Quebec Equality Party Re-Forming

Equality Party Facebook Page

It seems to be semi-official, the Quebec Equality Party is re-forming and plans to be up and running within a couple of months.

As the old party seems to have lapsed in the eyes of the Director General of Elections, it means starting over from scratch, collecting names and members and reconstituting itself with a new leader.

There are many reasons, in my opinion that Quebec anglos, ethnics and francophone federalists need the party, but before I go on I want to address all of you who believe that the party would somehow be ineffective and that vote splitting would cause more harm than good.

The reality is that we are up against the wall, all the provincial parties have in place policies that will see the destruction of our community, some sooner, others later.

As per-vote subsidy will come into effect soon, a vote for the Equality Party, even without electing anybody, could mean hundreds of thousands of dollars in money that can be used to defend our rights.

An official party would get exposure and like it or not, television and radio stations would have to offer on air time that would let us rebut separatist propaganda.

But the Equality Party could be much more.

It could serve to organize legal resources for those facing down the OQLF.

It could create fundraising apparatus to challenge Quebec language laws all the way to the Supreme Court.

It could lobby Ottawa politicians to enact federal laws to protect English in Quebec via amendments to the Official Languages Act.

The Equality Party can serve, not only as a political party, but as a resource centre to counter the onslaught of French language/separatist militancy.

The Equality Party doesn't even have to elect anybody to be relevant, but if just one member was elected he or she could prove to be a powerful voice of dissent.

Remember that Amir Khadir stood alone in the National Assembly for years and who can doubt his effectiveness.
Today, Quebec Solidaire, with just two members remains a force in Quebec politics.

Lastly, the Equality Party should work to expose nationally those who oppress Anglo and Ethnic rights as well as the right of Francophones not to be treated as second class citizens as they are under Bill 101.

I have mentioned before that for English rights and personal choice to be preserved in Quebec, the fight must be taken outside the province.

For the cynics who say the Equality Party won't be effective, I promise them that they are wrong.
With the right strategies, an activist Equality Party can be devastatingly effective, but more on that later, it is not my place to speak for the party.

Temporarily, the Equality Party has a Facebook page up, but is preparing a full-scale website and membership drive. LINK
I certainly will be taking out membership and be making a political contribution as I hope you will as well.

Most importantly, for many of you, the Equality Party can be the vehicle you are looking for to get back involved in defence of our rights.


For the cynics, my advice is to stay on the sideline, the Equality Party is looking for men and women determined to stand up for themselves, their community and their province.

Are you that person?

OQLF Demands Descriptors, the World Laughs

When the OQLF tells us, with the rabid support of militant separatist organizations, that it is only 'natural' and 'reasonable' that companies operating in Quebec use a modifying French descriptor on logos and trademarks to pay respect to the francophone majority, it begs the question;

What does the rest of the world do?

And so we are fed the line that this demand for descriptors is one made all around the world and Quebec is no different from other jurisdictions that demand companies 'localize' their names.

I know this to be a lie, because the concept is utterly laughable, no sane government would ever demand that "Cirque de Soleil" change its name "Cirque de Soleil Circus"

Militant language groups have been front and centre spreading the misinformation (especially the Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste) about foreign descriptors, mostly by repeating facts that are clearly  not facts and  propagating the falsehood that descriptors are commonplace around the world.

Here is an example of one of the outright lies being peddled by the Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste de la Mauricie (SSJB), a regional offshoot of the SSJB. Spokesmen Jean Breton and Guy Rousseau held a news conference to demand that companies which sound 'too English,' add a French descriptor to 'respect' the locals.

Toy R Us in Norway (above) and in Japan (below.)

"The OQLF requires merchants whose image is English, to add a generic term or slogan in French.
For example, "Toys 'R' Us" could become '"Toys 'R' Us Magasin pour enfants'" (store for children..ed)
"If you're in Norway, it is normal to display in Norwegian, likewise in Japan. Why would it be different here? Because we are only eight million? "Asks Mr. Rousseau. "We must stop denying our roots and show a little pride," he adds. Link{fr}

The reality is that in Norway and in Japan, contrary to what Mr. Rousseau tells us, Toys R Us does not use any descriptor, nor does it translate its name into Japanese or Norwegian.

