The Gazette
Jean-Paul L'Allier, mayor of Quebec City, is not a man to take his losses gracefully. He showed an ugly side in 1990 after the failure of the Meech Lake accord, which was to have recognized Quebec as a distinct society. Interpreting the failure as a snub of Quebec by the rest of Canada, Mr. L'Allier ordered the Canadian flag removed from in front of Quebec City's hotel de ville.
Nothing would persuade him to change his mind, not even a well-publicized campaign by three elderly ex-military men who for more than two years got up every day before 5 a.m. to raise the Canadian flag at city hall. They then stood guard over it from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m.
But Mr. L'Allier is not a man to embarrass easily. The sight of three former servicemen pledging allegiance to their country - Canada - in sub-zero temperatures left him unmoved.
Power, however, has proved to be a more persuasive force. Mr. L'Allier is quite responsive to the dictates of political expediency. This week, after opposition councillors united against him and moved to reinstate the Canadian flag, Mr. L'Allier caved in. The Maple Leaf would fly once more. (Not for him to worry about what kind of role model he is for the younger generation. Principles before self-interest, anyone?)
The three military men hoped for some festivity to mark the Canadian flag's official reappearance. They bargained without the amiable Mr. L'Allier, however. Reacting to the idea of a ceremony, he managed to insult not just the flag and the servicemen, but working people everywhere.
Nothing would be done to mark the occasion, he said. "It is a job for the janitor."
In the event, the city workers - or "the janitor," as Mr. L'Allier likes to call them - showed more class than their mayor. They arrived precisely at 6 a.m. Tuesday and the Maple Leaf was hoisted, bringing tears to the eyes of the three men who had so stubbornly stuck to their principles through thick and thin.