Wow… this is Ju-ju…
The scene: a bar on Ste Catherine Street.
I was talking to a friend from Montréal recently and the unity question came to the forefront. That came up when we exhausted all the other subjects.
"So, what is the stand of the people of Québec on the Canadian unity issue these days?"
"They are fed up with it and people are far more interested in their pay and taxes than unity".
"Hum. But I read that even if the majority of Québécois would vote "no", the majority of French speaking Québécois still support sovereignty".
"Maybe… Give francophones RIII and they will go for it mostly to get rid of the issue. But the truth is, they are presently far more concerned with "real" problems, like the lack of sound medical service… They are also more interested about how the whole "possible upcoming recession" thing plays out. I don't know, it seems to me that people, especially in the Montréal area are just getting tired about the whole classic "unity" agenda.
"Are you saying that the unity issue is no longer an issue".
"No, I'm saying that the unity issue has become a frustrating issue and people simply don't want to talk about it. They think the Federal Government and the current Government are simply incompetent in dealing with the issue in a visionary aspect of a Plan A and because of that, most francophones will vote yes next time because Canada has clearly demonstrated to them that they are not worth the attention of the Federalists. In the meantime, they are struggling for their lives like all the other Canadians.
"Do you think we will ever solve the unity issue in Canada".
"We need a Plan A… but there is no plan A… only B, and C, and D… but eventually, the problem will arise and Québec will go on it's own. It has nothing to do with Canada. It has everything to do with their collective dignity. For example, this current discussion as to whether Québec is a Nation or not will never get the support of the rest of Canada...".
"Collective dignity"? What do you mean by that?"
"Québec is subjected to a majority of anglophones in Ottawa. They feel insecure in that position and believe the best way to ensure their collective freedom is to leave that relationship. They are becoming more and more convinced that they have no room in Canada as equal citizens. For example, the City of Ottawa refused to become officially bilingual, Toronto was trying for years to close the only francophone hospital outside Québec (Montfort Hospital) regardless of the need for French service and the West is talking separation. The status quo is simply no longer an alternative… yet, the Feds refuse to do anything about it."
Hum… So what would be the solution?
In the absence of Plan A, separation is the only logical outcome… but who cares… let's have another beer and let's talk about the Habs (Hockey)".
Our conversation on unity was drowned with a few nice cold Labbatt Bleue, Charlebois was singing about separation in the background and Montréal waitresses are incredibly beautiful. The sense I was getting was one of deep frustration. The lack of direction and courage on the part of Ottawa is slowly destroying this Country… and no one seems to be able to do anything about it.
I had enough of beer. I switched to Scotch.
Photo by Luc-André Paquette (Japan) 10/06
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Our oldest son, Luc, is in Japan... soon to be married to beautiful AKI
Luc is also an amazing musician - lead guitar (progressive / grunge Rock).
Well, he just shared with me that he just bought his first Koto koto instrument
Hum... Would that mean a major change of music style? Most interesting!.jpg)
Rock on Luc.
Your Dad :o)
Hear 1 minute of the koto sound here. (Use your BACK button to return here).
