9月中旬一个阳光明媚的早晨，“让我们谈谈阿尔伯塔”房车从2号公路缓缓转入位于艾伯塔省费尔维尤的邓维根旅馆停车场。
The Let’s Talk Alberta motorhome makes a slow turn off Highway 2 into the parking lot of the Dunvegan Inn in Fairview, Alta., on a sunny mid-September morning.
这辆房车晚点了，迎接它的是一群当地人，他们穿过停车场，走来与车中的人会合。
The rig, which is running late, is met by a contingent of local people who stroll across the parking lot to meet the folks inside.
与这个草根支持独立组织有关的人士一直在阿尔伯塔各地巡回活动，为10月19日举行的全省公投做准备。公投将提出一个问题：阿尔伯塔应继续作为加拿大的一部分，还是就分离举行一次具有约束力的公投。
People involved with the grassroots pro-independence organization have been touring around Alberta ahead of the province’s Oct. 19 referendum, which will include a question on whether Alberta should remain a part of Canada or hold a binding vote on separation.
尼尔·哈特是一名退休的费尔维尤居民，前来迎接“让我们谈谈阿尔伯塔”房车。
Neil Hart, a retired Fairview resident, came to meet the Let’s Talk Alberta motorhome.
哈特说，他来是想再取一些支持阿尔伯塔独立的标牌，并解释说，通往城外各条公路沿途的大型标牌都是他帮忙竖立的。这座小镇位于大草原市以北约115公里。
Hart said he wanted to pick up more signs in support of Alberta independence and explained he’s helped put up the large ones along the highways that lead out of the town located about 115 kilometres north of Grande Prairie.
“朝格里姆肖方向走时，你会看到粮仓上立着一块标牌，”哈特说。
“When you’re headed towards Grimshaw, you see the one sign up on the granary,” Hart said.
“我在道路南侧立了一块，出镇时那边还有一块，都是8×16英尺的。样子很好看。”68岁的哈特说，他过去曾是一名重型机械技师，后来又务农25年。他还创办了一家在石油产区提供土地覆膜服务的公司。
“I have one on the south side of the road and there's another one just when you leave town, down on the side there, 8-by-16s. They look good.”Hart, 68, said he used to work as a heavy duty mechanic, then farmed for 25 years. He also founded a company that provided mulching services in the oilpatch.
他说，他希望阿尔伯塔成为一个独立国家，因为他希望年轻一代有机会获得他所说的“真正的工作、真正的职业”，就像50年前他初入职场时那样。
He said he wants Alberta to become its own nation because he wants to see younger generations have a chance at getting what he calls “real jobs, real careers” like he had when he first entered the workforce 50 years ago.
“我该做的都做完了。我已经退休了，”哈特说，“接下来是我的孩子和孙辈。他们需要机会。”他说，这一地区曾经有大量工作，但如今情况已经变了。哈特认为，费尔维尤正逐渐变成一座“养老城”，因此他敦促子女和孙辈搬离这里。
“I'm done. I'm retired,” Hart said. “It's my kids and grandkids. They need a chance.”He said there was once plenty of work in the area but that’s changed. According to Hart, Fairview is turning into a “retirement town” and he’s urging his children and grandchildren to move.
“这里没有工作。他们必须离开，”哈特说。“我一直告诉他们，‘抱歉孩子们，留在这里没有意义。你们至少得去大草原城（Grande Prairie）。大草原城那边才有机会。’”哈特想要离开加拿大的理由，也得到了其他前来迎接“让我们谈谈阿尔伯塔”（Let’s Talk Alberta）创始人克里斯·斯科特（Chris Scott）房车的人们的共鸣。人们表示，他们觉得向联邦政府纳了税，却几乎得不到什么回报。
“There's no jobs here. They got to leave,” Hart said. “I keep telling them, ‘Sorry kids, there’s no sense staying here. You got to at least get to Grande Prairie.’ Things are happening in Grande Prairie.”Hart’s reasons for wanting to leave Canada were repeated by others who came to meet the motorhome belonging to Chris Scott, the founder of Let’s Talk Alberta. People said they feel they pay taxes to the federal government and get little in return.
另一些人则指出，联邦选举往往在阿尔伯塔人投完票之前就已经尘埃落定，这证明了该省对渥太华制定的政策几乎没有影响力。
Others pointed to how federal elections appear to be settled before Albertans finish casting their ballots as evidence of how little influence the province has over policies that are crafted in Ottawa.
