Monday, October 29, 2012

Justin Trudeau Steps up to the Plate

Most of we 'sophisticates' view Justin Trudeau as somewhat of a dilettante, a lightweight who like many to the manor born, use their family name and connections to advance their career despite being a pale imitation of the original.

Nobody would accuse Justin of commanding the intellectual sagacity of his father, nor the political savvy and so we might dismiss him as just another rich-boy living off the reputation of his wildly successful pater.

But sometimes genius is actually a disadvantage, especially in politics where intellect without scrappiness, pragmatism and naked ambition is just a waste and where  'smart' politicians who are ultimately unsuccessful are a dime a dozen.

It is extremely rare that we find profound intellect coupled with the above traits in our political leaders, but it does happen, as in the case of Bill Clinton and yes, Justin's father, Pierre-Elliot.

But if one has to choose between a highly intellectual leader who possesses none of the above-described attributes, it is actually prefereable to go for the more pedestrian brain, one imbued with those traits necessary for political success.

Nobody would claim that Jean Chretien was an intellectual giant, but as a Prime Minister he was one of our most successful.
On the opposite end of the scale was President Jimmy Carter, who boasted a genius IQ of 174 and yet was a woefully inept and ineffective president, drummed out of office after four years of failure.
Other good examples of unfulfilled genius are Bob Rae, Joe Clark and Paul Martin, overthinkers who thought themselves right out of a job.

So sometimes, just sometimes, being a sophisticated thinker is a disadvantage in a job that requires swift, decisive and often bold action.
Remember the fable of  the simple young lad who was the only one who dared to expose the ruse of the Emperors New Clothes?

By denouncing proposed measures by the PQ to further restrict English by bolstering provisions in Bill 101, Justin the 'simple,' has demonstrated more political boldness and bravery than all our federal Quebec politicians combined.
While all the smart politicians tow the line of appeasement, the politically expedient thing to do, Justin has set himself apart from the pack of those insipidly timid boys who profess to be the smartest in the room.
"Justin Trudeau has pressed one of the hottest issue buttons in Quebec, saying there's no need to toughen the province's language laws.
During a visit to Quebec City on Thursday, the Liberal leadership candidate was asked by reporters about plans by the Parti Québécois provincial government to toughen so-called Bill 101, Quebec's French-language charter.
The pro-independence PQ calls the matter urgent, following census data that suggests a decline in francophones' demographic weight in the province.Trudeau's response: The PQ language policy is unnecessary and counter-productive.
While he expressed support for the old Bill 101, pointing out that it has allowed French to thrive in a Quebec nestled in a bilingual Canada, Trudeau said Thursday that adding teeth now to the language law risks needlessly reigniting old battles.
"I think we are revisiting old debates," Trudeau said.
"The majority of people in Papineau" — his Montreal riding — "in Quebec City and across Quebec are focused on their jobs, the economy, health and education of their children to participate fully in this era of globalization in which we live." Read the rest of the story
In bravely daring to take on and denounce the entrenched dogma of the PQ and its language extremists, Justin has proved that he has indeed inherited some of the admirable traits of his father, confidence, feistiness, pluckiness, and the intestinal fortitude to pursue an unpopular political course because he believes it is the right thing to do.

So intellect aside, does Justin possess enough of the other political tools necessary to become an effective and successful leader?

Let us start at the beginning, his choice of constituency, the very working class riding of Papineau in Montreal, where he chose to run against advice and where his victory surprised political pundits who had all but conceded the riding to the Bloc Quebecois.
In choosing Papineau, he actually out-bolded his father, who chose to represent a comfortable Liberal bastion, the wealthy, mostly Jewish, riding of Mont-Royal.
Choosing to make a stand in Papineau was a political statement extrodinaire, one that proved that Liberal politics combined with an electric personality can win in Quebec.
His victory heralded the fact that under the right circumstances, almost all ridings in Quebec would be in play.
And now polls are confirming this, with the Liberals trending up to the point that they are more popular than the Ndp in Quebec.
It is not unthinkable to consider that a Justin leadership could bring up to fifty Quebec seats to Parliament, not enough to displace Harper right now, but enough to toss the Ndp from official opposition.

Then there is his fearlessness, demonstrated by his choice to enter the charity boxing ring against a stronger and more able opponent.
"In a stunning upset, Liberal MP Justin Trudeau brawled his way to a third-round TKO victory over Conservative Sen. Patrick Brazeau. The referee stopped the fight in the third and final round.
This came after several halts during which the referee had Brazeau do a standing count to see if he was fit to continue.
It was an astonishing turn of events, which followed weeks of speculation that Trudeau would not only be beaten, but injured. Brazeau was a three-to-one favourite to win. He has a background in martial arts and formerly served as a reservist in the Canadian Forces." Link
So why did Justin win?
Hard work, perseverance and a strong will to succeed, coupled with a work ethic that saw him train as diligently and relentlessnessly as a heavyweight boxer preparing for a bout. 
Any questions or doubts about  Justin's staying power or commitment were cast aside by his performance, which utterly shocked those who were convinced he had bit off more than he could chew.
The conservative Sun TV News channel was so enthralled with the idea of Justin getting his ass kicked that they carried the event live, his victory a bitter disappointment.

Finally and most importantly, Justin seems willing to take on the separatist PQ government as no other politician dares to, including Prime Minister Harper who seems deathly afraid to cause offence.
He seems to be embracing and promoting  good common sense, respect, and stands for the inclusion of all provinces in the Canadian mosaic.

Most deliciously, he is a populist that the separatists are deathly afraid of, no matter what brave face they put on.
Just look at the ink Justin generates on vigile.net, where copious amounts of vitriol flow in his direction.
Link1{Fr}   Link2{Fr}

How long has it been since we had a real champion of federalism in Quebec and how refreshing to see a politician do the right thing and take a real stand?

So is Justin a lightweight, not smart enough for the job? Not by my standards, not by a longshot. 

Consider this....
You are walking down an alley with a couple of friends when you are confronted by a group of thugs looking for a fight.
On one side you are flanked by your friend, the smartest guy you know, who announces that he will reason with the ruffians. On the other side is another friend, a behemoth who is the provincial martial arts champion.
Who are you going to tap in? ....Brains or brawn?

Justin Trudeau is exactly what we need as leader of the Liberal party, he is the one politician federalists in Quebec can look to for leadership and support.

So sometimes, just sometimes, brains isn't cracked up to be the be-all and end-all.

Readers, I write this post in support of Justin Trudeau, NEVER HAVING VOTED  LIBERAL IN MY LIFE!

Is he perfect?...No
Is he ideal?...No

But if Justin Trudeau wins the leadership of the Liberal party, I will probably change my vote, because he possesses the most elusive of political traits....INTEGRITY.

Think about it........

Let me leave you with some lyrics from the song "I need a Hero" sung by Bonnie Tyler.

 ♪ ♫  
"Where have all good men gone
And where are all the gods?
Where’s the street-wise Hercules
To fight the rising odds?

Isn’t there a white knight upon a fiery steed?
Late at night I toss and turn and dream of what I need

I need a hero
I’m holding out for a hero ‘til the end of the night
He’s gotta be strong
And he’s gotta be fast
And he’s gotta be fresh from the fight
I need a hero
I’m holding out for a hero ‘til the morning light
He’s gotta be sure
And it’s gotta be soon
And he’s gotta be larger than life"
 
 ♩♬ 
Have a listen


167 comments:

  1. Notwithstanding (please pardon the pun) his winning a boxing match (possibly due to the underestimation by his opponent, a fatal error in judgment) and the integrity you credit him for, this is a perfect time for him to test the limits. If something doesn't work, he can go to the next topic and work on forgetting the failure quickly.

    The people of Mount Royal would have voted for a pregnant cow named Elsie (the Borden milk cow) if it ran in TMR. "My granddaddy voted Liberal, my daddy voted Liberal and I vote Liberal, so there" is the sentiment of many people who lived in that riding during the PET era. If they ran their businesses the way they voted, they'd be welfare recipients in St-Henri! When Trudeau was approached by his mostly non «pur laine» constituents re Bill 22 then Bill 101, PET answered it's not his fight. According to the Angryphone documentary (go to http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Angryphone+documentary+part+1+%28full%29+&oq=angryphone+documentary&gs_l=youtube-reduced.1.1.35i39l2j0l2.39963211.39970617.0.39973915.22.22.0.0.0.0.101.1493.21j1.22.0.. ), PET's federal government could have vetoed, repeat, VETOED the language legislation, but chose not to; furthermore, Jean Chrétien, as Minister of Justice, subsequently rigged to law so that the only way the language legislation could now be vetoed is if the Quebec government does it. The Constitution, as passed, tied the hands of the federal government.

    Justin Trudeau is a pretty boy, my better half says so constantly, but even she admits he comes across as a cocky bastard, just like his father was.

    No, Editor. One Prime Minister Trudeau in my lifetime is enough! Integrity goes straight out the window once power is bestowed upon one.

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  2. The Editor writes:

    "In bravely daring to take on and denounce the entrenched dogma of the PQ and its language extremists..."

    And what is this "bravery" that the Editor referring to? The fact that Justin said that "there's no need to toughen the province's language laws." Indeed, in the article the Editor quotes, it says this:

    "While (Justin) expressed support for the old Bill 101, pointing out that it has allowed French to thrive in a Quebec nestled in a bilingual Canada, Trudeau said Thursday that adding teeth now to the language law risks needlessly reigniting old battles."

    There is no bravery in opposing added restrictions to Bill 101. There would be bravery if he opposed the "old Bill 101". But he doesn't; he supports it. And he actually believes that it has allowed French to thrive.

    The "old Bill 101" is itself an "extremist" document. It is a race law and a hate law and dear, sweet Justin supports it. That makes Justin an extremist not that different from the PQ, in my book.

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    1. Bravo Tony - for saying what "Our English Media and supposed 'Spokespersons' continue to REFUSE to say or address: That Justin Trudeau - Marc Garneau & ALL 'supposed' Federal Liberal MP'S - VIGOROUSLY SUPPORT BILL 101 !! A CRIMINAL - DISCRIMINATORY LOI - THEY DESIGNED DELIBERATELY TO ERASE ENGLISH OUT OF MONTREAL!! They refer to it as "Linguistic Peace" -- as "Protecting French in Quebec" - like it ever needed protection - that being the biggest LIE of all time; given the french language and culture has grown and flourished at a HISTORIC LINGUISTIC SPEED !! Not only throughout the Province but ALSO across the country. Nope the truth is STILL being DENIED and the Liberals & NDP of course - continue to promote these grotesque - 'ethnic cleansing' Bill 101 - with their 'media hype - buzz words - to 'justify this Nazi type - 'purification'. Yech.

