Tax dollars now for the Francophonie

[taxme]

5 hours ago, jbg said:

Not mine. I pay my tax dollars to B. Hussein Obama.

 

That is even worse. So, just how are you going to pay off that 19 trillion dollar debt that Obama has got you up too now? It sure looks like Obama must have took a lot of your taxes and had fun blowing it.  

[jbg]

3 hours ago, taxme said:

That is even worse. So, just how are you going to pay off that 19 trillion dollar debt that Obama has got you up too now? It sure looks like Obama must have took a lot of your taxes and had fun blowing it.  

Not arguing with you but this thread is about Justin and the Francophonie, not Obama. I was just pointing out that I was posting as an interested and horrified observer.

[Benz]

14 hours ago, -1=e^ipi said:

By that logic, health care should be a municipal responsibility. Because what if Montreal wanted higher standards than Quebec city?

 

Yes, it would all be wonderful if everyone agreed on everything and we all came to a consensus. But in reality, there is political disagreement. That is why we have a democracy, cause you aren't going to get 100% of everyone to agree on everything.

 

So you want a system that has irrational preference for the status quo and makes it very difficult to change bad policy?

 

Like what? Move towards a European health care system, which tends to perform better than the Canadian health care systems? Oh the horror! Lower wait times!

 

Look, the main issue isn't about a more privatized vs a more communal health care system. The issue is that you cannot coordinate health and economic policy effectively.

And with your logic, why not have no provinces, no cities, just one mega government? I understand that it makes no sense to you because you see this federation as only one nation from coast to coast. You and me are not from the same nation. That is why I need this federation to have the flexibility to do things differentely on some subjects. There are subjects that I do not mind about the fact Québec must accept the choice of the majority and there are other subjects I don't. Anything that regards the federal, we must accept the choice of the majority. If the federal choose to increase the spend in military and we do not agree, too bad for us. On other subjects like education, it's the contrary. That is why I do not like duplication of powers. That said, it is not impossible that I will eventually change my mind if the provinces are always heading in the same direction regarding the health care. That is not what I have seen so far. We are not there yet.

Regarding your benchmark with the European style, you are changing subject. We are talking about who owns the power, who has the last say. Not the content. I am also interested in the success of the Europeans with the health care system. I know France is doing much better than us.

 

[Benz]

12 hours ago, Army Guy said:

Not sure where all this anger comes from, Benz you seem to think ALL English people are against you and the French culture....it is simply not true....maybe you , and Quebec should take a page from NB history....you know Canada's only Bilingual province.....where the French school districts have been up and running for decades....Here in NB the whole education school system is under attack, and it is the first place they look to make cuts....both French and English schools have suffered losses...

But we , in NB are not whining and complaining that the world is out to destroy us....New Brunswick is leading by example , hoping that someone will follow instead Quebec declares itself unilingual and blaming their lost culture and language on the English pig dogs .....how is that working out for you....making any progress, gaining any sympathy in English Canada Sorry to break it to you but we live in a nation Called Canada....not Quebec or anything else, Canada....and we are all Canadians....regardless of what people want to call themselves in Quebec......

Now had the French been successful on the plains of Abraham, things might be different ...So now you have to play the cards you've been dealt.....

What anger? I had more anger 25 years ago when all that was new for me. I am now zen about it. I just say the things the way they are. I also make a clear distinction between the people and the politicians. If you have trouble with the facts I expose, then argue about the facts. 

From what I see regarding your impression about me, you did not understand anything of what I am saying.

It's working not bad for us thank you. Our language policies are doing the minimum and it is working, even if it is not perfect. Compared to all other enlgish provinces, NB is an example to follow. The cohabitation is going correct and problems are minor. I have seen some stupid retarded unilingual english whinning about how unfair it is for them to not get a job at the state, like if they deserve the advantage to stay unilingual for a federal job while the french still have to be bilingual, but it looks like just a small marginal number. Not much to worry about, when compared to what we have seen in the past. Still, the ratio of french is still declining. Maybe there is still something to fix. But that is NB. The situation is different else where in Canada. You do know that the Acadiens were in PEI and NS as well and for over a century. Do you think it is normal that they had to wait until 2009 to get their first school? Do you think it is normal that in some province, the french has to use the supreme court to get schools? You are the one blaming me that I am whining. ok then, explain me how normal it is for french to wait a century and spend their money at the supreme court to send kids to school. Every time you will try to look elsewhere, I will bring back your nose into your own shit. You want a Canada that we are both feeling home and respected the way we are... so do I.

You will not tell me what are the rules of your game. It's not acceptable. We have to agree on the rules in the first place, then we can play that game. If you do not undersand that, we quit. Plain and simple. Québec is a nation. Deal with it. Either we share this federation, or we do our things without you.

I know that you do not like my tone. I know that in your mind, you have good faith and you want to be nice. So the way I talk to you, it makes you think that I just want to fight and entertain conflicts. It is true that I let show my frustration sometimes. Open your mind and understand that if you really care, you will do an effort to be in someone's shoes. (french expression that I am not sure if it could have the same impact in english).

Sometimes, the best way to find an agreement, it is to start everything from scratch and from a people point of view. Not from the politicians' interests. Do not get offended when I say that my nation and yours are two different ones. I like the english canadians and the province I like the most to visit is NB. What do you know about my culture? french music, french tv, french movie, french artist? Do you have the answer to the 1963 question What does Québec want? French and English have a very different understanding of what Canada should be. Accusing the other one of whining won't solve anything. In my understanding, it is very feasible to share the same federation and we have alot in common to do so, even if we are different. If you prefer limiting yourself by judging me as just a whiner, then assume the consequences dude.

[-1=e^ipi]

3 hours ago, Benz said:

And with your logic, why not have no provinces, no cities, just one mega government?

That doesn't sound like a bad idea, to be honest. I think Vietnam or some south-east Asian country has the government appoint people to deal with municipal issues rather than have municipal elections. That sounds like a better approach as you could generally get more competent people to deal with municipal issues (those with the correct academic background and experience) and also coordinate municipal and national policy.

I understand that it makes no sense to you because you see this federation as only one nation from coast to coast.

I don't really care about seeing this federation as one nation or not. I just care about having good policy. And coordinating economic, educational, health and environmental policy makes sense regardless of if you want a socialist or libertarian government.

3 hours ago, Benz said:

On other subjects like education, it's the contrary.

How about environmental policy, especially with respect to CO2 emissions?

