Stephen Harper went to see the Governor General and I followed the story avidly while driving up to Powell River. It was odd because when I went onto the ferry and lost the CBC radio signal, he had not emerged yet and by the time the ferry docked and I picked up the signal again, it was all over and they were talking about the impact of her decision - but they didn't say what decision so for 20 minutes I wasn't sure what had happened - that parliament had been prorogued.
There were several possible options and for awhile we didn't know which one would be chosen. For a lot of people, it has been an important lesson in how our parliamentary system works.
I was surprised at how many thought that in Canada we vote for the Prime Minister. And surprised by how many thought that the opposition wanting to form a government was undemocratic.
It's hard to imagine that there is value in the parliamentary chaos we are experiencing but if citizens have a better understanding of how their government works, perhaps they will take a greater interest and participate more and when the time comes for an election, perhaps they'll come out and vote. And that would be a good thing.
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