Democracy is known as a political system with institutions that is supposed to allow citizens to hold/express their political preferences, to have limitations on the power of the executive (to avoid abuses), and to guarantee their civil liberties.
What is Mr. Trudeau doing? He is not allowing Canadians to express their political preferences (if not for his political party). Plus, whether he fully realizes or not, he is using our own tax money to let radical groups do the dirty job of monitoring us. In addition, he is using public money to silence a new legal political party (i.e., PPC). Is this normal and how would this provide a guarantee for our civil rights?
Stated differently, how is this different from using public money to fund his own party? He is using public funds to eliminate the competition. In Bambi’s mind, this is worse that the WE “Charity” scandal. This is a democratic scandal.
Bambi is asking this question, regardless of the political party and regardless of any political preference at a particular point in time.
As a former Liberal voter who truly believes in democracy, she is shocked.
We learned from La Presse today (English Google translation here: http://shorturl.at/kvzP3) that Mr. Erdogan is criticizing Macron’s attitude toward Muslims in France. He even “urged him to get treated” for “his insanity“. Can you imagine the irony and the low level of our world leaders?
First, as we say in good French: “De quoi je mêle Monsieur Erdogan :)?” It means: “why don’t you mind your own business, Mr. Erdogan?”
Second, and as reported in the translated text from La Presse, Mr. Erdogan said on TV:
“All that can be said of a head of state who treats millions of members of different religious communities in this way is: go for mental health examinations first“.
He even added: “Macron needs to be treated” and “What problem does the individual named Macron have with Islam and with Muslims?”
Mr. Erdogan also criticized France for supporting Armenia (as per the article above).
As a reminder, we are talking about the same “neo-Sultan” of a country that still did not recognize what it did to the Armenians and is now participating in a war against them. Just imagine Germany doing something similar to the Jews of Israel… Would the world accept it? So why is our world silent to what is happening to the Armenian people?!
What is more shocking to Bambi, although not surprising, is not Mr. Erdogan stupid words… it is rather the stupid journalism of our country (+ in North America) where we read in the same article: “This dispute comes on top of a long list of disagreements between Mr. Macron and his Turkish counterpart, who regularly defends Muslim minorities around the world.”
Mr. Macron does not want to reform Islam, contrary to all the articles by so-called journalists of our stupid times. He wants to address Islamist radicalism in France and protect its citizens, including its Muslims. We all know it, especially the latter.
The leftist alliance with Islamism is dangerous. It can backfire one day. One must only look at what happened in Iran during its revolution, as an example. Of course, no country is immune, including Lebanon (with influences from Iran, Turkey, or Saudi Arabia…) and of course, it does not matter what type of Islamism it is (or other words ending with “ism” by extension).
Islamism has become more than just a small threat to democracy, freedom of expression, and life in France. Indeed, this is like a war of visions of life. It is not normal to see French teachers terrorized and self-censoring themselves to avoid being decapitated like what happened to Mr. Samuel Patty :(.
Mr. Macron seems to be far from being a stupid man. He knows the difference between words ending with “ia” like Islamophobia and words ending with “ism” like Islamism. So are Muslims of France, Mr. Erdogan, rest assured.
Sadly, many of us in Canada (especially in English Canada) seem to have lost key historical and civilizational reference points.
Plus there is this reality, which was well put by Mr./Dr. Mathieu Bock Côté in a TVA TV discussion (at La Joute, including Mr. Thomas Mulcair) on the word racist (the saga of the professor at the University of Ottawa…): «On est victime de l’accouplement morbide du racialisme américain et du multiculturalisme canadien». It means: “We are victims of the morbid coupling of American racialism and Canadian multiculturalism“. It was refreshing to watch Mr. Thomas Mulcair (former leader of the NDP), a calm and deep thinker. What a contrast with his succeeder, Mr. Jagmeet Singh, who seems to be more like a man of his time [a shallow (yet theatrical) thinker].
