Observations from Montreal

An ever-changing collection of commentary by Montrealers or about Montreal politics and culture.

Observations from Montreal

“Remember how François Legault passed Bill 96 by convincing people that French was in decline, when in fact studies showed the exact opposite? This is precisely what the Conservatives are trying to accomplish with their ‘Canada is Broken’ narrative. It’s fear-mongering — not reality.”

Nov. 1, 2024

“The fun city of art and artists I once knew has been sold off to speculators and influencers — people selling the Montreal lifestyle without really living here. We need the city of Montreal to stop protecting the speculators and slumlords whose greed is literally destroying this city. Montreal not only needs a total ban on all VRBOs, but an army of inspectors and an anti-slumlord task force, too. We need to help restore some of Montreal’s affordability. If Montrealers can’t afford to live here, we’ve lost our city, and we won’t ever get it back.”

Taylor C. Noakes, Oct. 28, 2024

“Always funny how so-called ‘free speech warriors,’ whose entire online identity consists of incel talking points about the ‘woke mind virus,’ come out in droves to try to silence anyone who dares criticize a loudmouth like Pierre Poilievre. People whose lives are spent trying to justify false narratives can’t possibly fathom that they may have been misled by propaganda. Their egos won’t allow it. Sadly, much of the ‘free speech’ movement has been coopted by proponents of hate speech.”

Oct. 25, 2024

“I have never seen worse reporting in my lifetime than the way so many so-called ‘journalists’ in the mainstream media have covered Canadian politics over the past two years. Their complete and utter failure to call out lies and division — not to mention threats to our democracy and foreign interference — would be laughable if it wasn’t so damaging.

“Unless the mainstream media starts objectively calling out said lies and division, why should they continue to receive funding? What purpose do they serve? Let them try to survive on advertising, like all the other media companies, if their mandate is no longer to keep Canadians informed.”

Oct. 22, 2024

“A new Léger study has found that less than 1 in 3 Canadians believe Pierre Poilievre is the best choice for prime minister. No matter how hard Canada’s mainstream media — not to mention Russia — tries to make this guy seem likeable, his favourability remains consistently poor.”

Oct. 5, 2024

“Calling in noise complaints against music venues and bars from your condo next to a major commercial street full of music venues and bars is classic bourgeois Montreal arrogance. Maybe the city should fine people who harass cultural and nightlife hubs in Montreal instead of sending inspectors on behalf of these petty drama queens paying overpriced rent to issue threats to the kinds of businesses that helped make their neighbourhoods cool in the first place.”

Sept. 24, 2024

“Pierre Poilievre still hasn’t congratulated Canada’s athletes for their incredible performance at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Evidently, he thinks celebrating our country undercuts his ‘Canada is broken’ narrative. Conservatives need to stop politicizing Canadian pride!”

Sept. 9, 2024

“Conservatives want Justin Trudeau to step down because they’re scared. Pierre Poilievre rubs too many people the wrong way, he’s likely ‘peaked’ too early, his empty catchphrases can only resonate for so long and there’s still over a year for his embarrassing past statements — and party’s surge in popularity due to Russian propaganda — to be exposed.”

Sept. 7, 2024

“Pierre Poilievre is most popular in Alberta and Saskatchewan, the two provinces where anti-Canadian sentiment is highest. This, of course, surprises absolutely no one.”

Sept. 6, 2024

“Remember, these are the same people who have no clue how to defend themselves when people call them ‘weird.’ Because deep down, they know that their anti-science narrative, reliance on disinformation and lack of empathy IS ‘WEIRD.'”

An excerpt from the editorial “Conservatives want Trudeau to step down because they’re scared”

“François Legault’s decision to increase the cost of university tuition for out-of-province students is shortsighted, mean-spirited and, from an economic vantage point, completely idiotic. That this is being done with the specific intent of lowering enrolment at Quebec’s three anglophone universities is more evidence that cruelty really is the point. Rather than reward or encourage the preservation and promotion of the French language, Legault comes up with new ways to penalize and handicap the anglophone minority. It is precisely the kind of xenophobic, politically motivated pandering to the most closed-minded elements of Quebec society that hinders our province’s progress. For shame — it’s the whole province, not only the anglophone community, that will suffer the consequences.”