The current situation in Canada is crazy. You have Ontario and Quebec with inefficient cap-and-trade systems, some provinces (including Ontario) approach the issue with inefficient 'regulatory approaches', BC and now Alberta taxing CO2 emissions, and then a few provinces and territories refusing to do anything.

There should be a single national Pigouvian tax on CO2 emissions, and other CO2 reduction policy like regulatory approaches should be abolished because they are not as cost-effective. Preferably there should be a single global Pigouvian tax.

[Benz]

15 hours ago, hernanday said:

No.  Do you care about a the language of a province in tajikistan?  No, because it is not in Canada.

That is what I said. You do not care about the people. You only care about the political structures.

15 hours ago, hernanday said:

Part of this is a money issue, many English provinces have strapped education budgets.  We have lots of issues. We have kids in grade 10 who studied only English, born in Canada, and still are getting nothing but C's and D's.  And we are suppose to add on a language to these students who cannot pass the only language they know? We should eliminate French really except for those who want to learn in French, most kids in Ontario could benefit more from learning other important skills that really matter to them like Math and writing, reading ENGLISH.  Out of a class of 30 kids, only 2-3 mainly females even care about it, for most kids in Ontario French class is a time to goof off and not pay attention because who cares you'll never use it.

Teachers in Ontario spend alot of time just dealing with discipline issues.  Mainy of the kids are unruly, have no respect for the teachers, the parents do not teach them any respect or education and since they are just waiting to inherit grandpas farm they feel education doesn't matter, they just want to be on their phone in class all day.  In many schools in Ontario you have a 30-40% drop out rate, maybe just a couple of kids will go to university.  Many of them have real problems by high school in their home lives, French is literally the last thing on their mind.  I could think that an extra hour of math, writing, tech help etc or even homework would be more useful

For whatever reason, it is much harder for an English speaker to learn a second language than most other groups.  I seen it throughout Europe as well.  Multilingualism is very common throughout much of Europe but then you get to England, and for native born English, multilingualism is rare compared to the rest of Europe.  It may simply just be harder to go from a unique language like English which has no real close relatives to french than vice versa.  Also American media is globally dominant, so it gives a big advantage to anyone learning English than vice versa.  Throw on the general lack of exposure in English environments of French speakers and then that might be why.  I've never met a native born English speaker who managed to attain any real level of proficiency in french (without coming from a french background or family) who has done this just through school as the article describes.

We have moreless the same issues here. Regarding the second language, I honestly do not know why the english kids are less skilled than ay other one on earth. Maybe it has something to do with the grammar rules in english are more sloppy and simplistic than any others and then they get lazy habits. Or maybe the english give a lower interest for mass education? I doubt it. The anglos here are doing very well with bilinguism. One would think it is because they live among french, but alot of anglos have no clues about french culture. I think it could be an interesting topic to study.

15 hours ago, hernanday said:

French did not find this country and neither did English, there were millions of people living here before either group arrived and the vikings came here before them from Europe as did plenty of other groups.   French are immigrants from a foreign country (France) and they are a minority compared to the English speakers in the nation.  Tell me where has french been banned, preferably with links, because it sounds absurd  to me, I never read it anywhere, not even as a conspiracy theory.  Manitoba was occupied by metis, yes many french speakers and people i'd imagine as well.  Ok, so the English did to the French what the French did to the Indians and the Indians did that to the paleo-indians.  The history of Canada is one of migration, French is gone in Manitoba and is never coming back, forget about it.  I consider French people Canadians, equal among all others.  You want a special spot for French, they are not special, they are just like the Italians, the portuguese, or the chinese, or indians, native indians or africans in my mind.  Canadian comes from the indians kanata or meeting place, not the french.  The Indians and paleo indians founded the country, they were here first.  French were one of the later immigrant groups after the English, Indians, africans and Scottish.  Ojibway is in the same group with French, makes no damn difference to 99% of Anglophone Canada, get that through your thick head.  Who cares what the majority think in China and India (the majority).  

Get a grip. Earlier you said that you do not care about what is going on in another country. Only the country entity matters. Now you do the other way around. Who found the actual country named Canada? Vikings? Apaches? Tamils? Next year is the 150th anniversary of its foundation by the way. English, French and Natives. Or if you prefer, Ontario, Québec, NB and NS.

You want to know about how the french was banned from public schools in some provinces? Such as the Thornton Bill (Official language act)? Here you go:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_policies_of_Canada's_provinces_and_territories

More details on this one, take your time and read it:

http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/manitoba-schools-question/

When Manitoba joined Canada, the number of french and english was almost the same. Then look at what they did. That is a cultural genocide. So, still thinking it is a consipirational theory? You will have to admit that what you have been told is not true. History is waiting for you to discover it. French did not do the indians what the english did. French and natives were married, they were Metis.

Keep thinking that the french and the natives are just immigrants like italians and sikhs. Do not whine after if we separate.

15 hours ago, hernanday said:

 English is good enough, it is the world language and all civilized people must learn it.

It is when I read things like that, that I regret to have learn english. I'd rather be a savage than being a civilized person by your standards.

15 hours ago, hernanday said:

White negros, that is some racist language you got there. And before 1759 you were slaving and right after it.

Actually, I got it wrong. It is White Nigger. This how some british used to call the irish and the french in Canada. I did not invent it.

 

 

15 hours ago, hernanday said:

 French Canadians were major slavers!

" Historian Marcel Trudel recorded approximately 4000 slaves by the end of New France in 1759, of which 2,472 were aboriginal people, and 1,132 blacks. After the Conquest of New France by the British, slave ownership remained dominated by the French. Marcel Trudel identified 1509 slave owners, which only 181 were English.^[14] Trudel also noted 31 marriages took place between French colonists and Aboriginal slaves. "

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_Canada

And of course you want us to forget those slave you had in Haiti and Louisana aka new france.

"

In Quebec, slaves were mostly either Black or Indigenous people, with Black slaves being more 'rare' and 'valuable.' - See more at: http://www.mcgilldaily.com/race/SlaveryInCanada.html#sthash.rawoI5fr.dpuf

In Montreal, one of the more famous slave owners was James McGill himself, the founder of our university. The University commonly refers to him simply as a successful fur trader, but in fact, James McGill, a member of Montreal's business elite, owned four or five personal slaves.

In her soon-to-be released book, Slavery, Geography and Empire in Nineteenth-Century Marine Landscapes of Montreal and Jamaica, Charmaine Nelson, a professor of art history at McGill, examines how James McGill's business relied on slave labour.

