“Bienvenue à tous,” the sign read.
In the aftermath of an awful shooting at the Parti Québécois victory party on Tuesday night, commentary has been flying far and wide, people urging calm, people urging unity, people urging a toning down of heated rhetoric, or people not getting the point and blaming everything on some caricature they’ve constructed of people who have different political opinions or who speak a different mother tongue. There’s so many out there I won’t bother trying to link to all of them.
I’m hesitant to join the fray, because to call for a calming of tensions would imply that they are at least in part to blame for what happened. Despite the mad ramblings of a madman being arrested, I find it hard to believe that a disagreement over language policy or sovereignty was the issue here. Quebec has been too peaceful for too long for that to make any sense.
One of the things I love about Quebec is that people can disagree passionately about something so fundamental, so personal and so irrational as national identity but do it peacefully (even if, sometimes, it falls short of respect). Since the October Crisis, we haven’t had political violence here of this nature (well, not much, anyway). We’ve gone through two very stressful referendums and a bunch of close elections, and though we’ve worried about losing our sanity, few have had any reason to worry about losing their lives.
It would be simplistic and, I believe, incorrect to blame this shooting on a language issue. Rather, as evidence continues to come to light about the shooter, it seems more clear that this was a man with mental problems who failed to get help.
We should do it anyway
But we should tone down the rhetoric, not because it might lead to another shooting, but because being more civil in our communication is the right thing to do.
Well before the shooting I was growing concerned with some of the statements being made in newspaper columns and in social media. Not only was there ridiculous generalizing about Quebec anglophones, sovereignists and the rest of Canada, but I got the impression that people were taking things far too seriously.
It’s probably because this is the first election since 1998 won by a sovereignist party, or the first since 2007 where a Liberal victory was not a given. Social media is far more prevalent than it was back then. Plus, newspaper columnists on both sides of the political fence seem to have gone more toward outrageous commentary for its own sake.
What’s worse is that rather than challenge people on their ridiculous exaggerations, Facebook friends and Twitter followers and website commenters have become part of the echo chamber. The cheerleaders are winning over the devil’s advocates.
Make it stop
This, I believe, is how we should step in. It’s nice to call on everyone to tone down our own rhetoric, but I think it would be more constructive to tone down each other’s.
So please, when you hear a friend of yours say that the PQ’s policies on language are akin to “ethnic cleansing,” explain to them that even if by their biased interpretation those policies might fit a loose definition of that term, that they have obviously chosen it as a way of linking the party to some third-world dictator prepared to kill millions in the name of genocide. Explain to them that while you may disagree strongly with Quebec’s language laws or the PQ’s proposals to strengthen them, that is no reason to use such loaded terms.
Et s’il vous plaît, quand vos amis chantent « POLICE POLITIQUE! SSPVM! » expliquer comment cette comparaison est offensive et inutile. Expliquer que même si vous êtes en désaccord avec le projet de loi 78, même si vous pensez que la police de Montréal va trop loin dans leur utilisation de force, qu’ils sont là pour nous protèger, qu’ils ont comme but de respecter la loi, qu’ils veulent rien de moins qu’on participe au démocratie en toute sécurité, et que même si ils font des fautes, c’est très, très loin de ce qui ce passait en Allemagne dans les années 1930.
And please, when you hear one of your friends explain how Pauline Marois wants to “destroy Canada,” explain to them that Quebec has as much of a right to self-determination as any other government. Explain to them that though we may disagree with Quebec leaving Canada, the province cannot be forced to stay inside the federation against its clear will. Explain to them that even if Quebec somehow becomes an independent state, that it plans to have a strong relationship with the rest of Canada, and that even the most hard-core separatists have no wish to see harm come to the rest of the country. And explain to them how Quebec leaving Canada will no more destroy the latter than Canada’s independence in 1867 destroyed Great Britain.
Et s’il vous plaît, quand vous entendez vos amis dire que les anglais au Québec veulent conquérir les québécois, expliquez que nous sommes deux peuples, fils et filles de deux empires européens de siècles passées, qui ont, pour la plupart, les mêmes espoirs pour nos vies et ceux de nos enfants. Expliquez que 95% de la population québécoise parle le français, et que même si la loi 101 peut être le sujet de beaucoup de débats, et même si les conclusions sont que le français au Québec est menacé et il faut agir pour la protèger, que personne ici veut éliminer ce qui nous définissent comme québécois. Expliquez que les anglo-québécois ont leur propre culture, qui n’est pas la même que celui de Toronto, de Vancouver ou de New York. Expliquez que les anglophones qui veulent vivre entièrement en anglais ont déjà déménagé ailleurs, et que ceux qui restent sont encore ici à cause de notre histoire et notre culture dont ils sont aussi fiers.
And please, when you hear one of your friends say Stephen Harper is a dictator or that he hates Canada, explain to them that his party received 40% of the votes cast in the last federal election, that despite all the rhetoric he is still the leader of a centre-right party that has no plans to outlaw abortion, take away universal health care or do anything else that would cause them to lose those suburban Toronto ridings that are key to their parliamentary majority. Explain that while you may worry about where he is taking our country, that we are still governed by a representative democracy with a fully functional judicial system. Explain that if you disagree with Conservative Party policies, then you need to convince their voters not to support them in the next election, and that emotionally-charged hyperbole is going to win over far fewer voters than a reasoned rebuttal of the issues.
S’il vous plaît.
Please.
For the sake of my sanity. Pour notre avenir commun. So that we can be proud not only of what we have built together politically, but of the way we have built it.
S’il vous plaît, je nous demande de communiquer entre nous comme des adultes.
Merci.
UPDATE (Sept. 7): Seems this post is generating some buzz. I spoke with Radio-Canada’s Michel C. Auger about this issue (starts at 31:15), and this post has been republished in Saturday’s Gazette. I was also interviewed on CTV News on Sunday.
And it appears Sophie Durocher at the Journal de Montréal thought the Gazette publishing the piece was hypocritical because of all the other stuff they’ve published. Some on Twitter have pointed out that the Journal de Montréal is a Sun Media publication, and there are plenty of anti-Quebec comments in those papers.
Bien dit. Well said.
Well said, Steve!
Thanks again Steve.
En effet, très bien dit! C’est très facile d’exaggérer, surtout par rapport au gouvernement fédéral actuel, mais ta façon pondérée de voir les choses offre une lueur d’espoir qu’il faut entretenir et encourager.
Apparently SSJB missed the memo.
