There are many reasons for Albertans to be unhappy with Ottawa. In fairness, I imagine there aren’t too many of our sister provinces and territories who are thrilled with Ottawa either.

For over two years, Danielle Smith has thrown gasoline on the embers of separation, encouraging Albertans to believe the Canadian dream is unsalvageable.

“A sovereign Alberta within a united Canada”.

Put another way, “honey, I want my independence to see other people within the confines of our monogamous relationship.” Is that why a Saudi Prince gifted Smith a Golden Pussy Cat?

Then there’s the slogan master, Pierre Poilievre, “Canada is Broken”. He is trying to soften his image faster than his polling numbers are falling. But lipstick on a pig only attracts the shadiest of characters.

Why is it certain politicians perform a dance fraught with peril, moonwalking in and out of feeding separatist anger?

Simple.

An angry voter, votes.

Who cares if families are broken and communities divided as a byproduct of politicians feeding anger and hate?

If I may, I challenge you to exit your Alberta pity party dome and consider this. During the National Energy Program, unemployment was 14%, today it is 6%. Interest rates were 22% then, today, 2.5%. Not once did Premier Peter Lougheed mention separation.

Is that enough for you to reconsider?

I also agree that our Alberta federal income taxes aren’t fairly shared within Canada. However, the latest iteration of “equalization” was calculated by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, remember him? He wanted a majority government, so in 2007 he pushed more funding into Quebec to get it. 65% of Albertans voted for Stephen Harper, so isn’t unfair equalization our own fault?

While I’m on the topic of accountability, Danielle Smith had a choice when she was elected. She could have united Albertans on topics we all agree on and lead us though unhappiness without encouraging separation talk. Instead, Smith coddled separatists, even inviting a referendum by lowering the threshold.

Here’s another question, since when do voters know what we need? That is a serious question. A child wants ice cream, but she needs vegetables and protein. Did Danielle Smith grow up on Foie Gras and sugar cookies? Separatists want revenge, but they need good governance.

Here is my final challenge…

Imagine being taken from your home as a child and placed into a school against your wishes. Imagine that school wasn’t just a school, but a reprogramming institution forcing religious indoctrination and literally beating your previous life out of you.

Finally, at 15 years old, you bravely grab your fiddle and escape. With little education and no money, you embark on a life on your own. Six years later you are asked by the same country which placed you into that hell hole to serve in a war on the other side of the planet. What would you do?

In 1917 that was the choice facing my grandfather, John Wilfred Laderoute, one of my namesakes.

He was born September 10, 1896, my birthday is September 9, we always celebrated them together. He was a fiddle playing carpenter who raised a large family through the great depression, seen above proudly showing off his World War One uniform.

As a young man, he was sent to the Blue Quills Residential School for reprogramming by the Canadian government. He escaped at fifteen, taking only his fiddle.

I never spoke with him about any of this, but I know who he was. Stern, smart, hard working and fearless. He was proud to serve Canada, the same country which attempted to eliminate his existence. He never said that to me, he demonstrated it to all who knew and loved him.

Always optimistic in the face of, at times, unimaginable hardships. Losing his freedom because he was indigenous. Losing his sixteen year old son, Junior, in a car crash. He was never jaded or angry.

By any standards, Wilf Laderoute had every excuse to hate Canada, instead he demonstrated grace. You remember grace? It is when you have every reason to be furious at a person or group, but you rise above the anger. Too often, I fail to meet the standard my grandfather set, but that’s on me.

My grampa loved Canada, was proud and hopeful for what he imagined Canada could be. He and I could be found on the couch Saturday nights, watching the Tommy Hunter Show and Hockey Night in Canada. He even wrote fiddle music for Don Messer’s Jubilee, all three Canadian icons.

The government stole my grandfather’s freedom as a child, he escaped, then he proudly donned a Canadian uniform, traveled by boat to Europe to fight for complete strangers on behalf of the same government which hated his very existence.

For too many Albertans today, negotiating a new deal with Ottawa to more fairly redistribute our federal income tax dollars is a bridge too far.

I always considered my grampa to be part of the Greatest Generation, although technically, he was born 5 years too early. His character made it easy to see why that generation was held in such high regard.

The Greatest Generation volunteered to serve Canada, a flawed country. Many, like my grampa, had every reason to turn away from Canada. Instead, these men proudly wore the Union Jack, boarded huge ships, traveled half way around the world to fight and die for strangers. That’s grace. That’s courage.

How will we be referring to Alberta separatists in a hundred years?

Blaine Moen is a landowner and advocate in Southern Alberta.