In fact the one person who commented under the story, said this;

"Before commenting, Mr. Rousseau would do well to check the facts... It's funny, we spent 17 days last summer in the Scandinavian countries, including Norway. One thing that struck us was the number of Burger King, Subway, McDonalds we saw, all displaying the name in English. In Copenhagen we even saw the prestigious Royal Copenhagen - more English than that ... Also, I'm sure that Mr. Rousseau would be disappointed to learn that in all the shops we visited, staff were happy to serve us In English." Link{fr}

Not only does the chain not provide descriptors, nor a translation into Japanese or Norwegian, a visit to a Toys R Us store in Japan would give our language inspectors an instant heart attack.
Take this tour on Youtube and count the number of language infractions that would be found by an OQLF inspector if Japan applied Quebec rules to its retailers. YouTube

By the way France doesn't demand descriptors as well.

Interestingly, a visit to the Norwegian Toy R Us website (written in Norwegian) shows that packaging for many toys are in English only.  Link

Readers, come with me for a world tour where we shall investigate the world of descriptors. We don't need an airline or train ticket, we shall stay in the comfort of home, making use of this newfangled internet to visit those international stores around the world.

So here are a bunch of signs from around the world that would have Camille Laurin rolling over in his grave.
Attention OQLF, SSJB, this post is for you;

From France, here's an advertisement that will curl your toes. Also nooooo descriptor!

Subway menu in Hong Kong.

ISRAEL.....That's some Descriptor! 'Kosher 'in English and Hebrew! Notice the 'OPEN' sign strictly in English

Subway in PORTUGAL. Fresh and tasty, but no descriptor

Subway in Bulgaria. Notice the  "OPEN" sign

Subway in Romania. 

Now readers lets us not confuse descriptors with translations.
Some countries who do not use the western alphabet translate the business name into something locals can understand.

This is not a descriptor, just a phonetic translation which reads BURGER KING

BURGER KING returns to  Marseilles France.

 Whats on the menu at this new Burger King in France?
"Whopper, SteakHouse, Chilicheese Burger, Big King, Tendergrill.."...Hmmmm.  Link

Descriptors in  Italy?  Nope, just an 'OPEN' sign

Here's a Walmart in Mexico that does have a descriptor. I wonder if this is what Mario Beaulieu is talking about!

Footlocker and No Descriptors 

This is not a Chinese descriptor, strictly a translation of the letters K-F-C into Chinese, which is often the case where the local population doesn't understand the western alphabet.

In Quebec KFC is PFK, as for the rest of the world, KFC is KFC...

 It's catchphrase translated, but not a descriptor...

Walmart in Mexico City

Best Buy in Mexico

 Banana Republic in Paris

 Gap on the Champs-Elysées in Paris 


How about some menus and how the local language is respected

If this menu from the French website of KFC was offered in Quebec, there would be riots. 

The logo in the top left corner has an English catchphrase.

The buckets are not called 'Barils' as in Quebec and the name of the product is the completely English expression..."2'GETHER BUCKET"

Other products include "Hot Wings" and "Crispy Tenders"

How about this online menu in Italy, not much effort to Italianize anything. Anyone for a "Crispy Chicken Deluxe"?

and finally this;

It seems as highlighted above, companies go beyond what they do in other countries to accommodate francophone Quebeckers, but it seems that it is never enough.

All in all, this whole issue of descriptors seems to be a  'Quebec versus the world' thing.

While the entire world embraces foreign logos and trademarks, Quebec whines that they are a threat.

When it comes to descriptors, Quebec is just about alone in the civilized world in its demand that corporate names be localized.

It isn't normal or par for the course.

It is just plain hatred of anything English, pure and simple,

Descriptors aren't a matter of respect, they are a matter humiliation, something to be resisted at all costs and giving in to the blackmail is akin to allowing a petulant child get his way just because he will not stop whinging.

