As to laugh at the Quebecers…

Archival Photo Simon Clark

Josée Legault

Wednesday, 31 January 2018 14:36

UPDATE
Wednesday, 31 January 2018 14:49

Look at this article

As my grandmother said : “as to laugh at me, as well as not miss its shot!”.

In this broad category of “making fun of people while denying it”, let’s add the auguste name of the current prime minister of Quebec, Philippe Couillard.

Yesterday evening, in the gathering of the Quebec liberal Party – and speaking of the candy préélectoraux that he makes it rain on the Quebec for a few weeks, Mr. Couillard has launched this pearl of confession involuntary :

“It is up to you this money. It is you, who have sent and found that we didn’t need all of the money that you sent us to do the job as it should be. So, you are in restores. (…) This is not a gift, it is what was due to citizens of Quebec, who contributed to the effort (budget) and who are entitled to receive their share.”

Ah yes?

According to Mr. Couillard, it would therefore not be very predictable “gifts” paid for with public funds to buy votes – but, unfortunately, a classic, from all parties.

According to Mr. Couillard, these “gifts” would be rather the product of the “hand” of too-paid for by the Quebec taxes, combined with the hardships he has imposed by his austerity budget.

Well…

Translation : the government has too tight the belt of Quebec, financially speaking. On the one hand, by too many taxes supposedly for the needs of the management of public services. On the other, by starving the same public services.

Wait,… Am I the only one to see not only an old background of cynicism somewhat depressing, but also, and especially, a contradiction elephantine?

The so-called contradiction is the following.

How can he say at the same time that Quebecers have too contributed to the public treasury to “do the job” of governing , to provide public services and on the other side, that Quebecers have “participated in the effort (budget)” – coded language for reduction of public services due to the obsessive accumulation of surplus used now to launch candy préélectoraux the good people who don’t want him?

Good, truce of logic. The logic never holds up against maneuvers partisan pre-election paid for with taxpayers ‘ money.

***

Let’s move on to the session on “damage control” – correction of the tir, to which the liberals are compelled today after the declaration of yesterday evening’s prime minister has shocked many with reason.

Then, how to explain all these nananes préélectoraux? What clouds of gold fall?

Alleged “explanations”, all different, were raining down all at once.

According to the minister of the Environment, it is because”it has managed the Quebec properly and currently, harvesting of these fruits.”

To the minister of the Economy, it is “because we paid less interest on the debt, it was able to identify margins of manoeuvre.”

For the minister of Agriculture, it is the result of the acceleration in household consumption and increased exports.

As for the prime minister himself, suddenly, today, it is rather “because the economy is so much better than we thought, that we had more income”. Just had to think about it… after the fact.

***

In short, everything is good in the spin post-injury. Anything, except the truth.

And yet, the truth, the prime minister had indeed said himself, on Tuesday evening, during his rally liberal :

“It is up to you this money. It is you, who have sent and found that we didn’t need all of the money that you sent us to do the job as it should be. So, you are in restores. (…) This is not a gift, it is what was due to citizens of Quebec, who contributed to the effort (budget) and who are entitled to receive their share.”

But as the truth hurting the government – or, if you prefer, makes it appear for what it really is -and, well, the prime minister “rectifies” his own shot today.

Translation : he puts on his skates and fancy to try to make them forget about the truth that he had stated himself the day before, but “family”.

What the government has done since its election in April 2014 is exactly what physicians did before the advent of modern medicine. He “bled” the citizens, in this case, too large tax bites, and of too great privation in public services – supposedly to “heal” the poor ill patient as are the public finances.

However, if he had really healed this patient, instead of “bleed” Quebecers, the government is not to be found in the end of the mandate of swimming in budget surpluses.

Which, coincidentally, are used in part to launch his peanuts préélectoraux to citizens in the hope that they will vote QLP recognition.

To paraphrase my grandmother : “as a laugh of Quebec, as well as the government does not miss its shot!”.