Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!dptcdc!tmsoft!ead
From: ead@tmsoft.uucp (Elizabeth Doucette)
Newsgroups: can.general
Subject: Re: Canada: one or two cultures?
Message-ID: <1989Jul27.044354.6446@tmsoft.uucp>
Date: 27 Jul 89 04:43:54 GMT
References: <615662921.9256@myrias.uucp> <568@UALTAVM.BITNET> <604@philmtl.philips.ca> <89Jul19.104948edt.18727@me.utoronto.ca> <609@philmtl.philips.ca> <1989Jul24.085326.28706@jarvis.csri.toronto.edu> <27944@watmath.waterloo.edu> <625@philmtl.philips.ca>
Reply-To: ead@tmsoft.UUCP (Elizabeth Doucette)
Followup-To: can.general
Distribution: can
Organization: EAD MoneyHealth Inc, Toronto, Canada
Lines: 69

In article <625@philmtl.philips.ca> tremblay@philmtl.philips.ca (Michel
Tremblay) writes: 
>In article <27944@watmath.waterloo.edu> you write:
> ...

>>  In short Quebec 'culture' is in its adolescent stage, demanding to be
>>recognized as an adult, and given all the privileges of an adult.
>>... 
>>In short, it behooves the rest of the country to bear with them
>>while they go through the maturing process and debate whether to leave home
>>and strike out on their own, or stick around and milk mom and pop for all
>>they can. Kids do grow up, and so do cultures and for the most part they
>>grow up to be responsible and far less self-centered than one would ever
>>guess from their teen years. The trick is to outlast this stage.

>
>We are not kids asking permission, we are 'Constitutional prisonners' trying
>to recover out freedom. 

Give me a break!  I lived in Quebec in 1976 when the P.Q. were first
elected.  Bourassa was terrible.  Neither French nor English liked him
or trusted him.  But when Levesque asked in the referendum to separate
from Canada, the people said no; both French and English.

Every province can complain about being constitutional prisoners.
Ontario's Peterson did not want Free Trade.  Atlantic Canada has very
high unemployment... this is an unexpected constitutional right!!  The
West and the East are fed up with everything being decided in Central
Canada.  Maybe, we should throw up our hands in defeat and become the
51st State of the U.S. after all!!!
  
Our supposed National Railway is being dismantled (except in Quebec
and Ontario) thanks to Mulroney.  Federally, each province doesn't get
an equal vote.  The same number of MP's should come from each
province.  Then you would see some changes.  What about Atlantic Canada?
Everyone ignores them because the Federal election is decided by
Ontario and Quebec, because that is where the majority of the
country's people live.  That sucks!! 

The Constitution is not perfect but Meech Lake does not guarantee
women's rights, minority rights, or Native Indian rights.  Also, the
idea of needing 10 provinces to agree to any future constitutional
changes is very restrictive.  I think that the Yukon and the Northwest
Territories should be allowed to become provinces if they want to.
But can you imagine trying to get everyone to agree? 

Because of my Native Indian blood, my ancestors were here before you
were.  Native Indians do not get a "distinct society" clause, NOBODY
SHOULD. 

I am all for signs in Quebec being in French.  After living in
Montreal for so long, when I moved to Toronto, I was in culture shock.
Everything was in English and I didn't like it.  But, if Quebec wants
to deny minority rights in Quebec, they don't deserve minority rights
outside of Quebec.  What's good for one province is good for them all.

In my neighbourhood, the street signs are in English and Greek.  In
other areas they are in English and Italian or English and Chinese.
Multi-culturalism is being stressed.  Tolerance is being stressed.

I'm not sure where our society is going.  I know that I don't want to
end up like the U.S.  But if we don't want to end up a 51st State, we
had better decide that being Canadian is not so bad and can even be
improved; IF WE TRY.

Elizabeth