New Quebec Language Law silliness: "Le Magasin Walmart"

[garbon]

French-Canadian cultural reinforcement combines the worst aspects of Canuckistanianism, and Frenchiness, to create a people that would rather bitch and wave their cigarettes at each other than make a living.

Aren't you from Mississippi or some other shithole? 

Yeah, he's been doing this more and more lately and it is like wtf? don't you remember you are from a part of America that's one of our greatest embarrassments?

[Zoupa]

I love qc threads.

Seeing all the anglos froth at the mouth always makes for a good show 

the sad part is that none seem to get the issue here, even if it's just about overzealous bureaucrats.

I gave up online-arguing about qc a long time ago. Les têtes carrées, ca reste des têtes carrées. *shrug*

[Zoupa]

French-Canadian cultural reinforcement combines the worst aspects of Canuckistanianism, and Frenchiness, to create a people that would rather bitch and wave their cigarettes at each other than make a living.

Aren't you from Mississippi or some other shithole? 

Yeah, he's been doing this more and more lately and it is like wtf? don't you remember you are from a part of America that's one of our greatest embarrassments?

High-five. We agree about something! 

[garbon]

High-five. We agree about something! 

Which if that has happened - you know we must be right!

[viper37]

Sorry but as much as we Americans don't get to conveniently separate ourselves from our politicians - you don't either.

There's 2 issues here.
The main issue is obviously the overzealous bureaucrats.

The other one is not about who will get confused or not.  It's about cosmetics.  It's about culture, it's about what you present to the world.  Like a city ruling on the size of a sign, on what can go on a sign.  Some people are afraid that seeing english language signs everywhere, people eventually get the idea that Quebec is an english province, just like the rest of the country.

It's never been about who would get "confused" by entering a place with an english only trademark.  I thought it would be obvious by now.

[garbon]

I don't think it is about confusion. As to the rest of that, I'm sorry but that doesn't really make sense to me. I don't know what it is to be an English province coming from places where yes English is the norm but we make many allowances for other languages. I don't really get what would be so bad if people were to choose whatever language they felt like.

[Scipio]

French-Canadian cultural reinforcement combines the worst aspects of Canuckistanianism, and Frenchiness, to create a people that would rather bitch and wave their cigarettes at each other than make a living.

Aren't you from Mississippi or some other shithole? 

And so I am therefore an authority on shitholes, which Quebec is quick on the way to becoming.  This is just as dumb as America passing laws requiring everything be in English.  Why not Esperanto?  Why not central planning for everything?  That's the Canucki way, and golly gee, among a nation that is overwhelming white and middle class, it works.  Just like in Sweden.

[Berkut]

Sorry but as much as we Americans don't get to conveniently separate ourselves from our politicians - you don't either.

There's 2 issues here.
The main issue is obviously the overzealous bureaucrats.

The other one is not about who will get confused or not.  It's about cosmetics.  It's about culture, it's about what you present to the world.  Like a city ruling on the size of a sign, on what can go on a sign.  Some people are afraid that seeing english language signs everywhere, people eventually get the idea that Quebec is an english province, just like the rest of the country.

It's never been about who would get "confused" by entering a place with an english only trademark.  I thought it would be obvious by now.

SO the idea is that if there is a english sounding name, have them throw some other stuff up there in French so that there is more French on the sign for its own sake.

And this is NOT about "French-Canadian cultural reinforcement"?

[Admiral Yi]

There's 2 issues here.
The main issue is obviously the overzealous bureaucrats.

The other one is not about who will get confused or not.  It's about cosmetics.  It's about culture, it's about what you present to the world.  Like a city ruling on the size of a sign, on what can go on a sign.  Some people are afraid that seeing english language signs everywhere, people eventually get the idea that Quebec is an english province, just like the rest of the country.

It's never been about who would get "confused" by entering a place with an english only trademark.  I thought it would be obvious by now.

But this is precisely why I am frothing at the mouth over this.  It would be one thing if Walmart put up big signs on their stores that readw Walmart Plumbing Supply and Beauty Salon (although I still think the signage law is stupid--if a company wants to lose French speaking business, let 'em) , but Walmart is a company name.  It's as much of an English word as Sony or Samsung or Yoplait is.

[Grey Fox]

Walmart isn't really the problem, it's just rightfully take offense. The real culprit for this is Best Buy/Futureshop

[viper37]

I don't think it is about confusion. As to the rest of that, I'm sorry but that doesn't really make sense to me. I don't know what it is to be an English province coming from places where yes English is the norm but we make many allowances for other languages. I don't really get what would be so bad if people were to choose whatever language they felt like.

Extreme cases: Quebec lose a distinctive advantage, architecture looks just like Charlottetown, Ottawa or Boston.
Extreme cases: Immigrant get the idea that French is irrelevant, they can easily get by with english only.  Why bother learning french?
Extreme cases: with immigrants assimilating ot the english majority, Quebec loses it's status as a French province, english quebecers get even more radical in their demands.

This is why there are language laws, this is why immigrants have to send their kids to french school, this is why corporations have to have french signs, offer french services to their clientele and offer a french work place to their employees.

Now, will this extreme I told you about become the reality because Walmart is "Walmart"?  No.  But some morons think so.  They should be wondering why none of our companies can grow big enough to rival these, why our electronic stores seems to fail one after the other, but I guess it's more important to harass the successful ones.  I don't care about Walmart, I hate shopping there, just like I hated Zellers in its time.  I'm even beginning to dislike FutureShop since they became BestBuy.  It seems their salespeople are even more clueless than when they first opened their stores (the goold old joke about a "SCSI mouse" ).

Anyway, if I were paranoid, I'd say this is a PQ move to distract attention from the upcoming budget.

[DontSayBanana]

So you're saying you'd be cool with it if everybody else forced, say, Rossy locations outside of Quebec to change their name to "That French Store Rossy."

[PDH]

Le Grill? What the hell is that?

[garbon]

Of your extreme cases:

1) How does that happen? I've never been to your other two examples, so I'm not sure if they would match Boston. Meanwhile, my last trip to the North End of Boston (October), I noted how similar (though Italian) it looked to Vieux-Quebec.
2) So what? If French is irrelevant to live there (as it often is in Montreal) what's the harm? They'll quickly be dissuaded when they head out of cities and encounter French speaking citizens / if not, then again what's the harm if people speak the language that they want?
3) Again, what's the problem? I'm not sure what these demands would be though feel free to give me 19th and early 20th century examples.

[Sheilbh]

...Even I think this may be a tad excessive

Edit:  Although, fuck it, just ban use of English