Comments for AngryFrenchGuy

Comment on Make Your Own Bill 101 by Monica

Monica — Mon, 28 May 2012 03:40:06 +0000

one. “There wasn’t room for other people. There’s alyaws a lot being airbrushed out. His great-grandfather was the richest man in Europe who lost all his money at Monte Carlo. That wasn’t mentioned [in The Russian Album]. It also didn’t mention that Count Paul Ignatieff ran all the pogroms in Russia. ‘Rounding up all of the Jews to protect them from outraged peasantry’ – that’s as mealy-mouthed a description of what his great-grandfather did as is conceivable.” The same relative recalls reading George Ignatieff’s 1985 memoir, The Making of a Peacemonger, before Michael Ignatieff edited it, noting: “It was far more interesting, though less well-written.”

Comment on Shooting the Shit with Jacob the Hassidic Bus Driver by Daniel

Daniel — Mon, 28 May 2012 02:36:15 +0000

In Saudi Arabia, all citizens are reeiurqd to be Muslims, and the public practice of other religions is forbidden. Private practice of other religions is sometimes allowed and sometimes persecuted; there is no law protecting even this.Iran is officially a Twelver Shiite state. Some other religions (Christianity, Judaism, Zoroastrianism) are permitted, but are not allowed to proselytize; and they are sometimes persecuted even if they don’t. The Bahai faith is not allowed at all. Sunni Muslims are subject to some restrictions also.In China, all religious organizations have to be authorized by the government. This has given rise to conflict when the government appoints religious leaders different from what the religion itself chooses. There are state-appointed Catholic, Protestant, Buddhist, Taoist, and Muslim leaders. These are not always approved by the religious organizations outside of China. Those who practice religion outside these state-approved organizations are subject to severe persecution.In Turkey, since the secularization by Ataturk in the early 20th century, the government permits all religions but keeps them all under close surveillance. Special religious clothing (the veil, the fez) is not permitted to be worn in public. Turkey is predominantly Muslim, and there is some prejudice against other religions.In North Korea, virtually no religious practice is allowed except a limited amount by foreigners. Worship is considered a political offense.Cuba was for years officially atheist, and religious practice was seriously discouraged, with some persecution. But now religious people are even allowed to join the Communist Party. The government is secular rather than atheist, and religious practice is pretty much free.These are a few varied examples of governments which have restricted religious practice. In our time, the States that restrict religious freedom are mostly Muslim or Atheist.I can’t think of any other belief system that does this in modern times.Religion is the source of meaning and values for many people, and restricting it restricts the growth of the human soul. In countries where a religion is imposed, it loses some of its growth potential. In countries where religion is not restricted or mandated by the government, it flourishes and leads to better values and ways of life.

Comment on Pure Laine is an English Word by Mark Norman

Mark Norman — Sun, 20 May 2012 15:05:17 +0000

Lying schmuck. The expression ‘pure laine’ is in constant use throughout French Quebec. A French language google search confirms what everyone knows; it’s you’re problem if you rely on a broken tool like google alerts. And *of course* Québecois racists are not preoccupied with their racism. Why would they be? They just dish it out; they don’t have to take it.

Quebec racism is a daily agony for those who live it, and anyone who cares to find out about minority experiences knows this. Nor does it take much caring; the racism isn’t concealed. It is hard to conceive what twisted psychology would produce the massive dishonesty you’re retailing here.

Comment on English Montreal Hates Celine Dion by Allo, phone?

Allo, phone? — Wed, 16 May 2012 12:28:25 +0000

Celine Dion made commercials in Japan for an English-language school. But hey, she’s NOT an Anglophone.

Comment on In Montreal People Who Don’t Speak English Are Uneducated Bigots by Marcus

Marcus — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 16:47:15 +0000

So what?
You spend half of your text defending yourself as not being an “uneducated bigot”. While by doing so all you really proof is your own insecurity. And your anger towards people – who in return you yourself seem to claim to be “uneducated bigots”.
And why do you – as someone who demands not to be insulted – insult an English-speaker by calling him a “Tommy”, which is (as you obviously know) a rude racist name that uneducated folks use for other people they consider to be “way too much English”.

This text thus ends as a kindergarten sand-box fight against virtual opponents while totally missing to hit any of the goals it may or may not have been aiming for. Or in other words: it ends up being nothing more than a simple rant with no value added at all.

Let me put this straight: on the things you said I agree in no point at all. Also while I – just as you – will usually talk in my native language I will make ONE EXCEPTION.

When I go to see an Italian opera I will take Italian as given. If I go to spend a French evening I will expect French. I go to an Irish pub and will speak English and of course: I will pay beforehand – just as it is done in Ireland (at least according to popular myths) and drink my Guinness the way I’m supposed to. Because I went there to be part of that.

I consider it a faux pas to go to an English-only cinema, where guests wish to spend an English evening, just to find people are talking in other languages all the time. I as a guest went there BECAUSE I actively sought a break from that and specifically wanted to be part of an English-style environment for the sake of the event. I came and I paid to hear and be served in that language.

