Fun With The Montreal Canadiens

IT'S NOT PHOTOSHOP!!!

It's PHOTOFUNIA. Link

Habs Serve Up Holy Water at the Bell Centre

There's some who say that a trip to see the Montreal Canadiens play hockey at the Bell Centre is more than just entertainment. It's been compared to a religious experience, as fans soak up the heady atmosphere of the NHL's premiere temple of hockey. There, walking through the storied corridors amongst the pictures and statues of the sainted players of the past, it is said that one can feel the the presence of the famous 'ghosts' that surround and protect the team.

That's probably why a regular bottle of water undergoes a mystical transformation and becomes holy water, once it enters the hollowed confines of the Church of the Canadiens.

.....Otherwise how can the price be justified.

Francophone Quebeckers are TVholics

Last Sunday was not only an amazing example of how much television Quebec Francophones watch, but a testament to how little variety they enjoy.

A total of 3.5 million people were watching just three different shows at 8:00PM, Star Acadamie (Quebec-American Idol), the Jutras Award show (Quebec-Academy Awards) and Loft Story(Quebec-Big Brother)

That's over 50% of the entire French population of Quebec.

Star Acadamie drew an amazing 2.5 million viewers.
That means that 4 out of every 10 Francophone Quebeckers were tuned in!

Comparing the number of viewers proportionally, 4 times as many Quebeckers watched Star Acadamie as compared to Americans who watched last year's American Idol finale!

Quebec To New Doctors -Drop Dead!

Quebec doctors who are finishing their specialist training got a rude awakening as the government of Quebec announced that they are placing a hiring freeze on almost all specialties until 2011.

This means that the government will not offer approximately 400 jobs.

On February 2, the government dropped the bombshell through a directive that it sent to Quebec health and social services, confirming a moratorium on the hiring of new specialists.

Incredibly the mainstream press has completely missed this story, which is sending shock waves through the medical community.

'Residents' is the term used to describe doctors, who are training to become specialists. After four years of medical school, they typically spend another two to seven years working in a hospital setting in an apprenticeship program, learning the skills that they will specialize in.

Here's some sort of a list of what Quebec will no longer be hiring;

Imunologist/ Anesthesiologist / Cardiologist / Cardiovascular surgeon / Colon and rectal surgeon /Dermatologist - Diagnostic radiologist - Emergency medicine specialist - Endocrinologist -Forensic pathologist- Gastroenterologist- Geriatric medicine specialist - Gynecologist -Haemato-oncology/Hematologist -Infectious disease specialist Internist Medical geneticist / Neonatologist /Nephrologist / Neurological surgeon /Neurologist / Nuclear medicine specialist/ Obstetrician/ Occupational medicine specialist / Ophthalmologist - Oral surgeon / Orthopedic surgeon /Osteopath / Otolaryngologist / Pain management specialist - Pathologist / Pediatrician /Perinatologist / Plastic surgeon /Preventive medicine specialist /Psychiatrist /Pulmonologist / Radiologist /Reproductive endocrinologist / Rheumatologist/ Sleep disorders specialist/ Spinal cord injury specialist/ Sports medicine specialist/ Surgeon Thoracic surgeon/ Urologist/ Vascular surgeon

Here's what they're still hiring;

Family doctor (outside Montreal) / Radiation Oncologist /Haemato-oncology

So all that training is going to be Quebec's loss and somebody else's gain!

The Journal de Montreal has been blasting McGill because 52% of the doctors that graduate there, move out of the province. This moratorium should bring that number up to 95%, since the only jobs available, in family medicine, are located in the boonies.

On an ironic note, the Federation of Residents held its 13th 'Outside Quebec Career Day' and booths were reserved by 47 health care establishments from the rest of Canada and the U.S.

The event was attended by some 300 medical residents.

The 400 doctors that the government is sending out of Quebec means that the approximately 4,000 years of medical training, paid for by the people of Quebec, is being given away for nothing.
Shame on the government.

Shame on the media for not reporting it.

A Tale of Two Murderers

Two Quebec woman, both obviously mentally ill, are going to face completely different outcomes because one committed her crime in Quebec and the other in Vermont.

Louise Desnoyers, 48, drowned her 8-year-old son, Nicholas Desnoyers-Langlois, in Lake Champlain on August 15, 2006. She then tried to kill herself by drinking anti-freeze, but survived and was arrested the next day. Police say she killed the boy to spare him the pain of the imminent separation of her and the boy's father, after he announced that he was leaving her for another woman. She told police that her son was in a 'better place'

She has been incarcerated ever since, awaiting her trial.

A year ago, Judge Ben Joseph rejected a plea bargain that called for a 15 years in prison sentence for second-degree murder because the deal called for Desnoyers to do the time in Canada, where earlier parole is the law. The judge was not keen to accept that.

On Thursday, in a plea bargain, she agreed to plead no contest to second-degree murder. The terms of the agreement calls for between 10 and 15 years in prison, to be served in the United States. She will be formally sentenced at a later date.

