The Other Alberta : Decoding a Political Enigma

Centennial celebrations provided Albertans with an opportunity to look back at their achievements and to contemplate the legacy that will be left to future generations. At the time of writing, it is as if the economy is on steroids, benefiting mightily from soaring oil and gas prices. However as provincial coffers overflow, there is an undertow of anxiety that a bust must inevitably follow.

Volatile commodity prices are familiar to Albertans so fears of a collapse are not unfounded. Media reports of resentment and envy in other provinces fuel the suspicion that this is a re-run of an old movie and some of the province’s wealth will be skimmed off by Ottawa. As the debate over Alberta’s affluence rages, it is entirely possible that the rest of Canada will get the impression that as nouveau riche Albertans gloat over their good fortune, they care little about the rest of the country. Nothing could be further from the truth, but as there is some hysteria about a possible raid on the treasury, mixed signals are emanating from the province. Albertans may have a tendency to swagger a bit, to delight in their good fortune but I don’t believe we are mean-spirited.

This book is intended to rectify some misconceptions about this province. It covers a lot of ground as the Alberta story can only be understood against the backdrop of earlier events. In our current affluent circumstances it is useful to be reminded that Alberta’s pioneers were less fortunate. They had to cope with poverty, foreclosures and crop failures. As they struggled to come to terms with their circumstances, their mettle was tested and their legacy shows they were up to the challenge.

Doreen Barrie is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the University of Calgary. She wrote the political biography on Ralph Klein in "Alberta’s Premiers of the Twentieth Century," edited Bradford J. Rennie. She has also written on party financing in Alberta, and environmental protection in federal states. She is currently President-Elect of the Western Social Science Association based in the U.S. She has written a "Citizen’s Guide to Canadian Health Care" which is distributed electronically.