You may think what is the link with France and why is Bambi bringing this up? Well, it all has to do with it. It is about control. It is about inducing fear in the mind of people (a teacher in the story above). The terror in France is just a radical method to achieve the same goal: Silence people. Of course, thank God, it is not comparable in terms of criminality. Yet, make no mistake. Fear does not need a real decapitation to overwhelm hearts and minds.
To come back to the topic of this post, if you want to be fair to all and truly prevent racism or words ending with “ia” (like Islamophobia), you have to apply respect as a principle to everyone, including the majority of a country. Yes, for sure, any minority needs to be protected but the minority of the minority (the radicals of a minority group) need to be pushed back by our leaders… same for those agitating them from abroad (Turkey and other), especially when decapitation is on the menu!
Israel has never been a piece of cake in the Middle East.
Arab countries and populations have
long feared and hated it, and vice versa.
Mr. Trump is surely an “orange show man”, knowing how to time his successes.
Regardless of all this, this is a
historic moment, even if the Palestinians are not rejoicing.
Recently, Sudan rejected Islamism and this is another historic moment for this country and for the whole region.
Now, it has made peace with the USA. It is even compensating the innocent American victims of terror.
People may say that tough pandemic
times are bringing former enemies together, and this is not an achievement by Mr.
Trump’s administration.
Regardless of what they may say, if he keeps surprising us with peace deals like that, Bambi will consider nominating him for the Nobel Peace Prize of 2021, whether he will re-elected or not ?.
Before reading it, Bambi has been reflecting about conflicts of interests and corruption in the past year, especially in the Lebanese context and its tragic economic consequences. Her question to herself has been the following: Was is worse in life? Political corruption or stupidity? She came to the conclusion that the latter may be more damaging to a society in the longer term (even if the people of Lebanon may not all agree about who is being stupid in their country… and despite their shared suffering from corruption). Imagine when both corruption and stupidity are combined, used to hide behind or to manipulate, etc. A dangerous mix!
Anyhow, you may say. Well, this is the third most indebted country with much challenges. This is not us (mind you, we are much indebted now!). What is Bambi talking about? Well, this reflection applies anywhere, even when there are more benefits to gain or more at stake in larger and richer countries. Plus, there is something called human nature in life.
Indeed, we would be swimming in total denial, if we think that we are immune to such issues (of corruption or stupidity) in Canada or elsewhere else. Actually, in Bambi’s non-expert citizen opinion, we should be more mindful about this in Canada, especially in our times when all the mainstream media articles seem to go in a single direction (no diversity of opinions like in Lebanon, imagine the irony!). Is this normal in a democracy?
Mr. Martineau would have likely not been able to publish his reflections in other media, which receive benefits from our federal government. The Journal de Montréal is one of the rare ones where you read opinions and others contrary to it, one next to the other. This is why Bambi enjoys reading this newspaper. Mind you, it is also one of the rare Canadian media where readers can still comment (contrary to the CBC and many others). The same is still true for the Lebanese media, thankfully and once again ironically. Isn’t it?
Of course, sometimes there are no bad intentions in our leaders, just some misjudgment or incompetence (especially when having to take fast decisions). However, how many times can we use this same argument to justify the behaviour of the same person or a same group, pandemics times or not?
Bambi is writing all this without having anything against Mr. Trudeau himself or his party for whom she has voted SO MANY times in her life thus far. Luckily, she opened her eyes and already shared that she did not vote for Mr. Trudeau the second time. For that, she is proud, even if she recognizes his good performance from time to time, especially lately (ex. on the international scene on a couple of occasions, in some internal affairs as well, etc.). Of course, it is never easy to govern. So imagine, in a pandemic (even if the latter can be conveniently used for political reasons). Of course, she also recognizes the talent in his party (and in all our other parties and independent MPs). She also observes increasingly “illuminated” people, especially in his party but also across parties and in our society. There is nothing wrong with being illuminated for sure, as long as we keep using our brain (SOS! Critical sense is badly needed).
