They may be few in numbers, but their twice yearly demonstrations in Montreal, violent and destructive, certainly get the attention of the media and the public.
Unfortunately, the energy is completely wasted on a message that is stupidly unrealistic. Perhaps if they channelled their efforts into an issue that made sense, they could really impact society.
Wouldn't it be great if they had led the fight against corruption and marched to the National Assembly in Quebec City where they could use their particular demonstration skills to scare the bejesus out of the ruling government.
While Quebecers wring their hands in disgust at the bureaucracy, the corruption and the incompetence that is what Quebec society has become, we do so in the comfort of our living room, watching TV, munching Doritios and hoping someone else will take charge.
There is little doubt that if a real 'Occupy Wall Street' action took place in front of the National Assembly with thousands of demonstrators announcing that they'd be staying put until a public inquiry into corruption be announced, humiliating the government on a daily basis, we would have had the inquiry a long, long time ago.
That, or one or two good Anarchist-like riots would certainly do the trick.
But Quebecers are lazy.
The product of a nanny-state that teaches us from birth that personal responsibility, hard work, entrepreneurship and academic excellence is not necessary to
And for Quebecers raised on the proverbial free lunch, the required mind and skill set needed to challenge the government, is just not there.
Strangely, Quebecers have proven that they can get government to do what they want, when they want it badly enough. While barely mustering 2,000 people for a demonstration against corruption, 60,000 turned up at a demonstration in Quebec City to demand an NHL hockey team.
And presto, the City of Quebec and the provincial government are turning cartwheels to satisfy a determined public, going so far as to suspend the democratic process by way of a law shielding the city of Quebec for bypassing the tendering process in pursuit of the said hockey team.
The sad conclusion is that Quebecers didn't want a construction inquiry nearly as much as they wanted a NHL team.
While newspapers and television droned on and on about corruption and while commentators told us day in and day out, that something must be done about the situation, Quebecers reacted by furiously nodding their heads in agreement, representing the full extent of their effort.
This lack of engagement is not a Quebec only phenomena, it traverses the whole country. Ontario's recent election boasted an under 50% voter turnout. It's surprising, considering the tough times that the province still faces coming off a recession that hit Ontario harder than any other province. One would think that citizens would have more to say about the direction the province is to go.
Alas it is not to be. Quebecers, Ontarians and Canadians across the country are just too lazy and complacent. Obviously, we have it too good and so when we complain it is a half-hearted effort, something seasoned politicians recognize, experts at knowing when they must react to public pressure.
Ask Mr Charest, who rightly gauged the mood of the people, who while angry, weren't ready to hit the streets in a seventies style protest.
If the construction inquiry took two years to call, we shouldn't blame him, but rather ourselves, for not demanding action, by marching in the streets regularly and en mass, until satisfied.
Ironically, the ongoing occupation of Victoria Square in Montreal, by mostly unemployed granolas and hippies, has probably done more to hurt legitimate protest in Quebec, by making the exercise seem ridiculous, pointless and overly radical. Until protest goes mainstream and includes the middle class who pay the freight, politicians quite rightly, recognize and ignore protests like Occupy Montreal.
So regardless of what is said and written in the media, when push comes to shove, the vast majority of Quebecers really don't care enough about these issues, at least not enough to upset our neat and comfortable lives.
The same goes for the language and culture debate which though full of sound and fury, is bereft of any meaningful sacrifice or effort on behalf of the majority to effect change.
Quebecers care about their French language and culture to the extent that others do the protecting for them. Not many are willing to make a personal sacrifice.
French language and culture militants call for restrictions on immigration, limits on English education and all sorts of rules and regulations to promote French and restrict English.
But even with all this, they complain that the demographic position of francophones continues to deteriorate and thus call for even more restrictive rules and regulations.
But the simplest solution is to encourage francophones to have more babies. All that would be required to change the demographic reality is for francophones to increase the size of their families. We're not talking about six, seven or eight children, but between two and three, averaging out at about 2.3 kids per family!
With that, Quebec wouldn't need a single immigrant, who are the bane of Quebec language militants, blamed for the supposed decline of French.
But not one of these French language militant would dare to promote the policy of larger families because they would be ridiculed for the effort.
Why?
Because to do so would mean asking citizens themselves to make a personal effort to do something to change the situation and that is just too much to ask.
So how much do Quebecers really care about language, culture and corruption?
Not much......or at least not enough to give up their Doritos and TV.
