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So you want to stop Harper. Happily, you stand with a solid majority of Canadians, who are unhappy with what he represents. His government has the support of only about one Canadian in three.

Unfortunately, the opposition to his regime, a.k.a. one-man rule, is divided. Four opposition parties share prospective anti-Harper voters. Not everybody who wants to stop Harper is as engaged politically as Brigette DePape, the page who was terminated for brandishing a Stop Harper sign on the floor of the Senate.

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Members of Parliament arriving after the holiday recess were greeted Monday by hundreds of Idle No More demonstrators rallying on Parliament Hill. The Canada-wide protests give encouragement to the numerous adversaries of the Harper government, which studiously ignores opposition to its agenda.

At the halfway point in its majority mandate, the Harper government treats the House of Commons with disdain, refusing to answer opposition questions, undermining committee work, and using members' statements to lie about its opponents. The government wants to foster cynicism about Ottawa, Parliament and the political process in general.

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On Friday, January 11, in the Langevin Block, across from Parliament Hill, the Prime Minister hosted a working meeting, attended by Shawn Atleo, the National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations, and some others from the AFN, but boycotted in anger by treaty Chiefs from Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and elsewhere.

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The great French novelist Gustave Flaubert famously declared pleasure "as found first in anticipation, and later in memory."

A New Year brings anticipation -- of the unforeseen. We can expect pleasures ... and be sure of uncertainties. The future will include memories of the past, and, yes, promises to bring us more of the same.