An excerpt from the editorial “CAQ vs. English universities: François Legault’s specialty is cutting Quebec off at the knees” by Taylor C. Noakes

“As Concordia reports a nearly 30% decrease in out-of-province enrolment, François Legault’s mission to sabotage Montreal is already coming to fruition. The CAQ’s ludicrous tuition hike has more to do with penalizing anglos and scapegoating students than actually protecting French — which we know is NOT in decline. This will only hurt Montreal’s reputation and have a chilling effect on the university ecosystems that fuel business downtown — real consequences for all of us, regardless of what language we speak at home.”

Aug. 29, 2024

“I had the profound misfortune of flipping through an anemic copy of The Gazette recently. It was depressing. A full page advertisement on a faux front page. A National Post insert no one ever asked for, filled with vile culture war propaganda written by libertarian half-wits and Jordan Peterson fan boys. Whatever I was looking at, it wasn’t Montreal, and it certainly wasn’t Quebec’s anglophone community.”

An excerpt from the editorial “Should I Stay or Should I Go?” by Taylor C. Noakes

“Just 35% of Quebecers are in favour of Quebec sovereignty. Make no mistake, encouraging anglophones to leave our province is a strategy used by separatists to increase that percentage in order to justify a referendum.”

Aug. 24, 2024

“Canada’s inflation rate has dropped to 2.5%, and our country is now projected to have the fastest growing economy in the G7 in 2025. This is evidently terrible news for Pierre Poilievre and the Conservatives, whose entire identity is based on the false narrative that ‘Canada is broken.’”

Aug. 22, 2024

“François Legault has once again blamed immigrants for his government’s own failings in housing, an issue on which his approval is just 8%. The CAQ’s moratorium on temporary foreign workers in Montreal is yet another example of the province working against itself — and just more proof that Legault’s entire political playbook relies on appealing to his xenophobic, anti-Montreal base. Continuing to fear-monger about immigration to ‘protect the French language’ is a dog whistle that does nothing to solve Quebec’s labour shortage.”

Aug. 20, 2024

“It’s impossible to discuss teacher shortages without pointing out that the Quebec government deliberately prevented qualified teachers from practising their professions because they wear a hijab or a turban. With over 5,700 teaching positions vacant, not only did Quebec lose out on current qualified teachers, but also potentially thousands of future skilled teachers because our government believes a qualified teacher wearing a hijab is far worse than no teacher or an adult with zero teaching skills. That, in my opinion, is what a self-inflicted wound looks like.”

Toula Drimonis, Aug. 17, 2024

“Blaming ‘the media’ every time perceptions of Donald Trump are found to be negative is incredibly disingenuous. Aside from the fact that it’s a cheap talking point, what you’re really saying is that the media has such a biased impact on your own opinions that you couldn’t possibly imagine how others can look at Trump objectively and decide for themselves that they don’t like him. Blaming the media simply because someone else disagrees with your point of view is a direct attempt to discourage critical thinking.”

Aug. 15, 2024

“Making Quebecers jump through hoops for English service won’t improve healthcare in the province or protect the French language. This is just the CAQ trying to rectify the mess they created.”

An excerpt from the editorial “Shameful Bill 96 healthcare directives on language restrictions creating chaos in Quebec” by Toula Drimonis

“Pierre Poilievre was reportedly reluctant to congratulate Canada’s amazing athletes for their historic performance at the Paris Olympics because his campaign felt it went against his ‘Canada is broken’ narrative. He only did so after being called out by the media. The Conservatives’ politicization of Canadian pride needs to stop!”

Aug. 13, 2024

“It bears repeating that secularism is merely the separation of church and state. It isn’t the right not to be exposed to religion publicly, or the right not to live alongside people who may have a different relationship with faith than you do. If you’re going to start demanding that religion be banned from the public space, you’d better make sure you demand that of all religions. Otherwise, your bias and xenophobia are showing.”