会议鲜有新面孔。费尔维尤（Fairview）只是“让我们谈谈阿尔伯塔”房车本月在阿尔伯塔省北部停留的站点之一。该组织成员还在大草原城的一家酒店举行了市政厅会议。
Few new faces at meeting Fairview was just one of the stops that the Let’s Talk Alberta motorhome made in northern Alberta this month. Members of the group also held a town hall at a hotel in Grande Prairie.
约有200人参加了这场为期三小时的活动。活动期间，宪法律师、“让阿尔伯塔决定”（Let Alberta Decide）独立运动组织联合创始人基思·威尔逊（Keith Wilson），自称主权主义者、居住在阿尔伯塔中部的作家伯努瓦·特鲁多（Benoit Trudeau），以及斯科特分别发表了演讲。
About 200 people showed up for the three-hour event, which featured presentations from Keith Wilson, a constitutional lawyer and co-founder of the pro-independence group Let Alberta Decide, Benoit Trudeau, a self-described sovereigntist and author based in central Alberta, and Scott.
人们在房间里走动、交谈，并查看摆在后方桌子上出售的以独立为主题的帽子、T恤、标牌和保险杠贴纸。
People milled about the room, chatted with each other and looked over the independence-themed hats, T-shirts, signs and bumper stickers for sale on the tables in the back of the room.
随着一首歌结束，“让我们谈谈阿尔伯塔”的桑迪·杜盖（Sandy Duguay）对参加活动的人们表示欢迎。她询问有多少人是第一次参加此类会议，在场的200人中约有10人举起了手。
As a song called wrapped up, Sandy Duguay with Let’s Talk Alberta welcomed people to the event. She asked how many were attending their first meeting and about 10 of the 200 people in the room put up their hands.
“感谢你们的到来，”杜盖说。“我希望当你们今晚离开时，会觉得不虚此行。”当被问及新面孔较少的问题时，威尔逊表示他并不介意。
“Thank you for coming,” Duguay said. “I hope you find that your time was well spent by the time you leave tonight.”When asked about the low number of new faces, Wilson said he wasn’t bothered by it.
“我不会把（市政厅会议）当作衡量支持率的标准，”他说。“我把它当作一个回答问题的机会。”
“I don't use … [a town hall] as a gauge of support,” he said. “I use it as an opportunity to answer questions.
“我把它当作一个机会，与那些支持独立理念的人分享如何与持不同意见的人沟通并展开公开对话。”一份关于脱离加拿大的财政成本的新报告——由卡尔加里大学公共政策学院完成、阿尔伯塔省政府委托——成为市政厅会议上讨论的焦点。该报告估计，阿尔伯塔省独立的成本仅在前五年就可能高达1700亿加元。
“And I use it as an opportunity to share with the people who do support independence ideas on how they can communicate and have open dialogue with others who don't.”A new report on the financial cost of separating from Canada — completed by the University of Calgary’s School of Public Policy and commissioned by the Alberta government — was a point of discussion at the town hall. The report estimates the cost of Alberta separation could be as much as $170 billion over just the first five years of independence.
斯科特对报告只关注分离的成本、却没有描述他称之为“无价”的潜在好处提出异议。
Scott took issue with the report’s focus on the costs of separation without describing the potential benefits that he called “priceless.”
“这个房间里有多少人愿意多缴那么多税，只为知道当我们作为阿尔伯塔人投票时，我们的声音会被听到，我们能够影响选举结果？”
“How many people in this room would have paid that much extra tax to know that when we go to the ballot as Albertans, our voices will be heard and we can affect the outcome of the election?”
“我本会乐意支付。这不是钱的问题。钱很重要……但这件事远比那重要得多，却没有人谈论它。”威尔逊领导的独立组织“阿尔伯塔过渡委员会”最近的一份报告估计，过渡成本将是一次性支出50亿加元。
“I would have been happy to pay it. This isn't about the dollars. The dollars are important…But this is about something so much bigger than that and nobody's talking about it.”A recent report from the Wilson-led independence organization Alberta Transition Council estimated the transition cost would be $5 billion in one-time expenses.
一位前财政部委员会高级经理表示，ATC的报告忽略了数千亿加元的成本。
A former Treasury Board senior manager said the ATC report ignored hundreds of billions of dollars in costs.
