# Jack Layton



## dogcom (May 23, 2009)

While I won't vote NDP I have to admit I am kind of shocked to here that Jack Layton passed away at age 61. Of the party leaders out there today I always thought he was the strongest leader whether I agreed with him or not.


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## Addy (Mar 12, 2010)

I am shocked too. And saddened, I think he was the most moral of the leaders. Harper is the worst (IMHO) b.s.'er, Layton was on the opposite end of the scale, and to me appeared to be the most genuine. RIP Jack.


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## Homerhomer (Oct 18, 2010)

Condolences to the family, I knew his cancer spread but didn't expect this to end this soon.


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## HaroldCrump (Jun 10, 2009)

I'm not an NDP supporter either, but I'm very saddened by this news.
He was a great leader, most likeable personality and an honest and hard-working trouper.
I think the orange wave (esp. in QC) last election was the great peak of his career, so he's leaving behind a legacy of success.
It's a great loss for his party and family and it'll be interesting to see where the party goes from here.
And let's not use this thread as a Harper-bashing opportunity, can we, please.


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## Kim (Jan 10, 2011)

I was surprised and saddened that such a good person with a genuine love for politics had passed so quickly. He'll be missed.


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## cazaubon (Jan 18, 2011)

What a shock - I had no idea things were that bad with his health, such a shame for his family, his party and the country. He seemed to genuinely care about the Canadian people and wanted to change things for the better. I shudder to think about Harper now having no real opposition to fight against him - he was the only credible opponent who had the support of a large segment of the population.


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## financialnoob (Feb 26, 2011)

Really sad news. I'm shocked at how quickly things ended.


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## Jungle (Feb 17, 2010)

Like everyone else, I thought he was just taking time off to fight cancer. I didn't know it was that serious.. he was just campaigning not too long ago!

Condolences to his friends and family.


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## sensfan15 (Jul 13, 2011)

Very sad day. He was a leader whether you agreed with him or not. He genuinely cared about Canadians, and made the world a better place.


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## CanadianCapitalist (Mar 31, 2009)

I've never voted NDP but it is hard not to admire how passionate Jack was in his beliefs. RIP Jack. 

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/story/2011/08/22/pol-layton-last-letter.html


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## kcowan (Jul 1, 2010)

Jack had the rare capacity to disagree without being disagreeable. I doubt that he had *m*any enemies. (Obviously there are some here!)


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## andrewf (Mar 1, 2010)

No such thing as a prominent politician without enemies. They are in the business of stepping on toes.

I generally distrust politicians and assume they are being disingenuous in their public statements. Folksy charm and plain language are usually a shtick. This guy was originally a university professor, remember.

Not to say he wasn't a nice guy. Maybe he was. But you don't know someone from watching their shtick on the telly.


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## Karen (Jul 24, 2010)

I mean no disrespect for Jack Layton or his memory, but I must admit that I feel very uncomfortable with the tendency shown by the media and many members of the public to treat him almost as some kind of super-human demi-god. He was not; he was a likeable man with many admirable characteristics and many others that I disliked very much. While I have a great deal of respect for the way he handled his illness, that doesn't mean that he lived a faultless life and could do no wrong. When I read Libby Davis' comment that he "gave his life for this country," my first thought was, "What a ridiculous thing to say." I saw a photo of a crying, presumably praying woman kneeling on a public sidewalk beside a floral tribute to Layton. That kind of thing makes me extremely uncomfortable and makes me wonder what's missing in people's lives that they find it necessary to overreact in this way to the death of people they don't even know.


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## financialnoob (Feb 26, 2011)

Best Jack Layton moment evar:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2jeNdGnVWYg


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## crazyjackcsa (Aug 8, 2010)

I must be the only guy that wasn't surprised. I saw the news conference when he announced he was stepping aside. There was no doubt in my mind he wasn't coming back, and he wasn't going to make the end of the year.

I bet he knew. I figure this past election was Jack saying "Screw it! I can say whatever I want, however I want, and promise whatever I want, because it isn't going to matter."


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## dogcom (May 23, 2009)

I have to agree with karen that it does make me uneasy when people throw themselves at someone they have never met. It reminds me of the people in the middle east and so on that go crazy when the leader of some insane party dies. I distance myself from that and instead feel we have lost someone who did fight very hard at the job that he did. 

Crazyjack it was a surprise because he reminds me of my dad in that he was a very strong person who we haven't seen in awhile and then passed away. They remind us of rocks that hold up until they finally crumble away.


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## sags (May 15, 2010)

I don't know how anyone could read the letter that Jack Layton left for all Canadians, writing it with the full knowledge that he was fast fading and would lose his second battle against cancer, and not understand that despite not knowing them on a personal basis, Mr. Layton had an extraordinary capacity for concern and sympathy for the plight of all Canadians.

He dreamed of a better world. He devoted his life to that goal.

And in his dying hours, he shared with his fellow Canadians, his celebration of optimism and hope for the future of Canada.

Farewell Jack..................and although I didn't know you personally, 

I will truly miss you and remember you always.


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## LondonHomes (Dec 29, 2010)

I think that it is just surprising at how quickly he went.


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