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  3. The Editor writes:

    "How long has it been since we had a real champion of federalism in Quebec and how refreshing to see a politician do the right thing and take a real stand?"

    I think I am going to throw up.

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    1. Tony, I share your sentiments, nausea and all. It is with your online book in mind that I wrote how the federal government's hands are tied re changing the language legislation. What the editor fails to mention as well is how Quebec didn't sign onto the Constitution and it is Quebec that has used the Notwithstanding Clause more than all the other provinces combined.

      I agree with you, Tony. Justin Trudeau is a champion of nothing--he'll ride on his late daddy's coattails. He MAY be something if he fights the aspects of Bill 101 that alienate the minorities, unlike his daddy who told his own constituents where to get off when they came to him complaining of how Bill 101 was alienating them.

      From the looks of it, the pretty boy with his late daddy's arrogance cannot and will not change the course of mighty rivers, out-run locomotives, bend steel in his bare hands and leap tall buildings in a single bound. One of his father's legacies, like Barack Obama, is he's very, very good at self-promotion, but so are Paris Hilton and the Khardashians. Some people can sell sand to the Arabs and ice to the Eskimos.

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    2. Could I kindly point out that 'Eskimo' is a derogatory racial slur and that 'Inuit' is the preferred term? I invite you to use that instead in the future, thanks.

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  4. I'll be more impressed with Justin the day he says this province's language legislation needs to be rewritten to stop curtailing bilingualism in Quebec in places where it would otherwise naturally flourish, and when he has the balls to take on and knock out hacks like the Lisées, Marois, and yes, even the Aussants, Legaults (Josée and François), St-Pierres, and Dions of the political scenery. Permanently.

    I'll also wholeheartedly support Justin once he manages to tell and convince Quebecers that contrary to the bullshit fed to us by the nationalist machine as far back as Frère Untel (if not earlier), bilingualism isn't toxic.

    Until then, I remain only marginally piqued.

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    1. I am always confused by the term "bilingualism" as it means two diametrically opposite things and, often, I can never figure out which one the writer/speaker is referring to.

      When you write "curtailing bilingualism", I assume you mean individual bilingualism as opposed to two official languages bilingualism, no?

      If that is the case, Apparatchik, I agree. But it always prompts me to ask you whether you support official bilingualism for the province of Quebec; that is, that it should have French and English as its two official languages (that is, more than the limited status both languages currently have under the BNA Act).

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    2. Apparatchik,

      Dions? Like in Stephane? What did he do?

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    3. When you write "curtailing bilingualism", I assume you mean individual bilingualism as opposed to two official languages bilingualism, no?

      The problem, in my view, is that Quebec nationalists have for too long held what to me has always seemed to be a terribly ambiguous and divergent view that it is necessary to impede the latter either because of or despite our supposed existential imperative to avoid the former. I don't take that nuanced (sic) view. I'd rather the state speak multiple languages and encourage its citizens to do so while merrily deciding which of those languages I'll live in as a private citizen rather than approve attempts at social engineering through variously insidious or bombastic bouts of ethnolinguistic dogmatism, which has been the case too long from Quebec City.

      it always prompts me to ask you whether you support official bilingualism for the province of Quebec; that is, that it should have French and English as its two official languages (that is, more than the limited status both languages currently have under the BNA Act).
      Absolutely. Canada as a whole has roughly 80% native English speakers and has no problem (at the very least federally) mandating bilingualism, however pathetically bilingualism is occasionally applied in practice. I think Quebec, whose population is analogously also 80% native French-speaking, can attempt to do the same. Our province's using Manitoba, Alberta or even Ontario as a model on which to pattern government language policy is not only short-sighted, it harms (in so many ways) the very people it claims to "protect".

      Dions? Like in Stephane? What did he do?
      Called our province's language legislation a great Canadian Law.
      A greatly infamous one, maybe.

      On this particular issue, I'd rather cast my lot with the supposedly "trashy" Justin Trudeaus, Stéphane Gendrons, and Maxime Berniers of this world, who have had the courage to publicly express doubts about the need and/or usefulness of our current language legislation, rather than appease francosupremacist fanatics for fear of kicking off a firestorm with the latter's far-too-well-oiled propaganda machine/self-styled intelligentsia.

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    4. Apparatchik, I don't think you can include Maxime Bernier and Justin Trudeau in the same sentence of "...who have had the courage to publicly express doubts about the need and/or usefulness of our current language legislation...". Bernier has said that "we don’t need Bill 101 to protect the French language" whereas Trudeau has said pretty much the opposite.

      And as far as "courage" is concerned, I don't think it took ANY guts for Trudeau to say he supports Bill 101 whereas it took a HELL of a lot of guts for Bernier to say Bill 101 isn't necessary. And as far as I'm concerned, Justin's commments disqualify him becoming leader of the Liberal Party, let alone Prime Minister.

      I'll have to google "stephane bernier" and see what he had to say.

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  5. Quite frankly, we should all learn Algonquian, or Mohawk, and remember on whose soil we tread. Je me souviens? Vous avez choisi ce qu'il faut retinir.

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  6. ROM ED BROWN
    What the hell is wrong with you people? A door has been opened and you're looking for reasons not to go through it before you even know what's inside. Justin Trudeau is like a breathe of fresh air for all Canada. If he can pick up the Liberals help him or ddo you prefer Harper just because the man bears the name Trudeau. We have been saaying for weeks that we can live with 101 as it is if they don't make it worse. So that's what he is saying and you'ree holding it against him. He is definitely the best right now. No Baggage, reared in a family that helped prepare for a life of politics and dedicated to Canada. For God's sake and ours, give the man a chance. Ed

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  7. FROM ED BROWN
    Mr.Sauga, I can't believe you would hold the sins of Chretien and his father against a young man just starting out. This is so unlike you. Ed

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    1. Ed, please realize the following: Justin Trudeau was being groomed for politics since he was in university. I knew 20 years ago this guy was going to be running for the Liberal leadership someday! The media picked up how Chrétien has been the kindly uncle to Trudeau since he and Daddy Trudeau were two peas in a pod. It was clearly seen during the Liberal convention Dion won how Chrétien stuck to Justin like glue. Justin has Chrétien in his pocket! Having an elder statesman in your pocket puts you way ahead of the pack before the race starts.

      Ed, I guess you've gotten to know me through my writings in this blog, but you don't know me THAT well! This is me being me! Hope I didn't shatter your image of me too much!

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  8. FROM ED BROWN
    Try to remember, not everything is about Quebec.
    Trudeau would be well accepted in the ROC. We complain about Marois spending Quebec out of sight. We need some one to stop Harper from doing worse.
    Trudeau was a believer in Paul Mmartin the best PM we ever had. If he follows Martin economics he could save us from bankruptcy.

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    1. Ed: Why don't you contact Alberta and say to them what you wrote above? Just hearing the name Trudeau in Alberta would set off a firestorm! Paul Martin was far from the best PM we ever had! He had the good fortune of being the finance minister and subsequently PM during good economic times, a period of respectable if not robust economic growth. So did JFK hence sentimental memories of the Camelot years for many. I'm still too young to remember much of that time as I was only five when Kennedy was assassinated. That year I contracted Hepatitis A (there was an epidemic in Montreal) and just weeks after I recovered from that (and my late mother recovered from the intense care she had to give me for six weeks), a very much beloved uncle of mine suddenly died at age 52. For my family, it really was an annus horriblus. The aftermath of that year for my mother was a very bad peptic ulcer months later. So much for the good times.

      I was not impressed with a $55 billion deficit run up by the Conservatives a few years ago, but it beats the s--t out of the annual trillion dollar deficits in the U.S. Daddy Trudeau was well on his way to bankrupting us with his annual $30+ billion deficits back in the 1980s.

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    2. Yannick, you have so missed to boat with that naïve statement. Westerners tend to support a sub-ideology (if you'll pardon the term) or doctrine of Rugged Individualism. The Wild Rose Party that ran in last year's Alberta provincial election heartily endorses that doctrine. Albertans, in terms of Canadian jurisdictions are the polar opposite of Quebeckers' desire for endless state intervention - "gouvernemama". Notice how Quebec is the most heavily taxed jurisdiction in Canada and Alberta is the least taxed. No doubt oil royalties are helping Alberta a lot, but compare their social programs to Quebec's.

      There was a fellow who wrote a book in the States about a new kind of battery he claims will put the price of oil back to $20 a barrel. I'm skeptical that will happen for I believe there is a conspiracy between automakers and the oil industry to suppress new technologies that would reduce dependence on oil and gasoline, but if it does, I still think Alberta will be in better shape than Quebec just because of its society's adopting the doctrine of Rugged Individualism.

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    3. I guess you forget that about 20 years ago when Ralph Klein was the premier, he offered any and all welfare recipients a free one-way ticket out of Alberta. Of course, he took a lot of flack for that, mostly from the other provinces! Oil revenues help a lot, but they don't have as many social programs as other provinces.

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  9. I will be voting Liberal in the next election and by doing so directly for Justin as he represents my riding of Papineau. That being said, I do see Justin as chickening out from saying he is against bill 101. That being said, the only reason Justin can even win Papineau is because of the massive Allophone vote that he recieves in the riding.

    Uncle Tom and the NDP want to actually expand bill 101 to Federally regulated industries and depts themselves. Basically the NDP is bloc Quebecois light but the Canadian Media really don't focus on that aspect of the NDP or their lack of support for equality among the provinces.

    Harper has already proved me right, given a full majority the Conservatives showed their true colours and follow their own neocon agenda. They've also shown the real fiscal acumen by declaring that they won't be able to pay down the deficit in the near future or made any commitments.


    Also I don't blame Trudeau SR alone for the plight of minorities in Quebec. Its not like any of the other premieres couldn't have insisted on not having the notwithstanding clause. No other premieres chose to oppose the unequal education clauses restricting minority language education access in Quebec more then in the rest of Canada.

    We are on our own.

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    1. A sad commentary on the current state of affairs.

      We choose Justin over the Thomas Mulcair's NDP because the former approves of Bill 101 yet doesn't want to expand it while the latter does.

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    2. Tony, when haven't we gone to the polls in elections to vote for the lesser of two evils? As U.S. Senator Fred Thompson once said in his TV role as D.A. Arthur Branch on Law and Order SVU: "Democracy is the worst form of government - except for all the rest." If I recall correctly, that episode was about a congressman who had partaken in some corrupt criminal activity, but managed to get one of his aids thrown under the bus for his own wrongdoing.

