Quebec. The tears of a clown.
So.
John Ibbitson of the Globe is worried about Quebec - now that they've voted themselves out of influence in government, and now that Ontario and Western Canada have decided that things work better with a government that encourages self-sufficiency than a government which is premised upon buying votes by handouts.
Poor Quebec, he says, in an article today entitled, "Quebec's Profound Isolation".
He notes that with the birthrate in Quebec dropping, and with self-imposed restrictions on immigration, Quebec will also soon find themselves losing even more - with a re-alignment of seats in Commons, to the benefit of British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario.
His final query?
"If so, then the next time Quebeckers ask why they’re a part of this country, what will the rest of us tell them?"
My response?
Imagine a family where one child constantly threatens to leave home, creating no end of tension and anguish in the family - until, at some point, the rest of the family just gets tired, and decides that the stress on the whole of the family isn't worth the cost of appeasing one spoiled child.
So.
The next time Quebec asks why should they stay.. perhaps the best response is no response at all.