Brooklyn versus Montreal

Readers, I'm going to take the weekend to get into this whole issue of religion, immigration and the proposed Charter of Quebec values.
Hopefully I'll have a post Monday or Tuesday. It a weighty subject so I'll take my time.

In the meantime, something light for the weekend.  I hope you will indulge me.

A couple of years  back I wrote a subjective post comparing Montreal to Toronto and it remains a popular piece, receiving dozens of visits per week.
I wrote it based on livability and as to which city was a better place to raise a family.

It was of course highly subjective, but I remain convinced that Montreal remains a better city to live in than Toronto, with a couple of caveats, the first and most important, that you already have a good job, because Toronto, if nothing else, is the city of opportunity.

But for those well-established in Montreal, I stand by my analysis even though it is already starting to be a bit dated, written almost four years ago.
Read  Why Montreal is Better than Toronto

There is of course no doubt that my opinion is tinged with a home-team advantage, but I do try to be as fair as I can.

As I've mentioned before, I spend a lot of time in Brooklyn, New York, for family reasons and have come to appreciate the borough as a pseudo second home.
Although I spend less than thirty days a year there, the time is busily spent, as my wife and I cram in as much living as we can in the time we are there, walking the streets of mid-town Manhattan, exploring our neighbourhood Downtown Brooklyn, where our hotel is located and spending time in Park Slope, (that's where my grandchildren live) supposedly one of Americas best urban neighbourhoods and one of the most obscenely expensive.

In Montreal, I rarely go downtown, living in my west-end cottage with a backyard swimming pool. My wife and I are decidedly homebodies, living the suburban life even though we are in the city.

But when we go to New York, it is a travelling adventure, each day crammed with miles of walking.

I haven't been on the Metro in Montreal in years, but use the subway system in New York on every trip even though I arrive by car.
The same goes for taking advantage of Mount-Royal park, where embarrassingly, I haven't visited in many years as well. On the flip side, I've taken my four-year old grandchild to Prospect Park on too many occasions to  remember.

It occurs to me that  Brooklyn, (one of the five New York boroughs) is just about the same size and same population of Montreal, so it's interesting to compare the two.
Now the first thing to understand is that Brooklyn is a bedroom community, with many citizens working or studying in Manhattan.
There is really no 'downtown' and there are but a handful of tall office buildings. In fact the tallest buildings are condos, and I counted three going up around my hotel, all over 50 stories.

But Brooklyn does resemble Montreal somewhat, at least the Plateau Mont-Royal district, giving off the same trendy, young vibe that can best be described as urban chic.

The Front Steps of Two Cities

"Having just put my feet down in Montreal, one major element that stands out everywhere are the stairs. Walking down many residential streets, the open metal stairs leading to the front doors tell you you're in Montreal for sure. But they also, quite unexpectedly, remind me of another place...

The front steps of Brooklyn brownstones aren't open and sinewy like the metal steps of many Montreal residences. They're big and beefy, made of heavy masonry. But look at the repetition, the bays in between, and that inviting feeling emanating from both cities' steps. When it comes to the stairs, I feel like these two great cities are kind of like cousins."

 Credit: Go to; Apartment Therapy

Statistically, Brooklyn and Montreal line up closely, Brooklyn measuring 183 square kilometres versus Montreal's 192. As for population Brooklyn is bigger, boasting 2.5 million citizens, versus Montreal Island's 1.8 million.
But during the day commuters leave Brooklyn for Manhattan while the opposite effect occurs in Montreal where commuters from the surrounding suburbs, enter Montreal by day to work.
In fact one Montreal bridge, The Victoria, runs in one direction into Montreal in the morning and vice-versa at night.
The Champlain bridge uses a reserved bus lane with the same criteria.

So even on the population front, things are actually comparable.
Now you won't find many large cottages and bungalows on large lots as seen in West Island towns in Montreal, they just don't exist in any number.
It's brownstones, row houses, apartments and condos that are the order of the day and neighbourhoods are usually teeming with a wide collection of each.