I don’t even wish to share an English evening with people that dare to demand being served in anything else, because in that case: what would be the sense of going to an English-only cinema in the first place? It will spoil my experience for me and my friends.

It’s like going to a French-only restaurant and demand an English menu. Even if they happen to have one: you simply don’t!

Comment on In Montreal People Who Don’t Speak English Are Uneducated Bigots by William

William — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 15:24:54 +0000

We live in CANADA.

Comment on Quebec, Nationalists, Nazis and Adrien Arcand by BlueWaffleMan

BlueWaffleMan — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 13:47:26 +0000

^ yum :-D
8=D

Comment on Quebec, Nationalists, Nazis and Adrien Arcand by BangerBangs

BangerBangs — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 13:45:54 +0000

I think I want to lick some blue waffles :-)

Comment on In Montreal People Who Don’t Speak English Are Uneducated Bigots by Tasha

Tasha — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 23:07:56 +0000

Although I found some of your points interesting and even agreed with them, there were others that I consider completely wrong. You criticize English people who refuse to cater to the demands of the French, but what about the French who do the exact same to the English? How many times has a person gone to a restaurant, store, whatever and spoken English? Whether because they do not know French or because they would like to use their primary language. And how many times has the person serving them blatantly refused to speak to them in any other language but French?
My mother told me about something that she once witnessed at a montreal hospital. A man was in need of directions to somewhere in the hospital. He attempted to ask the nurse in emergency if she could help him out. He asked in English. She obviously understood him because she answered his question, in French of course. He explained to her that he didn’t understand French. She kept speaking in French. In the end my mother decided to help the man out by translating for him.
I’m not in any way trying to insult the french language. I myself speak French and have absolutely nothing against it. But what I do disagree with are all of the french people who act like French is the only language. What happened to being bilingual? Why is it that the English are forced to learn French but the French are not forced to learn English? How exactly is that fair?
Have you heard how they are trying to make it so that people working in non specialized fields will not be obliged to speak english AND French but only to speak French? Now that is super fair.
Why can’t Quebec be a place where many different languages can coexist? Why is it that everyone feels the need to shove any language but there own out of the way?

Comment on 6 Myths about McGill and Concordia by Joseph

Joseph — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 16:47:49 +0000

You have unfortunately posted an article that is as rife with myths as the ones you were trying to ridicule.

First of all, there is nothing unusual or unfair about having two English-language and two French-language universities in Montreal. The city is essentially bilingual, and if you do your entire schooling before university in French (whether by law or by choice), that pretty much makes you fully capable in French. Allowing people to study in University in the language of their choice, under professors which may be French-speaking or English-speaking, is a great boon for the city, its ability to mix ideas from different spheres, and a big part of what makes Montreal unique in the world.

Secondly, you make a mistake by assuming that there is Francophobia in English-language universities and that they teach English-Montrealers only. This assumes that both Concordia and McGill are bastions of anglo-Montreal, which, they aren’t. Both have quite sizeable amounts of francophone students *and* professors. Many francophones are actually forced to go to English universities because the Quebec public school system does not adequately teach English which, if you want a successful career, is pretty much required.

Thirdly, McGill is consistently rated as one of the top universities not just in Canada, but in the world. Whether rankings are fair or not, or whether citation-based rankings are fair when comparing universities with different languages and which might not publish in English thus ensuring a greater amount of repeat citations, all that might be true, but McGill’s ranking is still significantly and consistently higher than other Montreal universities (and I did not go to McGill) :

QS 2012:
McGill #17
UdeM #137

Webometrics 2012:
McGill #98
UdeM #175

ARWU 2010:
McGill #64
UdeM #134

HEEACT 2011:
McGill #36
UdeM #110

Times 2012:
McGill #28
UdeM #104

In the end, your choice of university does not only depend on how highly it is ranked, though it helps. My personal choice was made based on how flexible the University was with regards to scheduling. I ended up choosing Concordia, personally, because out of all four universities it catered the most to working students (location helped also). Happily, when I left Concordia a few years later, I could finally say I was completely bilingual, and it’s a skill that I found probably the most useful out of everything I learned in university.

Fourthly, saying that 70% of English-speaking PhD students leave after graduating is neither surprising nor a bad thing. At all. I don’t quite know where you got the statistic, but if you have a PhD in something, if you want to get a professorship it’s not good to get one at the university you graduated from (academic inbreeding), and finding someone who wants to hire you in your specific academic field is never easy. Plus, many of these PhD’s were themselves students attracted from somewhere else, and while at the University their treasure trove of knowledge from a different land/university gets shared at the university where they are studying presently. That’s what makes them universities and not just another trade school.

Fifthly, regarding point #6, you should know that universities are a federal jurisdiction and belong to the Canadian people, not the Québec people.

Sixthly, regarding the neo-colonial bit, I bet the nice folks at Kahnawake and Kanesetake might take a different view on what you’ve said.

You probably don’t want to come off as a rabidly angry ranter, but that’s how it looks. I love Montreal as it is. It’s not French, but it’s not English either. It’s something else. I don’t want a Montreal without Leonard Cohen or Céline Dion, without smoked meat or St-Hubert chicken, without Westmount or le Plateau.