Next time French language militants make outrageous claims, let's call them out.

The FLQ versus Richard Bain

Richard Bane, the murderer alleged shooter and murderer of stage worker Denis Blanchette at the Metroplis theatre the night of the PQ's election may be sane or he may be slightly daft, we haven't been apprised of the contents of the psychiatric report because Bain has objected that the document be deposited with the court in English at his trial.

Let me preface this blog piece by saying that unlike the jury who in the trial of Guy Turcotte acquitted the good doctor by reason of insanity in the murder of his two young children, I hope that Bain gets the max and rots in jail for the rest of his life for depriving a three year-old girl of her father just because the unlucky sap, her father, got in Bain's way on his way to kill Pauline Marois.

If Bain is found to be 100% nuts, it wouldn't change my mind, the consequence of being found not criminally responsible via the insanity defence is too high a price for society and more importantly, the family of the victim to pay.

In advancing the so-called right of the criminally insane to an acquittal, we hinder  the grieving family from achieving closure and healing, the idea that the murderer will be walking around society, free as a jaybird, because he is somehow 'cured' is akin to imposing upon the aggrieved family a lifetime sentence of pain and suffering.

So I'm not much interested if Bain is certifiable, I've no interest in seeing him acquitted via the insanity defence. That's just an opinion, you may or may not agree.

That being said, it isn't going to happen, unlike Guy Turcotte, no Quebec jury will ever let him skate on the murder, the idea of him eventually getting out after a couple of years in a prison hospital, amazingly cured, is a cup of poison that nobody, English or French will tolerate.

That being said, who can deny that Bain lost his marbles that night when he tried to kill Marois and truth be told, he actually has a better case of temporary insanity than did Turcotte.
Up to the incident at the Metropolis, Bain seemed to function reasonably well, providing for himself and keeping out of trouble, a seemingly productive member of society.

Who but a seriously afflicted person goes on a political assassination mission dressed in a bathrobe. I think that this fact alone speaks for his deranged mental condition, Res ipsa loquitur .

At his preliminary hearings, Bain probably said it best, joking that he was "75% sane, not bad" according to him, "considering that the 'separatists' who want to separate need only 50% of the vote."
Very clever...er.... Link

But in the end Bain isn't going to get to enjoy the compassionate side of Quebec justice, it's already in the cards.
He's going to be found competent and guilty, and will be sent down for the maximum, anything less would have the militants leading marches in the streets.

And so it brings me to ask the question that nobody will ask, that is, will Bain enjoy the relative light hand of the justice system that the murderers of the FLQ enjoyed?

You might recall that the FLQ was responsible for over 160 terrorist attacks resulting in eight deaths and a multitude of injured.
The entire terrorist group numbering around thirty was treated rather gingerly by the justice system, starting with  Gabriel Hudon and Raymond Villeneuve who were sentenced to 12 years in prison after their bomb killed Wilfred O'Neill, a watchman at Montreal's Canadian Army Recruitment Centre. Wikipedia  The two were paroled after just four years.

The murderers of Pierre Laporte, Francis Simard and Paul Rose received a life sentence but were paroled after 11 years.

 Jacques Lanctôt,  Yves Langlois,, Jacques Cossette-Trudel and his wife, Louise Lanctôt the kidnappers of James Cross, were allowed to flee to Cuba in return for his release.
They all returned to Canada a few years later and received ridiculously low jail sentences, most about two years with parole after just eight months.

The most notorious FLQ terrorist is Pierre-Paul Geoffroy, an unrepentant bomber who received the harshest jail sentence for his various terrorist crimes ever handed out by a judge in the Commonwealth, 124 life sentences. He was paroled just ten years later. Link{Fr}

The longest jail sentence ever served by a Felkist was that of François Schirm who was actually sentenced to death for a murder committed during a robbery at an armoury in an attempt to secure weapons for the FLQ. In the end, he served 14 years before being released. 

So the question begs, will an Anglo terrorist be treated as tenderly as these FLQ terrorists?