Steve, we Anglos will tone down our rhetoric when the Francos tone down theirs. Unfortunately, as you can see in this video, that is not happening.
http://youtu.be/aTs86ucftfs
First of all, this kind of attitude only encourages the problem to continue. Whether “the Francos tone down theirs” has no effect on whether the words you use are right or wrong.
Secondly, the possibly drunken ramblings of one crazy man do not reflect “the Francos” any more than the man who shot someone dead Tuesday night reflects “the anglos”.
Hey David Pinto:
I have my beefs with the treatment of Anglos in Quebec, being an Anglo from Ville d’Anjou, with an Acadien mom from Detroit and an Irish dad from Maisonneuve
My family moved to Toronto in 1980. My father had no choice. The Meehan family nepotism ran out at Esso.
BUT:
* I took French immersion at a TDSCB school and now have at least a federal goverment A or B rating (depending on the proctor).
* French reading vocabulary skills help out so much in legal areas, almost as much as Latin.
* Culture! Culture! FFS, culture!
We are blessed and it is a strategic asset to Canada that Quebec flourishes.
The stupidity and murder of the other day, we’re above that, FCS!
Don’t forget these words “C’est vrai, c’est vrai qu’on a été battus, au fond, par quoi? Par l’argent puis des votes ethniques, essentiellement”. J. Parizeau 30 oct 1995.
You’ll recall that statement ended Parizeau’s political career.
He was saying what was in his mind at that moment and not the political correctness crap. What is more dangerous? A person hiding behind words or a person that say the truth?
And Pariseau’s words were just speaking the truth, as hard as the truth may be to accept. They were neither racists or incorrect, rather just politically incorrect. But they were true, whether you like it or not! :-)
Claude is right : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quebec_referendum,_1995#Citizenship_and_Immigration_Canada
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Citizenship Court judges from across Canada were sent into the province to work overtime to ensure as many qualified immigrants living in Quebec as possible had Canadian citizenship before the referendum, and thus were able to vote. The goal was to have 10,000 to 20,000 outstanding citizenship applications processed for residents of Quebec by mid-October. As well, the federal government also halved the time needed to process certificates for those who had lost their citizenship.[46]
..
Statistics compiled by Citizenship and Immigration Canada show that some 43,855 new Quebecers obtained their Canadian citizenship during 1995. About one quarter of these (11,429) were granted their citizenship during the month of October. The data also shows an increase in certificate issuances by 87% between 1993 and 1995. The year 1996 saw a drop of 39%.[48]
~~~~~~~
Parizeau was well aware of that and much more. The federal used immigrants abusively. We did not know that in 1995 and we all thought that Parizeau made a mistake with his comment about **some** ethnics but, considering what we know now, it was very soft. In the heated atmosphere on the night of the referedum, if Parizeau had explained the facts, that it could have caused great social disturbances.
Here is a link to Tommy Schnurmacher: A woman who, with her husband, owns a La Belle Province restaurant in Montreal North, where the entire menu is in French and the staff talk to the customers in French, reported that when she began talking to her husband in English, a French customer lost it and yelled at her to stop talking in that ugly language. Turn down the rhetoric, Steve? You gotta be kidding!
http://www.cjad.com/blog/TommySchnurmacherShow/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10372942
I remember that story. It’s a bit silly. But I’m not going to judge all francophones based on the actions of one. And when I talk about toning things down, I’m including that customer.
Steve,
I found your opinion in It’s time to tone down the rhetoric so appeasing. My daughters are french-speaking and went to English school and their spouses are English-speaking. They could tell your stories of intolerance on both sides. That will continue if people don’t stop putting fuel on the fire.
Showing videos of aggressive behavior among our communities won’t help settle matters.
I want my grandchildren to speak both of our languages. I want them to be able to reject intolerance and ignorance.
You should send this to the St Jean Baptiste Society. They’re blaming the English media for what happened.
While SSJB is going overboard with this, it is true that some columnist in the ROC newspapers, we’re not talking bloggers here, but actuals columnists, spread misinformation about Quebec’s or PQs policies. As far as I know, this is not the case in Québec’s media.
An example from this week actually! http://www.calgaryherald.com/opinion/columnists/Corbella+third+Quebec+voters+bigots/7196024/story.html
Go look at the comments section of the National Post and the Globe and Mail. You’ll see that SSJB is right. I hate those guys, but even a broken clock can give the right time once in a while.
Excellent billet, Steve. Very well said. We need more reasonable voices in the debates, moins de rhétorique extrême de chaque côté. For the sake of my children, who don’t know if they are franco or anglos, parce que leur père et leur mère ont deux origines differentes. Because it is what makes Montreal, Montréal, and what makes Québec, Quebec.
I’ll bet your arse that english is spoken the most in your house, and that you watch english TV programmes the most.
That’s a given. Why would anyone watch dubbed English shows rather than the real deal?
On a different angle, Steve, you say:
même si vous pensez que la police de Montréal va trop loin dans leur utilisation de force, qu’ils sont là pour nous protèger,
Steve, I very much doubt that members of the Black community would agree that the police are there to protect us.
Giving tickets to Black people because they are “driving while Black”, driving late-model cars, driving expensive cars … is this what you call protecting the public? Why don’t you go to Montreal North and ask the relatives of Freddy Villanueva if the police are protecting them?
I’m not saying the police are perfect, or that there’s no racial profiling or other abuse of authority. What I’m saying is that this is not the German SS of the 1930s. Can we at least agree to that?
Well, if you have a good, hard look at the comments posted here, you will find a lot of inflammatory anti-french posts.
And every police force is politic in nature; they have to protect the State from it’s ennemies, if only because a lot of laws are political in nature in their nitty-gritty details.
And a lot of equally inflammatory posts from you, too, though the worst ones that you’ve been posting haven’t been published. In either case, I try my best to challenge opinions that defy reason.
There are many countries in this world where a politician will end up in jail for xenophobic message. But not Quebec….
You’d be surprised how many places in the world tolerate xenophobic messages.
N’importe quoi, et c’est justement le genre de commentaire que ce billet dénonce. À part le maire Tremblay de Chicoutimi dans sa sortie contre Benhabib, les politiciens québécois sont un modèle de discours exempt de xénophobie.
Tu as la mémoire courte, hein – tu as déjà oublié Herouxville?
