Bah Humbug to the Mouvement Montréal français!

Dressed in Santa Claus suits, about 50 men and women took to downtown streets this past weekend wishing people "Merry Christmas in French" and urging shoppers to shop only in stores that are overtly French. They got what they were after; which is a fair amount of media coverage, but the majority of French Quebecers were probably too busy crossing the border to shop at American outlets to bother listening to their message.

No one is denying or even arguing Quebec's right to legislate French as the predominant language in store signs and businesses, but at the end of the day shoppers will go where they want to. Good prices, good value, good service dictate where people will shop, and that includes being served in one's language, be it English or French, particularly in downtown Montreal; the shopping ground of choice for out-of-town tourists.

The MMF's ridiculous claim that there are actually places in downtown Montreal where you can't get served in French smacks of the usual desperate controversy-creating methods most separatist groups employ in order to make French Quebecers feel there's an actual threat to their language, when in fact there is none.

The mere fact that Canadian and American stores like Roots or American Outfitters have downtown flagship stores should be cause for celebration; not for protests. It wasn't too long ago that Ste. Catherine Street was hurting for merchants and a number of storefronts were empty and desolate. Now that they've been rented out and business is booming, some groups have found something else to complain about? Bah Humbug to these Scrooges and their divisive tactics!

If they have so much free time on their hands and a desire to prance around in Santa Claus costumes, why not hit a couple of food banks or a children's hospital? Their time would have been better served and this way they could have truly wished their fellow Montrealers a Merry Christmas in French. I guarantee you they would have gotten a Joyeux Noël right back.