Why Is Nathan Cullen Trying To Kill The NDP?

Oh boy, will Nathan Cullen ever learn? Yesterday I tried to warn him that his toxic Trudeau hate was making him sound like a Con, and look like a maniac.

And that in Quebec, his assault on the thousands of SNC-Lavalin workers in that province, and the thousands of others all over Canada and the world, is driving the NDP to extinction. 

But he just won't listen, he just can't help himself. 

Remembering Jack Layton and the New Orange Tsunami

It's hard to believe that it's now been four years since Jack Layton died, and the hopes of so many turned to sadness.

And yesterday evening, when I returned from the island to the ferry dock named after him, I paused for a moment before this statue in my neighbourhood.



I didn't stay long because I pass the statue almost every day. Anything I had to say I said long ago. Like thank you, or how cruel life can be.

But I did stay long enough to think that wherever that happy warrior's spirit roams, it must be singing. 

Because the orange wave he created in Quebec, is now becoming an orange tsunami. 

Stephen Harper's Totally Disastrous Day of Political Devastation

It seems only appropriate that the only thing Stephen Harper tweeted yesterday, was a little video of himself learning the proper way to pour beer in Ireland.

Because I'll bet Great Leader was pouring himself more than a few last night, after what had to be an absolutely disastrous day for him and his ghastly Cons.

The day when his campaign of fear and bigotry came back to bite him. And he shot himself in the foot. 

Stephen Harper and the Quebec Card

There are many things to worry about what Stephen Harper might do to Canada, especially now that he is desperate.

From forcing through his pipelines at gunpoint, to threatening the future of our medicare system.

But what I fear the most is that he might, for cheap political reasons, harness anti-Quebec sentiment in this country, and leave Canada shattered and broken.

And this is definitely a step in that direction.

Dieppe and the Lost Myth

It was good to see that some of the soldiers who took part in the Dieppe Raid were able to make it back to that bloody beach today.

And that so many people in the town turned out to greet them like heroes.

I'm also glad that we may finally know the main reason for the raid.

The Quebec Students and the Road Ahead

There are fewer of them these days. The long hot days of July have quietened things down.

But the Quebec students are still marching through the streets of Montreal. 

Tonight was their 83rd nightly demo in a row. And next month they will have to make a choice that could determine the future of their movement, the future of Quebec, and maybe even the future of Canada.

Ed Broadbent and the Progressive Suicide Club

It was so spooky on the waterfront last night, as a heavy mist rolled in, it reminded me of the movie The Fog.

You know, the one where the ghosts of the past stagger ashore, and scare the bejeesus out of everyone.

Just like Ed Broadbent.

Former NDP leader Ed Broadbent is standing by his sharp criticism of party leadership front-runner Thomas Mulcair, saying he has a “responsibility” to highlight the shortcomings of the Montreal MP before the race concludes.

Because old Ed is obviously so worried about the fate of his cabin backroom boy Brian Topp, that he is willing to say ANYTHING.

Which I suppose is his right eh? He's been around so long he's even comparing himself to Tommy Douglas.

But he really shouldn't be allowed to get away with this:

Broadbent revealed the tipping point for his decision to speak out was twofold: Mulcair’s criticism of people at party headquarters, and how he took credit for the NDP’s success in Quebec in last year’s election — in which it increased its seat count to 59 from just one in the province.

Broadbent said that Mulcair was a good candidate but that, in fact, the campaign was developed by officials at party headquarters and a team in Montreal.

“They developed a brilliant campaign, adopted language in Quebec for the campaign that was appropriate for a province with a different language and culture. But Tom had virtually nothing to do with it.”

Because that's absolute bullshit, or merde as we say in Quebec. 

Maxime Bernier and the New Liberal Ad

Well I see that Maxime Bernier, the Boob from the Beauce, has made a fool of himself. Again.

“It’s like in Quebec — we don’t need Bill 101 to protect the French language over there,” Bernier is quoted as saying. “They know we speak French in Quebec and we will speak French for a long time, I believe it.”

Now I could go into a long explanation about how Quebec's language laws are one of the best things that ever happened to Canada. Because they took the wind out of the separatist's sails, and gave French-speaking Quebecers the confidence they could be Québécois AND Canadian.

But I don't have the time or the energy to explain the obvious.

So this is all anyone needs to know:

(1) The only reason Bernier made the remarks is because he's running hard to replace Stephen Harper and he hopes to build a base of support in English Canada.

(2) The only reason Stephen Harper puts up with his naked ambition, is because he knows that after the moll and the Hell Angels Maxie will NEVER be Prime Minister of Canada.

