# Alberta, Natural Resources, and the Rest of Canada **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [May 3, 2025, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872 "2025-05-03T00:31:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 39
**Author:** ![FinsToTheLeft](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finstotheleft/32/2930_2.png) [@FinsToTheLeft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinsToTheLeft)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/764 "2026-06-28T12:33:05Z")
> [@Uzi](#): > > But I suspect you can’t help yourself. You know your position is weak and you need the money to keep flowing west to east, so whatever it takes, right? I’m in Ontario, we are not big beneficiaries of equalization payments. That doesn’t change my belief that Canada is stronger with all of us. ---
**Author:** ![Uzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/91b2a8/32.png) [@Uzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uzi)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/765 "2026-06-28T14:54:11Z")
Minus Alberta, guess who takes up the slack? ---
**Author:** ![MacDoc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/macdoc/32/18696_2.png) [@MacDoc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacDoc)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/766 "2026-06-28T16:45:38Z")
And when the fossil fuel bonanza stops …Alberta as usual has nothing to turn to and can’t foot the bill to clean up after itself. 🤬 and isn’t now. > Cleaning up Alberta’s oil and gas infrastructure carries an estimated liability ranging from $40 billion to over $260 billion\*\*\*\*. This massive cost covers hundreds of thousands of inactive wells, extensive pipeline networks, and toxic oil sands tailings ponds left behind by the industry ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/767 "2026-06-28T17:32:34Z")
“Oh, that’s just fear-mongering” Response to any post that contains factual information. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/768 "2026-06-28T17:36:18Z")
[Alberta sovereignty delegation to US confirmed](https://www.westernstandard.news/news/alberta-sovereignty-delegation-to-us-confirmed/63474) > Calgary lawyer Jeffrey Rath earlier told the _Western Standard_ of an initiative to send a delegation to Washington to gauge the Trump administration on its support of Alberta statehood or Alberta becoming the 51st state or a US territory. [Alberta separatists won’t say which Trump officials they met with](https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/article/high-level-alberta-separatist-group-wont-confirm-which-members-of-trumps-administration-it-met-with/) > While an Alberta separatist group confirms it had meetings with U.S. officials over the past year, its leaders won’t say which members of U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration they have spoken with directly. > > “We’re meeting at a very high level,” Alberta Prosperity Project legal counsel Jeffrey Rath said in an interview with CTV’s Question Period airing Sunday. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/769 "2026-06-28T17:38:42Z")
David Parker, owing hundreds of thousands in fines for violations of Elections Alberta laws, is still in hiding. Perhaps he does not want to be questioned by the RCMP for his theft of data on every single voter in Alberta and the subsequent leaking of this data to the separatist petition gatherers. [The Vanishing of David Parker: Inside the Centurion Project, the Texas Connections, and Alberta’s Escalating Separatist Crisis](https://prairiesexposed.substack.com/p/the-vanishing-of-david-parker-inside) ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/770 "2026-06-28T18:19:10Z")
And good old boy Mitch Sylvestre, > [openly](https://www.nationalobserver.com/2026/01/29/news/world-according-man-behind-albertas-separatism-petition?nih=kPRuhq6LLjj3jhz5MT3gdo_K0MZFwep00yiVoi4GyR4&utm_source=National+Observer&utm_campaign=bd0c1c1228-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2026_01_30_02_12_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_cacd0f141f-0d9f204989-277322865) [embraces](https://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/anti-racism-watchdog-field-complaint-arising-from-immigration-comments-made-at-separatist-town-hall) the far-fetched and [racist](https://globalextremism.org/the-great-replacement/?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=17354568434&gbraid=0AAAAAoMlu7Ba2Mq-BElKz_u3JszqsLyF7&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIxIXnr9bwkgMV9NHCBB3-EyybEAAYASAAEgL08_D_BwE) great replacement theory—the idea that evil elites are trying to [replace](https://www.nationalobserver.com/2026/01/29/news/world-according-man-behind-albertas-separatism-petition), as Sylvestre [puts it](https://thetyee.ca/News/2026/01/26/Wild-Claims-Jeff-Rath-Separatist-Firebrand/), “old stock white Canadians.” He has also [suggested](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-canada-separatists-alberta-carney-b2925937.html) that citizenship should be restricted to “people who are born here.” Great idea Mitch. Tell 60% of your population that they will not be entitled to citizenship if they vote to separate. ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2026, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/771 "2026-06-29T02:49:54Z")
Mitch sure sounds like he’s fear-mongering to me. ---
**Author:** ![Uzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/91b2a8/32.png) [@Uzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uzi)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2026, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/772 "2026-06-29T10:30:07Z")
So, your contention is that Canada will clean it up when the bonanza stops? Quebec has avoided the issue by not developing its oil and gas. Rather it just takes a cut off of Alberta. Maybe they will pay for the clean up? Or maybe the $20+B we send to Ottawa could be used to clean it up? What is the point of your post? ---
**Author:** ![Grey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grey)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2026, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/773 "2026-06-29T14:31:11Z")
Equalization, as currently implemented following the expert panel recommendations from 2006 (Members includes 2 from the University of Alberta: Al O’Brien (Chair) Fellow, Institute of Public Economics, University of Alberta, and Mike Percy Dean, School of Business, University of Alberta) models fiscal capacity across the provinces/territories and arrives at a national average. Given the weight Ontario brings by virtues of making up 38% of tax payers and 41% of net federal tax income, it may still sit at the margin of have/have not. That would leave BC and possibly Saskatchewan in the position they currently have. However with the issues with weakness in Manitoba and the Atlantic provinces it is possible that Quebec rolls into have status as well. It is fairly obvious that if Alberta is looking to pay less into federal income tax (and **provinces do not pay into federal income taxes** ) it should start insisting that Canadians working in Alberta need to declare residency in Saskatchewan. ---