Typically, housing costs are at least double the price in Montreal and in better neighbourhoods prices are even higher.
Certain parts of Brooklyn are gentrifying rapidly and there, housing prices are skyrocketing, like in the Plateau, multiplied by an nth factor.

But Brooklyn is also is home to some pretty crappy and dangerous neighbourhoods, so it is a case of choosing where to live.
Like Montreal where living in Montreal North is no thrill, it is a question of economics and where you live depends on how much you can spend.

Brooklyn and Montreal share some other interesting similarities, some nothing to be proud about.
25% of Brooklynites and Montrealers do not have a primary care physician and while 25% of Brooklynites live below the poverty line, so too, do 29% of Montrealers.
As for health care, it is rationed in both cities, in Brooklyn based on the ability to pay and in Montreal based on restricted access.
Purely a subjective observation, Brooklynites outweigh Montrealers (and Manhattanites,) considerably,  I guess its all that pizza that Brooklyn is famous for!

Weather
No doubt about it, Brooklyn weather (and just about any American City except those in Alaska) have Montreal's beat hands down.
The big difference is in the winter where even in January the average Brooklyn temperature is above freezing. 

 There's a huge average 6 degree Celsius  difference between Brooklyn and Montreal and it means that summer is about a month and a half longer and that winter, unlike in Montreal is a passing fancy.
Summer is still blazing on in Brooklyn in September and that's not hard to take!

So on the weather scale Brooklyn wins hands down...

Public Transportation.
Again Brooklyn wins.
The New York City subway system is the largest in the world. More importantly, it serves urban neighbourhoods, so transfers to buses are usually not needed. On my last trip, I walked four blocks from my grand children's home and took one train all the way to Coney Island in about half an hour.

Another advantage is express trains. From my hotel in downtown Brooklyn, an express train (stopping about every five stops) whisked me to midtown, Lexington and 59th (Can anybody guess what's there?) in under half an hour.
Another advantage is that the trains are air-conditioned, but alas it makes the underground platform stifling hot, as the transformed hot air from the trains is pumped out into the stations. Last time I waited for the 4 train in midtown Manhattan, it must have been over 40 degrees on the platform.
By the way, the New York subway system pumps so much heat into the ground, that  flowers and trees bloom earlier in Spring and lose their foliage later in the Fall.

Parks and Recreation

Both cities have a magnificent urban oasis smack dab in the middle of the city.
Mont-Royal (692 acres) and  Prospect Park in Brooklyn (585-acre) are both treasures where city-dwellers can escape the concrete jungle.
Mont-Royal is the prettier of the two because it lies on a mountain and is used more for nature walks, hiking, bird-watching, biking and picnicking. Both have an artificial lake
Prospect Park is more heavily used and is perhaps more accessible, jutting up against urban neighborhoods on all sides. Unlike pristine Mont-Royal, Prospect includes a kiddies zoo, many baseball fields, a tennis centre and running track.
In the summer, concerts are held at a band shell, some free, some for pay. I strolled through the park to catch a few minutes of one show, which while gratis, was actually not worth the price of admission.
But what the heck, the beer, wine and fast food under the stars clouds, makes for a wonderful summer evening.


Sports

Brooklyn has two of it's very own sports teams, the Brooklyn Nets and the soon to be moved New York Islanders.
But it's only a half an hour subway ride to Madison Square Garden in Manhattan and about 50 minutes to Citi Field or Yankee Stadium for major league baseball..

I attended a Basketball game at Brooklyn's brand new ultra-modern Barclays Centre and was pleasantly surprised by the atmosphere.
Management has made it a priority to make it a family venue, patrons are warned through a series of ongoing announcements via the big screen that inappropriate dress, loud swearing and boisterous behaviour is not tolerated.
There are no national fast food concessions in the building, food kiosks are all local Brooklyn favourites, a step above and yes, there is even a Kosher Deli.
A great experience.

