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My experience of Quebec roads, is admittedly only specific to me, and only one example, but confirms a 'less than professional' standard.

You can see the difference in road upkeep when travelling from the US or Ontario into Quebec. In the US, you are driving on well-kept roads, clear road signs and as soon as you cross the border into Quebec, the whole thing changes. Enormous potholes, uneven surface - and, interestingly, not one road sign is correct.

That's right. After almost going off the road in blizzards, by accepting that the road sign indicating 'straight' was valid - and realizing that the road was actually sharply curved - I began to take careful note of the road signs on a particular highway. Not one was correct. The only road signs refer to other roads linking up to this main highway; they show the link, and indicate that the highway ahead is straight. Not true. The highway is sharply curved, following cliffs. If you followed the road sign, you'd be dead.
I guess the highway department had a lot of spare 'straight' signs in their shed.

Other signs? Important details about roads are all in French. There's no assistance for the visitor from the US or ROC.
Most information is missing. The Quebec highways are primarily geared to local residents, who know the route, know the 'straight' and 'curved', and know the hazards. If you are a stranger, you are in serious trouble.

Other interesting facts - cut-offs to move onto other highways require a long space for the cars to move onto the section, and require information well in advance so the driver can switch lanes. Again, in Quebec, this information is not provided fast enough; you zip pass your exit. And, the lanes aren't set up long enough or with enough space, to make a safe exit.

Potholes and cracks and bad repair? Unbelievable. Again, the locals know where the potholes, which last for years, are; non-locals hit them at 100 km - and it's dangerous.

Construction? The hold the unions have over work done in the province means that both construction and repairs are extremely costly. Cuts in other areas, such as materials, to decrease the exorbitant wage costs will always sneak in.

And, there's a culture of graft, where your costs increase because the cost of equipment is doubled; you receive a low value item, but you pay double its cost; the supplier pockets the extra. This enormous black market economy, running parallel to the legitimate economy, bleeds Quebec's ability to maintain and build proper roads and public buildings.

Condi responsible for 9/11...
"Intel Officials: Rice’s July 2001 Briefing Described Urgent Threat, ‘10 On a Scale of 1 to 10′"

http://tinyurl.com/fcqsu

Records Show Tenet Briefed Rice on Al Qaeda Threat
By PHILIP SHENON and MARK MAZZETTI
JIDDA, Saudi Arabia, Oct. 2 — A review of White House records has determined that George J. Tenet, then the director of central intelligence, did brief Condoleezza Rice and other top officials on July 10, 2001, about the looming threat from Al Qaeda, a State Department spokesman said Monday.

The account by Sean McCormack came hours after Ms. Rice, the secretary of state, told reporters aboard her airplane that she did not recall the specific meeting on July 10, 2001, noting that she had met repeatedly with Mr. Tenet that summer about terrorist threats. Ms. Rice, the national security adviser at the time, said it was “incomprehensible” she ignored dire terrorist threats two months before the Sept. 11 attacks.

Mr. McCormack also said records show that the Sept. 11 commission was informed about the meeting, a fact that former intelligence officials and members of the commission confirmed on Monday.

When details of the meeting emerged last week in a new book by Bob Woodward of The Washington Post, Bush administration officials questioned Mr. Woodward’s reporting.

Now, after several days, both current and former Bush administration officials have confirmed parts of Mr. Woodward’s account.

Officials now agree that on July 10, 2001, Mr. Tenet and his counterterrorism deputy, J. Cofer Black, were so alarmed about an impending Al Qaeda attack that they demanded an emergency meeting at the White House with Ms. Rice and her National Security Council staff.

http://tinyurl.com/nl5cz

http://www.caledoniawakeupcall.com/media/570news%20oct%202.WAV

Oct 2, 2006
Caledonia: Gary McHale and March for Freedom Oct 15, 2006. Interview on 570 Radio with Jeff Allan. This is a must hear interview. The endless red tape that average Canadian's face when standing up for their rights.

Sure seems like these last two posts have to do with the roads in Quebec.