In the Saguenay region of Quebec, Cathy Gauthier-Lachance, 34, faces three counts of first-degree murder and one charge of aiding her husband to kill himself, in an alleged murder-suicide pact. On New Year's Day, 2009, her husband and three children were found dead in their home.

Amazingly, three months after the crime, Judge Richard Grenier granted her request for bail after listening to testimony from the accused, her psychiatrist and a relative. He also ordered Gauthier-Lachance to stay in a transition house for women and to continue her therapy.

It's likely that when she does receive her sentence, it be infinitely less harsh than that of Louise Desnoyers and will probably be in a hospital or mental ward.

The chasm between American and Canadian justice is wide, the former seems overly vengeful, while the latter, overly lenient.

Which represents a better solution?

Aside from gun crimes, both countries have similar crimes rates (it's a myth that Canada has less crime than the US.)

But proportionally, for every person incarcerated in a Canadian jail there are 7 inmates in the United States penal system. That's a big, big difference!

The US regularly treats the mentally ill and young offenders, as ordinary criminals, something that the rest of western democracies have given up on. Much of the prison system in the US is privately run and for profit and some argue that it is a factor in the huge prison population. Empty prisons mean less profits.

On the other hand, Canadian prisons are all about getting offenders out as quickly as possible, with punishment an afterthought, often taking a distinct back seat to the cause of rehabilitation. Many victims of violent crime consider the short prison stays a violation of their rights to see justice done.

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Montreal Canadiens Practically Impossible to Sell

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

The media has been going crazy over the potential sale of the Habs, as the owner, George Gillett, looks to raise cash.

When the Canadiens were sold to Gillett in 2001, there wasn't another buyer around and back then the team was a relative bargain. It's hard to see somebody buying the team today, at a 50-75% premium.
The team is firing on all financial cylinders, revenues are high, but the potential to up the earnings is rather limited and the buyer is acquiring a mature business with more downward risk, than upward potential.

That's why the owner had to hire a consulting group in order to help identify and pursue possible suitors.

All the potential buyers who's names are being bandied about by the newspapers, had the opportunity to buy the team back in 2001 and passed. Given the new set of circumstances today, it's even more unlikely that they will come back to the table and pay even more for the team, given the present economic era of uncertainty.

The Quebec finance minister has pooh-poohed the idea of the Caisse de Depot (the province's pension fund) providing financing, which makes the deal even more unlikely, given the frozen credit markets. This decision is hard to understand. The Caisse lent $140 million dollars to Gillett to buy the team in 2001 and the loan was completely repaid. With the credit markets the way they are now and without the Caisse's involvement, the buyer will have to commit over $400 million in cash to get the deal done.

Let's review some of the personalities mentioned as potential saviors.

GUY LALIBERTE
The owner of the Cirque de Soleil is certainly rich enough to do the deal, but is unlikely to do so, unless he can wring some big time concessions out of the owner, an unlikely event. Mr. Laliberte seems to be going in the opposite direction, cashing out some $600 million by selling part of the Cirque to Arab interests. Cirque President, Daniel Lamarre, scotched the idea of a permanent show in Montreal, based on economics when the Casino/Cirque deal in the Peel basin died. The Cirque, according to him, went on to bigger and better things. Today, expansion of the Cirque into Russia is a priority and a huge financial and creative undertaking, likely to exhaust the company's energy and focus.
Also, Mr. Laliberte's acrimonious divorce is hanging over him and a high profile purchase of the Canadiens, doesn't seem like a good idea.

CELINE DION/ RENE ANGELIL

The Quebec chanteuse is wealthy, but alas, not wealthy enough. She's definitely no Oprah. Rene Angelil has already stated that the project is of no interest to them.

STEPHEN BRONFMAN
The last remaining member of the Bronfman family in Montreal is a lightweight, without the power or the money to pull off a deal of this magnitude. Charles Bronfman, the ex-owner of the Expos, moved out of the city to New York years ago. He has stated in the past, that his purchase of the Expos in 1968 was based on his love of the city. Now that he's gone, there's no more motivation.
Aside from that, the once mighty fortune of the Bronfmans is not what it once was. It has been battered by a terrible merger with Vivendi SA and the misadventures of Edgar Jr. in the entertainment field.

PIERRE-KARL PELADEAU

Son of Quebec scion, Pierre Peladeau, Pierre-Karl is fighting his own battle to keep his print and media business profitable. PK has a small fortune, but unfortunately started out with a big fortune, it's hasn't been easy since his father's death. I don't know if those proposing his name read the same newspapers as I, but the financial situation at the company needs to rebound in light of the 'Quebcor World' subsidiary bankruptcy. The newspaper business, which the company is heavily involved in, doesn't look rosy and the company's stock price of $17 is way off the $48 high. PK certainly doesn't have the time or inclination to make a move on the Habs and it's unlikely that his shareholders or bankers would appreciate the adventure.


