The SPVM is defending tear-gassing hockey fans Monday night within minutes of the Canadiens’ overtime win, and without even giving a warning to disperse. They also did this to a similar gathering less than two weeks ago.
TVA reports on a fireworks explosion in the midst of Monday’s crowd, with photos. Unaccountably, no one was injured in this incident.
Canada has its first indigenous Governor-General, Inuk leader Mary Simon.
I’m seeing dissatisfied scuttle that she doesn’t speak French.
Who was here first? The French or her people? For practical purposes, as long as she can speak one of the two colonial languages, I don’t think it matters.
Reading up on her history, she’ll be able to pick up enough French to handle boilerplate formal GG situations pretty fast.
Nothing against Mary Simon, who I think is an excellent choice – except for the issue of French. Of all the jobs in government, this one is the the one where the symbolism truly matters. That she is an Indigenous person is an excellent symbol. That she cannot speak French (and that only now, at age 74 and having been given a big job, is committed to learning it) is kind of devastating and, I think, unacceptable. It’s especially odd that Trudeau would choose a non-French-speaking person for a major role at the onset of an election that will in large part see the Liberals maxing out votes in Quebec…
Regarding the lack of fluency in French and how she’s only now committing to learning, there’s this explanation according to the article “Asked about her lack of fluency in French, Simon said she never had the opportunity to learn Canada’s other official language while at this institution — a school that has been the subject of lawsuits over the mistreatment of students by administrators.”
At least she’s setting an example that it’s never too late to learn or try to learn.
I curious as to how well anyone fretting about her French speaks Inuktitut.
It’s not easy to find an Inuit or First Nations person who is fully bilingual, let alone someone who can also speak their ancestor’s language due to what we’ve been learning about the destructive consequences of colonization. I feel that Indigenous people should be exempt from the bilingual requirement as it restricts them from fully participating in the federal government.
Possible damage control/image rehabilitation to go opposite of the francophone psycho that the Liberals posted previously?
Perhaps her lack of fluency in French is mitigated by her being an Officer in the Ordre national
du Québec https://www.ordre-national.gouv.qc.ca/membres/membre.asp?id=154
Agreed with all of the above for almost every other role in Canadian governance. Canada has two official languages, and two languages spoken by a very large proportion of the population. That the head of state is bilingual is not the point – it’s not a question of how competent she is at “languages”; it’s about speaking French. Would a person, even a very accomplished person, who only spoke French and Inuktitut be acceptable as GG? We’ll never know, because a non-English speaker would never be considered for such a role. What does Simon’s selection then tell us about the way our two official languages are valued?
Her point about being denied access to French education can’t be denied, though it’s conceivable that sometime befween childhood and her mid-70s she could have learned French (after all, she’s going to get cracking on it right away, just like all those new free agents the Habs sign)… Even a federalist Montreal anglo like me can’t deny that French-speaking Canadians have a legit beef.
Anyway, my point isn’t so much that she should be disqualified or that there should be a rule or that Simon is a lousy choice (again, French aside, I think she’s an excellent choice!). It’s that this choice is inconsistent with Trudeau’s caving to French-language nationalist politics in the last couple of years. And that it matters that the Head of State be competent in the country’s two official languages. That she’ll be able quickly to read phoentic French off a cue card for ceremonial tasks is hardly a consolation…
Perhaps she hasn’t learned French between childhood and her mid-70s because French is hard, she was busy doing other stuff, and none of her other jobs required it. Some people learn languages for fun, but apparently she has other hobbies.
Requiring someone who’s mother tongue is a first nations language to learn both European languages spoken here to interact at the highest levels of government, while Anglo and Francophones only have to learn one other one, seems like a colonialist hurdle designed to keep indigenous people out of the highest levels of government.
If the end goal is some sort of cooperative country where people of European, First Nations, and any other immigrant ancestry live and govern together we should expect to see more official languages, and all of us should expect to see a GG that doesn’t speak our mother tongue, (for Anglophones and Francophones, we get to experience what First Nations people have experienced for 500 years).