- See more at: http://www.mcgilldaily.com/race/SlaveryInCanada.html#sthash.rawoI5fr.dpuf

 

"  In fact, 85 per cent of Mr. Trudel’s confirmed owners were francophones, and the Quebec slave trade was well established before Wolfe met Montcalm. Nobody could refute Mr. Trudel’s careful research, so he was ostracized professionally, and in 1965 left his post at the University of Laval for a less frosty berth at the University of Ottawa. "

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/200-years-a-slave-the-dark-history-of-captivity-in-canada/article17178374/

The French LOVED slavery,  in Quebec, Louisana, Haiti, etc.

The work of Marcel Trudel is very controversy because, unlike what you say, he has been refuted. Neverthenless, he did discover that slavery existed, even if it was not as common as in the carrabeans. That is why he still gets some respects from the other historians, despite he did serious mistakes. He came with conclusions that just can't be true. The two famous ones are, he thinks when the french lost in 1759, it was a good thing for the french canadians, and that the union of lower and upper Canada was also a good thing according to him. The historical facts are showing the exact opposite. So there is alot of questionnable conclusions regarding Trudel. No body contest that he really did find slavery in New France. However, in his definition of slave, it includes someone who choose to work in exchange of a place to live and eat because it has no where else to go. That is a very loose and large definition. That is why most of the historians are saying "hmmm yeah but..." to his work.

I never said there were not slavery in Haïti and Louisiana, on the contrary. Read me again. Those were the places where the french were doing most of their slavery. I said there was not big slavery industry in New France because the people could not afford it. Before 1759, most of the slave were natives (Panis), not black africans. After that, the wealthy french went back to France and only the rest of the people stayed here. The conditions for french became very bad and they could not afford to have slaves. You name McGill. McGill is british-english. Do not tell me that you are about to change its identity and making him a french? There was slavery but, alot more among the english than the french. Not necessarely because the french did not want too, they could not afford it anyway. Until 1960's french were third class citizen in Québec. The Révolution Tranquille changed the danymic and since the 80's/90's, the french are now having almost the same wealth standards as the english.

 

15 hours ago, hernanday said:

French canadians did not find Canada, paleo-indians were the first people here, they found Canada, Indians were the ones who named this place Kanata.  All Canadians deserve public schools for their language and needs.  All people are equal.  Canada is a nation of immigrants, we are all foreigners and we are all canadians, there is no tier rankings of Canadians.  A Chinese guy who just got his citizenship, is just as Canadian as you and has just as much language rights as you.  we cannot put discrimination into law.

You are saying that you have no problem to give PUBLIC schools to foreigners coming here in a not official language. Please confirm.

15 hours ago, hernanday said:

The french did not request the school in 1999 and were spread out so they got none.  Why should they get an empty building with no people in it!

The French and English are not founding nations of anywhere except England and France.  The Indians were here first, the paleo-indians the very first.  They are the founder.  Everyone else, French, English, German Scottish Viking whatever is an immigrant.

Indians are in India. The only indians here, are coming from Indian throught immigration. It's about time you stop searching the passage to India, it is at the other side of the world. You are cold. The aboriginals are coming from east asia.

So you think the french were not enough french? A simple search helped me found that in 1830, there were 10 french schools and  13 in 1854.

http://www.axl.cefan.ulaval.ca/amnord/ilepe.htm

En 1873, la population de la province était alors de 94 021 habitants et était surtout constituée de Britanniques, d'Irlandais, d'Écossais et d'Acadiens (Tignish, Malpèque, Rustico et Baie-de-Fortune). Le recensement officiel de 1881 révélait une population de 108 891 habitants, dont 10 751 Acadiens, soit 10 % de la population.

Spread? So you think the french spead? They did everything to erase the french culture. It survived despite alot of assimilation.

[taxme]

3 hours ago, Benz said:

What anger? I had more anger 25 years ago when all that was new for me. I am now zen about it. I just say the things the way they are. I also make a clear distinction between the people and the politicians. If you have trouble with the facts I expose, then argue about the facts. 

From what I see regarding your impression about me, you did not understand anything of what I am saying.

It's working not bad for us thank you. Our language policies are doing the minimum and it is working, even if it is not perfect. Compared to all other enlgish provinces, NB is an example to follow. The cohabitation is going correct and problems are minor. I have seen some stupid retarded unilingual english whinning about how unfair it is for them to not get a job at the state, like if they deserve the advantage to stay unilingual for a federal job while the french still have to be bilingual, but it looks like just a small marginal number. Not much to worry about, when compared to what we have seen in the past. Still, the ratio of french is still declining. Maybe there is still something to fix. But that is NB. The situation is different else where in Canada. You do know that the Acadiens were in PEI and NS as well and for over a century. Do you think it is normal that they had to wait until 2009 to get their first school? Do you think it is normal that in some province, the french has to use the supreme court to get schools? You are the one blaming me that I am whining. ok then, explain me how normal it is for french to wait a century and spend their money at the supreme court to send kids to school. Every time you will try to look elsewhere, I will bring back your nose into your own shit. You want a Canada that we are both feeling home and respected the way we are... so do I.

You will not tell me what are the rules of your game. It's not acceptable. We have to agree on the rules in the first place, then we can play that game. If you do not undersand that, we quit. Plain and simple. Québec is a nation. Deal with it. Either we share this federation, or we do our things without you.

I know that you do not like my tone. I know that in your mind, you have good faith and you want to be nice. So the way I talk to you, it makes you think that I just want to fight and entertain conflicts. It is true that I let show my frustration sometimes. Open your mind and understand that if you really care, you will do an effort to be in someone's shoes. (french expression that I am not sure if it could have the same impact in english).

Sometimes, the best way to find an agreement, it is to start everything from scratch and from a people point of view. Not from the politicians' interests. Do not get offended when I say that my nation and yours are two different ones. I like the english canadians and the province I like the most to visit is NB. What do you know about my culture? french music, french tv, french movie, french artist? Do you have the answer to the 1963 question What does Québec want? French and English have a very different understanding of what Canada should be. Accusing the other one of whining won't solve anything. In my understanding, it is very feasible to share the same federation and we have alot in common to do so, even if we are different. If you prefer limiting yourself by judging me as just a whiner, then assume the consequences dude.