Réponse à Dave Pinto:
Même si Hérouxtiville n’était qu’un canular idiot, rien dans leur «normes de conduite» ne disait que les étrangers n’étaient pas bienvenus; seulement qu’on n’accepterait pas qu’ils «importent» leurs coutumes les plus discutables…
Excellent post. We all need to step up and take responsibility for dialing back the hyperbole and restoring a little calm in our little corners of society.
Everything as of this minute is the past and we must move on. We must not make general statements about individuals who perpetuate hate nor make them representatives of whatever demographic in which they happen to fall. There are douches on every side and all we can do is make sure we as individuals are not the ones perpetuating hate and if those in our entourage are, encourage them to respect opposing or differing views.
We can’t control what one (probably drunk) racist said three weeks ago or whatever, but we can control our reaction to it.
“There are douches on every side” Amen to that.
Unfortunately for us, douches tend to be louder than common sense folks.
We need to take the douche factor into perspective.
As a Québécois Francophone, I have never felt the SSJB worked in my best interest. I would personally classify them in the douche category.
Merci, Steve, pour cet article édifiant. My warmest wish is for us all to sit down and talk it over.
Merci pour ce billet très sensé et réfléchi.
First time writer long time reader . Felt the need to comment cause i could not have writen better than you did Steve and this issue really bugs me cause i do not recognize ourselves these days. Unfortunately this trend has been on for a while now at least since the student strike and the tone is getting worse and worse.
Am i wrong in thinking that this is a computer/twitter/facebook problem ? Without them there would not be such a situation. Not saying that we should go back to the stone age but people indeed need to realize what is happening right now and relax.
What really makes me think is that as every morning we go to work or school and everything is fine it`s still the classic: morning Sam ! morning Ralph ! And we still get along like we should but at night behind our computer screen it`s Jekyll and Hide….
Social media, I think, has certainly had an impact. I think the issue is that it’s so much easier to spread opinions now, opinions that used to be no more than things people said in bars, now they’re posted on Facebook and shared among thousands of people. Immaturity is nothing new, but it’s more open now. There isn’t a way to eliminate it, because there will always be antisocial teenagers spreading uninformed opinion. The best we can hope for is that we can educate them so they become informed adults.
I’m all for encouraging people to state their grievances in a responsible manner, but ultimately now is not a a good time to pipe down because the PQ is trying to intensify Bill 101 as their first act and the moment is now to speak up against that, otherwise it will go through and that’ll be very bad.
By all means, speak up. Write letters, start petitions, speak to opposition parties, go out and protest. But make your arguments about the issues. Give your opinion the dignity of being well presented.
Lawyer up. Channel your inner Ganganov. I have a few tricks up my sleeve too. Hint: received law is different for each CURRENT province.
And be respectful. Disrespect should be ignored, respect and congress praised.
This is precisely the kind of inflammatory anti-french rethoric I am referring to elsewhere.
Rhetoric is not responsible for the actions of an obviously deranged individual. Rhetoric was not responsible for Marc Lépine, Kimveer Gill or James Holmes’s killing spree in a Colorado movie theatre.
Telling people to “tone down” their opinions does not solve problems, it masks them. Better the debate be public than hidden. By suggesting people should tone down the rhetoric, you legitimize the argument that rhetoric caused the events of Tuesday night. It did not. A mental illness caused that tragedy, so a better approach would be to urge that we do a better job of treating the mentally ill.
Yes, more civility in public discourse is a good thing. But not at the expense of an honest expression of opinions, not matter how ill-founded.
You might want to re-read this post. I already made this point. My point is that we should calm our hyperbole regardless.
But I don’t think these expressions are honest. I don’t think people who compare the PQ to Nazis are being honest with themselves. They confuse their fears with facts. And I believe we should force open the minds of those who don’t know they’ve closed them.
What’s the difference between “aryan” ideology and “pure laine” ideology?
I didn’t know races had inherent ideologies.
I don’t think there are races, as far as humanity is concerned, it has not been biologically proven. There are nations, skin colors, cultures and so on. But of races only one: Human. With all its flaws and ugliness and stubborness. With all its beauty and creativity and compassion.
Ceci dit, merci Steve, ton message est inspirant et je vais le partager.
Little comparative idelology 101 class:
Pure virgin wool english ideology tries to discredit the anticolonialist Québec sovereignty movement by tarring it as “racist” and whatnot, even though they are unable to prove that we are the least racist.
Aryan ideology considered white, germanic, blonde people the epitome of mankind (they’re obviously not).
“Pure laine”* ideology considers that Québec is french first and foremost, and given our most mixed blood, it is impossible to have “pure” blood, so we are open to everyone who wants to consider that Québec is french first and foremost.
* This is a misnomer; french people are the most mixed people in History, France being the ending point of every european invasion for the last 10,000 years. And we continued to mix our blood when we came here and loved the indians — that’s how the french dominate the world: by loving the native people everywhere.
I would say that posts like yours are exactly the rhetoric that Steve is talking about. Speak for your own side, don’t put words in the other side’s mouth. The use of “pure laine” is highly insulting.
Aside from teh bizarre notion that French people dominate the world: have you looked at any PQ visual campaigns? All I see are white, blond, blue-eyed people.
I don’t know too many blond PQ candidates. As for white, the party doesn’t lack for non-whites. You could argue they’re tokens, but you could also argue that about the other parties too.
I think opinions can expressed, publicly (not hidden), in a manner that is civil. The proof: Steve’s post!
Nice post. One nitpick: governments don’t have the right to self-determination, people do. (unless that was sarcasm, because the government can only cause a referendum, but no separation?)
superb text! merci!
bang on truth, tres bien dit!
it is the generationally passed down “ideologies” and attitudes, and rhetoric that fuels the fire of division and hatred.
i would however say that stephen harper is pretty freakin terrible and as close to a dictator as you can get in a seemingly democratic society. both his government and w bush’s have TRULY wiped away many key fundamental freedoms and rights, and once you start down that path, it’s a fast and slippery slope to much worse things. the man IS ruining our country, one tea party-inspired move at a time!
What “fundamental freedoms and rights” has Stephen Harper’s government “wiped away”? Which sections of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms suddenly no longer apply?
you’ve GOT to be kidding…
take a look back at the g20 in toronto, let’s just start there and not bother with the rest
You didn’t answer the question.
And yet you give no argument. You do not answer the question. I don’t like Harper – it’s a euphemism to say so – and yet, I do not choose to demonize him. If you can provide me some facts that he restricted our fundamental rights and freedoms, let me know, I’m really open to know, but I haven’t heard of it yet.