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  10. The most recent reason I believe that one Harper mandate is one too many for me, parallels to the PQ.

    http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/1277183--cuts-to-prison-chaplains-shortchanges-non-christians-inmates-critics-charge

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  11. Well guys, out of all the politicians to date, he is the only one that has been willing to say diddly-squat about Quebec which is at least something. Mulcair has not said one thing, that I know of, about Bill 101 or the Canadians residing in this hell hole. The only stupid thing he has said is 50+1 should be considered a vote for separation, which for sure will drive us into civil war, and has completely ignored the Clarity Act which was put into place by the Supreme Court of Canada. 50+1 and ignoring the Clarity Act would prove deadly for a separate Quebec, as the world would not accept it as a separate country and it would never receive recognition by any other country. The separatists would have everyone believe that "oh well" would work out problems with a declaration of independence. Bare faced land grab and "everyone will accept it if we just do it" attitude is going to land us in big trouble. We have to find a way to partition this place and let those go that want to go democratically. This will let them have some place to hide from the world and the rest of us can go on.

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    1. Thats the problem Cutie uncle Tom says one thing when he is focusing on "soft" nationalist Quebec and just omits it when he is talking to the rest of Canada. So many anglos voted for the NDP out of ignorance in Quebec. More then anything else I would love to see Uncle Tom lose his seat in a liberal wave.

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    2. Mulcair has done more than that, actually.

      The NDP's stated official policy is that although they would like Quebec to stay in Canada, they will not, if they become the government of the day, use the powers available to them under the constitution to uphold the rule of law and will allow Quebec to separate in violation of both the rule of law and the Prime Minister's Oath of Office.

      See: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/tony-kondaks/what-would-a-prime-minist_b_1267012.html

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    3. On Friday, the 4-member, rump Bloc Québécois tabled a private member’s bill try to get rid of the Clarity Act (since apparently they are determined to try to squeak by with an Unclear Referendum). This is nothing but a stunt, of course, but it could be a good thing for Justin Trudeau if Mulcair sticks to the NDP’s old Sherbrooke Declaration, as explained in this piece from the NP:

      One way or another, Bloc bill will put an end to Mulcair’s Clarity Act doublespeak

      Specifically, he says:
      If the NDP sticks with its 2005-era policy, on the other hand, the clear winner could be Justin Trudeau, the leading Liberal party leadership candidate, whose most likely strategy for bringing about a Liberal renaissance lies with re-establishing the Liberals as a principled federalist option for Quebec, and which also is trusted as such in the rest of Canada.

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  12. And, by the way Jarry, we can all do what I did and write to the Prime Minister and premiers of the provinces asking that the "Notwithstanding Clause" be withdrawn or re-written to stop the abuse of the Charters of Rights and Freedoms in our country, especially in Quebec. We can talk all we want on this blog, but taking action by writing objections to these things is the only way we will get any action. Silence is acceptance of things as they are - hopefully federalists in this province do not accept the inaction of either the federal or provincial governments in this country. Speak up everyone! e-mail, snail mail, letters to newspapers, anything you can think of can help end this continuous abuse by the separatists in this province.

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    1. Cutie, I'm not sure you're aware of this, but it is the western premiers who requested the Notwithstanding clause.

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  13. "Let me say very clearly that I support Bill 101," Trudeau said Thursday.

    "It is a reality that helps Quebec remain mainly French in a bilingual country. If we want Canada to remain bilingual — and I want it — we need to understand that Quebec must remain primarily francophone."

    "Quebec can make French the only official language in spite of the Constitution". Pierre Trudeau, .

    "There is no way two ethnic groups in one country can be made equal before the law....and to say it is possible is to sow the seeds of destruction”. Pierre Trudeau,

    ." ....Given these facts, should French-speaking people concentrate their efforts on Quebec or take the whole of Canada as their base? In my opinion, they should do both; and for the purpose they could find no better instrument than federalism", Pierre Trudeau,.

    Justin Trudeau supports the racist, bigoted, xenophobic bill 101. Yes he supports a French only Kebec (proper native spelling) and forced french “bilingualism” all over the country, nice eh? Just like a daddy a French first, Kebec first bigot, hypocrite, from the province of the Qlue Qlux Qlan. Get back to the tax and spend, have not, high debt, socialist province of Kebec and shut up you parasite Trudeau, yes french-metis Kebec where you fit right in.

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    1. C'est ainsi que Dams Wolf est devenu james wolfe selon les légendes des sauvages.

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    2. James Wolfe writes:

      "Justin Trudeau supports the racist, bigoted, xenophobic bill 101."

      You forgot "segregationist".

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  14. I think ts a bit early to either dismiss him or exalt him. He needs to prove himself over the next few years..so far I give him mixed reviews. He comes across as pretty lightweight and somewhat arrogant and condascending at times. His father was a much more formidable man in terms of actual experience and educational background. Justins little temper tantrums over the past 2 years make me doubt his capabilities. When he said that he might support independance if Canada keeps going the way it has..hard to respect someone who makes silly childish statements like that. He needs to understand that Canada does not revolve around the ideals of Quebec..people in western Canada have a much more pragmatic and laissez faire attitude when it comes to governemnt..less government the better essentially. I think Justins vision of Canada again is through the lenses of the Quebec and some Ontario idealists.
    Pierre Trudeau was a formidable man but he was horrible in terms of financial management..starting the legacy of large deficits and getting the whole debt train going which Mulroney did little to stop. Again we need someone who can balance the books..I think Justin would be weak in this area.
    Finally, I am really tired of second generation politicians who are exalted simply because of their last name and the accomplishments of their fathers. If Justin had any other last name then he really would be a very ordinary MP..in fact he likely wouldnt even have been elected in the first place. As well consider that Justin grew up with a silver spoon severaly embedded in his mouth so not sure someone from such an elitist and privilged background is what we really need to run this country. I will take a small business owner any day to run Canada then a kid who never had to worry about money in his life.

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    1. Yannick,

      I think its just the tip of the iceberg there still might be the real estate bubble that the CONs helped inflate more by creating the 40 year mortgage and no cash down mortgages. It won't be pretty. On the other hand it will be somebody elses' problem by 2015.

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    2. Yannick and Jarry: What are you, a couple of New Dealers? At least complicated recognizes Trudeau and his minions were horrible, horrible fiscal managers.

      I remember when he was Minister of Finance, Alan MacEachen's November 12, 1981 budget was obsolete as he was reciting it in Parliament. The fact the Liberals didn't table a budget for the 8 months after they defeated Joe Clark's short-lived term in office was irresponsible considering the PC budget was defeated in Fall 1979 and it took them two years between budgets. 7½ months after that obsolete budget, MacEachen came up with his June 28, 1982 "Economic Address" (a budget, really, where their old 6 & 5 farcical anti-inflation strategy was introduced. In the meantime, MacEachen disclosed the projected $10.5 billion deficit he projected in Nov 1981, just 7½ months later was "augmented" to $19.5 billion, and in reality was over $23 billion when the final numbers were calculated. In the following year, that number went up to $31.5 billion.

      In the interim, through a cabinet shuffle, Marc Lalonde became Minister of Finance. In his February 15, 1984 budget , Lalonde referred to the fact he would reduce the deficit to $29.5 billion as "fiscally responsible!" Sorry, no. Daddy Trudeau and his minions were NOT economists. While father and son are not one and the same, son learned everything from father, including arrogance. If you want a cocky pretty boy as your leader who is, like daddy, an effective self-promoter, your choice is clear. God help us all.

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    3. Some further clarification by Mr. SaugaMonday, October 29, 2012 at 3:16:00 PM EDT

      Re the "6 & 5" Program: In his June 28, 1982 Budget, then Finance Minister Alan MacEachen introduced a mere 7½ months after his prior budget that was obsolete as it was being tabled, introduced a measure that falsely was of his creation to reduce inflation. Wage settlements for MPs and public servants had their then Cost of Living Adjustments (COLAs) reduced from the rate of inflation in 1982 (which proved to be 10.5%) to 6% in the 1982-83 fiscal year (which starts every April 1st) and 5% in the 1983-84 fiscal year.

      The reason it was farcical was because the our GDP in fiscal 1981-82 SHRUNK by 5%. I attended a talk for Concordia University Alumni in early 1983 by Dian Cohen, then an economist who regularly appeared on CTV's Canada AM and on the CBC local news back in the day. She considered what Canada went through in in 1981-82 a depression, not a recession. In the depression of the 1930s, the U.S. GDP shrunk by about 5%. It was the Americans who truly had a recession as their GDP in 1981-82 shrunk by 1.5%. Ours was much, much worse. Our "official" unemployment rate rose to 13%. The "hidden" rate was well over 20% considering the hundreds of thousands who didn't count in the stats giving up looking for work. Others took courses to pass the time until things got better, me included.

      As a result of all this economic loss, it was inevitable inflation was going to drop like a stone because demand for goods and services dropped like a stone. In fact, inflation dropped below the 6% and 5% rates projected by the government, so MacEachen added a buffer to ensure he did not underestimate the projections. It's as if MacEachen predicted an eclipse we today know is a certainty, but only astronomers knew was a certainty in the Dark Ages. Christopher Columbus used a lunar eclipse he knew was going to occur to scare island natives in the West Indies into giving him and his crew food and supplies on threat of ordering the gods to remove the moon from the skies. Trudeau's minions pulled much the same trick.

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    4. Yannick: Your concerns about FIPA are quite legitimate. Click on my FIPA hyperlink for more details. This was also discussed at length on Question Period this past Sunday. The only one who is going to say anything in the house, or try, is Elizabeth May of the Green Party.

      While I like a lot of Harper's policies, what I do not like is Harper's secretive, and at times, dictatorial policies. Unilateralism is anti-democratic. This agreement may be his downfall, if not others, but it's not as if Mulcair and the Liberals are offering any great alternatives, and what worries me is that future governments will adopt Harper's way.

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    5. Yannick: You just may get your wish. Over time, Jr. Trudeau will have to disclose his objectives to be PM, but hope is a scary thing. Another old TV episode that has stuck with me all these years was an episode of All in the Family when the Bunkers' neighbour, George Jefferson, wanted to run for city council for less than altruistic reasons: The objective was to take over a store next door to his dry cleaning establishment and break down the wall to expand his store.

      Because TV land is a fantasy, karma was the ultimate bitch because it turned out George's store was in one electoral district while his next door neighbour's store was in another. George explained his ulterior motive and then semantics to his wife: "Lies are called promises, and promises are made to be broken" was the prevailing sentiment, in George's mind.

      I was around 15 years old when that episode was first aired, and it was a valuable lesson on democracy. Who says TV isn't a good teacher?

