Ask me about being a Québec separatist

[dinopoker]

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I heard talk that if Quebec became independent, that the rest of Canada would be forced to be part of the USA. This sounds like nonsense to me but I was curious if you heard similar talk in Canada. Have you?

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I would be a minority, but I would support this wholeheartedly, whether Quebec was a part of it or not. In my opinion, Mexico should even be included as well.

[GovmentCheese]

I'm against secession. It would alter my view of Canada as the 51st state. I mean, there'd be Canada, but then.. what would Quebec be? The 52nd state? nah.. I'd have to think of it more like a Guam or Peurto Rico.

[CasqueNoir]

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Casque,

From a practical standpoint it would seem to me that the benefits you list are largely symbolic and the detriments would actually have a negative impact on the day to day lives of citizens.

[/ QUOTE ]I think it would have a positive impact on the psych of people to actually take responsibilities instead of blaming others for their problems. Which is a pretty big impact right there. No more energy trying to make work this impossible country and building one instead.

[Knight Vision]

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Why don't you go back to France?

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Why don't you go back to England?

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Bad food and discouraged hookers. Obv.

[Zurvan]

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I heard talk that if Quebec became independent, that the rest of Canada would be forced to be part of the USA. This sounds like nonsense to me but I was curious if you heard similar talk in Canada. Have you?

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I would be a minority, but I would support this wholeheartedly, whether Quebec was a part of it or not. In my opinion, Mexico should even be included as well.

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I'm pretty sure that Quebec separating would not make Canada MORE likely to become a part of the US. Quebec would probably end up as a state if Canada wouldn't take them back in 15 years.

Quebec separating would improve the overall economy of Canada, since it is one of the provinces that gets money from the federal government, instead of giving.

[CasqueNoir]

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How do you feel aboot Triumph the Insult Comic Dog?

[/ QUOTE ]I think the sketch in Quebec city was of poor taste.

[KneeCo]

There's a lot of factual questions here, but the OP is more concerned with emotional arguments, so I'll field some.

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1. Is Quebec more economically viable than other parts of Canada?

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No, Alberta is the most viable, they have the oil. It has been said a number of times that if Quebec wants to survive as a country, especially one that offers the same social safety net as is offered in Canada (especially as was offered about 15 years ago), they would not come close to being able to afford it.

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If so is this a reason why others don't want to see Quebec suceed?

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No, there are a number of reasons. First, practically, it would cost a lot of Canada for Quebec to succeed, they would lose a lot of citizens (tax payers). The federal government would damn near be shut down as dealing with the separation would distract from the everyday responsibilities of the gov't (i.e. the electoral map would have to be redrawn, all comittees dealing with Quebec dismantled, all Quebecers counting on federal programs dealt with, all Aboriginals in Quebec dealt with,...). Federal building/employees in Quebec would have to be moved. Separation movements in the Atlantic provinces as well as in the west would gain steam. The whole idea of the Canadian union will be torn to shreds.

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2. I heard talk that if Quebec became independent, that the rest of Canada would be forced to be part of the USA. This sounds like nonsense to me but I was curious if you heard similar talk in Canada. Have you?

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Not one ounce of truth. Why the hell would that be true??

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3. Politically is Quebec more pro-Big Govt than other parts of Canada? BigGovt = High Social Spending/Welfare If so if Quebec succeeds, will Canadien conservatives be in a huge majority in Canada?

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Politically, separatists have no voice. They only vote for the separatists party, that party then goes to Ottawa and makes deals to support whatever legislation they feel will give them the most power, especially in minority governments. However, politically, the views in Quebec would skew left if they votes on their views.

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4. If Quebec becomes independent, won't there be a huge fight how to divide the national debt of Canada?

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There will be a large number of huge fights.

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5. Will the excellent Quebec strip clubs still provide high quality dancers or will independence cause the quality of the strippers to fall?

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Quebec separated would be, as Quebec in Canada is now, very European. The culture wouldn't change. The strip culbs would stay the same, they might speak more French and take different bills, but more or less the same.

[CasqueNoir]

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What do francophones think about Harper's new stance?

[/ QUOTE ]They pretty much see it doesn't mean anything.

[Zurvan]

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Casque,

From a practical standpoint it would seem to me that the benefits you list are largely symbolic and the detriments would actually have a negative impact on the day to day lives of citizens.

[/ QUOTE ]I think it would have a positive impact on the psych of people to actually take responsibilities instead of blaming others for their problems. Which is a pretty big impact right there. No more energy trying to make work this impossible country and building one instead.

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The problems with Canada start & end in Quebec. Were you to start acting like equal members of the country, and work with the other provinces, instead of constantly grabbing for more & more special treatment, you might find yourselves better off.

[Hopey]

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Are you passionate about the language issues in Quebec. Does it piss you off to see signs in English.

If it does, don't you think you should relax a bit?

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It depends, I think it is normal as a majority to require at least a version in a sign in the majority language. Some people would want it exclusively in french but I think it is going too far.

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Don't you think a business owner has the right to display a sign in any language he or she wants?

Does a culture truly deserve protection through legislation? Isn't it reasonable that if a culture cannot survive on its own merits then it should fade away?

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It's a shame that Quebec's fascist language laws aren't really well known outside of Quebec and Canada. Whenever I tell a non-Canadian about Quebec's language laws, they're always quite shocked.

For instance:

1) If you are working in a retail shop that serves the public, you MUST greet everyone in french. If you greet someone in english (even if you know that this person is english), you can be fined by the language police.

Every so often some seperatist retard will file a complain with the language police about being served in english at a particular store. An undercover language police officer will then visit the store to investigate. If he/she is greeted in english, the store gets fined.

2) The french text on all signs must be at least 2X the size of the english text. The language police go around with rulers measuring the size of text on signs that they feel do not meet the "prominently french" requirement. If the signs do not comply with the law, the store is fined for each sign.

This applies EVERYWHERE in Quebec -- including places like China Town in Montreal, where many store owners get fined for having signs which are only in Chinese, or in places like Shawville, which is about 90% english and have had numerous run-ins with the language police.

Also, if you dare use an "Anglicism" on a sign -- which is a common english word that is understood by almost all french people, such as "Le Week-end", you get fined.

3) If you move to Quebec from outside Canada, you *must* put your children in french schools -- even if your kids do not speak a word of french. For special cases (for instance, if you have a kid who is a prodigy of some sort, and an english school is best able to accomodate his/her gift), you can go to a tribunal and argue your case for english schooling. However, it takes years to get your case heard before the tribunal (and in the interim, your kid will have to attend french school), and they turn down almost every request they hear. As a consequence, english schools are closing all over Quebec due to the fact that english people are leaving the province, and new immigrants aren't permitted to send their kids to english schools.