It’s really too bad that she doesn’t not speak English instead of not speak French. Quebec has too much experience with this stuff – let everyone else get their panties in a twist for once.
Are there any Inuit who speak Inuktitut and French, but not English?
Geez… La disparition du fait français en Amérique je m’en tappe. Je suis plus préoccupé par la disparition de la représentativité citoyenne dans toutes les démocraties du monde, de la disparition de la liberté de presse (bon anniversaire, Julian Assange), de la disparition des monarques, de la disparition de l’internet neutre, plus préoccupé de la disparition des glaces aux pôles et au Groenland… Sûr, je vis en région et ne suis jamais servi en anglais dans les commerces, mais crisse la maison brûle pi on pinaille sur le choix d’un haut-fonctionnaire?
For everyone’s convenience, I present here a roundup of conspiracy theories and pundit feculence regarding this issue:
This is a deliberate snub to French Canada, essentially saying “stop your crying, First Nations people have REAL problems!”
This is the Liberals basically caving to woke society and hiring the first native person who walked in the door.
This is the first step in a glorious transformation of society towards a post-colonial Nirvana-like state complete with rainbows and unicorns.
This signals the start of a revolution by First Nations people that will end with all white people being stripped of their lands and shipped back to Europe.
This is Trudeau installing a First Nations figurehead who will take all the blame when we still have First Nations issues banging on the newsroom door five years from now.
This is only about getting China to back off on its human rights abuse counterpoints about how badly Canada treats its natives.
This is Trudeau having a moment of clarity and thinking “if there was ever a time to install a First Nations person into what is technically the highest office in the land, it is now.”
Now go ahead and pick one. I’ve done all the work, all you need to do is fly the flags. You’re welcome.
Sorry Blork, you missed: Trudeau suddenly realized he needed a GG to have an election, there being an absence due to his massive incompetence the first time around, and figured he had given francophone Quebecois enough with his support of Bill 94 that he could afford to try to appease the lefty crowd
Blork: hilarious 🙂
I’m curious though, when, if ever, was the last GG that didn’t speak English?
@Chris. Perhaps there has never been a case where one didn’t speak English…
Though each province also has a Lieutenant Governor (appointed by the Governor-General on the prime minister’s recommendation). So this role has branches at the provincial level too.
Kate, in response to your question, very few Inuit from Nunavik would only speak Inuktitut and French and not English.
Nunavik was transferred from the Hudson’s Bay Company to Canada after confederation, then to Quebec in 1912. However, Canada continued to be the main de facto actor in the region. Cold war politics played a big part (the US set up a base near Kuujjuaq in the 1950s, families were relocated from Inukjuak to Resolute by Canada to claim sovereignty on the high north).
Even thought it was technically part of Quebec, the Inuit didn’t really interact with Quebec until the 60s, when the province set up the Direction générale du Nouveau-Québec, meant to regain control of the region away from the feds.
Today, the school board (Kativik Ilisarniliriniq) offers classes in all three languages, but it’s nearly 100% in Inuktitut until grade 3. Elders, public figures (ex: Charlie Watt), and quite a few youth speak all 3 languages, but the primary languages spoken in the 14 communities are Inuktitut and English.
With other First Nations (the Innus for example), you’ll find many more people who only speak French and their Native language (ex: Naskapi), as they interacted much longer with Quebec and French colonialists. The Huron-Wendat of Wendake are pretty much Francophone.
@Blork, it looks like you might be spending a bit too much Tim on Twitter and/or Facebook.
@Blork, the last 3 points sound like actual theories, the rest, conspiracy feculence is probably a more accurate description.
@RLutz, exacte. Indigenous rights and environmental justice are intertwined.
Well done Mark, a few things to add vis a vis the relationship to language in Nunavik.
First the Quebec government sued the Federal government in the 1930’s because they did not want to pay for “support” during the Depression, a time when many inuit were starving to death as the fur industry collapsed. During that ten year span the population dropped by 20%.
https://scc-csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/8531/index.do.
