Positively Impressive

While the opposition parties and the news media harp on about the failings of the current Conservative-led government and Prime Minister Harper's shortcomings, Michael Ignatieff, leader of the official opposition in Parliament, was out and about in Canada, making himself known and available as an affable, misunderstood future prime minister of Canada.

And, reflective of summer-time news, the media are suddenly waxing enthusiastic about the man and the success of his trip. His initial start on a bus that balked appears to have morphed into a successful cross-country get-to-know-ya summer event.

And Mr. Ignatieff and his recalcitrant bus are set now, to return to Ottawa. Mission accomplished. Stopping at little towns and cities in various provinces along the way he has accomplished what he set out to do. Preaching to those who would listen how far more useful he would be as prime minister than the current one.

He comes complete with a social conscience, one he knows is quite absent from the current position-holder. At every stop along the way he made it his business to present as a personable and intelligent future prime minister. Whose forays abroad that consumed much of his life were highly beneficial to him personally, and made him far more fit to hold public office.

In fact, he highly recommended foreign travel and stays as a mind-broadening attribute. If it was good enough for him, it's doubtless good enough for any Canadian. Actually, it seems that living and working abroad for most of one's adult life is a great introduction to the possibility of accomplishing a personal vision of attaining to the highest office of the land.
(Seems he is prepared to depart back to the U.S. if Canadians are too befuddled to recognize his prime ministerial potential; aw.)

Getting to know the world doesn't necessarily mean that in the process Canada is forgotten. It only means that current events globally have greater resonance, and if daily life and news events peculiar to Canada are lost in the shuffle, well, that's just the way it is. Does the reverse hold true too, then, that re-acquainting oneself with Canada dilutes knowledge of the international kind?

Tellingly, at one Nova Scotia stop where curious people came out to see the real McCoy, one voter enquired of him whether as prime minister he would be prepared to encourage honesty of politicians. "I just got the non-answer I was expecting", she reported later. So then she wasn't entirely disappointed when Mr. Ignatieff engaged in his metier of circumlocution. Otherwise known as evasion.

"I anticipated that, I just needed to hear it. I'm just looking for an honest politician", the Haligonian said. Aren't we all? Would we recognize one when/if we see/saw him/her?