Give Me A Break
"David McGuinty accuses Tories of judicial patronage appointment"
And the Liberals after 12yrs Never Ever gave a patronage appointment?
They Never awarded contracts to Family & Freinds,(shipping firms, Advertising Firms, RealEstate Firms)
They Never gave Forgiveable Loans to Family & freinds.
They Never appointed a Judge.
They Never appointed former Cabinet Minister's to Crown Corp's.

He should also look at his brothers track record,
Give Me A Break

If you need a sign to tell you there's a curve in the road up ahead then you shouldn't be driving at all. When there's a blizzard then slow down and drive to conditions.

My experience is totally different...it's American roads that are the most seriously in need of repair.

It just goes to show that political bias leads to road bias.

The fruits of the quiet revolution are plopping on our heads.

Perahps the Québec gov't could pass a law ordering all québec drivers to wear a seatbelt AND a hard hat.

We could also strap thick mattresses to the roofs of our cars.

I've found the roads in the Maritimes to be the worst... Especially Halifax/Dartmouth.

david brown - what a trivial remark.

To assert that unless you can see the road perfectly then, you shouldn't be driving, is sheer nonsense. Our roads are not only to be used in 'perfect conditions' but must be accessible in almost all Canadian conditions. These include rain, fog and snow.

Travel is not always an act of vacation choice but may be due to necessity. You might 'have to get to x-point' for various necessary reasons.

The fact that the road signs are WRONG is a vital point that you are ignoring. It isn't the case that there are NO signs; instead, there are signs - and they provide invalid information. That's irresponsible and dangerous. You have ignored this fact and ignore that the driver must, at all times, reject the information provided by the official road signs. Hmmm.

Political bias? How does that enter into an empirical analysis of facts? It doesn't. Or shouldn't. I've provided my factual experiences. Is your bias against the US moving you into a bias against their roads?

ET,

One triviality deserves another...Your posts are usually well thought out and presented logically. However, this time you're really stretching and will soon find out even rightoids agree with me.

I fail to see any empirical analysis in your diatribe...just sour Quebec grapes.

I can see humour in my admitted anti-American bias...maybe try laughing at some of your foibles.

The fact that Tenet briefed Ms Rice about the dangers of Al Qaeda doesn't mean that she, or anyone else, knew anough to stop 9/11.

After all, Al Qaeda attacks against Americans had been ongoing for a decade and more. Bin Laden on August 23, 1996, declared war against the USA. The agenda to install fundamentalist Islamism had developed in the 1970s, 1980s, with the corruption and lack of freedoms in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, etc.

Did Tenet inform her, or anyone, of the exact nature of 9/11, or did he inform her of the ongoing vicious rhetoric of Al Qaeda?

http://hallsofmacadamia.blogspot.com/2006/10/danger-danger-warning.html"

Make sure you check the MOL before travelling.

david brown - quite possibly, you don't know the meaning of facticity (objective and verifiable data) and empiricism (observed by the senses). My conclusions were based on factual, and empirically observed incidents. Period.

You've ignored the reality of the experience of bad roads, the experience of completely false information on road signs, the facts of high costs in Quebec due to the unions, and the facts of the large black market economy. None of these are fiction; they are all facts. The fact that you can't see these as empirical, is your problem.

As for your insertion of an 'argument ad populam' claiming that other people will agree with you - that's an invalid assertion. Stand on your own feet and don't imply that your opinons are valid because others 'might' agree with you.

Bob Who?, or, Tommy Douglas is dead enough for Licia. ...-

Calgary Sun | Licia Corbella::Rae’s a disaster waiting to happen

This may come as a shock to many readers, but when I moved to Ontario from Vancouver in 1988, I arrived as a bona fide lefty.

Many things occurred during the five years I lived in the centre of the universe, er … Tor-onto, that started shifting my views from left of centre, to centre, to what I like to call whatever’s right — as in correct.

But one of the main reasons for my shift from left to correct came about largely thanks to Bob Rae, who became the first NDP premier in Ontario’s history. ...-
jack's newswatch

Insuring that roads are as safe as possible should be a primary concern for any responsible highway engineer. Road signs are particularly important in conditions of poor visibility. For residents of planet Earth we commonly refer to the most frequent occurrence of poor visibility as “driving after dark”.