Reading this court case with a contemporary lens is shocking.
Secondly the Quebec Government became interested in Nunavik when they recognised how much natural resources and Hydro could be pulled out of Nunavik, not before. That occured as Mary Simon was finishing school.
The Quebec Government then decided to regain sovereignty over this territory by changing the name of the District of Ungava to the District of New Quebec. Also names of most of the villages were changed, my personal favorite Notre Dame de Quaqtaq. This occured in the 60’s
When the ” Project of the Century ” was announced by the Quebec government. A project that would permanently change the ecosystem of Northern Quebec, the Inuit of Nunavik found out about it when someone posted a newspaper clipping on the wall at the post office in Kuujjuaq.
Quebec had exactly the same colonial instincts as the British, H.B.C and Federal governments.
English and French are colonial languages.
If you ever get a chance pick up this book to understand Nunaviks relationship to colonialism and language.
https://www.vehiculepress.com/q.php?EAN=9781550654684
Finally if you ever want to see how Hydro Quebec impacted life in Nunavik politically and socially check this out.
https://vimeo.com/167871953
From the Facebook page of Michel C. Auger:
Un souvenir de Mary Simon…
En 1982, après le rapatriement de la constitution, des rencontres étaient prévues pour parler des questions autochtones, qui avaient été laissées en plan lors du rapatriement.
Officiellement, le Québec boycottait toutes ces rencontres, mais René Lévesque avait décidé que le temps de parole du Québec serait donné aux nations autochtones et avait invité des leaders autochtones à intervenir. Ce qui avait beaucoup embêté le premier ministre Trudeau (père). Parmi ces intervenants, il y avait Mary Simon. Qui a parlé au nom du Québec.
Oui, bien sûr, elle ne parle pas français. Parce que dans le temps, on n’a pas cru bon d’enseigner le français dans les écoles du nord du Québec. Ce n’est plus le cas aujourd’hui, mais on ne peut pas refaire l’histoire.
Plus tard, Mary Simon fut aussi une des négociatrices de la mise en oeuvre des ententes sur la Baie James, qui furent le premier traité des temps modernes entre un gouvernement blanc et des nations autochtones.
Mary Simon est une grande Québécoise, qui fut reçue officier de l’Ordre national du Québec, la plus grande distinction qu’accorde le gouvernement du Québec.
Et si elle était assez bien pour parler au nom du Québec pour René Lévesque, elle est certainement assez bien pour moi… et pour bien d’autres…
It would be nice to think this appointment means Canada will be taking more seriously the implications for its sovereignty, and for the North itself, of a Northwest Passage being made easily navigable by climate change. There are already disputes about what constitute international waters, and it won’t be long before Russian and other shipping will be sailing through them.
I don’t see a problem with her not speaking French at all.
After all, she’s the GG of Canada, and not of Québec.
Aaaand the troll drops in and the discussion ends.
To be fair, in many other threads lately commentators have just ignored qatzelok and continued on, so maybe this conversation had already wrapped up.
Following Quebec’s refusal to support the idea, Montreal has withdrawn its candidacy to host several matches in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The tournament will be held in various other North American cities.
Only four people were arrested Monday night following the overtime win by the Canadiens.
The Liberals have announced plans for new high frequency rail lines from Toronto to Quebec City. The idea is to have new lines separating freight from passenger trains.
Update: I’m seeing a fair bit of cynicism about this idea.
Anyway, Daily Hive has the layout of proposed stops which makes this look more like a milk train.
It’s a big start. I get the cynicism but it’s also really annoying. Just making the train slightly faster than driving will be a huge difference. Having dedicated tracks means there won’t be any unscheduled stops for freight trains to pass, which is super annoying and happens almost always. Also, not all runs will do the milk runs, so there will be faster trains that stop just at Kingston and Dorval for example, between TO and MTL.
Yes we are probably heading into an election, so the Liberals could well abandon it if they win, but I think this one feels more solid and realistic this time. It’s a big win for the government because it makes the people happy and they get to give out tons of pork.
