Living in Interesting Times

Who would have thought. With eleven days to go, this election is suddenly unlike any of the recent Tory dominated snorefests. Though their support seems soft as usual, the NDP is closing in on the Liberals. This could simply split the progressive vote and pave the way for a Tory majority. Or it could provide the "winning conditions" (who said that?) for a viable coalition following an early defeat of a lame Harper minority.

Far more important, claims of the death of the progressive left in Canada were somewhat exaggerated. And if the federal and provincial parties and their trade union and social movement allies can build on this (never a sure thing) then this could be a sign of a shift in Canadian politics.

The gun-toting, warmongering anti-everything including the poor lunacy south of the border looked to be making inroads here. We can only hope that it has been stopped in its tracks.