Israel bashing and booms

In response to Ken Frankel’s criticism of Scott Saxon’s article on Israeli sonic booms [“Israel noise,” Letters, Nov. 17], I just wanted to say this: Coming from Lebanon, I’ve heard for myself the type of sonic booms the article talks about.

At the low altitude those jets fly, the sonic booms produced are not just a “loud crack of the gun,” as Mr. Frankel claims. As a matter of fact, they sound a lot like one-ton bombs. They’re so loud and powerful that buildings actually shake—some can even collapse—and windows shatter from their force. So these sonic booms are not just an “annoyance,” as Mr. Frankel stated. He should go experience it for himself before he makes such comments.

Of course, that doesn’t mean I don’t agree with the rest of what he says. The other issues he mentions are also important, but they already get plenty of attention by the media and I don’t see any lack of coverage in these areas. With what little coverage the media gives to illegal and/or harmful actions done by Israel, it’s a shame Mr. Frankel chooses to diminish their significance even further.

» Adnan Bekdache

I’d like to give a big thanks to the Mirror for publishing Ken Frankel’s letter to the editor. Once again, I was extremely disappointed to find absurd Israel-bashing in your newspaper.

Scott Saxon made ridiculous and useless accusations, but this is something I have gotten used to throughout the years. Sadly, the more the “left” tries to bash Israel (as your paper frequently does), the more Islamic bombs will be exploding throughout the world, until one day they are exploding right here. Although we’ve already had one riot and one school fire bombing, but I guess that doesn’t count right?

» Benji Teboul

Montreal cheap shots

This is in response to Jose Qian’s ill-mannered rant against Montreal last week [“Montreal shallow and provincial,” Letters, Nov. 17]. While it’s certainly true that our town has a bit of a provincial streak, Qian’s attitude is bullshit. Like a McGill frat boy or visiting Bruins fan, Qian likes Montreal’s parties and hot chicks (woo-hoo!) but is irritated by the Quebec language. That kind of insulting, patronizing crap is what fans the flames of Quebec isolationism.

There’s no language that’s “better” than any other, and Quebec French is totally unique in the entire world—a linguist’s wet dream with its array of bizarre slang and archaic expressions. It’s totally fun and fascinating if you actually bother to try understanding it. And it happens to be the language spoken by most of those very same hot chicks and cool partiers. So Qian is happy he left? I think I can safely speak on behalf of the city in saying the feeling is mutual.

» Malcolm Fraser

Jose Qian’s cheap shots at Montreal are both insulting and pathetic. Montreal never pretends to be a world city, it is one! Montreal has hosted many world events—Expo ’67, the ’76 Olympics, to name two—and also hosts one of the largest jazz festivals and comedy festivals in the world, not to mention the Grand Prix. This to him is a “small village”?

He also mentions how tear-burstingly sad the Québécois language is. Is this because he can’t understand any French? Or perhaps he’s thinking of the French drawl called joual?

Montreal can be ass-freezing cold in the winters, but it’s also butt-warming hot in the summer, which makes up for it. I find it tragic that he actually claimed to have lived in Montreal and failed to realize what a great city he was in.

Keep chop stickin’ in that crazy zoo call Shanghai and don’t forget, it’s still the communists running the show there.

» Peter Jomes

Funny how much bile a former Montrealer like Jose Qian can vomit on a city—and a society—he barely took time to get to know, judging by his narrow-minded, asinine comments on Quebec’s culture, food and language. Did he even take the slightest opportunity to get his head out of his deep, tight Asian arse for half a second to smell the poutine? Or can an intellectual lilliputian like him ever consider the paradox of using the “Letters to the editor” section of one of Montreal’s four—yes, count ’em, four—free cultural weeklies to piss vinegar on our supposed cultural shallowness?

Internationalism? Do Celine Dion, Cirque du Soleil, Just For Laughs and Denys Arcand ring any bells? Food culture? Montreal alone boasts more than 3,000 restaurants, offering cuisines from 120 countries—just read the Mirror’s Resto section, for chrissakes! As for our ‘‘tear-burstingly sad’’ Québécois language, that racist shit-slinging from a cultural ignoramus doesn’t even deserve a reply.

So do us a favour, Jose: stay in Shanghai and get bird flu. That’s the only culture you’ll be able to grow.

» Jérôme Brisson

Christian correction

In the “Right here, right now,” article you published on Nov. 17, the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada was identified as a B.C.-based organization. This is incorrect. We have two offices: one in Markham, Ontario and one in Ottawa. Thank you for making this adjustment so that we can point to this posting from the EFC site for the Christian community: www.christianity.ca.

» Gail Reid,
Director, Communications,
Evangelical Fellowship of Canada

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