And these are the people we let lead?

The redesign is coming along at a customary snail-like pace, but in honour of election day for our neighbours south of the border, I thought I would share this story about a coming election here at home. That's right, I'm talking about the PC leadership race in Alberta.

Several weeks ago, I was at home minding my own business when the phone rang. Being the Pavlovian creature I am, I answered it even though the call display was unfamiliar. "Hello, Vanessa speaking."

"Hello, this is ------------ from the J-- D------ leadership campaign office. As you know, J-- D------ was..." And so on and so forth with no opportunity to interrupt as she extolled this particular candidate's virtues. "Would you be interested in supporting J-- D------- as the next premier of Alberta?"

"Well," I said to her, as she was now waiting for me to speak, "I appreciate the call, but I'm not terribly politically active, even though I do vote in all the elections. I'm really not interested in joining the Progressive Conservative party."

"Oh!" she exclaimed. "You don't have to join the party."

...

"I don't?" At this point I began to question myself. "I was under the impression that only party members could vote for the new leader."

"Not at all," she assured me. "You don't have to join the party, you just have to be an active member."

...

When I convinced her that I wasn't interested in being an active member and got her off the phone, I looked around to make sure that gravity was still working. After all, when surrealism hits you over the head like that, you're just not sure what other rules of nature might also be altered.

In what might be a comforting side note, another person from the same office called me later in the week, and had no trouble understanding the duplication between joining the Conservative party and being an active member. She cheerfully thanked me for my time, and we both went about our days.

Ah... What fun it will be on November 25th... :)