Western Canada. Love it, hate it or indifferent?

[kwoldtimer]

Edit: Assumed someone was referring to me. May have been mistook.

[SignalHillHiker]

Originally Posted by Chadillaccc

Lol why you say that? He's one of the few people on here I have had a beer with. He's much nicer in person.

Oh, just joking with him.

I've only met a handful so far. Denscity, SurrealPlaces, Ayreonaut, Architype, Copes, Marty_Mcfly, and jeddy1989. All awesome.

You can basically line them up from West to East according to height, with jeddy1989 and I at the bottom. It's hilarious. We go downtown with Copes and Ayreonaut and it's like we're bringing the ring to Mordor.

[Chadillaccc]

I've met quite a few of the Calgary ones, there are meetups twice a year or so. Plus one of my friends in Edmonton whom I met off the forum also happens to be a member of SSP.

[subdude]

Originally Posted by rousseau

Y I'm happy to overlook their inherent shortcomings as prairie people.

4-letter-word you.

[Drybrain]

Originally Posted by Antigonish

Now when I hear any form of western bashing I feel compelled to stick up for my adopted home. People who take digs at this place either never lived here or have a pine cone stuck in their ass, this place is awesome! Very progressive and forward thinking, something that's lacking back on the east coast.

I think the idea that Atlantic Canada isn't forward-looking is only partially true, as is the idea that Alberta is dynamic and forward-looking. It depends on what cultural sphere you're talking about. Certainly in business and political circles, Alberta is still very conservative--oddly, for a place with a history of roguish personalities, I always found it to be a very go-along to get-along place, with not a lot of boat-rocking going on.

On the other hand, it's not as politically regressive as some people mistakenly think. It's complicated, but I think the east=backwards, west=progressive dichotomy has more to do with the cultural atmosphere created by the respective economic situations, more than the actual ideological or cultural tendencies of people who live there. (Who are probably pretty similar in most respects.)

I'm sure it depends where you're from, of course. Being in Halifax is very different from being in Miramichi. But, of course, being in downtown Calgary is a whole different thing than being in Lethbridge.

[Chadillaccc]

I think that's exactly what he meant. That's how I took it at least.


Also, Lethbridge is a large and extremely fast growing city, so it's not really comparable in the Halifax - Miramichi dichotomy. Good, more accurate Albertan examples would be Drumheller or Brooks, economically regressive, but socially progressive, small, stagnant places.

[ue]

Originally Posted by Boris2k7

It's more or less the same thing in the West, due to geography. An awful lot of people in BC and AB have never been east of SK, except to catch a connecting flight at Pearson. Flying to Eastern Canada is expensive and usually not seen as much of a destination. L.A. is closer than Toronto and the round trip to and from the latter will set me back almost twice as much. And if we are talking about by car... it takes 3 or 4 hours just to get to the border. Lots of Albertans vacation either in Montana or the BC interior as a result.

Now, having said that, I have personally been to the East a number of times. I'll probably be heading back out there again this summer.

From Edmonton, LA and Toronto are merely equidistant! It really makes you appreciate the vastness of Canada. Go east and you practically have an entire continent before you actually leave Canada, go south and in a 3hr flight, you're almost over the US and in Mexico!

I'm not sure if Eastern Canada is seen as less of a destination, though. It really depends on who you talk to, though. I think the Maritimes have near-universal charm among Westerners, though, but its often viewed as too far and expensive. A lot of people find Montreal and Quebec City very interesting as well. Toronto doesn't seem to be viewed as much of a destination compared to Chicago or Montreal or of course, NYC, but many still make the pilgrimage, especially because Niagara Falls is only a couple hours away.

Originally Posted by rousseau

Nice. But no. Canadians can't be poncey. For some reason my indifference to the west, expressed explicitly in about four posts over the years I've been on this board, seems to touch a nerve and live in the memories of certain posters. It's the old Canadian thing: people can't accept indifference, and are aggressively "butthurt" if you express anything less than undying admiration for their geographical location.

I agree that my tonal command is lacking, insomuch as I wish Canadians weren't so flummoxed by the very idea of it. Yeah, I'm probably in denial about that.

It's not that we can't accept indifference, we can and have (many people before you expressed indifference towards the West), but it's the way you're doing it which is pissing people off.

[bikegypsy]

Originally Posted by Razor

I wish we had more populous prairie towns and cities..A significant "mid west" economic region with a real strong voice to balance out the country.It is getting there though, and the prairie provinces definitely have more clout than years past.

I share your opinion... At least in respect to Saskatchewan and Manitoba. It's such a faint voice. I wish for these places to gain charisma in the next decades.

[Chadillaccc]

I'm sure they will. Winnipeg already has a fairly strong voice, and Saskatoon and Regina both have tons of potential.

[Cyro]

To no one in particular.

Posters sometimes wonder why newer posters are reluctant to post in the Canadian thread, not all but most, and stay in their sub forums.
Read the last 3 pages. Formulate your own opinion.

As to the thread and topic, I view Canada as one but unique in every way,be it territory, province, city or town, from coast to coast in my travels. Being from the West, I find the eastern provinces and cities fascinating but also feel the Western provinces, cities and towns just as intriguing.

Am I sitting on the fence in this discussion, maybe, is one area more interesting in some aspects, possibly, It's all a matter of what an individual finds important in their lives, how and where they were brought up and maybe what they read on forums such as this one , It's a personal opinion. All opinions will vary.