I think that the Battle on the Plains of Abraham, and the British that won that battle, should tell you that Anglophones should not have to speak french to get a job in the Federal.  government. If a country wins a war with another country then the spoils go to the victor, and not the other way around as we see happening in Canada today. Quebec should be told to become bilingual or else actions should be taken by the federal government. Quebec has no right to call itself a unilingual french speaking province. No other province in Canada has done this, and declared themselves unilingual English although they do have the right to do so if they so choose. The french have got way more than what they should have been given. They should be thankful that Quebec was not forced to become bilingual. Quebec is lucky that the Anglophone gutless leaders in Ottawa didn't have the rocks enough to tell Quebec to go bilingual or else. How can a province that is bordered by English Canada and the English America, and doesn't even have the decency to put up highway traffic signs in both languages for those that speak and understand English only. Even though Ontario and NB have done this to appease Quebec as usual. Quebec whines, and the Anglos give in. Shocking indeed.     

[taxme]

On 11/30/2016 at 1:23 PM, Benz said:

Yes. But you said that Québec is unilingual, which is not the same thing. Saskatchewan has NO official language. Neither english, nor french are banned. Having French as the unique official language in Québec, does not mean that english has not some recognition. The Official language act of Canada still apply as well and we are ok with that. You get confused between official status and unicity. Despite english is not an official language for the Quebec state, it does have other official recognitions. For instance, education and administration. Even if Québec separates completely, those rights won't vanish because they are in Quebec's rules.

 

You are answering yourself. Maybe it's my understanding of english language that is poor, but first you say that you never said useless, then the next line you say it is useless. It is pretty much contradictory to me. Can you say it in french?

We observe the same thing here or anywhere else in the world regarding the learning . Just teaching it in a class is not enough. Immersions are necessary to stand still the language skill.

Please show me your studies. They are in contradictions with everything else I have seen so far.

I did not mention anything about it. I was talking about the french having problems to access french schools. But I already answered your question. There are alot of things that are taught to children and that won't be useful for them later, or at best just few of them. A second language is often one of them. If you think it is not a good thing for your kids to learn a language, even if the odds are very high that they will eventually lose it, that is another issue. Even if I do not desagree with your numbers, I believe you are wrong. But I see it as a different topic and the link with french is just a matter of context.

See, that is what I am saying to Taxme as well. Look at yourself in the mirror. You allow Franco-Ontarians to have french schools and services, but you do not do it for them. You are doing it for Québec. It means you have no respect for them, you only do it because Québec has a bigger balance of power. Your reasonning says alot about you. No wonder they constantly have to fight over and over. You let it go only when Québec roars. So much for the recognition of the minorities.

I dare you to prove it. I know alot of english medias are telling you that we are the worst nazis in the history. But when you look for yourself, you will see there is nothing true in that crapt. All the aboriginals of Canada are using the agreements we had with the Crees and the Innus as a reference of good relations. It is in Québec that the people have the highest respectful opinion of aboriginals according to Léger & Léger. If you really think that we treat badly the arabs and chineses and blacks, be my guess and prove it. Any worst than Ontario? The Globe and Mail said that the killer of Dawson did it because of the language laws, even if the killer has written a letter explaining why and never been even close to refer to it. Your medias are capable of the worst when it comes to lie about us and misinformation. Go, I dare you to prove your assertions.

I am going to have to retract myself a little bit. Because by doing some research yesterday, I discovered that PEI now has 6 schools. That is VERY RECENT and I was not aware of it. Like I said, they won a judgement in 2000. Before that, they had no french schools, despite they were living there from the very beginning. Causing alot of assimilation and the lost of language. That is a cultural genocide. The reason was always the same. They pretended that there were not enough french, which of course that was no true. After they won at the supreme court, they finally got few trailer parks schools until they build the schools. Very crowded tiny places with disgusting conditions. The first schools were ready in 2009. Think about it, a community that finally got schools so late in their history. So it has been 7 years that they finally got their schools. I found a site saying that there are still some french communities without schools but, I will hold my breath until I find more reliable sources. I will just admit these are very good news and it is not as worst as it once was, not so long ago. Why bitterness? Because it is not normal that they had to fight so hard to get something that is suppose to ne so essential.

My answer to that is the same as the previous one. You have no respect for french canadians. You only tolerate them because there is a big member that you fear. Once we are out, you think you can wipe their rights away. I will tell you what it means for us in Québec. The day you will feel that you no longer fear us, you will trash or rights as well.

By the way, according to your impeccable logic, we should no longer give our english any special status because the immigrants are now more than them.

It seems that the english here are not listening to you or do not understand the message. Repeat it out loud. I doubt very much that most of Canadians are like you. For the majority, it's not a problem to recognize that this country has been founded by two major ethnic groups, plus the natives and all should have recognitions where they are in minorities. If you really care about your tax money, then why do you choose corrupted governments like that all the time. Why do you allow duplication? Why being so easy for tax invasions? check up with your priorities.

 

One day provinces may have too or should declare themselves unilingual English speaking only today. There are too many languages that are being allowed to put up business and other signs in foreign languages. Why is this happening? English only should be the official language of this country. If someone immigrates too Canada they should be putting up signs in English only. They left their country and moved to a country that speaks English, and they should be happy that they are here, and show it. To be putting up signs in another language of another country offends me. I would not go to another country and put up a sign in English. There are some businesses here in Canada that have foreign  languages only in the countries that they came from. This is what bilingualism and now multiculturalism has done? Telling new immigrants that they need not learn the English language, the stupid Anglophones will cater to you and your language, and they will help pay for it. Enough already. 

[Benz]

1 hour ago, -1=e^ipi said:

That doesn't sound like a bad idea, to be honest. I think Vietnam or some south-east Asian country has the government appoint people to deal with municipal issues rather than have municipal elections. That sounds like a better approach as you could generally get more competent people to deal with municipal issues (those with the correct academic background and experience) and also coordinate municipal and national policy.

I don't really care about seeing this federation as one nation or not. I just care about having good policy. And coordinating economic, educational, health and environmental policy makes sense regardless of if you want a socialist or libertarian government.

 

How about environmental policy, especially with respect to CO2 emissions?

The current situation in Canada is crazy. You have Ontario and Quebec with inefficient cap-and-trade systems, some provinces (including Ontario) approach the issue with inefficient 'regulatory approaches', BC and now Alberta taxing CO2 emissions, and then a few provinces and territories refusing to do anything.

There should be a single national Pigouvian tax on CO2 emissions, and other CO2 reduction policy like regulatory approaches should be abolished because they are not as cost-effective. Preferably there should be a single global Pigouvian tax.

