Conrad Black sums up the recent election:
In fact, Canada’s greatest problems are capital flows and national unity. There is a torrid drain of investment capital in Canada, as the world stays away and Canadians invest capital elsewhere. Under-appreciation of Canadian federalism will not take long to emerge in Quebec and Alberta. By far the strongest performance by a party leader on election night was from the Bloc Québécois’ Yves-François Blanchet. He had the same stature, mannerisms, haircut, glasses and witty but crisp and direct way of formulating the complexities of Quebec’s status as premier Daniel Johnson (1966-1968), whose slogan was “equality or independence.” Blanchet came from nowhere and almost won more votes than the Trudeau Liberals. (Only twice before has the Bloc won more Quebec votes than the Liberals.) Blanchet expressed his reverence for René Lévesque, Quebec’s first separatist premier (1976-1985), but he is not advocating Lévesque’s “sovereignty-association;” he is advocating sovereignty.
I quit reading Black’s piece as soon as he expressed his “cordial regard” for Trudeau. That was in the opening sentence.
If you have an issue with Conrad Black then you may want to watch former Encana CEO, Gwyn Morgan, talk about the mood of Albertans.
Bloomberg The Close: Former Encana CEO Gwyn Morgan – Albertans feel they don’t have a future in Canada
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2gw4g2XoDk
B I N G O.
For a long time now I have considered Baron Black of Crossharbour a flake. I don’t recall the exact moment this view gelled but claiming that FDR saved capitalism was one big one.
What’s Connie looking for from the creep for whom he has a cordial regard? He has to be angling for something. He’s not stupid after all.
Always remember Black endorsed Trudeau in 2015 and gave him a good guy rating in 2019.
It’s not hard to have better economic results when your have been provided with $221 billion as an unearned subsidy. I am pretty sure if Quebec decides on sovereignty that subsidy will cease and a substantial amount demanded returned. On the other hand, should Wexit become a reality, most assuredly the fraud of equalization will vaporize. Perhaps Mr. Black should focus on the latter probability.
“It’s not hard to have better economic results when your have been provided with $221 billion as an unearned subsidy.”
Precisely, exactly, unquestionably right.
Q’bec is doing well on the backs of the rest of working people of Canada, of Alberta in particular.
Some corrupt socialist/fascist non-economic gymnastics.
The key thing here is that Q’bec as a whole is not doing anything illegally. Their politicians, whatever you think about them are taking care of their business. That it does not include rest of Canada except for the free cash is not their fault, they want it and they get it, legally, from the federal government of Canada.
It is the federal politicians of every stripe that suck up to Q’bec so as not to be the ones to be part of Q’bec leaving this Canada and be known in history as those that broke the country apart.
They, the federal politicians know that however much those in Alberta boast of goin their own way, the chance of that are very slim and none.
That being said, there should be a referendum in Alberta and whoever wants to participate, about number one eliminating transfer payments and number two about separation,
Those two should get the attention of the rest of the country and get it that Alberta means business,
yup Ward I also recall that bullschitt, and now he is vilifying the turd, he should call out no performance scheep for loosing
Did you notice in the article that the Quebec Pension Plan has $324 billion in net assets for 8.5 million Quebecers?
Canada has $404 billion for 29 million people.
Time for Alberta to have its own pension plan.
Indeed, the template is done, thanks Quebec. Provincial police force, provincial pension, provincial revenuers – whatever Quebec has done we should do too and do it immediately.
It was called the Alberta Heritage Fund.
Ottawa and the Alberta Tories pissed it up the wall.
They weren’t Tories by any stretch of the imagination. Neither was Lougheed.
Part of the reason was that Ralph Klein was quite cozy with his crony capitalist buddies.
Leave Quebec Leave.
Wouldn’t it have been far more beneficial if Black had published this article before October 21?
Some of his points are valid, but his defence of Quebec sounds like laurentian elite talking points.
Maybe he hasn’t figured out that the only folks that see Quebec separation as an existential threat are the Laurentian Elite like he and his peers.
Simply stated Quebec KNOWS the JIG IS UP. Kenney no doubt will call for a referendum in Alberta on re-visiting the equalization formula which will win overwhelming support. Quebec’s $11 billion western cow teet to suck on while enjoying maple syrup soaked pouding chômeur and a hearty helping of Fèves au lard will be drying up soon. Quebec Hydro is worth HALF A TRILLION and they’ve been running budget surplus’s for most of the past decade. The only reason the French vampires are still in Canada is to, as JT puts it, own the rest of Canada. When that ownership leash is taken away they will go and go quickly. GOOD RIDDANCE AND DON’T LET THAT DOOR HIT YOUR ARSES ON THE WAY OUT!