(3) The only party this will help is Pauline Marois' Parti Québécois, who have been trying to strengthen the language laws without much success. Because that's all they got eh?

(4) All this really proves is that Bernier is incredibly dumb.

I did not expect to create such a storm by expressing my belief that we should let people act like free and responsible individuals, including when it comes to protecting their language, instead of relying on government coercion to do it for them.

He didn't? Oh boy. If he loses any more I.Q. points we're going to have to water him.

Yes I know, I know. I did tell you a few months ago that him and Stephen Harper went off to see the Wizard...

But I forgot to mention that the story didn't have a happy ending. The Wiz said Harper didn't deserve a heart. So he's STILL a monster.

And he could only give Maxie half a brain. So he's STILL an idiot.

Of course, this isn't just a laughing matter eh? Stephen Harper needs to explain why one of his MPs is aiding and abetting the separatists. Who needs a separatist coalition when we've got the separatist Cons ?

In the meantime, I must say I like this new Liberal ad...



Because it reflects the creative and fun-loving spirit of the wonderful Québécois Nation in Canada.

And honestly, in French or English, or any other language.

Haven't we had ENOUGH?

Stephen Harper and the Scary Monster

Well now we know why Stephen Harper REALLY wants an election so badly.

Just the faint smell of that majority must be making the monster slobber.

I don't know what's happening in Ontario or BC. But I suspect it's got something to do with the carbon tax. We love our cars more than we love the environment or our country.

But in Quebec it's even worse. From just north of Montreal all the way along the St Lawrence to the Saguenay, soft nationalists are abandoning the Bloc and taking their chances with Stephen Harper's nation/autonomy promise. The one Stéphane Dion can never deliver...in a province where only the old and the Anglos support him.

And already some Liberals in Quebec are waving the white flag.

According to several influential Liberals the Liberal Party is heading straight for the slaughterhouse in Quebec just days before the start of a federal election. Without money, or an organization worthy of that name, and incapable of recruiting strong candidates.

"Outside of our Montreal bastions it's a desert for us....As far as preparation goes, on a scale of one to ten I give us barely a three.....In Quebec it's simple...it's a disaster."

About the only thing the Liberals can do now is launch a series of attack ads to try to shake things up and change the dynamic.

I see Liberal supporters are debating whether to go down that road.

But I don't think they have a choice. Stéphane Dion's reasonable approach has clearly been a miserable failure. The wonky professor thought he could persuade the rabble, when you need to keep the narrative really simple ....or hit a lot of them on the head... until they get the message.

Stephen Harper's attack ads were successful in portraying Dion as a weak leader. To portray him as a sinister bully would only be giving him a taste of his own medicine.

The problem is Harper is now portraying himself as Big Daddy... the Father of the Nation.


Or Great Nice Leader.

So if you attack him too hard, you could hurt yourself. Like paper trumps stone in the rock-paper-scissor game.

One way to go? Contrast the Harper in the ad with the other Harper. The mean nasty one. And then ask Canadians can you really trust a man who one day is Big Daddy, and the next day Scary Monster?

A man who if he ever got a majority would destroy the power of government. And turn Canada into a RepubliCon jungle.

I don't know if it will work. Or how we ever got to this awful place so divided and so weak

But I'm afraid history will be harsh. Because we put partisan politics ....and our cars.... before our country. And were too precious to attack these evil Cons like they attack us.

The Canada we know and love.

Could be dead in forty days ...

Bouchard-Taylor, Quebec Love, and Elvis Gratton

I see the the Bouchard-Taylor Commission has finally released its report. And although the Commission has been a debacle right from the start, I think the final product is pretty good.

Which is a relief. Because I was really worried when I saw a leaked version of the report, and it seemed to suggest that the solution to the nonexistent problem...was that the first white people to live in Quebec should call themselves Québécois of French Canadian origin instead of just Québécois.

And I knew that some in the province were already comparing that to the moronic sayings of The King of Kings..... Elvis Gratton.
















He's a wellknown movie and television character in Quebec. A comic caricature of a vulgar, ignorant, federalist French Canadian who dreams of being a big shot Elvis impersonator.

In short.... the kind of Québécois who makes the rest of the old stock Frenchies shudder.

Especially when in a famous scene he is on a plane with his wife. And a Frenchman from France asks them if they are Canadian.

Here's the scene with my translation underneath...



PASSENGER: Are you Canadians ? You have the accent...