I like the idea! Lots to think about, but the first thing that comes to mind is the decade of misfired rhetoric we’re about to endure as people constantly confuse “high frequency” with “high speed.”
…and even among those who know the difference, many will cling to that “200 kph” line. I guarantee you that the HFR train will rarely hit 200, and when it does it will be for short bursts. Part of the problem is the shaky old track bed, although the proposal also says there will be a significant amount of new tracks put down. (And hopefully the re-used track beds will be reconditioned and new tracks laid down in some sections.) There’s also the problem of literally hundreds of level crossings that are not equipped to have a 200 kph train ripping through them.
But aside from that, bring it on!
Can we hire the Chinese company that builds their elevated high speed rail to put in the Montreal to Toronto corridor (skipping Ottawa) and end almost all the plane traffic between the two cities with 0 carbon emission electrical bullet trains? Ah, perchance to dream…
A quick enough Mtl-Tor train that runs often enough could compete with AC and Porter (did Porter survive the pandemic?) for business travel. If the door-to-door travel time is comparable, the arrival time is reliable and trains depart and arrive often enough (hello, evenings), Via might actually succeed. If the train becomes as convenient as flying, why not take the comfort of being on the ground (where you can more easily work or relax)? Will we ever achieve such a passenger rail system? This doesn’t sound like it, at least not yet. Miss a flight to TO? Hop on the one leaving in 30 minutes. Miss your train – you’re SOL.
Train > driving if you’re willing to be car-less at your destination. For a lot of families that’s, sadly, a non-starter. Why pay for multiple train tickets only to arrive somewhere and rent a car?
Evenings would be amazing. I met a friend who was in Ottawa for a conference for dinner, in Ottawa, before the pandemic. Even then there was no train leaving Ottawa to get back after 4 PM, so I took the bus. Now there’s not even a bus.
If the government doesn’t want even the bike eco-warriors to cave and buy cars there needs to be some sort of intercity travel outside of the hours of 8-4.
I read this interesting article recently which compares high speed rail in three countries: https://pedestrianobservations.com/2021/05/30/the-different-national-traditions-of-building-high-speed-rail/
Tldr; The Japanese Shinkansen operates frequently like a long-distance metro, the French TGV less frequently akin to an airline and the German ICE like regional rail.
I could see Canada’s network being more like the TGV, aimed at replacing air travel, although it would be great if they aimed for the turn-up-and-go service you see in Japan. I’m not even sure the fact they won’t be high speed really matters so long as trains are reliable, punctual and faster than the existing routes.
It turns out passengers are OK with their journeys being slightly longer so long as they know when and trust their train will arrive, and can guarantee it’ll get them to their destination on time (there’s a good podcast on this and the wider topic of behavioural science and transit for anyone interested: https://castro.fm/episode/LJnEGo)
Daniel: Canada is not building hsr, so none of these comparisons are apt. Actually, one could make a comparison to Germany, anno 1979. While Japan already had their shinkansen, and France was developing their tgv, Germany back then was still trying to get people in board trains with their 200kph network of”Intercity” trains, with the new slogan “every hour, every class”. Canada’s hfr concept is similar – run often,but kinda slow. In 1991, Germany finally introduced 250kph hsr service.
So in 2030, Canada will be about 50 years behind Germany, which in turn was about 10-20 years behind Japan/France. Good job.
I wonder how the north shore line in Quebec will work with the REM, with the whole mont royal tunnel sharing problem.
Internet archaeologists of the future will note how quickly the HFR/HSR confusion entered into this discussion, exactly as predicted.
A man was shot dead late Monday in Montreal North. No arrests have been made yet. It’s the 12th homicide of the year on the island.
My incident map includes 13 incidents that were reported as homicides. I don’t have any information on which one may have been classified differently after the fact.
Jonathan 09:27 on 2021-07-07 Permalink
I think it’s good for the everyday hockey fan to experience the brutality of police violence.It definitely helps the defund movement.