French versus English Volume 83

Corruption this week

"After a dramatic series of raids across Laval last fall, Quebec’s anti-corruption squad followed up early Thursday by arresting former Laval mayor Gilles Vaillancourt. Vaillancourt and an undisclosed number of others were taken into police custody as a series of arrest mandates were executed beginning at “about 6 a.m.,” Anne-Frédérick Laurence, a spokesperson for L’Unité permanente anticorruption (UPAC), said.
About 120 officers have been deployed, to an undisclosed number of locations, she added.
This phase of the police operation on Laval tackles an apparent long-standing municipal pattern of collusion, corruption and cronyism that reigned in Quebec’s second-largest city, Vaillancourt’s fiefdom.
UPAC is calling it “Operation Honorer.”
“Many” beyond Vaillancourt have also been arrested, Laurence said.
Some reports pegged the figure at 40, a combination of construction-industry figures and high-level officials in the former Vaillancourt administration." Read more

BBC: "Rebelling against Quebec's 'language police' "

Here's another flattering article on Quebec's language mess in the international press, this time the BBC where the story will be widely circulated.

"The Canadian province of Quebec has seen a resurgence of its bitter language wars since Francophone nationalists returned to power last year. Now, some English speakers are rebelling against the "language police", reports Lorraine Mallinder.

Quebec's ruling Parti Quebecois is pushing a new law through the provincial parliament that would further reduce the use of English in schools, hospitals and shops.

As a result, many Anglophones fear they are being squeezed into insignificance.
It's misleading to say that French is the founding culture of Quebec - Quebec has at its root two European founding peoples” Pearl Eliadis Human rights lawyer

For Harry Schick, owner of a pastry shop in Pointe Claire, an English-speaking municipality west of Montreal, it is nothing new.
His shop window, emblazoned with signs in 35 different languages, has attracted visits from what critics deride as the province's language police.

Inspectors from L'Office quebecois de la langue francaise - the Quebec French language office - say the lettering of French signs should be three times bigger than that of other languages." Read more   (Credit for the link.. JW, Lord Dorchester)

Most immigrants to Quebec feel attachment to Canada: poll

"Most Quebec immigrants feel attached to Canada, regardless of which language they speak, according to a poll for the Association for Canadian Studies.
Ninety-two per cent of francophone immigrants and 91 per cent of non-francophone newcomers say they are attached to Canada, reveals the Léger Marketing survey.
That contrasts with attitudes among native-born francophone Quebecers, of whom only 62.9 per cent describe themselves as attached to Canada.
As for Canadian-born Quebec anglophones, the poll found 96.3 per cent feel attached to the country.
The results suggest that French-speaking immigrants are not picking up attitudes on national identity shared by many “francophones de souche” (Quebecers descended from early French settlers), said Jack Jedwab, executive director of the association.  Read more:

La Presse writer; "Montreal is a bilingual city"

"In a column published some ten days ago on Bill 14, which aims to strengthen Bill 101, entitled "Despising the English," I wrote that the deterioration in our relations with the anglophone minority would in a way, kill Montreal slowly.

There are indeed elements of this dynamic Montreal that we do not understand or do not accept. Particularly the importance  of the presence of its anglophone minority  for its success,.

What defines Montreal, is not that it is multicultural. For any metropolis, this fact is quite commonplace. Most major cities are, and in this respect, Montreal is not particularly remarkable when compared to Toronto or Vancouver.

What is absolutely unique, by contrast, it is the duality of Montreal, the fact that it is built on two linguistic and cultural groups, a large majority, and the English. Montreal is one of the very few bilingual cities in the world, where people speak two major global languages ​​of communication and where it works in both languages.

Obviously, the word bilingual raises eyebrows because, legally and institutionally, Montreal is a French city. This forces everyone into verbal acrobatics to describe, without uttering the so despised word, what is obvious.

This duality has been and remains a source of tension, whether past injustices towards francophones, whose language was relegated to the background, or the swing of the pendulum with Bill 101, a shock strong enough to push some Anglophones to exodus. But we have reached a certain balance, especially because the pressures that can be exerted on the French does not come from the English-speaking community. Tensions are missing, except when politicians want to stir the pot. But these tensions can be creative. Duality helps to define the identity of Montreal, a hybrid of its British and French heritage buildings blocks. This is what makes Montreal different from the rest of Quebec, which gives it a huge competitive advantage and contributes to many of its economic successes."A concrete manifestation of this duality is the duplication of institutions (universities, hospitals, cultural venues, neighborhoods). It enriches the intellectual life that can tap into both traditions. This largely explains our academic mission, which helps us in our efforts to become a knowledge-based society. It also allows Montreal to be several things at once, at home in la Francophonie and the Commonwealth, with roots in both cultures, able to be an interface between two worlds, both very North American but more European than other mainland cities. This duality certainly helps to explain the success of some industries, such as information technology and video games, where Montreal was able to attract both French and American companies.This duality also contributes to the creative character of Montreal, promoting diversity and tolerance. But also because the tensions are close to cultural life. It was obvious to the French, whose identity assertion is widely expressed through theater, music, literature and film. But there is a momentum now and  for several years creating an English Montreal that enriches all of Quebec and Montreal. Without this meeting of cultures, Montreal would not have its brand as a trendy city. All this is not to deny the validity of the fight for French, but to remind us that we must find ways to do it while allowing our English-speaking minority to flourish with its language and culture  Read the original story by Alain Dubuc in French 
(Credit for the link.. Lord Dorchester)

