Alberta, Canada's oil—rich economic powerhouse, is in the midst of a boom that has created severe labor shortages. The oil and gas industry, including the vast tar sands with more reserves than Saudi Arabia, is hiring at a prodigious rate.

Many businesses, such as restaurants, cannot compete with the wages in the resource industry, and are threatened with closing down in Calgary. City hall also has problems staying staffed. Word from a friend recently back from Edmonton tells me that business there all complain of losing staff and being unable to replace them.

Alberta is on the rise, in Canada and beyond. Its wealth funds other provinces and its growth fires the Canadian economy.

Prime Minister Harper, so ably covered for AT by Paul Jackson, is from Alberta. Americans should pay attention to developments in Calgary and Edmonton, as the Canadian energy industry and Government of Alberta become more integral to our security and economy. They are the not just the cities of Canada's future, they are also part of our future.

Thomas Lifson   7 5 06