Very balanced opinion, the kind that should populate any publication, franco or anglo.
It’s funny how peoples are ignoring politicians role in this act.
In your blog Steve, ” Since the October Crisis, we haven’t had political violence here of this nature.”
Reason in part for this, then we had Pierre Trudeau, who took no crap from the separatist and nationalist intelligentsia….The War Measures Act, which I would have invoked myself as well, told people that who was in charge of the store…
Frankly, our biggest problem right now, is Stephen Harper….Pierre, oh Pierre, where are you now..Bring on Justin T !!!
We can debate the effect of the War Measures Act and Trudeau’s revoking of basic constitutional rights in order to bring calm to Quebec. But I don’t think his “taking no crap” is the reason why Quebec is peaceful. It’s not like Quebecers have an inherent fear of government forces.
One reason les deux solitudes work is that it gets bloody cold 4-6 months of the year. Would we be having this debate in February?
You do know that the Trudeau name is pure poison in Quebec, right?
“Tone down the rhetoric” ends up sounding a little too much like “shut up and take it” to many. It’s the sort of mentality that few are willing to accept, no more than the french people would have been willing to do it in 1970.
40 years later, the shoe is on the other foot. No sane anglo will support shootings or violence, but many can understand the aggravation and suffering that has been imposed on this generation for the supposed wrongs of a couple of generations ago.
Is it really any better?
Toning down the rhetoric happens when the nasty reality of anglos living with less rights is addressed and resolved. Until then, I suspect there will always be harsh words.
Could you please expand on the “aggravation and suffering” you and the Anlgo community has been a victim of? I would love to read your explanations. As for the “supposed wrongs”, I suggest you revisit the history of Canada and how Francophones in Québec and in the ROC have been treated.
Replace “aggravation and suffering” with “minor bureaucratic hassles and personal annoyances” and you have a point.
The government here drives me bonkers often and from time to time I think “damn their french mentality”. Then I remember living in New York and Vancouver and being angry with those governments and their stupid bureaucracies at about the same rate. We are very tribal psychologically and when we react with emotion the instinct often seems to be to blame the other tribe. It’s simpler that way than realizing that society is complex and other people are generally annoying no matter their tribe.
« 40 years later, the shoe is on the other foot. No sane anglo will support shootings or violence, but many can understand the aggravation and suffering that has been imposed on this generation for the supposed wrongs of a couple of generations ago. »
I was against many of the PQ’s proposals (Bill 101 in Cegep, hijab ban, requiring French tests for new immigrants wanting to hold office, etc.) and in fact, did not vote for them this time around mainly because of these proposals. But I still can’t, for the life of me, identify current laws, voted by the PQ or the PLQ, who are causing the anglo community « aggravation and suffering ». Aggravation, maybe, but « suffering », really? Can you name at least one?
Also, « the supposed wrongs of a couple of generations ago » are not « supposed » but « well documented ». Read a history book or two.
Finally, I want to thank Steve for this well written, well-thought-out and necessary blog post.
Suffering? Let’s see: I can’t get served in my own language, even though it’s the language of the majority of the country.
I can’t take the risk in my business to serve people in my language, lest they be from the OLF or SSJB or some other group that will smear my name and my business as a result.
I found myself too often having a discussion in french with someone else who was in fact english, and neither one of us wanting to take the risk of offending the other by changing.
That my relatives from outside of Quebec could not move to Quebec without their children having to go to school in French.
That my potential business partners wouldn’t move to Quebec because their children would be sent to French school.
That outside of signboards on federal lands, I might not see my native language, the language of the majority of Canada, until I drive over the border into Ontario or the US.
That I spend years paying taxes to support duplication of services of the federal government, paying for the inspectors to hassle me about language, and so on.
That my wife, not born in Quebec, and her child from a previous relationship would not qualify to go to an English school.
That a vast majority of Quebec immigrant’s children are sent to school in French, do poorly, and drop out, creating a bigger burden on society.
That a significant number of people stay in Quebec for the university education, and the immediately head for another Province or Country to avoid dealing with the Quebec situation.
The constant threat of being relegated to an even lower level of citizenship, one of “anglo in a separate Quebec”. Isn’t enough with the referendums already? No twice means no… rapists get locked up for less.
There is so much about living in Quebec that was unfair to anglophones and allophones, such that I (like many others) took the exit. I know, you will say “good riddance”, but really, you should be wondering why few people want to play with Quebec anymore.
Where can’t you get served in English?
This, and a lot of other examples you give, sound more like annoyances or inconveniences than “suffering”.
Where do you get this from? According to a La Presse article from last year, allophone children in Montreal do about the same in school as native French speakers. Statistics Canada data show that immigrants in general do better than Canadian-born children in school, though I can’t find that data broken down by province or language.
I would think people leave the province after university more for economic reasons than anything else.
“Where can’t you get served in English?”
I have had a lack of English service in everything from a Tim Hortons on up – especially in the Quebec government offices, where there seems to be a particular bent towards telling Anglos to get lost.
“This, and a lot of other examples you give, sound more like annoyances or inconveniences than “suffering”.”
If I am forced to not be myself, to not be free, and to have to toe the line on thought (because in the end, it’s what the language laws are about) then there is naturally suffering caused.
“According to a La Presse article from last year, allophone children in Montreal do about the same in school as native French speakers.”
Yes, it’s proof that the french school system isn’t doing very at all with anyone. I wouldn’t be shocked if the presence of allophones in the system is too much of a burden on the system. Immigrants in schools across Canada would likely do well because (a) the school systems are doing better than Quebec, and (b) english is an easier language to be fluent in, and many are already somewhat fluent when they arrive in Canada (english is a common second language taught and used in many countries that don’t natively speak english. None of this of course can excuse the Quebec school systems, where so many fail to get a high school diploma in the normal time frame.
“I would think people leave the province after university more for economic reasons than anything else.”
I think you have a disconnect here. For my view, much of the economic problems of Quebec (or the economic advantages of other parts of Canada) is that the Quebec government pays a ton of money for programs it cannot support, for duplication of Federal services, and so on. The social benefits of Quebec are incredibly high, but are also very unrealistic when you look at the costs involved. The Quebec tax rates are way too high, that is for sure, and the new PQ government wants to raise them more. You can see what happened when the liberals tries to touch the school tuition sacred cow, Jean Charest is now enjoying retirement as a result.
