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Québec will now require that only Québec music be played in government buildings and phone lines

Dust

Dust

C H A O S
Member
Oct 25, 2017
32,160
Hold on...
I knew a dude from Canada (gonna assume Quebec now) who told me Demon's Souls on PS3 was banned there cause they didn't have French on the box or something. He told me owning it was actually like having drugs. I assumed he was trolling me, but dunno now.
 
Grimsen

Grimsen

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,260
This thread, as usual on ERA, is fucking embarrassing. Keep being xenophobic, folks.

lunarworks said:
Quebec's language laws are so strict they can't even use the acronym KFC.

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That's not even true. PFK was a business decision, since the business had decided when it first opened its resraurants in the 60s to rebrand as Poulet Frit à la Kentucky.
 
SixPointEight

SixPointEight

Member
Oct 28, 2017
6,282
Dust said:
Hold on...
I knew a dude from Canada (gonna assume Quebec now) who told me Demon's Souls on PS3 was banned there cause they didn't have French on the box or something. He told me owning it was actually like having drugs. I assumed he was trolling me, but dunno now.
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Eh, I don't know if there's any truth to it back when DS got released. But for a while in the late 90s early 2000s Canadian releases were delayed a bit (early on it was weeks, later it was a couple of days) to produce bilingual packaging as it's a Canadian requirement. The game industry has since adapted, but at the time it sure insulted alot of gamers. Nintendo as a whole took it as an opportunity and they were at the forefront of supporting translated games.

If it was still an issue at the time DS released, then Sony fucked up.
 
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L Thammy

L Thammy

Spacenoid
Member
Oct 25, 2017
49,972
Dust said:
Hold on...
I knew a dude from Canada (gonna assume Quebec now) who told me Demon's Souls on PS3 was banned there cause they didn't have French on the box or something. He told me owning it was actually like having drugs. I assumed he was trolling me, but dunno now.
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I'm pretty sure they were fucking with you. These sort of laws would be applied to stuff like businesses and the public sector, not just random people having things that aren't in French.

Anyhow, US copies of games will sometimes have Spanish on them too, so it's not like it's totally alien to have bilingual covers.
 
tabris

tabris

Member
Oct 27, 2017
4,235
Know the thing I never understood about Quebec. You would think that a culture that understands defending against external pressures to assimilate, would have acceptance and understanding for First Nations who are trying to do the same (I mean First Nations has to deal with at another level with shit like the residence school programs of the past (recent past)/etc but I meant the point of trying to maintain culture). Unfortunately, Quebec is one of the most racist provinces against First Nations. Well actually most of Canada is unfortunately, but Quebec definitely has a reputation. I would think it would be the other way, Quebec would be the most understanding.
 
Caz

Caz

Attempted to circumvent ban with alt account
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
13,055
Canada
Imagine the reaction francophones would have if Alberta or New Brunswick had a "only Albertan/New Brunswick music" law or policy implemented. This is the exact kind of decisions that will lead to a resurgence of Quebec nationalism...in additional to all the other CAQ-headed nonsense that Legault and his ilk have done to foster and normalize said nationalism since forming a majority.
SteveWinwood said:
should people have english forced on them as well?
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We're a bilingual country.
 
AuthenticM

AuthenticM

Son Altesse Sérénissime
The Fallen
Oct 25, 2017
30,015
Dust said:
Hold on...
I knew a dude from Canada (gonna assume Quebec now) who told me Demon's Souls on PS3 was banned there cause they didn't have French on the box or something. He told me owning it was actually like having drugs. I assumed he was trolling me, but dunno now.
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Click to shrink...
He was lying.

SixPointEight said:
Eh, I don't know if there's any truth to it back when DS got released. But for a while in the late 90s early 2000s Canadian releases were delayed a bit (early on it was weeks, later it was a couple of days) to produce bilingual packaging as it's a Canadian requirement. The game industry has since adapted, but at the time it sure insulted alot of gamers. Nintendo as a whole took it as an opportunity and they were at the forefront of supporting translated games.

If it was still an issue at the time DS released, then Sony fucked up.
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L Thammy said:
I'm pretty sure they were fucking with you. These sort of laws would be applied to stuff like businesses and the public sector, not just random people having things that aren't in French.

Anyhow, US copies of games will sometimes have Spanish on them too, so it's not like it's totally alien to have bilingual covers.
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The "law" around video games that made the news around 2008 or so wasn't even a law, but an agreement between the ESA and province of Québec to have French localizations in games sold in Québec, but only if a French localization already existed. In other words, there wasn't a need to produce a Québec-specific localization.

Moreover, this did not result in any game being delayed or banned. That was fearmongering to justify Québec-bashing.
 
Goldenroad

Goldenroad

Attempted to circumvent ban with alt account
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Nov 2, 2017
9,475
Being from Saskatchewan, I think it would actually be kind of tasteful to say, "In our government buildings and phone lines we are only going to play music from Saskatchewan musicians to promote our local talent and heritage". I don't see why anyone would take any issue with this in Saskatchewan, Quebec or any other province. I'd prefer this to CanCon if I got to choose one or the other.
 
Cilidra

Cilidra

A friend is worth more than a million Venezuelan$
Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,489
Ottawa
Caz said:
Imagine the reaction francophones would have if Alberta or New Brunswick had a "only Albertan/New Brunswick music" law or policy implemented. This is the exact kind of decisions that will lead to a resurgence of Quebec nationalism...in additional to all the other CAQ-headed nonsense that Legault and his ilk have done to foster and normalize said nationalism since forming a majority.