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    6. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_public_debt

      In terms of % of debt to GDP, Trudeaus' time was actually better then that of Mulroney if we based on the chart above.

      What was ignored was the 2 oil shocks we experienced in mid 1970s and again in early 1980s. We've only experienced the recent oil shock which peaked in 2009 and it was relatively better then the one that hit in 1982. Though look at how difficult a time all western economies are having dealing with it. After each shock there is massive increase in costs due to inflation.

      Between 1996 and 2008 the debt as % of GDP decreased by 15.9%, this was under the Liberals (Paul Martin and Jean Chretien). So far as per the chart Debt to GDP from 2008 to 2011 from 28.5 to 32.1 an increase of 3.6 in 4 years. From 1971 to 1981 (trudeau years) in 10 years it went up just 5.4% from 20.6% to 25.5%. Even from 1981 to 1984 (remember oil shock peaked in 1982) the ratio was still better the Harper government record currently based on 4 years.

      found another chart for 1983 to 2003.

      http://www.parl.gc.ca/Content/LOP/researchpublications/prb0540-e.htm


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  15. Anyone can always be worse..believe me. Harper is pretty bad for a supposedly fiscally conservative government.
    Its hard to imagine how someone like him would have any real experience in money management. This is a guy who never had to worry about money. I would love to see a lot more small business owners running for political office..they know how the real world works and how to balance the books. We have way too many lawyers and economists..

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    Replies
    1. Complicated, may I suggest you go to Howard Galganov's run for office back in October 2008. That hyperlink will take you back to a number of archived editorials he made in his own blog. He IS a hard-working small businessman who was also an activist; furthermore, he ran as an independent, not wanting to have to tie himself down to being just another "yes-man" in a major party leader's caucus.

      He ran far from my constituency, but I still contributed to his campaign fund because I think he would have made a lot of constructive noise in Parliament, or would have died trying. I also think he would have given Quebec plenty to think about!

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  16. FROM ED BROWN
    Let's get some facts straight. Trudeau and that snake Chretien put Canada in debt 200 billion dollars.
    Mulroney added 386 billion to that. Paul Martin took two years to clean up the snake Chretiens mess to balance the books and get rid of the deficits. Finally he paid off 90 billion on the debt within a few years with no loss of programs saving 24 billion per year in interest. If he had stayed in office we would be the richest country around with a disappearing debt. John Turner, the last man to bring in a balanced budget said there is absolutely no reason for a deficit unless a country is at war. Well we were at war and Martin managed anyway. Nothing in this country happens without money and the man who does the best with it is definitely the best PM. Harper has the debt over 600 billion. Ed

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    1. Agreed, Ed. It was definitely stupid to vote Martin out in 2006. The man was everything a good conservative should be.
      For all the flack Bob Rae gets for Ontario, his fiscal record is on par with Harper‘s. Scary. At least Rae can stand up for the charter and dismiss separacist myths.

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    2. I mostly agree but I think history gives too much credit to political leaders in terms of debts and deficits. A lot of it..especially in recent years has to do with external global forces. The USA started really going on a debt orgy in the mid to late 1990s which fueled the tech bubble then the housing bubble. These bubbles on their way up lifted Canadas economy greatly so Chretien and Martin were somewhat lucky here but Martin still ran a pretty tight ship and I will givem him credit for that. Meanwhile Mulroney and Michael Wilson were dreadful in the 1980s but they didnt have a great boom going on down south to help out.
      Harper and Flaherty have been a disaster..there was no need for the 100 billion dollars in debt they added within 2 years..this so called stimulus money was greatly overdone. This just fueled a huge housing bubble here in Canada.plus Mark Carneys irresponsible zero interest rate policies. Now we will see what the Canadian economy is really made of as the bubble pops all over the country. My prediction is that a year from now housing prices will be 10-15 percent lower in all major cities and a lot of people will be whining..there will be rumblings of our great banks having to writeoff billions in mortgages..and it will get worse in 2014 and 2015. Everyone thinks Canada is special..we are not..we will fall almost as badly as the USA did and we can thank Mark Carney and Harper/Flaherty for promoting a dangerous housing bubble..

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    3. I personally think Paul Martin was Canada's greatest Prime Minister ever. He did something that Canadians are reaping the benefit of today and will for the foreseeable future: he not only balanced the budget for 11 straight years (as Finance Minister and then after becoming Prime Minister) but created a surplus. As a result, Canada is the fiscal envy of the world.

      Sadly, for Marin, budgets and fiscal policies are not "sexy"; they are boring topics and involve 11th grade math which, for much of the population, is as much of a mystery as is quantum mechanics.

      That is why Justin is tailor-made for the masses: a simpleton for a simpleton mindset. He will get support for his dashing good looks, his pugilistic skills, and, probably, his "you piece of shit" comment in the House.

      Also, they'll probably love him for hanging out with that mass-murdering, human-rights violating, anti-democratic totalitarian communist dictator who enslaves 11 million people on that Caribbean Island.

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    4. Sorry, Ed, I replied to Yannick as I did because I was scrolling upward through the posts from the bottom of the page; I see now that your comments actually reflect much of what I wrote on the deficit, etc.

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    5. As I've written previously, Martin was a hypocrite by having his Canada Steamship Lines headquartered in the Caribbean at a much lower tax rate. Some patriot! Furthermore, he had the benefit of an extended period of economic expansion to work with.

      Finally, and probably most importantly, Martin downloaded a big chunk of the deficit on the shoulders of the provinces by cutting federal portions of the the health and education allocations, the lion's share of the various budget portfolios. Paul Martin Jr. had his father's footsteps to follow and learn all the dirty political tricks. He caused a lot of problems in the Liberal caucus by his constant attempts at usurping Chrétien off the throne. That was the beginning of the end for the Liberals. How Ignatieff usurped Dion and then Bob Rae with the help of the Liberal Party executive was the end of the end!

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    6. "
      Also, they'll probably love him for hanging out with that mass-murdering, human-rights violating, anti-democratic totalitarian communist dictator who enslaves 11 million people on that Caribbean Island."

      Does anyone remember Nixon opening up with Communists China back in the 1970s, while the United States was militarily supporting South Vietnam and while China was supplying the North Vietnamese?

      Similar to Harper government who have made it easier for Al Qaida to get in power in Libya and Egypt.

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  17. Well time will tell but he has a long ways to go before he proves to me that he would be a capable leader. Frankly I think I can count on one hand the number of politicians which have had real integrity over the past 50 years. In the end I think we more or less have been getting the leaders we deserve.

    You can barely get most Canadians to get off their butts and vote and their reasons for voting for someone are often very superficial. Our political system needs to be reformed..we should have a proportional system in which all votes count the same instead of our archaic first past the post system. That would force many parties to work together and it would encourage more people to vote.

    Its ridiculous that Pauline Marois could have won a majority government with 35 percent of the vote..even Harper has a majority with 40 percent of the vote..hello how is this democracy???

    60 percent of Quebecers voted for a non-seperatist party in the last election and who is in charge..the PQ..is that a reflection of the moajority? How about Harper..60 percent of Canadians voted for left leaning parties..and we have the lone right wing party with a majority?? And similarily the same was true when Chretien was winning by default in the 1990s because the right wing vote was split.

    Or how about the fact that some ridings have 130000 people in them and others have 60000..so some peoples vote counts twice as much and typically in rural ridings. Or how one party can win a riding by 5 votes and all the other votes for the second place party count for nothing..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Comp: I fully agree on what you wrote about equal populations among the different constituencies. Proportional representation on paper sounds nice and logical, but go speak to Italians and Israelis on the pitfalls of coalition governments and elections every 1½-2 years.

      Actually, Ontario less than a decade ago addressed the democratic deficit issue by creating a committee of ordinary citizens, one from each riding, to discuss the issues and recommend reform. The result was proposing a hybrid where fewer constituencies with larger populations would hold a traditional first-past-the-post contest, and the rest of the MPPs would be brought on based on the proportion of the votes their party received.

      This proposal was put to the voters via a referendum that was held concurrently with the 2007 election, so aside with the minor costs of some extra printed literature explaining the process, this was far less costly than holding a separate referendum on another day.

      Unfortunately, only 37% favoured the proposal and the rest voted for the status quo. I thought the proposal had merit and I voted in favour, but I was among the minority. One flaw was the referendum, at least in my opinion, was not well promoted, especially on TV where an audio-visual presentation, much like an infomercial, could have been used to explain the process and the ramifications. There was some Ontario Government literature, but I think an infomercial would have been far more effective and likely would have reached more people.

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  18. I'd like to make another observation about Justin's alleged strong commitment to federalism that the Editor touts.

    Justin has his line in the sand when it comes to supporting Canada. He is on record as stating that if, for example, the Harper government would do away with abortion rights and gay marriage that he, Justin, would seriously consider becoming a separatist.

    Well, that's hardly a strong endorsement of a country if, through democratic channels, two public policies were changed. Indeed, I'd call that "intolerance" on Justin's part.

    But what's to stop the rest of us from having, like Justin, our own lines in the sand regarding the qualification of our support for Canada? Mine is human rights. Indeed, it has been passed long ago: I would rather live in an independent Quebec that respected human rights than in a Quebec within Canada that didn't (as is the case in today's Quebec).

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    Replies
    1. Its ridiculous that Pauline Marois could have won a majority government with 35 percent of the vote..even Harper has a majority with 40 percent of the vote..hello how is this democracy???

      She didn't. She got a minority

      60 percent of Quebecers voted for a non-seperatist party in the last election and who is in charge..the PQ..is that a reflection of the moajority? How about Harper..60 percent of Canadians voted for left leaning parties..and we have the lone right wing party with a majority?? And similarily the same was true when Chretien was winning by default in the 1990s because the right wing vote was split.

      CAQ is a separatist party, just not too hurried about it. So is Quebec Solidaire. That adds up to about 60 percent with the PQ. And Harper got 48% of the votes outside Quebec, so, should Quebec leave, that would make his a mandate as good as any in any modern democracy. Oh, and the Liberals don't always run as a Left Wing party, especially against the NDP.

      Or how about the fact that some ridings have 130000 people in them and others have 60000..so some peoples vote counts twice as much and typically in rural ridings. Or how one party can win a riding by 5 votes and all the other votes for the second place party count for nothing..

      You have a point there, but on the second point: people vote tactically, it balances out. The UK had a referendum to remove first-past-the-post and got roundly defeated by nearly three votes to one. What are the odds of a similar outcome in Canada?

      But what's to stop the rest of us from having, like Justin, our own lines in the sand regarding the qualification of our support for Canada? Mine is human rights. Indeed, it has been passed long ago: I would rather live in an independent Quebec that respected human rights than in a Quebec within Canada that didn't (as is the case in today's Quebec).

