Everyone is talking about Trudeau

Ever since he became Prime Minister, Stephen Harper has dominated the Canadian political scene.  Love him or loathe him, any discussion on federal politics has started and ended with Stephen Harper.  

There's a famous quote attributed to PT Barnum:  

"There's no such thing as bad publicity, as long as they spell your name right".   

And in today's age of hyper connectivity and constant news, Stephen Harper has probably been getting more publicity than any politician in Canadian history.  

Until now.

Much, (I am sure) to the consternation of die hard Conservatives, Justin Trudeau is now the dominant subject of political discourse. And the reaction one sees, be it from right wing news outlets or neo-con posters commenting on the web, seems to say....HOW DARE HE!!!

Right wing loathing of Trudeau was already rampant before Justin even declared his intention to run for the Liberal leadership.  It is starkly evident from the Sun TV broadcast of Justin's boxing match with Conservative Senator Patrick Brazeau.  Calling JT a 'Shiny Pony' and deriding him as a former drama teacher, you can almost taste the acrimony Ezra Levant has for the Papineau MP.

If you watch the post fight interview though, notice the class Trudeau exhibits with Mr. Levant.  Class, and respect, something we haven't seen enough of lately in the political arena.  Even after the Conservative champion has gone down to defeat, Levant can't summon up the class to be gracious.

Ratchet that loathing up a notch now, and throw in a measure of fear.  Yes fear, Justin Trudeau represents a very real threat.  

And with wall to wall coverage the young Trudeau has been able to do something that Monsieurs Ignatieff and Dion were incapable of. Justin is introducing himself to Canadians, on his terms.

Crisscrossing the country he's already been to Calgary, Mississauga and Dieppe New Brunswick, with more to come. Should the Big Blue Machine  start smearing him with Rove style attacks at this early juncture, they might appear desperate.  

And the simple reality is, while JT may not be the reincarnation of his father, he is every bit as much a lightening rod for public attention.  

It doesn't matter whether the media is left wing or right wing, Sun TV or CBC, they're just filling demand.  And what people want to hear about right now is Justin Trudeau and not Stephen Harper.

A nice change if you ask me.