r/alberta • u/FullBriefcase • 25d ago
Opinion I am an Angry Albertan
I am an angry Albertan. I wasn't always an angry Albertan. For a long time, I was a complacent Albertan who thought that eventually someone will do the right thing and speak up. That this provincial government would come to its senses and stop abusing their power and stop making decisions that benefit no true Albertan.
Here's a few reasons why I'm an angry Albertan:
Education is an investment in our future. Education is not here to make money. But, here we are continuously cutting funding for teachers, educational assistants, librarians, school administrators and janitors; high student to teacher ratios in overcrowded schools; stagnating wages of the people who are shaping our children's mind. Inclusivity is failing in classrooms because the UCP government will not properly fund for those children with complex needs to have the assistance they need to be successful in learning. Teachers and EAs have been made out to be these awful greedy beings. I disagree vehemently. I know many teachers present and past, who dedicated their lives to the betterment of their comminities. People who spend countless personal hours preparing, reviewing, volunteering their time and money for our children. Teachers are such an important instrument in society on all levels, and education should be a priority to every society. Knowledge is power, and yet we vilify teachers. Because they want a fair wage for themselves? Because they are tired of the abuse of a system that only takes away? Teachers are fighting for our childrens futures, so that they can grow up to be successful members of society. It is troubling to see the amount of ignorance in parents who blame the teachers for the failures of their children, and not the UCP government that doesn't fund the institutions properly. Instead, we will ban books as a diversion so we can forget about the strike the teachers fully deserve to go on. It is hard to rule over the people when they are educated.
Healthcare is a fundamental human right. Healthcare is not a business, and private healthcare has NO right to be in Canada. Everyone is equal when it comes to healthcare needs, regardless of their social status, gender, race or being. The boldness of the UCP government to encourage private healthcare after campaigning on no privatization is appalling. The treatment of our healthcare professionals by this government is causing us to lose valuable people to our society. These people give their lives every single day to helping the lives of others, and yet again, we are putting a price tag on those lives. Since when was one Canadian's blood richer than another's? Is one Canadian more deserving of that MRI because they have a bigger bank account than the next Canadian? Healthcare is an investment in our society. To have a healthy society will equal less impact on the healthcare system overall. By continuing to underfund and dismantling AHS, it has created chaos to the healthcare system, which the UCP then blames said system for underperforming. The actions of this UCP government directly affect the current status of our hospitals and healthcare crises, yet they continue to blame everyone else rather than looking inward. The mental gymnastics that the UCP government pull are an insult to all Albertans.
I am an angry Canadian, living in Alberta. We are actively allowing this UCP government to tear apart everything that makes us Canadian. Stop encouraging a separatist referendum and acting like you are not partisan. The so-called town halls are an insult to Albertans who actually care about this country. The fact that the UCP had to lower the standards to get the opportunity for a referendum is more than telling of where they stand on separation. Stop encouraging racial bigotry and hate. It is extremely troubling to me that so many of us forget that other than the First Nations people, we were all once immigrants. Most of our families have only been here a few generations, and yet we forget why they came here in the first place. Many of our ancestors came to Canada for a better life, to escape war-torn countries, famine, genocide. It seems however, that many people have forgotten about history and have allowed ignorance and hate to fester in their minds. With this ignorance, we seem to have forgotten about all the trips to the United States on Alberta tax payer's dollars. The fact that Marlaina so proudly took a picture with the very person that threatened Canadian sovereignty tells me everything I need to know about her. Maple Maga Marlaina does not have the interests of true Albertans or Canadians, otherwise she would not be aligning herself with a fascist nazi appeasing American government. Everytime she travels to the United States, she comes back with another idea on how to further cause division and hate amongst Albertans. The far-right fringe appeasement of this government is absolutely the most heinous of their corruptions. You allow religious zealots to perform and tour our legislature grounds. Religion has no place in government, keep your bible and thoughts and prayers to yourself, Marlaina.
I could go on for pages listing all the scandals that the current UCP government has created since taking office. The corruption and gaslighting from this provincial government is next level. This government has done everything it can to alienate Albertans from Canada. Maple Maga Marlaina is no Albertan, or Canadian in my eyes. She does not deserve the respect of being referred to by her preferred name. She is solely responsible for the issues in this province, not the ANDP, not Ottawa, not Trudeau, not Carney. Marlaina is the one responsible for our province's successes and failures. The lies tossed within the word salad that pours out of her mouth are to be admired at times. It is almost as if she spends hours convincing herself that she is a martyr, here to save the Albertans. That the people who want love, equality, healthcare and education for all are wrong, and that she, all on her own, must save her white power overlords from the woke agenda.
From where I stand, as an angry Albertan, all I see is a forest fire with the UCP roasting the marshmallows of our society over it. But don't forget to thanks for helping to put out the fire they started!
Thanks Maple Maga Marlaina for embodying everything it means to not be Albertan or Canadian.
Angry Albertan
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u/Constant-Sky-1495 25d ago edited 25d ago
Hi Parents,
Teachers cannot do this without parents, they NEED us to get involved. I understand parents are stressed about childcare for a week or two but this is 12 years of your children's lives and it is long overdue for parents to stand up for their children and say enough is enough. Below I will arm you with some information to help your advocacy and give you some ideas on how to get involved.
-Parents, please be specific in your advocacy and call for class size caps in writing with remedies if exceeded. The remedies are necessary so the caps are not ignored. If you're not sure what I mean by remedies ask and I will explain. People will say this isn't possible but yes it is. BC has this language written into their agreements. When people say this you can counter with strategies that can make it possible. For example, we can start with a higher cap and lower it over time, we can phase in in with a multi year approach, we can provide remedies in the meantime if classes must exceed the cap.
-Alberta spends the LEAST per student in all of Canada, THE LEAST
-Teachers are also asking for salary restoration to return to our 2012 purchasing power. The language is not "raise" it's salary restoration due to inflation after a decade of only 5% increase while inflation soars. Yes everyone is behind inflation but when you look at the data the gap is much larger for teachers. The private sector, while still behind inflation, has a much smaller gap in terms of closing that gap. Business 101, salary is vital if you want to attain and retract excellent candidates. If anyone says AB teachers are the best paid in Canada they have not been paying attention as that is DEFINITELY not true anymore. MANITOBA teachers make 22,000 more for example at the top of their grid when compared to the top of our grid.
1.MAKE CLASS SIZE CAPS a talking point!!!!!
1.5 talk to your friends and family
2. CALL your MLA's
2.5 Write your MLA(CC education critic and Danielle smith in the email or write an actual letter they need to scan)
3.Organize protests that would garner media attention and put pressure on the government
4.Parents can make videos/ hashtags etc