An excerpt from the editorial “Quebec, religion and Islamophobic double standards” by Toula Drimonis

“Trump and the GOP continue to play the victim card. Why would anyone care about offending a corrupt hatemonger like Trump, or his weird supporters? If you actually support this lunatic, you deserve to be criticized. Getting triggered by poll results that now show Kamala Harris in the lead only confirms your own hypocrisy.”

July 29, 2024

“Just 26% of Canadians think Poilievre is the best choice for prime minister, proving that he’s nowhere near as popular as his supporters think he is. It appears that rage farming has its limits in Canada.”

An excerpt from the editorial “Smile. Blame Trudeau. Repeat.”

“While Canada’s annual inflation rate sits at 2.9%, some provinces are seeing year-over-year average rent increases of over 17%. At what point can we start holding landlords accountable for the role they’ve played in the housing and affordability crisis?”

An excerpt from the editorial “When will landlords answer for their role in the housing and affordability crisis?”

“While a large majority of Quebecers want the CAQ to remain focused on issues that affect all of us, Legault believes that misleading populist rhetoric is the only way to gain support.”

An excerpt from the editorial “François Legault is still lying about the ‘decline of French’ in Quebec”

“It’s a little ironic that a university that acknowledges it occupies unceded Indigenous territory wants to remove students from occupying their campus who are in turn protesting the occupation and ethnic cleansing of Palestinian lands by settler-colonialists. McGill tells their students to be the change they want to see in the world, but when those students mobilize, McGill calls the cops. It’s more than mere irony, it’s hypocrisy. A peaceful anti-genocide protest should be welcome at any university. Why not McGill?”

Taylor C. Noakes, May 1, 2024

“I’d like to ask François Legault why his gut reaction following poor poll numbers is always to spread untruths about the ‘decline of French.’ Studies show that 94% of Quebecers speak French and that public use of the language is increasing, not decreasing. Why does the CAQ need French to be ‘in decline’?”

April 30, 2024

“As Pierre Poilievre fails to condemn the alt-right, know that 70% of past PPC voters now support the Conservatives. The incel appeal is strong with Poilievre, whose popularity decreases with education and increases among those least proud to be Canadian.”

April 29, 2024

“Fear-mongering about the artificial ‘decline of French’ continues. The Quebec government has just announced that it’s investing $603-million over five years to ‘slow the decline of French’ — anything to distract from embarrassing leaked emails from government officials and the CAQ’s pitiful approval ratings in housing affordability, healthcare and the cost of living. As if $603-million couldn’t be put to better use in the areas Quebecers say are most important to them — real issues that actually affect our quality of life. But this has been the CAQ’s strategy all along when polls aren’t looking good: to divide and distract.”

April 28, 2024

“The fear-mongering about referendums continues. Less than two weeks after the ‘decline of French’ myth was debunked, we’re subjected to more culture wars from our public officials. Imagine how great this province could be if our politicians remained focused on issues that actually improved our collective well-being. Just 1 in 3 Quebecers support separation — Alberta and Saskatchewan currently have more anti-Canadian sentiment than Quebec. Don’t let Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, or any politician for that matter, fool you into believing sovereignty is any more popular now than it was a decade ago.”

April 15, 2024

“François Legault threatening Justin Trudeau with a referendum on immigration is pure political theatre. It’s a distraction from low poll numbers and a shield against PQ attacks, positioning Legault as someone fighting back against something he can’t control — only, Quebec has considerable immigration powers, far more than any other Canadian province.

“The success of an immigration referendum threat essentially relies on Quebecers’ lack of knowledge of pre-approvals and of the deals Quebec struck with Ottawa to radically raise numbers of temporary migrant workers. A referendum threat is a blustery move made in bad faith.”

Toula Drimonis, April 10, 2024

“A new report by the OQLF has confirmed that French is NOT in decline in Quebec. In fact, the use of English in public spaces has decreased since 2016, from 11% to 8%. The Legault government continues to fear-monger about the ‘decline of French’ in order to divide Quebecers, justify the passing of Bill 96 and distract from real issues. A reminder to François Legault: Your approval rating is at an all-time low of 29%, with satisfaction below 30% in healthcare, housing affordability and the cost of living. Time to focus on real issues.”

