Ignatieff

• "imperialism doesn’t stop being necessary just because it becomes politically incorrect." -Michael Ignatieff, New York Times Magazine, 28 juillet 2002



• "America’s empire is not like the empires of times past, built on colonies, conquests and the white man’s burden.... The 21st century imperium is a new invention in the annals of political science, an empire lite, a global hegemony whose grace notes are free markets, human rights, and democracy, enforced by the most awesome military power the world has ever known." -Michael Ignatieff, New York Times Magazine, 5 janvier 2003

[H]e had never ventured into "francophone Quebec" before he wrote the book [Blood and Belonging].

This must explain why he writes that Quebec's "national day" is on June 28. Or that he says he speaks "French-French" as opposed to the "heavily accented Quebecois" spoken by someone he interviews. How reassuring is that for someone who wants to lead this country?

One of his research grounds was what he calls the "Two Clowns Cafe" in Old Montreal - yes, that's the "Deux Pierrots." He chatted with some "nationalists" he refers to as "the Other," with a capital O.

After they explain what Quebec nationalism is to them, Ignatieff writes with amazing condescension: "What can you say to such a deep myth? It is a feeling, and notoriously, feelings cannot be argued with."

Equally condescending is what he writes about a francophone he met in Trois Rivieres: "Nationalism gives him hope, and in Trois Rivieres, you need all the hope you can get."

On Bill 101, Ignatieff paints a sovereign Quebec as a place where rights would be trampled and courts neutered. Without the protection of Trudeau's Charter of Rights and the Supreme Court, he writes, "individuals would lose this right of appeal, and the way would be open to majoritarian ethnic nationalism."

[...]

The essay also was made into a six-hour mini-series broadcasted on the CBC, in the United States, and on the BBC. This means millions of viewers were treated to Ignatieff's uninformed and prejudiced views on Quebec.

The final image of the section on Quebec closed in on the faces of worried anglophones, aboriginals and children of visible minorities with Ignatieff's voice asking ominously: "If a state only protects its majority, will its minorities be safe?"

Star Liberal candidate is wrong on Quebec nationalism, Josée Legault, 2 décembre 2005

Dans son livre La Révolution des droits, Ignatieff écrit que « [...] Nous avons une histoire commune et, bon gré mal gré, il nous faut partager une même vérité. »

Cette vérité, il la définit ainsi : « Et voici la vérité du Canada anglais. La conquête britannique de 1763, loin d’étouffer le fait français en Amérique du Nord, a apporté l’autonomie aux Canadiens-français pour la première fois. » C’est la Conquête, poursuit-il, qui « a assuré la survie d’un Québec démocratique en Amérique du Nord. »

La Conquête nous aurait apporté la démocratie, tout comme l’invasion de l’Irak apportera la « démocratie » au Moyen-Orient comme le proclament Michael Ignatieff et George Bush.

Les libéraux n’y iront pas avec le dos de la cuiller, Pierre Dubuc, 1^er décembre 2005