PAUL DEMARAIS
The owner of the powerfully diversified Power Corporation is perhaps the most unlikely buyer of the Habs. Mr. Demarais is no publicity hound, if anything quite the opposite. He is more attuned to living life in the rarefied atmosphere of the rich and famous (he is best friends with President President Nicholas Sarkozy and is said to have engineered his rise to power.) Ownership of the Habs would thrust Mr. Demarais into the limelight and make him responsible to the hoi-polloi for the goings on at the Canadiens. Mr. Demarais is a an unabashed and activist federalist, largely reviled by nationalists as someone who has sold out his people and made money on their backs by controlling Quebec's business world. He could never don the cloak of neutrality that would be required of the owner of the Montreal Canadiens.

JEAN COUTU
Forced out of retirement to help turn around his company's deteriorating fortune, triggered by a disastrous expansion into the USA, it's unlikely that he'd be interested in the team at this point. His company reported a whopping $397 million dollar loss in the last quarter.

LINO SAPUTO
The Saputos are deeply involved with their first love, soccer and are also unlikely buyers. Their dream of owning a franchise in the North American premier soccer league, the MLS went unrealized when they balked at paying the $40 million expansion fee.
$400 million for the Canadiens, I don't think so!


JIM BASILLE
So that leaves the front runner, Jim Basillie, who's dream of owning a NHL franchise in southern Ontario has been dashed on too many occasions by Mr Bettman and friends. Maybe he's ready to 'settle' for the Canadiens, but Mr. Gillett knows his phone number and has probably already called. The fact that there are no rumours of an impending deal, speaks ominously to his interest.
I hope I'm wrong, he'd be a fabulous owner/operator.

The very last idea being floated is that of a group of investors who can be cobbled together, a la Expos. Without a lender and in the present tight credit market, $400 million is an impossible number and given that Gillett is selling the team to raise cash, a balance of sale is out of the question.

Montreal Parking Meter Wars

Restaurateurs are begging the city to give their customers a break on Saturday afternoon until Sunday night. Business is tough enough and they they say that the meters are a factor in keeping customers away from the downtown core.

In a 'Let them eat cake quarters' comment, Montreal city councilor Marvin Rotrand intimated that parking meter fees could be higher and cited Vancouver and Calgary as examples.

How much does the city depend on the parking meter revenues?......Not much, if you look at the figures.

According to the private company (Stationnement Montreal) that is responsible for Montreal's parking revenues, the city has over 16,000 parking meters which took in about $50 million last year.

The City's annual budget is $4 billion and so parking meters represent just 1.2% of city revenues.
If the city was to give in the the demands of the restaurateurs it would lower city revenues by a less than ¼ of one percent.

By the way, once I calculated this all out, I was left with other interesting facts about parking meters, which you may find interesting;

Average daily revenue of each parking meter is $8.42 and if we assume an average hourly rate of a $1.75 (a guess), it means that the meters are each being used for an average of a little more than 4.2 hours per day.

I would have guessed more...a lot more.

Those downtown meters charge $3 an hour, and are busy all day, aside from the double-charging factor (where customers don't use up all their allotted time.) They gotta be taking in $40 a day, easily. That mean that the other meters in the city are taking in only a buck or two per day....hmmm, I'm not so sure.

Speaking of parking meters, I parked at this Westmount meter and checked the sign to see if I had to pay, since it was Sunday.

I studied the sign for a lot longer than I should of had to, trying to figure out what the heck this sign means;

'LUNDI - DIMANCHE 7h-22h

TOUT AUTRE TEMPS 4H MAX'

Could somebody explain to me what it means?
Does it mean Monday and Sunday only or does it mean all week long?
Usually a dash indicates from/to, as in Mon-Fri, which I could readily understand, but if that's the case, LUNDI-DIMANCHE is a confusing way to say 'every day'.

If it's just Monday and Sunday, shouldn't Sunday be first and then Monday, as in the days of the week and shouldn't the dash be replaced by a comma.

Another Ugly Telemarketing Scam From Montreal

It's a sad fact that Montreal remains North America's illegal telemarketing capital and that the crimes are perpetrated largely by anglos and ethnic Montrealers in the west end of the city. The scam artists try to keep away from the long arm of the US justice system by setting up operations here and targeting victims across the border in America. The problem has so gotten so bad that the RCMP has set up a special squad called the Phonebusters to deal with it.

The latest scam to surface is not telephone fraud, but rather a neat scam that uses the mail to bilk people out of their money.



The advance-fee fraud fraud consists of a letter asking the victim to become a mystery shopper, in order to evaluate the performance of various companies (Wal-Mart, Sears, etc.) including a wire transfer company. Enclosed in the letter is a cheque for $4,200, which is supposed to cover the salary and expenses of the mark, as well the funds required to 'test' a moneygram company (like Western Union.)
Those who bite, deposit the cheque in their own bank account and wire most of the money back to the scammers as instructed, by a moneygram, making it impossible to trace the transaction or recover the money.

Weeks later they discover that the cheque was phony and that they have to re-imburse the bank for the funds that they sent to the scammers.
Pretty nasty.

You can read the original by clicking letter in the right.

It's very slick.



The New York city company, 'EXPERIAN', that supposedly sent the letter is as phony as a three dollar bill.











The address on the letter leads to a parking garage in lower Manhattan. The letter was actually mailed from Canada and very likely Montreal.