Shopping

You wouldn't have guessed it but Brooklynites are the epitome of shop local, as most don't have cars and hauling groceries from afar on the subway, an onerous task.
Each neighbourhood is teeming with local stores, including small food stores that serve local needs.
There are no big shopping malls as we find in Montreal, the one centre that I visited, taking my grandchild to Chuckie Cheese (an amusement centre for kids)  was the Atlantic Terminal which boasted a Target and a Pathmark supermarket, one of the few large grocery stores.
By the way, my great uncle actually founded the parent company of Pathmark, but this was my first time visiting one. It was nothing special.
The rest of the mall was pretty crappy and that's being generous.

Interestingly, there is a movement to keep Walmart out of Brooklyn because of it's poor reputation as an employer. Yup, believe it or not,  there are no Walmarts in New York City!
At the other end of the scale is Costco, a company that is renowned for good wages and benefits. I am a Costcoholic and found one in Brooklyn that boasts two floors.
How does it compare to the Costco in Montreal? ....Much more selection, but the prices are just about the same.
There's talk of Whole Foods putting up a large store, complete with a rooftop greenhouse, meant to satisfy Brooklyn locavores.
It may sound exotic but I also heard that the same type rooftop greenhouse project is going up in Laval, probably more to do with winter than anything else.
At any rate, Brooklyn shopping cannot compare to Montreal, with our massive malls and impressive downtown corps of shops.

Neighbourhoods

Like all cities, Brooklyn has the good the bad and the ugly and I can't say I'm familiar with all. Brooklyn, like Montreal is big and there are no generalizations to be made.

There are some very expensive neighbourhoods including Brooklyn Heights, Boerum Hill, DUMBO and the one neighbourhood that I am most familiar with, Park Slope.
You know you are in Park Slope by the thousand dollar baby strollers being pushed by thirty-something dads in rumpled khaki cargo shorts wearing pastel Polo shirts.
Its a neighbourhood where a nice brownstone can fetch two million dollars plus and where the average income is over $100,000.
It's a Yuppie type of place where organic depanneurs boast 'hormone free chicken wings' and 'biomass charcoals' (whatever that is)

"Park Slope is considered one of New York City's most desirable neighborhoods. In 2010, it was ranked number 1 in New York by New York magazine citing its quality public schools, dining, nightlife, shopping, access to public transit, green space, safety, and creative capital, among other aspects.

It was named one of the "Greatest Neighborhoods in America" by the American Planning Association in 2007, "for its architectural and historical features and its diverse mix of residents and businesses, all of which are supported and preserved by its active and involved citizenry" Wikipedia

But Park slope is so trendy, that it's the neighbourhood everyone else loves to hate.
Read this hilarious send-up. Park Slope: Where Is the Love?

But there's one thing that bothers me about Brooklyn, the endless graffiti that seems to infect all but a few neighbourhoods.
And the endless line of dingy shwarma or Hot dog carts that line the major streets, where you couldn't pay me to eat a morsel.  How New Yorkers eat that crap is beyond me.

Here's some other selective comparisons;

• Both cities have excellent restaurants and prices are comparable.
• Roads conditions and traffic also comparable, but both generally stink.
• Both cities enjoy a different but equal joie de vivre.
• Drivers suck in both towns, but Brooklyn drivers are worse.
• I would rate the general rudeness and helpfulness scale as equal. Nothing to boast about neither here nor there.

Which is a better city to live in? I'd have to say that the liveabilty index is equal, except for the outragous cost of housing in Brooklyn.

So as for my final assessment of which city is better, I'll use an old gambling term.... pick em.

By the way, my biggest fear is that my grandson will learn the Brooklynese of Vinne Barbarino, he has already asked my wife why she talks funny.
How about the Welcome Back Kotter  theme song

All I can respond to that is with that great Brooklynese phrase,...... 'fugheddaboudit! '

Quebec's Proposed Charter of Hate

Bernard Drainville -Religious intolerance personified

It isn't a new manoeuvre, governments in trouble have for centuries used the strategy of targeting minority groups as a scapegoat to deflect attention and responsibility for running an incompetent or racist state.

