"We will see a referendum on Alberta Independence regardless of what party is in power." - Christopher Scott, Interim CEO of APP
Good day, APP Members! (and potential future members!)
It’s been a very busy summer for me so far, and I finally have some time to sit down and address the APP membership. (The reality is that I don’t have the time, but I find it because I believe whole-heartedly in the APP message, and vision for our province.) So here we are. It’s 2023. 2020, 2021 and 2022 seem like distant memories. Some of my memories include my business being chained and locked by a pseudo-government organization that has way too much power, watching as federal employees and federally regulated industries removed the rights of their workers without even a thought, and stories from families who are now divided- broken apart, due to the way the government and our leaders treated people. Even worse I have memories of speaking to hundreds, maybe thousands of people some of which have their own memories of losing their loved ones after they participated in mandated medical treatments.
For me, the story is not best told in the problems we’ve faced or the tragedies that we’ve witnessed unfolding around us but the potential solutions for those problems that give us the opportunity to solve many more problems. Now, this is not to say that the terrible things that have happened shouldn’t be shared so we don’t make those mistakes again, what I’m saying is that if we are to do better, if we are to prepare a better future for our children then we must focus on solutions. Our focus must be razor sharp. Our desire to achieve something great, something never done before must be unwavering and must also be able to withstand the ultimate adversary to any cause- ourselves. The root of failure is not what’s around us. It isn’t external sources or influences- these things will always be present. We can’t control the environment in which we exercise our desire to make change. The only thing we can control, the only thing we can immediately change is ourselves. And when we accept that reality we can begin to be the change we want to see in the world.
Some of you may know, and others maybe not- I was present and I spoke at the very first meeting of what would become the Alberta Prosperity Project. In a, oilfield shop in Nisku, under the cover of darkness, (against the rules,) like some WWII era meeting of some sort of resistance group. I witnessed real Albertans speaking about their desire to fix what’s wrong in our world. I witnessed politicians trying to get in front of the small parade that was being created, (and fail.) And at the end of the evening I was left with something that fewer and fewer people have these days- Hope. As my business was being attacked, my wealth being stripped, my outlook for the future of the province bleak, I had hope. That hope came from the idea that we can be free and prosperous if we simply do what I had been saying all along- stand up and say enough is enough.
As the AUP grew there were challenges, to be sure. Some folks saw the AUP, the parade, as an opportunity for personal benefit. This caused internal challenges that resulted in a division that was unreconcilable. Those who are focused on the future of the province were not shaken, nor were they distracted by this split, on the contrary- their tenacity prevailed and they continued on. The APP was born and the quest for freedom and prosperity for Alberta continued. Of course, as is the case with any group that’s made up of human beings, the challenges were not over. As my role within the APP became more formalized I began to notice another split occurring. The division was occurring due to an anger towards the government of the day, an anger which I shared as well. Let me explain.
During the course of the pandemic I watched as the government, under the leadership of Jason Kenney, actively encourage Albertans to hate each other. Their destructive, irresponsible policies were seemingly unrelenting. It seemed as though at every turn there was something new that was harming Albertans. And then, we watched as the Government rolled out access to, and demanded participation with a medical intervention that very obviously did not achieve the goal it intended. Some of you may not agree with me on that point and all I will say is that truth will eventually prevail, and the numbers will speak for themselves. We watched as people lost their jobs, and in some cases their lives due to these policies. The reward for compliance was the ability to live life pseudo-normally. Or in a couple cases a million dollars. The punishment for non-compliance was removal of the rights and freedoms we had thought were inalienable. The government of the day- The United Conservative Party, was a tyrannical and we hated them. The MLA’s seemed to have lost their voices and in turn we lost ours. But as it turns out, we did NOT lose our voices. The blame was put squarey where it did NOT belong- People blamed a political party.
What is a political party? Can a party be blamed for the actions of those that are within it? I would argue no. A political party is nothing more than a group of like-minded people who come together for common cause. If the leadership within it is poor, the party will suffer for it. If the leadership is good then all will benefit. The person who should have taken the blame is the person who looks back at us in the mirror every morning as we brush our teeth- ourselves. How many of us did not engage in politics because we were not interested, or we thought it didn’t affect us, or even worse- how many don’t engage in politics because we think it makes no difference? Have you heard anyone say, “selections not elections?” or, “Canada isn’t a country anyway?” and then not use their voices in a democratic way? Those are two of the most dangerous and counterproductive ideas to our democracy- the lie that our voices don’t matter. They are distractions that cause some to chase fairy tales, to spin around in circles and never accomplish anything. Distractions that allow the tyrants to rule un-opposed. We cannot afford to fall prey to those distractions. We cannot afford to allow unfounded accusations to derail a movement, the only movement with the potential to save this province and potentially this country.
The Alberta Prosperity Project has one goal- to lay the foundation to ensure a prosperous Alberta. We know that the single most influential aspect of prosperity is FREEDOM! As of today, we find that we are not free. We are subject to the whims of a federal government that will compel us to take a path towards our own destruction. A path of anti-human ideas and policy. We at the Alberta Prosperity Project will NOT walk that path and we will ensure that Albertans have an option to take a different path as well. We will educate, we will lead, and we WILL encourage others to follow. Our message is strong and it is realistic. It’s legal, and it’s plausible. Once Albertans, (and others all over Canada!) hear our message they almost always stand with us and become members. Why? Because what we’re advocating for is REAL!
The APP is NOT a political party. We do NOT advocate for any politician or party. Our message is one that we expect politicians and political parties to get in front of, not the other way around. We will see a referendum on Alberta Independence regardless of what party is in power. We will work with, NEVER for politicians to ensure a free and prosperous Alberta. We will commend any government that aligns with our policies and vision, and we will condemn any government that does not. Over the course of the last year we have seen an entire government including their leader begin using our talking points! They have implemented policy that somewhat aligns with our own. We’ve watched politicians get in front of our parade! What a success that is. What an amazing thing we’ve accomplished! What a great opportunity to continue pushing ahead for all Albertans.
In closing I’d really like to drive home the significance of what’s happened over the last year in Alberta politics. Alberta has been under the boot of the federal government since we joined confederation in 1905. There have been many politicians that promised they would improve things for our province and they all failed. As it turns out, their promises were thinly veiled attempts to get your vote. They were calculated measures based on popular opinion, just like Jason Kenney’s Equalization Referendum. The APP has identified what Alberta needs to do to REALLY improve our position and we’ve laid out that path. We now have a government in Alberta that is doing things that have never been done before. We’re sailing in new waters so to speak, but thankfully for those in leadership positions these waters are not uncharted as APP has given them the map. We are the parade that the government wants to be in front of! Let’s keep working together and educating, inspiring and informing Albertans about the path to prosperity.
Let’s be the change that we want to see in the world.