DATELINE: STILL RAISING THE BAR – The Canadian political machine was set on its collective ear yesterday. The new Leader of the Official Opposition, Jack Layton, made the announcement that he is stepping back from his position for a while to deal with a diagnosis of a new cancer. I could talk about his policies that I don’t fully embrace, I could talk about his unbridled energy to lift his NDP party to unprecedented heights, I could commend his strength and determination in overcoming health issues in his recent past, but I won’t. I will instead offer my prayers for him and his family, wishing him a speedy, full recovery. I will also offer a challenge to all his fellow Members of Parliament: Emulate the man. It does not matter what you think of his policies or his political leanings; what matters is that in all circumstances, more than any other politician on the international stage today, Jack Layton was a leader and a gentleman. He never resorted to crawling around in the gutter with the rest of our current palate of colorful poseurs, he has never spent his every waking minute worrying about the next eletion and how to win it, he has never been obsessed with his own 'power'. He always shows a desire to compromise, a belief in the overall betterment of all our lives, a faith and trust in the people he serves, a desire to serve them the best he can. When asked a question, he answers it, something that truly is a rarity in political circles. He does not belittle, talk down, overpower, tromp, bully, ridicule or insult. He fights for what he believes in, and he does it in the most honorable of ways… and he is a lone example of that degree of unfailing class and accomplishment. Oh, that Stephen Harper could learn even one of these traits! Jack Layton's presence will be missed, but I hope that it will be just a temporary absence while he fully recovers his health. It is to be hoped though, that politicians at all levels of government, across this country, across this continent, around the globe will follow the example of Gentleman Jack, and rise to the standard he has set. You would all be so much more effective, efficient and respectable if you do. Jack, feel better soon. We need your balance, your fairness, your honesty back in Parliament.
DATELINE: MEANWHILE, BACK IN THE GUTTER – In what will probably be considered the most childish political performance, last night the world watched in utter fucking amazement as Barack Obama and John Boehner continued their games, this time with dueling press conferences. You probably heard the collective head-banging of everyone watching the unmitigated crap display of ‘I’m right and he’s wrong’ that threatens to smash into the global economy and send it spiraling. As they spoke, the value of the American dollar started to fall as international confidence in these two absolutely unbelievably stupid fucking idiots expanded the borders of their sandbox. That the government, both sides of it, allowed the debt to get to where it is, astounds. Their solutions both include one thing in common; to form committees to look into what is wrong. Sure, spend more money on another committee that no one will listen to anyways, because if the committee has any fucking brains, their solution is going to be to clear away the deadwood that lines both parties political coffers, and to take a huge bloody pin to pop the inflated egos that are holding the nation, the continent, and yes, the world economies hostage. On the good side though, you have to know that China is thrilled with watching this farce play out for all to see, as are the Syrians, the Pakistanis, the Saudis, the Koreans, the Iranians… they have to love the idea that the leaders of the greatest nation on the world are teetering on the edge of the bathtub, a rope of their own making around their necks, their hands so busy pointing and bitch-slapping each other that they can’t life the fucking ropes off before they fall. They are so distracted with proving their own point, with winning this battle, that they have lost sight of absolutely every other fucking issue on the table, and the people, good, honest, hardworking people, are going to pay the price. I never thought it would be possible to say that there could be anything in Washington more self-serving, stupid, distracted and ineffective as George W. Bush. Congratulations, you fucking idiots… you have now proven the point that yes, indeed, there is worse than Dubyah.
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