"QMI Agency has learned the Parti Quebecois government plans to amend the Quebec charter of rights and freedoms and ban most religious signs and symbols from public institutions such as daycare centres, public schools, hospitals, clinics, and other government buildings.
Visible crosses, yarmulkes, hijabs, niqabs, burkas and turbans would all be banned.
According to sources close to the government, all health workers, public school teachers and public daycare workers would have to leave their religious symbols at home when they go to work." Read the rest of the story

And so the PQ is going down that very same road, hoping to save themselves at the expense of some of its most vulnerable citizens.
The first part of the plan has already borne fruit, that is convincing the public that there is a problem, one that needs fixing.

"The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed -- and hence clamorous to be led to safety -- by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.-  H.L. Mencken

 Sadly, when governments promote fear and hate, they find a receptive audience, such is the frailty of our human nature to blame others for our personal or societal problems, real or imagined.

Mr. Drainville, the chief PQ architect of the Charter, tells us proudly that he is exercising the will of the people.
It isn't surprising that a majority of Quebecers actually support this new Charter of Hate, they have given in to the ignorance and fear, egged on by selfish, manipulative fools who don't understand the evil they will unleash.

This has always been the PQ's specialty, frightening the public with horror stories and claims of impending doom. But in targeting minorities, Drainville has channelled the xenophobic nature of Quebec's insular and exclusive society, where the only immigrants that are to be tolerated are ones that don't speak English, act too foreign or religious.

The real problem with the Charter of Hate is that it serves as a blueprint for all of society, not just the interaction in hospitals, schools and government.

The PQ government's message is clear, it opposes all things religious, and the logical result is that this attitude will spill over into the private sector where religious intolerance will become acceptable.

Long ago I recounted an incident that I witnessed in Canadian Tire in St. Laurent, where a seventy-something francophone woman decided to browbeat a teenage cashier for wearing the Hijab.
She told the young lady in no uncertain terms, who was actually quite stylishly dressed, that she was a disgrace, a religious slave and a fool, unable to think for herself.
The poor girl was brought to tears and the manager had to come out and replace her.

This readers, is our future, that type of incident will multiply and spread as the people are encouraged by the government to hate.

Yet on an interestingly note, the law is already designed with enough loopholes to sail a crucifix through, all in a cynical effort to protect Christian signs, symbols and patrimony.
As for the Jewish General Hospital, the PQ has promised an exemption. The question is, why?

The answer is simple, the Charter of Hate is aimed at but one group, Muslims, a minority group that is roundly feared and despised by xenophobic Quebecers, who are collectively afraid that they will be over-run in the long term..
Including all religions in the Charter of Hate, is just window dressing, that is why there will be exemptions for Jews and Christians..

It's all too transparent, a faltering government targeting its least popular element, to deflect attention and somehow win a reprieve.
It remains to be seen who in the National Assembly will actually stand up and salute this monstrous assault on personal freedom.
I'm not confident.

And so gentle readers, whether you are for or against the principle of removing religious symbols from 'public' life in Quebec, understand that the consequences goes far beyond that of removing a hijab at the license bureau or a kippah in the hospital.

We've seen it with Bill 101 where citizens are assaulted by other citizens for speaking English, why should this be different?


P.S.
If religious regalia is to be banned in public institutions, how about political messages?

Or union messages, here the Montreal police union have added a  message on the backs of their vests complaining about their three day week  being taken away.

Should people be banned from wearing a Rainbow, Lady Gaga, or Justin Beiber T-shirts to cegep?

Just what is offensive... that is the question.

I imagine the day that this t-shirt will also become illegal in Quebec, promoting unhealthy attitudes.... IT CAN HAPPEN!

For those who have French, here's an interesting take written by Charles Taylor in the Journal de Montreal  absolutely  pillorying the potential law, entitled :  Charles Taylor fait un parallèle avec la Russie de Vladimir Poutine 
Mr Taylor savages the PQ government, comparing it to that of Vladimir Putin, who recently enacted anti-gay legislation in Russia.