Air Canada ordered to pay $12K to man who couldn’t order 7Up in French

"The Federal Court of Canada on Wednesday ordered Air Canada to pay $12,000 to Ottawa French-language rights crusader Michel Thibodeau in part because when he asked an English-speaking flight attendant for 7Up in May 12 of 2009, he got Sprite. “The applicants’ language rights are clearly very important to them and the violation of their rights caused them a moral prejudice, pain and suffering and loss of enjoyment of their vacation,” Justice Marie-Josee Bedard wrote in her judgment.
“It is also my opinion that awarding damages in this case will serve the purpose of emphasizing the importance of the rights at issue and will have a deterrent effect.”
Air Canada was also ordered to apologize to Mr. Thibodeau and his wife Lynda.
It is Mr. Thibodeau’s second successful legal action against the airline and its subsidiaries. In 2000, he was refused service in French when he tried to order a 7Up from a unilingual English flight attendant on an Air Ontario flight from Montreal to Ottawa." Read more

Ottawa Sun: 10 Things we hate about Montreal!

In light of the playoff competition between the SENS and the HABS the Ottawa Sun published this humorous top 10 list put-down of Montreal;

1. Corruption: Did the Habs think they could slide a few brown envelopes down Gary Bettman's way to seal a series win? Sorry boys, it'll take some honest work to win. And you wouldn't know much about that now would you?
2. P.K. Subban: The whiny contract holdout is getting paid $5.75 million to malign his teammates from the bench. As usual, Montreal has overpaid -- an awful lot of people would have done that for free.
3. Roads: If the Bell Centre ice was anything like Montreal's streets, boulevards, highways -- heck, pretty much anything with an asphalt surface -- then Habs forwards would be skating gingerly alongside chasms of collapsing ice and Carey Price would be making saves from deep inside a pothole. Ok, we're exaggerating -- Price doesn't really make saves, does he? Read the rest

While we're on the subject of the NHL playoffs, here's a feel-good story of a young Montreal girl who wore a Senator's jersey on 'Habs Appreciation Day' in her school in Lachine. Her teacher sent her down to the principal's office where she was ordered to remove the sweater.
As you can imagine, the story went viral and before you know it, Senators rewarded young Keila Penner with the trip of a lifetime. The whole Penner family was picked up in a limousine and whisked to Ottawa to attend the Senators/Habs game, courtesy of the team owner Eugene Melnyk. Keila was also given a sweater autographed by the entire Senator team.
The school's reaction? "Er...We never threatened her" Link

Perhaps it was a good omen as the Senators got by the crippled Habs and in the spirit of good sportsmanship I offer my Top Ten list of things I LOVE ABOUT OTTAWA;

1. Rideau Canal skating, Sparks St. Mall, Tulip Festival.... Could it get any more exciting than this?
2. Helpful and friendly neighbors.
3. Wonderful cops and NCC agents and their tolerant enforcement of the rules!
4. Infective joie-de-vivre, exciting night-life and vibrant artistic scene.
5. A wonderfully ethnically diverse city.
6. Eclectic music scene, led by Paul Anka.
7. Cutting edge restaurants, highlighted by "Hy's"
8. Friendly and cooperative civil servants.
9. Stephen Harper, Thomas Mulcair and Justin Trudeau.
10. ...and last but least, the Ottawa Senators, a team named after Canada’s most inspiring politicians!

Odds'n Ends

La Presse published its annual list of wait times in emergency rooms across Quebec.
It now takes an average of 17½ hours to be seen in a Quebec emergency room, with one hospital in Montreal, Maisonneuve-Rosemont, actually making patients wait an astounding 40 hours before being seen! Link{fr}

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The Quebec Wind farm lobby is pushing the government to issue a contract for the purchase and installation of 350 more electricity generating turbines despite the fact that Quebec has an electricity surplus worth billions. Some generating stations owned by Hydro-Quebec are shut down or mothballed because of the lack of demand.
The rational for expanding the wind farm industry is to keep alive the 1000 jobs in the Gaspé factory that makes the turbines.  A spokesman for the industry asked reporters if it made sense to close an industry just because it is contributing to an unsellable surplus of energy in Hydro-Quebec..
Hmmmm. What do you think readers, does any of this make sense?
Link{fr}

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French Studies losing ground: "After an 18-year run, the University of Regina is shuttering its francophone studies program. The number of graduates: Zero.
Parents may be clamouring to enroll their children in French studies in the early years, but interest appears to wane among university-age students. Post-secondary institutions in many parts of the country have seen a drop off in applicants, and are either shutting down, scaling back or pausing their French programs. Read more