ELVIS: Me I'm a Canadian Québécois.... a French French Canadian....an American of the French North...a francophone Québécois Canadian....a Québécois of French Canadian French expression. We are the Canadian American francophones of North America...the Franco Québécois....

WIFE: We are the Franco Canadians of Quebec, the Québécois Canadians. That's it....

You see what I mean? Throw Elvis into this identity question and it could be DEVASTATING.

But now I'm not worried anymore. As one of my separatist friends said today: "I'd much rather be a Québécois of French Canadian background, than an old stock Québécois." And he wasn't the only one.

Many English Canadians believe that Quebecers are racists.

But I should have known better. How lucky I am to belong to the great French Nation in Canada. Still the most progressive province in the country.

How proud I am to be a Québécois of half Scottish from Scotland....half English from England origin ...of anglophone AND francophone expression... AND a proud Canadian.

Only in Canada eh? Or Belgium...

Oh yeah. Quebec is moving on.

And Elvis has left the building...

-----------------------------------------------------------

P.S. Guess where I'm going this weekend?

I leave you with this great old song by Robert Charlebois... to help explain how far we've come.

And why I love the place and the habitants so much...



Oh sure. Endings are sometimes rough.

But new beginnings are WONDERFUL.

Have a great weekend everyone !!

Super Mario and the Autonomists

Uh oh....here come the klowns. Not just Super Mario and his army of hick Autonomists. But the ones in English Canada who think what happened last night is good news for the country as we know it.

When in fact it's the likely to be the second last nail in its coffin. With the last one being a Stephen Harper majority.

To understand that you first need to understand that Mario isn't a federalist commes les autres. And that his big night doesn't hurt Quebec nationalism..... it helps it.

".....Mr. Dumont and his ADQ have not signed nationalism's death notice; they have given it new life. The rest of Canada should consider itself forewarned."

Exactly. What would have happened if the Parti Quebecois had won last night, and had held another referendum? It would have been three strikes and you're out. Sovereignty would have been buried for a generation.

But Mario Dumont saved them from that. Now he's given Quebecers an option that most of them want......the status and power of a nation within Canada. If you want to know what that would look like all you have to do is read the Allaire Report, that he co-wrote with the ADQ's father figure Jean Allaire, back in January 1991.

"It would have left the Parliament of Canada with only five exclusive fields of jurisdiction: defence, tariffs, currency, management of the public debt, and equalization. Jurisdiction over Aboriginal peoples, foreign policy, fisheries, communications and the post office would be shared between the federal and provincial levels, while all other powers would be exclusively provincial...."

Now Mario wants to have a Quebec Constitution. And wants all who live in Quebec to have Quebec citizenship....and the Quebec government to have all those other 22 powers too.

Can you imagine what it's going to be like....with Charest being forced to act more like an autonomist ....and Mario Dumont looking over his shoulder egging him on. Or if he comes to power in the next Quebec election playing this guy...

Over and over again....

A few days ago at the University of Laval, Jacques Parizeau took aim at Stephen Harper's plan to buy votes in the province.....and at Dumont's autonomy platform.

He compared its aims to a gag by comedian Yvon Deschamps that Quebecers want an independent Quebec in a united Canada.
"It was a joke," Parizeau pointed out.

That got a big laugh......although it remains to be seen how funny English Canada will find it.....

But Parizeau conveniently forgot to mention two things:

One....that autonomy really is what Quebecers want. They don't like being forced to choose between federalism or sovereignty. They'd rather go for something in between: a strong almost independent Quebec in a united but weak Canada. And now thanks to Super Mario and Stephen Harper they can.

But the other thing Parizeau also forgot to mention is..... what happens if the Autonomists demand all these new powers and don't get them?

To find the answer to that one all you have to do is look up the Allaire Report....and the answer is.......(drum roll) ..... hold a referendum on sovereignty.

Yup. It always gets back to that doesn't it? Bottom line: Super Mario isn't a federalist.

"I hope that's not how they perceive me," Dumont told a news conference a day after his party won a staggering 41 seats in the provincial election.

"That would be a mistake."

Stephen Harper doesn't know what he's talking about. And if Dumont ever needs to hold a referendum to get what he wants....he will.

But then Quebecers know what kind of almost country they want to live in. More than sixty per cent of them voted last night for either autonomy or sovereignty.

The question is...as ever....

What kind of country does the rest of Canada want to be?

Oh yeah I know that sounds really boring...but just remember even if you feel you're on a treadmill going nowhere.

You can always have fun...

And get accustomed to the feeling...

Of having your country pulled out from under you....