Of particular interest are the comment s under the story.

Couillard Too Smart to Fall for Pauline's Infantile Trap

"QUEBEC — Pauline Marois opened the door Sunday to Philippe Couillard entering the National Assembly.
During the Gay Pride Parade in Montreal, the premier invited the Liberal leader to run in a by-election in Viau riding, which became vacant with the recent departure of Liberal MNA Emmanuel Dubourg.
Marois said that she would not present a PQ candidate against Couillard in the by-election.
Couillard has already indicated that he is not interested in running in Viau, which covers the Saint-Michel district of Montreal. The Liberal leader instead is looking to run in Roberval, in the Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean region, in the next general election. Link

I usually agree with much of what Robert Libman has to say when it comes to politics, but not when he suggested in an interview that Liberal leader Philippe Couillard should jump at the chance to run in a by-election, made necessary by the departure of the Liberal MNA Emmanuel Dubourg, who is making the jump to federal politics for Justin Trudeau's Liberals, in the vacant and very safe seat that Denis Coderre vacated in Montreal, in order to seek the mayoralty of Montreal.

And so when Pauline offered to let Couillard run unopposed, it wasn't much of a gift considering that Viau is a Liberal party stronghold, one which has sent a Liberal to Quebec for as long as I can remember.

Actually Couillard is doing just fine on the sidelines and that is what is bothering Pauline so much, she'd like to get him into the National Assembly and rough him up a bit, perhaps taking the shine off the apple.

Coullard scoffed at the infantile offer, because when he does get into the National Assembly it will come at a cost of a sitting PQ MNA, one Denis Trottier, a backbencher whose only claim to fame is that he serves as a fart-catcher for the dumbass Minister of Natural Resources, Martine Ouellet.

As it stands now, Pauline and the PQ are imploding and sometimes doing nothing and letting your opponent self-district is the smartest thing to do.

But Couillard is doing a lot more than just watching.

He is charting a new course, betting on the fact that there are enough Quebecers tired of the separatist debate and tired of hearing that the French language is about to disappear, confident that a new debate, one based on prosperity is one that will resonate with voters.

And so he is unequivocal and very presidential.
He isn't vacillating like his predecessors nor is he spouting the  rhetoric of oppressed. He told us that the Liberals will oppose Bill 14 on principle and are not interested in compromise. He has told Quebecers that they shouldn't be frightened by the scare tactics of the PQ that lie that French is going down the drain and his message from the sidelines has resonated with enough voters and scared the crap out of the PQ,

This Fall, the disastrous decision to support more wind power generation will hit the PQ like a ton of bricks.
Notwithstanding that it was the Liberals that introduced the disastrous policy, Pauline has embraced the idea at a time when Quebecers are waking up to the expensive white elephant that will be paid for by a large Hydro-Quebec rate increase.

Pauline will find herself firmly ensconced between the proverbial rock and a hard place (entre l'arbre et l'écorce) where she dare not backpedal on the issue once more.
Damned if you do and damned if you don't... Even the skillful Pauline can't wiggle  out of this predicament.

For Phillippe Couillard it must be like those running against Anthony Weiner in the mayoralty race in New York City.
Best to stand back and watch the meltdown..

Pauline's offer to let Couillard run unopposed in Viau is a desperate and transparent attempt to change the political dynamic, but for Couillard, handing Marois a life jacket while her ship is sinking, is just not in the plan.

Ignoring English.... a Disastrous choice for Young Quebecers

An argument recently raged in the comment section where an American family who visited Quebec was angry that English wasn't spoken to them.

True?...An urban myth?....dunno.

Let's not quibble over details and if it is not true, it could very well be.

On the surface it seems a bit outrageous that strangers come to your country and expect you to speak their language (yes, Canada is a French language country as well) and the moral outrage by unilingual Quebecers may be justified, but unfortunately, wrong-headed just the same.