I somehow feel that Bain is going to pay a price that no FLQ murderer ever paid. As for public sentiment towards Bain, I'm reminded of the old movie line from Silverado;

"We're gonna give you a fair trial, followed by a first class hanging."

Already the media has created a cordon sanitaire, refusing to let Mr. Bain tell his side of the story and explain exactly what he did and why he did it.

Against legal advice Bain called English radio station CJAD in Montreal where he gave a thirty-eight minute interview, of which only two minutes were aired, which caused a firestorm of criticism in the French press for allowing Bain a tribune to push his partitionist views 

So I wasn't surprised that in another interview he gave, this time with Claude Poirer, Quebec's veteran crime reporter, Bain was treated as if he was radio-active.
Usually these calls are a reporter's wet dream, a scoop of inestimable value, but Porier on advice from his bosses, danced around the interview like a child licking icing off a cake, trying hard not to disturb its appearance, lest she be caught.

It seems that the word is out in the media (anglo + Franco) not to let Bain speak his mind when he phones media outlets (against his lawyer's instructions)

I certainly would like to hear what he has to say, just like I'd like to hear an interview with Luka Magnotta.
Doesn't the public have a right to hear to the story directly from the horse's mouth?

At any rate, I don't think Bain will be treated as well as the ex-FLQ terrorists who have largely been re-integrated into Quebec society, many quite successfully.
As for being murdering terrorists, they hardly seemed stigmatized and enjoy very open public careers like Pierre Schneider and Raymond Villeneuve.
For Quebecers, its largely forgive and forget.

Do you think the media and the public will ever forgive Richard Bain to the extent of those in the FLQ?

French versus English volume 72

Montreal Bus company fart-catcher defends slighting English

Anglo community's very own Kapo, Marvin Rotrand

Montreal bus company spokesman, Marvin Rotrand, the token anglo fart-catcher, has once again defended the company from offering English services, claiming that the company's hands are tied by the law, a misrepresentation according to constitutional lawyer Julius Grey.

"Basically, we have to operate in French unless we can prove an absolute necessity in certain categories," said Rotrand.

"At the STM, we do have categories where that is necessary. For example, the people operating the [phones] have to be able to answer questions in English."

However, he said bus drivers or those who work at ticket kiosks don't fall under that category.
Rotrand said the corporation consulted with its legal department and agreed that the language laws apply directly to the transit authority.
"We have a huge volume of jurisprudence as to what our obligations are under Bill 101," he said.

Constitutional lawyer Julius Grey says Quebec's language laws do not prevent the STM from serving customers in English. Read the whole story at CBC

Here's another article on the story;

"It was a simple, straightforward request that Gazette transportation reporter Andy Riga put to the Société de transport de Montréal.
Using Quebec’s access-to-information law, Riga asked the transit authority what legal opinion it had, either from in-house counsel or outside lawyers, on how Bill 101’s language requirements apply to the agency’s employees — notably those whose jobs involve dealing with the public.
Yet getting a straightforward answer turned out to be no simple thing.
The initial response, from the STM’s director of legal affairs, Sylvie Tremblay, was that no such legal opinion exists. After that was reported, STM vice-chair Marvin Rotrand piped up to contradict her, saying that the STM does in fact have written opinions from its legal department about the matter.
However, not only was Rotrand at a loss to explain the discrepancy between their responses, he maintained that while he does have such opinions in hand, these cannot be shared with the public. Why not? Because, said Rotrand, it is STM policy to keep internal legal opinions confidential. Read the whole story at the Montreal Gazette

Arghh!!!....
Kudos to Andy Riga for getting the story.

Ripleys Nodogs Believe it or Not ....

