Olympic ceremonies lack French

bush_cheney2004 · February 16, 2010

Now Vancouver has one as well.

Vancouver...or BC? It never ends...

Wilber · February 16, 2010

Vancouver...or BC? It never ends...

It's Canada's of course but you have a point, it never does seem to end.

Wilber · February 16, 2010

I have no doubt for a bigger paycheque he would have rallied his adopted nation to battle against the crazy canucks.

Kind of cynical don't you think, Canadians didn't seem to have a problem with the likes of Donovan Bailey or Daniel Igali winning gold medals for Canada. Steve Nash makes his big cheque in the US but plays for Canada and does a lot of charity and benefit work in his former province and home town. I don't think he would have a problem making a US Olympic team and getting himself a gold medal. He never will with Canada.

M.Dancer · February 17, 2010

Kind of cynical don't you think, Canadians didn't seem to have a problem with the likes of Donovan Bailey or Daniel Igali winning gold medals for Canada. Steve Nash makes his big cheque in the US but plays for Canada and does a lot of charity and benefit work in his former province and home town. I don't think he would have a problem making a US Olympic team and getting himself a gold medal. He never will with Canada.

We aren't talking about a competing athelete. I am discusing a retired professional performer who is now an american being honoured by the Olympics in a marquee event.

I have no idea if nash is legally able to play for the US. I had no idea who Nash was until a short while ago.

bush_cheney2004 · February 17, 2010

...I have no idea if nash is legally able to play for the US. I had no idea who Nash was until a short while ago.

Not today, but he could get special treatment for citizenship like Tanith Belbin, pairs figure skater, and Canadian TRAITOR!

M.Dancer · February 17, 2010

Not today, but he could get special treatment for citizenship like Tanith Belbin, pairs figure skater, and Canadian TRAITOR!

I have zero problem with an athlete finding employment elsewhere. I just don't want our nation to be one of PR convience...There are dozens of people who would have made better torch bearers than the man who opposed a Canadian city getting a new NHL franchise...and whose children are yanks.

bush_cheney2004 · February 17, 2010

I have zero problem with an athlete finding employment elsewhere. I just don't want our nation to be one of PR convience...There are dozens of people who would have made better torch bearers than the man who opposed a Canadian city getting a new NHL franchise...and whose children are yanks.

He did it for love.....(sigh)

http://www.mielofon.com/model/janet_jones/

...now where did I put that issue of Playboy?

capricorn · February 17, 2010

Sorry. I should have been clearer. As far as I'm concerned, no government funding should go into the Olympics, even if that means no Olympics.

Thank you for the clarification. Now I understand your point.

M.Dancer · February 17, 2010

...now where did I put that issue of Playboy?

I have always wondered about those who marry playboy center folds....aside from ruining a half decent jab....

Hey Wayne, do you have any naked pictures of your wife....oh....you do...and so does everyone else....nevermind

capricorn · February 17, 2010

French Voyageurs didn't populate my country, the one I live in.

Brits, Ukranians, Germans, Metis from Red River, a score of others, but not voyageurs.

They were travellers, not farmers.

I didn't say they alone populated the country. I said they had a role.

French voyageurs would travel into the hinterlands and trade with the natives. The voyageurs ranged throughout what is today Quebec, Ontario, and Manitoba trading guns, gun powder, textiles and other European manufacturing goods with the natives for furs.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_immigration_to_Canada

Quebecs feelings are hurt because they are not the center of attention for a couple of weeks.

Speaking strictly about the French content in the opening ceremonies, these hurt feelings have grown into complaints to the Commissioner of Official Languages.

Official Languages Commissioner Graham Fraser will launch an investigation into complaints about the lack of French in Friday's Olympic Opening Ceremonies in Vancouver.
During an interview on Power & Politics with Evan Solomon, Fraser said he received formal complaints "and that sets in process a formal process of investigation."

http://www.cbc.ca/politics/insidepolitics/2010/02/language-commissioner-probes-the-games.html

Language rights quarrels always lead to the same old stuff, including more work to keep bureaucrats busy.

capricorn · February 17, 2010

I knew this would happen as soon as the gold medal was won by Alexandre Bilodeau.

I'm sure this win emboldened the malcontents to raise their voices that Quebec was badly done by...again.

Wilber · February 17, 2010

I have zero problem with an athlete finding employment elsewhere. I just don't want our nation to be one of PR convience...There are dozens of people who would have made better torch bearers than the man who opposed a Canadian city getting a new NHL franchise...and whose children are yanks.

He wasn' my first choice either. Mine would have been Nancy Green. She was our first winter Olympic superstar and it was she and her husband that made Whistler one of the best ski resorts in the world. They are now doing the same thing with Sun Peaks near Kamloops.

Edited February 17, 2010 by Wilber

capricorn · February 17, 2010

He wasn' my first choice either.

Perhaps this choice was made to please the American market as well as his native country. Just a thought.

bush_cheney2004 · February 17, 2010

Perhaps this choice was made to please the American market as well as his native country. Just a thought.

Perhaps, but The Great One does not have that much of a following in the "American market" anymore....except when his wife gets busted or he is mismanaging hockey teams. It was VANOC's choice I guess...not Canada's...and certainly not the American's.

Wasn't there a voting contest sponsored by a domestic brewery?

