Laughing at ourselves
Admit it, readers. There’s a certain pleasure in looking at old pictures of people we know, especially those taken when the subjects were wilder and crazier than now. On the odd occasion, we’ll even accept that the evidence includes us, because we’ve all the moments that define youth. CBC (on the French side of the room) has had a real success over the last couple of seasons with a program called Ici Louis-José Houde.
The secret is that the footage has been unearthed in the archives of the national broadcasting system, and the subjects are those who have very public, current careers, generally as comedians or musicians. The people we love to watch. The people that weren’t always as worldly and dignified as now. Think of a high school yearbook for the heros of our armchair existence.
Even though my kids weren’t around when the footage originally aired, they’re old enough to know that any one of us could someday serve as the jam for a humour sandwich. All it takes, in this Facebook world, is for someone to save the best of the hundreds of digital photos that adorn our existence. And then, at the proper moment in our future, to drag them out from that virtual shoebox in the corner of the room. Get ready, ‘cuz here you are, as you were.
We’re very close to the announcement of a federal general election. The promises to spend are growing, like crabgrass, and in this area alone we’ve been promised 4 billion in the last few hours. If you do the math, we’re headed back to deficit days. Just like the last time the Conservatives went nutsoid, in the days of the Mulroney era. Could this be a sign?
