Another decade, another Trudeau, another stab at sovereignty in Alberta

On a sunny Sunday in Calgary, Alberta's separatists are on the move, pounding the pavement at the city's popular Lilac Festivalon the hunt for signatures.

Larry Smith isworking the crowd, looking for support for hisfledgling political movement, the Western Independence Party of Alberta (WIPA).

Truth is,WIPA isn't quite a political party just yet. Before that can happen in Alberta, it needs signatures and lots of them.

To be registered as a political party in the province,you need 7,868 electorsor about one-third of one per cent of eligible voters to sign on the dotted line.

Trying to achievethat goal has these three middle-aged Alberta sovereigntists wadingthrough the sweaty festivalcrowd aspulsing reggae music drifts along with them.

Their pitch is simple:Alberta doesn't get a fair deal financially or politically in Confederation and it's time to get out.

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"We are essentially governed by Central Canada and that will never change unless we get our sovereignty," says Larry Smith,WIPA'sfounder and de factoleader.

For Smith, the list of grievances against the federal government is long: "Taxes, immigration, regulations, carbon tax, I could probably go on," he says with a laugh.

'Keep our money here'

And after three years of tough times, those beefs resonate in Calgary, withmost peoplethe three approachhappy to sign.

Clipboard in hand, WIPA memberLarry Stadlermakes hiscase to Karen Foster as he presses her for a signature.

"The whole point is we want to keep our money here," Stadlersays as he hands Foster a pen.

She signs, perhaps seeing an opportunity to mitigate some of the pain felt by Calgary'senergy sector in recent years.

"Anything that can be done to help rebuild the citywould be great." says Foster.

But when asked why she supports Alberta`s secession from Canada, Foster is less sure.

"Is that what it is?Oh, I did not hear that part of it."

It is a pattern that repeats itself throughout the afternoon. Most people sign the petition, but few seem to fully comprehend that the fellows with the clipboards want to take Alberta out of Canada.

Longstanding grievances

No matter,according to Smith. "Just get the signatures and then they can read our policies and decide."

What that independence looks like isn't entirely clear. Smith would be open to merging with other Western provinces like Saskatchewan and British Columbia to form a new country or to having Alberta go it alone.

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To understand the allureof Albertaindependence, youmust first grasp that thechief grievances are both longstanding, andbased in fact, even if they are at timestaken out of context.

For a start, federal elections are often decided in Canadabefore voting has wrapped upin the West, adding to the perception for some,that Albertavoters don'tmatter.

And Albertansgenerally pay more than the averageCanadianin federal taxes, while less cash flows to Alberta from Ottawa compared to other provinces.

Statistics Canada figures show thatin 2015, only four provinces Alberta, Saskatchewan, B.C and Ontario contributed more to federal coffers than they received back in services and Alberta's deficit was significantly larger than the other three combined.

The numbers speak for themselves, according to University of Calgary economist Trevor Tombe.

"We definitely pay more to the federal government than the federal government spends in Alberta."

Tombe says that including CPP payments, the federal government collected about $27 billion more in Alberta in 2015than it spent in the province.

Yes, that is billion with a "B."

Actually a good thing

It is that discrepancy that is most often cited by supportersof separationasthe reason for Alberta independence and the one that resonates most as the men from WIPA make their case.

However, Tombearguesthat thediscrepancy is actually a good thing, "an unavoidable consequence of Alberta being a very rich province."

Tombepoints outthat with some exceptions all Canadians are taxed at the same rate federally, which means that Alberta pays more because"we have a lot of high-income households and a lot of very profitable corporations."

As for the lower-than-average levelsof federal spending in Alberta, Tombe says that is also primarily a result ofthe province's demographics.

"We have by far the lowest share of people over 65 andso what that means is that payments of Old Age Security will be a lot lower, payments fromCPP will be a lot lower."

But these nuanced arguments often fall on deaf ears in a province immersed in an economicdownturn and struggling to get itssputtering energy industry humming again.

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At times like this, rightly or wrongly,any perceived meddling by the federal government is seen by many Albertansas particularly egregious.

Cue the backlash to Prime Minister JustinTrudeau'snational carbon tax, which would kick in even if the provincial NDP is punted from the premier's office in two years and the provincial carbon tax is repealed.

If this story sounds familiar, it's because it is.

It was a similar scenein 1982, the last time Alberta separatists were gaining any real traction. Trudeau's father, Pierre, was prime minister and his reviled National Energy Program had been in place for two years.

The attempt to redistribute wealth from Alberta's energy sector hada devastating impact on the province's economy. The unemployment rate exploded from less than four per cent when the NEP was introduced to nearly10 per cent just two years later.

Bankruptcies skyrocketed 150 per cent and housingprices in Edmonton and Calgary cratered, dropping more than 40 per cent by 1985and forcingmany Albertansto walk away from their homes.

Visceral reaction

Not surprisingly, reaction to the NEPwas visceralandthe popularity of the separatist Western CanadaConcept party surged.

In February 1982, WCC candidate Gordon Keslerwas elected in a byelectionto serve as an MLA in Alberta.Kesler was the first separatist to be elected to a provincial legislature outside of Quebec.

Back at theLilac Festival, the boys from WIPAare taking things one step at a time, one signature at a time. Their message of Western alienation isn't a new one it once fuelled the rise of the Reform Party and still hits home with many in the provincetoday.

Smith squats down next to a couple sitting on the sidewalk eatingice cream. In less than a minute, both have signed the sheet of paper on Smith's worn clipboard, enamoured by his promise to "keep the money in Alberta."

Smith says that if WIPAgets the nearly 8,000 signatures it needs, it hopes to run a full slate of candidates in the next provincial election set for2019.

It's a goal that will require more than just pen strokes, andwill test what, ifany, actual support exists for sovereignty in Alberta.

Despite the daunting task ahead, Smith remains upbeat about hisfledgling party's prospects in two years.

"Realistically, I think we have a very good opportunity to form the Opposition."