The Alaska Legislature last week approved a resolution supporting Canada’s independence, a body check on President Donald Trump’s unsportsmanlike conduct toward our neighbor. The resolution says the Legislature opposes “restrictive trade measures or tolls” between the U.S. and Canada, playing defense against the president’s slap-shot attacks on our friends.
Legislative resolutions have no force of law. They are merely a way for lawmakers to express frustration, or support, without spending money, changing state law or risking too much political pushback.
As long as we’re going to talk about well-intended resolutions that can’t change the world, there’s no reason not to step even further into cross-border relations: The Alaska Legislature should propose seceding from the United States and joining up with the Yukon in Canada.
Last week’s resolution already lays much of the groundwork for combining the two northern regions. It reminds Alaskans “we have an important relationship with Canadians, those shared values of Arctic partners, our relationship as good neighbors, and keeping our partnership with Canada alive isn’t just good policy, it’s critical to the way we live.”
What better way to live in harmony than to live together. The bonds are as endless as the 1,980-mile Yukon River that joins us together.
Mining is the Yukon’s biggest industry, and mining is one of Alaska’s biggest hopes for future job growth. Tourism is strong in the Yukon, same as Alaska, with camping, hiking, river tours, kayaking, canoeing and fishing popular in both places.
The Alaska Highway goes through the Yukon. Just think how much easier it would be with one less border crossing. Drivers could steer from British Columbia into the Yukon without needing to show their U.S. passport. Besides, it’s about time Alaskans learned how to read road signs in kilometers.
Becoming part of the Yukon would go a long way to resolving the border dispute between the U.S. and Canada in the Beaufort Sea — a debate over the angle of the straight line into the ocean from the Alaska/Yukon boundary. No border, no more fight over the line.
Alaska and the Yukon already share a 752-mile straight-line border — no nooks and crannies or river banks or turns to fight over there.
We share similar geography, though the Yukon’s Mount Logan, at 19,551 feet, would lose its title as tallest mountain in Canada if Alaska’s Denali became part of the realm, reaching an additional 800 feet to the sky.
The Yukon and Alaska share many of the same challenges in providing public services. Both have a sparse, spread-out population; roads that break up more often than teenage lovers; weather that tests car batteries and hand warmers. Similar to Alaska, most of the Yukon’s land is outside organized municipalities, even though most of its residents live in organized cities.
And nothing against Krispy Kreme, but Alaskans could load up duty-free on Tim Hortons donuts in Whitehorse and be home in time for breakfast the next morning.
Alaska and the Yukon were both settled by outsiders, looking to profit from the natural resources. And both are young. Alaska reached statehood in 1959; the Yukon territorial legislature didn’t gain real authority over its affairs until 1979. We can learn and grow old together.
Of course, both Alaska and the Yukon are dependent on federal dollars to maintain our economies. But with Trump hacking away at federal spending, including programs for Alaska, maybe it’s time to cut the apron strings and move in with Canada. We could enjoy Yukon Gold potatoes and not care about import tariffs.
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