Hey, I grew up in "MiNchigan" It's a state shaped like your "haMd"

ET,

I have had similar experiences with the Quebec highways. When you cross from Ontario into Quebec the highways degenerate - and yes there are plenty of potholes. We used to live in Montreal some 18 years ago and after we first moved to Toronto we would drive back monthly and there was always a descernible difference in the roads. My husband is from Montreal and I grew up in Saskatchewan (Regina). I would never drive into Montreal - unless you knew where you were going it seemed to me that the exits popped out of nowhere with hardly any advance warning (maybe I'm just a bad driver or a hick from the prairies - I also find the 401 to be too speedy). Just 3 weeks ago we had to go back to Montreal for a celebration and we were struck with how decripid the city seemed - we commented on how it seemed that the Decarie Boulavard was falling apart.

just my observations

ET,

You have to know that 'facticity' is not a word but I will grant you objective, verifiable and empiricism.

You said, "the facts of high costs in Quebec due to the unions, and the facts of the large black market economy". This might be paranoid common knowledge but where are the facts? Real facts not just mazz2's http nebulous conspiracy theory links.

I didn't claim others would agree with me, I merely stated that others of your ilk might disagree with you. Playing the 'argument ad populam' card shows you 'nulli understandum' my assertion.

No intense hurricanes this year, forecaster predicts

this climate change is amazing!! it can be whatever you want anytime anywhere.

david brown - kindly check your 'facts'.

'Facticity' is a legitimate word in the English language. Check your dictionary. It is 'the quality or condition of being a fact'. American Heritage Dictionaty.

The facts of high union costs in Quebec is well-known and I'm not going to, on a blog, provide you with all the links. Just google the term of Quebec Unions and see what has been written about the problems in Quebec with the hold over the economy by the unions. It's not a paranoid fiction but a data-based fact.

Check out also, the Manifesto, written by Lucien Bouchard and others, Oct 19, 2005, in which he refers to the problems in Quebec, and with unions, also, the problem with the refusal to privatize, which has strengthened the black market in Quebec.

As for an 'argumentum ad populam', you did indeed use it. It refers to an appeal to a group who will agee with you or disagree with me. Same thing - don't be trivial. In either case, it's invalid. It is also Latin, unlike your words.

"I've found the roads in the Maritimes to be the worst... Especially Halifax/Dartmouth." -Zip

I beg to differ. Take a drive through Saint John, NB, sometime and see if you still feel that way.

ET,

As I'm Canadian I use the Webster's dictionary and 'facticity' is not in it.

Please provide 'facts' other than those gleaned from the web. The web is a great tool but unreliable because sources are unverifiable and largely just opinions. It's like visting sites like Kos to get factual information on conservatives.

ET, David Brown:
I've ridden a motorcycle at the rate of about 50,000 kms a year for the past 7 years and have covered most of the continent. ET is 105% correct about Canadian vs. US roads. Correct in every aspect of her post.

This summer I rode from Vancouver to Cape Breton N.S.. Decided to visit Quebec city for the first time in 40 years. Decided that being such a prime tourist location, I didn't need to study my city map before entering. Arrived via the old bridge, NOT A SINGLE ORIENTATION SIGN for Old Quebec, my intended destination. And unilingual signs for the life-and-death issue for road traffic is the ultimate in hubris. Disgusting.

I could go on and on for may pages on this subject but will spare you. ET is right, and David Brown you're the ideologue here and obviously don't have the requisiste experience to debate this issue. Next, you'll tell me it doesn't rain a lot in Vancouver!

Airliner hijacked in Turkey, lands in Italy. Hijackers are protesting Pope's visit. Religion of peace indeed...

Condi and 9/11: Video on arab and british tv show the planners and OBL together in early 2000. Long before she was sec of state. Video also shows the planners making their suicide video. Clintons fault all the way, and what did Sandy Berger steal from the archives and what false info did he put back.
When was this bridge planned, when was it designed, when was it funded and when was construction started. One report stated that the steel cables,beams etc are coroded, but are they the same size as the blueprints stated, or just the same number needed. One building in Leth caved because of this, during construction, killing workers. What change happened during that time. Remember the plane that landed in Manitoba out of fuel and the reason for it. Also, was this bridge built by union workers, with the attitude it is not my job if they spotted an error.