This landed on my Facebook page and I will let the poster speak for himself;

"Hello. If there is anybody out there who can help me, I need it! I have lived in Québec since 2010. My partner (a francophone) and I have a lovely baby boy born here in Montréal. I have made great strides in learning French, and my son will be fluently bilingual. I am having a problem with my family name, however. Ever since I got my RAMQ card, the province has my surname listed in all lowercase letter. This is because the Nova Scotia birth certificate is printed in all capitals - so somewhere some fontionnaire without knowledge (or perhaps ulterior motive) listed me in all lowercase. I CANNOT seem to get my second c capitalized again. I have made numerous phone calls but all I hear is that they need to see my NS birth certificate - you know, the one written in all capitals so that you can't tell... So apparently after nearly 4 centuries on this continent, I will be the first "Maccall" - nice, eh? Government imposed!

Of course, they are now doing the same thing to my son as we have recently requested HIS birth certificate. I am awaiting word from Vital Statistics in Halifax on whether they can provide me with a letter of attestation or something, but other than that I really don't know what to do. It's breaking my heart and it's really frustrating. Is there anyone else out there from out of province with a Scottish last name who has successfully protected their name? Why isn't McGill know as "Mcgill" if there is such an issue with our names?

Will my MNA be sympathetic? ANY help or advice would be appreciated. Thanks!"  Link

 Readers, I challenge you to describe the above situation with one well-chosen word....

Rich versus Poor...

The lynching of Daniel Breton

Let me preface this piece by saying that there isn't a Quebec politician that I dislike more than Daniel Breton, not on a personal level, (I do not know the man,) but rather for the politics that he practices, an insane and unrealistic environmental fundamentalism that would have the effect of paralyzing and impoverishing Quebecers by bringing economic development in the resource field to a virtual standstill.
But I want to comment upon the way he was driven from cabinet, something that I really can't abide by as a democrat.
One of the very first rules that we learn in a democratic society is that our government is chosen by the majority and that those of us who 'lose' our election can grumble all we want, but in the end, must accept the choice of the people.

In highly developed democracies like Canada, this rule has been honoured ever since confederation. There's hardly one among us who hasn't been enraged by the outcome of a local, provincial or federal election, but we've all learned to grin and bear it.
This rule of the majority is particularly tested in Quebec, where the government switches every few years between two diametrically opposed sides with two very different optics as to how the province should be governed and where its future should lie.
The differences are fundamental, but just the same we all accept that the elected government has the right to govern as it sees fit (within the confines of the law.)

Daniel Breton is certainly no saint, but his transgressions were those of a poor man, that is, stiffing a landlord for a few thousand bucks and overstaying his welcome on employment insurance.
I'm not condoning his actions, but the Press made him out to be a degenerate thief and seemed to delight in 'taking him down.'
I can only think of all the rich businessmen who lie and cheat and when caught employ an army of lawyers to spend their way out of trouble and I can't help but feeling had Breton also been a rich businessman who pulled some dubious and illegal moves in his past, he would not have suffered a similar fate.

I am reminded of cads like Donald Trump who roll the dice with other people's money and when successful reap the rewards, when unsuccessful, stiff investors and hide behind bankruptcy laws, all the while sipping champagne and eating caviar.
It is without a doubt an unconscionable double standard.

The poor can't hide. They can't use high priced legal talent to shield themselves from justice.  People like Breton are at the mercy of the Press, from which they do not have the means to defend themselves like the richniks.
For those readers who believe that Breton's actions were unacceptable and his resignation was justified, I can only tell you how poorly you know our politicians.
I know too many who have done and continue to do much worse. Much, much worse, but they are never held to account because they are rich or powerful.

Why is it then when somebody tweeted salacious details of  Conservative cabinet Minister Vic Toews personal life, the Press was up in arms  over the invasion of privacy, the fact that he fathered an out-of-wedlock love-child with a much younger woman while married. Is it not  a matter that voters who place their trust in his good judgment, be apprised of? Link
Some readers may defend him by saying that his behaviour may be reprehensible but not illegal, so how about the fact that he was CONVICTED and fined after pleading guilty to breaking campaign finance laws.
How is it that the media went so easy on him and why is it that he remains in the Harper cabinet while Daniel Breton is relegated to the back benches?
I can repeat similar stories over and over again.