Ishh, although sometimes you can see a city management so terrible that the government should do a take over, I think local management for local matters is much better. I agree though that for an economic development have much chances to get a better management to a upper level than just the city itself. There are still needs to have cities and elected mayors. So I desagree.

Policies can be different from one nation to another. We have to respect that. It should not be a one size fit all. We can learn from each others instead of always to fight which one will be the master. I will give you an example. The anglos thinks that a good way to promote education, is to give sponsorship to the best students. The francos prefer to give equal chances to all students. Less elitist. There are goodies and baddies to both. It depends on what you prefer. It is pointless to force one nation to do like the other one.

For environment, you are right. It is actually a mess.

I will give you an example of how the federation really not works for Québec. Ottawa gives 2 billions per year for the nuclear program in Ontario and another 2 billions per year for Bituminous sand. How much for Hydro-Québec? Nothing!. Ok well, some provinces need it more than others I guess. Then you have TNF that wants the federal to help them to develop a very expensive line to bypass Québec and access the maritimes and american markets. When we say wait, why not using the same money to improve the actual existing Québec network and give same access to NFL instead? It would be less expensive and a win-win for everyone. NOPE! It's one for all and all against one. The rest of Canada team up to help NFL do an unfair competition against us. What a nice partnership! What a nice attitude. Canada scores in his own net. clap clap!

[-1=e^ipi]

2 minutes ago, Benz said:

There are still needs to have cities and elected mayors. So I desagree.

You didn't really explain why you disagree.

 

2 minutes ago, Benz said:

I will give you an example of how the federation really not works for Québec. Ottawa gives 2 billions per year for the nuclear program in Ontario and another 2 billions per year for Bituminous sand. How much for Hydro-Québec? Nothing!. Ok well, some provinces need it more than others I guess.

Wait, you are complaining about the overall transfer of money from the position of Quebec, when Quebec overwhelmingly is a net receiver in terms of transfer payments and equalization? Really?

 

3 minutes ago, Benz said:

The anglos thinks that a good way to promote education, is to give sponsorship to the best students. The francos prefer to give equal chances to all students.

This is a generalization. Some francophones prefer financial incentives, some anglophones do not. Not all people of 'one nation' think alike.

[Benz]

30 minutes ago, taxme said:

I think that the Battle on the Plains of Abraham, and the British that won that battle, should tell you that Anglophones should not have to speak french to get a job in the Federal.  government. If a country wins a war with another country then the spoils go to the victor, and not the other way around as we see happening in Canada today. Quebec should be told to become bilingual or else actions should be taken by the federal government. Quebec has no right to call itself a unilingual french speaking province. No other province in Canada has done this, and declared themselves unilingual English although they do have the right to do so if they so choose. The french have got way more than what they should have been given. They should be thankful that Quebec was not forced to become bilingual. Quebec is lucky that the Anglophone gutless leaders in Ottawa didn't have the rocks enough to tell Quebec to go bilingual or else. How can a province that is bordered by English Canada and the English America, and doesn't even have the decency to put up highway traffic signs in both languages for those that speak and understand English only. Even though Ontario and NB have done this to appease Quebec as usual. Quebec whines, and the Anglos give in. Shocking indeed.     

Stop talking, take your guns and come attack us. Your ancestors tried to make us lose our languages. Durham did a report about that. But you failed. You are a loser. You fail, that is what you do. Even when the british had the strongest army in the world, they failed to erased the french presence in north america. They almost succeed outside Québec but, here, you could not. Even if we did not have an army, you kept failing over and over.

I think that if you come live here, your life expectency will drop seriously. Because he you cannot figure out the french signs on highways, I do not think you have enough skill to survive by your own. Vitesse Maximum 100, Traveaux with a pit sand image and a shovel, OMG, OMG, OMG, OMG... what does it mean? I am sooo going to die!

[-1=e^ipi]

2 minutes ago, Benz said:

I think that if you come live here, your life expectency will drop seriously. Because he you cannot figure out the french signs on highways, I do not think you have enough skill to survive by your own. Vitesse Maximum 100, Traveaux

In all seriousness, this is serious issue. Not just with Canadians coming to visit Quebec, but also for American tourists. If you have people that can't read traffic signs, then you have a higher chance of car accidents. Take Ottawa, it has bilingual traffic signs. Gatineau on the other hand is mostly unilingual. I guess nationalism trumps safety in Quebec.

[Benz]

4 minutes ago, -1=e^ipi said:

You didn't really explain why you disagree.

 

Wait, you are complaining about the overall transfer of money from the position of Quebec, when Quebec overwhelmingly is a net receiver in terms of transfer payments and equalization? Really?

 

This is a generalization. Some francophones prefer financial incentives, some anglophones do not. Not all people of 'one nation' think alike.

When you are far from a context, the chances that you won't understand the problematic is higher. For a very local matter, local people have better chances to take better decisions. However, even if it is often true, it is not always true.

If the federal cuts all those programs, Québec will win. Well, I admit that when the oil barrel cost was much higher, Québec recieved more than it gave. It's not the case today and prior to that. We recieve 5 billions from equalization but we lose at every thing else, at the end of the day, it is the same. I prefer having my fair share on the other programs and less in the equalization. Why do you choose to ignore the argument I made?

I understand that some anglos prefer our way and some francos prefer your way. but I have to deal with what was the final choice. This is what you do with the money, we do something different. but yes, you are right, there are exceptions on both sides.

[taxme]

23 minutes ago, Benz said:

Stop talking, take your guns and come attack us. Your ancestors tried to make us lose our languages. Durham did a report about that. But you failed. You are a loser. You fail, that is what you do. Even when the british had the strongest army in the world, they failed to erased the french presence in north america. They almost succeed outside Québec but, here, you could not. Even if we did not have an army, you kept failing over and over.

I think that if you come live here, your life expectency will drop seriously. Because he you cannot figure out the french signs on highways, I do not think you have enough skill to survive by your own. Vitesse Maximum 100, Traveaux with a pit sand image and a shovel, OMG, OMG, OMG, OMG... what does it mean? I am sooo going to die!

The British beat the french on the Plains of Abraham and the french cannot accept that fact. The french are great at whining and drinking and partying. It was the stupid British that let the french keep their language, and culture. Learn your history. You should all be speaking English as your one and only official language. And yet the Anglophones get no credit for this. It is for sure that if France had won the war all of Canada would have become a french speaking country and we would all be speaking french today. Thank gawd that they didn't because we see how they treat the Anglophones and their English langauge. if french were denied any french rights in the rest of Canada, it would be treated as bigotry and anti-french. Live with that.    