So the economics are caused very much by the language issue that attempts by successful PQ governments to bribe the people with their own money. There is no sane reason that, once trained to be a doctor, as an example, that you would want to stay in Quebec. You can go elsewhere, work less, not be pressured to take jobs in the far north, not have to deal with the crumbling Quebec infrastructure (roads, schools, hospitals and the like), and not have to pay anywhere near the taxes you do here. Yes, it’s economic, but you have to look at why.
As per the Constitution, language is solely a matter of provincial jurisdiction.
If they can serve people in french, what’s the problem?
If they CAN’T, however, we have a problem.
Awwww. How cute! So neither of you could see the english accent the other had, or both of you were perfectly fluent in french. So, which is it?
It’s pretty normal; if you move in the US, you certainly can’t send your kids to a german school…
Heaven forbid the kids learn another language!!!
Does it bother you that in, say, Saskatchewan, there aren’t french signs at all???
Well, you learn new stuff every day! Today, I learned that law 101 is enforced by the federal government!!!!
Heaven forbid the kid would learn another language!
It’s actually the french who flunk the most, as immigrants often have a much better appreciation of the education they weren’t able to get in their original country…
Oooooh, we have a situation here!!!
Does it bother you that the french in Canada are second-class citizens? Of course not.
Poor sweet little crumpet. No, really. Poor little you was forced to deal with those pesky frogs en français… Must have been pretty much a horrible experience, especially for a pure virgin wool english like you!!!
“As per the Constitution, language is solely a matter of provincial jurisdiction.”
Yes it is, because the constitution is defective in this area. It allows one group to have more rights than the other. However, this constitutional option does’t stop many provinces from trying to offer services in two languages. It also doesn’t stop French groups outside of Quebec from bitching and whining to get federal or provincial grant money to support their schools.
“If they can serve people in french, what’s the problem?
If they CAN’T, however, we have a problem.”
If their first answer is to serve in their native english “Good morning sir” that is enough to start a crisis, at least in the media.
“Awwww. How cute! So neither of you could see the english accent the other had, or both of you were perfectly fluent in french. So, which is it?”
Both.
“It’s pretty normal; if you move in the US, you certainly can’t send your kids to a german school…”
Actually, it’s entirely possible in the US to do just that if you like. What’s your point?
“Heaven forbid the kids learn another language!!!”
Snarky. Heaven forbid that your kids go to primary school in english, get up to grade 9 in english in another province, and because you relocate they are forced into a french school to finish, probably not doing very well because they aren’t learning much other than trying to do good enough in a second language to communicate. The language issue is a big deal that can set the kid back for life, making people reconsider relocation to Quebec.
“Does it bother you that in, say, Saskatchewan, there aren’t french signs at all???”
Just go look at the numbers, the population figures, and such, and you will understand why. Why does Ontario, which is not obliged by law to be bilingual, spend so much to make both language groups happy? Why can they do it, but Quebec cannot?
“Well, you learn new stuff every day! Today, I learned that law 101 is enforced by the federal government!!!!”
Apparently English is NOT your native language, otherwise you would understand the function of a comma. I didn’t suggest the feds are paying for inspectors. I said they are paying for duplication of federal services (COMMA, new item) they are paying for instpectors to hassle me about language. I guess you don’t have commas in French, right?
“Heaven forbid the kid would learn another language!”
See above – and further, it’s not about learning another language (he’s under 3 years old and understands 3 languages and can count to 10 in 6). It’s about his schooling being limited by studying in a non-native language, and the results. For allophone children, getting forced into the French school system in Quebec gives them about a 50% chance of not graduating on time. Forcing people doesn’t appear to be working, and instead Quebec appears to be training the next generation of welfare bums, because they don’t have a basic high school education.
“Does it bother you that the french in Canada are second-class citizens? Of course not.”
Yes, actually, it does. But I can understand that there are plenty of places in Canada where the population of Francos is so small that trying to find anyone to give them services is all but impossible, or the costs related to it are insane. I also cannot find any other province in Canada that has a group that stamps out French signs on businesses or forces people to choose the language in which they serve customers. That is something unique to Quebec.
“Poor sweet little crumpet. No, really. Poor little you was forced to deal with those pesky frogs en français… Must have been pretty much a horrible experience, especially for a pure virgin wool english like you!!!”
Haha, damn you are funny. I was born and raised in Quebec, and I don’t have issues per se. Il est vraiment juste des etres-superior comme vous qui rendent la vie difficile. I can curse like a truck driver and make your mommy blush as I describe in detail your failings. It’s never a question of limiting your freedoms, why is there a question about limiting mine?
Oh, and I do have to say this: If learning another language is good for kids, why are francophones so scared to teach their children english? Why does the Quebec government want to stop them from learning english? Is english that bad? Please re-read all of your own comments, and put them in the content of francophone kids learning english – or worse being forced to learn it. Tell me why that is such a bad thing, and then you have answered your own questions.
“That my relatives from outside of Quebec could not move to Quebec without their children having to go to school in French.”
This is incorrect.
If you went to English school in Canada, your kids have the right to go to English school in Quebec.
Well said.
Let’s hope the politicians who re-lit this fire and the media who blew on it get the message as well.
Remember the good old days of Bon Cop, Bad Cop? I miss them.
I disagree with your assertions that this is just a nut case.
A nut case will just shoot at random people. The joker batman shooting was a nut case.
The guy clearly targeted the PQ and say “Les anglais se reveillent”.
If some muslim guy enter a jewish meeting yelling “fuck the jews” and start shooting, nobody will say this is just a nut case and the shooting is not related to muslim-jewish hatred.
Well some will say that but this is just political correctness.
The reality is that language tensions exists in this place and from time to time some people will “peter sa coche” comme on dit en bon Quebecois.
It might happen only once every 100 years but that’s still the reality.
I don’t see where the fact that this is a targetted shooting means the man was not mentally ill. I’m not saying there was nothing political involved here, but the shooter is not representative of the people of Quebec.
No. But plenty of people will say that his views do not reflect those of all Muslims.
Let me add this into the discussion:
I am just old enough to have lived through the FLQ crisis as a small child. I can remember the soldiers coming to check my house, I can remember the fear that existed at that time. As a child I didn’t really understand at the time what was going on, but you could literally smell the fear in the air, the adults were not comfortable at that time.
Why did it happen? Basically, nutjobs who felt they could make a difference in Quebec / Canadian politics with a gun. 40 years later, we are back in the same place, except now it’s the oppressed who are the oppressors, and they don’t like what they are seeing.