      As things stand, human rights in the RoC are more strongly upheld than in Quebec, or this blog wouldn't exist. Apart from that: excellent.

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    2. TQP -
      Its ridiculous that Pauline Marois could have won a majority government with 35 percent of the vote..even Harper has a majority with 40 percent of the vote..hello how is this democracy???

      She didn't. She got a minority

      I said that if she got 35 percent of the vote she could have won a majority. She actually only received 31.8 percent..a few percent more and she likely would have had a majority..that is ridiculous.
      CAQ is a separatist party, just not too hurried about it. So is Quebec Solidaire. That adds up to about 60 percent with the PQ. And Harper got 48% of the votes outside Quebec, so, should Quebec leave, that would make his a mandate as good as any in any modern democracy. Oh, and the Liberals don't always run as a Left Wing party, especially against the NDP.

      CAQ is not a seperatist party. They are neutral. I know most hardline anglophones will never believe that but I do. But I guess you would rather blindly support the Liberals who treat anglophones like dirt here.

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    3. FROM ED BROWN
      Complicated, The reason Marois won is because guys like you were telling everyone to vote for Legault. With a little more support we could have a Liberal government right now. Ed

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    4. Yes Legault is a separatist - the only difference is time. God.

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    5. Actually you are dead wrong there. If a few percent more people had voted for the CAQ then the Liberals likely would have won by default as the CAQ would have stolen at least 5 more seats from the PQ. The CAQ were a close second to the PQ in many more ridings than the Liberals and overall were second to the PQ in 30 ridings versus 21 for the Liberals. Its the stubborn Liberal vote that prevented the CAQ from stealing another 5-10 seats from the PQ which would have ironically given the Liberals a thin minority.
      Legault was a seperatist..he is neutral now. Frankly I could care less if in 10 years he turns back towards seperation..as long as he focuses on the priorities in this province which are reducing the debt, reducing taxes, cleaning up the corruption, tackling the militant unions, fixing our infrastructure. The Liberals have taken the anglo vote for granted for years if not decades..I think most anglos are fools for voting for a party that at best is indifferent towards us. Exactly what did the Liberals accomplish..lets see the debt continues to rise dramatically, the economy continues to stagnate, he mishandled the student crisis, his party was involved in corruption, he wanted to strengthen Bill 101 then said he wouldnt???, he called an election one week before the charbonneau commission would restart - if thats not cynical then I dont know what is. The Liberals deserved to lose and it baffles my mind how the anglo community continues to support a corrupt morally bankrupt party that has done nothing to fix the real problems in this province.

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    6. I voted CAQ in my riding merely because the Libs never have a chance, it's a solid PQ area. The only party with a chance to defeat them was the CAQ. Big surprise: PQ victory, as usual.

      I realize that the CAQ is probably (definitely) separatist, but they're quieter about it because they're not rampant fanatics, and they realize it's impossible for now. That qualifies as "neutral" I suppose, but who can tell how they'd do in government? They're newborns as fas as parties go.

      To be honest, Charest needed to go. As much as it sucks to have to endure a PQ government until the next election, along with the terrible cultural and linguistic damage they are doing, once they're voted out of power in the next election we'll be able to say "at least they got rid of Charest".

      Remember that Trudeau isn't leader of the Libs yet, so the persona that the PLQ will take on is still up for grabs. Really our only optimistic option is to hope for a decent leader, otherwise it's back to the "fuck everybody" attitude us anglos are famous for.

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    7. It depresses me to see how most anglophones blindly support the same party year after year no matter how corrupt or how incompetent or how indifferent they are to anglophones. Imagine raising a child like that..always rewarding bad behaviour..its exactly what happened during the 2008 financial crisis..bad behaviour by large banks was rewarded yet again by a massive bailout from the taxpyaer. What lesson does that teach the big banks..it tells them they can do whatever they want as there is no consequences. Here in Quebec the anglophone community has been rewarding bad behaviour from the Liberals for decades..wake up people!!!
      I say given the massive debt we have that we can no longer afford to play it safe and hope the Liberals fix the looming financial crisis..they have proven they cant. Hence the only viable option right now is the CAQ..yes Legault was a seperatist but he is no longer and even if he backs seperartion again it wont be for 10 years. For 10 years we will have a party that will focus its energy on the real problems facing Quebec. Neither the PQ nor the Liberals have done this..although Lucien Bouchard tried..give him credit for it.

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    8. FROM ED BROWN
      Has anyone noticed that Legault is not speaking out. For the guy who wanted the corruption fighter Ducheneau at his side he says damn little about the subject. What has he said recently about Canada. Is it all forgotten now that he got the English votes he wanted.
      By the way Yan, I'll tell you what the Liberals did. They kept the PQ off our backs through a myriad of elections. That's what we wanted them for and that's what they did. We were not facing the shit we're facing now thanks to the Liberals. They were smart enough to know that English on signs was no big deal for us. They fought separation and kept us in Canada. Ed

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    9. Gee thanks Yannick, someone who doesn‘t even live in fucking Quebec telling us who we should vote for. Ed is 100% right, when you have the fascists knocking at your door you‘re going to keep voting in the party that best protects you from them. Yeah we should really rush to take a chance on a long time separatist racist just because you told us to from way out in Alberta. Thanks for your input.

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    10. James John and Ed - Keep on rewarding bad behaviour by voting for the Liberals. This party ignores the anglophone community and has done nothing to reverse the long term decline of Quebec. We cant afford to waste any more time on them..they had their chance and they blew it. Its time for real change and a government that is FOCUSED on the REAL PROBLEMS..the debt, taxes and the economy. You guys are just as bad as the seperatists as all you focus on is the language ad nauseum..its time to move beyond the language issue. The house is burning and you guys are worried about re-arranging the furniture..it wont matter in 5-10 years if the province goes broke and believe me we are well on the way.
      I know Legault is perceived as a risk..but the bigger risk is electing another useless Liberal government who will maintain the status quo. The CAQ deserves a chance..I cant imagine they could be any worse than the Liberals. They are the only government in Quebec actually talking about cutting spending..about lowering taxes..about taking on the unions. Yes they might not accomplish anything and perhaps in 10 years they will talk about seperation but in the meantime at least they will ATTEMPT to clean things up..

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  19. Nous donnons les mêmes droits aux anglos du Québec que ceux accordés aux Québécois au canada.

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    Replies
    1. A Quebecer living in the rest of Canada can put up a sign totally in french if they want..an anglophone in Quebec cannot do that. A Quebecer can send their kids to french or french immersion school in the rest of Canada..anglophones at best can send their kids to french immersion schools here in Quebec..they are called english schools but really are not as at least 50 percent of the instruction is in french.

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    2. I'll agree with you on that, S.R., the day the anglophones of Blanc Sablon, Quebec have the same rights and freedoms as the francophones of Moncton, New Brunswick (and I am assuming that by "Quebecois" you mean "francophones outside Quebec").

      Another point: if you agree with those that insist that Quebec is a distinct society or a nation, why are you comparing Quebec to mere provinces? Let's celebrate Quebec's distinctiveness by making Quebec officially bilingual, unlike 8 of the other nine provinces (which, by the way, was the original intent of the BNA Act; there was supposed to be two officially bilingual entities in the newly formed country of Canada: the central government and the province of Quebec).

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    3. Hi all,

      Why do you bother responding to S.R? It does not really want to engage to meaningful conversation. All it does is baiting us with its one-liners to make us angry. When you respond to it with a logical answer, it will not answer you or it will switch to another one of its non-sensical comments.

      Just ignore S.R. It does not deserve your thought. You will feel better.

      Delete
    4. S.R. is an "It", Troy?

      As in "it puts the lotion on its skin"?

      Delete
    5. I think we can all safely conclude that can be an 'it'. As in 'tool', or 'douche'. So, yeah, in the current context, it's accurate.

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    6. lol - All that would happen if we voted for the CAQ would be possibly a financial turnaround and, if and when that did happen, he would call for a referendum stating that "see, with the right government we can go it alone - who needs Canada"? If we're going down, which we probably are, I'm going down voting for a government that I KNOW is federalist not one that will turn on a dime. Sorry guys.

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    7. T. Kondaks,

      Yes it is an it. It deserves neither a he nor a she.

      Delete
  20. Tony,

    Like most Quebec minority voters I will be voting for the party I perceive as less damaging to Canada and myself. For that reason I will be voting for Justin. I gave up a long time ago on voting for any political party that I would support based on the positives of their platforms.

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    1. You make your bed; you sleep in it.

      But I can't say I disagree with you completely. As much as I don't think Romney will change much in the U.S. (their debt situation puts the whole country beyond repair once interest rates go up), he is so much less a danger than the community organiser and, if I were American, I would vote for Romney on that basis.

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    2. Sad part is that Justin‘s acceptance of the hate law as it is is actually our best hope at the federal level. We all know what a rat Mulcair is and Harper will just ignore.

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    3. Tony,

      Actually the bed was already made for us. The demographic situation in Quebec forces us to choose the least damaging party towards our interests. In 1976 many anglophones supported the Union National against the Quebec Liberals for them creating bill 22. We know how that worked out.

      As for Mitt Romney, just ask all the voters from where he was governor (MA) on how that worked out.

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    4. Actually, Jarry Street, if anglophones voted for the Union Nationale in '76, it certainly didn't result in a split vote that elected the PQ. That certainly may have been the case in NON-anglophone ridings if francophones split the small-l liberal vote by voting U.N.

      But in anglophone ridings, you'd have to split the vote, at minimum, 5 or 6 times in order to even possibly elect the PQ in that riding. For example, in the D'Arcy McGee riding (mostly Hampstead and Cote St. Luc) the Liberals traditionally get upwards of 90% of the vote; you'd have to split that vote about 18 times in order to elect the PQ in that riding.

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    5. Like now the heavy anglo ridings were not the problem, it was the ridings where anglos were enough of a percentage to decide the fate of the candidate for that riding. Biron Rodrigue also defected into the PQ after the election which gave even more muscle to the PQ for bill 101 later. Also there were more anglos in the regions in 1976 then there is now, I would imagine that their votes would have been essential to stop an outright PQ victory in 1976.

      Delete
  21. Pass the sick-bag! If Justine makes any inroads at Federal level, Greece will start looking like a reasonable place to live!

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    1. FROM ED BROWN
      With close mind thinking like that I'm sure Greece would be glad to have you. Ed

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    2. So I'm close-minded. Well, I suppose I'm not open-minded enough to believe that a daddy's boy with zero ideas, experience, intelligence and policies, who's willing to advocate secession if he doesn't get his way and is a great supporter of Bill 101, is not the great federalist hope that everybody here seems to be gushing about. Makes Marois look like a serious politician, and that takes some doing!