April 4, 2024

“It’s disconcerting to see many online comments (even from PQ partisans, oddly enough) mocking Parti Québécois leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon’s tearful reaction to receiving death threats. Politics aside, PSPP is a human being, a husband and the father of three young children. Being visibly shaken by threats to his family’s safety doesn’t in any way undermine his ability to lead a party (or the province, should that day come). Those insinuating that it does have bought into a toxic definition of masculinity that equates legitimate emotions and fear with weakness and fragility. It’s also a deplorable lack of empathy.”

Toula Drimonis, March 19, 2024

“Ending the affordable housing requirement for new construction is myopic. Developers already opt out of building affordable housing, now the City of Montreal has given them another way to weasel out of social responsibility. The housing crisis is not just a supply problem: it’s the consequence of an unregulated market at a time when developers will always favour building luxury condo towers downtown. Housing czar Benoit Dorais facilitated this deregulation by emphatically stating that Montreal will remain affordable. $1,500 for a 1 1/2 isn’t anyone’s idea of affordable.”

Taylor C. Noakes, March 15, 2024

“Montreal deserves an explanation for why Just for Laughs is cancelled this year. Groupe Juste pour rire is co-owned by Bell Canada and Groupe CH (the Canadiens etc) — surely companies of that magnitude could pitch in to keep a world-class festival afloat? And why was the mayor’s response to the cancellation of such a flagship event for the city so underwhelming? This is not something you just shrug off, and I’d argue that the artists who owe their careers to JFL could also step up to save the festival. Why aren’t other solutions being explored?”

An excerpt from the editorial “The cancellation of Just for Laughs doesn’t make sense and Montrealers deserve answers” by Taylor C. Noakes

“While most Quebecers of all ethnic origins get along just fine, I fail to see why Jean-François Lisée and other ethnonationalists are now ‘shocked’ that some young Quebecers may not be readily identifying as such. Day in and day out, these young Quebecers from immigrant backgrounds are exposed to the stunted and recriminatory rhetoric of certain politicians and pundits (including the current CAQ government) who routinely treat Quebec’s cultural, religious and linguistic minorities as a problem and a threat — and their mere presence as an ‘existential crisis.’ They’re now suddenly surprised that this constant ‘othering’ and reprimanding may have backfired, and that some young Quebecers refuse — or occasionally may even resent — attempts to fit into the narrow confines of an increasingly limited, insular and parochial definition of what it means to be a Quebecer? Why?”

Toula Drimonis, Feb. 26, 2024

“François Legault’s tuition increase for out-of-province students has nothing to do with preserving the French language in Quebec. It’s a petty attack on a beleaguered minority’s institutions, and on Montreal as a whole. This is shortsighted, mean-spirited, completely idiotic from an economic vantage point and just more evidence that he’s unfit to govern. It’s the whole province, not only the anglophone community, that will suffer the consequences.”

An excerpt from the editorial “CAQ vs. English universities: François Legault’s specialty is cutting Quebec off at the knees” by Taylor C. Naokes

“Bill 31 will have a devastating impact on thousands of independent artists in Montreal who have made this city a beacon for innovation. François Legault is trying to remodel Quebec by demolishing the progressive wins of Québécois social movements in the past. This attack on housing rights is part of the process. The CAQ continues to play up a white nationalist version of Québécois identity that targets immigrants, while enacting policies in tune with the economic vultures of Bay Street and Wall Street. This government is a danger to our collective wellbeing.”

An excerpt from the editorial “The CAQ is attacking artists by ending lease transfers, and artists need to step up” by Stefan Christoff

“The premier with the lowest approval rating in Canada is still complaining about hearing English in a province where 94% of people can speak French. Earlier today, François Legault inadvertently used the word ‘cool’ when he was criticizing the use of English words by francophone kids in Quebec. This is of course a priority for the CAQ during a housing and affordability crisis, not to mention the state of healthcare in our province. You really can’t make up how pathetic this all is.”