David Brown

Webster's is American too.

fwiw:

technical tip #2 for this week:

steer clear of yahoo's much touted beta email!!

it resembles some half baked college software project. your seconday folders are inaccessible. the boxes overlap and obscure each other, half the screen is ads and news ie gossip, and there is no 'switch back' button to return to the old format despite claims in the help section.

I tricked it by logging in with my mozilla which cant read yahoo because of rigid filtering, then clicked on the 'trouble logging in' box which had the selection to revert to previous email.

beta indeed. betamax.

as far as quebec highways are concerned, proper construction methods have long since been established especially working with concrete.

any structural failure inevitably can be chalked up to shortcuts during construction to 'save money'. ya, and the 'savings' go directly into the pocket of the builder.

...i was starting to miss hearing about the French "youth" and the riots...now Britian has their version

http://www.lep.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx?SectionID=73&ArticleID=1799071

Little Green Footballs has more links, French and British riots.

As usual...quiet in the MSM.

Although I haven't been down east in a heck of a long time, still recall "political" highways where you could tell what the people in a certain county voted by the condition of the roads. Chatham to St. Margarets was a classy camel trail as was the Plaster Rock "highway". However, the difference between Alberta and Saskatchewan is still an eye opening experience.

ET's & Schmuck are likely correct on the situation regarding graft & construction in Quebec. A few friends have worked on construction projects in Quebec & they couldn't believe how it seems to almost run on graft.

The only thing Schmuck failed to mention is that the money would not only be going into the pocket of the builder but also the pockets of whoever is responsible for testing & verifying the work is done properly.

Ken Dryden sinks in uncharted water

[Kenny speaks] "We are a true global country. We touch three oceans."

Have you read his [Dryden's] blog? Riveting. Some excerpts:

Last updated July 1st, 2006.
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

As it is with every stop I make on this seven-month, but really life-long tour, I’m doing what I’m doing because the more you see the more you want to see, the more you know, the more you want to know. And the more you see and know, the more you love. And the more you love, the more you want to do.

http://www.thepolitic.com/archives/2006/10/03/ken-dryden-sinks-in-uncharted-water/

This didn’t take long.

” Students and teachers at Dawson College have come together to demand stronger national gun laws,”

Kate’s correct assertion goes something like this: If laws against murder are not effective to prevent murder why would making gun ownership illegal be effective?

For those that prefer a more nuanced approach when dealing with social problems, how about this? (It’s based on Archie Bunker’s highjack prevention plan.)

Pass out guns at the beginning of every class and collect them at the end. Since the vast majority of people have no wicked intent, any potential evil doer would be vastly out gunned which would both deter and limit any murderous assault.

3w.cbc.ca/canada/montreal/story/2006/10/03/qc-dawsonguncoalition dot ht-etc

...I miss the rythmic bangs of my suspension while driving over the elevated road in Montreal -the Met, let alone the bone jarring drops between sections while on the elevated Gardiner freeway in Toronto.

I learned you add the Max and Min speeds on the signs while in Montreal to determine your driving speed.

The one spot I love is east of Montreal. Two major highways merge on the level plain. While in the right handed 'fast lane' highway dodging trucks in the 'slow lane' from the merging left highway...

CS, I remember the St. John, NB roads last summer, agreed horrid roads and confusing signage...plus depressing little town to boot.

David Brown

Webster's is American too.

That's too funny!!!

Noah Webster was the guy who decided that American spelling would drop the "u" all over the place (color not colour, neighbor not neighbour, etc).

As I'm Canadian I use the Webster's dictionary ...

Ha ha ha ha ha !!!!!

Me No Dhimmi I am planning to ride from the West Coast to Newfoundland in 2008. I would appreciate any pointers on traveling across Canada, alanatthewack@hotmail.com.

Taliban Jack is frumious. ...-

Skelton admits error in column slamming NDP

Conservative MP Carol Skelton admits her recent newspaper column contains an "incorrect line" concerning the NDP's support of the Afghanistan mission.

Skelton, Saskatchewan's sole representative in Prime Minister Stephen Harper's cabinet, wrote in her most recent newsletter, published Sept. 25 in the Rosetown Eagle, that last spring the NDP voted in favour of extending Canada's military mission in Afghanistan to 2009.

