Montreal Gazette Now Telling Folks How To Vote–Cartoonist Seeming To Promote Violence–Real Responsible Journalism!

While I have noticed more and more corporate media outlets becoming more Harpercon friendly; hell, let’s make it cheerleading “Steve is oh so dreamy!”  Hell, in 2008, about 90% of newspapers endorsed Steve, although, in the wonderful world according to Fagstein, every newspaper should endorse Steve; not endorsing any candidate, is apparently, “cowardly” (yeah, I know, he crossed it out, but it’s what he meant; otherwise, we wouldn’t have seen the crossed out word in the first place).   Maybe I’m old fashioned and believe that no newspapers should endorse candidates. And folks actually think that we need a Harpercon infomercial channel 24/7.

Anyway, The Montreal Gazette came out with an editorial yesterday, basically telling voters of the riding of St-Laurent to vote for the ADQ candidate, Jose Fiorilo in next week’s by-election, in no uncertain terms.  Naturally, this editorial is unsigned.  Hell, even Jane Taber signs her stuff.

But, man, does that editorial just ooze of sour grapes! Obviously, one of those Anglos, not only still stuck with the whining for more rights for Anglos than Francophones in a Francophone province, but also still hasn’t gotten over the fact that their precious suburbs are now merged with the ‘rif raf’ working class of the City of Montreal.

You see, Jean-Marc Fournier will be running in the usually Liberal ‘safe’ riding of St-Laurent in next week’s by-election. He was the ‘star’  brought back to the National Assembly by Jean Charest to try, essentially, to bail the Quebec Liberal party out of its’ troubles with a dixie cup.

There is a problem electing this particular Liberal candidate. Following the forced mergers under the Parti Quebecois, the Liberals campaigned on referendums for the suburbs to demerge.  Fournier was the author of this demerging program. I don’t know all the details, but many argue that he, by extension, the Liberals made demerging near impossible or impossible.

Well, let’s take a look:

We wonder if Fournier even remembers how that played out in Saint-Laurent on June 20, 2004: Those who turned out to vote in the demerger referendum were 3-1 against remaining in Montreal, but the total “let us go” vote, at 28.6 per cent of eligible voters, fell below the artificial minimum requirement imposed by the government. Saint-Laurent remained part of Montreal.

The part of the bill where the demerger referendum results for Ville St-Laurent were nullified due to such a low voter turn out (only 28.6%) as mentioned above is actually something that makes sense!  A novel idea!   Why? Obviously, more than 70% must have been ok with Ville St-Laurent remaining merged with the City of Montreal if they didn’t bother to go out and vote in that little referendum, right?

Imagine if we had these minimums for all elections?  Maybe we’d be looking at different governments.

Look, I don’t live in St-Laurent, I don’t really know Jean-Marc Fournier as a candidate. As a blogger, unlike a corporate media outlet, I could give my opinion on who I would like to see  win in any given election or referendum, but in this case, I will abstain, unless, the fledgling Quebec Solidaire is running a candidate and then I would say vote for them; I would vote Quebec Solidaire.  But, that’s not the point of this excercise.

My first  issue with this shrieking editorial is the obvious bias which I have always felt responsible media shouldn’t have.  I don’t believe it should be mainstream media’s role to endorse any electoral candidates or parties, nor do I believe they should endorse a position on any side of a referendum so strenuously. When the biases in newspapers, on talk radio or tv news are so blatantly obvious from either side, how are we supposed to find the truth about anything?

Speaking of bias, this brings me back to my second issue with this editorialist’s problem with the 28% rule.  He/She mentioned that Fournier would more than likely get in with only  approximately 28% of eligible voters in St-Laurent actually showing up to vote.  Well, wouldn’t you like that minimum then? More to the point,  I bet this editorialist is one of those who leads the cry of of ” the majority of Canadians voted for Dreamy Stephen Harper! See? Our Electoral system works!”

Someone wrote a letter to the editor regarding a cartoon I missed. A rather graphic and violent cartoon of Jean-Marc Fournier.  I couldn’t find the cartoon to link to. But here’s the letter.

Gazette editors might think they can opine on the by-election, but there are limits in the manner of expression. Tuesday’s cartoon depicting Liberal candidate Jean-Marc Fournier’s image on a poster defaced with two knives, an axe, and a blob of blood is disgusting. We live in a world of violence. Such images might encourage fanatics or mentally unstable individuals to act out. Since when do you have the right to publish such visually shocking cartoons?

You may express your dissatisfaction about the Quebec Liberals and Fournier, but you certainly don’t have any right to depict violence toward a human being, a family man in private life.

I dunno, but this sounds awfully close to Sun Media’s editorial advocating the ‘locking and loading’ of Tamil migrant ships.  Now, that cartoonist. Is  The Montreal Gazette auditioning for the Kory Klan?

Yes, the height of Yellow Journalism; telling readers who to vote for and promoting violence.

As for the Montreal Gazette, why that didn’t fold instead of the Montreal Star in 1979 is beyond me.