[-1=e^ipi]

" For a very local matter, local people have better chances to take better decisions. However, even if it is often true, it is not always true. "

 

I never said local people should deal with local issues. But it may be better to have the federal government appoint those local people instead of having local elections (which, let's face it, the majority of people don't pay attention to, nor vote in). For example, it may make more sense to appoint people who have an educational background in cost-benefit analysis or municipal issues that makes them more effective at making good decisions

 

" It's not the case today and prior to that."

 

No, it certainly is the case, and has been that way since basically always. You have to take into account contributions by the taxpayers of provinces to federal revenue. Despite Alberta having half the population of Quebec, it contributes about the same to federal government revenue. As a result, there is significant transfer of wealth from Alberta to Quebec. BC has also been historically a net contributor, which the maritime provinces have historically been net recipients. For example, in 2009, Alberta paid $14 billion more in taxes to the government than it received in expenditure, where as Quebec received $16 billion more in expenditure than it contributed in taxes. By comparison, Quebec's equalization payments were $8 billion in that year.

http://thoughtundermined.com/2012/07/22/a-closer-look-at-federal-revenues-and-expenditures-by-province/

Edited December 2, 2016 by -1=e^ipi

[Benz]

4 minutes ago, -1=e^ipi said:

In all seriousness, this is serious issue. Not just with Canadians coming to visit Quebec, but also for American tourists. If you have people that can't read traffic signs, then you have a higher chance of car accidents. Take Ottawa, it has bilingual traffic signs. Gatineau on the other hand is mostly unilingual. I guess nationalism trumps safety in Quebec.

I am not stubborn. If you can provide me studies about that, I will be interested to read them.

Can you give an example of what we have on our roads that are not possible to figure out for a unilingual english speaking person?

If you see this new one, which exist only for few years, do you think it means that you might get photo snap by a pararazzi?

 

The accent on the E of this next one must be very confusing

 

EST is for Easter time of just East? So confusing.

Congestion on a yellow panel, with two yellow lights to warn me and Préparez-vous à arrêter... hmmm, let me try, Prepare ... oh no, I am so going to die.

 

What was the red octogonal sign is again? I never noticed before, I was just reading it when it was in english.

 

Ahh, that one is easy, it's a liberal road structure

 

Ouest is the new Est I think.

 

 

[Benz]

7 minutes ago, taxme said:

The British beat the french on the Plains of Abraham and the french cannot accept that fact. The french are great at whining and drinking and partying. It was the stupid British that let the french keep their language, and culture. Learn your history. You should all be speaking English as your one and only official language. And yet the Anglophones get no credit for this. It is for sure that if France had won the war all of Canada would have become a french speaking country and we would all be speaking french today. Thank gawd that they didn't because we see how they treat the Anglophones and their English langauge. if french were denied any french rights in the rest of Canada, it would be treated as bigotry and anti-french. Live with that.    

Bring us your best shot. Be careful of our Paté Chinois, there might be real chineses in it.

[-1=e^ipi]

I never said all unilingual signs are a problem, but the refusal to use bilingual signs in some cases probably does result in increase traffic accidents. For me, I can get by fine. But for say a friend from texas who recently travelled to Quebec for vacation... yeah it can be a problem. The Préparez-vous à arrêter sign, I seriously doubt my Texan friend would know what that means. Heck a fair number of English Canadians would not know what that means. A sign telling people to prepare to stop is very important and we have them to try to reduce traffic accidents. If people don't know what signs mean, that probably isn't good for road safety.

[-1=e^ipi]

Highway 720, yeah that sign is from Montreal. Signs like that should be billingual in places like Ottawa, Gatineau, Montreal, New Brunswick, etc. because you are in general going to have significant number of unilingual individuals (both French and English) driving on roads in these areas.

Unilingual signs make sense in Toronto, Quebec city, Calgary, etc. because the populations are relatively unilingual. But not everywhere is like that.

Heck, the population of primarily Chinese speakers in parts of Vancouver justifies bilingual English-Chinese signs.

[Benz]

3 minutes ago, -1=e^ipi said:

" For a very local matter, local people have better chances to take better decisions. However, even if it is often true, it is not always true. "

 

I never said local people should deal with local issues. But it may be better to have the federal government appoint those local people instead of having local elections (which, let's face it, the majority of people don't pay attention to, nor vote in). For example, it may make more sense to appoint people who have an educational background in cost-benefit analysis or municipal issues that makes them more effective at making good decisions

 

" It's not the case today and prior to that."

 

No it certainly is the case, and has been that way since basically always. You have to take into account contributions by the taxpayers of provinces to federal revenue. Despite Alberta having half the population of Quebec, it contributes about the same to federal government revenue. As a result, there is significant transfer of wealth from Alberta to Quebec. BC has also been historically a net contributor, which the maritime provinces have historically been net recipients. For example, in 2009, Alberta paid $14 billion more in taxes to the government than it received in expenditure, where as Quebec received $16 billion more in expenditure than it contributed in taxes. By comparison, Quebec's equalization payments were $8 billion in that year.

http://thoughtundermined.com/2012/07/22/a-closer-look-at-federal-revenues-and-expenditures-by-province/

Let the federal choose the local mayor? Look at the senetors the prime minister has choosen in the past 30 years and repeat that without laughing.

I told you and obviously, I have to repeat. I do not take consideration only the equalization program. It's not working like that. All federal programs must be considered. When we do the math for all programs, out of sudden, the amount given to Québec is not that big and before the barrel became very profitable, Québec was often in the givers side, even if the equalization was saying recipient.

Maritimes has always been the poor ones and the equalizatiion was barely compensating them.

Remember when NFL removed all the Canadian flags because they were angry at Ottawa regarding the oil income. Before that, NFL was the one to receive the biggest amount per capita of equalization. After the new deal where they finaly got the same treatment as Alberta, the equalization payment changed drastically. they are not always the recipient now.

I have nothing against the principle of the equalization. But you won't fool me. Equalization itself means nothing. Other federal programs must be considered if you want to know if you recieve or give.

[-1=e^ipi]

"Let the federal choose the local mayor? Look at the senetors the prime minister has choosen in the past 30 years and repeat that without laughing."

 

I never said appointed directly by the prime minister.