Perhaps what matters the most here is to prevent future conflicts of interest, with all our MPs? Bambi listened to Mr. Blanchet yesterday (BQ). He spoke at the Parliament (she saw his short yet sharp statement on his own Twitter account). He presented four simple yet good ideas… but did anyone listen?
She also listened to the competent Mr. Pierre Poilievre (CPC). She then listened to Mr. Trudeau et al. and read about the positions of the Greens and of the NDP. Interesting political drama all this. Yet, no imminent change. If there is one day an election, will Canadians vote for the same old again? Most likely… but time will tell (she can hear her spouse’s words in her ears now: “We get the government we deserve“; he means “whom we elect“).
Bambi will stop… OK, here is Mr. Martineau’s sarcastic article for some fun.
——
“No matter
what you say about Justin, you have to recognize him as a great quality.
This man
takes care of his family and friends!
He takes
care of them very much. Not a day goes by without him pampering, pampering,
pampering them!
RED AND
GREEN
Look at the
legalization of the pot, whose second anniversary we are celebrating these days
– in a big cloud of smoke.
Who gets rich with this legalization? Who do we find in the organizational charts of the big players in this new industry?
Members of the great liberal family!
This is generosity!
We imagine our beautiful Justin, on the phone with his acolytes. “Do you feel like putting butter on both sides of your toast, folks?” Well, I have a note for you. Just one. Pot. Place your pawns well, I come up with a bill that will allow you to pass Go by collecting the pot … “
On the one hand, you allow young people to legally freeze their bones while you are in debt for the rest of their lives.
On the other hand, you spoil your boyfriends!
Isn’t that beautiful?
Another example of the magnanimity of our PM: the Aga Khan.
The man is all alone on his island and is bored to die. He calls his chum Justin to ask him if he won’t come for a walk.
Justin could have replied, “Come on, Aga, I’m the prime minister of the country, you know I don’t have time!” “
Well no!
Our PM didn’t hesitate for two seconds, and said, “Are you bored, Aga? Don’t be afraid, I’ll take my “Mille Bornes” game and arrive with all my family! We send the bill to taxpayers! “
This is a faithful friend!
And when it
came time to award a $ 43 million contract to an organization to run one of its
many aid programs, whom did our beautiful Justin pick, eh? Whom?
The first to
come?
No!
His friends
at WE Charity, who had given contracts to his mother, brother and wife!
That is
having memory! That is to be grateful!
FRIENDS FIRST
And yesterday, our Bureau of Inquiry told us that Justin’s government helped another member of the big Liberal family by awarding a $ 237 million contract to a former MP (shorturl.at/jDEHS).
Without a call for tenders!
Justin could have awarded this lucrative contract to another company that would have manufactured medical ventilators for less. Canada could thus have saved $ 100 million!
Did our PM do it? No!
He preferred to favor his friend’s business!
Even if it will cost us more!
To hell with the expenses: friends first!
With friends like Justin, you never get confused!
SHAME ON THE CONSERVATIVES!
And what are the Conservatives doing during this time?
They criticize Justin! They call him to account!
While our PM is perhaps the most generous politician in all of our history!
Mr. O’Toole, you should be ashamed of yourself!
We all dream of having a friend like Justin!”
Cartoon by Mr. Yannick Lemay (YGreck) taken from the Journal de Québec
In a Global News article entitled “Systemic racism ‘runs very deep in Canada’”, Ms. Chrystia Freeland said the latter “when asked about the dispute over Mi’kmaq fishing rights in Nova Scotia”:
Even if that was 100 percent true (not just by criminals who committed arson of fire in the fishery plant and van but by every family member of every fisher of every NS town/village), the words seem unwise, even if they may be courageous, because they are not put into context and they are tempered in any way whatsoever.
Bambi will rise above this conflict that she is not an
expert of anyhow, to just bring some perspective from a second life she had in
one of the most boiling regions of the world, much more than the province of Nova
Scotia for sure…
Lebanese political leaders, as disconnected from the population or as corrupt as they can be, at least ALL have the wisdom of calming things down. Even militia organizations despised by the majority have discipline and common sense when needed to stop abuses (and abuses there are constantly, and especially now).
