A story on CTV’s website in early August reported that, although an overwhelming majority of registered Conservatives supported Pierre Poilievre for leader of the Conservative Party (44% to 17%), most Canadians preferred Jean Charest to become leader of the party, with a larger percentage of voters indicating they would not vote Conservative in the upcoming federal election if Poilievre becomes leader.

In life, even though you choose your words carefully, non-verbal communication – such as facial expression, hand gestures, gaze patterns, posture, and body movements – can lose you a poker hand, diminish your chances in a job interview, or even get you convicted by a jury.

Canadians are as politically disparate as the vast and diverse landscape we inhabit. Our elected legislatures need to accommodate the competing interests of a great number of factions — some economic (think agricultural, manufacturing, fishing, energy), some cultural and linguistic (English, French, First Nations, Old World immigrants), and some ideological (conservative, liberal, labour-oriented, religious), including many overlapping and distinct viewpoints in between, on these, and from other perspectives.

As recently as last year a newspaper editorialist proposed . . . “While the Crown is not perfect and does not rule in Canada, it is above partisanship, symbolizing the unity of the nation. This makes the monarchy a deeply authentic part of Canada’s political heritage and of its political culture of stability, peace, order, and (fairly) good government.” What a load of crap I say!