Over the last twenty years or so, it is a fact that English has evolved into the lingua franca of the world. Wherever you go in the civilized world, you'll find somebody in the room who speaks English and for the hospitality industry, the political class and international business set, it is an imperative.

I'm a polyglot, and at ease in several languages. When I used to travel, it was with phrasebooks and I always made an effort to speak the local language,
Visiting Mexico often, where our company had a factory and where the locals, living in the hinterland, spoke no English, I took up Spanish and got by quite well, but alas have given up for practical reasons.

I remember one such trip to the beautiful boonie town of Zacatecas, where my wife remarked on how surprised she was that nobody spoke English, to which I remarked that she'd never been to Chicoutimi. Hmmm.

But this is twenty years later, I hope the Mexicans made some progress but I'm pretty sure that the
Saguenéens have not.

Now when I check into a hotel or eat in a foreign restaurant of a decent calibre, I actually expect service in English...

Arrogant.... I don't think so.

English is as necessary to a big city hotel or restaurant as clean linens or good food. Those that don't offer the service are suspect and lazy, so I wouldn't trust what I was being sold.

For francophone parents in Quebec who fail to ensure that their children learn English, it is akin to keeping them illiterate or without basic math skills, a dereliction of parental duty.

Quebec remains an oddball society, the only one that I can think of that has made public policy the persecution of all things English.
It's a clever campaign, where politicians and language militants profess encouragement for francophones to learn English, but actually hope they don't.
Through subtle and not so subtle attacks on all things English, the message is passed down rather successfully that those who don't learn English are just fine.

The Mario Beaulieus of Quebec are no better than the Ayatollahs who instruct to their flock that schooling is irrelevant to girls, who after all, are expected to stay home and make babies, and so, education an utter waste of time.
We hear this all the time, that English is unnecessary if a francophone sets a goal to become a barista in a Tim Horton's in Matane.
That is the nationalist version of reaching for the stars.

It reminds me of bygone days where school guidance councilors would regularly tell parents of poor students to send them to technical or secretarial school.
I thought that behaviour went out in the sixties, but apparently language militants in Quebec are of the same mindset.
"Don't bother learning English, it's too big an effort and since you're going nowhere in life, it's unnecessary."

Tell me you haven't heard the Quebecois version of that argument often enough.

And so a generation of children have been told by their government that learning a foreign language like English is nice but not entirely necessary.
Read the anglophobes on vigile.net who tell readers that it's more important to learn Spanish or Chinese and  one can understand the fantasy world of the anti-English militants.

Now to those sovereigntists who believe that the only answer is independence, the sad fact is that it will not make English less important, but rather more.

As the rest of Canaeda de-bilingualizes, it means the protection of French in a bilingual Canada will disappear.
Quebec will be all alone, the 7 million francophones facing off against 375 million instead of the 35 million who protect French officially.
Hitherto bilingual Canadian companies with head offices in Toronto will de bilingualize, a natural progression based on the new reality.
Some companies selling into Canada, who were forced to keep French on the label and on the instructions even if it didn't pay, will eliminate translation.
Many companies will continue with French if it pays, but those who believe that it always pays are dead wrong.

Today there is an issue wherein Toronto or Calgary based public companies making public offerings are not bothering to issue documents in French, because they don't see enough  interest or aren't interested in selling in Quebec under the rules of the AMT.
French language militants celebrated a great victory when the Quebec government ruled that the practice of making French summaries of English documents will no longer be tolerated and full translations will be required before companies can trade in Quebec.
The question remains whether this new rule will increase or decrease the amount of stock offerings in Quebec?
Those who believe the former are dreaming in technicolor.
It is like those who want to ban plastic water bottles, believing that everyone will alternatively switch to water fountains instead of bottles of soft drinks or juices.