[ue]

Originally Posted by Chadillaccc

I'm sure they will. Winnipeg already has a fairly strong voice, and Saskatoon and Regina both have tons of potential.

What? Not really. It has a faint voice nationally, but that's about it. For all this talk of the "Rise of the West", it's mostly been about the Rise of Alberta and in more recent years, Saskatchewan. BC is more or less the same in its national position. It has an important voice, but it won't be the voice challenging Ontario and Quebec, that will be Alberta with some help from Saskatchewan.

[Chadillaccc]

Compared to Hamilton and Quebec City I feel Winnipeg has a relatively strong voice, probably because it's the largest city in the central 1/3 of our country's geographic area.

[saffronleaf]

I like it in many ways, but I disagree strongly with their preference for the Conservative Party.

[Echoes]

Originally Posted by saffronleaf

I like it in many ways, but I disagree strongly with their preference for the Conservative Party.

Me. Too.

[ue]

Originally Posted by Chadillaccc

Compared to Hamilton and Quebec City I feel Winnipeg has a relatively strong voice, probably because it's the largest city in the central 1/3 of our country's geographic area.

Hamilton, definitely. It is in the shadow of Toronto. Quebec City is very, very ignored in national media, but understandably so. Quebec beats to its own drum; frankly, it's surprising how much attention Montreal still gets.

Winnipeg and Manitoba don't seem to be getting as much attention as Saskatchewan, though, which has a similar provincial population but no cities near the size of Winnipeg.

Originally Posted by saffronleaf

I like it in many ways, but I disagree strongly with their preference for the Conservative Party.

Alberta =/= The West

[SignalHillHiker]

I think the West has a much stronger voice than Atlantic Canada, but I think each province's relative share in that voice is comparable.

Main group:

Alberta = Nova Scotia
Saskatchewan = Prince Edward Island
Manitoba = New Brunswick

Kinda related but not really in the group:

B.C. = Newfoundland

[ue]

I would say that BC and the Prairies are more similar than Newfoundland and the Maritimes. There is perhaps less cultural overlap between Manitoba and BC, but there definitely is in Alberta and Saskatchewan. Yes, BC is a distinct region away from the Prairie provinces, but I wouldn't go so far as to say they're off on their own little island either.

[Rusty van Reddick]

Originally Posted by saffronleaf

I like it in many ways, but I disagree strongly with their preference for the Conservative Party.

Same here. Especially when Albertans (no idea about the huge numbers who vote CPC in BC SK or MB) are actually, with respect to values and policy matters, exactly as progressive as Ontarians, but they vote for the likes of Rob Anders. Worst thing about living here.

[SignalHillHiker]

Originally Posted by ue

I would say that BC and the Prairies are more similar than Newfoundland and the Maritimes. There is perhaps less cultural overlap between Manitoba and BC, but there definitely is in Alberta and Saskatchewan. Yes, BC is a distinct region away from the Prairie provinces, but I wouldn't go so far as to say they're off on their own little island either.

The cultural lines are blurry here as well.

While most Newfoundlanders can instantly identify any Maritime accent as foreign, I struggle sometimes with the accents of Cape Breton and often assume they're from a part of Newfoundland I simply can't place. Prince Edward Island has the most abrasively different accent. It has a twang that is so strong to my ears as to be distracting when talking with people. The rest of Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, kind of blend into the normal Canadian television accent to me.

Culturally, there are a lot of superficial similarities. Kitchen parties, seafood, drinking, love of live music at family gatherings, etc. But it definitely feels very different, especially in New Brunswick. Nova Scotia feels very similar to southern Ontario, a lot of the same cultural traits, lifestyles, and... priorities - but New Brunswick is its own thing entirely. Outside of Saint John, it feels almost like a landlocked prairie province. That raw, coastal edge in people is gone. Probably similar to coastal/interior B.C. in level of difference.

In Manitoba, it seemed most of the cultural variations were between aboriginals and minority groups. I spent time with Ukrainians, Somalis, Filipinos, English/Irish, etc. That's their basis. You won't find, say, traditional Manitoba folk costumes and folk dancing the way you do here. It's all broken down a layer below that to an identity based on country of origin.

It's certainly worth seeing, though. I went to see Virsky perform in Winnipeg. Blew my mind. Makes Newfoundland folk dancing (I was in a folk dancing group growing up, ) look like Kindergarten nap time.

• Video Link

[Echoes]

Originally Posted by Rusty van Reddick

Same here. Especially when Albertans (no idea about the huge numbers who vote CPC in BC SK or MB) are actually, with respect to values and policy matters, exactly as progressive as Ontarians, but they vote for the likes of Rob Anders. Worst thing about living here.

What I don't understand about Saskatchewan is that, provincially, we have a long history of NDP governments. The first socialist government in North America was elected in Saskatchewan (Tommy Douglas and the CCF). The NDP were in government here until 2007 when the conservative Sask Party were voted in. To their credit, they have (for the most part) governed from a moderate centre-right position in their time.

But it's been going on 10 years that we've sent almost nothing but Conservatives to Ottawa (except for the one outlier, the Liberals' Ralph Goodale). And the Conservative MPs we send to Ottawa are absolute embarassments. I'm looking forward to the next federal election when Saskatoon and Regina (finally) have exclusively urban ridings that will surely elect at least a couple MPs that AREN'T Conservative.