Hi Megyn, Sorry to bother you now, when I suspect you are busy taking care of your new baby, as well as the rest of your kids – in addition to preparing for the upcoming fall season. As a grandfather of twin girls, I suspect I have some idea of the “burdens” possibly engendered by such a daily routine. So the last thing I want to do is impose on the little spare time you still have remaining on your maternity leave. But I did want to make sure you did see the following bizarre Canadian news story, which I cut-and-pasted from my Facebook page – in case you can highlight this painful development In the Canadian province of Quebec, when “America Live” goes prime time. As you might guess, concerning the subject-matter, I’m a secular Jew and a resident of Toronto Canada, and find this social-engineering experiment quite offensive. Anyways, just in case you’re interested, I’ve included the key details of this news story below. (and who knows where it will end, considering social and political trends these days): ------------------------------------ XENOPHOBIA RUNS RAMPANT IN QUEBEC, HOME OF THE MOST RACIST POPULATION IN CANADA … SHAME ON YOU PREMIER MAROIS: [MY OWN HEADING] TURBANS, KIPPAS AND CRUCIFIXES COULD BE BANNED IN QUEBEC PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS UNDER PQ PROPOSAL, REPORT SAYS Canadian Press Report, August 20, 2013,| Last Updated: 13/08/20 2:47 PM ET news.nationalpost/2013/08/20/turbans-kippas-and-crucifixes-could-be-banned-in-quebec-public-institutions-under-pq-proposal-report-says/ MONTREAL — Quebec has launched its next debate on minority accommodation — and this one could make the erstwhile soccer-turban ban look like a leisurely stroll on the pitch. The government is preparing to introduce long-awaited legislation that would restrict religious symbols in numerous places. A media report Tuesday with leaked details of the Parti Quebecois government’s “Charter of Quebec Values” says the proposed policy will prohibit public employees from donning Sikh, Jewish and Muslim headwear in the workplace. It appears the PQ hope to cash in at the ballot box by championing a position on secularism that polls have suggested has considerable support in the province. The fiery debate that erupted over a recent ban on wearing turbans on Quebec soccer fields offered a sneak peek of the what could be in the political pipeline for the national assembly’s fall session. The turban ban was lifted by the Quebec Soccer Federation due to external pressure — but not before it made headlines around the world. Inside Quebec, Premier Pauline Marois rushed to the defence of the soccer federation and accused its detractors of Quebec-bashing. Tuesday’s newspaper report says the PQ government is set to prevent employees in public institutions like schools and hospitals from wearing religious symbols such as turbans, niqabs, kippas, hijabs and highly visible crucifixes. The approach is being roundly condemned by civil-rights experts, including prominent lawyer Julius Grey, who expects any such legislation to face court challenges under the Charter of Rights. “The type of secularism that is being promoted goes beyond what is acceptable,” he said in an interview. It appears the PQ hope to cash in at the ballot box by championing a position on secularism that polls have suggested has considerable support in the province. “Now, it doesn’t mean that the [Canadian] Supreme Court will not uphold it. Legal decisions aren’t made in a vacuum and maybe our atmosphere, our social climate, is changing to the point where this will be the future. I hope not.” Charles Taylor, a well-known academic who co-presided over Quebec’s commission on the accommodation of minorities, expressed outrage at the policy. He told Radio-Canada that it’s one thing to ban a teacher from wearing a burka, because an impediment to clear face-to-face communication could have an impact on other people — namely, the students. But he condemned a wall-to-wall, draconian approach. “It’s unprecedented,” he told the TV network Tuesday. “This will feed an attitude of exclusion. It will send a message to people who don’t feel comfortable here — who feel rejected in Quebec.” He said immigrants repeatedly told him during his commission, which included a province-wide tour, that the reason they came here was for freedom: “Now we’re slamming the door in their face.” In another interview, he compared the approach to Vladimir Putin’s Russia. Past opinion polls, however, suggest such policies enjoy broad public support in Quebec. A majority have told pollsters they supported the turban ban and also viewed hijabs and kippas as a cultural threat. What’s less clear is how the policy will hold up in the long term, in two key arenas: the court system, and the ballot box. The PQ has in the past bluntly stated that it would gladly fight a legal battle up to the [Canadian] Supreme Court over the issue — and would hope to use the issue to stir up support for its main cause of separating from Canada. But before getting there, there’s no guarantee the minority government could get the policy through the legislature or win an election on it. As popular as the PQ’s approach might prove to be, other polls suggest that only a minuscule sliver of Quebec voters actually care about this as an election issue — and that what really drives the Quebec electorate are bread-and-butter issues like health care, education and the economy. A Leger Marketing poll before last year’s election placed the issue of immigrant integration as the top electoral priority for a paltry one per cent of respondents — at No. 15 on voters’ list of issues. Other identity issues hardly fared better that poll. Sovereignty was the 10th most-commonly cited issue, and the protection of French was at No. 12. Health care, by comparison, was the No. 1 issue, cited by 35 per cent of respondents. Lowering taxes, fighting corruption, school fees, creating jobs, trimming down the civil service and the environment were Nos. 2 to 6 on the minds of the 1,648 respondents of the online poll. Liberal leader Philippe Couillard reacted cooly Tuesday to the proposal, calling the details that were leaked to Le Journal de Montreal a “trial balloon.” He said it was the PQ’s attempt to divert the public’s attention away from economic issues, which aren’t seen as the sovereigntist party’s strong suit. ----------------- Murray Soupcoff, Toronto Canada, https://facebook/murray.soupcoff stocktwits/MurrayS murraysoupcoff@rogers
Posted on: Sat, 24 Aug 2013 04:42:45 +0000
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