Michael Ignatieff and Liberal caucus members arrive aboard the Liberal Express for the return of Parliament. Photo: Greg Kolz
Someone once told me that smell is directly connected to memory, more so than touch, hearing, sight, or taste.
The scent I always used to associate with going back to school was the aroma of freshly-sharpened pencils. To this day, a whiff of pencil shavings brings back memories: that first bus ride, brimming with possibility, giving up my desk in math class to one of the cool kids, and enjoying every last minute on the bench, waiting to be picked for dodge-ball.
Today is our first day back on Parliament Hill. Instead of dodge-ball, we have Question Period. We don’t have math class, even though the Conservatives seem to need it.
Michael Ignatieff & Zsuzsanna Zsohar arrive on Parliament Hill. Photo: Greg Kolz
We do, however, have a bus.
This afternoon, after 10 provinces, 3 territories, and more than 55,000 kilometres, the Liberal Express will be back on Parliament Hill, and Michael Ignatieff will be on board.
While Michael Ignatieff arrives at the front door of Parliament, on a big ol’ bus, surrounded by members of the Liberal team, Stephen Harper will be making a very different entrance. Like always, he’ll come in by the back door, behind the tinted windows of his limousine, surrounded by security guards.
Ladies and gentlemen: we have contrast. It’s not all symbolic, either. After a busy summer, Liberals understand the priorities of hard-working Canadian families: healthcare and pensions, childcare and household debt.
Stephen Harper, meanwhile, has cut hard-working Canadians out of his agenda. $16 billion on U.S.-made fighter jets without a competitive bid, $13 billion on U.S.-style mega-prisons, $6 billion on additional corporate tax cuts for the largest corporations, and $1 billion for the G20 photo-op – after a summer on the Liberal Express, I think it’s safe to say that there are more Canadians who are scared of the census than believe that these are good uses of our tax dollars.
Two parties, two sets of priorities. On the Liberal Express, Michael Ignatieff showed Canadians in every province and territory that there is a progressive, compassionate, responsible alternative to Stephen Harper’s Conservatives. It’ll be arriving on Parliament Hill later today, in a big ol’ bus.
- A.G.
Adam Goldenberg, Michael Ignatieff’s speechwriter, will be blogging from the Liberal Express (almost) all summer. You can follow him at http://twitter.com/adamgoldenberg or email him at adam@email.liberal.ca.