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    3. TQP - I totally agree with you. Justin is an empty shell..he has no real experience..no great intelligence..seems quite immature at times. People are only excited about him because of his famous father and a lot of people are being caught up in a wave of nostalgia and hoping that the good old days of pet could come back.
      Ben Mulroney is another great example of a highly over-rated talent. In fact I cant see anything interesting about Ben Mulroney..average to annoying voice, average looks, average intelligence, yet he is doing very well on television..you can thank his last name again for getting him where he is.
      I would much rather support someone who started and ran their own business without a rich daddys help..we dont need any more lawyers, economists, and spoiled rich kids with a famous last name..

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    4. Amen, complicated, amen to that!

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  22. Trudeau's a federalist. I don't wholeheartedly buy into what he says about bill 101 being "good", because honestly, dissing bill 101 publicly is political suicide. The media will say "if you're against bill 101 you're against French, ergo Trudeau hates Quebec" and your average unilingual moron will believe them, because here in Quebec we let the media think for us.

    I too subscribe to the "vote for the least damaging to Canada" ideal, and I definitely do not like how the NDP views the Quebec situation, nor do I like the conservatives. I voted NDP because of Layton, I don't know who the fuck this Mulclair guy is, and I definitely would not vote for him.

    I'm probably going to vote Liberal if Trudeau's elected, purely because he's not Mulclair, not Harper, and is very clearly and plainly a Federalist.

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    1. Trudeau is a Federalist that said that if Harper keeps ruling Canada with a Conservative agenda (not sure what a Conservative Prime Minister should do instead...) he'd consider independence for Quebec. The man will say and do anything to get attention. This is common among people who, once in power, do whatever is convenient and never what's right.

      Yep, vote Trudeau for an Independent Francophone-only Quebec. He's coming round to the idea, he just needs another third place in the Federal Elections.

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    2. Well, George W Bush kind of ruined it for many small-c conservatives, but I'd still take Reagan or even Nixon over just about any left-wing government. I've lived under one for 12 years and I've sworn my family will not have to endure that ever again.

      Delete
  23. FROM ED BROWN
    One thing we might remember about young Trudeau is that he has to get elected To do this he needs Quebec votes. He is walking the same tight rope that Jean Charest walked for years. A wrong statement on 101 can turn a francophone Federalist into a drooling separatist. By keeping the status quo he may get the francs behind him.
    Mr.Sauga, What does Alan MacEachran/ Marc lalonde / JFK / have to do with Justin Trudeau. He is also not responsible for the atomic bomb or Katrina. A cocky little bastard. Yes, would you prefer a fire ball like Dion putting the country to sleep. Why take punches at a man before he even gets in the ring.
    I swear if he was in another boxing match you and Tony would be happy to pin his arms behind him while his opponent beats the shit out of him. Ed

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ed, this whole "we gotta walk a tight rope so as not to disillusion francophones from voting for us" strategy is the same song I have heard for the past 40 years. The only problem is, when these people, like Justin, actually DO get into office, they do diddlysquat about Bill 101 or any of the other stuff they "supposedly" oppose.

      How about giving francophones a clear vision of individual rights and freedoms and equality. And if, perchance, francopones do actually vote for you, well, by Jove, you will actually have a mandate to GIVE them the rights and freedoms that they deserve.

      Oh, and "honesty is the best policy" is one that just may work better, too.

      Delete
    2. Ed, it's also a version of the same philosophy that The Montreal Gazette has shoved down our throats for the past I don't know how many years. Every time there is an election, the Gazette is quick to say: don't ruffle feathers; now is NOT the time to stir things up and demand changes to Bill 101 because we risk alienating francophones and electing the PQ. This despite the fact that poll after poll over the past 37 years of how the anglos of Quebec feel about Bill 101 is that they are almost unanimously opposed to it. In each and every one. Consistently.

      The Gazette even goes as far as saying how anglos have "accepted" Bill 101 and have learned to live with it. No, they haven't! And said polls prove the Gazette wrong each and every time. Indeed, in one poll I remember seeing it was YOUNG anglophones who registered the highest opposition to Bill 101 and they are the demographic MOST bilingual of all.

      The most recent example of the "we've learned to live with Bill 101" line is the Julius Grey piece that appeared in the Gazette (and, I think, that the Editor linked to here on this forum).

      Who believes this crap? The Gazette believes if it says an untruth long enough and often enough that it will become a reality.

      Delete
    3. It's time for a SECOND Quite Revolution.

      Before the first Quiet Revolution of the 1960s, francophone Quebecers' thoughts, actions, and life choices were controlled by the Church. The first Quiet Revolution liberated francophones from the Church Elites' control.

      But the control by one elite was only replaced by ANOTHER elite's control: francophone media, academia, and political class. It is THEY who now control the thoughts, minds, and actions of francophones Quebecers.

      The SECOND Quiet Revolution is now due. This one will liberate francophone Quebecers from the control of ALL elites so that they have free choice and can think for themselves and make life choices for themselves. The first step is to repeal IN ITS ENTIRETY the hate law/race law Bill 101 which is MUCH MORE oppressive to individual francophone Quebecers than it is to anglophone Quebecers.

      Delete
    4. "The first step is to repeal IN ITS ENTIRETY the hate law/race law Bill 101 which is MUCH MORE oppressive to individual francophone Quebecers..."

      Je viens de téléphoner à ma famille et à mes amis pour savoir si ils se sentaient opprimés...et non,tout le monde va bien :)

      Delete
    5. Hey, S.R, it's great of you to get into the spirit of Halloween! I love your Avatar, the banana ghost in the blue box! Wooooh, scary!

      Seriously though, why does Quebec have 4 peeled white bananas on its flag? I mean the United States has stars and stripes, Canada has its maple leaf....Quebec has bananas? Weird, man.

      Delete
    6. Ed:

      (1) I thought I stated clearly and eloquently that Jr. Trudeau is cocky like his father was, and he's a pretty boy like his father was, i.e., all form, no substance. One Prime Minister Trudeau in my lifetime is enough. My opinion, like it or not.

      (2) What Tony K. says.

      Delete
    7. Canada has its maple leaf...

      Même si il n'y a pas d'érables rouges au canaya?Des fantômes d'érables? :)

      Delete
  24. I have been saying forever that if any provincial or federal politician laid the cards on the table in Quebec, we may be able to get this country to work together. Tell the francophones the truth, the benefits of being part of Canada, just how much they would be out should they leave, that the whole country has been made bilingual for their benefit, how the rest of Canada has the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and that it works just fine, the language of business all over the world is English, it would be beneficial to all of Quebec to be bilingual but their language is not threatened by this - also point out the pitfalls of leaving Canada - that shouldn't take much of an imagination. In other words, stop using political bullshit and hammer the good points over and over like the separatists do against us.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. FROM ED BROWN
      Cutie, that's the right thinking but first we have to elect someone who can do it. Justin has showed us he will give and take with the separatists. Boll 101 s it is but no more. Ed

      Delete
    2. Ed and Cutie: Oh, no you don't! Don't even go there!

      (a) It's easy to talk the talk when you're a member representing the third party or lower in parliament. Gilles Duceppe did that very, very well for the 20 years he was in politics, even the time the BQ was [gaaaaaag meeeeeee] the official opposition by the narrowest of margins.

      (b) In [former Quebec MNA] Reed Scowen's book Time to Say Goodbye the author DID write how the costs of separation were "sold" to the Francophone population with greater vigor than the fact Canada is a "nice" country for all it has. Been there, done that, didn't work, game over.

      Delete
    3. I have yet to see one STRONG provincial and/or Federal minister speak out about the benefits of being part of Canada. Have never read Time to Say Goodbye but that doesn't stop us from electing someone willing to go head to head with the separatists when they start their bullshit with how much better off they are without Canada. Perhaps if we had someone like that, the soft nationalists would think twice when they vote.

      Delete
    4. FROM ED BROWN
      Mr. Sauga, thanks but with Justin trudeau, I'll try again. Ed

      Delete
  25. FROM ED BROWN
    Tony, You say
    How about giving francophones a clear vision of individual rights and freedoms and equality. And if, perchance, francopones do actually vote for you, well, by Jove, you will actually have a mandate to GIVE them the rights and freedoms that they deserve.
    How naive do you want us to be We don't have to them rights and freedoms, they have that. It's the English that don't. That would be like the poor clearing the way for the rich to make more money. Do you actually think the PQ would allow a clear mandate without turning it into something hateful. You are right we have walked a fine line for 40 years. Does it occur there is a reason for it. Ask Jean Charest. Have you learned nothing about them? Honesty in politics. Well duh! Ed

    ReplyDelete
  26. From Eye on the Planet:

    "Sunday, October 28, 2012Justin Trudeau's brother and political advisor works with Iran to help its nuclear program
    Alexandre Trudeau, son of late Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, and brother and senior political adviser to Liberal leadership candidate Justin, has been working with the Iranian government to create propaganda to whitewash its nuclear arms program.

    Press TV, the Iranian state-owned propaganda organ, was a co-producer of the documentary The New Great Game, which was produced and directed by Alexandre Trudeau. According to Honest Reporting Canada Executive Director Mike Fegelman, in the film, the Liberal MP's brother "reports that Iran's atomic ambitions are for "defensive" purposes only, serving as an effective "deterrent" against Israeli "aggression" and belligerence."

    Today, Trudeau's Press TV associates claimed that al Quada operates on behalf of Israel.

    Trudeau's documentary was recently broadcast on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the news division of which has maintained a long-standing anti-Israel bias. Along with vehemently anti-Israel NDP MP Libby Davies and a coterie of fanatics including the notorious Ali Mallah, Alexandre Trudeau was also listed as an endorser of the so called Gaza Freedom March in which Arab and international activists attempted to violently storm Israel's borders, resulting in a number of people being killed.

    The participation of Alexandre Trudeau at such a high level of his brother's campaign suggests that were Justin Trudeau to win his party's nomination, the Liberal Party of Canada could move to extremist anti-Israel position."


    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. the last thing planet earth needs is another jihadist government with Nuclear energy / missile capabilities... Trudeau has no business assisting them...... That's where the so called Progressive Left in this country looses me....

      Delete
    2. I'm with Land of Tazmandoo on this one. Iran's leader has proven to be a nut case as most of those are in the Middle East when it comes to Israel. Murder every Jew seems to be a pass time. I have a few good friends that are Jewish and they are very nice people that, like most of us, want to live in peace and prosperity. Killing them because they are Jewish is ridiculous and stupid.