Mr. Breton's real crime was being a member of the hoi-polloi, getting caught on piss-ant transgressions and not having the wherewithal to defend himself.
Had he been rich or powerful or both, the media would have laid off and Pauline Marois would not have thrown him under the bus so quickly.

...just my opinion

Descriptors? 

We don't need no stinkin' descriptors!

In an article posted in a Trois-Rivieres newspaper the local head honcho of the Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste de la Mauricie (SSJB), Guy Rousseau,  complains about stores in the local mall that have English names. LINK{FR}

"The OQLF requires merchants whose image is English, add a generic term or slogan in French.  
For example,  'Toys 'R' Us' could become 'Toys 'R' Us Magasin pour enfants' (store for children..ed)
"If you're in Norway, it is normal to display in Norwegian, likewise in Japan. Why would it be different here? Because we are only eight million? "Asks Mr. Rousseau. "We must stop denying our roots and show a little pride," he adds.

Mr. Rousseau should have gotten his facts straight before shooting off his mouth, because in both Norway and Japan, Toys 'R' Us uses it's original English doesn't use descriptors of ant sort. In fact a quick peek on Google streetview across Europe and Asia reveals that Toys 'R' Us doesn't use descriptors or a local version anywhere.
But hey, as long as nobody is checking....

 "Toys 'R' Us Magasin pour enfants"... Catchy, isn't it?

By the way, if you are too young to get the heading reference, it is a take on a scene in the classic Treasure of the Sierra Madre, starring Humphrey Bogart, where bandits impersonate law officers, which mimics my feeling about French language militant frauds like the above Guy Rousseau.
Watch the short scene over at Youtube.

French +English versus the NHL

I thought it would be appropriate for a small piece about the end of the NHL lockout, as hockey in the dark, cold days of mid-January to end-March is important to many Canadians across the country and where cheering for whatever team they choose is an important part of life.
Let us not forget that the vast majority of hockey fans are not wealthy, they follow the game on television, listen to talk shows on the radio and read stories about their team and the NHL on the internet, all virtually for a pittance.
For these not so well-moneyed fans, hockey is a wonderful distraction, where being a fan is something that even the poorest can afford.

For the rich fans who can afford the ticket prices, well that is their choice, it seems there is enough of these who can afford the ridiculously high prices and so the market dictates what people are willing to pay.

I've attended NHL hockey games across North America and remain amazed at the price differential between what American teams charge versus what Canadian teams charge.

Here's a chart of average ticket prices in the NHL, which you may or may not find interesting;
Check out this link from ESPN that details paid attendance by team, although those at the bottom end of the scale, I believe that the numbers are fictitious as tens of thousands of tickets are given away or dumped at a fraction of list price.

At any rate, at the top end of the scale, the Toronto Maple Leafs rake in over $106 million, just on ticket sales, exactly double the $53 million that the New York Rangers take in.

As for gate revenue for other Canadian teams are:
Montreal....... $83 million
Calgary......... $58 million
Vancouver..... $57 million
Edmonton..... $52 million
Ottawa.......... $47 million

At the bottom of the NHL is the Phoenix Coyotes, the NHL's basket case, which officially takes in just $19 million dollars, which is probably inflated anyways.
YIKES!!!

Here's another useless set of statistics that only a dedicated fan could find interesting, that is the average price of beer in an NHL arena, per average 16 oz. serving;

Canadiens..............$9.94
Rangers.................$7.50
M.Leafs.................$7.21
Capitals/Sabres.....$4.96
See the entire list


Do you think attending a Maple Leaf home game is a little expensive at say, $400 for the evening?
Check out this offer I received from COSTCO  to attend Super XLVII in New Orleans....YIKES!!!

By the way Cosmopolitan magazine has come out with a list of its thirty hottest NHL players, if by chance, you are interested.
By the way, Carey Price is rated number 7. See the list

Further reading;

Case not being taken seriously says Montreal man after tomato sandwich attack

PQ 'liberates' Lachine Hospital from English clutches

National Post editorial board: English is a right, not a privilege

Ottawa paramedics no longer responding to West Quebec calls

Bilinguals Have Faster, More Adaptive Brains When They Get Older


Pardon My French, Quebec, But Your Language Laws Are Ridiculous

Nutbar Richard Bain gives an interview in French to crime reporter- Listen

After links to drug bust, two Quebec judges not given new cases

Quebec City mayor ranks 4th in world's best mayors list

The last laugh

Oh Sh!t Moments!!!   Click here for more  ....I promise you're gonna chuckle!