I think the rest of Canada should get to vote on whether they want Quebec to stay in Canada. And if they leave, think of the money we’d save on reverting to English only printing on everything.
Exactly. The Charter of Rights could then be finally be amended to lose one of the biggest sources of inequality in this country.
Inequality? Start here:
The Constitution of Canada gives 4 seats to the fake province of PEI.
They have 4 MP’s for 160,000 people. The fewest number of people per representative.
Alberta has 21 MP’s for +4,000,000 people. The greatest number of people per representative.
Alberta would have 111 MP’s if we had the same number of representatives per person as PEI has.
Alberta would have 51 MP’s if we had the same number of representatives per person as Sask. does.
The Constitution should be equally representative of all Canadians, or it is not.
Not “almost” representative.
Not “weighting” of the sub standard provinces.
Not “extra” or guaranteed seats or an agreed upon 1/3 of the SCOC justices set aside for 1 province that currently has 20% of the population.
Not having a carbon tax that is applied to some provinces at the national level and not to others.
After the provinces settle the question of equal representation last “settled” with Bill C-20 “The Fair Representation Act” … I’m sure the producing provinces can settle the question of “equalization” and intergenerational welfare being used to prop up the mediocre provinces, and then move on to interprovincial movement of goods.
Then, we’ll talk energy.
My expectations are “zero” for the concept of Canada continuing on in the future as it is now.
Zero.
Basic problem is listed here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Commons_of_Canada
*Alberta has 34 seats.
This is not to argue your point that is in essence right on.
According to 2016 census population of:
New Brunswick is 747,101 and it has 10 MP’s
Alberta 4,067,175 and it has 34 MP’s
The far east provinces of Canada, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, with population of 2,523,316, have all together 33 seats in the House of Commons, 76,464 per seat.
Q’bec with population of 8,164,361, have altogether 78 seats in the House of Commons, 104,671 per seat.
Ontario with population of 13.448,494, have altogether 121 seats in the House of Commons, 111,144 per seat.
Western provinces of Canada, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, with population of 11,091,947, have altogether 104 seats in the House of Commons, 106,653 per seat.
The senate is a different story:
The far east provinces of Canada, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, with population of 2,523,316, have all together 30 seats in the senate, 84,110 per seat.
Q’bec with population of 8,164,361 has 24 seats in the senate, 340,181 per seat.
Ontario with population of 13.448,494 has 24 seats in the senate, 560,353 per seat.
Western provinces of Canada, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, with population of 11,091,947 have altogether 24 seats in the senate, 462,164 per seat
Leaving out NWT, Yukon, Nunavut, for this purpose.
If Canada is to be one country we should keep Quebec. It’s the Quebecois we should vote to expel. Each should be offered two good quality large suitcases and a first-class one-way ticket to anywhere on the airline of their choice at the expense of the people of Canada, they can take anything else they can carry, and they get a Canadian passport valid for one year.
If Quebec charged citizens and corporations fair market pricing for electricity, they would not need Albertas resource money.
Considering that Quebec did not sign the 1982 “Constitution”, what business have the ROC in providing that 10-12 BILLION of Baksheesh that Quebec received annually since? Someone in Ontario could provide an answer? BC? Our Confederation betters it seems. They knows best. The interior west has no voice, or equal representation but in Alberta’s case provided most of the cash, to keep these ingrates cushioned from their Marxist leanings to the detriment of anyone else, financially. Shut up and pay your taxes has been the common reply, or kwiturbitchin, out here. Yeah, anyone of you on the receiving end of all that Kaybec angst in the 60-70’s that were the source of the ’82 Constitution? Yeah, I thought not. Tronna slept well, while we Anglos tip toed around the mailbox. Some folks got a vacay in Cuba for it. Pierre LaPorte got a bridge named for him, for his troubles. The ROC paid for it, prove me wrong.
Those Millenials beaking off about Globble Warmenting in Tronna post election should get some kind of edumacashion about certain things before lecturing anyone of the folks who paid the bills the last 40 years. I seem to remember Tronna falling all over themselves trying to get in on the gravy train out here when oil was hot. You know, that “Petro Dollar” wrecking their kind of economy. Well, that CDN dollar is still working against them even at 76 cents US. Whatcha gonna do now, Ontario? Suddenly it isn’t ’cause Globble Warmenting? How’s the car business? What makes ’em run? Where does your electricity come from, especially when the push is on electric ones? Same for those Kaybec cars? They aren’t running them on electricity anytime soon, either. That foreign exchange earned on power exports is not even considered in that Baksheesh called “Equalization”. Some folks are more equal than others, I guess. Shut up and pay your taxes Alberta.