Feb. 8, 2024

“It’s not immigrants and students that are fuelling the housing crisis in Montreal, it’s 4,000+ Airbnb listings and outrageous legislation like Bill 31. In a city already struggling with slumlords and renovictions, Quebec has abandoned the ‘renters rights’ ethos that had kept Montreal affordable for many generations by ending lease transfers. Meanwhile, Airbnb amplifies and exacerbates all of Montreal’s pre-existing housing problems, pushing out local residents and the communities they support. It’s gentrification on top of gentrification, like a cancer eating away at Montreal from within — destroying the city that tourists came to see in the first place.”

An excerpt from the editorial “It’s time to ban Airbnb in Montreal” by Taylor C. Noakes

“With approvals now below 20% in healthcare, the cost of living, education and housing affordability, the CAQ decided to begin 2024 distracting from real issues once again by attacking signage in the province, saying that ‘seeing too much English and other languages on signs bothers all Quebecers.’ As part of Bill 96 — which is opposed by two-thirds of Montrealers — businesses with public signs featuring less than twice as much French than other languages will be fined up to $30,000 as of June 2025. A pathetic start to the year from the government sitting in last place.”

Jan. 14, 2024

“The Quebec Liberal Party needs a leader who will fight for the rights of ALL Quebecers if they want to be considered a serious party again. This would prove to be smart politically, considering the QLP typically does well when the party polls strongly among anglophones and allophones — something that changed significantly during Dominique Anglade’s time as leader. Currently, just 44% of non-francophones say they would vote for the Liberals, a percentage that has not increased since the 2022 Quebec election. That number used to be 80%. As more leadership contenders emerge, uniting Quebecers outside of the CAQ’s base should be priority number one.”

Jan. 12, 2024

“I have no issue with Denis Coderre wanting to wedge his way into yet another level of our government and run the Quebec Liberal Party — as long as his top priorities are to fully repeal Bills 21 and 96, as well as the anglo university tuition hike. I’d also like him to sack Michael Sabia before he privatizes Hydro-Québec. If he runs on all that, and then actually does it as premier, he can have his damn baseball team.”

Jan. 11, 2024

“As 2024 begins, the CAQ will have to reassess what kind of government it wants to be and what it chooses to focus on. Quebecers, in turn, will have to do the same. Do they want provincial leadership that’s hopelessly mired in culture wars and lazy vote-pandering, hellbent on dividing and alienating Quebecers, or do they want a more inclusive and confident Quebec that can buckle down to tackle the real challenges the province is facing, unencumbered by the grievances of the past? The latter could foster the kind of solidarity that would make for a better Quebec.”

An excerpt from the editorial “2023: A year of drama and division for Montreal and beyond” by Toula Drimonis

“François Legault’s approval rating is the worst in Canada. The CAQ has approvals below 35% in healthcare, housing affordability, the cost of living and education. 565K public sector workers remain without a deal, with strikes expected to expand after the holidays. Fear-mongering about the ‘decline of French’ continues even though 94% of Quebecers can speak the language. And despite numerous hints to start unifying the province, the CAQ and Quebec’s most funded media chose to criticize an editorial calling them out on their division. Where are the adults in the room?”

Dec. 22, 2023

“Bills 21 and 96 were bad enough, but without sufficient pushback from the federal government or mayor of Montreal, it was only a matter of time before Legault and his merry band of hate-mongers would go for the jugular with a stunt like this. No matter what politicians say, the French language is not threatened in Quebec. This is cesspool politics meant to distract from real issues. For shame — it’s the whole province, not only the anglophone community, that will suffer the consequences.”

An excerpt from the editorial “CAQ vs. English universities: François Legault’s specialty is cutting Quebec off at the knees” by Taylor C. Naokes

“The Legault government is insistent on seeing ‘outsiders’ as a threat to Quebec society, when in fact it could be the exact opposite. The CAQ’s rhetoric regarding non-francophones is highly counter-productive and divisive, and their comments are said with such disdain and contempt. The students coming to Montreal are real people with real dreams and aspirations. Instead of saying, ‘Oh, we’d like it if you spoke French more,’ they’re actually using the word ‘threat.’ It’s a horrible way to view fellow citizens.”

