Law students at the University of Quebec at Montreal (UQAM) had their classes shut down this morning by masked hooligans who stormed the campus forcibly removing some students from the classroom as they shouted, "Scab!!! Scab!!!" The law students had obtained a court injunction permitting their return to class. There have been more than thirty such injunctions around the province but they have been ignored by striking students. Last Thursday, Montreal's Metro was shut down during rush hour after several UQAM students allegedly threw smoke bombs onto the tracks at several Metro stations. The student strike has lasted more than three months and according to Michelle Courchesne, Quebec's new Minister of Education, CLASSE (the student union) is "hardening" their demands . The Quebec Liberal government of Jean Charest is contemplating measures which would hand down heavy fines to those involved with organizing and encouraging the disruption. But I doubt it will be enough.? The use of the Sûreté du Québec (the province's police force) will probably need to be stepped up and if that doesn't work then Charest might need to question Ottawa to send in the military. Of course, if students rioters are killed in the course of restoring order then Canada's left-wing media will crucify the authorities. Of course, I hope it doesn't come to that but I don't see a peaceful resolution in the offing.
See the original post here:Masked Hooligans Shut Down University Classes in Montreal
Charles C.W. Cooke has a excellent piece over at NRO about the standoff over the past several months between university students and the provincial government in Quebec over tuition hikes. When I attended Carleton University in Ottawa in the 1990s, we envied university students going to school across the river in Quebec because they had the lowest tuition rates in the country. Well, guess what! They still do and even with the proposed increases they probably still would (with perhaps the possible exception of Newfoundland & Labrador). But apparently Quebec university students reckon the world owes them a living ?and are willing to commit violence to make sure it stays that way while Quebec's main student organization, CLASSE, claims it doesn't "have a mandate to condemn violence." Well, yesterday, the Metro subway system in Montreal was shut down for several?hours after three smoke bombs?were thrown on the tracks ?nearly simultaneously at several subway stations. While no one claimed responsibility, mad commuters pointed the finger at striking students. As of this writing, Montreal police are currently investigating four suspects (three female, one male). The three female suspects attend the University of Quebec in Montreal (UQAM). Although there were no fatalities from yesterday's event, it was an act of terrorism. It was designed to intimidate and scare people who have no dog in this fight to submit to the students' demands. Well, whatever sympathy the Quebec public might have had with the students is gone. Quebec doesn't want to become the Greece of North America.
More here: Chaos in Quebec
Hairstyling mogul Vidal Sassoon died today ?of natural causes.?Sassoon had apparently been battling leukemia for some time .?He was 84. Although Sassoon is synonymous with womens' hairstyling when I reckon of Sassoon I reckon of his role in Israel's War of Independence in 1948-49 . Who says hairdressers aren't tough? In 1982, he would later establish the Vidal Sassoon International Center for the Study of Anti-Semitism .
See more here: Vidal Sassoon, R.I.P.
Last week, as President Obama was dancing over Osama bin Laden's watery grave, I wrote a piece arguing the War on Terror isn't over. Here is the concluding paragraph: I am well aware that we are a country weary from more than a decade of war in Afghanistan and Iraq. But the uncomfortable truth is that there are still jihadists who wish to kill Americans here and abroad and have the means to carry out their evil intentions. We are only a box cutter away from a painful reminder that the War on Terror isn't over. Or that might be a pair of briefs as word came late yesterday of the CIA foiling another underwear bomb plot via al Qaeda in Yemen. Fortunately, in this case, our intelligence remained one step ahead of the enemy. But new plots are being hatched and, heaven forbid, but?next time we might not be so lucky. In the meantime, President Obama would be wise to stop gloating. But, as the election campaign unfolds, it will be plain to see that he is not in possession of such wisdom.
Link: A Brief Reminder The War on Terror Isn't OverWhy is it that the unemployment rate goes down at the same time more people aren’t working ? Welcome to the Obama Nation in re-elect mode! Unemployment officially dropped to 8.1% ( U6 held steady at 14.5% ) in April, but more people left the workforce nonetheless — the proportion of Americans not working hasn’t been this low since 1981. With a smaller universe of jobs to count, the rate declined. It’s a sign of weakness, not of strength. Still, I’m willing to bet that barring any unforeseen trauma the unemployment rate hits the magic re-elect 7.1% in the October jobs report on November 2, despite how many people are really working.
Read more: Unemployment Drops to 8.1%