They can go $%^&#! themselves on their green creds, especially going into a Solar Minimum.
My next vote is g’bye Kanaduh, it was just a peachy time when the NEP was on and the last few years as well. Instructive. I’ve got a long memory of Zentrul Kanaduh that needs to be expunged. Kaybec and Ontario especially.
When the Government of Kanaduh, with some Provinces aiding them, goes out of their way to destroy a province economically for having the good fortune geologically of being blessed with the stuff that makes this country liveable in winter, fuels industry and agriculture and we can afford “health care” out here, I’m reminded of certain history that guarantees we find our own way. Without them. That Rupertsland flag flying from my house today looks mighty fine to me.
UDI Kenny, screw the dickering. We already paid them. In spades.
PO’D well put, and I hope you’s leave sooner than later, as it will force ontario to step, and get rid of libtard stupidity. We can and should be able to stand on our own economically
“On Monday night Blanchet left viewers in no doubt that Quebec sought sovereignty, preferably but not necessarily on friendly terms with Canada”
Black correctly identifies Climate Change hysteria as the boggy-man that will breakup Canada. Yes Quebec will vote to Separate from the Brussels fraudulent attempt for International Governance, why would they NOT…The French are not stupid!
Will Western Canada also separate from the Climate Change hysteria?….Only serious Marxists in Ontario & BC will be left to pay homage to Brussels….bend over fools, or buck-up…
The UN is done!
All Blanchet looked like to me was a French Canadian hipster whose smug face needed an English fist in it.
Quebec, at any rate, has only done so well thanks to subsidies from English Canada. It’s like calling your useless spendthrift daughter a sudden paragon of economy and industry after forcing her brothers to pay off her credit cards and find her a job making the coffee somewhere.
Anyway, nobody in Quebec who has a clue how the world works is actually still tempted by “sovereignty.”
The communists and Jew-baiters in Montreal east of the Main who still want an independent Quebec have joined Québec solidaire, sovereignty being just one element of their anti-capitalist, anti-Semitic program. Every French Quebecer who has to more-or-less work for a living now supports the CAQ. The PQ has only managed to hang on in a few ridings in the lower St. Lawrence. It will probably never form government again.
Lord Black, who, as a student of Quebec history and author of the standard biography of Duplessis, ought to know better, knows as well as we do that if the French Canadians aren’t gone by now, they’re not going anywhere, and so much the worse for English Canada. (For one thing, they’re standing in the way of a very nice pipeline.)
Blanchet did so well not by gassing about “sovereignty” but by making common cause with the CAQ on Bill 21, whose objective, contrary to popular belief, is not to oppress Muslims but to make it harder for pious Protestants and Jews to work in what remains of Quebec’s English school system, and encourage more white Anglophones (Christian and Jewish) to leave.
Sovereignty is dead in French Canada. Anglophobia and anti-Semitism are alive and well.
Sovereignty was always a canard. K-becers are eating their cake paid for and served by the “ROC”.
They lost the battle on the plains but won the war.
Well said A.C !
Was born and raised there, left in the 1970s and glad of it. The French ‘Canadiens’ are all in the beach now in “La Florida” drinking their Labatt 50s.
For those who are from there know that the ‘Main’ is a North-South boulevard that cuts the city in two parts. The addresses start at low digits going in an easterly or westerly direction away from the Main. If one didn’t shop on the Main, one ate there. To this day it is known for its uniqueness as immigrants from all over the world live, work and spend their money there. It is now renamed Boulevard St Laurent though.
The movie “The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz” was filmed on the Main and the neighbourhood is where author Mordecai Richler was raised. In my opinion it is one of his best books, of the five that I’ve read over the years, because it was autobiographical.
One can almost smell the kosher pickles and the Smoke Meat on rye!
Pierre Trudeau was born and grew up on 5779 Durocher Outremont nearby. The Communist probably tooled around on his motorcycle on these same streets of Montreal polluting the place with his noise.
hey Nancy, my wife, Beverley and her brothers moved from Montreal in the 70’s as well, partially due to the FLQ crisis and the military guarding her street in DDO. They grew up in Rosemount but it got too rough for them.