The fraudsters use a postal meter for authenticity (note the ironic cancellation stamp over the postage- 'Fraud- prevent it'.

The Canadian postal code -H3N 2L3 is around the Jean Talon/ Beaumont Street area (but it could also be phony) and is the clue that it came from Montreal. The return address is completely phony. Post Office boxes numbers need the station to be identified, as in this example;

POB 2637, Staton 'A'
Montreal, Quebec, H3N 2L3

The return addressee is a company, RSM Ritcher, a highly reputable accounting firm, who's office is really in downtown Montreal and I'd imagine, none to pleased about having their name linked to a fraud.

Every few months, the police break local telemarketing gangs, the latest being last December, but it doesn't seem to put a dent in their illicit activities.


>>>>BREAKING NEWS!!!! 12:04PM

RCMP have just announced that they are presently undertaking an operation against telemarketers and will conduct a news conference at 1:30 to reveal the particulars.

>>>>>>>>>>>UPDATE!!!! 1:58PM

The RCMP just announced that they are carrying out raids against telemarketers who are running a con called 'Grandson' whereby they intimate to victims that their grandson is in dire straits in a foreign country and needs them to wire him money. Pretty lame, huh. The police spokesman said that the fraudsters got away with $3.5 million.

It's interesting to see if this investigation is related to the con that I have described above. It sounds pretty close, using moneygrams and all.

Premier Charest's Brilliant Chess Game

To read Gazette columnist, Josee Legault and Don MacPherson or Toronto Star columnist Chantal Hebert, you'd think Quebec Premier Charest is a bumbling idiot, bouncing from one disaster to another.

Yet the Premier's seemingly erratic behavior can be explained easily enough, if one considers that he is just following the political rule, that says;

It's preferable to be in power with a unpopular majority, than to be popular, but sitting in opposition.

Support for the Charest government may have plummeted to 38% from a high of 67% last October, yet the Liberals remain securely in power with a majority government and a mandate to rule for many years to come. F0r Mr. Charest and his party, it's represents the very best option, considering the alternatives.

The Premier may seem to be careening badly, but is actually managing his current political situation, quite brilliantly.

If the Liberals are unpopular, it is because they should be. Given the incredible disaster at the Caisse de Depot et placement (CDPQ) and the current economic outlook, no government should have expected to be returned to power, yet Mr. Charest and his government did survive, by holding an election before the true depth of the crisis became known.
It was a cynical and an unethical, but honesty has never been a political requirement or a formula for success.

The Premier had a simple choice. Hide the truth and roll the dice with an election or lose power when news of the debacle at the CDPQ surfaced. He did what he had to do.

Everything that's happening now, was clearly predictable to Mr. Charest back in October. He knew that he and his party would face a bleak and unpopular period when the truth came out, but if and when they were re-elected, he would just have to manage the situation.

Mr. Charest has been ahead of everyone. He has played out his crappy hand of cards masterfully, bluffing out the press, the electors and the opposition.

Now, with the benefit of hindsight, we can understand Mr. Charest's plan to survive and can only marvel at his political acumen.

When Charest decide to go ahead with the election and brazen it out, he concocted a grand strategy of misdirection, smoke and mirrors.
He used a minor Parliamentary procedural row with the opposition, as the 'official' excuse for the election, knowing full well that the press wouldn't buy it. So he cleverly intimated that he had called the election simply because he was ahead in the polls and was making a opportunistic grab for a majority government. It was a cynical enough motive that the press fell for- hook, line and sinker. While the press may have believed that they were two steps ahead of the Premier in deconstructing his motives, it's now patently evident that the Premier was three steps ahead of them.

Everyone, but everyone, fell for the double and triple misdirection and missed the CDPQ story completely.

Even when Mario Dumont warned of the impending disaster during the election campaign, Charest deflected the accusation so deftly, that the press never really picked up on it.

Think back, to how calmly the Premier stonewalled the press with his deadpan and dismissive demeanour;

"Let's wait and see... Blah...blah...blah.
The Caisse will report in the Spring....Blah...blah...blah....
No use in speculating.... Blah...blah"

As calm as can be, Mr. Charest never lied, but never admitted to the truth. I don't think I'd like to play poker with him.

Amazingly, the secret held. Nobody who knew the truth broke ranks, not even at the CDPQ. Could the pressure to keep quiet be a contributing factor in the burnout and departure of the then president of the CDPQ, Richard Guay?

When the CDPQ finally admitted to the losses, in it's annual report, Mr. Charest skillfully tap danced around responsibility. He has steered the ruckus over the disaster at the CDPQ, away from any meaningful conclusion that would likely cause him grievous political harm.
First he refused to hold hearings into the matter, stalling for several weeks. Then he appeared to relent and change his mind. He agreed to hold hearings, but refused to appear before them.

There is a popular term for his actions, it's called 'Rope-a-dope', the classic boxing tactic of letting your opponent tire themselves out with useless body blows.

After the finance minister made a less than stellar appearance at those hearings, he nipped further debate off by presenting a newer controversy, the hiring of Michael Sabia, as the head of the CDPQ, that very same afternoon. The press and the opposition went scurrying off after the story, like a dog chasing a stick, thrown by his master.

