Repeat a lie often enough...

...and it becomes truth.

Newfoundland nationalists know this very well, whence the "Marine Atlantic is our Trans-Canada Highway" myth. Its latest iteration was published today in the Telegram. Barb Sweet indirectly quotes Chuck Furey as follows:

Furey said Ottawa is obligated to provide a decent service as an extension of the Trans-Canada Highway, but has not done that so far despite "On Deck and Below" and an intervening Marine Atlantic report. [Emphasis added.]

"Ottawa" is obliged to do no such thing... and whatever "an extension of the Trans-Canada Highway" is supposed to mean anyway.

The more extreme iterations of the Marine Atlantic myth, not infrequently heard at the Ministry of Truth, or in various shady corners of the bizarrosphere world of Newfoundlant nationalist blogging, include the blatant lie that the Terms of Union say that the ferry is supposed to be free!

For the record, the federal government's Gulf ferry obligations are spelled out in the Terms of Union, as follows:

32. (1) Canada will maintain in accordance with the traffi c offering a freight and passenger steamship service between North Sydney and Port aux Basques which, on completion of a motor highway between Corner Brook and Port aux Basques, will include suitable provision for the carriage of motor vehicles.

(2) For the purpose of railway rate regulation the Island of Newfoundland will be included in the Maritime region of Canada, and through traffic moving between North Sydney and Port aux Basques will be treated as all-rail traffic.

(3) All legislation of the Parliament of Canada providing for special rates on traffic moving within, into, or out of, the Maritime region will, as far as appropriate, be made applicable to the Island of Newfoundland.

It's too bad the Furey quote is indirect rather than direct. It would be nice to know just how far Furey, in his own words, pushed the Newfoundland nationalist Marine Atlantic mythology.