August1991 · February 17, 2010

I don't take this stuff very seriously. Whenever I hear a Quebec or Federal politician beaking off about the lack of French somewhere, I take it as being primarily intended for a Quebec audience.

I heard someone today note (in French) that all the athletes walked into the stadium with signs in French, the games are after all in Vancouver and anyway, the first Canadian to win a gold medal was French-speaking from Quebec. Some people will complain.

You can include me among the complainers. I watched part of the opening ceremony and I found it so boring (fake snow? Donald Sutherland?) that I turned it off and did laundry instead. It was unoriginal and parochial. IMV, there should have been more French for the simple reason that Radio-Canada has better production values than the CBC. And the opening ceremony reminded me of bad CBC.

Wilber · February 17, 2010

I heard someone today note (in French) that all the athletes walked into the stadium with signs in French, the games are after all in Vancouver and anyway, the first Canadian to win a gold medal was French-speaking from Quebec. Some people will complain.

Yes they will. I'm just making the observation that complaints about the lack of French are primarily intended for a Quebec audience, as complaints about too much French are intended for a non Quebec audience. I don't think I am wrong and it's a shame really. Is it just an impression left by those with an axe to grind or are we more and more becoming a nation of bitchers incapable of enjoying the moment?

I'm headed into Vancouver tomorrow to enjoy the moment. In spite of all the weather difficulties and other glitches, folks I know who have been there say the atmosphere downtown is fantastic.

Battletoads · February 17, 2010

Is there anything the french won't cry about? This is BC more people speak native german than french.

robert_viera · February 17, 2010

Is there anything the french won't cry about? This is BC more people speak native german than french.

I wasn't aware that James Moore was French?

William Ashley · February 17, 2010

There are actually people who speak french who live outside of Quebec, if you didn't know. There are large populations of french speaking people in New Brunswick as well as Ontario to name a few.

Personally I enjoy French more than English.

Who the hell cares if people in BC speak french did the so said 13 million canadians matter.. what about the rest of the world.. there are a hella lot of countries that speak french... the olympics is an officially bilingual organization.. Canada is an officially bilingual nation..

just cause the thing was in BC doesn't mean only BC matters. While offering english matters.. it is not only in Vancouver it is in BC and in Canada and in the world.

The TV is invaded for a long time you don't think that you couldn't make it a little longer and better in both languages. For cripes sake people paid 1000$ a pop for it broadcast rights are billions around the world.

Edited February 17, 2010 by William Ashley

Oleg Bach · February 17, 2010

Lets just slam a luge victim into a pillar of steel and march the corpse down the highway of heors...then meddle with the corpse and see what killed him. Human sacrifice dos not have to be intentional. Occultism is a secret subconscious sport for the powerful and confused. As fo4 Fench ------kiss my butt..you pushy extortive bastards.

Wilber · February 17, 2010

Is there anything the french won't cry about? This is BC more people speak native german than french.

And a lot more speak Chinese and Punjabi than German but so what. Think about it, the first man to win gold on Canadian soil, from Quebec, the first woman, from the west. Turned out rather well I think.

Leafless · February 17, 2010

Again, this issue has absolutely zilch to do with Canada. French took precedence over Mandarin at the Beijing Olympics too. This has to do with IOC rules, and quite frankly I doubt the IOC has studied Canada's language issues in detail.

Sorry Macho, it has a lot to do with Canada, especially with Graham encouraging 20 federal departments and agencies to put linguistic pressure on VANOC relating to the use of the French language.

This started back in Dec. 2008.

Fraser wrote his first report warning about serious limitations in the amount of French at the Olympics in December, 2008. He had meetings with 20 federal departments and agencies to encourage them to make French part of the experience of francophone visitors to the Olympics. “And a lot of them really stepped up to the plate,” he said. “I fully recognize that VANOC put a lot of effort into improving the infrastructure.” Cable companies put “a huge effort” into ensuring that coverage is available coast-to-coast through CPAC, Fraser said. “And that deserves to be recognized.”

http://www2.macleans.ca/2010/02/14/welcome-to-the-olympics-come-look-at-the-francophones/

Fraser should get more acquainted with Quebec and go and practice his vocation over there.

Leafless · February 17, 2010

BTW, I was mostly statisfied with the place of the French language in the ceremony. I wouldn't be surprised if you turned red everytime you heard some French on Friday night.

I really never got to that point Canadien. I watched only about the first 5 minutes of it before switching over to my favourite U.S political news channel.

Besides watching freaks of nature compete in snow and ice (mud and rain) is not really my bag.

I would sooner enjoy reading a good book or watch a good movie with a couple of cold ones.

CANADIEN · February 17, 2010

From your point of view I suppose but not necessarily others.

But then, unlike French-speaking Canadians outside quebec or English-speaking Canadians in Quebec, the "others" usually don't have problems getting federal government services in the Canadian language of their choice in the manner set up by law.

CANADIEN · February 17, 2010

French is represented very little in BC, if it is represented at all. Vancouver has a half white population, with Asians taking up most of the rest, and a very small black/middle east population. The french people in Canada reside in Quebec and Ontario. NS and NB.

Actually, the French people live in France. French-speaking people in Canada live in each and every province and territory.

The less french the better in my view.

Better learn to use your cereal box with your eyes closed then.

As a Canadian my time is dually wasted with a French and English version of the same damn speech.

As a Canadian I have noticed that very few speeches are the same in English and French. As for waste... your whining is a waste of good tissues that could be put to better use.