Mr. Charest's actions weren't clumsy or amateurish. Everything was orchestrated to mitigate the inevitable harm that was to befall his government in the light of the revelations at the CDPQ. His goal, from the very beginning, was to steer the unavoidable runaway train of trouble, off the track.

Mr. Charest and his government are not in great shape, but they endure. They have the chance to redeem themselves over the next three and a half years. Unlikely as it is, in politics, stranger things have happened.
There is only so long the scandal can last, given the amateur opposition offered by the PQ and a less than ferocious press.
For Charest, it's a case of keeping his head down for another couple of weeks or months. If he sticks to his plan he'll likely succeed.

It was and continues to be, a text book case of political crisis management at it's best. It's likely that one day, political scientists will teach the 'Charest Gambit' in class, as an example of politics at it's best, or maybe, politics at it's very worst.

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Francophone Buyer For Montreal Canadiens Highly Unlikely

This morning's La Presse reports that Canadiens owner George Gillett has finally put the team up for sale, after months of rumours that he vehemently denied. The reason for the sale remains unclear, but is likely related to the financial woes that the owner is suffering, in large part, due to his highly leveraged purchase of the Liverpool Football Club in England. The soap-opera like battle with his co-owner Tom Hicks and the difficulty in re-financing the 750 million dollar debt, has left Gillett reeling, as fans of the storied franchise are mounting a spirited opposition against his ownership of the team.

Gillett has a pile of other financial problems that have forced him to take out a US$75 million dollar personal loan. It isn't a rosy picture. Read about it here.

Gillett, still may come smelling of roses, Liverpool FC is the ultimate status symbol and there are still many mega-billionaires around who are interested. Unfortunately, that doesn't seem to hold true in the case of the Habs.

As for the Canadiens, it may be a case of selling at the top. The team and the arena is estimated by Forbes magazine, to be worth close to C$450 million and since that he paid only C$270 million, it's a tidy profit, considering that the Caisse de Depot and the seller, Molson's Brewery, financed most of the deal.

Who will buy the Canadiens? It's an interesting question.

When Gillett bought the team, there wasn't another serious buyer in sight. Sports teams are usually of interest to bored billionaires, while the corporate world looks upon the investment as somewhat risky. Canada and Quebec are woefully short of billionaires, especially in the current economic situation.

If Quebeckers are waiting for a francophone white knight to rescue the team, they probably shouldn't hold their breath. Quebec boasts just three or four francophones with the wherewithal to pay for the team and to date none have shown interest.

Both the Gazette and LaPresse have speculated on Guy Laliberte (owner of the Cirque de Soleil) and Paul Demarais (Power Corporation,) but both passed on the last go around, when the deal was infinitely better.

The list gets sillier with the names of Celine Dion and Stephen Bronfman being put forward. The Diva is rich, but not she's no Oprah. Stephen, has been polished up by the family as the last remaining Bronfman representative in Montreal, but he's no financial titan and at any rate, the Bronfman family fortune has been decimated by poor investments and the disastrous merger with Vivendi SA and other ill-conceived ventures in the entertainment business.

When Charles Bronfman bought the Expos at the behest Jerry Snyder and the then Montreal mayor Jean Drapeau in 1968, he did so as a favour to the city and as a last resort, nobody else was ready to pony up the 10 million franchise fee. Charles has lived in New York for years and it's foolish to believe he has any interest in the Canadiens.
When he unloaded the Expos in 1991 , there wasn't a buyer to be found, who would respect Bronfman's caveat that the team remain in Montreal.
The team's management cobbled together an ownership group of fourteen individuals and bought the team at a bargain a basement price, with Bronfman suffering a financial haircut due to his insistence that the team stay in the city.

It seems that things haven't changed much.

If the Canadiens were a difficult sale in 2001, who's going to buy it now at fair market value today?

It really leaves only one viable name- Blackberry billionaire, Jim Basillie.

His dream of bringing an NHL team to southwestern Ontario, was scotched by the NHL on several occasions and the Canadiens probably represent the next best thing.

His unquestioned love of the game and his deep pockets make him the only likely candidate.

The Canadiens could do worse.

Despite Sovereignists Best Efforts, Federalism Lives On

Image via Wikipedia

In a letter to the editor written March 21, to the Quebec daily le Soleil, a reader wrote;

"Many sovereignists protest the fact that Michael Sabia, an Ontarian by birth, was named as the head of the Caisse de dépôt et de placement. Nevertheless, six weeks ago, these same sovereignists complained that Nicolas Sarkozy accused them of practising a sort of national sectarianism. Well, the cat is out of the bag; their intolerance towards Mr. Sabia proves that Mr. Sarkozy was right. Mr. Sabia has lived in Quebec for over sixteen years and has made the effort to learn our language. How many years of effort does it take to satisfy the the bone fides of a Quebecker, for these supposedly non-sectarian sovereignists? In 2005, the PQ itself chose a leader who was an Ontarian and who had previously lived in the United States. No federalist complained that Andre Boisclair wasn't Quebecker enough to occupy the job. Federalists are inclusive. Instead of complaining, every time they are served up the truth, sovereignists should follow the federalists' example and stop being intolerant"

-Bruno Pelletier, Rimouski

Quite a letter, considering that it's not easy for a francophone Quebecker to be a federalist or to support inclusiveness.