Language in Quebec will always be an issue. Things swing like a pendulum on a very long arm. It took many years for it to swing from “english masters” to “french domination” probably close to 50 years total. But now it’s more than reached it’s limit, and realistically has in the last few years started to swing back towards the middle. For some in the French community, any move towards the middle is a negative, a hurtful thing, a threat. Even with near total domination in language in Quebec, with almost total control of children’s education, even with high levels of “business in french” all over the province, they still look for problems. Thus you get the somewhat silly hidden camera videos of french people trying to get service in the most english / tourist parts of town, and being shocked that native anglos actually have jobs. French is about an 85-90% thing in all of Quebec, and rather than accept the amazing advances and the total change of the landscape in the last 40 years, they pick, the complain, they whine, and they pay people to professionally pick and whine for them (OLF).
It shouldn’t be unusual that the Anglos yell “enough”.
What is considered rhetoric by some is the reality that many Anglos face. The stupidity of being treated like a second class citizen in your own country, with less rights than someone who lives 100kms west of you. It’s especially hard for the allophones, who end up with their children forcibly educated in the minority language of Quebec, perhaps dooming them to repeat the cycle, stuck in Quebec because their skills literally don’t translate. All of this in the province with the highest tax rates, the poorest govenment services, and an environment that is certainly no all that friendly to outside businesses.
In the end, I personal chose to leave, because no matter how much I love Montreal as a city, and Montrealers as a people, I cannot stand being a second class citizen, and a massively overtaxed one at that. So many people have chosen the same path since the first PQ government of Rene Levesque, and it’s not unreasonable to assume that, once again, the same will happen. After 9 years of relative peace and stability, Quebec is tossed back to the lions (or the lioness, I guess), and the negative effects that have come with each PQ government (the constant threat of referendum and separation, socialist policies, bad fiscal management) will come again. There may not be a rush down the 401 this time, but I wouldn’t be shocked to see another slow and constant migration as people look to mitigate their financial risks and companies look to relocate away from Quebec (or get out of business in Quebec altogether).
I wish all of my friends in Quebec good luck.
Oh, and with a minority government, the rhetoric won’t go down – it will only increase, as they all whine and bitch and try to pull the covers there way. I am guessing you folks will be back voting about this time next year, with a new Liberal leader.
Excellent comment Steve, and kudos for your respectful and intelligent answers to some people here!
The “They started it” attitude is condemned by ANY parent. If any of you have kids, you know that. How come some adults (who happen to be parents also!) loose all kind of lucidity and fall back to kindergarten mentality? If the guy in front of me is disrespectful, I still will be the only responsible for being disrespectful myself. Anyway, when you don’t go down the injurious path, you inevitably gain credibility and admiration. It’s a question of time and patience. When some people get out of line and they remain theonly ones who do, they inevitably end up looking foolish. Maybe not at first, because emotions are flying stratospherically high, but sooner or later.
An independent Quebec will never be complete without recognizing its anglo roots, its First Nations roots, and its allo communities rights and need for space. In that sense, the PQ has to start working on the inclusiveness aspect of the project, and opponents have to stop demonizing sovereingty. It’s not pure Evil. Nothing as such exists, except in Hollywood fantasies.
Steve, excellent look at things, I just believe that anglos in Quebec are fed up with the continuos threat of a possible referendum everytime the PQ comes to power, I certainly know I am.. As a realtor I had several clients waiting for election results to decide whether or not they would be buying here or selling to leave the province ..
”As a realtor I had several clients waiting for election results to decide whether or not they would be buying here or selling to leave the province”
The question then is : How much does that makes sense and hwo much does the abusive media coverage has to do with that ?
Thank you for the great post. I just want to put something out there though and I’d be happy for anyone to correct me if I’m wrong. I have noticed a few posts of this nature from anglo Quebecers, the first that comes to mind is Josh Freed from L’actualité from back in March. I think it’s great that anglos are reaching out to their communities and trying to get them to understand the franco point of view (granted this article sort of does both). I however have not seen any articles from francos to do the same towards the anglo community.
I’m not saying these articles don’t exist (and if they do please post the links), but if they don’t I would find that a little worrisome. The situation we’re in requires both sides to find a common ground and to understand each other. I hope that this initiative is not one sided.
I read this article this morning:
http://urbania.ca/blog/3354/quebecoise-no-matter-what
It’s far from being unique in its tone urging rapprochement.
As an aside, thank you for this article, Steve. It meant so much to both me, a British immigrant to Québec who speaks French (with a dreadful accent but speaks it nonetheless), and my wife, a francophone Quebecer/Québécoise.
Well said Steve.
I’ve been really worried before and after the election from the increase of verbal violence, and honestly, are not innocent myself. I did bang a few people on twitter occasionally for all good reason of course, so did I told myself.
The thing is, we, both anglo and franco, are part of this country and have an equal right to stay where we want and enjoy a peaceful life. Both side are suffering from what is perceived as discrimination, and loss of emancipation. The only way around that is to start talking to each other and listen. Unfortunately, it is a lot easier to form a bubble of righteousness around self and blame the world, the others, the alien or anything we do not control. Such as the PQ. Or law 101. Or Harper. Or the PLQ.
Here is an example:
Franco side perception : without law 101 that forces the franco-quebecois and immigrants to attend french schools, we are lost and will slowly disappear into that immense English speaking continent. true or false?
Anglo side perception: law 101 discriminate our civil rights; we were born here and have the right to speak and live in English. Bill101 takes those rights away.
true or false?
Quite frankly, I’m wondering how many anglo friends out there really took the time to read bill 101, which is, btw, available in English for your enjoyment, as all other bill voted in Quebec.
It seems to me, and despite (or because) the obvious misinformation spread around, that bill101 affects more the franco and the immigrants. You guys still have a legitimate right to attend English or french schools, so will your children.
Now if you feel that you are discriminated because we, the franco or the immigrants do not have that same right (being forced to attend french school), well thanks for your consideration, but again, it does not affect you at all so what’s the bid deal?
On top of that please keep in mind that we are talking about public funded schools here. You can send you kids to a Klingon school if you wish, providing you can afford it, and find one.
As of Quebec independence, well Steve’s text speaks by itself and I completely adhere to his conclusion on this matter. Taking out one nation’s right to form a country is clearly against the UN chart. Like it or not. Remember: your ancestors did the same when they created Canada, out of GB. How would you feel retrospectively if GB would have told you no? War like the US did? I don’t think so.
