It's par for the course for the Parti Quebecois, but the removal of the Canadian flag from its spot inside Quebec's National Assembly can still rub many Canadians the wrong way.
From our Facebook page and our comments section to the wider Twitterverse, readers reacted strongly to news the Maple Leaf was missing from the old upper chamber known as the Red Room at the Quebec legislature when the PQ's 54-member, minority-government caucus took the oath of office on Monday. The Quebec Fleur-de-lis flag was once again standing alone.
It really shouldn't have surprised anyone. As the Canadian Press reported:
The removal of the Maple Leaf was part of a longstanding see-saw ritual: it had been long absent in the legislature but was restored nine years ago when Jean Charest's Liberals took office and placed it next to the Quebec flag at the Speaker's chair in the building's ceremonial chamber.
Some readers, like Angelo Barovier, were philosophical about the flag flap. "It's a piece of cloth in a room. It effectively changes nothing," he wrote in the comments. "She's still standing on Canadian soil. Call me if and when that changes."
But many more vented about transfer payments, "treason" and Quebec's place within Canada.