Felquiste Bernard Lortie, who was a mere 18 years old in 1970 – a total baby face in the photo – still maintains they never meant to kill anyone, which only suggests to me that the other guys in the Chénier cell weren’t confiding all their plans to the baby.
Updates from October, 2020 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts
-
Kate
-
Kate
Simon Brind’Amour, on trial for killing Josiane Arguin in Park Ex two years ago, says he was the real victim. But strangely, it wasn’t Brind’Amour who ended up dead and thrown out in the trash.
In his rape trial, Gilbert Rozon says he was the real victim in the sexual encounter with the unnamed plantiff.
Ian
Of course they were. What a couple of tone-deaf creeps.
-
Kate
Green and white Téo taxis will be seen in our streets again, now the property of Pierre Karl Péladeau. Metro says they can be called via the app.
Update: QMI tested out the new version of the service and liked the cars; the writer was honest enough to note that the new owner of Téo is also his boss.
Emilyg
I did catch one a little while ago, after they’d been bought by PKP I think. On the street.
Chris
Maybe with so many people now scared of public transport they’ll have a chance at doing some business.
JP
In the time of covid, I’d actually much rather take public transport given that it’s not as crowded anymore than be stuck in a taxi, an enclosed small space with one other person. If that driver has covid and is in the stage where he/she’s contagious, that’s risky (and they could be asymptomatic). Whereas with the metro, I feel like I can maintain space from others more easily.
I caught the flu two years ago and am certain (though I have no proof) that I caught it from a cab driver who was talking and coughing a bit while driving me. It was winter so it didn’t even occur to me to open the windows and, at the time, something like covid wasn’t even a concern or on my radar.
Ian
In places like NYC where they have a full plexi screen between driver and passengers it’s a lot safer.
Cabbie assaults are rare in Montreal but it might not be a bad idea…Michael Black
The two taxis I’ve been in this year (which is almost infinitely more than “normal”, except for last year) had plexiglass between the front and back seats. I’m not sure how airtight it was, but must have cut backsome. I know I wondered how I was supposed to enter a PIN number or hand the driver cash through that plexiglass (but the contactless card worked fine).
-
Kate
Seeing tweets about the winning submission for the refashioning of McGill College Avenue.
DeWolf
It’s certainly bucolic. The approach reminds me of Robson Square in Vancouver, which isn’t a bad thing.
I see some comments from people on social media who think a large, open plaza would be better, but they seem to forget that we already have the Place des Festivals and Place des Arts which are already geared towards festivals and other large gatherings, not to mention Phillips Square, which will being enlarged and joined with the Place du Frère-André a block away, and the esplanade of Place Ville-Marie.
Blork
People with long memories will recall that the original do-over of McGill-College back in the 80s was intended to turn it into Montreal’s Champs-Élysées, by which I suppose they meant a wide boulevardish gathering place with fancy shopping and whatnot. Sort of a weird idea given there’s not much street-level retail (aside from entrances to malls) and it’s only four blocks long as opposed to two kilometres. No surprise it never worked.
I agree with DeWolf that we won’t really need an open plaza around there. A bucolic space with trees and shade is much more appealing. As it stands now, the nicest things about the avenue is the tree line down the middle (gorgeous anytime, but particularly in winter when it’s lit up) and the deck of Muskoka chairs that were set up along there for the summer of 2017. (Pictures or it didn’t happen: https://flic.kr/p/GTbTLi )
Michael Black
But there was going to be a new concert hall on McGill College, though I can’t remember why it didn’t happen.
Kate
That goes back a long way, Michael Black. Wasn’t that a Jean Drapeau idea?
While skimming through old Gazette issues on the Google newspaper archive, I discovered that in 1930 there had been a proposal to enlarge the St‑Sulpice library on St‑Denis by adding a concert hall. A lot of ideas floated around that time (there were also plans for a new train station, and for something resembling the Seaway, the same year) had to wait until World War II had come and gone before they came into being in some form.
I have to admit I don’t fully understand why, after the creation of Place des Arts, which has been refurbished several times since it opened, we still needed another classical concert hall. I thought at least one of the PdA halls was intended to be for that purpose.
Michael Black
I thought the concert hall coincided with a proposed makeover, and yes I think it was a Drapeau idea, unless it was Dore.