Free Scotland, the Klan Zoo, and the End of Canada

Wow!! Just when I thought Canada and Quebec were heading for a nasty divorce. After all that nation nonsense. And we'd be in the headlines again. Just like the Hollywood stars. It seems that Britain and Scotland are going to steal our brief moment in the spotlight. By splitting up first.

And the worst thing is they don't just want Scotland and England to separate. They want Wales and Northern Ireland to become independent too!

Our poor little two-way split wouldn't even be a player. We'd be lucky if the world even noticed...

Although can you imagine how the breakup of the U.K. would play in Quebec? I imagine the Quebecois being prudent people would wait for a couple of years to see how things worked out. And then my gut tells me they'd go for it. Just like Scotland should.

"In reality, the political cultures of the two countries have drifted so far apart, they are no longer compatible. The Scots want a Scandinavian-style social democracy with high taxes, generous welfare and big government. In Scottish politics, there are virtually no right-of-center voters left..."

The English want a U.S.-style free market with lower taxes, and a smaller state. The only reason they can't have it is because of the Scots. That is hardly healthy...."

Talk about Canada and Quebec....

Something tells me that Canada better have a contingency plan ready for an After Quebec and maybe After Alberta country. So despite our pathetic state of constitutional denial. It won't be too much of a shock.

In fact, maybe it's time we all split from Canada. The Atlantic provinces could form a country as well as Quebec and Ontario. Manitoba and Saskatchewan could band together or join Ontario. British Columbia could finally turn it's back on the rockies and face its future in the Pacific Rim. And then they'd be the First Nations. And as for the Banana Republic country of Alberta it could become a dinosaur park.
















Maybe it's just time to be really honest and acknowledge that this country is becoming like a real bad marriage. And that there's nothing holding us together anymore. Once we shared Canadian values. Now we don't.

Once I felt proud to be a Canadian. Now I'm ashamed. You see the brutal truth is like a lot of people in this country I don't want to live in a country that includes Alberta. Or live in a country that is governed by nazi theocon Albertans. Why would I? Why would anyone?

I don't want to live in a place where filthy bigot homophobes scream for my gay blood. And attack women's rights and other minority groups to feed the monsters of the religious right. Or blow the butchers of the Bush Regime. And tell the rest us what to do. That's not my kind of country. That's a Klan Zoo.

I'd rather live in a country called Quebec or Ontario, with people who share my values. Where I could be truly free and not have to look over my shoulder all the time. For the crazy wingnut quoting his murderous Hate Bible. Or mouthbreathing bigot with the baseball bat. Who would kill my lover too.

You see that makes it personal for me.....just like it is for the Scots and the Brits...Oh there may be many reasons for the separatist surge. The weight of history, devolution, and North Sea oil. But the main reason is just too much bad blood. You got a taste of it during the soccer wars. And now it's even worse.

Just like it is here....for once let's face the facts. There is just too much hate in this country and not enough shared values to keep us together anymore. Just for the sake of staying together.

The chorus of hatred and threats aimed at the Quebecois is now a deafening howl. The chorus of hatred against gays is now a bloodthirsty scream. Native people are angry and frustrated. We can't agree on anything. It's time to breakup this dysfunctional family before we start killing each other.

Why should anyone put up with that kind of aggravation? For a piece of cloth on a stick.. a set of values that are stinking in the grave... and a constitution signed by an English Queen.

Or a stinkin' corrupt Liberal Party that would discriminate against gay teens. As if they weren't discriminated and brutalized enough. Now they want to criminalize them for making love. What is it about the evil heterosexuals? How fucked up are those freaks?How much gay blood do they want.? How much lower can those stinking bigot breeders go?

But let's look at it on the bright side....... If we separated we wouldn't have to live with each other anymore. There would be no useless quarrels or hatemongering. No constitution to worry about. Everybody could just concentrate on living with the people they want to live with. And building their own societies according to their own values.

The rednecks would build Klan worship centres , gay concentration camps and extermination centres. And monuments to greed. While other countries in the Canadian Confederation would build schools, daycare centers and hospitals.

And even Alberta would be a better place. Now that you'd need a tourist visa to visit it. It would just be another exotic destination. And think how much fun the kiddies would have...












You know what happened to the dinosaurs coz they couldn't adapt. Their world ended with a bang. Our country is dying of bigotry and right-wing craziness. This isn't Canada anymore it's AlbertaCan.

Let's separate from it while we still can...

Scotland forever! Go for it Ontario! Bye Bye Alberta...

Vive le Quebec Libre!!!!