In Bambi’s non-expert citizen’s opinion, Ms. Freeland
should have explained to the population, through the question of the journalist,
what is at stake in this conflict, out of respect for both Indigenous and other
fishermen.
What is the main blocking point in the dispute? Why
are we there and why have we been in this double bind Marshall judicial
decision of 1999?
Why can’t we be at a different place, like for example
our government helping the indigenous company in starting a business (as a start-up),
providing a loan, etc. ?
Why don’t these indigenous fishermen work in the other industry or the other fishermen one day in their industry?
Why should we have an apartheid of fishing rules, in
honouring not just peace and friendly treaties, but also common sense in our
country?
Bambi is not an expert of fishing, even if she grew up
by the Mediterranean sea and is a proud Atlantic Canadian. She just knows that people
get angry when they see double standard in life (even when it is in the spirit
of reconciliation, as Ms. Freeland said very well, thank you).
Is it normal to have one group fishing all year and
the other only during legal season? Even in the name of “moderate livelihood”
(even without a clear definition of the latter)?
By the way, why can’t Mi’kmaq lobster fishers fish MORE
than moderate livelihood? Why can’t they become owners of successful and rich businesses
down the road in 2, 5, 10 or 50 years from now?
In Bambi’s non-expert opinion, the above could be done
whilst having the same rule about fishing seasons for all, for equity and
democracy in our country.
Bambi will keep saying the same, even if a group of Lebanese-Canadians
(former Phenicians) decide to begin a lobster business.
She is convinced of this. This is democracy 101. She
will allow herself to borrow the words of a great natural psychologist (hello
Gladson, Dear brother-in-law or rather brother ?).
He said many years ago about Lebanon during her visit there: “Lebanon always
loses when one group takes control over the others, regardless of the group”.
He meant group in power or interest group. Bambi thinks that the same logic
would be a voice of wisdom in any country, including us in Canada.
This being said, she hopes from the bottom of her heart that the dispute will end. No one will be injured. Everyone will be fishing, eating, selling, and earning a living. When the pandemic will end, she hopes they will all celebrate lobster festivals together and we will eat their delicious products (same product of our same Dear Atlantic ocean!)!
To cheer herself up, sometimes Bambi likes to watch a funny short comedy clip on her phone before closing her eyes to sleep. Well, yesterday, she decided to watch “le cousin“, the first show of Mr. Gad El Maleh. She knows this show by heart, she repeats it with him (almost completely), and she systematically laughs each time.
OK, before telling you about le cousin, you may be wondering about this Mr. El Maleh. Who is he? For those of you who do not know him, he was born in Casablanca, Morocco (in 1971). He speaks Moroccan Arabic, Hebrew, French, and English. He studied for a few years in Casablanca at the Lycée Lyautey before moving to Montreal to study political science at McGill University where he lived for about 4 years. Following his journey in Canada, he moved to Paris where he studied drama.
Recently, Bambi discovered that this comedian is related (not by blood) to Dr. Gad Saad from Concordia University (the world is too small). Her good friend Katia, also from Montreal, knows him from school (he has always been a funny guy from his younger age, it seems).
Well, to come back to le cousin, this comedy show is moving for Bambi because it is about Québec and it reminds her of wonderful family time in Montreal! Nowadays, in our puritan times of political correctness, such cultural jokes would be sadly considered racist (what a stupid shame!)… but, mind you, racist to whom? To the French-Canadian accent Gad el Maleh is imitating or to the jokes about the Arab or Jew whom he is in real life or to Bambi who relates to all this :)? Needless to say that all the people Bambi knows adore him from her own family members to her friends!
To understand the context of the comedy show in question, one must go back to the Mirabel Airport, North of Montreal (preceding the Trudeau airport in Montreal). This is the airport where Québec immigrants used to land in the early 1990s. It is yellow (hence one joke about Canada being yellow and so beautiful :). It also had a section where families would be waving to you, from the second floor, behind a glass whilst you wait in the line-up to clear customs.
