Driving down from cottage country on a recent weekend, an older sedan full of kids blew by us older, slower and more experienced drivers. Within a half-hour, I could see cars stopped by the side of the road and a car — the sedan that had flown by — overturned in the ditch.

People were rushing to help. Bodies were strewn everywhere, some already covered in blood-stained blankets.

In an instant, I was emotional ketchup.

The tragic stupidity. The loss to families. The willingness of people to help after the fact.

Maybe it's just me, but every time I see Stephen Harper try to smile in his forced and unnatural way, I can't help but think, Jack Nicholson — The Shining. He simply makes me very uneasy.

Harper was again smiling last Monday night, as a minority of Canadians demonstrated their wish to change governments and punish the Liberals. With a swing of a million votes from the 2004 election, the Conservative party picked up enough seats for a small minority government.