When you’re reading a book, watching a movie, there is always (or should always be) a little part of your mind that’s reviewing what’s going on, wondering if you’re being fed some b.s., unthruths, etc. Most times when I spot some such bending of reality I just make a mental note to check it out and get some more valid information.
Last week though I fell upon one example that simply made me drop the book and jump to the next on the pile. The book is Pico Iyer’s The Global Soul, a book that is supposed to “decipher the dream-life—the personal impact—of globalization and the rising tide of worldwide displacement.”. Knowing that I was reading a book about mixing cultures, immigration, etc. I was in a mindset that the information related to the subject would be reliable. When I came to the following passage recounting a visit to Toronto I realized I wasn’t (emphasis mine):
So “New Canadians” from Rwanda and Bulgaria and Afghanistan joined several groups of fugitives who didn’t even show up on many charts: Americans who’d come here to escape the Vietnam war (and colored the city now with their impenitent idealism); 300,000 Anglophile refugees from Montreal, in flight from Quebec’s violently anti-English language policies, and others (from Palestine, say)…
Such a passage in a novel would be “fine”, I’d just snicker, but in a non-fiction book who’s main subject it intermixing cultures? I don’t think so. Too exagerated and misinformerd, didn’t give me confidence in what else he was saying.
5 Comments
“300,000 Anglophile refugees from Montreal, in flight from Quebec’s violently anti-English language policies”
I’m still laughing, though I guess I should be crying.
And does he really mean anglophiles or anglophones?
“300,000 Anglophile refugees from Montreal, in flight from Quebec’s violently anti-English language policies”
Man, there are so many ways in which that sentence doesn’t even make sense.
Anglophiles as in, people in love with all things English. Yup they all moved to Toronto when Quebec’s language laws became violent, violent I tell you!
In fact, I’m writing this from my Anglophile refugee camp under the Turcot Exchange. I had to flee when it was discovered that I have a 1977 Queen Elizabeth Silver Jubilee pot warmer. Oh, and my wife is British.
No I haven’t been drinking today, why do you ask?
Martine: I did say anglo phile, he can’t even write ;)
John: What are you even doing commenting on a blog?? You anglos aren’t supposed to have access to the internets!
ha
and here I am sitting on a giant pile of tea-cozies waiting for my mang merdeing bus which is always late and brushing up on my inflective verbs…
( I do love eglish I hate grammar though and I truly hate ths ent a terminal keyboard the space bar has a space in it?)
I wanted to say that I picked up a book while I was here cald the allacy of argment that does just want you want patick, I will lend it to you whenI am through gota go out of time
that;s fallacy don’t shoot me shoot the keyboard