      Delete
  27. FROM ED BROWN
    Alex (Sacha) Trudeau is an adventurer of the Indiana Jones ilk who lives secretly but loves the publicity garnered from his outlandish stories. His stand is not anti-Israel as much as pro-Arab. He feels as most that a reactor would benefit Iran through electricity that would enrich the state. He appears to be more interested in shocking people than any serious cause. Ed

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ed,

      How do you know what he feels?

      Delete
    2. FROM ED BROWN
      Because he said so. Read the news or some of his writing before you ask silly questions. Ed

      Delete
    3. Ed,

      Cite your sources instead of being belligerent as usual.

      Delete
    4. FROM ED BROWN
      If you need sources Guy look them up yourself. I know what i have read if you think I'm going to dig out where I read to please you you're wrong. What is your source for the ridiculous statement that because Sacha is helping his brother Justin would take the whole Liberal party anti-Israel. before you assume that i make up stories look them up. People like you create belligerence. Ed

      Delete
    5. Ed,

      What's the matter? Can only dish it out, but can't take it? You rarely msake a comment without insulting someone.I looked for sources but there are none. It appears to be a figment of your imagination.Your hypocrisy is on display when you you say you are not going to "dig out" sources but ask me for my sources.If you concentrated when reading you would see that the source cited was Eye on the Planet and the statement, which was in quotation marks, was an opinion of the author. And yes, you are belligerent.

      Delete
    6. Yannick,

      Obviously you have not read what Ed wrote. If you don't think Ed is belligerent, you have a problem .

      Delete
  28. Guess what the latest STM outrage is? A metro employee who put a passenger in a headlock and punched her in the head for speaking English. I’m not making this stuff up!

    The clerk told the woman to “go back to her country” and “here we speak French”. The woman promptly phoned the STM to lodge a complaint about the employee, who by then was doing her knitting while giving the passenger the finger. Then she came out of her booth to assault the woman before other passengers separated the two. The woman is pressing charges with the police.

    http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/story/2012/10/29/montreal-stm-assault-savane-metro.html

    The STM says it’s investigating the altercation but can’t require employees to speak languages other than French. The Editor says this is not true, that according to Bill 101, employers can simply make knowing English a part of the job description, if they wish. The STM says it studied the issue internally and decided this was not necessary. Obviously, intolerance has become part of the corporate culture at the STM, which I don’t recall ever being the case back when it was called the STCUM (and the CTCUM before that). We’re a far cry from the 1950’s, when bus drivers had no problem calling out stops bilingually: “Guy! Gui!... Bishop! Bee-shoppe!”

    I don’t remember stories like this happening last year or the year before but it seems to be happening every month this year. Thanks to the PQ waving Bill 101 around, it seems that more and more public employees consider this is acceptable behaviour now…

    Another unintended consequence of a poorly-thought-out law: people who wanted to buy Windows 8 last week couldn’t buy it in Quebec until it was available in French. Therefore, many people popped over to Ontario or down to Vermont to buy it or had relatives mail it to them. So, less revenue for our highly-taxed Quebec companies… bravo!

    (Sorry this doesn’t have to do with Justin!)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Petit rappel (encore): Le français est la langue officielle du Québec

      Delete
    2. Non à windows 8 et à l'idiot qui ne sait pas comment le télécharger.

      Delete
    3. And (once again) what do you suppose “official language” means? It means the language that the government uses for administration. It is not the same as lingua franca and it most certainly does not mean that it is the only language allowed to be used in public.

      English is not a foreign language in Quebec. It has been spoken and used here for over 250 years. Believe it or not, despite the best efforts of the hateful PQ, anglophones are not second-class citizens here, nor has the PQ yet managed to make it illegal to speak English in public. End of discussion.

      Delete
    4. “official language” means?

      Que tous ceux qui se prétendent Québécois devraient être en mesure de prendre le métro sans problème.Pas être bilingue,seulement être en mesure communiquer en français l'essentiel de ses besoins au quotidien.Trop demandé?

      Delete
    5. Quand même surprenant que les touristes fassent plus d'efforts à communiquer que les anglos locaux.C'est quand la dernière altercation entre un touriste et un agent du métro?

      Delete
    6. Tazmandoo, this is quite obviously the inference that was being made. Rejoice, however, because the Editor permits such comments to remain posted in order to expose the sad, obtuse mentality of these people. The article clearly states that the client also spoke French to the employee, so obviously our turnip did not bother reading the article before tossing around his opinions.

      Clearly, we are not dealing with the sharpest knife in the drawer here, if you know what I mean.

      Delete
    7. "The article clearly states that the client also spoke French to the employee..."

      Après avoir pris un coup de poing sur la tête?...Héhé!

      Delete
    8. "anglophones are not second-class citizens here"

      Pourquoi tenter d'aller à l'encontre de la réalité ? Pourquoi nier ce que vous êtes ? Car c'est la nature des Canadiens-anglais d'être de seconde classe.

      D'ailleurs je parie que tu n'as jamais entendu celle-là : do you know the difference between an Anglo-Quebecer and an English-Canadian ? The first one is a second-class citizen and the second one is a second-class american.

      Delete
    9. Y.L

      Attention,le bashing est souvent à sens unique sur ce blogue...

      Delete
    10. Actually I'd be curious to see a graph or chart depicting incidents of physical assaults against minorities in Quebec VS the RoC. I'd be willing to bet that it is significantly higher in Quebec. For instance, I can recall 4 seperate incidents of violence (or near violence) against people speaking English in Quebec within the last few months, whereas I can't for the life of me recall a single incident of that nature occurring in the RoC. Such a thing would be Christmas come early to the seppie media here, which is exactly why we can be sure it hasn't happened.

      I'm sure someone could find an incident and prove me wrong, but I'd be willing to bet that an incident of that nature occurring in the RoC would generate far more public outrage than any of them do here, where they are ignored completely by everyone but the anglo media.

      My SO likes to point out that "this one time" her family was vacationing in Ontario and were verbally harassed for speaking in French. While believable and most likely true, there are racists and bigots in every culture (which is unfortunate) but the dislike of Quebecers is particularly strong in the RoC because of how we are viewed as a giant group of francosupremacists, ethnic nationalists, racists and xenophobes, which while untrue for the most part is entirely Quebec's fault.

      Furthermore, only in Quebec is everyone cool with legislature that promotes violence towards minorities. While Quebecers "get made fun of" in the RoC, minorities get attacked here. Which is worse? At what point will this be unacceptable even for the most neutral of softcore nationalists, when they start using weapons? Where is the public outrage?

      It isn't there, because it's underreported and deemed to be an "exaggeration".

      Delete
    11. Turns out the STM employee was also hospitalized... must've been quite the cat fight! Can't wait to find out just what happened.

      Marvin Rotrand, vice-chair at the STM, said today that the investigation into the employee involved in the previous incident at Villa-Maria station is terminated but that the result will remain secret as a matter of policy, therefore we will never know whether the employee got a slap on the wrist or a serious reprimand (which would imply that it’s open season on anglo clientele with contemptuous behaviour by STM employees).

      Luckily, this time an assault complaint is being filed with the police so we may actually get to know the result. With luck, the soon-to-be-former STM employee can take up knitting to earn a living.

      And Foremost, you’re quite right. Had this happened to a francophone rather than an anglophone, it would have been reported from the Mars Rover.

      Delete
    12. More disgusting news from this province of horrors. Partition the place and let those go that vote to go before we have many more violent attacks on those that do not wish to speak the language that these separatists idolize. Let them have some of Canada's land in which to perpetrate their myths and their live their communist life style which the rest of North America can totally ignore and move on without them. They can live as they wish and we don't even have to trade (we won't miss maple syrup) or support them in any way at all. This will save Canada a lot of money and we can use that money for health care and education.

      Delete
    13. Le problème toyonto,c'est les asiatiques :

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=1XoT6VQE0q8

      Delete
    14. Here's another report where the victim and a witness explain what happened. You can see that she speaks French too. Nevertheless, nothing she could possibly have said justifies the employee getting out of her booth to assault a customer. Hopefully, we'll get the employee's side of the story when she gets out of the hospital.

      Montreal metro worker may face assault charge in language incident

      Delete
    15. Y.L,

      Second-class American? Funny, almost everybody I meet in the U.S. calls me "sir". Like in, "May I take your coat, sir?" "May I help you with your luggage, sir?" "Thank you for your visit, sir."

      Is that how they treat their second-class citizen?

      Delete
    16. J'espère que vous avez laissé de généreux pourboires.

      Delete
    17. Troy, surely you have noticed the avatar that Y.L uses. I’m most certainly not suggesting that Y.L could possibly be the same person as S.R, but I hope you don’t actually expect to get an intelligent reply from someone who has never contributed anything constructive here.

      Delete
  29. Anyone know how much we pay these unionised geniuses for sitting in a booth and doing their knitting while flipping the bird to customers and assaulting them?

    As one of the commenters pointed on the link, funny how these incidents are never reported on Radio-Canada. Unlike with La Presse, you won’t even find any reporting on the previous incident at Villa-Maria nor any of the others before that.
    http://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/regional/montreal/201210/05/01-4580711-langue-un-employe-de-la-stm-en-mauvaise-posture.php

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think the pay for the booth guy it's $25/hr plus other benefits. I wouldn't bet my life on it, but I am sure it's $25 or up, and it might depend on the shift.

      Delete
  30. 25 per hour..god I hope you are wrong. Many school teachers make less money than that but I guess educating our children is not nearly as important as sitting in a ticker booth..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Unfortunately, I don't think I am wrong, because I've heard it straight from the horse's mouth. Unless the horse was lying.

      Delete
    2. Sitting in a ticket booth and defending the French language, let's not forget that. Definitely merits the extra money.

      Delete
    3. You are absolutely right - 25/hr after 10-20 years it's not that great. The guy I mentioned was working there for 3 and a half years or so, and that was last year. So 25 after 25 plus all the benefits they get it's pretty sweet, one might think. It's been almost a year since I last saw the guy, so I don't have an update on his salary/benefits and I doubt I'll see him any time soon.

      Delete
    4. oops - it should read "So $25 after 3 years plus all the benefits they get it's pretty sweet"

      Delete
  31. What are the stats for the city of Montreal workers and STM for non Pur Laine employees?

    ReplyDelete
  32. The problem is that we're talking about blue collars who don't exactly rank high on the intellectual totem pole.

    Ever wonder why you don't see lawyers, property developers, hedge fund managers and architects behaving this way?

    Because they're successful and when you're successful, and gratified with you're existence, the language other people speak doesn't matter because you already speak your own little language...the language of making things happen.