Have a great day and let’s all breath by the nose for a moment.
Maybe you should read Bill 101.It is a disgusting piece of legislation that attempts to legislate life and creates classes of citizens.The goal of that law is clear:destroy the english school system and the inherent racism of French Canadian companies will do the rest.
Just so you know:
Gazette poll on Bill 101 a few years ago:
90% of the english community hate it.
Across all educational and age groups.
Completely agree Steve. The great thing about the debates surrounding the ”national question” is that we (both franco and anglo) had learned to debate with passion without casting the other as an enemy, in part because very often the ”other” was also a close friend or even a member of one’s family. Time to tone down the rhetoric.
Salutations amicales, André
Sometimes a political climate NEEDS elevated rhetoric in order for people to CARE enough to vote. 73% of Quebecers voted. The numbers are telling.
It’s all cool to calm down on the rhetoric, but it doesn’t mean we should stop condemning racist and anti-quebec comments such as the ones published on a daily basis on the message boards and editorials of the National Post, the Gazette and the Globe and Mail.
unfortunately, the rabid discourse is fueled greatly by a media industry desperate to sell more advertisements.
Shock and awe bring eye balls to ads so the rhetoric will only continue to get worse, not better.
it seems while politically motivated violence is not necessarily on the rise (though 2012 may be an exception to that), the opinions are getting more and more extremist, either on the left or on the right.
And so someone presents an extreme view that enrages the opposing view which causes the opposing view to become extreme in its opposition. It’s a punditry arms race.
It really feels that centralism is a lost casue these days…
Very well put, Steve, thanks for this contribution.
Mr. Fagstein, you are right about hyperbole rethorics. It creates a dangerous atmosphere, acting on mad minds the way toxic gas in mines spread unnoticed: Bain is a kind of “pilot bird” that warns miners to backtrack before it is too late.
Bravo! Hear hear!
One Afro-American expression I learned not too long ago is that “A hit dog will always holler”. Basically a person will always protest when something hits too close to home and I do believe that everyone so willing to say that Bain is crazy and you can’t blame “L’air du temps” for his actions simply don’t want to admit that they contributed, inadvertently or not, to his actions. I can very see a franco taking Loco Locass’ “Libérez nous des Libéraux” literally or taking the idea that anglos and Allos are a threat of the French language and making it their personal mission to do something about it, just like the Anglo side’s anti-Franco rhetoric very likely informed Bain’s paranoia. Both sides need to look at their side of the equation and admit that no one is innocent in this situation. Reading the comment section of any website pointing out the ugliness of the other side, it doesn’t take long for it to turn just as ugly. Bain clearly was in need of a some medical attention but his actions did not come out of nowhere.
J’appui
Steve, thanks for the reasoned appeal to civility in our political discussions. The recent, vicious and hateful comments made by Quebeckers of all backgrounds against other Quebeckers of all backgrounds is approaching the pathological. As you so articulately point out, we need to continue to debate the very difficult, emotionally charged political issues confronting Quebec society, but we need to do it without having recourse to gratuitous insults and vile rhetoric.
Merci!
SSJB went too far when they said that English newspapers were partly responsible for the tragedy in Metropolis. Reality is more complex than that. Nevertheless, one can question the rhetoric used in these papers when they talk about politics in Quebec. I do not speak here of reader comments (there are idiots on both sides), but about the responsibility of journalists to adequately inform the public. When I read the English press, I am often amazed at how some journalists distorted reality or the words of Quebec politicians. I can even understand why many anglophones are so angered by Quebec francophones and suspicious about the Parti Québécois. If I put myself in the shoes of an English reader and I read the following, let’s say I do not really want to love Quebec:
«”To win the next time, it is possible that the hardliners in the PQ would like to reduce the number of ethnic voters, by imposing irritating new language laws, driving them out of the province, leaving the Québécois de souche to enjoy their Marie Mai tunes in peace.” Maher, National Post
“For those of us on the outside looking in, what’s most surprising about Quebec’s provincial election result Tuesday night isn’t just how well Jean Charest’s scandal-plagued Liberal Party did or that most Quebecers reject a separatist agenda. It’s that fully 31.94 per cent of Quebec voters have no problem supporting the bigoted and racist agenda of the winning Parti Quebecois.” Corbella, Calgary Herald
This is completely crazy and full of stereotypes. One day before the referendum in 1995, I read an article by a columnist for the Gazette which stated that it was probably the last night he could peacefully walk his dog! Wow!
Recently, in the Gazette, it was a picture of Pauline Marois as it appeared to be a Nazi salute. They removed the pic from their site today. I sometimes have the impression that the French newspapers journalists would not dare go so far in their accusations or perceptions of people who speak English. I read the English newspapers to better understand their perception of my reality. Maybe people who speak English should do the same with the French newspapers. It might be a way of better understanding.
Say that before I started reading English newspapers, I had no idea how I could be so hated by some people! I traveled to Canada and people have always been very nice to me even though I was a naughty French Canadian. We did not always agree about Quebec politics but our discussions were always respectful, without accusations of racism or Nazism … It is for this reason that I do not generalize when I read in the English newspapers .
Samuel B : <>
Then, Samuel, you should be able to understand how that can put stupid ideas in the head of an armed fool.
Voici un excellent texte publié ce matin dans La Presse. Longue vie à vous M. Jeffrey Simpson !
http://www.lapresse.ca/debats/chroniques/yves-boisvert/201209/07/01-4572246-commentaires-assassins.php
How do you reconcile your appeal to tone down the rhetoric with the media’s “need” to sell papers, ratings, listeners, page hits, etc.? My sense is that the media do better when they sell conflict, heated rhetoric, etc. Who’ll tune in to see two people on opposite sides of an issue hashing it out in a respectful and even-handed tone?
Since I don’t control the media, I can’t, really. I can only hope that common sense spreads like a virus, and those commentators who prefer hyperbole to intelligence will become less popular.
The need for medias to sell does not justify the abuse they print. But it shows the deeper meaning of that because they do to sell, indeed, meaning that what they print really reflects what touches their audience.
I totally agree with you. Regarding these tone down rhetoric debates, I see two solutions. In a way, there should be more english speaking people in french newspapers and more french speaking people in the english ones. Secondly, we should never underestimate the value of friendship. I have the chance to have a lot of english friends. It allowed me to better understand their reality and their fears without falling into stereotypes. From their side, they better understand my perception of things without thinking that I am a racist. It is surprising to see how people make judgments without knowing intimately one person who speaks the other language. The best way to understand the reality of anglos, francos, muslims, blacks or homosexuals is not in information campaigns but simply in the fact of knowing one!
