Well, hold on there a second. You said you were "born in Florida", which makes you a US citizen unless your parents explicitly petitioned the government for renunciation of your citizenship. You can't migrate at two years old without having held prior citizenship, even if you were born is some other country other than the US.. So what's the true story?
The only documentation I hold is a US birth certificate. I do not have a U.S. social insurance number. My parents never explicitly petitioned the government for anything. I've crossed the U.S./Canada border a few times and all I ever needed to enter was the birth certificate. I bring my Canadian passport with me every time I go, "just in case". I admit that I don't know what it would take (if anything) to reinstate (assuming it was some how revoked in the past somehow) my U.S. citizenship (or if it's already valid). I've been told a few times by both U.S. customs officers and my family accountant that I am not currently a U.S. citizen. I never asked why or for more details because I don't think I will be moving back soon.
In any case, your Mexican analogy is totally warped. The United States is English. If you're a Mexican immigrant whining about your rights to operate daily in Spanish, you are complaining about the lack of respect given to a language that is foreign to the country you are emigrating to. With the exception of Quebec, the rest of Canada is overwhelmingly English. So playing the "humble immigrant" role is bullshit, not only because the tongue in question is native to the country you are moving to, but because it also has a long standing NATIVE history in the province in question as well. English people in Quebec aren't "foreigners" lol. But again, your Quebec nationalism shines through, because you obviously view yourself as a Quebecker rather than a Canadian.
We have completely different world views. I don't agree that borders (of a country as a whole) determine usable language. Ukraine (and the Russian language) is a good example of a multilingual country (lots more in Europe). Although the official language of Ukraine is Ukrainian, speaking Ukrainian in Crimea would put you in the minority in that specific "region". The country's borders as a whole (in my opinion) has very little to do with culture and the use of language. Again, when it comes to culture, I see borders as imaginary. We will never agree on this point, and that's fine. Ohh, and I think you don't have to be considered a "foreigner" to be able to speak a different language, even if you're in the same country. Also, I do not consider myself to be a Quebecer or an admirer of the French in general. I very much voted against sovereignty in 1994 and would do the same any time in the future. Again, me understanding why the French do what they do doesn't make me a Parti Quebecois supporter.
Again, the difference is HUGE. English is one of the native/official languages of Canada, and is spoken by the vast majority of its citizens. French Canadians don't have the right to feel "threatened" by the English, because they are NATIVES to Canada. But even if your horrible analogy held true, Americans STILL provide more FREEDOM to foreign immigrants than French Canadians do to their NATIVE Anglophones. If a Mexican wants to open a taco shop in East Dallas with a Spanish only sign, they can do that. Can an English person do that in Quebec? Nobody forces English down a Mexican's throat-- if they want to only speak Spanish and limit their job prospects to operating a leaf blower, that's their prerogative.
Again, as I've said before, I do not support such idiotic laws. Laws such as how big the French text is versus how big the English text on your company's front door is retarded. Although I think these types of laws are ridiculous, I see them as a kind of primitive mechanism to preserve their language. Also, the objective of the French is not to destroy English, it is to preserve French. If Mexicans were trying to take over Quebec, you'd have the same reaction towards the Mexicans.
Again, you see yourself as a Quebecker rather than a Canadian.
False. This does not need further a explanation from me as it is an assumption.
You're not a minority in the country you live in, you're a minority in the Province you live in.
This I can get behind 100%.
This is why the rest of Canada dislikes Quebec so much. Sanctimonious, state based nationalism that flips its middle finger at the rest of Canada while milking the federal government for huge transfer payments. Federalism is only cool with Quebecers when it's beneficial to them.
I agree 100% that Quebec is by far the most corrupt province of Canada. Highest taxes, shittiest roads etc, etc. The STM (buses and metros), Hydro Quebec, Videotron (Cable company) and all similar companies will likely hire French Canadians over everyone else. They want to keep as much money as they can inside the French community and fuck everyone else, hence why western Canada forks over more money towards the east. Again, I see why they do what they do but I don't support one shred of it.
I see Quebec as yet another cautionary tale on how appeasement eventually ends with getting the tables turned on you. French wanted more rights, got more rights, then started oppressing their so called oppressors. Then still, to this day, French/English relations are tenuous at best, and that's without religion even being involved.
The way I see it, they can pass all the laws they want. They can have all of the rights they want. They can continue to censor the English forever. Every day that passes, Quebec becomes more and more English for reasons beyond the control of the French. Business is one huge factor and believe it or not, the French love American culture. Almost every French person I know loves Elvis and Harleys. I think it's safe to say that Quebec will not remain French forever. Don't forget that the extremists are always the most vocal.