Because of the protective bubble that Canada provides to the French language, francophones have come under the impression that there is an equivalency between languages, the need for anglophone Canadians to learn French, as necessary as francophones to learn English.
French language militants always boast that francophones are more bilingual than Anglophones, but fail to understand that the need for an Anglophone to speak French can in no way compare to a francophones's need to speak English.
It's like boasting that more girls use makeup than boys....there is no equivalency.
Sorry for the painful truth.....

The reality is that French is protected by all 35 million Canadians, like it or not.
Those who believe that Quebec stands alone protecting French are like the toddler whose training wheels are taken off her bicycle for the first time, and who pedals furiously and successfully, unaware that her father is running behind her with a firm hand holding the whole thing upright.

I want to share this tweet as an example of the arrogance of the ignorant, who believe the world revolves around French Quebec.

Pierre Trudel, a retired Quebec sports commentator took offence at Eugenie Bouchard for Tweeting to her followers in English only.

His missive is typical of the ignorance of those who live in the cloistered world of the unilingually French and denotes a not so subtle level of hatred directed at the English.

First, Mr. Trudel assumes or wishes that Ms. Bouchard would be a francophone, which she is not. He adds an accent 'egu' to her name because it fulfils his fantasy.

The product of a French/English family, Eugenie speaks both English and French, but is decidedly Anglophone, having attended school at the very upper class and English "The Study"  in Westmount.
Listening to her interviews in both French and English, it is clear that English and the English culture is her preference.
But still, at ease in both languages, (she has a French coach) she is the embodiment of the bilingual class of Quebecers. A fine testament to the young successful bilinguals of Quebec (be they English or French).

But read into Mr. Trudel's tweet and we see quite the frustration. He sarcastically mentions Westmount 'Kwibec,'  a pejorative that francophones use, to describe how Anglos pronounce Quebec.

Now on what level is an Anglophone Canadian, who lives in Quebec, but plays on the international world tennis tour (which operates in English,) obliged to tweet in French.
Is it not the height of entitlement of Francophone Quebecers to assume that she should?

Such is the reality of French language militants.
It is sad and destructive, the painful reason so few francophones are really bilingual.
Listening to politicians, police or industry spokesman on television and on the street, it is more than clear that the level of English comprehension is abysmally low.

Thank the government and the Mario Beaulieus for keeping Quebec francophones barefoot and stupid, after all, like the Afghani girls who don't need education, so too are Quebecers, who don't really need English.

And so the rate of real bilingualism of francophone Quebecers is pitiful, with the majority of those claiming to speak and understand English basing that rating largely on the ability to order breakfast in English.

How many can watch a Hollywood movie and fully understand and appreciate what is said?

Francophones reading this blog, and who are truly bilingual, know the truth.
To those who actually achieve real bilingualism, I salute you.
You've done so despite your government and society, which actually resents your success and views your bilingualism as some sort of treason.

Sad but true.....

Is There a Sovereigntist in the House?

"So long...suckers!"

First, let me gloat a little bit over a prediction I made when Jean-Martin Aussant quit politics, telling everyone that it was time for him to take care of his family.
What he didn't say then, is what is obvious today, he already had a job lined up and the fiction that he was starting a job search, political malarkey.
Read: Founder of Quebec independence party moves to England

I've told readers before, when a politician leaves a cushy job, especially a young family man, it is because he's got something lined up.
When you hear a politician tell you that he or she is quitting a political position mid-term, to 'explore other possibilities,' your baloney detector should go off.

I remember laughing at the absurd news conference given by Frank Zampino, who quit his job as deputy mayor of Montreal to 'explore other opportunities.' Hah!
He already had a job lined up with the infamous Tony Accurso and was leaving the city job because of the impending investigation into his corruption.
Not one reporter called him out on the obvious lie, I wish I was there to put the question to him.

The same for Jean-Martin Aussant
And so I'll remind readers of what I said in June, when Aussant announced his retirement;

"Does a committed father of twins really leave a secure job just like that without having something lined up?
Look for a well deserved summer vacation for a month or two, followed by the announcement that to nobody's surprise, Aussant has 'found' a new position.
Care to bet a two/four?" Link

By the way, all this BS about not being able to find a job in Quebec is just a red herring, a story put out by Aussant to mislead us over his decision to dump Option Nationale, which was going nowhere. And so he reached out to his old friends in London and asked for or was offered a job, before he quit.

