Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site ubc-cs.UUCP Path: utzoo!utcsrgv!ubc-vision!ubc-cs!acton From: acton@ubc-cs.UUCP (Donald Acton) Newsgroups: can.politics Subject: Re: (WE)(EA)ster myopic viewpoints Message-ID: <893@ubc-cs.UUCP> Date: Sun, 16-Dec-84 22:45:49 EST Article-I.D.: ubc-cs.893 Posted: Sun Dec 16 22:45:49 1984 Date-Received: Mon, 17-Dec-84 12:43:44 EST References: <854@ubc-cs.UUCP> <653@watcgl.UUCP> <874@ubc-cs.UUCP> <280@utcs.UUCP> Reply-To: acton@ubc-cs.UUCP (Donald Acton) Organization: UBC Department of Computer Science, Vancouver, B.C., Canada Lines: 79 Summary: In article <280@utcs.UUCP> shindman@utcs.UUCP (Paul Shindman) writes: >In four years you should have no reason to blame the "easterners" for >myopia since it will by your "western" MPs with the power to enact change >whom you must complain to. What makes you think that the western MPs have power? I shall just remind you of the election results. REGION seats PC LIB NDP OTHER Atlantic 32 25 7 0 0 Quebec 75 58 17 0 0 Ontario 95 67 14 13 1 Prairies 49 39 1 9 0 BC 28 19 1 8 0 Territories 3 3 0 0 0 The West has a combined total of 58 conservative MPs, fewer than Ontario and equal to that of Quebec. With only about 27% of the tory MPs being from the West it is not very likely that they have the power you think they do in forming government policy. What region of Canada is most responsible for the election of this conservative government? It is not western Canada. The West has voted overwhelmingly against the Liberals for more than ten years. It was the dawning of common sense in Quebec and Ontario that finally put the Conservatives into power and it is Quebec and Ontario that shall decide if they remain there. To ensure a long reign the tories will no doubt make sure the voters in those ridings are properly rewarded. (Whether they dig into the pork barrel as deeply as the Liberals remains to be seen.) In Mr Mulroney's riding the pay out has already begun. According to the CBC $900,000 has already been spent in his riding and much more is on the way. They also showed a clip of Mr Mulroney saying that he didn't think there were enough roads in his riding and he was going to make sure that that changed. Since when did the construction and maintenance of roads become a federal responsibility? Maybe he could throw some of that highway money to BC to help with the construction of the Coquihalla (sp?) highway. :-) >My personal prediction is that not a helluvalot will change, becuase those >"western" politicians who now are involved in running the country will, >on the whole, act for the betterment of all of Canada. From a western viewpoint, if nothing changes then our MPs aren't doing a very good job. As pointed out above the West has voted against the Liberals for over 10 years, presumably if we were happy with the way the Liberals were treating us we would have elected them during that time period. Or perhaps you think that the treatment the West got under the Trudeau regime was for the betterment of all Canada. If that is the case then the West will remain, as Mordicai Richler put it, an internal colony and we will be even more justified in claiming that we aren't being treated equitably. > On your next trip >down east you should ask around and see what people think...odds are they >really don't give a hoot and will ask you about regional disparity and >why you have such a paranoia about "(grumble grumble)...those easterners!!!". Part of the problem is that people in the east don't give a *hoot* about what the West thinks. Just because the average person in Toronto doesn't think there is problem doesn't mean there isn't one. If the West doesn't have a problem why do we continually voice our displeasure with the federal government at the ballot box? Why did the Confederation of Regions Party place very close seconds in southern Manitoba ridings if everything was OK? Why has the Liberal party been wiped out at both the federal and provincial levels for years in the West? Surely it can't be because they were treating the West fairly. The next time you are out West, especially if you are in Alberta or BC, ask a few of us what we think of the past federal government and don't be surprised if we don't deliver stunning platitudes about the government. Now for my prediction. If things don't change, the Conservatives in the West are going to find themselves in the same sinking boat with the Liberals. The result will be increased NDP representation and the election of members from the Confederation of Regions Party. Donald Acton