    Union thugs are union thugs and that's all you need to know.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "Ever wonder why you don't see lawyers, property developers, hedge fund managers and architects behaving this way?"

      Parce qu'ils ont intéret à être conciliant afin de conquérir ou de conserver leurs clients.

      Delete
    2. Part of the problem is demographics among the ranks of the STM and the other City of Montreal depts. Even today I wonder if non Pur Laines have a chance to fill the vacancies.

      Delete
    3. I used to know of one visible-minority bilingual anglo bus driver in Montreal but that was back in the 90s and I have no idea if he's still there. It’s pretty much wall-to-wall white francophones only at the STM, these days…

      As for the 65 members of Montreal City Council, I’m pretty sure you could count the number of visible minorities on the fingers of one hand, with room to spare. We're a long way from supposedly right-wing, redneck Calgary electing Canada’s first Muslim mayor, Harvard graduate and McKinsey alumnus Naheed Nenshi.

      Think that could ever happen in supposedly open-minded, easy-going Montreal? Not a chance!

      Delete
    4. Its pretty clear that the pur laine Quebecers are way way over represented within government and government entities at all levels in Quebec. I have seen stats for the province and I think less than 1 percent of the workers are anglophone..the federal government is over run with quebecois far outweighing their share of the population. I suspect its because they dont want to work anywhere where they might have to speak a word of english or treat all customers with respect. They basically have a job for life. Even where I live in a clearly anglo dominated city most of the city workers are pur laine quebecers which I find very odd and somewhat insulting. If we cant even hire a proportional number of anglophones in an english city then something is wrong. It seems that it becomes very difficult for a non francophone to get a government job even if they are totally bilingual..

      Delete
  33. STM? I say the acronym for our public transit system should now stand for "Separatist Terror Militia".

    Seriously. This kind of behavior would not be tolerated anywhere else in the world, but that is the core problem with Quebec--it is here. Blatant acts of racism, xenophobia and now even violence are all perfectly acceptable (or even cheered on!), justified as protecting the French Quebecois language and culture.

    You know what? What we are seeing IS the "Quebecois" culture of today, this is what 40+ years of hatred has molded and created. Protect it? Sorry, I would be damned ashamed of it. All the eyes of the world are now watching and taking notice, not only will the rest of Canada start to shun Quebec, so will the rest of the world.

    And this is only the start. Acts of violence will start to become regular, just as I predicted years ago. The provincial government is the figural parent of the state and public, and right now we have uncivilized, uneducated rednecks running the show and teaching its figural children how to behave.

    Quebec is going to sink faster than a brick of lead dropped in the ocean at this rate.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "S.R who think it's funny that 2-year-olds die because their parents can't speak French"

      Le père est un fout la merde (bullshitter) bilingue et l'enfant a eu les soins nécessaires.

      Delete
    2. S.R, never having to express himself in a second language, doesn't understand how easy it is to screw up your code switching when under duress. This is a problem unique to multilinguals.

      Also, depriving someone of medical care even long enough to make a "point" is a breach of basic human rights.

      Delete
  34. You SR are a rotten SOB and I agree with resident evil - why don't you leave our country. Go to France and join Parizeau and his stupid idiots - he has lots of room for you at his chateau - he told me so.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Allez-vous sortir dans la rue pour votre "flag" cutie ou vous allez rester gentiment à la maison pour cuisiner des "muffins" ?

      :)

      Delete
    2. Cutie, you must know by now that S.R never comes here to provide any intelligent commentary on the Editor’s posts but only to see if he can rile people up. Time and again, you let him get your goat. You’ve said you wouldn’t do it anymore but you still do and even when you post “Don’t feed the troll”, you are still feeding his outsized ego by doing exactly what he wants you do.

      So Cutie, please, just stop indulging him. Pretty please with a cherry on top? You’re just lowering yourself to his level and frankly, it’s embarrassing. Instead, please let HIM have the embarrassment of publicly displaying his sick, rotten, narrow-minded mentality for all to see.

      If you really feel like venting, perhaps you could get it out of your system by typing what you want to say to him in an on-going document instead of posting it online and satisfying him.

      Delete
    3. Agree with R.S, Cutie.

      Don't give into the troll - he was born defeated and his incessant spamming is single biggest talent he has in life.

      Nice, huh?

      If anything, just talk about him in the third person. For example:

      1. "S.R is has the reasoning levels of a 5th grader"
      2. "Sherbrooke without S.R, is like a village without its idiot."

      See what I mean?

      Of course, he'll get pissed off, hit the bottle and get drunk and then post.

      That's your cue to laugh...

      ...and then look at this picture: http://veloptimum.net/photos/velo/4/BougonW356H274.jpg
      and laugh even more.

      Really Cutie, just think of it this way: S.R, the girl who throws sandwiches, the two STM retards and the ambulance driver (who deserves a 5-year jail term) all have one thing in common --- they have NOTHING.

      Their lives are empty and they dwell in unhappiness. By letting them get you upset, you give them a glimmer of happiness they don't deserve.

      Hope that helps.

      Delete
    4. I will try again to ignore him but sometimes I would just like to punch him in the puss. He is the most aggravating SOB and I'm not the only one that has to get a kick in once in awhile. Thanks anyway.

      Delete
    5. Cutie, LIFE already gave S.R the hardest kick to the nuts of all - that's why he's so bitter.

      Worse yet, feel bad for his son, can you think of a grown man, a man raising another human being is actually acting like this?

      Also, judging by some of S.R's posting patterns, I have reason to believe he might suffer from manic depression.

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bipolar_disorder

      Delete
    6. If I were to be such a miserable person, I would wish back luck on his child but I won't sink that low = Have to hope children's aid or some such organization have to save him from his father.

      Delete
    7. I can’t even fathom just what sort of trauma happened in S.R’s life to make him so bitter and full of hatred towards English-speakers (such as himself). It’s not normal to spend such an inordinate amount of time hating on people who you don’t know, who you’ll never meet and who have never done anything to you.

      To have such a one-track mind regarding the protection one’s own minority language while having such antipathy toward the protection of any other is flabbergasting and utterly incoherent. He’s the only person who spends more time on this blog than the Editor. One can only shake one’s head such absurdity and feel sorry for him opting to live his life in this way. Nothing justifies being as obnoxious, disagreeable and condescending as he is. However, it does amply demonstrate his vast feeling of impotence.

      I shudder to think of the poor upbringing that leads one to dedicate one’s life in this useless way. Anyone who feels such an excessive compulsion to hate on total strangers is frankly a very damaged individual indeed. Sadly, such intense hatred does not magically appear out of the blue but needs to be taught at a young age. No doubt S.R’s father was consumed with this same bitterness and hatred and passed it on to his next generation, just like S.R has done to his own child… and thus the perpetual cycle perpetuates.

      It’s very sad situation but there’s not a thing we can do it about it. Therefore, we need not worry about it.

      Delete
    8. Cutie003,

      Take a deep breath, count to 10, and start ignoring S.R. It will not stop bother you until you stop paying attention to it. And remember that it claimed that it had a child? I pity its child and its family.

      Delete
    9. "No doubt S.R’s father was consumed with this same bitterness and hatred and passed it on to his next generation"

      FAUX: Mon père est fédéraliste et mon fils est trop jeune pour évaluer l'état de la situation et il jugera par lui-même en temps et lieu.Il est intelligent,je lui fait confiance.

      Vous n'avez pas une petite critique pour cutie qui passe aussi beaucoup de temps sur ce blogue et qui,en plus,adresse des plaintes (inutiles) à longueur de journée?

      Quel est son traumatisme docteur?

      Delete
    10. Hee hee! You touched a nerve, True Montrealer! Still no explanation as to what trauma caused him to become so hateful and obnoxious, however...

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  35. Went to the Subway here in Gatineau and noticed that the menu was in french only. Wrote the company an e-mail and told them until this changed, I would not be in to purchase any items and would inform my friends to do likewise. Will post reply when received.

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    1. C'est mieux pour votre taille cutie.En passant,avez-vous demandé au proprio si il était partitionniste?

      :)

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    2. And don't forget... "Serenity Now!!!"

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    3. De quoi je me mêle R.S?Cutie est ma francophobe préférée et je me demande même si elle n'a pas de liens de parenté avec votre angryphone national,le gourou galganov.

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    4. Props to R.S! I saw that episode on TV just the other day too!

      SERENITY NOOOOOOOWWWWWWW!!!!!

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  36. FROM ED BROWN
    I've posted this before but it's worth telling again.
    FROM ED BROWN
    Has anyone noticed that Legault is not speaking out. For the guy who wanted the corruption fighter Ducheneau at his side he says damn little about the subject. What has he said recently about Canada. Is it all forgotten now that he got the English votes he wanted.
    By the way Yan, I'll tell you what I see the Liberals did. They kept the PQ off our backs through a myriad of elections. That's what we wanted them for and that's what they did. We were not facing the shit we're facing now thanks to the Liberals. They were smart enough to know that English on signs was no big deal for us. They held the status quo and made life livable. They fought separation and kept us in Canada. Ed

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    1. The Liberals took care of themselves..they pocketed thousands and thousands of dollars worth of bribes from shady characters. They continue to increase the debt at an alarming rate..they continued to ignore the anglophone community that was a big reason why they won back to back majorities. They waited two years to call an inquiry into corruption that everyone knew was going then had the audacity to call an election one week before the commission started. They mishandled the student crisis totally..Jean Charest being too arrogant to even talk to the student leaders then quickly backing down on the fee hike making himself look like a fool. The same Lieberals who increase the number of french language inspectors, who talked about strengthening Bill 101, who were willing to say about anything to get elected. The same Liberals who take the anglophones community for fools and rightly so. Anyone who continues to vote for a party that treats them like dirt must be a fool..

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    2. Which other party's candidates would the anglophone community vote for? The CAQ? They are a separatist party! Do you honestly think that they care more about the rights of the anglo community than the Liberals do?

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  37. As this thread draws to a close, I want to inform readers of a story just hitting the newspapers tonight;
    Trudeau Effect’: With Justin as leader Liberals would win majority government, poll finds

    http://is.gd/ILhmul

    What do you think about that!!

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    1. Even though he may not have the gravitas of previous politicians, I’m very glad that he could defeat the duplicitous and opportunist NDP that I voted for in the last election in order to (successfully) rid ourselves of the incumbent bloquiste.

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  38. FROM ED BROWN
    Wonderful let's do all we can to help. Don't go back 40 years think what's best for today. Editor, thanks for a great post. Ed

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  39. The fact that Canada sees a chickenshit son-of-his-father pipsqueak Justin Trudeau as a saviour is extremely eloquent to describe how low it has sunk in terms of self-confidence…

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