Bambi and her family used to spend much time at this airport, happily waiting for her father arriving from Beirut. They would be waving for him with smiles and balloons (like other families would be doing). This is why Mr. Gad El Maleh’s joke is too funny and yet so emotional.
Bambi will never forget her first impression of Canada on this June 17, 1990, upon their arrival to Mirabel Airport. She had the impression that the landing of their KLM plane, along with other airplanes at that airport, was FINAL (even for the crew members :)). This means no takeoff ever. What an odd (and silly) feeling. Perhaps because the trip was too long and the airport seemed to be in the middle of no where, so far away from Europe… and even further away from Beirut where they were torn from their loved ones the day before.
To come back to El Maleh’s comedy, one particularly funny scene in the show was when the Canadian custom agent opened his passport and described it on the phone to another colleague by saying: “It is written in Arabic and it opens upside down” 🙂 :)!!
Well, Bambi’s spouse attracted her attention that Lebanese passports do not open upside down like other passports from Arab countries. She forgot about that (a long time without a passport)! Maybe he is right because it is bilingual and it opens from its French side (written from left to right, contrary to Arabic). Still, the joke is hilarious even after decades :).
Well, this Gad El Maleh is talented. This comedy may have been his first ever. He was younger. Thus, more innocent or pure, so to speak. If you have time to kill and like to laugh in the language of Molière, see below!
Bambi got curious and googled him today to see how he sounds in English (he expanded his French career to the USA in the recent years). Well, he is funny too, as you can see below in the language of Shakespeare! The show is again short and it is called “Where is Brian”? It is a parody of how the people of France learn English.
The clever article below was published in French in the Journal de Montréal. It is about the ordeal of Dr. Verushka Lieutnant-Duval. Thank you Mr. Antoine Robitaille for writing it.
Bambi will share its translation below but first a few facts and thoughts…
This morning, she read in La Presse that the University of Ottawa Professor in question, Dr. Lieutenant-Duval, has received a letter of support co-signed by 579 professors of CEGEP and universities across Québec (luckily there is still some common sense in this province…): http://shorturl.at/GJZ01
Bambi also read a strong article by Mr. (& Dr.!) Mathieu Bock-Côté, journalist from the Journal de Montréal, entitled “Mr. Jaques Frémont [President of the University of Ottawa] against freedom of expression“: http://shorturl.at/cpL09 [a quick translation: http://shorturl.at/lqBJ0].
Well, the ordeal of this part-time professor is described in the article below and you may have have heard about it. Bambi will not spend much time on re-telling it. However, just to give some perspective, we are talking about a professor who usually designs her courses stating that they are inclusive, from a feminist perspective, etc. (as per La Presse) Well, she has even cancelled a lecture to allow the students to attend a demonstration organized by Black Lives Matter (BLM). Can you imagine?! Yet, that was not enough to the student behind the campaign of “linguistic terrorism” whose victim was Dr. Lieutenant-Duval.
Today, the censorship story is about this particular instructor. Yesterday and the day before yesterday, it was about Dr. Bock-Côté AND many others in all fields and across sectors. Tomorrow, it will be about whom?
Anyhow, Bambi will stop here… here is Mr. Robitaille’s wise article entitle “Linguistic Terrorism“, hoping you will enjoy reading it as much as she did. If not, perhaps you can take the time to read it with an open mind, pause, and reflect about it. Perhaps you will see things from another perspective?
—–
“What has happened at the University of Ottawa in the last few days is delusional.
A professor, Verushka Lieutenant-Duval, explained in a class that derogatory terms about a group can sometimes be used by the same group.
And she gave the word “nigger” as an example. She could have used the word “queer”, it seems. (Wasn’t there a bit of that in Charlebois’s “I’m a Frog, you’re a Frog, kiss me“?)