The intellectuals, the artists, the civil service, and most importantly the education system and television are almost exclusively sovereignist. From early childhood, Quebeckers are taught that Canada represents a threat to their language and culture.

So the real question is this; In the face of so much pressure, why do federalists persist in Quebec?

Why do letter writers like Mr. Pelletier, who hails from the Gaspe region of the province (an area of Quebec not renowned for being a hotbed of federalism,) buck the trend and speak out about the intolerance of the sovereignty movement?

Canadians, who live outside Quebec, tend to see Quebeckers as one single political group and it's an unfortunate characterization.

It is a fact that there are more fedaralists living in Quebec than there are living in Alberta, or Manitoba, or Saskatchewan, or the entire Maritimes and territories combined. It is a fact often unknown or forgotten by Canadians, but not by sovereignists, who remain confounded by the strength of the Canadian ideal in Quebec.

The fact that sovereignists cannot convince a majority of Quebeckers to support them, is a continuing source of frustration and a painful reminder that in Quebec, inclusiveness remains more popular than sectarianism, in spite of the overwhelming sovereignist pressure and that the Canadian model remains a more popular choice.

Habs Boss to Anglos- "Don't Bother Applying For Head Coach Job!"

Pierre Boivin, president of the Montreal Canadiens made it official, the next coach of the Montreal Canadiens will be a francophone. The statement was meant to calm ethnic fears that the beloved Canadiens are going anglo and what's most shocking, is that eligible bilingual anglophones are eliminated from contention. In fact, his statements are so discriminatory that any coach not considered for the job because of his anglophone roots, should consider suing the Canadiens organization in the Quebec Human Rights Tribunal.

Imagine if the Toronto Maple Leafs announced that their next coach could not be a francophone, regardless of his English language skills.

Now there's a lot of skating going on, Mr. Boivin tried to be coy, but CKAC Radio made no bones about it. They claim that in a speech to the Chamber of Commerce of Bois-Francs, Mr. Boivin assured the public that the next coach would be a francophone. RDS however, ran a sanitized version of the story on their website.

An article by Karine Chateauneuf on the highly respected French language 'Branchez-vous' news site is entitled ';

"Boivin insiste pour avoir un entraîneur francophone à la barre du Canadien"
"Boivin demands a Francophone coach".... (my translation)

Read the original article here (In French)

Pierre Boivin tried to choose his words carefully, by stating that the coach would have to;

...'express himself to the fans and to the media, in the language of Moliere.'

But his own comments later on, betray him. Instead of sticking to the line, that the new coach must speak French, he makes it perfectly clear that only Francophones will be considered.

"Je crois que notre équipe mérite enfin d'avoir un entraîneur d'expérience, il faut qu'on arrête de regarder dans les rangs juniors ou dans la Ligue américaine. Nous allons nous croiser les doigts pour qu'il y ait quelques francophones d'expérience de disponibles"

"I think our team deserves an experienced coach, we've got to stop looking in the juniors or the American league. Let's cross our fingers and hope that there some qualified francophones available." (my translation & emphasis)

Read the original article here (In French)

Boivin admits that the the requirement for a francophone coach, severely limits the selection process, but according to him, the team has a role to play in the promotion of the French language in Quebec.

Say Whaaat!!!

THE TEAM HAS A ROLE TO PLAY IN THE PROMOTION OF FRENCH IN QUEBEC!!!!

He also stated that the team wants to add more elite francophone players and that when there is a choice between players of equal talent, the team will opt for francophones.
How comforting!

It's little wonder that the Canadiens are on a collision course with mediocrity.

McGill Waits Out Medical School Flap

,Ever since the first language attack on McGill University by Quebec nationalists over forty years ago, the administrators of the school have adopted the defensive strategy of hunkering down, whenever these ugly attacks rear their head.

It's proven to be a successful strategy, as the controversies usually pass within a few weeks, with the school emerging unscathed to return to it's role as the finest English academic institution in Canada.

The latest flap, is the campaign mounted against McGill University's medical school, by the French daily newspaper, Le Journal de Montreal. The sensationalist tabloid has a history of using attacks on the English community to sell papers. In fact, when things are too quiet on the language front, the rag has no qualms about manufacturing anglo-bashing controversies on it's own.

Their last campaign was an expose on how Francophones cannot get served in the French language, in certain downtown stores. Now, when an editor sends out a reporter to get a story based on a pre-conceived notion, what results can you expect? The paper gleefully recounted instances of language discrimination, but never told us how many stores they had to visit before finding these offenders.
A classic case of yellow journalism that panders to it's low brow audience.

