You don’t know what you’ve got ‘till it’s gone.

Over the past few months, we have heard some concerns expressed about the treatment of Alberta in Canada. However, in the midst of this conversation, we haven’t heard enough about the benefits of living in Canada.  

We are tied with Switzerland as the most admired country in the world. We are ranked in the upper echelon of the happiest countries in the world, ahead of the United States, the United Kingdom, and France. We are among the wealthiest countries of our size. 

We are a true democracy, with an independent judiciary, and governed by the rule of law.  We are a world leader in the protection and advancement of human rights. We have universal health care.  We are among the best educated countries in the world. 

We have a remarkably diverse population with a mixture of Indigenous peoples and people who have immigrated from around the world, and we have found a way to work and live together in reasonable harmony.

We fought bravely in two World Wars and in conflicts around the world, but we have been spared from armed conflict on our soil for over two hundred years.

We are the home of Joni Mitchell, Margaret Atwood, the Group of Seven, Ryan Reynolds, Connor McDavid, and the Canadian Football League. We have Tim Horton’s, pizza with pineapple, maple syrup, ice wine, and poutine.

We have the world’s longest coastline and over 2,000,000 lakes.

Insulin was discovered in Canada. The telephone was invented here, as were the egg carton and basketball.

As Barack Obama said on his visit in 2016, “the world needs more Canada”.

We have built this country together and we have much to be proud of. In financial terms, Albertans may have contributed above their weight in recent years. But Alberta’s prosperity has come in large part because we are part of Canada. Alberta has prospered and grown with the support of workers from Newfoundland and Labrador, engineers from Saskatchewan, labourers and professionals from across Canada, and doctors from countries around the world. Our place within Canada has been critical to our success.

When we think about the concerns that we may have about our relationship with the rest of the country, we should also think about all the benefits we enjoy, and that we continue to enjoy, because we are part of Canada.

On October 19, we are voting for Option 1 to remain in Canada.  As Joni Mitchell famously sang, “You don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone.”