It is terrible. But that is not all. This is not a simple matter, either, because some of VIA Rail's striking workers belong to the same local as some CN union members. Therefore, if CN resumes operations but not VIA Rail, VIA Rail workers on the same seniority list as their CN colleagues will do what union members do in similar circumstances, that is, engage in picketing. Just think about the consequences.
I can therefore strongly emphasize, once again, that the government has used with malicious intent the dramatic situation that some people are going through. A strike is never a pleasant experience. It is not pleasant for the strikers, who are at the end of their rope, nor for those who must suffer the consequences.
Instead of seeking permanent solutions-even if we take more time, as the Bloc Quebecois recommends-, the government is using the situation to resolve its own problems, which Commissioner Hope refers to as "its partisan problems".
If we, in the Bloc Quebecois, dared to stand up at the risk of being unpopular, it is because we have a high opinion of what politics is, of what a country is, and even of what Canada is, as long as we are part of it.