new world order (and canada, too!)

So.  The prime minister we all love to hate has increased his minority government.  The resounding chorus of facebook statuses collectively cried "at least it's not a majority!" after the results were in.  Many of us are sad, but not destroyed.  And the good news is there is a bright silver lining to all of this.

Martin Lawrence (my favourite Globe columnist) has a prediction that Dion will exit as Liberal leader before 2009, and that (God willing!) Harper will be out within two years.  His argument for the latter is that the PM has failed to achieve a majority after two tries, and that the next Liberal leader will be popular (unlike Mr. Sweatervest).

I tend to agree.  And, of course, we mustn't forget that Obama will very likely be President of the United States.  This is important because it's looking as though there is going to be major movement from western leaders to begin working together for the greater good.

See this Economist article, which reports the European Union's efforts to not only avoid an economic disaster, but to also reform "capitalism" so that it's based more on morals and people.  With Obama's career-defining commitment to helping people work together, this is a recipe for a major global shift in culture.

I really liked Dion, and he represented an approach to governance that could have lead to great things.  However, the unfortunate truth of the matter is that we live in a media-driven world and if you don't translate well, you won't be heard.  The next Liberal leader (my bet is on Ignatieff) will most certainly be popular and likely win the election - and s/he will be running on a platform influenced by 2 years of Dion environmentalism.

So.  Take heart!  We will suffer some further deconstruction of our social fabric for a little while longer, but once the time comes to decide again, our choice will be clear.  And this leader will be guiding us through a global climate where community and collaboration are the ideals on everyone's lips.