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Whether it's a matter of peace, order and good government, or of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, the fact that those who govern derive their just powers only from the consent of the governed is well established, if not self-evident. And for Torontonians of the early 21st century, that fact almost certainly makes it necessary to dissolve the political bands that have connected us with Ontario in various forms since refugees from America's war of independence established Upper Canada more than 200 years ago.

We appeal to the fair and intelligent people in all parts of Canada to understand that Toronto should be permitted, if its citizens so choose, to assume a separate and equal station among the provinces of this country for reasons that are neither light nor transient.

Canada's constitution was created to serve an overwhelmingly rural, 19th-century federation of provinces and territories. Its clause deeming cities to be creatures of the provinces was - sooner or later, in one of our major metropolises - bound to nurture the type of crisis that now wracks municipal-provincial relations between Toronto and Ontario.

Enlightened and benevolent provincial governments can forestall such eventualities, while those blinded by ideology and cynicism have proved capable of speeding the process. Because all major parties have had at least one turn at governing Ontario in recent decades, and because all three have contributed to demise of Toronto and the waning effectiveness of its electorate, changes considerably more drastic than the election of a new government are required. Next page...

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