It’s true what they say about design by committee. Louise Harel’s committee on making Montreal more French wants to add a long tedious tagline to the city’s logo to emphasize that it’s French.
What they should have done, of course, is this:
Updates from March, 2023 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts
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Kate
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Kate
Mayor Plante says she was shocked by evidence of racism among city employees revealed by a report in Le Devoir this week, but doesn’t plan to order an independent inquiry into the situation. Plante is reported as thinking the city doesn’t need more studies, because it’s already aware and is acting on the problem.
bob
Capitaine Valérie Renault. https://youtu.be/SjbPi00k_ME?t=10
carswell
“shocked by evidence of racism” but “already aware … of the problem” does not compute.
I don’t think Plante is a racist but remember how she made a show of publicly mourning the murder of white teen Thomas Trudel and totally ignored the nearly contemporary murder of black teen Jannai Dopwell-Bailey until his relatives and the media made a fuss? And now this. Used to consider her tone-deaf. Am beginning to think “privileged white who’s clueless on racial issues” is about the best that can be said of her. And if that’s true, she’s part of the problem, not someone equipped to spearhead an effort to solve it.
Kate
To be fair, I paraphrased her there. But she does say the city is already acting on the racism issue.
In a sense, I think it’s fair to say that there’s no need for further studies. Studies have been done. The question now is: what are you going to do about the demonstrable fact that racism is rampant among city employees?
What institutionalized racism means is that the mayor is powerless to enforce a policy that if you’re caught doing or saying anything racist, or carrying out the kind of actions that have already been observed and noted (e.g. giving Black workers the lousiest vehicles and tools, the hardest and most disliked tasks, etc., as was documented in Montreal North) you’re out on your ass. That’s because the racism runs right through the place, the workers and their foremen and their managers, and probably the union too. Nobody’s going to enforce a zero tolerance policy like that because they’re part of the mechanism that keeps racism alive – even if only by passively accepting that your men have no fear of speaking or acting in that way. Passivity is also part of institutionalized racism.
Plante does not know how to end that culture and she knows no amount of new studies will end it either. But she isn’t going to say that.
Joey
I’m often (probably overly) hard on PM, but is there a more thankless political role in Canada now thankless than mayor of Montreal? You have a movement underpinning you, a million ideas and enthusiastic members – and hardly any ability to implement any of your ambitious project. Valerie Plante should swap jobs with Justin Trudeau.
Chris
carswell: your comment, to me, is such a great example of the left eating their own. Plante is the most left wing mayor since… forever? but she’s “she’s part of the problem”. Fascinating.
MarcG
I’m currently reading this chapter of Disinformation Age (free PDF) that discusses how the ‘left’ has a system of checks and balances whereas the far right is insular and only critical of each other when they don’t toe the ideological line.
Tim
@MarcG: why use the term “far right” when it doesn’t even appear in the article to which you linked? Thanks for the link. Interesting read.
MarcG
@Tim: They define the majority group as “from the center-right to the far left”, which to me, leaves the ‘far right’. It’s curious that they refer to it simply as the ‘right wing’.
Kevin
MarcG: Well, yeah. Unquestioning loyalty is the key personality trait that is essential for the modern right-wing across the Anglosphere. It’s why American Christian Evangelicals are overwhelmingly voting Republican, and why Trump will get the next nomination from that party.
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Kate
In November 2020 a 66-year-old man murdered his 93‑year‑old father with an iron bar. He was sentenced to life in prison on Friday.
Blork
There is a Russian novel’s worth of stuff to unpack there regarding the question(s) of “what is a life?”
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Kate
Three people are dead in Rosemont, all stabbed, found in an apartment. There’s been an arrest.
TVA has spoken to a neighbour. And they got a gory video.
Update: The only suspect is called Arthur Galarneau, is 19 years old and is said to be a member of the victims’ family. Metro has a photo – so does CTV now.
Metro also talked to a psychiatrist at the Pinel Institute about mental illness and clues to a potential for violence. François Legault is promising more money for mental health in the wake of recent events – the Laval bus, the Amqui attack and now this triple homicide. Rosemont MNA Vincent Marissal also spoke about the difficulty in getting mental health services in Quebec.
La Presse reports that the young man had had troubles and was recorded as saying “Vraiment, ma vie elle a changé. Ça switch en ce moment, c’est vraiment le fun. […] les deux dernières années c’était vraiment hard et j’ai vécu beaucoup de bullshit…”
jeather
The horrors of franglais.
Kate
Indeed.
mare
Just throwing money at things won’t help when very few psychiatrists were schooled in the past decades. Or were hired *after* they were schooled, so they moved to other provinces/countries. Psychiatrists practising in English are even rarer.
[TMI] My own psychiatrist finally retired in January. Not unexpectedly, he was over 80. It wasn’t an easy step for him. I asked him how someone would find a new psychiatrist. He said that if that someone went to the ER and was hospitalized they’d probably be seen by a psychiatrist (but not in every hospital). But, after being discharged, having regular sessions with one, with medication and follow-ups would take at least six months, and probably longer. They might be able to meet with a social worker at the CLSC earlier though.
(I’m fine, and l’m lucky to have a GP who can take over.)
Kate
Someone once told me the fastest way to see a psychiatrist was to walk down Ste‑Catherine Street naked.
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Kate
Things for the weekend from Metro, CultMTL, CityCrunch, Sarah’s Weekend List.
Sunday is the St Patrick’s parade, although the weather forecast is a little dire. CTV underlines how the parade will mean road closures, although the parade only goes from Fort to Metcalfe now, rather than past Phillips Square as it used to.
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Kate
The Canadiens were crushed 9‑5 Thursday night by the Florida Panthers, who scored seven times in the first period. With three Canadiens goals also in the first, the game tied the NHL record for goals in a first period – not really a record you should be trying to beat.
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Kate
Three members of the Farfadaas were found guilty Thursday in a March 2021 blockage of the Lafontaine tunnel. One of them is called Steeve. These babies somehow thought this was a smart way to protest mask mandates.
jeather did some research for us recently on the prevalence of the name Steeve.
Blork
I think we need to up the ante on this too-muchness and start naming our babies Steeeve.
Kate
You first, Blork.
Ian
Only a matter of time before anglos start naming their sons Steve. I only have daughters so I can’t volunteer.
Tee Owe
Ian – Stevie Nicks?
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Kate
A car was torched Friday morning in Hampstead.
Daniel 21:37 on 2023-03-17 Permalink
Hahaha
shawn 22:40 on 2023-03-17 Permalink
Very good.
Robert H 08:09 on 2023-03-18 Permalink
Malaaaade! Now that’s the spirit, Kate. Perhaps Quebec’s language ministry should hire you to revise its anti-franglais “sick” falcon misfire, especially now that it has predictably failed to connect with it’s intended dempgraphic. https://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/politique/2023-03-18/declin-du-francais/le-faucon-vraiment-sick-a-t-il-rate-sa-cible.php
steph 09:14 on 2023-03-18 Permalink
One of those is certainly catchier with the kids.
JaneyB 10:40 on 2023-03-18 Permalink
Love your version, Kate. Waaay better. Let’s hope it gets picked up by the guerrilla culture forces in town here.
Kevin 10:43 on 2023-03-18 Permalink
I’d like a ten pack of stickers please 😉
thomas 12:32 on 2023-03-18 Permalink
I think it is usually spelt “ostie”.
Kate 13:18 on 2023-03-18 Permalink