An excerpt from our interview with Dr. Sarah Dorner by Toula Drimonis

“This has nothing to do with protecting French in Quebec. François Legault may present himself as defender of Quebec’s culture, society and language, but he does so in a manner no different from the Catholic Church that held the province captive throughout la Grande Noirceur. Rather than reward or encourage the preservation and promotion of French, our premier comes up with new ways to penalize and handicap the anglophone minority. These are not the actions of enlightened leaders, but of reactionary thugs — and just more evidence that cruelty really is the point.”

An excerpt from the editorial “CAQ vs. English universities: François Legault’s specialty is cutting Quebec off at the knees” by Taylor C. Naokes

“I didn’t vote for Legault and the CAQ. I would never vote for them. He’s a populist, he’s just going for whatever the polls tell him he will win. I don’t take as much interest in politics as I used to, because I’m so disappointed with Quebec politics right now. I’m 100% pushing for French. But we shouldn’t push people away, and part of what makes Montreal unique is that we have both French and English here. We have gotten along so well, but the government is trying to divide people. Of course we have to protect French, but we can do so without getting rid of other people. It’s like protecting the trees by getting rid of the flowers; to me it makes no sense.”

An excerpt from our interview with Mado Lamotte by Matthew Hays

“Within the last two days, François Legault received his all-time lowest approval rating and the CAQ had their worst poll result since 2017, all while they continue to shortchange education and healthcare workers. The Front Commun has rejected the Quebec government’s latest offer of 12.7% over 5 years, citing inflation projections of 18.1%. This means that the strike from Dec. 8 to 14 is going ahead. How long is the Legault government prepared to let Quebecers suffer?”

Dec. 6, 2023

“You know you’re doing a terrible job running your province when you make even Doug Ford look good. Hopefully Legault’s new 31% approval rating — the lowest in Canada — will be a wake-up call for the CAQ to start prioritizing the issues Quebecers care about the most: healthcare, education, housing affordability and the cost of living. Start leading by uniting, instead of dividing.”

Dec. 4, 2023

“What did Elon Musk think was going to happen? Dude, people used to respect you until you turned Twitter into a cesspool of misinformation, where incels and racists are rewarded for engagement. Of course no one wants to advertise on your platform.”

Nov. 29, 2023

“The Quebec government is spending $7-million to bring the L.A. Kings to Quebec City for 2 games next year when the Habs had offered to play there without government subsidies. This was announced today by the same finance minister who says we have to tighten our belts over the next year, by the same government that prioritized giving themselves a $30K raise over negotiating with the healthcare workers, teachers, school staff and school bus drivers who are about to step up their strike. Bravo CAQ, another pathetic display of blatant hypocrisy.”

Nov. 14, 2023

“François Legault gave the OQLF more power to punish businesses with massive fines and repeat inspections via Bill 96, and this bullying is what’s led to Ye Olde Orchard renaming itself ‘Maison Publique Orchard’ — as if anyone is going to stop calling it Ye Olde Orchard. (Incidentally, Old Orchard is just a street in NDG, so is this all about the ‘Ye’?) I’m sure undercutting the anglo community pleases the radical anti-anglo base the CAQ is pandering to with their populist fear-mongering about the ‘decline of French’ — when 94% of people in this province can speak French.”

Nov. 10, 2023

“Proving once again that François Legault has no interest in actually increasing the knowledge of French among anglo university students, nor of encouraging their integration into Quebec society, the CAQ has rejected McGill, Concordia and Bishop’s ‘unprecedented’ offer to implement mandatory French classes in lieu of tuition hikes. The rejection of this offer, which would have been far more effective than almost all of Bill 96, is more evidence that Legault’s original intention was not to get results, but to divide. It’s all about the optics of Quebec nationalism and his own legacy. How utterly vile.”

Nov. 7, 2023

“No matter where you stand on Quebec politics right now, it’s plain to see that the timing of Premier Legault’s tweet this morning, bragging about Quebec’s supposed soon-to-be ‘booming economy,’ as 420K healthcare and education workers strike, is — at the very least — bad optics. This is yet another example of the CAQ’s total lack of empathy towards the lived realities of the labour force.”