We're a bilingual country.
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If Alberta or New Brunswick mandated the same thing for their governemnt office and government on hold music, no one would bat an eyes outside those provinces. It's would not even be mentionned elsewhere.
This is just just for Quebec provincial goverment offices and phone lines only. Itt's not for bussinesses or federal governement. Why do you even care? Have you even once called the Quebec government lines?
I don't live in Quebec but I do sometimes have to deal with the Quebec governement, I don't care that they use local artist or not. I don't call the offices to listen to music.
 
SixPointEight

SixPointEight

Member
Oct 28, 2017
6,282
Caz said:
Imagine the reaction francophones would have if Alberta or New Brunswick had a "only Albertan/New Brunswick music" law or policy implemented. This is the exact kind of decisions that will lead to a resurgence of Quebec nationalism...in additional to all the other CAQ-headed nonsense that Legault and his ilk have done to foster and normalize said nationalism since forming a majority.
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They'd be ok with it if implemented correctly? Like it opens a possibility to have better representation if it's implemented correctly? This policy can be implemented inclusively and have representation of all the cultures of a province.

I don't trust it will due to who's in charge in Quebec, but unlike some of their other policies and laws, I also don't think it'll be regressive over what was there before.
 
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Vylder

Vylder

Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,256
Nida said:
Wait, why couldn't you order it?
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They just specified that the product couldn't be shipped to Quebec. So I had to make it deliver to a friend in Nova Scotia to get it.

Just look at most contests online, the only places that can't participate are countries like North Korea or.. Quebec!
 
Dashful

Dashful

Community Resettler
Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,399
Canada
Vylder said:
They just specified that the product couldn't be shipped to Quebec. So I had to make it deliver to a friend in Nova Scotia to get it.

Just look at most contests online, the only places that can't participate are countries like North Korea or.. Quebec!
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Nothing to do with language and all to do with Lotto-motherfucken-Québec.

People and their dumb scratch tickets.
 

JinnAxel

Member
Oct 30, 2017
455
Vylder said:
the only places that can't participate are countries like North Korea or.. Quebec!
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That's only because of Quebec gaming laws being more strict than other regions including an up to 10% fee on the dollar value of prizing. It's more legalese and bureaucracy getting in the way than language laws.

Things being sold in quebec need to have French labeling, but ordering from an out of province source shouldn't be an issue.
 
exodus

exodus

Member
Oct 25, 2017
9,943
Honestly, as a Franco-Ontarien, I've grown to sympathize with Quebec's direction as far as language goes. There is a vibrant French-Canadian culture alive and well today, due in no small part to their stubbornness. I feel like in today's California-centric North American culture, it would have eroded away ages ago were it not for the intervention of the Quebec government.
 
Cantaim

Cantaim

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Oct 25, 2017
33,315
The Stussining
Not Canadian but I can't blame Quebec for a lot of the steps they have taken over the decades to try to protect their culture. Minority cultures often face "death by a thousand cuts" if they don't the steps to protect themselves. For Quebec they do have the power to stave off a lot of the soft power the more English side of Canada has.

This however reads like someone is kissing ass to make news lol.
 
Mentok

Mentok

Member
Oct 27, 2017
3,575
I gotta be honest, I just assumed Quebec already had something like this in place. No surprises by it, nor is this really "headlines" worthy.
 
exodus

exodus

Member
Oct 25, 2017
9,943
Vylder said:
We are already forced to listen to shitty french music during weekends on the radio.

Fuck I hate this place

I couldn't even order a Star Wars figure the other day because the fucking package was not in french
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I mean, the alternative is for Quebecois to erode away as English takes over as the dominant language. That would be a huge loss.

I have family in Lac St-Jean and all they say is "on devrait tout juste parler l'Anglais". I was of that same opinion ages ago. But as I see my only ties to French Canadian culture being preserved through Quebec's insistence on keeping their language at the forefront of their priorities, I can't help but appreciate that they're doing so.

We have destroyed so many indigenous cultures over the past century, but now we're angry that Quebec is standing up to protect itself? Nah. We should know better than that.
 
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Annubis

Annubis

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Oct 25, 2017
5,656
I just realize... would this mean I'd get to hear this while waiting on the phone for the government?

 
BaconHat

BaconHat

One Winged Slayer
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Oct 25, 2017
5,098
Huh, neat, always nice to hear that local artists are going to have a new cash flow to help.
 
Zip

Zip

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Oct 28, 2017
4,019
Quebec's language laws are mainly an irritation - when they actively push against people being able to read or speak English in the province. I can understand the motivation, but it just seems to at times edge on discrimination against anything not deemed 'quebecois' - whatever that has been decided to mean.
 
daegan

daegan

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Oct 27, 2017
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I realize we have plenty of idiots but honestly the lack of an official language is one of my favorite things about the US. I think changing as we change makes sense. But I actually think this is a cool idea and way to funnel money toward Quebec artists and therefore cool.
 

Deleted member 42484

Banned
Apr 21, 2018
6,969
This is absolutely a non-issue. Government buildings and phone-lines playing local music is actually a pretty good idea and an absolutely unobtrusive way to give local musicians some spotlight/income.

Is anyone actually going to miss their precious, precious phone-line elevator music? Or the precious, precious background music while waiting to update their driver's license. Yeesh.

I support this small decision. Why not?
(yes I'm Canadian, from Ontario)
 
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