It is obvious that Quebecers are losing faith in the system, and it equally obvious that we need a public inquiry into collusion and corruption.
Jacques Duchesneau says it is urgent and he should know.
His appearance this week at the National Assembly should convince everyone: all the doubting Thomases and doubting Jeans.
He claims his anti-corruption squad has discovered clear connections between organized crime, public contracts and political parties.
Duchesneau says he has the goods on the undue influence big contractors have over the bureaucracy at Transports Quebec.
The system stinks.
We all know our roads are terrible and deteriorate faster than those in neighbouring provinces or border states.
We all know that it costs 30 percent more to build or repair a road in Quebec than in Ontario.
The system will not change unless everything is on the table, and if it requires that part of an inquiry be held behind closed doors, then so be it.
We are indeed losing faith.
Spray cans should be a controlled substance
I think graffiti is a modern blight.
I wonder what's in the heads of people who take pleasure defacing public and private property. Obviously not much.
This week once again the war memorial in Girouard Park was tagged by some idiot with a spray can.
Fines are really not nearly enough for people who dishonour our war dead.
We can start by restricting the sale of spray cans.
Those who are found guilty of such heinous acts should face the full force of the law and perhaps some mandatory re-education with our war vets about sacrifice and the cost of freedom.
Excessive representation
It's not often I agree with Louise Harel, but the opposition leader at City Hall is right when she says Montreal is over-governed.
103 councillors in a city of 1.8 million.
That's just silly.
But I do find it a little disingenuous coming from the mother of the mangled municipal mergers.
She really didn't listen back then to what people were saying; the whole thing literally was shoved down our throats.
What we have now is not quite fish nor fowl, but obviously something too big to handle.
Do the trains even run on time?
By far the dumbest idea of the week comes from our friends at the AMT, the folks who run the commuter trains.
Everyone is telling us to take public transit, ease congestion, save the planet.
But the bright lights at the AMT this week announced fares would be rising for some riders by 21 percent.
Yep, they are rearranging the zone system.
It's like telling people to eat better and then taxing fruits and veggies.
This had to be a decision of a committee.
Quebec should step in and overrule the AMT politburo on this one.
The agency is clearly losing its train of thought.
