Blatchford ranks up there with Rosie DiManno as one of the worst columnists in Canada. Completely self-absorbed and attention seeking - qualities needed in a columnist to be sure, but also wildly out of control in both of these cases. It's really a shame that the Post brought her back on.
She does have a point though. The spin doctors likely drafted most of that letter. A man hours away from death's door would not likely be able to craft a letter that detailed. It reads more like an election manifesto than a good bye.
I'll give Jack props to eliminating the Bloc. But how much was that actually him and how much was it dissatisfaction with the establishment. Both the Bloc and Liberals (both left-centre) acted arrogantly towards the electorate and the NDP were the only left wing alternative. If you've got a group that would never vote for Harper regardless of the situation, what other direction would they take? I'm thinking this was more a case of strategic voting rather than an actual belief in NDP politics. This has been going on for a long time. As Liberal support dropped, NDP support went up. Quel Suprise. Both parties were running on remarkably similar platforms, especially in the last election. Heck, when I went to the local debate back in April, I've never seen three candidates (lib/green/NDP) agree so much on everything in my entire life.
I think Layton's contributions are overblown, in other words. I think he was charismatic. That he pushed a lot of people over the fence. However, I don't think he was the driving force behind the NDP's historic victory. He was just at the right place at the right time. This movement to canonize him is really starting to annoy me. He was a sleazy, opportunistic politician, like every other, and had more than his share of dirt. Everyone conveniently forgets when he was living off the dole while sitting as councillor.
I do not think he deserves a state funeral. It's unprecedented and more a ploy by the PM to save face because he cannot attend. Layton was no PM, and certainly not a national hero.