There was no summer job search, all was settled beforehand. It's perfectly logical.
But sovereigntists are weaving the fiction that he was blackballed in Quebec for his sovereigntist views, all this without a shred of evidence. Link {fr}

I'll repeat what I said before, a family man does not abandon a good and secure job on the 'if-come.'

While in the gloating mood, I'd like to remind readers that I was THREE years ahead of the Montreal Gazette in exposing the fact that the McGill University medical school was abandoning anglos in search of political safety.

Last week the Montreal Gazette published a good story about the situation and in fact the writer reached out to me for background.

I'm glad this story finally hit the main street press as Montreal Gazette journalist Karen Seidman reported;

"MONTREAL - With only about 10 per cent of all applicants getting into medical schools across the country, the dream of becoming a doctor is one filled with lots of heartache for even some of the brightest students.
And the dream seems to be a castle in the air for more and more anglophone students in Montreal who are competing to get into the one English medicine program in the province, at McGill University, where an increasing emphasis on diversity has many urban anglophones grumbling that they aren’t the cohort McGill is courting these days.
A growing list of anglophone students rejected from medicine at McGill — many with GPAs ranging from 3.95 to 4.0 who didn’t even get interviews — are wondering if they are too English, too urban and too affluent to get one of the 185 or so highly coveted spots in the program. Read the rest of the story in the Montreal Gazette

Three years ago, I wrote this;

McGill Caves in to Language Pressure- Affirmative action Arrives  -August 4, 2010 

"In one fell swoop McGill has destroyed its reputation. It is in the process of turning itself from an elite program into a run of the mill secondary medical school......

.....Shockingly, in an announcement last week, McGill said that it is dropping the MCAT, much to the derision of the traditional medical community.
.....The decision is one of the most blatant cases of caving in to language militants, an  abrogation of responsibility to maintain high standards that shames the school and will likely lead to the school losing its status as the best medical school in Canada. Read more.

Last year, I wrote this; 

McGill University Medical School Decline was Inevitable  -July 4, 2012

Sadly my prediction has come true, McGill's medical school's world ranking has plummeted and it likely has to do with that dreadful decision to cave in to language extremists.  Read More

I liked the story written by Ms. Seidman, except for the fact that McGill honchos failed to tell her truth, the real reason for which they decided to lower standards.
For that answer, go back and read the above two posts.

At any rate, with John-Martin Ossant off to merry old England where his children, whose welfare he so dearly professes to protect, can become truly anglicized, it begs the question....

Is there a real sovereigntist leader left in Quebec?

With Pauline and her crew fully committed to sovereignty sometime in the distant future, in a galaxy far, far away, and with Option Nationale about to collapse, there doesn't seem to be many options left, unless you call Amir Khadir a serious contender.

By the way, Khadir seems to be a little burned out, his family legal problems perhaps too much of a distraction. He is keeping a decidedly low profile these days.

And so who will take up the torch of the sovereignty NOW movement, or is it all over.

Does the capitulation of Jean Martin Aussant mark a tipping point where the sovereignty movement goes from the possible to the impossible, where everybody, even the sovereigntists realize in their heart of hearts, that the dream is over?

There is gentle readers, a silent and profound humiliation in the sovereignty movement today over the Aussant defection. It isn't being articulated because it is just too painful and so, better not to discuss it in public.
That malaise was clear to Aussant, who felt compelled to write an article in the Journal de Montreal defending his decision.  Read: Au fait, je ne mangerai pas de bébés{fr}

I'm pretty sure that Aussant's defection to England will be a lot more devastating than sovereigntists comprehend today, he will forever be remembered as the symbol of the broken sovereignty dream.

After all, if Quebec's most dedicated and militant sovereigntist leader can give up, what hope is there for everyone else?