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MONTREAL - Quebec s student protesters have a new celebrity critic and he s firing away on all cylinders. Local hero Jacques Villeneuve is upset at the student protestmovement that has gone on for months and is now promising to turnup at Formula One Grand Prix events in Montreal all weekend. In a five-minute exchange with reporters Thursday, Villeneuve urgedthe protesters to go back to school. He suggested they were lazy. He called them an embarrassment toCanada especially to Quebec. He suggested they were badlyraised, by parents who never learned to say No. And he said they risked scaring away tourists and wealthytaxpayers, who would just pick up and invest elsewhere in a morestable climate. The student protest movement has received the enthusiasticendorsement of many Quebec celebrities and near-unanimous supportfrom the artistic community. But the Quebec-born, Monaco-raiseddriver just might have become the most famous, most virulent newcritic of the movement. It s time for people to wake up and stop loafing about. It slasted long enough, Villeneuve told reporters at a cocktailbenefit that kicked off the four-day Grand Prix festivities. We heard them. We listened. They should stop. It s costing thecity a fortune. It makes no sense. As for their parents, Villeneuve said: I think these people grewup without ever hearing their parents ever tell them No. Sothat s what you see in the streets now. People spending their timecomplaining. It s becoming a little bit ridiculous. They spoke, weheard, and now it s time to go back to school. He said that in a democracy, people can vote to turf governments,and speak their mind between elections to make themselves heard but they have to know when to give it a rest. That s what democracy is, Villeneuve said. We vote forpeople and if you re not happy, then you vote for other peoplethe next time around. And if you re not happy you complain, theylisten, and that s it. Same with your parents: Daddy, mommy, I don t like this. Well, go back to bed now. Villeneuve said he was raised to believe in hard work, and notimagine money will fall from the sky. He also compared the students to the London rioters last year andsaid they were rebels without a cause. In the end, he said, the students are hurting themselves becausethey re pushing for things that aren t fiscally sustainable and they ll end up paying one day. Unfortunately, he said, if theykeep it up there will be less taxpayers around to help foot thebill. And where does the government get the money? From taxes, fromselling stuff, Villeneuve said. The next thing they will sayis, Well, take it from the rich. And that s when you have the rich moving to another country. The student protesters dismiss the idea that taxes would need to beraised to freeze or eliminate tuition which represents only atiny fraction of the provincial budget and pales in comparison tothe money spent on corporate subsidies. Scores of protesters demonstrated outside the cocktail eventVilleneuve was attending, in the company of other racing figuresand celebrities. It was a glitzy $1,000-a-plate fundraiser, withproceeds going to a local children s hospital. Some protestershave promised to disrupt events throughout the Grand Prix weekendand even jam the m tro leading to the race track on Sunday. Villeneuve, 41, won the 1997 Formula One world championship andreceived the adulation of local sports fans who feted his successwith a roaring celebration before a Canadiens game. After severaldifficult seasons he left Formula One in 2005 and has since racedon other circuits. He said he s heard from people outside the country commenting onthe student protests in Quebec but he said the opinion isill-informed and based almost entirely on the one-sided take ofprotesters. With files by Alexander Panetta. The e-commerce company in China offers quality products such as Tetramethylammonium Hydroxide Manufacturer , China Sodium Tripoly Phosphate, and more. For more , please visit Acetic Acid Ethyl Ester today!
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