We regularly go back to visit her parents who are stanch Liberals and can’t even get a word in edgewise about how brain washed they are. Partially because they are our elders, but partially you can’t argue against the CBC with them.
I mean, we are ignorant cow pokes out here in Cowtown.
Cheers
Hi Tom,
I know how you feel. I’ve many relatives who seem to think that they are in the center of the universe and they cannot understand why anyone would want to leave the city.
When I went back to a school reunion there, I was amazed to learn that many classmates still live there.
I like the shopping and restaurants and I hear so do the Chinese. They are coming there in droves from China. As a result, no more cheap apartments for rent. Some people are getting evicted so the landlords can renovate and sell the places at a huge mark up. It’s a changing place.
Excuse error should read “at” the beach!
Vancouver was a lot like that when I lived there. Most of the people I met thought that they lived in the aforementioned centre of the universe and thought anyone who didn’t want to move there, or who moved there and hated it, was an ignorant backwoods rube.
Those same people thought I was devolving when I quit UBC and returned to Alberta. Yes, we had miserably cold winters on the prairies, but the people were considerably saner.
They are coming there in droves from China. As a result, no more cheap apartments for rent. Some people are getting evicted so the landlords can renovate and sell the places at a huge mark up.
That sounds like the place where I live in Edmonton. Most of the new tenants for the past few years came from there and there have been rumours that rents have been jacked up just for them.
The latter bit doesn’t surprise me as there were allegations that a previous manager raised rents just to force out the elderly tenants. I guess older people weren’t in keeping with the place’s image of being young and hip.
@ 10:41 & 10:53 B A
Those Chinese who are coming to Canada are coming because they’re starving in China. They want to have clean air, untainted food and a bed to sleep in. They’re doing this for their descendants.
When I got off the C-train last week, a Chinese lady who was near me looked distressed. She was talking to the sky and waving her hands. When she walked by I asked her whether she was lost. She didn’t understand English. That was all she could say.
Oh well, I tried. Montreal was full of immigrants back in the day. I’m used to this!
P.S. Hope that you aren’t faced with eviction.
If you want Alberta independence or an equal deal with Canada then the first step is to drive quebec out.
If Ottawa bends over even more for quebec that will simply grow the western independence movement.
Black wouldnt give anyone posting here the steam of his piss if we were dying of thirst.
Anyone “cordial” with Juthtin is not to be trusted.
Any non K-becer on board with equalization is a traitor.
Kate & crew, you might want to make this online poll go horribly wrong:
https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/thebigdebate/2019/10/29/does-the-west-have-a-case-for-separation.html
The article that accompanies it is a good one also.
The argument that a small country like Alberta would have little influence is Bullshit. When you have that much oil and gas you have influence.
Buddy, Finland Denmark, and Norway all puch abouve their grade, and each one has only 5.5 million inhabitants, so AB, + sask+ man could be a very strong country. With Man included you would have Tide water access.
Quebec separatism is the big bluff that never goes away. The powers that be in that gigantic Indian Reserve-like ghetto milk the tribal sentiments along with the economic success of the ROC, Alberta being their favourite teat. They also know that true independence would not be so lucrative. I don’t know how we would get along without them but I sure wish we had the opportunity to give it a try.
“Canada’s greatest problems are capital flows and national unity,….
Here, let me finish that sentence for you:
…both put in jeopardy by an increasingly shallow, stupid, and selfish urban population.
The current structure of Canada could easily and quickly dissolve with little significant disruption to commercial flows. Some bits of the former Canada would be independent, some would be absorbed in the USA without disturbance to the political dynamics there. It would be a win-win for everyone.
Nfld: independent
Maritime provinces: all absorbed within the State of Maine
Quebec: independent
Eastern Ontario: Ottawa, Kingston, etc., absorbed within the State of New York
Southern Ontario: Toronto, London, etc., absorbed with the State of Michigan
Lower Mainland of BC (Abbotsford to Van, Whistler to the US border) + Van Isle + Gulf Islands: absorbed within State of Washington
The Remainder (Most of Ontario, the Prairie Provinces, the Territories, most of BC: a single, independent country
I think this would be a practical and efficient dissolution of a political union that has been as inefficient and impractical as other national products of imperial design, like most of Africa and the Middle East.
Trudeau has again shown how out of touch he is. He’s just appointed two Liberal women to smooth things over with Alberta.
https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/elections/trudeau-taps-prominent-transition-advisers-in-nod-to-alberta-quebec/ar-AAJwFEq?ocid=spartanntp
I’m surprised he didn’t assign Climate Barbie or Gerald Butts that task. The Bimbo would have given him great pleasure knowing how Albertans would react and Butts would have enjoyed further practicing deceit as he continued as the evil architect of grinding down the Alberta economy economy into further decline.