前联合保守党部长站队加拿大。尽管“让我们谈谈阿尔伯塔”自认为是一个鼓励人们交谈并倾听彼此观点的教育性社团，但大草原城活动的多数与会者似乎支持阿尔伯塔脱离加拿大。
Former UCP minister sides with Canada While Let’s Talk Alberta considers itself an educational society that encourages people to talk and listen to each other’s perspectives, the majority of attendees at the Grande Prairie event appeared to be in favour of Alberta leaving Canada.
大草原城居民玛丽·伯恩运营着一个名为“阿尔伯塔共和国”的Facebook页面，她说自己参加过好几场独立活动。
Grande Prairie resident Mary Bourne, who runs a Facebook page called Republic of Alberta, said she’s been to several independence events.
与艾伯塔省独立支持者同行，走访每一个小镇。伯恩表示她支持独立，因为她厌倦了“为渥太华缴纳所得税却得不到任何回报”。蒂莫西·乔丹表示，他计划投票支持“选项2”，这将授权艾伯塔省政府启动法律程序，就脱离加拿大举行决定性的公投。
On the road with pro-independence Albertans, one small town at a time Bourne said she supports separation because she is tired of paying "income tax for Ottawa and getting nothing for it.”Timothy Jordan said he plans to vote for Option 2, which would give the Alberta government permission to start the legal process to have a definitive referendum on leaving Canada.
他说，他更希望省长丹妮尔·史密斯能与联邦政府“解决问题”，但他乐于拥有脱离加拿大的选项。“不一定是必须分离，但如果有必要，那就分离，”乔丹说。
He said he would prefer if Premier Danielle Smith could “work things out” with the federal government but liked having the option to leave Canada. “Not necessarily separation, but separation if necessary,” Jordan said.
在费尔维尤停留后，“让我们谈谈艾伯塔”（Let’s Talk Alberta）房车队还访问了格里姆肖、曼宁、海莱弗尔和拉克雷特。
After the stop in Fairview, the Let’s Talk Alberta motorhome visited Grimshaw, Manning, High Level and La Crete.
沿途可以看到大型的独立支持标语。支持加拿大的标志往往不那么显眼，比如挂在栅栏上或房屋外旗杆上的加拿大国旗。
Large pro-independence signs could be spotted along the highway. Signs of pro-Canada support were often less prominent like a Canadian flag attached to a fence or on a flagpole outside of a house.
加拿大广播公司（CBC）发现的唯一一条支持加拿大的信息是费尔维尤一户人家外的手写标语：一块黄色纸板上用黑色记号笔潦草地写着：“永远的加拿大人！挺起胸膛。去你的联合保守党（UCP）”。
The only pro-Canada message spotted by CBC was a handmade sign outside a house in Fairview: The words “Forever Canadian! Elbows up. F--- UCP” were scrawled in black marker on a piece of yellow cardboard.
随着艾伯塔省独立公投临近，旗帜成为投票意向——以及紧张局势——的象征。对于曾在杰森·肯尼政府担任艾伯塔省财政部长的特拉维斯·托斯来说，缺乏对支持加拿大选项的公开支持并不令人意外。
As Alberta separatism referendum looms, flags become symbol of voting intention — and tension The lack of open support for the pro-Canada option doesn’t come as a surprise to Travis Toews, the former Alberta finance minister under Jason Kenney.
托斯住在格兰德普雷里以西的一处乡村房产中，他与“投票留下”（Vote to Stay）和“领导而非离开”（Lead Not Leave）这两个支持艾伯塔省留在联邦内的组织有关联。
Toews, who lives on a rural property west of Grande Prairie, is associated with Vote to Stay and Lead Not Leave, two groups in favour of Alberta remaining within Confederation.
托斯表示，该地区的许多人不愿意谈论这个问题，因为它可能会在小社区甚至家庭内部造成分裂。
Toews said many people in the region are not willing to talk about the issue as it can create divisions within smaller communities or even families.
他说，有些人私下告诉他，很高兴他能站出来支持加拿大。另一些人则对他没有站在那些希望艾伯塔省离开的人一边表示惊讶。
He said some people tell him privately that they’re happy he is standing up for Canada. Others express their surprise that he isn’t on side with those who want Alberta to leave.
“我来自艾伯塔省农村，是一名养牛户，也参与过能源行业，”托斯说。
“I'm from rural Alberta, a cattle rancher, have been involved in the energy industry,” Toews said.