In fact, the New Democrats voted unanimously against the two-year extension. ...-

cbc cribbed from the Rosetown Eagle

david brown, you are an embarassment 'as a Canadian'. Does 'being Canadian' mean that you are ignorant? Check out the Miriam-Webster dictionary online.

Main Entry: fac·tic·i·ty
Pronunciation: fak-'ti-s&-tE
Function: noun
Etymology: French or German; French facticité, from German Faktizität, from Factum fact, from Latin factum
: the quality or state of being a fact

OK? Words are words, david, and to refuse to use one, that exists in the English language, because it isn't in your dictionary is 'stuck on stupid'.

And the Web is not a site just for opinions. Don't be dumb. Check out the facticity of the facts available online, in various statistical sites, math sites, data bases, etc.

tomax 7 - agreed, the required speed on Quebec highways, is the sum of the minimum and maximum.

As for graft and the black market in Quebec, Charest's gov't actually took out huge ads begging Quebecers to move out of the black market economy! Now, if such an economy didn't exist, then, why pay for those ads? Never mind that I've experienced it again and again in la belle province.

With regard to the hijacking of the plane - that's quite something. That means, that if you object to what someone does or says, you don't write them, you don't discuss it on a public blog, you don't write an article in a newspaper. No, you turn to violence, harm against civilians who have nothing to do with the issue. Neat. That's why Benedict queried the lack of reason in the Islamic ideology.

Matt,

Glad you clued into the sarcasm. That's what is really funny!

Sarcasm is the new stupid, eh David?

Matt,

Is that the best you can come up with? Especially now that you've been outed as a knee-jerk rightie.

Remember my mission...Expose right-wing arrogance and paranoia, usually with no class whatsoever.

David,

I would suggest that you are now fitting into to one of the typical left-wing stereotypes - a frustrating mixture of arrogance and ignorance.

With all due respect, your Webster's quip above showed no indication of being sarcastic at all. To the reader it looked like you were trying to support your earlier claim that facticity was not a word despite ET's proof otherwise. If humour was intended I would recommend being a bit clearer - throw out a smiley face or something!

My reaction is the same as Matt's, it looks like you are now claiming that your intent was sarcasm because you were caught saying something incredibly stupid.

Hey Alan my first suggestion would be go south and take route 66.

Just came back from Vegas, spent everyday at the gunshop, rent a handgun and get 50 rounds for $40.
What great fun!!

Remember
A man with a gun is a citizen
A man without one is a subject

Oh goody, another whose highways are worst thread. I love these. I'd like to comment on the deplorable state of the (ahem) highways in Saskatchewan. While driving back to Edmonton from S Dakota, we thought it would be fun to overnight in Moose Jaw to do the tunnels (which are really cool, by the way). Anyway, the quickest route was the CanAm Highway that runs from Texas to Regina. It is a two lane highway for most of the way. What a beautiful highway in the States. Soon after crossing the border into Saskatchewan from N Dakota, the (ahem) highway became a GRAVEL road and was that way for about 20 kilometres. What a wonderful first impression for American tourists. Once you hit pavement, the roads still aren't much better. I will concede, however, that the Yellowhead from Saskatoon to Lloydminster is in pretty decent shape, though much of that is new due to the ongoing (for the last twenty years) twinning of the highway to the Alberta border. It was so nice to get back on the Alberta highways after too finish our trip.

... Expose right-wing arrogance and paranoia, usually with no class whatsoever.

Yes David, you usually display no class whatsoever.

Got to learn to proof read. Alberta highways to finish our trip.

According to Websters Third New International dictionary ET is correct. Facticity n.: the quality or state of being a fact (page 813). Bzzt. Thank you for playing, Mr. Brown. May we have the next contestant please?

david brown - to self-assign oneself a 'mission' that oversees a collective is the height of arrogance.

What qualifications do you have that enable you, one person, to authoritatively oversee a population?

May I remind you that you failed to recognize a basic word in English, with its roots in French, German and Latin, as well as misdefining a basic fallacious argument, as well as admitting a bias against the USA. Now, with those attributes, how can you have the arrogance to set yourself up as a judge of what you define as the arrogance of others?

Mindboggling isnt it.