Gleanings from a Morning's Surfing

First, as sited via the institution built by a man I have always admired:The Preston Manning Centre for Building Democracy

Political fulcrum shifts west with the moving Canadian population

"The latest census results show that for the first time, more Canadians now live west of Ontario than east of the province — 30.7 per cent compared to 30.6 per cent. Yukon had the biggest growth spurt at 11.6 per cent between 2006 and 2011, followed by Alberta at 10.8 per cent, nearly double the national average.

Slowly but surely, the country's political attention has turned in the same direction. Debates over national unity, official bilingualism and the troubled Atlantic fisheries continue to recede into the background."

Political attention shifts west

"On his way to China, Mr. Harper flew over his own political heartland, the region that makes trade with Asia his government’s new imperative. The oil sands, potash, the diamond mines and the demands of the western premiers now occupy the national media’s attention more than ever before.

The latest census results show that for the first time, more Canadians now live west of Ontario than east of the province – 30.7 per cent compared to 30.6 per cent. Yukon had the biggest growth spurt at 11.6 per cent between 2001 and 2011, followed by Alberta at 10.8 per cent, nearly double the national average."

The rise of western Canada  (video)

As political centre shifts, Manning now fears ‘eastern alienation’

"Preston Manning is worried about eastern alienation. This, from the Alberta politician who created an entire political movement around the mantra, “the West wants in.”

“This will sound funny coming from me. I worry about eastern alienation,” Mr. Manning told The Globe.

It does sound odd – especially given his more than 20 year fight to have the West recognized as a political force in the country.

Mr. Manning, however, has come full circle with the West finally in after last May’s election that saw the Harper Conservatives win a big majority government. His success has now created this new concern.

“The different thing after this election is this shift in the political centre of gravity of the country,” observes Mr. Manning. “It’s now an alignment between Ontario and the West, not an alignment between Ontario and Quebec. And that’s got positive implications. It’s got things to worry about, too.”"

Be sure to read the whole thing. Manning is worried about Eastern alienation. That'll be a switch, but I'm afraid whatever alienation may arise will be from leftards. People in the east who are of the conservative mind-set are more mature than that, otherwise they would be liberals or dippers.

And while on the topic of Preston Manning, the last article delves into an upcoming conference in Ottawa sponsored by the Manning Centre for Building Democracy. I got an email about this early this morning from the National Citizens Coalition. I won't be going, but it sounds like it could be as interesting as the recent CPAC gathering in Washington and you can be sure Sun TV will cover it extensively, while CBC and CTV and others will either ignore it or put as much negative spin on it as possible.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, it sounds like the old Ontario and Quebec against the rest of us era is on its way out. What - a - relief!

But one more thing, as much as I admire Preston Manning, I think we put way too much money and time into trying to keep this country's great divide together. I wish them the best, but I really don't care if central and eastern Canada are in or out. Western Canada has waited for very nearly 150 years to be in, and as it turns out we don't need to be let in. We're not even grabbing power for ourselves.  Power is shifting naturally and the rest of ya are just gonna have to deal with it. Quebec, at least the old sovereigntist one, Atlantic Canada and maybe Ontario can kiss our asses for a 150 years, if they choose to pretend this isn't happening. I, for one, am very weary of politicians wasting their time and our tax dollars trying to keep this country together. If you want in, then put down your snobbish liberal/leftist pretensions and recognize that conservatism is the future and Alberta is the new Centre of the Universe. /rant

Conservatives' agenda bold – and fraught with political risk

"Simply put, the Prime Minister, who has never had the luxury of a majority government before, has a year and a half left to be bold before the ticking of the election clock drowns out everything else.

Here is what we are going to see in the coming weeks, after Parliament resumes Monday.

• a budget that balances the books in two or three years;

• departmental spending slashed by upward of 10 per cent in order to achieve that target;

• major reforms to the immigration system, with a big push to bring in skilled workers who speak English or French, at the expense of reuniting families;

• passage of the bill to create pooled retirement plans for workers who currently don’t have pensions.

[---]

"Most contentious of all, the government plans to raise the age for receiving the Old Age Security pension supplement, probably from 65 to 67.

“The need for it is quite clear,” Government House Leader Peter Van Loan said in an interview. The cost of the plan will triple over the next two decades if nothing is done.

“It’s a question of having it sustainable over the medium and long term,” Mr. Van Loan maintained.

Both Brian Mulroney and Jean Chrétien vetoed their finance ministers’ proposals to reform the OAS, fearing the political cost of meddling with pensions. Susan Eng of the Canadian Association of Retired Persons is already at battle stations."

I don't think the old establish liberal media in Toronto understands what is happening in Canada. Mulroney and Chretien are beasts from a bygone era. The populous hasn't just moved west, it has moved on. They, and the Ontario elites are dinosaurs. So, welcome aboard, Ontario, but leave your liberal and socialist elites behind, in the grave they themselves have dug.