Michael Ignatieff devoutly hopes you have forgotten that high school English class on pathetic fallacy.
If the weather foretells events – a favourite device of some authors (“It was a dark and stormy night,” etc) – the Liberal Leader's launch of a summer-long excursion in retail politicking got off to a less than auspicious start.
As the bus on which Mr. Ignatieff will tour arrived on Parliament Hill, the steady rain turned into a downpour, soaking the dozens of supporters and reporters gathered.
“We don't care about this Conservative weather, do we?” Mr. Ignatieff joked, gamely.
The bus, crammed with MPs, staff, journalists and Mr. Ignatieff and his wife Zsuzsanna Zsohar, then headed for the next stop – a cheese factory in St. Albert, the beginning of a week the tour will spend courting vulnerable or recoverable ridings in Eastern and Central Ontario, before jetting west to Saskatoon and then east to Quebec.
By the end of the summer the Liberals hope to have recast the public image of Mr. Ignatieff in a more positive light. Right now, however, they're just trying to keep him dry.