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PQ MNA calls Libs 'colonized sellouts' for using English: "Members of the National Assembly who use English during Assembly debates are "colonized sellouts," according to PQ MNA Daniel Breton." Link

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More PQ anglo slurs: I don't know if the irony is lost on a PQ staffer who penned an article in METRO magazine in which he makes the claim that with some exceptions, anglophones are 'all a bit crazy, not Richard Bain crazy, but suffering from a paranoid obsession, always complaining that Quebecers, especially separatists are racist xenophobes."
The political aide to PQ Minister Diane De Courcy, who wrote the article, Akos Verboczy was called on the carpet by opposition politicians who demanded his resignation. Original article {fr}  Calls for his resignation{fr}

Dunno..... but to me, he seems to prove his own point about separatists as 'racist xenophobes!' Ha!

When the minister was told about the articles, she told reporters that it was only a joke..... read more

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Quebec really lenient with killers: "According to a report, half the killers in Canada freed prior to serving their minimum 25-year sentence since 1987 are from Quebec." Link
In the meantime the commission charged with evaluating insane criminals decided to let Guy Turcotte out of detention, despite serious concerns. Link{fr}
Mr. Turcotte murdered his children and was acquitted of the crime due to the famous 'temporary insanity' defense.

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McGill University continues to lose ground: "It’s bad enough that Montreal is losing to Ottawa in the hockey playoffs, but now the city’s top-performing university seems to be losing ground to the University of Toronto in the latest world rankings by subject.

McGill is ranked behind the University of British Columbia in many subjects, as well, in the just-released 2013 QS World University Rankings by Subject, which listed U of T as the top-ranked Canadian institution." Read the story

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Anti-anglo beating?  "A 63-year-old Montreal man says he may have been the victim of racial and anti-anglo slurs and beaten up and sent to hospital as a result. Shamslla Bina told CJAD 800 News he was on his way home late Sunday afternoon from the de l'Eglise metro, when he told a young man in English not to press up so close to him on the escalator. Bina said the young man was with two other men and two women. Bina said the young man told him to go back to Ontario and to his own country. Bina, who came to Montreal from Iran 30 years ago, switched to French, the language he uses the most, and the dispute continued onto the street." Read more (Credit for the link.. RWB)

It's Friday, let's have some fun.....

Last week we talked about English software and the difficulty or utility in getting it translated.
Using the English version is a necessary compromise that school boards and companies understand, even if the  OQLF doesn't.
But you'd expect the radical Mouvement Québec français to be the leader in safeguarding its website from the scourge of English pollution, but alas it is not to be.

After filling out an online survey I was amused to see that whether you are French or English, getting thanked for participating, is an English only affair!

Joke of the week....

Three contractors were bidding to fix a broken fence at an Ottawa property.....
One is from Vancouver, another from Toronto and the third is from Quebec .
All three go with a Government official to examine the fence.

The Vancouver contractor takes out a tape measure and does some measuring, then works some figures with a pencil. "Well," he says, "I figure the job will run you about $900.....$400 for materials, $400 for my crew and $100 profit for me."
The Toronto contractor also does some measuring and figuring, then says, "I can do this job for $700.....$300 for materials, $300 for my crew and $100 profit for me."

The Quebec contractor doesn't measure or figure anything, but leans over to the government official and whispers, "$2,700."
The official, incredulous, says, "But you didn't even measure like the other guys! And how did you come up with such a high figure?" The Quebec contractor whispers back, "$1,000 for me, $1,000 for you, and we hire the guy from Toronto to fix the fence."    (Credit for the joke.. Pearl)

Another Montreal anti-capitalist demonstration....Cop: "I told you no peeking! Tabarnac!

What's a photo collage of an annoying but harmless Greenpeace Activist getting arrested in Moscow have to do with this blog?

You be the judge!

 

This from reader, Lord Dorchester 
"Screen shot of a Trivia game called QuizzCross. Bordering on lunacy now. "

"A crimson tide engulfed a patch of Montreal Saturday at the city’s first-ever gathering of the redheads.
The event was organized on Facebook by a ginger-headed Montrealer who wanted to foster a greater sense of community among those who shared her hair colour." Read the story

 I'll bet that Toronto will be inspired to have a bigger and better ginger affair next year, giving proof to the maxim that imitation is the sincerest form of compliment!

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Completely off-topic: Charles Ramsey became a national hero on Monday when he helped rescue three missing women who had been kidnapped in Cleveland and held hostage for years. Watch him interviewed but for real entertainment, you'll definitely want to listen to this 9-1-1 call he made reporting the situation. If you click on one link, click this. It's priceless!

So how about ending the week with a little inspiration?

Some of you might be aware that Russians are as obsessed with dashcams as we are with GPS and just about every new vehicle sold includes a camera that records it all.
It leads to video after video of crash scenes. Some of these compilations are funny while most are  gruesome.

But here's a change....dash-cam videos from Russia that inspires. Enjoy......

Not inspired enough?

'Have a great weekend!

Bonne fin de Semaine!