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Thanks for your honest appraisal Judy. This growing democratic movement caught just about everyone off guard. The Toronto participants were a real mixed bag - particularly a very good mix by age. We have a lot to learn about today's young people and they can also learn a lot from those who have been in the democratic (and other) struggles for many years (we have had some successes after all).

Political parties, and even the labour movement sometimes, often fear that which they cannot control. That they got involved, even if late in the game, is a testament to the strength of this new democratic movement. The relative absence of most of what we could call "the progressive movement" in Toronto is an indication of the degree to which many activists have been alienated from electoral politics and view it as a waste of time. I hope that will change over time.

Bravo to the organizers around the country! This is a tremendous opportunity to keep the heat on the conservatives and hopefully contribute to their defeat in the next election. At the same time, we can build the foundations for a broad movement that can identify & focus on deeper democratic reforms needed to make electoral politics, accountability and public policy work in the interests of the majority.