Evil took him. A student who saw an assault in this use of the “word beginning with n” filed a complaint. In spite of the educational intentions of Mrs. Lieutenant-Duval.
The latter nevertheless believed it necessary to apologize [Bambi will allow herself to add the following: Too bad/She should have not]. She was suspended, then reinstated.
Despite the contrition and the adjustments, the university will allow the shocked students to avoid the professor now [Bambi will add the following, based on her non-expert citizen opinion: Isn’t it sad, although not surprising to see spineless institutions in action…]. But let’s be reassured, the latter “is free to continue her course, which she did last Friday, as usual, enjoying her full academic freedom“, certified the rector of the University of Ottawa, Jacques. Frémont.
Ignore the intention
Academic freedom? What is the freedom to express oneself if some students no longer even have the intelligence, much less the generosity, to consider the context in which the words are used? If the university management, as it does in Frémont’s text, denies any legitimacy for members of a so-called “dominant group” to dialogue?
We are rather swimming in a kind of linguistic terrorism.
A word can be hurtful, sure, but only if it is accompanied by malicious intent. The pilloried professor had none.
Laferrière
On the occasion of the change of title of an Agatha Christie novel (yes, the one you are thinking of), the writer Dany Laferrière leaned, in a capsule at France Culture, on the famous hated word. The academician himself uses it in his novels, notably in the titles of two of them.
Note that exactly like Ms. Lieutenant-Duval, he believes that “to claim something which could be derogatory or insulting or which could diminish you and make it exactly your identity, is one of the oldest human revenges“.
Because for him, “the word negro is a word that comes from Haiti”; it is a word “which means man, simply“. In this country, one could even say “this white man is a good nigger“, he insists, specifying however that only people from the country can use him in this sense.
And above all, not indiscriminately. We know, says Laferrière, when we use it to insult, to “humiliate you or to crush you.” You also know when it’s for another use“.
In 2008, he slayed the writer Victor-Lévy Beaulieu who, in an article, described the Governor General of the time, Michaëlle Jean, as a “negro queen“! VLB replied that the term referred to a colonized who takes the head of a colonizing state.
But in this case, it was really a reprehensible “insult“, Laferrière had ruled. “You are not dumb enough not to feel a slap in the face,” he wrote. Likewise, one should be smart enough to “smell” when there is none.”
If you do not understand French and if you wish, you can read the sub-titles in English (video from the French edition of Star Academy #4):
“Adieu monsieur le professeur” is a 1968 beautiful French song recorded by Mr. Hugues Aufray. The music was composed by the trio: Jean-Pierre Bourtayre, Vline Buggy and this singer.
Bambi has posted on this barbaric tragedy earlier (see further below).
Of course, after the emotional farewell to Mr. Paty, it will be time for courageous political actions.
According to Bambi’s non-expert citizen’s opinion, only such actions (as quick reactions) would give a clear message to Islamist forces that there is no room for fundamentalism and obscurantism in France.
Indeed, clearly courageous actions would help: (1) prevent future similar tragedies; (2) defend French values (of “Liberty, equality, fraternity“, which are meant to protect all citizens, including its Muslims); & (3) hopefully eventually win this war because the Damocles sword is hanging over France’s head…
Bambi just discovered this song whilst working, thanks to her Mount Lebanon internet radio station in LA. She googled it and found the clip, with English sub-titles!
“Khalass” is a beautiful Arabic word, which means “enough!”
Bambi finds this term (and title) beautiful because it is empowering just by itself.
It clearly shows someone who is fed up and implies that the person will not take it anymore (decision… and hopefully eventually a plan to act on).
What Bambi likes about this term is that it implicitly contains or refers to another word, “Khaalas” (accent on the “a” whereas Khalass has the accent on the “s”). The latter means “salvation” (“le salut” in French).
Our self-empowerment (all the implications behind the “enough”/enoughis enough”) is actually what will lead us to our salvation.
Thank you Ms. Dolly El Khabbaz (for the lyrics and production), Ms. Karol Sakr (for the performance) et al. Well done.
