Goodness gracious, was it only four months ago that we cats wrote about the New Democratic Party's surge in the May 2 Canadian elections? Although we were wrong about NDP leader Jack Layton moving into 24 Sussex Drive, he did end up as head of the official opposition after the biggest victory in his party's history.
Today, he's gone, at the incredibly early age of 61. Although it's not exactly a surprise — he'd been fighting cancer — we're still shocked. He campaigned last spring with such brio.
Some other time we'll comment on how damn lucky the undeserving Tory Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, is. But today it's more appropriate just to quote the end of an open letter to Canadians that Layton penned on Saturday. What a gift to his fellow citizens, that Layton both took the time and had the courage to write it.
"Canada is a great country, one of the hopes of the world. We can be a better one — a country of greater equality, justice, and opportunity...My colleagues in our party are an impressive, committed team. Give them a careful hearing; consider the alternatives; and consider that we can be a better, fairer, more equal country by working together. Don’t let them tell you it can’t be done.
"My friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic. And we’ll change the world."
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