“我认为他们会查看我选中的选项，或许会对我并非一个激进的分离主义者感到惊讶，”托伊斯说道。他表示自己理解为什么人们对前总理贾斯汀·特鲁多的政府感到失望；虽然他仍然是一个坚定的保守派人士，但他对马克·卡尼总理领导下的阿尔伯塔省的未来持乐观态度。
“I think they look at the boxes I tick and perhaps they're surprised that I'm not an ardent separatist.”Toews said he understands why people were frustrated about the government of former prime minister Justin Trudeau. While he is still a committed conservative, Toews says he is optimistic about Alberta’s prospects under Prime Minister Mark Carney.
托伊斯指出，像卡尔加里大学发布的报告所显示的那样，分离运动的成本非常高昂，而这些成本最终将由更少的人口来承担。他还表示，在10月19日之前的几周里，支持加拿大的各种团体会呼吁所有人积极参与投票。
He said reports, like the one from the University of Calgary, show how high the cost of separation would be, which in turn would be absorbed by a smaller population base. He said the message coming from the pro-Canada groups in the weeks leading up to Oct. 19 will be for everyone to get out and vote.
“这是一个对我们整个省份来说都极其重要的决定，”他说，“绝大多数阿尔伯塔省居民的参与至关重要。”
“This is an extremely important decision that we're embarking on as a province,” he said. “And it's fundamentally important that the vast, vast majority of Albertans participate.”
在阿尔伯塔省北部的公路旅行中，当“Let’s Talk Alberta”活动车队抵达当天的倒数第二个停留点——海伊韦尔（High Level）时，遇到了迄今为止最多的支持者。海伦·戴克（Helen Dyck）也在现场表示支持；她明确表示自己倾向于选择支持分离的选项2。
Divisive issue not talked about Back on the northern Alberta roadtrip, the Let’s Talk Alberta motorhome was met by the largest crowd of the journey when it arrived in High Level, the penultimate stop of the day. Helen Dyck was there to offer her support. She is strongly leaning toward voting for Option 2 on the separation question.
“你看到人们因为食物不足而求助，他们仅靠一份收入根本无法维持生计，”她说，“这些孩子将来该如何生活呢？”随着阿尔伯塔省分离公投的临近，双方竞选团队都在寄希望于选民的高投票率。戴克表示，她内心希望阿尔伯塔省能继续留在加拿大，但她不信任联邦政府会真诚地与阿尔伯塔省进行谈判。
“You see people asking for food because they don't have enough. They cannot survive on one income,” she said. “What are these kids supposed to grow up with?”As Alberta separation vote approaches, both campaigns are banking on voter turnout Dyck said there is a part of her that wishes Alberta would remain in Canada but she doesn’t trust that the federal government would negotiate honestly with Alberta.
“从情感上来说，我当然认为自己永远都是加拿大人，”戴克说，“但我认为我们能够做得更好——比现在的情况要好得多。”在海伊韦尔，站在斯科特（Scott）活动车队周围的行人中，大多数人都不愿意公开表达自己对这次公投的看法。
“The sentimental part that says I'm a Canadian, although I do believe I'm always going to remain a Canadian,” Dyck said. “But I think we can do better. We can do better than what we've done till now.”Outside the group surrounding Scott’s motorhome, passersby on the south side of High Level mostly didn’t want to share their feelings on the referendum.
米奇·布朗是个例外。他说，阿尔伯塔省居民竟需要就是否继续留在加拿大进行投票，这让他感到不满。他认为，省政府修改了规则，偏袒分离主义者，从而让此次公投得以举行。“我觉得，这件事居然还要拿来讨论，简直荒谬。”他说。布朗补充说，除了妻子外，他不与任何人讨论这个话题。
Mitch Brown was an exception. He said he is unhappy Albertans need to vote on staying in Canada and suggested the provincial government changed the rules to favour the separatists and allow the vote to happen. “I'm thinking it's ridiculous it's even a conversation,” he said. Brown added that he avoids discussing the topic with anyone but his wife.
回到费尔视图，尼尔·哈特与女儿一起拍照，背景是一辆印有“让我们聊聊阿尔伯塔”字样的房车。
Back in Fairview, Neil Hart posed for a picture with his daughter with the Let’s Talk Alberta motorhome behind them.
哈特说，那些已经决定要留在加拿大的人，对改变自己的想法毫无兴趣。
Hart says he finds people who’ve already decided they want to stay in Canada aren’t interested in changing their minds.
“其实完全没必要跟他们谈，因为你知道不会谈出什么结果。”他说。“我喜欢和那些摇摆不定的人聊。他们会慢慢想明白的。”
“There's really no sense talking to them because you know you're not going to get anywhere,” he said. “It's people that are sitting on the fence I like talking to. They come around.”