Article content

Trying to get central Canada to pay attention to the West’s legitimate concerns is going to be even tougher than expected. It’s just not in the mindset of most central Canadians to accept that we have a right to be angry with how federal policies are harming our regional economy.

Take for example figures put together by University of Calgary economist Trevor Tombe earlier this week that show even Canada’s most prosperous provinces lag far behind the richest states in per capita GDP.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or GUNTER: Hey Quebec, don't bite the hand that feeds Back to video

The first-place province, Alberta, at $64,000 per capita in US dollars is a full quarter behind the first-place state, New York, at $86,000. And Ontario, at $48,000, is just a fraction above Kentucky at $47,000.

You would think this startling news would prompt Canadian leaders to talk about lowering business taxes and easing all sorts of regulations to jumpstart the economy. But, no, mostly it has just caused central Canadian commentators to say something like, “See, see, Alberta has nothing to complain about. It’s still rich.”