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National: Future slipping away
Commentary by Jeff Burgar
for South Peace News
Wringing your hands over a new hospital in High Prairie? Don’t like energy royalties laid down by Edmonton politicians? Fed up with Ed Stelmach? Tired of the Progressive Conservatives? You aren’t the only one.
The fact is, it isn’t just voters in Alberta tired of the same ol’, same ol’. There is much unhappiness in most other provinces with their provincial governments. Unlike Alberta, which according to media is unhappy everywhere, unhappiness nationally is mostly outside the big centres. It’s also consistent.
Rural and small town Albertans have the same thoughts as our rural cousins in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario and other provinces. Those thoughts are, we deliver so much in food, resources, energy, and building products. We get so little back in education, health and services.
Former Saskatchewan premier Roy Romanow, speaking on health issues, says it well: “...in most jursidictions, votes and population concentrations dictate the politics that see money goes into non-rural areas.’’ As we all know, it isn’t just health. It’s everything.
Pipelines, oil and gas wells and plants, lumber mills, trees, crops and cattle don’t get to vote. If they all did, it might be a very different story.
Even when the needs are obvious, money still gets voted to the big centers. A band of commuters travelling to Fort McMurray has to tough it out on Death Highway 63. Yet, a similar band of commuters in Edmonton who all want to shave five minutes from trips to work each day get a $1.5 billion ring road.
Local governments worked long and hard to turn our local Seal Lake road turned into a real gravel road, something more than a third-world goat trail. Yet Calgary commuters get another six lanes added to their eight lane freeway into the city.
As Romanow alluded, the issue isn’t what is right or wrong, or what is fair or unfair. It’s all about population, votes, and politics.
A politician elected in Calgary doesn’t give a rat’s ass about what happens on a farm outside of Red Deer, never mind what happens north, south, west or east of High Prairie, Fairview, Falher or Trout Lake.
The whole problem is what is called representation by population.
There are just as many good arguments why rep by pop is a good idea, as there are arguments it is a bad idea.
And one of those good arguments against rep by pop? We already told you: Trees, oil and gas wells, crops and cattle don’t get votes.
Every year, as cities grow, there are fewer people to speak for wilderness, resources, towns and villages, and rural industry of all kinds.
Yet, that’s where our homes, our heat, our food and in fact, our entire futures come from. Should we really trust that politician in Edmonton or Calgary to look after all this?
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