Since you are comparing Canada and the U.S.A., let's look at some popular phrasing from each's Constitutions:

U.S.A. ''life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness''

Canada ''peace, order, and good government''

Those are fundamental to the identity of each nation's people. Are they core beliefs of the majority of their citizens? Probably. Are Canadians ready to fight a civil war over Alberta separatism? Not at this point, even slightly.

It's more complex than that. I know tech workers are fond of reductionism, but it is not workable here.

In order to draw the statement and comparison you just have, you have to throw out ALL legal and historical fact. And also decide that the rights of the Aboriginal land owners in Alberta mean absolutely nothing.

I don't know what it's like to be American, but I presume that not even they would be on board with wholesale land confiscations on such a massive scale. Sets a bad precedent, doesn't it?

i did a bit of playing with aer data back in december, and was super surprised just how distributed the wells are.

without doubt there is a main concentration around Lloydminister though, and the developed oil sands at least are all in one place

i think its mostly people that live pretty far from any oil fields that are the big proponents?

kinda red deer ish? west of the queen e?

the actual oil industry and workers are either in the cities, or from out of province, and work seasonally-ish on the oil fields. dunno if its true anymore, but there used to be a joke that it was all newfies, who'd work just long enough to get unemployment, then head back home til it runs out, then around again.

Neither group has any particular incentive to have alberta be independent, nor a US state. The businesses might want to replace the newfies and albertans with more predictable undocumented latino labour, but they dont have experience in how to do that or hide say, injuries, from the government.

that said, a vote still isnt a bad thing - itll shower alberta with federal attention to get things alberta wants, like pipelines east, west, and north, and Id love to have the alberta grid connected to newfie hydro, rather than having quebec sell newfie power to americans

Speaking as an Albertan, it's only a very loud and vocal minority. The UCP government has seen that the premier only stays in power if they cowtow to the fringe crazies in the party, and that's what she's doing.