Nov. 6, 2023

“With the school bus strike affecting all English schools boards on the island of Montreal, families that are already struggling will plummet further into poverty. Transco is a massive bedrock for English education in Montreal — not dealing with the bus drivers was an easy assault on the English community. François Legault just didn’t bother to engage with the public sector. The CAQ’s preference was to distract the public with incendiary French-language talk instead of negotiating with unions to keep basic societal needs like hospitals and schools functioning. And now, 400,000 public sector workers will be striking the morning of Nov. 6. Legault has been trying to run Quebec like a company, but that business is crashing and burning and he is just a bully in the ashes.”

Nov. 3, 2023

“We end this week knowing that the #1 choice for premier in Quebec is also the guy who successfully goaded the most progressive party leader in the province to say the N-word during a televised debate last year. Just normal everyday politician stuff. Have a great weekend, everyone!”

Nov. 3, 2023

“Should there not be any accountability when a company like Quebecor, which receives tens of millions of dollars in grant funding every year — not to mention a very large portion of the Quebec government’s advertising budget — lays off hundreds of people? The jobs of those at the top, who’ve clearly mismanaged these funds for years, are of course safe from the cutbacks. This doesn’t seem right.”

Nov. 2, 2023

“The hypocrisy of self-proclaimed ‘anti-woke’ crusaders complaining about Trudeau’s son’s Halloween costume is laughable. Had either of Pierre Poilievre’s kids done the same for their Halloween costume, these people would be the first to lash out against any criticism and political correctness, saying that we should ‘let kids be kids.’ These are also the same fragile people who complained when Trudeau and his son went to see the Barbie movie.”

Nov. 1, 2023

“Criticizing the Quebec government and calling out racism is not ‘Quebec bashing’ — this overused line, similar to people who label anything they don’t like as ‘woke,’ needs to be reinterpreted and used more carefully. But going forward, I would like to urge François Legault and the CAQ to practise empathy on a level we haven’t seen for years in this province. A compassionate government does not need to fear-monger about issues that a large majority don’t think are a priority, when most are more concerned about the cost of living, healthcare and a detrimental housing crisis. At a time when 94% of Quebecers can speak French, all Quebecers should be made to feel like they are welcome and treated equally, no matter their mother tongue or language they speak most often at home. It’s time for positive politics in Quebec.”

Oct. 27, 2023

“Have you noticed how fear-mongering about the so-called ‘decline of French in Quebec’ always comes with a pathetic throw-away line about how Quebec is ‘the only French nation in the Americas,’ as though that means anything at all? Some advice to people who think saying this proves your point: It doesn’t. Your rights are not reduced as a francophone in Quebec because you live in a continent that is primarily not French. All this shows is that you’re willing to use arbitrary facts about nothing to try to justify the fear-mongering you’ve already bought into.”

Oct. 23, 2023

“This government posts about the ‘decline of French in Quebec’ multiple times per week, ever since two employees at Uniqlo and Victoria’s Secret downtown had difficulty serving secret shoppers in French three years ago. This is not the reality for 94% of the population, but of course, the fear-mongering works. It’s almost like an inflammatory Journal de Montréal exposé led directly to Bill 96.”

Oct. 20, 2023

“It must really piss off Valérie Plante to see François Legault actively trying to sabotage Montreal. Not only do a minority of Montrealers support Bill 96 and Bill 21, but Plante acknowledged the existence of systemic racism in 2020, while Legault still has not. And with this latest move against English universities, Legault is trying to derail Montreal’s economy and international reputation, as well.”

Oct. 19, 2023

“What the Quebec government is doing with out-of-province tuition fees is purely vindictive, designed to do nothing but shrink enrolment in English-language universities and harm their reputations within Canada. By extension, when the reputations of Concordia, McGill and Bishop’s are harmed, so too are the reputations of all Quebec universities.”

Oct. 17, 2023

“We live in a time when studies that show evidence of serious disinformation campaigns being pushed by Conservatives are ultimately discredited and labelled as disinformation by that same group spreading the disinformation in the first place.”

Oct. 17, 2023

“Climate change is real. Anyone that cannot understand that basic scientific fact is not worth your time.”

Oct. 17, 2023

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