Administrators of municipal issues could be hired in the same way that the federal government hires people to run the civil service, be it environment Canada, our military, statistics Canada, etc. Municipal issues could basically become an extension of the civil service.

 

" I have nothing against the principle of the equalization. But you won't fool me. Equalization itself means nothing. Other federal programs must be considered if you want to know if you recieve or give."

 

True. But despite any ambiguity in the exact values, it is clear that some provinces (BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan) are currently net contributors and some provinces (Quebec, Nova Scotia, PEI, New Brunswick) are net recipients.

[?Impact]

The biggest problem with signs in Montreal is the bloody parking signs. You can have a short stretch of road with dozens of parking signs and it takes hours to figure out all the arrows, days of week, time of year, hours, handicapped only, local resident permit required, etc. to know if you can park, and for how long. It's almost impossible to read them while driving along, so you have to go hunting for a spot and then walk up and down the street reading a dozen or more signs before you know if you can park or not.

One of my pet peeves is the use of the dash '-' instead of a comma to separate a list of weekdays. There may be no parking on this side of the road on Mar-Jeu which means Tuesday & Thursday, not Tuesday thru Thursday. 

Edited December 2, 2016 by ?Impact

[Army Guy]

9 hours ago, Benz said:

What anger? I had more anger 25 years ago when all that was new for me. I am now zen about it. I just say the things the way they are. I also make a clear distinction between the people and the politicians. If you have trouble with the facts I expose, then argue about the facts. 

 

You got anger issues, over something that you and I or for that matter anyone else on this board does not have the ability to fix......your preaching to the wrong crowd....but to you anyone that is English is the right crowd....when all your doing is setting everyone on the defensive......all of us here are concerned about what is happening in our own worlds....not 1000 kms away......

Quote

From what I see regarding your impression about me, you did not understand anything of what I am saying.

My impression is your angry.....and your expressing this angry at a crowd who, can not do anything about it......

 

Quote

It's working not bad for us thank you. Our language policies are doing the minimum and it is working, even if it is not perfect.

French is dying.....here in NB they are having issues filling French only schools, because the French are no longer fluent in French.....and the numbers decline every year.....and it is not a Quebecois thing.....I mean really almost all the French from Quebec I've talked to don't even consider the Acadians French..... most of the time it is to enlarge French speaking numbers....but really Acadians don't speak French it is half French, half English, and half Maritimer....they don't fly the flue de lie.....they fly the Acadian flag or flag from France....

 

 

 

Quote

You do know that the Acadiens were in PEI and NS as well and for over a century. Do you think it is normal that they had to wait until 2009 to get their first school? Do you think it is normal that in some province, the french has to use the supreme court to get schools? You are the one blaming me that I am whining. ok then, explain me how normal it is for french to wait a century and spend their money at the supreme court to send kids to school. Every time you will try to look elsewhere, I will bring back your nose into your own shit. You want a Canada that we are both feeling home and respected the way we are... so do I.

WOW, once again with PEI, the smallest province in the nation, also one of the poorest.....where tax dollars only go so far, as they do not have the tax dollars Quebec has nor the population......SO while now in 2009 they have opened a French school, another WOW......to preserve the French language in a province that is 95% English.....now I bring this up because French is not the primary language nor is it the secondary language.....if you want a job in PEI you have to speak English.....not French, Chinese, Japanese ....but English.....just like in Quebec one has to speak French, or you don't work......If the Acadians wanted to preserve their French....they can home school their children, or move.....but at the end of the day, if they want to work in PEI, they learn English.........end of story.....now in PEI there is not much for work, one plants potatoes, fishes, or works at the fries factory....Not many NASA scientist come from PEI......or for that matter the entire maritimes.....SO while you feel slighted that it has taken 2 centuries to get a French school....it has come at a cost of something else......kind of hallow victory.....Maybe if Quebec is so concerned about it's culture declining you guys can help out in provinces like PEI....with some funding....I mean shit how much has Quebec stolen from New found land in electricity over the last 20 years.....

 

Quote

You will not tell me what are the rules of your game. It's not acceptable. We have to agree on the rules in the first place, then we can play that game. If you do not undersand that, we quit. Plain and simple.

Welcome to reality, just when everyone thinks they know the rules they change them.....not just for the French.....but for everyone......feel slighted by the government get in line because it is a long one....still have not even begun to fix the native issue yet, so it could be a while.... ....want Mr trudeau to say sorry Quebec on TV......buck up....rub some dirt on it like the rest of us do.....and get on with it....

 

Quote

Québec is a nation. Deal with it. Either we share this federation, or we do our things without you.

Quebec is a province.....that likes to think it is a nation.....your big dreamers, like everyone else in Canada.....separation is not just a French thing, the west has been looking at it for decades as well, they're tired of hauling our all asses around for all this time.....But for today Quebec is a province within Canada.....and while your at home call it what ever you like....but when we step out into reality it is a province.....one of many that makes up our great nation called Canada......

 

Quote

I know that you do not like my tone. I know that in your mind, you have good faith and you want to be nice. So the way I talk to you, it makes you think that I just want to fight and entertain conflicts. It is true that I let show my frustration sometimes. Open your mind and understand that if you really care, you will do an effort to be in someone's shoes. (french expression that I am not sure if it could have the same impact in english).

That's what I think that you do not want to discuss it, but rather fight over it.....because no one here can do anything about it....we all have something we don't like about our government.....Canada is far from perfect.....but I can tell you this.....there are plenty of worse places to be.....

 

 

 

[H10]

On 12/2/2016 at 4:03 PM, Benz said:

That is what I said. You do not care about the people. You only care about the political structures.

We have moreless the same issues here. Regarding the second language, I honestly do not know why the english kids are less skilled than ay other one on earth. Maybe it has something to do with the grammar rules in english are more sloppy and simplistic than any others and then they get lazy habits. Or maybe the english give a lower interest for mass education? I doubt it. The anglos here are doing very well with bilinguism. One would think it is because they live among french, but alot of anglos have no clues about french culture. I think it could be an interesting topic to study.

 

The ROC has no access to french speakers on a frequent enough basis to ever learn any meaningful amount of French.  They would not even understand you asking them to pass them a pencil.

 

 

On 12/2/2016 at 4:03 PM, Benz said:

Get a grip. Earlier you said that you do not care about what is going on in another country. Only the country entity matters. Now you do the other way around. Who found the actual country named Canada? Vikings? Apaches? Tamils? Next year is the 150th anniversary of its foundation by the way. English, French and Natives. Or if you prefer, Ontario, Québec, NB and NS.