Thank you for your excellent post Steve, unfortunately there are way too many people commenting on this blog that just perpetuate the victimization game that anglos love to play. If there is one thing the unfortunate events of the metropolis incident has brought into focus is the whole nasty discourse that has taken over the internet; anglos calling sovereignists racist and sovereignists calling anglos racists in reply, so who’s “right?” (sigh)
Micheal D, you may want to check your history as well, Pierre Trudeau was probably the best friend the sovereignists ever had. The war mesures act increased support for the PQ when Quebeccers were told, you are either a patriot and a federalist oryou are a sovereignist and a terrorist. Then later, after he promised Quebec a new deal following the 1980 referendum; he signed the 1982 constitution without Quebec’s approval and then was instrumental in torpedoing the 1991 meech lake accord, which still is a sore spot among many Quebeccers that has yet to heal. God how i wish Pierre were not back!
Peace
Bravo Steve !
I tink that you minimise the impact of the social climate over an armed fool but I totally agree with the rest of your post.
Merci beaucoup,
CL
What I find most striking about the debate we have seen in the media and on social networks is that everyone seems to have forgotten that a man just died. His name was Denis Blanchette. He was the father of an 8 year old girl who will now grow up without him. On the day he died, he was probably tired, overworked, and yet he tried to stop a mad man from taking other people’s lives. A man died and no one will talk about him. Every time I hear people go to extremes in their rhetoric, or try to recuperate this tragedy to serve their own puropses, I feel a little bit more ashamed. Let us stop yelling in the media and take one minute to remain silent. A man died for God’s sake.
Your article is so full of holes and shows your lack of knowledge about the entire mess that Quebec has become in particular French Canadian Quebec.You’re out of your depth.
You don’t know your history.
I could write an article based on fact and not the assumptions or personal preferences that you present as fact.The whole premise that “French” is threatened is a nice racist smokescreen.Never proven in any court.Shot down at the United Nations and in Quebec court by a separatist judge no less.An excuse to destroy the non-french community and head towards two countries in one.An idea that is doomed to fail.
Why way back in the early 60’s the B and B commission stated that over 90% of French Canadians(wait for it) worked in French.
How could that be?The truth is one thing your myth another.
Who made the least money in Quebec at the time?Why it was the Italians followed by the Natives.As French Canadians became better educated that entire wage disparity disappeared (by the early 70’s)to the point now where a unilingual French Canadian with the same qualifications, makes more than a bilingual non-french Canadian.Woe is the poor French Canadian.So downtrodden as he works away looking for contracts from the maudits anglais of Toronto and New York and LA.
Go home and do some reading.Start with your own paper the gazette.Look up the poll they did on Bill 101 a few years ago:90% of the non-french community hate it.That’s across all age groups and educational levels.You know that.
Let’s all remember the words of Andre Pratt quoted in your own paper when asked about the english community,he responded:”We don’t even cover them.”
Bravo.
We don’t have 2 solitudes here only one:the French Canadian one that masks the biggest city in it’s so called homeland with a law masking the multicultural reality of Montreal.The supreme court ruled that any sign law was a violation of our freedom of expression by the way.Forgot about that?
Your whole premise “that anglos who want to live entirely in english have left” which you hid in french,is beyond disgusting.People in Canada are free to live in whatever language they want.Those who are against that ,like you, are dangerous fools.Go write your silly articles defending people who are itching to take people’s rights away.Your door will be the one they knock on first in the middle of the night in their new”country”.
“Your door will be the one they knock on first in the middle of the night in their new”country”. Really ? You really think that this thing might happen ? Wow ! You live in a very anxious world. Fortunately, I can reassure you that this fear is irrational. You can sleep tight.
Dumbest article I’ve ever read.People like you ready to give up their rights and pander to racists are the most dangerous fools of all.
Racists? You shoud rationally explain your point.
You are so out of your depth in this article it’s beyond belief.
What a condescending tour de force.
Please everyone be quiet as the French Canadians close your schools, try to legislate a language of life and demonize you in their media.Oh dear have I forgotten the 300 bombs the poor downtrodden French Canadians set off in the 60’s?Yes it was all our fault for even existing in the French Canadian homeland.How dare we!
There are fools and then are dangerous fools like you, ready to give up rights at the drop of a hat.Your door is the first one they will knock on in the middle of the night .
What schools have “the French Canadians” closed? Elementary and high school closings are decided by school boards, and I don’t know of any English school boards run by “the French Canadians.”
One word : sad. The text of Steve is excellent. It promotes tolerance in the debates. You may not agree with the policies of the Parti Québécois (even me, an evil french speaking creature, do not approve what this party wants to do with CEGEPs). But what Steve said is that we must stop demonizing the enemy. We should have rational discussions. But it seems to me that you prefer the paranoid road, thinking that the main purpose of Quebec government is to exterminate you.
”the 300 bombs the poor downtrodden French Canadians set off in the 60’s?”
It has been proven that the federal police – the RCMP – did put bombs out in Montreal during that period with false FLQ communiqués claiming it was theirs. Only god knows how many of those 300 were coming from the state.
State terrorism, in your canada.
Search for Commission Keable and Commission McDonald, to royal inquiries about that. Or see this : http://canadalibre.ca/references/flq-grc/
Tout à fait d’accord. Let’s hope more and more people share your thoughts.
Thank you for providing a voice of reason. The ignorance on both sides is hurtful to all of us.
I hope that one day people inside and outside of Québec will realise that ‘national unity’ is a topic used by lazy, self serving politicians when the don’t want to address real issues, similar to the way ‘national security’ is used in the USA to shut down meaningful discussion.
The highly unlikely breakup of Canada would not be the end of the world as we know it or the end of Canada. Every province is pushing for more autonomy and Ottawa is hard at work divesting of centralised authority where possible.
As a country we’re probably more tightly bound by trade agreements than we are inter-provincially.
Unless we focus on holding our elected officials to account for delivering real, meaningful progress in our day to day lives we will continue to fall behind while supporting career politicians who are more than happy to deliver the status quo.
Actually, invoking national security to curtail debate here in the US is about 4 years out of date. In this era, accusing someone of being a racist if they disagree with the president is the norm.