Have a good weekend!
Bonne fin de Semaine!

Of Trolls and other Minutiae

I'm going to take a time out to address several issues that have been brought up in the comments section of late.

TROLLS
People keep writing me and demanding that I control negative comments written by certain readers who take offence to this web site and who believe that they can cast aspersions by denigrating us with foolish comments that are mostly boring and mostly devoid of anything redeeming.

I want to separate these trolls from those who write legitimate comments that oppose the majority view of this blog.
Too many readers confuse dissent with 'trolling' and wrongly (in my opinion) demand that they be somehow squelched.

At any rate, it isn't I who empower the trolls, it is you.
Ignore them and they will be frustrated and go away, otherwise don't complain.

One of the reasons I allow trolls to post is to remind readers in what environment we live, their insignificant and content-less missives, a testament to their mindless dogma.

Trolls are a good barometer of how much we bother French-language militants and the more we attract, the more damage I know we are inflicting.

Every now and then, trolls reveal certain nuggets of truth that offer an interesting insight into their optic.
Here is an example that proves rather telling.
In response to Monday's bog piece about the OQLF harassment of English and the effects of keeping many products and services out of Quebec, a reader noted that for many years, the Monopoly promotion wasn't offered in Quebec McDonalds restaurants.

"For several years, the Monopoly game promoted yearly by McD's was not promoted in Quebec because they didn't want to make the game pieces in French as well as the game cards"

Which elicited these two sarcastic responses;

"less mcdonald's promo? what a blessing."
"Vraiment triste :(" (Very sad)

Now these responses are telling and reveal much about how French language militants react when faced with the reality that they are missing out on North American life to some extent by exaggerating French language requirements.
The reaction is as old as the hills and was described by Aesop in the famous fable of the fox and the sour grapes written over 2,500 years ago.

And so they denigrate what they cannot have (the sour grapes.)
Of course it's easy to disparage a silly promotion in a junk food restaurant, but it is the same reaction that is trotted out when Quebecers are deprived of something more significant.
There are those who declare that anybody or any company that does not knuckle to excessive language requirements is not welcome and ultimately no great loss to Quebec and Quebecers.

And so trolls can offer insight into the mindset of French-language militants and as such, play their own role on this blog. 

That being said, I'm not defending McDonalds, there is no excuse for not respecting the French language, they certainly do enough business here to warrant the effort.
But for other businesses that isn't always the case.
There is a legitimate debate about protecting French language versus greater choice, but where that line is drawn is the issue at hand.
A company with one or two stores in Quebec (even if they have thousands of locations across North America) shouldn't be held to the same standards as a company that has hundreds of locations in Quebec.

But that is what legitimate debate is about. I cannot fault those who take the opposite view from myself.

Readers know me as someone with a particularly thick skin, criticism is part of the game and you should be aware of the venomous comments that aren't published and the hateful and threatening emails that land in my inbox frequently.
When regular readers, including so-called trolls offer a comment that violates the established standards of this blog, I censor the comment, but let readers know that I have done so by the familiar;
 "This comment has been removed by a blog administrator."
It lets the regular contributor know that the comment was deemed unacceptable and allows him/her to modify it or otherwise react.
It isn't a rebuke, call it a safety valve, that checks excessive zeal or emotion.

But comments that are hateful, cruel or obscene, from strangers to this blog, never see the light of day and the writer never gets to see his comment publicly blocked.
I can say that the regular so-called 'trolls' to this blog do not fall in this category and I cannot remember removing one of their comments in this manner.

A couple of final notes on the comment section.

