# Should the USA annex Alberta? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 24, 2014, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094 "2014-12-24T14:07:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/21 "2014-12-24T17:29:14Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > The U.S. would destroy itself in trying to take any part of Canada by force. Since Canada’s military ran out of bullets years ago ourselves would be the only entity we were fighting against. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/22 "2014-12-24T17:34:59Z")
It’s very hard to take a subject like this seriously, but no. There has been no compelling reason laid out for such a move. Most importantly I’ve seen no one put forth evidence that Alberta wants to leave Canada, that if it wanted to leave Canada it would want to join the United States. So that’s a deal breaker right there. I also suspect Alberta has more in common with the rest of Canada than it does with the United States. From a thousand foot view Canada and the United States aren’t that different, not when you compare them to more disparate countries, but zoomed in they are still fairly distinct, all the jokes aside, and wouldn’t easily exist all as the same country. Plus this whole idea buys into the idiocy of “States” having “conservative” or “liberal” leanings. I think people obsessed with shading maps have made people lose their common sense on the issue of State political affiliations. Even the most conservative states typically had around 40% of their population vote for Obama in 2012, and Obama was a more polarizing figure than is historically the norm. Obama got 44% of the vote in Texas in 2008 for example. I’ve always wondered when all of these fantasies people have of shifting the country around (i.e. adding or subtracting parts of it) why you’d want to kick out a State where almost half the population agrees with you. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/23 "2014-12-24T17:42:00Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > By your logic, should Canada annex Washington state or Vermont? Those two states are similar to Canada. Illinois! Please! We play hockey! We can learn the ways of poutine! ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/24 "2014-12-24T17:59:50Z")
I think rather that as the oil runs out and as the Ogallala aquifer runs dry and the Earth warms, turning the southern US into even more of a desert, that in 50 years or so the northern US states will be clamouring to join Canada. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/25 "2014-12-24T19:11:20Z")
Off to IMHO. (Do we have a bad joke forum?) ---
**Author:** ![Shaggy\_Z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@Shaggy\_Z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shaggy_Z)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/26 "2014-12-24T19:12:07Z")
Conservatives always win elections in Venezuela?? ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/27 "2014-12-24T20:29:47Z")
The fist order of business would be to make the Edmonton Eskimos change their team nickname to something that was not an offensive racial slur. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/28 "2014-12-24T20:49:24Z")
And leave out British Columbia? ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/29 "2014-12-24T20:51:52Z")
The last time you tried to annex part of Canada didn’t work out that well… ---
**Author:** ![DrumBum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e79b87/32.png) [@DrumBum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrumBum)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/30 "2014-12-24T20:54:18Z")
One potential problem is convincing the people of Alberta ( Albertans ??? ) that just one gun won’t do. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/31 "2014-12-24T21:00:25Z")
> [@jtur88](#): > > The fist order of business would be to make the Edmonton Eskimos change their team nickname to something that was not an offensive racial slur. We’ll get on that as soon as we get the Redskins’ name changed. ---
**Author:** ![SeldomSeen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ba0ec/32.png) [@SeldomSeen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeldomSeen)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/32 "2014-12-24T21:40:43Z")
I’d rather see Canada annex the northwest - OR, WA, ID and especially San Jaun Island (thereby bringing the Pig War to a definitive close). I’ve always had a secret desire to be a Canuck and I already know aboot some of the language (I’ve bean practicin’ eh?). Might have to pick up a few words of French though… and I could learn to like poutine… ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/33 "2014-12-24T22:56:47Z")
Take it please! Not only would you get a couple of hockey teams you would get some decent curling too. And while we might like OR and WA in exchange, we do not want ID. Point Robert would be nice too. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/34 "2014-12-24T23:32:49Z")
In all seriousness, Canadian Conservatives just may be left of American Democrats. Prime Minister Harper is originally from Toronto. I like these types of poking fun threads, but get your facts straight. You can have the Edmonton Oilers though; they play like Americans. ---
**Author:** ![SeldomSeen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ba0ec/32.png) [@SeldomSeen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeldomSeen)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/35 "2014-12-24T23:36:38Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > …we do not want ID. Meh. Where do you think all that poutine comes from? 😃 They don’t grow french fries in Saskatchewan, brother! (at least I don’t think they do…) ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/36 "2014-12-24T23:58:34Z")
[There’s a little island you might need to learn about, mate…](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_Edward_Island#Economy) ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2014, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/37 "2014-12-25T00:33:58Z")
I could live with it although I would prefer Quebec City. Those people are total freakazoids and fun as Hell to party with. ---
**Author:** ![Poysyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2014, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/38 "2014-12-25T01:07:56Z")
You can have the Oilers, but no thanks you, we would like to keep the three major bases currently here, including mine :). Also no,we don’t think like Americans, trust me. We love you guys, but we are different. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2014, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/39 "2014-12-25T01:17:06Z")
> [@tomndebb](#): > > No. One Texas in the U.S. is enough. What about a straight-up trade? ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2014, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094/40 "2014-12-25T01:50:01Z")
What would the point of annexation be? The XL pipeline sure seem like it will not be approved to move oil from Alberta to refineries on the Gulf coast. If that is the case the US has no reason to annex Alberta. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-usa-annex-alberta/708094.md?page=3)