It's too bad that McGill isn't reacting to the latest attack, the one created the Journal's resident separatist, anglo-basher, Joseph Facal.
In an on-going attack, in a number of articles, Mr. Facal lambastes McGill because of the fact that 52% of graduating doctors from McGill, leave Quebec to practice elsewhere, while only 10% of Francophone doctors do the same.

On the surface it seems a pretty damning statistic and Mr. Facal's story has sprouted legs. English papers like The Toronto Star have also picked up the story and have repeated the statistic, without context or further explanation.

In fact, when Mr. Facal first leveled his charge online, a comment by a reader completely devastated his argument. You can read the article and the rebuttal in a previous post of mine here.

Mr. Facal is either dishonest or ignorant. He knows that the statistic he cites, without context, conveys a false picture of reality.

At the center of the controversy is the different route that Quebec Anglophone and Francophone doctors take in their pursuit of a medical degree.

On the French side, most students applying to medical school are young, coming out of junior college(CEGEP) pre-medical programs. They usually have poor or non-existent English language skills and to apply to a medical school in, say Cincinnati, is not an option.
Similarly, anglophones from Canada and the USA don't apply to Quebec francophone schools for a similar reason, lack of French skills.
The result is that Quebec Francophone medical schools are filled, almost exclusively with local unilingual Francophones. Foreign students make up a very tiny proportion of the class and few local anglophones, even bilingual ones, don't apply, because as you can guess, Francophones are favoured.

On the Anglo side, the system doesn't work like that at all. English students, whether they be in Des Moines or Montreal apply to medical schools across North America, hoping to win a coveted spot anywhere. Typically, students apply to up to twenty different schools. The result is that Anglo students from Montreal get medical training not only at McGill, but in medical schools in Miami, Atlanta, Toronto and Calgary, to name just a few.
Now McGill, as do all the other medical schools across North America (except Quebec francophone schools) accepts a large minority of out-of-province, out-of-state and out-of-country students to balance things out.

When medical school is over, most of the graduates of Francophone medical schools remain in Quebec, (prisoners of language and culture.)
On the McGill side, it is natural that a large proportion of graduates leave, as do graduates of all English medical schools. They either go home or pursue opportunities elsewhere. This is not strange, but normal and universal.

The real question is not how many graduates leave Quebec, but rather, how many graduates from other programs come to Quebec, to pursue their careers.

This is the statistic that is conveniently ignored.

It's a fact that there are doctors coming to Quebec who have received medical training outside the province. These doctors should actually be counted as a mitigating factor in the 52% statistic, but nationalists either don't understand how the system works or choose to ignore the fact.

Certainly, there are not enough doctors coming here, but this can be attributed to the fact that they are unwanted by the Quebec College of Physicians, who put up too many roadblocks, including the one that demands that they be perfectly bilingual before practising in Quebec and the requirement that they work in the boonies, instead of Montreal. The poor pay and poor working conditions, play a role, but secondary. Quebec and particularly Montreal, remains an attractive and exciting place to work and live for both local and foreign Anglophone doctors. The lower pay is mitigated by the much lower cost of living and cheaper housing. The real issue is the discrimination that they face.

It's unfortunate, but perhaps wise, that McGill chooses silence in the face of these unwarranted attacks. The university understands full well that they will always be a target. For nationalists, the fact that an English university remains far and away Quebec's finest academic institution is galling and humiliating.

Only In Quebec- March Edition

And You thought that the Little Habs Flag on Your Boyfriend's Car was Embarrassing...
Yup......Here's the Habs biggest fan.
Photoshop you say? Mebbe...
The interior of this house (or the photoshopped representation), is also bedecked in Canadiens regalia. It's on display at my favourite and most fun Montreal Canadiens blog- 25Stanley.com



Cirque de Soleil Passes on Montreal
Last year there was talk that a new casino complex would be built down at the bottom of Peel Street that would include a permanent Cirque de Soleil. That project died when locals went on a NIMBY campaign. (Not In My Back Yard.) In a speech to the local chamber of commerce, Cirque President, Daniel Lamarre confirms that Montreal is no longer under consideration for a permanent show (like in Las Vegas.)
When asked why the Cirque is taking a pass, he replied rather succinctly;

"December, January, February and March"

Good Answer!

Hockeyville- Thetford Mines Pissed Off
The CBC-TV (Canadian Broadcasting Network) runs an annual contest whereby small towns across Canada compete to win the title of "Hockeyville." Small towns across the country put together all sorts of hockey-related projects in the hope of winning $100,000 in hockey arena upgrades and more importantly, the right to host a real live NHL pre-season game. Votes are cast in the American Idol style and the winning entry is announced during a live NHL game.

This year, the winner was Terrace, British Columbia. when the vote tally was announced, the Quebec town of Thetford Mines came in dead last (out of the five finalists). They were none too happy, claiming that they cast many more votes (millions) than were given credit for, claiming that contest was fixed so that this year's winner wouldn't go to a Quebec town again (last year the town of Roberval in the Lac St Jean region of Quebec won.) Read the story.

The CBC isn't commenting but had previously stated that suspicious votes would be disqualified, mindful of this year's NHL All-Star game voting fiasco. It seems some devilishly clever Quebeckers used automated dialing systems to stuff the virtual ballot box with votes in favour of Montreal Canadiens players. The NHL allowed the results to stand, but it was quite an embarrassment for the league as three or four unworthy players made the team. Read the story.