Chretien has long known that the PMO has needed adult supervision. He’s been advising them since the SNC brouhaha.
Chretien was Landslide Annie’s principal benefactor; he gave her power knowing, I suppose, that she had no independent political aspirations. Chretien kept her on life support by gerrymandering three riding redistributions over her time in Parliament. Even in Red Edmonton Annie’s shelf life was limited, and she was tossed out like old garbage eventually.
How anyone could put up with that shrieking, grating harpy voice is beyond me. I also don’t see what actual substance she could ever bring to the table. As a rarefied “academic” she’s disconnected from the world around her, and could just as easily “represent” dt Vancouver, Toronto, Ottawa, etc.
But as Mulroney said, “there’s no whore like an old whore.”
Here I am at the end and it is pretty much the end.
I’ve long concluded that Black is a fatuous, pretentious upper-class twit. While he is skilled in using language, I think it’s more to show to us peons that he thinks he’s smarter than the rest of us.
I’ll take anything he does or says with a grain of salt.
He’s usually on track for 3/4 of an article and the rest is totally off the rails. He doesn’t disappoint in this one. He must not want to jeopardize his automatic invitations to the Laurentian elite cocktail circuit.
I’ll provide a truck for that salt. I enjoy reading Black, butt got turned off when he gave the Turd a good review in 15
BADR and John Chittick.
TRUE.
Yes, pretentious, fatuous twit.
Yes, 3/4 of any piece will be right but he goes off the rails every single time.
I think of him as a flake.
Maybe Black can be a bit of a twit but at least he comes right out and says that the so called “climate emergency” is a crock of s**t. That puts him in my good books.
Ann McLellan eh, MY voice in Ottawa! Wonderful! Just another GD Liarberal.
Jeez, the comedy never fricken ends.
Black sounds like he’s playing the same Quebek banjo thats been played so many times before. Peeair Turdhole expertly and mendaciously utilized the false premise of franco separation of Queerbak as the perfect opportunity to destroy Canada and replace it with a permanently corrupt french language supremacist Government… a french language supremacy that continues to expand its suffocating strangle hold on all Government agencies. In other words, frenchy talkers from Queerbak run the federal Government so why would they want to start using the canard of Queerbek Separation again. “This country it belongs to us”- Justine Turdhole… “we have to flood Ottawa with francophones”- Justine the Turdhole… Lets face it, the inbreds of Queerbak are in charge… #WEXIT.
We should all join the Bloc Quebecois, then when enough of us do, DEMAND that Quebec leave Canada.
https://contribution.bloc.org/informations.php
From their website:
“To become a member , you must be 16 years of age or older, but you can reside anywhere in the world.”
“To become a member of the Bloc Québécois is to actively support the noblest objective, that of giving oneself a country.”
GO Frogs!
Black made a mistake endorsing Trudeau in 2015. It is probably hard for him to admit, but he clearly now understands the problems with the Liberal government and their moribund impact on the country. I also found it wonderfully refreshing that Black has no qualms about calling climate change a big lie. We need more public figures willing to do so.
So far so good.
The Hair Apparent is reelected,by our eastern comrades.
He will reign,with the total support of the NDP and paid support from the Quebecors as needed.
If these fail to crush western citizens,I am sure Sheer will do his duty and help the eastern horde.
Now we wait as Kenny and Whats ‘is name in Saskatchewan go through the required rituals,meanwhile their replacement,Chief Louie of BC, will be warming up in the wings.
An independent West must have equality of all citizens, the current Apartheid system must be destroyed.
Who better to burn it down ,than the people so abused by it?
Secondly a true heir to Louie Real will suck the air out of the media and the prattling nitwits.Also the full participation of our “separate but equal”prisoners of her madjesty will further delegitimize the current kleptocracy.
No better time awaits us,the joy of ruthlessly “negotiating” independence from the corrupt and collapsing state of Can Ah Duh with the idiot spawn of the original wormtongue is just too funny.
You might have noticed.
So far no one has made any “case” for western citizens continuing to be abused by remaining in CON Federation.
I have nothing in common with the eastern canadien and the Canada they have created has no future for me,my values nor my children.
We are not leaving Canada,Can Ah Duh discarded us years ago.
Are property rights,personal rights,personal responsibilities and freedom from debt slavery things you value?
Cause the voters east of here sure showed us what they consider valuable.