Quebec Seperation

[America1]

Do Canadians actually feel that Quebec will separate one day in the near future? How does non-Quebec Canadians (for lack of a better term) feel about them wanting to be separate? If they did try to break away, would the Canadian military get involved?

I apologize if this seems elementary but, it’s hard to get an honest opinion from people\media outlets sometimes.

[PocketRocket]

Do Canadians actually feel that Quebec will separate one day in the near future?

Good question. Some do, some don't.

There's no real, nation wide consensus.

How does non-Quebec Canadians (for lack of a better term) feel about them wanting to be separate?

See answer above. No consensus.

If they did try to break away, would the Canadian military get involved?

That's a good question, too.

When you consider, however, that a lot of our military personel come from Quebec, it's tough to say how they would react if they were involved.

Personally, I don't like thinking about it, but unfortunately it's rubbed in our national face too often to ignore it.

I apologize if this seems elementary

No apology necessary, it's a good question, and shows genuine concern from one of our southern neighbours.

but, it’s hard to get an honest opinion from people\media outlets sometimes.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well, for honest opinions, come to "Honest PocketRocket's" for deals, deals, deals

[Riverwind]

Do Canadians actually feel that Quebec will separate one day in the near future? How does non-Quebec Canadians (for lack of a better term) feel about them wanting to be separate? If they did try to break away, would the Canadian military get involved?

When you look at the Quebec situatution you must remember that Quebec society is extremely divided on the issue. Even if the seperatists win a vote for seperation there would still be close to 50% who voted against it. Furthermore, many of those that vote yes do so because they believe that it voting yes is not really a vote for a seperate country but negotiating tactic to try an get a better deal in the federation (for example, most Quebequers believe they will keep their Canadian citizenship even if they vote to seperate).

What this all is adds up to is an extremely unstable situation where you would see a signficant chuck of Quebec's population leaving the province or demanding that peices of the province seperate from Quebec and rejoin Canada. In that situation, you could see violance ranging from terrorist attacks all the way up to sporadic confrontations between police and military. There will never be an outright war but the entire situation will be extremely chaotic and everyone will lose.

[Leafless]

America 1

You wrote- " If they did break away would the Candian military get involved."

Our Canadian military had a hard time controlling a relatively small native uprising in Quebec a while back.

In the event of some type of social uprising involving Quebec I would suspect Canada would be asking for U.S. assistance immediately as our Canadian military not only small but would be dysfunctional with a large portion of it in Quebec which was a dumb thing for the military to do initially in a province that continually threatens separation.

[wellandboy]

I personally believe that there will be a gradual separation of of Quebec from the rest of Canada. What form that will take is difficult to say, but I do not think we would see a radical form of secession as we saw with the Confederates States. Likewise, I cannot see an armed conflict as a result. Canada evolved peacefuly out of disatisfaction as a colony of the British Empire.

The Federalist (Liberal) approach of the last 37 years hasn't worked particularily well because the Separatist movement has grown to encompass almost half the population of Quebec.

My biggest concern is with the Liberal Party mismanaging the portfolio again. We desperately need some fresh ideas to restore some trust in Federal/Provincial relations.

[justcrowing]

I believe that not only will Quebec separate, so will the West. It may not be in the near future, but it will happen. Actually it will happen sooner than later if Liberals continue remaining in power. They not only alienated Quebec, but the West and the U.S. - who next? NDP is just an further left extension of the Liberals and I would not trust Layton as far as I could throw him, and that is not very far.

[Black Dog]

I highly doubt the military would get involved in a political dispute.

I believe that not only will Quebec separate, so will the West

You mean "Alberta", the only place where separation is ever bandied about as a solution and only by a tiny minority of malcontents.

[justcrowing]

I highly doubt the military would get involved in a political dispute.

I believe that not only will Quebec separate, so will the West

You mean "Alberta", the only place where separation is ever bandied about as a solution and only by a tiny minority of malcontents.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

B.C. will go with Alberta and if you think there no separatists in B.C., you have another think coming. As for Alberta, the percentage is rising, currently around 46% and will well exceed 50% if the Liberals get another term. BC & Alberta speak as one voice or did you not know this?

[Black Dog]

B.C. will go with Alberta and if you think there no separatists in B.C., you have another think coming.  As for Alberta, the percentage is rising, currently around 46% and will well exceed 50% if the Liberals get another term.  BC & Alberta speak as one voice or did you not know this?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I'm sure there's a few seperatists in every province. But a handful of malcontents does not a political movement make.

