Article content Re: “ ‘It starts with one word’ (and that word isn’t ‘Hi’): Quebec launches video promoting French ” (The Gazette, Sept. 16) With a provincial deficit of $11 billion, it is interesting that the Legault government has been able to find $2.5 million to spend on advertising to promote the greater use of the French language.
Unless the “Bonjour-Hi” greeting is eradicated, it appears the Quebec government may continue to be unable to focus on fixing the myriad problems we face daily. Will such issues as crumbling infrastructure, deteriorating health care and the lack of teachers be solved if the word “Hi” is eliminated from daily Quebec life? How inappropriate the government’s use of our tax monies has become. Allen Rubin, Westmount My wife and I are looking to move to Vancouver Island next year.
After 60-plus years and losing most of our friends to the exodus in the 1970s and ’80s, we are now ready to get out, too. Yes, Montreal with its history and beauty has that European feel — yet the decay of roads and infrastructure is like nowhere else we have travelled. Montreal is no longer the beautiful city it once was, and I do not believe it will get better in our lifetime.
I feel we live in a place that is always being fixed but never gets fixed. I see language being used as a political platform and worry that this will only get worse with time. As someone who grew up in English neighbourhoods, received 45 minutes of French daily out of a Parisian textbook and worked with accounts across Canada, I’ve been left feeling like a second-class citizen here.
My wife and I are sociable, and Vancouver Island has a large retirement population, so we expect to make friends and acquaintances with like-minded individuals who have dogs and enjoy hiking, yoga, art and community gatherings. I wish the best to everyone who chooses to stay in Montreal or make it their new home, but I do not have in my heart the love for this city or province that I once did. Allan Goldberg, Westmount Re: “ Canadian government wants to be removed from Bill 96 lawsuit ” (The Gazette, Aug.
23) The Task Force on Linguistic Policy has filed a lawsuit against Quebec’s language overhaul. The federal government is named in the suit because of a provision in Bill 96 referring to changes in the Canadian Constitution. The federal government seeks to be removed from the lawsuit, arguing it has no authority over Bill 96.
I agree with Task Force president Andrew Caddell that Ottawa’s attempt to be dismissed from the constitutional challenge of Bill 96 reflects the failure of Justin Trudeau’s government “to defend the Constitution of Canada against the unilateral declaration of Quebec as an exclusive French-speaking ‘nation’ in the Constitution.” Pierre Trudeau must be turning in his grave over the actions of his son, who appears to be leaving Quebec anglophones and allophones twisting in the wind. Robert Filler, St-Laurent Submitting a letter to the editor Letters should be sent by email to letters@montrealgazette.
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