Maybe it was on the cusp and when The MUM won a majority, they cancelled The project.
The issue that comes to mind was that the OSM needed more dates, and PdA was used for folk music concerts and dance, and other live shows. Memory says the OSM had been promised or communism expected more dates, hence the need for separate concert hall. But it’s been so long my memory of the story has faded.
The museum was added about 30 years ago. They dug a hole and then there was a funding issue, so the wooden fencing was up for what seemed a long time. Then it began again. The outside of PdA was renovated, I saw O Vertigo outside about 1993 and was nearly blinded by the board off the new white stone.
And then it was renovated more recently, I think to make it more festival friendly. Putting the museum at the site not only erased the green space (it got crowded at lunch hour) , but used up the space for another concert hall.
jaddle
Wilfrid-Pelletier (the big hall at PdA) isn’t ideal for most classical concerts actually – it’s too big for all but the very largest orchestral shows, and the acoustics are not very good at all. They have to use amplification for many of the performances that do go on there. The Maison Symphonique is a huge improvement for these sorts of concerts! Of course, there are also a ton of smaller concerts for which places like Bourgie Hall are far better, both in terms of the amount of seating and the acoustics. A single “perfect classical venue” couldn’t possibly exist, since there isn’t a single kind of “classical performance”.
I don’t remember ever hearing about any concert hall proposed for McGill College though – where would it have been built?
-
Kate
François Cardinal talks about the shifty Covid numbers being handed out by Santé Québec.
Officially, 969 new cases Thursday and 30 new deaths added, coming to 6005 deaths since the start of the pandemic.
-
Kate
I know, I don’t usually do sports news, but it’s all over local media that Brendan Gallagher has signed with the Canadiens till 2027.
-
Kate
That bingo hall in St-Jean-sur-Richelieu held a second bingo event this week, with 170 people. Are they actively trying to kill off their clientele?
Also, SPVM police had to disperse a gathering of a hundred Hasidic Jews in Outremont this week.
Bi-measures
Luckily for them, the Hassidim are safe from blog editorializing.
Kate
Whether it’s religion or bingo, I think anyone holding or attending a gathering right now is nuts. Is that editorializing enough for you?
Chris
I can see how Bi-measures read it. “had to” sometimes implies a reluctant undesirability, and of course only one group was (offhandedly?) accused of trying to ‘actively kill’. But knowing Kate’s views on this over these long months, I didn’t think this is what she was actually implying.
Well, at least the ultra-orthodox here in Montreal aren’t rioting, as some are doing in both NYC and Israel. Probably best that the SPVM keep this in check by dispersing them quickly.
Bi-measures
Perhaps the Hassidim don’t watch commercial television, so they’re far less brainwashed than others?
Maybe the bingo crowd in St-Jean are equally blessed?
Kate
Oh look, a troll. Very entertaining. Not.
Ephraim
The haridim are such a small population, but they are becoming very problematic. In Israel, while just 10% of the population are over 40% of the confirmed cases. In NY in Kiryat Joel, they have an infection rate of 28% (NYS infection rate is just 1%). They in fact have given the Israeli government an ultimatum on reopening their yeshivas and synagogues. They are demanding the government allow weddings of over 200 people and basically are going underground against the restrictions.
Ian
Let’s not forget the Tosh in Boisbriand. I mean yeah of course it’s not just the Hassidim ignoring distancing rules – I live in MIle End and you just have to walk by Club Social at any time during business hours to see a cavalcade of ding dongs ignoring red zone best practices – but a gathering of 1000 people for religious reasons shouldn’t just be swept under the rug for fear of seeming prejudiced!
Chris
>but a gathering of 1000 people for religious reasons shouldn’t just be swept under the rug for fear of seeming prejudiced!
Hear, hear! But many people are definitely fearful of exactly such accusations of bigotry.
jeather
Why yes, we’ve only seen news articles about the Hasidim and other ultra orthodox Jews each time they broke laws about gatherings, clearly the truth is being hidden out of overbearing PC fears. I’m glad you could find the news, hidden as it was on a minor site like La Presse (and equally hidden on Radio-Canada).
Chris
jeather: who/what are you replying to? No one has said any truth is being hidden.
