most of that anyway.

[Wastedyouth]

Originally Posted by btimbit

It's a very good point and why we're leaving Canada entirely

Pfffft.

You're leaving Canada because of the political climate?

Where you gonna go to escape politics? The moon?

C'mon. Get off the internet, Canada is still ####ing awesome and anyone that says otherwise, in my opinion, has no clue what they are talking about.

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by Wastedyouth

Canada is still ####ing awesome and anyone that says otherwise, in my opinion, has no clue what they are talking about.

Are you sure? People tell me all the time that our country is broken, mind you when I ask them which “broken” countries they’ve visited in their lives they always say none. So I guess we’ll have to take their opinions with a grain of salt.

In all seriousness Canada is still a great place but we are at a bit of a crossroad for sure. We need a better balance between trying to be nanny state without a concern for the costs and bowing down to corporate interests because elected officials have jobs lined up for them after they’re done with politics.

[D as in David]

Originally Posted by cral12

https://twitter.com/user/status/1828862799692562514

You know she's BS'ing when she doesn't complete sentences. Did she complete a single one in this clip?

[btimbit]

Originally Posted by Wastedyouth

Pfffft.

You're leaving Canada because of the political climate?

Where you gonna go to escape politics? The moon?

C'mon. Get off the internet, Canada is still ####ing awesome and anyone that says otherwise, in my opinion, has no clue what they are talking about.

I'll keep it brief to not make the thread about me, but no, the political climate is certainly not the only factor, it's just one more thing on the list that makes staying an unattractive option. My sister and dad are already gone, mom is leaving next year, the Alberta advantage is gone, so screw it why not make a change. Then like Cecil said, other provinces aren't much better, if at all, so why not look elsewhere entirely. And if it's going to cost over half a mil for a modest house, why not live somewhere sweet

[D as in David]

Originally Posted by Johnny Makarov

what kind of batkyit crap is this???

Other professions can handle cancer? Yeah my plumber is on call as an ocologist... lol

Chiropractors.

And sheriffs.

And Christian leaders who will pray the cancer away.

[Muta]

Originally Posted by iggy_oi

Are you sure? People tell me all the time that our country is broken, mind you when I ask them which “broken” countries they’ve visited in their lives they always say none. So I guess we’ll have to take their opinions with a grain of salt.

In all seriousness Canada is still a great place but we are at a bit of a crossroad for sure. We need a better balance between trying to be nanny state without a concern for the costs and bowing down to corporate interests because elected officials have jobs lined up for them after they’re done with politics.

I agree Canada is awesome (despite the politics), but I see no problem if people want to venture out regardless of their own reasons. There's a big, beautiful world out there and lots to experience and explore; Canada happens to be only one place out of many. As someone who has lived abroad (and come back), it can be an amazing experience to live somewhere else (if one can make it happen), especially given how short our time is on this Earth. Anyone who says otherwise is denying themselves some amazing opportunity and adventure.

I think it's awesome that btimbit is trying something new, regardless of their personal reason(s) for leaving.

[Bonded]

Originally Posted by btimbit

I'll keep it brief to not make the thread about me, but no, the political climate is certainly not the only factor, it's just one more thing on the list that makes staying an unattractive option. My sister and dad are already gone, mom is leaving next year, the Alberta advantage is gone, so screw it why not make a change. Then like Cecil said, other provinces aren't much better, if at all, so why not look elsewhere entirely. And if it's going to cost over half a mil for a modest house, why not live somewhere sweet

Where are you going to live instead that has good jobs, good cost of living, and acceptable politics? You pretty much have to rule out of all of the US if you think the UPC is worth leaving over

[Ozy_Flame]

People who genuinely want to live abroad for altruistic or adventurous reasons, I appauld them. Living aboard gives people new perspectives and knowledge about our little planet.

But I do love how people who complain Canada is broken and threaten to leave won't actually get up and move to the States or some freedom-loving country, like many constantly threaten to do.

Pull the trigger, turds. If you think Canada is a failure, put your grandstanding where your feet are. Make sure to sell your house on the way out.