Also: there have been no reliable polls done on separation in Alberta, so it seems you've just pulled numbers out of your arse. The only reliable method for guaging public support for separation is the success of the political parties advocating such a course of action. In 2004, the Separation Party of Alberta ran 12 candidates and captured 0.5 per cent of the vote. To put that in perspective, the Communist party ran 2 candidates and garnered 0.1 per cent of the vote.

As for B.C. and Alberta speaking as one, is that why there's an NDP government in BC and a Conservative one in Alberta?

[Riverwind]

BC & Alberta speak as one voice or did you not know this?

Where did you get this idea from? BC is as different from Alberta as Ontario and Quebec. The current polls suggest that the Liberals could squeek through to another minority only because of the 40%+ support in the Vancouver area. Even if this support softens by election day, it does show that the absolute hatred of the Liberals that is common in Alberta is not shared by BC.

[justcrowing]

B.C. will go with Alberta and if you think there no separatists in B.C., you have another think coming.  As for Alberta, the percentage is rising, currently around 46% and will well exceed 50% if the Liberals get another term.  BC & Alberta speak as one voice or did you not know this?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I'm sure there's a few seperatists in every province. But a handful of malcontents does not a political movement make.

Also: there have been no reliable polls done on separation in Alberta, so it seems you've just pulled numbers out of your arse. The only reliable method for guaging public support for separation is the success of the political parties advocating such a course of action. In 2004, the Separation Party of Alberta ran 12 candidates and captured 0.5 per cent of the vote. To put that in perspective, the Communist party ran 2 candidates and garnered 0.1 per cent of the vote.

As for B.C. and Alberta speaking as one, is that why there's an NDP government in BC and a Conservative one in Alberta?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The last I heard was that the Liberals were governing B.C. - did they have an election and NDP won or did you pull that out of your arse?

[justcrowing]

BC & Alberta speak as one voice or did you not know this?

Where did you get this idea from? BC is as different from Alberta as Ontario and Quebec. The current polls suggest that the Liberals could squeek through to another minority only because of the 40%+ support in the Vancouver area. Even if this support softens by election day, it does show that the absolute hatred of the Liberals that is common in Alberta is not shared by BC.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It may not be shared in BC because of the influx of immigrants/refugees beholden to the Liberals for giving them free lunch. Also, the migration of people from Central Canada, especially since NDP got kicked out, will also have an effect. Pity!

[Guest eureka]

Sentiment for separation is not even close to 50% in favour. It has never been very high and the vote for separatist parties today is little higher than it has been from the outset of the lunacy.

In the first referendum, Separation (Sovereignty/Association) received only 40% of the vote. However, support for separation at the time was only 11% according to polls. It never advanced much from that and is not a lot higher now.

Would there be military involvement if there should be an attempt to separate? It would be inevitable. Geopolitical factors as well as the protection of those who are not going to give up their status as Canadians make it so.

[newbie]

Our Canadian military had a hard time controlling a relatively small native uprising in Quebec a while back.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Which begs the question, what happens to the Natives when and if Quebec chooses to separate?

[justcrowing]

Our Canadian military had a hard time controlling a relatively small native uprising in Quebec a while back.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Which begs the question, what happens to the Natives when and if Quebec chooses to separate?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

They have made it clear they wish to remain a part of Canada.

[BHS]

I highly doubt the military would get involved in a political dispute.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Our Canadian military had a hard time controlling a relatively small native uprising in Quebec a while back.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Which begs the question, what happens to the Natives when and if Quebec chooses to separate?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The first event to happen, for Quebec seperation to ever become a possibility, is a positive referendum result on seperation. This in an of itself does not guarantee that seperation will actually take place, though.

The lead up to negotiations, and the negotiations themselves, might shift public opinion in Quebec enough that there is a popular outcry for another referendum to confirm the first, which might result in a very negative vote against seperation and moot the seperatist cause for good.

If not, the negotiations themselves are likely to take years, involving representatives of TROC and Quebec and the First Nations. There will be impasses, and there's no guarantee that a workable seperation solution can be achieved. It's possible that Quebec's negotiators might end up opting to stay in Canada with a new Constitutional status for the province.