Michael Black
Your previous comment implies that religious groups were getting a pass.
The 6pm news said bingo has been stopped everywhere in Quebec, solving the problem.
The Kahnawake radio station used to do radio bingo, I don’t know if they still do, or even how it worked. But maybe that’s an alternative.
jeather
“but a gathering of 1000 people for religious reasons shouldn’t just be swept under the rug”
How was it swept under the rug? It was on major news sites. So have other articles about Hasidim breaking restrictions.
Ephraim
@Michael – All cards have serial numbers. You then call up the serial number and validate if it was in fact a Bingo. I assume you then fill in your details and a code they give you on the back of the card and mail it in to collect your prize as proof.
In fact, it’s not a bad idea for a fun distanced activity.
Chris
Michael: I didn’t mean they get a pass; it’s that either people walk on egg shells criticizing them vs criticizing others (for the same infraction), or those that criticize just as harshly get push back.
jeather: “shouldn’t” doesn’t mean something was or wasn’t. ex: whether one lives in a country with compulsory military service or not, one might say “serving in the military shouldn’t be required.” If I say it in Israel, I’m speaking against the status quo, if I’m speaking in Canada I’m agreeing with the status quo.
Ian
@jeather I was responding to B-M who appears to be suggesting that we should not identify groups being dispersed by their association. I’m sure those kids that got covid playing spin the bottle would have liked to have that association hidden too, but knowing how and why people are getting exposed is relevant.
You seem to be trying to draw some kind fo intent form my statement other than i intended, and I apologize for any confusion I might have caused by lack of clarity.
-
Kate
Late last year, the SPVM created a squad called Quiétude to investigate gun crime, but a study by a Concordia professor found that what they’ve mostly been doing is arresting Black men – 74% of its arrests, in fact. In most cases, if these people were charged with anything, it was not for firearms offences.
Chris
If I’m reading the articles right, this 74% figure comes from 23 of 31 arrestees being black. 31 is a pretty small sample size to draw any larger conclusions from.
nau
If I’m reading the article right, the squad made 31 arrests in the time period studied. The study looked at all 31 arrests. A sample of 31 when the total number of arrests to study is 31 is not a small sample. In fact, the word sample doesn’t really apply.
Michael Black
“Investigate gun crime” sounds like they are studying crimes that involve guns that have already happened, or trying to track down illegal guns.
31 doesn’t seem like much, especially if most arrested didn’t have guns. Were they looking for people who looked like they had guns?
And to arrest 31, how did they find those? Did they stop 310 people to find those 31?
Chris
nau: many people don’t read past the headline/summary. My point is that 23 of 31 arrestees vs say 2300 of 3100 arrestees, or even 3 of 4 arrestees, would be rather different stories, even though all could be summarized as 74%.
nau
Chris: Sure, and my point for the people who didn’t read the article was that the 31 wasn’t a sample, it was the whole existing population available for study. Yes, larger numbers tell a different story. 2300 of 3100 suggests that longstanding police unit has a racial bias problem. 23 ot 31 suggests that brand new police unit has a racial bias problem. I imagine the professor in question is motivated to draw attention to this “new” problem so it could hopefully be resolved before having to wait the 396 months needed for total arrests to reach 3100 (at the study period arrest rate).
MarcG
The numbers are actually worse if you look at not just Black folks but non-whites: 25 of 31 – 80.6%. Michael asks a good question: how many people were harassed and not arrested and what did they look like?
dwgs 22:18 on 2020-10-15 Permalink
yeesh. My oldest turns 18 today. They’re still so raw and stupid at that age. I mean, he’s smart and has a good heart but I could easily see him being turned to a passionate cause and doing something stupid.
Michael Black 22:39 on 2020-10-15 Permalink
While there was the name, and overall philosophy, I always felt the kidnappers were different from the bombers. The bombers influenced by people in Algeria, the kidnappers by the youth movement. My impression was a shift to younger with the kidnappings. But I don’t think the bombings reached me at the time, it was only September 1970 when I paid attention to things in the paper beyond the comics. So it’s all viewed at a long distance.
Paul Rose was 27, which is how old Janis Joplin was when she died the day before James Cross was kidnapped. They were still relatively young.