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by Muta

I agree Canada is awesome (despite the politics), but I see no problem if people want to venture out regardless of their own reasons. There's a big, beautiful world out there and lots to experience and explore; Canada happens to be only one place out of many. As someone who has lived abroad (and come back), it can be an amazing experience to live somewhere else (if one can make it happen), especially given how short our time is on this Earth. Anyone who says otherwise is denying themselves some amazing opportunity and adventure.

I think it's awesome that btimbit is trying something new, regardless of their personal reason(s) for leaving.

I don’t hold anything against anyone for trying to improve their lives, my post wasn’t meant to be a shot a btimbit as based on his posting history I was pretty confident that he had valid reasons for his decision(which he has since elaborated on). Even though there’s things he clearly wishes were better here he’s not exactly screaming from the rooftops that the sky is falling. He just wants to try and do better elsewhere which I wish him and his family the best of luck in.

My post was meant as more of a comment on the crowd that rambles on about how everything is terrible when we’re still one of the best countries in the world to live in.

[btimbit]

Yeah I guess my original reply to Cecil came across a little sharp, this isn't like those people who always scream "I'm leaving before everything goes wrong!" when their side loses an election.

This is more just that all the things that made staying here attractive in the first place are slowly going away, and future outlook is that it's going to get worse before it gets better. My wife worked for AHS after all. So yes, while politics may not be the sole thing driving the move, it's definitely what kicked off the conversation in the first place.

[Ferarri]

Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame

People who genuinely want to live abroad for altruistic or adventurous reasons, I appauld them. Living aboard gives people new perspectives and knowledge about our little planet.

But I do love how people who complain Canada is broken and threaten to leave won't actually get up and move to the States or some freedom-loving country, like many constantly threaten to do.

Pull the trigger, turds. If you think Canada is a failure, put your grandstanding where your feet are. Make sure to sell your house on the way out.

I think its fair to criticize what's happening in Canada without labelling people as grandstanding. This country certainly isn't immune to faults and a majority of Canadians think the country is broken. Bad government at all levels, sky rocketing cost of living has been detrimental to many families.

Its fair to argue that other countries are just as bad, but people seem to get overly defensive when you shame the Canadian way of life. I've lived here my entire life and can sympathize with others when they say that Canada isn't what it used to be. Sure, certain things have gotten better over the years, but there is a lot of polarizing issues in the country which can't be overlooked (not saying other countries don't have similar problems).

Telling people to leave because the question the current climate is detrimental to everyone. Change can only occur when we acknowledge there are problems instead of dismissing peoples point of views and perspecives.

[CliffFletcher]

There are all sorts of reasons why people move to different countries. But if your motivation is to get away from conservative politics, then it’s legit to ask what country you plan to go to where that won’t be an issue.

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by btimbit

Yeah I guess my original reply to Cecil came across a little sharp, this isn't like those people who always scream "I'm leaving before everything goes wrong!" when their side loses an election.

This is more just that all the things that made staying here attractive in the first place are slowly going away, and future outlook is that it's going to get worse before it gets better. My wife worked for AHS after all. So yes, while politics may not be the sole thing driving the move, it's definitely what kicked off the conversation in the first place.

Sounds like you’ve put a lot of thought and consideration into both your decision and your post.

The latter may be in violation of the forum rules.

[Locke]

I think there is validity in both sides.

Canada is still a great place to live, but over the past few years I feel from a Macro perspective it has become more divisive.

There are problems, and frankly many of the benefits that we've enjoyed are slowly being eroded and that seems as though its set to continue.

The quality of Health Care is slipping, the quality of Education is slipping, cost of Housing is rising, wages arent keeping pace, cost of food and utilities are rising.

Places like Vancouver are already pricing people out and you practically have to come from Generational Wealth to live in places like Vancouver or Toronto.

Unless you're lucky with timing or extremely fortunate to work a high paying job people in their 30s or 40s right now may not be able to retire in Canada, if at all. Thats a problem.

The fact that things are still pretty good here, now, is, in my opinion very true, however I think people who see the writing on the wall in terms of the steps this Country is taking in the wrong direction have some validity to them as well.

It depends where you're at in Life.