**Author:** ![Uzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/91b2a8/32.png) [@Uzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uzi)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2026, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/774 "2026-06-29T14:37:50Z")
If the standard is that a political position can be dismissed by pointing to scandals, bad conduct, or offensive statements by people associated with it, then that standard has to apply equally. Many of the same people attacking Alberta independence have openly supported the Liberal Party and the current federal government. That government has its own record of serious controversies: blackface, ethics violations, paid vacations, SNC-Lavalin, ArriveCAN, and the Emergencies Act response to the trucker protests, which a Federal Court later found unreasonable and unconstitutional. But I do not say that every Liberal voter is responsible for every Liberal scandal. So why should every person who supports an Alberta referendum be made responsible for every controversial person who also supports separation? If someone broke the law, investigate it. If someone said something offensive, criticize it. But that is not a substitute for debating the actual question. The issue is whether Albertans should be allowed to vote on their political future, and whether Canada would negotiate fairly if they gave a clear answer. A political movement should be judged on its ideas and proposals, not solely on the statements or actions of particular individuals who support it. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2026, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/775 "2026-06-29T15:58:41Z")
“Please don’t judge us by our shitty and grifting leaders” ---
**Author:** ![Uzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/91b2a8/32.png) [@Uzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uzi)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2026, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/776 "2026-06-30T02:15:11Z")
I think that’s what I said. None of these leaders run our country like the leaders the other side supports. have and do. PM blackface with countless scandals and the current one, PM ‘It doesn’t matter’ and ‘MPs are only useful for votes’. But yeah please post about a guy who initially was for joining the US and has since openly admitted he has changed his stance. Had he violated the rights of fellow citizens? No, he has worked supporting those rights including the rights of citizens who currently disagree with him. Such a horrible person. ---
**Author:** ![Uzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/91b2a8/32.png) [@Uzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uzi)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2026, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/777 "2026-07-06T02:07:08Z")
Some humour: [Alberta deserves better](https://youtube.com/shorts/N7Dqb5astDA?si=9x6tUZq7KGIb1mqm) [Scared into line](https://youtube.com/shorts/yfn_u_xC6AU?si=c5PuGn0ShcQgbYgl) ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2026, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/778 "2026-07-06T15:59:57Z")
> A former lawyer has filed a class-action lawsuit which alleges the data of nearly three million Albertans was breached and shared by a pro-separatist group. > > The suit was filed in the Court of King’s Bench by Clint Docken on behalf of anyone whose personal information was contained on Alberta’s electors lists. > > It lists the Government of Alberta, the chief electoral officer, the Centurion Project Ltd., its leader, David Parker and the Republican Party of Alberta as defendants. [Class-action lawsuit filed over Alberta voter privacy breach tied to separatist groups - Yahoo News Canada](https://ca.news.yahoo.com/class-action-law-suit-filed-221525599.html) ---
**Author:** ![Uzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/91b2a8/32.png) [@Uzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uzi)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2026, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/779 "2026-07-07T02:20:24Z")
That’s good. But it would be even better if the crown charged these characters for breaking the law, assuming they have done so. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2026, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/780 "2026-07-07T02:48:18Z")
Well, Parker appears to have run away to Texas, as he is a US citizen. I guess he’s hoping to avoid the collection agencies are now after him for his failure to pay fines for violating the elections act (pre-dating his theft of data in the voter privacy breach) RCMP would love to talk to him. He refused to cooperate with the Alberta Elections probe. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2026, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/781 "2026-07-07T11:56:50Z")
Odd that the USA authorities are not real interested in picking him up. He’s probably not hard to find. ---
**Author:** ![Uzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/91b2a8/32.png) [@Uzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uzi)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2026, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/782 "2026-07-07T12:21:44Z")
Why would you think they would? Does he have formal charges or similar? Have the RCMP informed the US to do so? He didn’t murder someone, after all. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2026, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872/783 "2026-07-07T12:30:23Z")
He seems to be wanted in relation to the crime of the electoral roll leak. Separately, if he owes the government a fine, rather than some other citizen a court judgement, then at least in the US the government can issue an arrest warrant once it’s clear the subject is fleeing / has fled. If I understand the circumstances correctly, I would expect RCMP in those circumstances to issue a request for arrest and extradition to the US authorities. Which in the normal course of US / Canadian relations with normal sitting governments in both countries, any such request would be diligently complied with automatically. And likewise in the other direction if the case was reversed and a US miscreant had fled to Canada where they were (also) a citizen. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872.md?page=38) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-natural-resources-and-the-rest-of-canada/1017872.md?page=40)