Uncle J

[Re: “Parizeau neither senile nor rambling!” Letters, Nov. 26] I guess I feel an obligation of sorts to respond to the letters sent by Jean Nassé and Pierre E. Paradis in regards to the grievous offence suffered in light of the Mirror’s words concerning Jacques Parizeau.

Nassé notes that the Mirror sees free speech as an insect, but of course, refuses to allow it the right to freely express its views on Quebec’s favourite drunken uncle. Both men go on to dismiss the Mirror as a waste of paper, but personally, I would rather hear Raf Katigbak chat away about cereal or zombies than hear some frustrated, lonely PQ-blowhard sound off about “the extinction of his people.”

Did either man consider that some folks didn’t bother reading what Parizeau wrote because the title of his book says it all? If David Duke, Rush Limbaugh or Bill O’Reilly present the public with new books of their own, does that mean I have to “get myself educated” about the merits of white supremacy, immigration restrictions and the need to dismantle Zionism?

Both men appeared consumed with rage over the mention of Parizeau’s semi-legendary ethnic comment. Nassé tells “federalists” (read: anyone with no issues to living in an open society) to get over what Parizeau said during the speech he delivered after losing the last referendum (speaking of getting over things). In the same breath, he refers to anglophones as Paranaoid Angloids. A little tip Jean, if you’re trying to win someone over with your arguments, try not to berate and insult them.

As for Paradis, he tells us we should learn more about uncle J through Wikipedia. Well, seeing as how the Wiki is a source of information generated by the public without any formal editing process, I figure the people would best inform themselves about Parizeau and his political legacy through history books, and by that I mean publications that were not produced by the likes of Michel Brûlé (Anglaid, anyone?) or Les Editions Espoir.

I tried understanding the point Paradis attempted to make in the second paragraph of his letter, but gave up doing so when he started giving me the impression he might have been drunk when he wrote it. Still, he gets around to telling us that “life is so full of contradictions…” and he’s very right about that. Anyone else find it strange that, in 2006, a publishing house by the name of Les Intouchables published a book titled Parlons de souveraineté à l’école using federal funding? Yeah, that’s right, je me souviens.

As for Paradis’s claim that it’s the “anyone-but-a-separatist” view that hampers Montreal’s growth, I guess checking up on how much damage the introduction of Bill 101 and the two referendums caused both the city and province would make for inconvenient truths.

I recommend both men try giving life a go. Instead of pining for a movement that continues to fail based on its own inherent lack of merit, why not just live life and make yourselves happy?

>>JOHN BREESE

The problem
with nationalism

Whether or not Bonhomme Parizeau is actually deserving of snarky put-downs for his supposed xenophobia, Jean Nassé’s comment exemplifies everything that is wrong and retrograde with old school Quebec nationalists. In fact, one could not wish for a more crass expression of colonial mentality.

The Portuguese do not have, as he puts it, “their own country” in the Americas. Brazil was built on, and is still very much the result of, genocide, slavery, plunder and environmental devastation. This is the true heritage of Portuguese colonization. Canada was settled in a similar fashion by the French and the British. Just as their brothers and sisters in the south, the Indigenous Peoples of this land are still living with the cruel consequences of European racism. What is really sickening, to me, is short-sighted separatists like Nassé complaining that the French did not get their chance to carry on their own colonial atrocities and forge their own colonial legacy in the Americas. Besides, this is obviously inaccurate, as the French did colonize several territories in the Americas, with equally disastrous consequences. Get your head out of your ass and grab a book by Franz Fanon, you might learn a thing or two about the French’s superior moral fibre.

Today, the Québécois are not an oppressed minority: they form an advanced capitalist Nation whose so-called sovereign society is a hodgepodge of North American cultural mediocrity, misplaced Euro-descendent pride and hypocritical trivialized racism. One might add that Quebec’s attitude toward First Nations and immigrants has never been something to brag about. And BTW, you can’t accuse me of being just another “Paranoid Anglo,” as I’m born and raised a Franco Québécois “de souche,” albeit one whose only source of pride is to have decided a long time ago that any sort of nationalism is by definition a reactionary, potentially barbaric, impulse. Ni patrie, ni État; Ni Québec, ni Canada!

>>PAT CADORETTE

WE WELCOME LETTERS TO THE EDITOR!

Send your comments, compliments or criticisms to:

Letters to the Editor,

c/o Montreal Mirror,

465 McGill, 3rd Floor

Montreal, Quebec

H2Y 4B4

You may also fax us at (514) 393-3173, or reach us by e-mail at letters@mtl-mirror.com:

Letters to the Editor

All letters should include your name, address and daytime phone number.

If you wish to reach someone in particular, here's a list of people involved with the production of the newspaper and this site.