I doubt there would be any need for military activity during this time. My guess is that the Canadian military will only become involved if Quebec paramilitaries, dissatisfied with the tempo of negotiations, decide to start carrying out guerilla and/or terrorist activities in a bid to speed up the process.

[Black Dog]

The last I heard was that the Liberals were governing B.C. - did they have an election and NDP won or did you pull that out of your arse?

Ah yes, my mistake. Still, the same principle applies. Given your inability to debunk any of my other points (or provide a source for your 46 per cent figure; which undoubtebly comes from the bogus Western standard poll that was discussed elsewhere a few months back), I can see you've got nothing.

It may not be shared in BC because of the influx of immigrants/refugees beholden to the Liberals for giving them free lunch. Also, the migration of people from Central Canada, especially since NDP got kicked out, will also have an effect. Pity!

So what you're saying is B.C. and Alberta do not, in fact, speak as one.

[justcrowing]

The last I heard was that the Liberals were governing B.C. - did they have an election and NDP won or did you pull that out of your arse?

Ah yes, my mistake. Still, the same principle applies. Given your inability to debunk any of my other points (or provide a source for your 46 per cent figure; which undoubtebly comes from the bogus Western standard poll that was discussed elsewhere a few months back), I can see you've got nothing.

It's Xmas and I have no time to do the research for you as I do not spend much time here but if you are in doubt, do the research.

It may not be shared in BC because of the influx of immigrants/refugees beholden to the Liberals for giving them free lunch. Also, the migration of people from Central Canada, especially since NDP got kicked out, will also have an effect. Pity!

So what you're saying is B.C. and Alberta do not, in fact, speak as one.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You are saying that, not me. The Liberal vote in BC is probably not because people have suddenly gotten down on their knees in praise of Liberals. Migrantion from Central Canada is what has pushed up the stats. I wish I had archived the article where it said BC & Alberta signed an agreement to speak as one. I certainly did not make it up - I have no reason to.

[Riverwind]

I wish I had archived the article where it said BC & Alberta signed an agreement to speak as one.  I certainly did not make it up - I have no reason to.

What you read is discusses a unified front that Klien and Campbell have agreed to in order to negotiate with Ottawa.

You used that relatively minor agreement to imply that BC and Alberta were very much alike: BC is a socially liberal place that swings between both extremes of socialism and economic conservatism depending on how much the gov't in Victoria has managed to piss people off. It is true that the current premier probably gets along quite well with Klien but his views only represent a slice of BC society - he would not be in power if the socreds had not merged with the liberal party to create a right of center coalition. In fact, a large number recently elected BC cabinet ministers will likely be voting Liberal come Jan.

BC is a very much a distinct society within Canada that probably has more in common with Washington State and Oregon than Alberta.

[PocketRocket]

Do Canadians actually feel that Quebec will separate one day in the near future?

Good question. Some do, some don't.

There's no real, nation wide consensus.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

So, America1, from the previous posts, I'm sure you can see what I mean

[Argus]

I highly doubt the military would get involved in a political dispute.

I believe that not only will Quebec separate, so will the West

You mean "Alberta", the only place where separation is ever bandied about as a solution and only by a tiny minority of malcontents.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

As BC's Asian population continues to rise, I have to wonder if one day (not so far off), when they are a majority Asian province, if they will decide that they should seperate as well, having less in common with Canada than with Asia.

[Guest eureka]

They will have a lot in common with Central Canada where the Asian population is equally large - and more diverse. They will have in common with those communities also, the feeling of growing alienation with their birth cultures as they absorb some of the values and customs that from a new tradition.

[Argus]

They will have a lot in common with Central Canada where the Asian population is equally large - and more diverse. They will have in common with those communities also, the feeling of growing alienation with their birth cultures as they absorb some of the values and customs that from a new tradition.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

IF they absorb those values and customs. That's my big worry, that there are so many of them they will be a self-sustaining, and growing alien culture in our midst, as with Muslims.

[Riverwind]

IF they absorb those values and customs. That's my big worry, that there are so many of them they will be a self-sustaining, and growing alien culture in our midst, as with Muslims.

For the most part, Chinese values are very compatible with typical Western values - the only real difference is language.

Richmond is about 60% non white (mostly Chinese). I have been living here for over a decade and have not observed any serious racial or ethnic tensions. Periodically someone will get upset about a business that posts Chinese only signs but that is usually resolved quickly as soon as the business owner discovers that not having English signs means lost business.