Beer Company Accused of Using Sexy Girls in Calender (Gasp!)
There is a Quebec organisation (with the longest name ever) complaining that a beer company is exploiting women by printing up a sexy calender with scantily clad female models. The calender was given away with the purchase of a case of beer.

The group, "centres d'aide et de lutte contre les agressions à caractère sexuel" (CALACS) is against all depiction of women as sexual objects in advertising and cite beer companies as being the number one offenders.

The company, Molson's, is already running scared and has pulled the online version of the calender from their site.

Me, I can't even imagine a beer commercial without a sexy girl.
I could tolerate their complaint if they called for equality and the demand for more sexy men, scantily dressed!

and in the same vein.....

Group Accuses Recovery Plan of Discriminating Against Women
Another feminist group 'Le Conseil du statut de la femme' is complaining that Quebec's recovery plan is 'investing in concrete' and discriminatory because it favours those jobs that are manned mostly by men.

Driver Acquitted of Flashing Headlights To Warn Oncoming Motorists of Radar Trap
A Montreal truck driver went to court to contest a ticket given to him by a Montreal cop. When cars were unexpanded slowing down as they passed in front of his radar trap, a cop investigated and found a truck driver, a little way off, was flashing his headlights as a warning to other drivers (We all know that universal signal!) Taking exception, the cop ticketed the driver for whatever.
In court the judge threw out the ticket. "It's no different than a radio commentator, telling people to slow down because of a police operation"

Justice!

Barbie Doll Assailed as Bad Role Model
When the nightly newscast newscast took advantage of International Women's Day to congratulate 'Barbie' on the doll's 50th anniversary, someone took offense.
In a letter to the Quebec City newspaper 'Le Soleil' the writer objects on the grounds that the doll is a ''caricaturial representation" and proof that women have a long way to go.

Quebec- No Place For Creationism
The debate on the teaching of creationism or 'Intelligent Design' in schools rages across North America with religious types militating to get the concept taught as an alternative to Darwinisn.
Not in Quebec, where religion is virtually dead.
When a creationist speaker was scheduled to give a speech in a Sherbrooke college, a protest was arranged. A spokesman said that the school, while respecting freedom of speech, should not be a forum for 'crackpot' or 'scientifically debunked' theories.

Les Cowboys Fringants- Quebec Sovereignists' Only Cool Band.

(Dashing cowboys), is a talented Quebec band that promotes a sovereignist message, but unlike most everybody else in the movement, the group is funny, light-hearted and decidedly upbeat. I bet 90% of Quebec Anglophones have never heard of them, but those who do, probably enjoy their special genre, which I can only describe as 'Sovereignist Barenaked Ladies.'

is one of them. They are fun to listen to, despite the fact that most of us disagree with most everything they sing about.

The premise of this first song is that English words have become too common in everyday French. Who'd a thunk!

Video credit to angloquebecer

It's an over exaggeration to pigeonhole these guys as only offering separatists fare. This last clip is a tongue in check send up of a student demonstration. If you don't have superior French you won't be able to follow, but don't let it stop you from watching or listening, the subtitles are pretty good, and you can follow easily.

The self-deprecating description of the protest demonstration is a jewel.
What's funny, is that it could could have taken place in Ottawa, Toronto, Vancouver, as well Montreal. So much for language...

Don't tell me you didn't enjoy the energy on stage and in the audience.

Quebec 'Stripper' License Gets Smartcard Update

The government proudly announced the creation of a 'smart' Quebec driver's license, one that contains personal information in an embedded RFID chip. For those of us technologically impaired, the chip allows information to be transmitted wirelessly to receiving devices, a bit like your 'Bluetooth' phone connection. As you approach the customs booth your personal information is instantly beamed to the border agent's computer screen.

I don't know about you, but it makes me a bit queasy knowing that the wallet I'm carrying is transmitting my personal information, 24/7, to anyone around me with a receiving device.

I think I'll pass and keep my old fashioned passport.

Watching Premier Jean Charest on TV, proudly waving around the new, yet familiar blue license reminded me of a story.

Several years ago, a supervisory employee of mine was working temporarily in Toronto when she got into a small fender-bender. When the attractive twenty-something presented her Quebec driver's license to the policeman who was sorting out the mess, he looked her up and down and asked her where she worked. When she answered, he replied that he wasn't familiar with the club.

"Huh?" she thought.

Later that evening, after work, she went out to a Scarborough bar with a couple of co-workers from our local office. After ordering a drink, she was carded by the bartender, who after checking out her blue, Quebec license, asked her the very same question. "Which club do you work in?"

"What the heck is going on?" she asked one of her co-workers.

"He thinks you're a stripper."

I was reminded of the incident, years later while watching an episode of 'Weed's, a cable show about a marijuana dealing mom starring Mary-Louise Parker.

Apparently outside Quebec, an attractive young female Francophone with a blue Quebec license equals a stripper. Oh well.....