It doesn't fall from the sky, you know

I love watching elections, and I stayed up til the bitter end for the last federal election.  Now I am glad, because although I was maddened by the majority government the Conservatives achieved with a minority of the popular vote, I did get to see Jack Layton's speech as incoming Leader of the Opposition. Watching Layton, Harper and Ignatieff that evening (not to mention the jubliant Elizabeth May), it wasn't hard to see why the voters did what they did.

So it's heartbreaking to see Layton's passing without him ever having the chance to put the heat to the PM, in Parliament, as the Leader of the Opposition.  There are no guarantees in life, are there?  But beyond elections, when I watched Jack Layton speak I could tell that he was a 'man on the move' and that he was the rare sort of leader who pushed his staff, not the other way around.

Here's what Paul Wells said about Jack Layton:

Today everyone will be writing and talking about his last campaign, the one he fought with a cane and a smile, as sustained a feat of physical courage and political agility as any I’ve seen in all my years covering this business. But I think it’s important to recognize that his party’s final breakthrough was no fluke. It was the product of a lifetime’s preparation and a decade’s effort, concentration and adaptation. It was the work of a man who won over his party, then his caucus colleagues, then his party’s traditional voters, then hundreds of thousands of new supporters. Jack Layton promised to build, and he was as good as his word.

So here's to you Jack - well done, good and faithful servant.  Thanks for reminding us it can be done.