BLOGGER doesn't allow me to view IP addresses and I cannot 'ban' anyone based on such information. (I wouldn't anyway)
Readers have made many suggestions and I consider them all, but understand that there are no magic solutions that will satisfy everybody.

MODERATION: I do have the option to review comments before they are published, but I cannot pick and choose who I moderate, it is all or nothing. Sometimes it would mean long delays before what you write is published, which is frustrating. My choice is to let everything be published immediately and clean up any mess later.

Tuer les tous, Dieu reconnaîtra les siens   (not Latin, but old French this time... I cannot resist!)

It is a choice I have made based on the fact that we really don't have so many abusers. Again I do not consider regular so-called 'trolls' abusers.
Some have suggested that I use a system like DIQUS to control the comments section, but the drawback is that you need a legitimate email address to participate and even with a dummy account it leads to casual commenters avoiding participating.

As for those who criticize me for not policing the comments section to their satisfaction, I can only reply that I do my best.
I want to remind readers that I am but one person with help from my wife. Sometimes people hold this amateur blog to standards that are unrealistic given the reality.
I am not a newspaper, nor a website that has contributing writers and support staff, nor a budget.

To people who don't like this blog and tell me how shitty my opinions are, all I can say is that nobody is forcing anybody to read my missives and those of our commenting community.
Just the same, we are doing pretty well and will probably hit a million pageviews in 2013, as Adam Sandler tells us... Not too shabby! for a blog that deals with a narrow subject.
By the way, when I  use the 'our' or 'we' to describe the blog, it is of course because of the comment section, that is integral to whatever success we enjoy.

Stay or leave
There are some readers who have reacted angrily that their decision to emigrate from Quebec is somehow denigrated in this blog. Not true.
The decision to leave Quebec or to stay is highly personal and giving advice to others about the issue is gratuitous at best.

For every good reason there is to leave, there are as many good reasons to stay. For those who advise Anglophones to abandon their homes, one should understand that the advice is based on the writers successful transplantation.
I have never maintained that those who left to greener pastures have 'abandoned' the linguistic fight and there have been precious few comments that have said anything like that.
I for one, remained in this province because I had a successful business, which I didn't want to abandon. I have recently retired and also see no need to leave as my friends and family are mostly here.
This story is mine, but readers who have chosen to remain have made their own choice, based on their own circumstances.
Many of you have left Quebec and have built new successful lives elsewhere.
Good on you, but everyone is entitled to live where they want to and yes, bitching about circumstances is also allowed.
The idea that Anglos who complain about linguistic persecution should just pick up and leave is not akin to walking out of a theatre because the movie sucks. It is more complicated.

One thing that I do know, is that a great proportion of those expatriates who come to this blog, do so  because Quebec is remembered fondly and remains part of who they are, this sometimes after twenty or thirty years.

Getting the message out.
Some have vented some frustration that this blog isn't making enough of a difference, a position  I heartily disagree with.
We are widely read and although it is hard to gauge the impact, at least I know we drive French language militants batty.
The newly crowned Fuehrer of vigile.net, Richard Le Hir makes it a point to remind readers every now and then what vicious and dangerous 'angryphones' populate our blog.
I take it as a badge of honour, like being called a bigot by a racist.

What can you do to contribute?
Popularize this blog by getting the message out, new readers arrive every day and mention that they had no idea we existed.

There are one or two regulars who post blog pieces to REDDIT which drives a tremendous amount of traffic.
Ironically, the latest poster to REDDIT was someone who ironically opposed my position re: the OQLF. Nonetheless, it generated  150 new pageviews.

One of the best ways to promote this blog is to comment in national newspapers like the Globe and Mail or the National Post mentioning a post in NDOA that you feel relevant to the discussion.
This also drives a lot of traffic, but I cannot do it myself as it would be somewhat unethical.

Mentioning and promoting a blog post on your Facebook or Google+ page can also help us go viral and get the message out to a wider audience, so don't let me hear that you feel frustrated because you don't know what to do to help publicize our cause.

There are many other ideas out there, but it is mostly up to you, I've done my part, now it is your turn.