tuque /tūk/ n Canadian English, var. toque [19th c. Canadian French, from the French toque, from the Basque tauka] 1 A close-fitting knitted cap, often with a long tapering end or tassel or pompom. 2 fig Something quintessentially Canadian.
souq /sūk/ n from the Arabic سوق var. souk 1 An open-air marketplace. 2 fig A central meeting place for the circulation of news and ideas.

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Al Jazeera: Obama forced Harper to call election

Al Jazeera's Ottawa correspondent George Abraham suggests that the coming tsunami of invigorated liberalism following Barack Obama's inevitable win in the U.S. elections in November may have played a role in Stephen Harper's decision to dump the government and call early elections:

"[W]hile John McCain and Barack Obama, the Republican and Democratic presidential candidates, respectively, are outsiders in Canada, it is their epic contest that is influencing the timing of elections in Ottawa...

"Would-be Obama voters in Canada are said to outnumber McCain backers three to one – effectively, a non-contest...

"Rather than wait for Obama-mania and a recession to swamp voters, the Conservative government wants to get ahead of events and hopefully win itself a new mandate well before either of these becomes an inevitability."

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