 

Vikings, apaches were here before the English or French, get over it.  Also Quebec claims it is its own nation, so did you find the nation or make your own nation?  You cannot even lie properly.

 

 

On 12/2/2016 at 4:03 PM, Benz said:

You want to know about how the french was banned from public schools in some provinces? Such as the Thornton Bill (Official language act)? Here you go:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_policies_of_Canada's_provinces_and_territories

More details on this one, take your time and read it:

http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/manitoba-schools-question/

When Manitoba joined Canada, the number of french and english was almost the same. Then look at what they did. That is a cultural genocide. So, still thinking it is a consipirational theory? You will have to admit that what you have been told is not true. History is waiting for you to discover it. French did not do the indians what the english did. French and natives were married, they were Metis.

 

Yeah but there are only so many emmigrants from france.  What did you expect, every France person would leave France for Canada? There are more English speaking people so naturally you'd get overwhelmed.  You live on an English speaking continent.  it is not cultural genocide, what French did to the natives was cultural genocide, what you are proposing of eliminating new comers culture, and language is genocide. French and natives were married but did the natives get to keep their language?  Are french and English not married?

Your first link is empty.

" After Manitoba joined Confederation, many French-speaking Métis migrated farther West, leaving more space for English-speaking Protestant settlers from Ontario (see French in the West). "

 

French people left the province to go West, no one was genocided.  French are immigrants, like everyone else, learn English.

On 12/2/2016 at 4:03 PM, Benz said:

Keep thinking that the french and the natives are just immigrants like italians and sikhs. Do not whine after if we separate.

It is when I read things like that, that I regret to have learn english. I'd rather be a savage than being a civilized person by your standards.

Actually, I got it wrong. It is White Nigger. This how some british used to call the irish and the french in Canada. I did not invent it.

 

Keep on showing your true colors.

 

On 12/2/2016 at 4:03 PM, Benz said:

 

The work of Marcel Trudel is very controversy because, unlike what you say, he has been refuted. Neverthenless, he did discover that slavery existed, even if it was not as common as in the carrabeans. That is why he still gets some respects from the other historians, despite he did serious mistakes. He came with conclusions that just can't be true. The two famous ones are, he thinks when the french lost in 1759, it was a good thing for the french canadians, and that the union of lower and upper Canada was also a good thing according to him. The historical facts are showing the exact opposite. So there is alot of questionnable conclusions regarding Trudel. No body contest that he really did find slavery in New France. However, in his definition of slave, it includes someone who choose to work in exchange of a place to live and eat because it has no where else to go. That is a very loose and large definition. That is why most of the historians are saying "hmmm yeah but..." to his work.

 

Denial of slavery and racial slurs, no surprise coming from your racist ilk.

 

 

On 12/2/2016 at 4:03 PM, Benz said:

I never said there were not slavery in Haïti and Louisiana, on the contrary. Read me again. Those were the places where the french were doing most of their slavery. I said there was not big slavery industry in New France because the people could not afford it. Before 1759, most of the slave were natives (Panis), not black africans. After that, the wealthy french went back to France and only the rest of the people stayed here. The conditions for french became very bad and they could not afford to have slaves. You name McGill. McGill is british-english. Do not tell me that you are about to change its identity and making him a french? There was slavery but, alot more among the english than the french. Not necessarely because the french did not want too, they could not afford it anyway. Until 1960's french were third class citizen in Québec. The Révolution Tranquille changed the danymic and since the 80's/90's, the french are now having almost the same wealth standards as the english.

 

O so slaving indians is sooo much better than Africans.  Yet 80% of the slavers remained french according to the experts. French were 3rd class citizens, then what were the Africans they denied services and genocided along with the indians they were enslaving?

 

On 12/2/2016 at 4:03 PM, Benz said:

You are saying that you have no problem to give PUBLIC schools to foreigners coming here in a not official language. Please confirm.

 

Yes.  If FRench are getting it, then we got to give it to every other whiny group.

 

On 12/2/2016 at 4:03 PM, Benz said:

Indians are in India. The only indians here, are coming from Indian throught immigration. It's about time you stop searching the passage to India, it is at the other side of the world. You are cold. The aboriginals are coming from east asia.

So you think the french were not enough french? A simple search helped me found that in 1830, there were 10 french schools and  13 in 1854.

http://www.axl.cefan.ulaval.ca/amnord/ilepe.htm

En 1873, la population de la province était alors de 94 021 habitants et était surtout constituée de Britanniques, d'Irlandais, d'Écossais et d'Acadiens (Tignish, Malpèque, Rustico et Baie-de-Fortune). Le recensement officiel de 1881 révélait une population de 108 891 habitants, dont 10 751 Acadiens, soit 10 % de la population.

Spread? So you think the french spead? They did everything to erase the french culture. It survived despite alot of assimilation.

 

The quote above showed they spread, and they should assimilate they lost the war.  French has no special status in the ROC nor should they, don't like it, to bad.

 

[Benz]

On ‎2016‎-‎12‎-‎02 at 5:52 PM, -1=e^ipi said:

"Let the federal choose the local mayor? Look at the senetors the prime minister has choosen in the past 30 years and repeat that without laughing."

I never said appointed directly by the prime minister.

Administrators of municipal issues could be hired in the same way that the federal government hires people to run the civil service, be it environment Canada, our military, statistics Canada, etc. Municipal issues could basically become an extension of the civil service.

" I have nothing against the principle of the equalization. But you won't fool me. Equalization itself means nothing. Other federal programs must be considered if you want to know if you recieve or give."

True. But despite any ambiguity in the exact values, it is clear that some provinces (BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan) are currently net contributors and some provinces (Quebec, Nova Scotia, PEI, New Brunswick) are net recipients.

I think soviet union was working the way you suggest. Or at least was the closest model comparable to it. What advantages are you seeing in that façon de faire. The biggest problem I see is that they will appoint people serving their interests and not the one of local people. I think your idea could work sometimes but, not as much as a real local elected body. Elected mayors are not kings. There is a reason why the cities are creatures of the provincial. If the province has to intervene, it will. Centralisation as you propose is too excessive.

Québec is a big receipient in the last few years for the overall. Oil income and a high dollars value having consequences on industries in Ontario and Québec made it pretty obvious. However, in the 90's and early 2000, even if Québec was a recipient for the equalization, it was not in the overall of federal programs. That's the truth this hypocrisy is all about.