The Quebec Nation and the Canadian Idiots

Uh oh.......it seems that little storm over calling Quebecers a nation,has now been upgraded to a category five tempest in a teapot. Run for your lives!!! You may feel just like you felt yesterday or the day before. But I've got sad news to report tonight.... It seems that our beautiful Canada has died!!!!

" Recognizing Quebec as a “nation”, even “within Canada”, is a disaster waiting to happen....Ethnic nationalism was the cause of most of the bloody history of the last 200 years

So let us give thanks for one thing: at least the pretense is over...We are well on our way to Belgiumhood, and that suits our political class just fine..."

Oh no! Not Belgium....if there's any country more boring than Canada that's the one. Although they have gay marriage and we still sort of don't.....as well as good chocolate. And these days I could eat a lot....You know I expected the right-wingers to be up in arms. And I was right.

"What a load of crap! Sellout to appease the Franco's of Kbec....."

"Quebec is a pain in the ass and if recognizing that they are an inferior part of Canada that needs to be isolated from the rest of us ... so be it."

And I fully expect that in redneck Alberta it's even worse....


















Porky rednecks are capable of anything...

But I never expected to see so many respectable left-wing bloggers spouting so much crap. Or turn into so many Chicken Littles with so little confidence in the strength of this land. Holy flying feathers! They're squawking so loudly even the sweet Frog Lady has fallen off her lily pad.

"Why am I whining so much? Because, to put it simply, Quebec is not a nation..."

Oh really? Wot? I'm shocked. How could a froggy forget that Quebecers were a nation long before Canada was? Or not realize that in Quebec just about everyone knows that Quebec is a nation. Just like the First Nations are. And that includes new immigrants integrating into the French system and most Anglos under sixty too. Everyone my age feels that way. We're proud Anglos and Canadians but we're proud of being Quebecois and proud to be living in the homeland of the French nation in Canada. That's not scary....Frog Lady..... it's kool!!!

For fuck sake everyone!!! This resolution is purely symbolic. It merely recognizes the more than 400 years of shared history of the French people of Quebec. From conquered people, to the confident tolerant and progressive society....the last bastion of Canadian values.... they are today.

It's not a big deal. This isn't about legalistic scribblings. The word nation in English means country. In French it means community or people. It's a question of recognizing a people's pride. Instead of treating them like The Enemy.

I don't know where this anti-Quebec shit comes from. I've written about it before in this post about the abominable Jan Wong. So I'm not going to do it again......coz it makes me want to vomit.

But all I know is that when I'm in Quebec it still feels like Canada. Many French Quebecers, including many sovereignists still have deep and warm feelings about this country. And that's not about to change...

Even if you'll never see something like this...







Just be glad we share this land with them....

I think it's about time English Canadians moved on. Just like Quebecers have. And stopped acting like great big sissies...as if a few little words could bring an entire country down.

Stopped being so chicken and so crabby. Spent less time trapped in the past ......like reliving the First World War over and over again. You know the time when most Canadians considered themselves British. And the only real Canadians were the French...

Stopped looking at this country as some kind of prissy constitutional cage, and started thinking of it as more of a big and wild family. Who may share a home. But are different and have different needs and aspirations. And stopped being so damm scared of reinventing Canada into a new and exciting federation. Where everyone who lives in The Great White North can party together. And everyone stays together because they want to.

Please give younger Canadians some hope for the future. Instead of being so negative and so chicken.

Those despairing lefty Canadians should also realize that recognizing Quebecers as who they are won't help the cause of separatism. On the contrary. It will take the fucking wind out of its sails. And could do that cause enormous harm. How wrong can these ridiculous Chicken Littles be? Or stoopid. Duh???

Above all they should remember that disrespecting Quebecers pride in themselves as a people. And directing a torrent of uninformed nonsense and just plain hateful bullshit at them. Won't save this country. It will shatter it.

If they don't understand that. Then they should play this video over and over again....

Hey it looks to me like Canada is still very much alive...Yay!!! Who hasn't dreamed of driving a zamboni up and down Saskatchewan? I dare anyone out there to tell me which Canadian or Quebecois hosers wouldn't recognize themselves in that video? Isn't that something to celebrate not mourn...eh?

On the other hand letting a country be destroyed because the majority wasn't generous or sensitive enough to make its French-speaking minority feel at home. Or too tired boo hoo hoo or lazy or smallminded. Or too Americanized. To accept this big country as it is. And make it big enough for all of us.

That's not only idiotic. And cowardly. And a monstrous failure of the imagination.

That's fucking tragic as well...