let's bust this damned thing

Those of you with way too much knowledge of Canadian history would recognize the title of this post as a catchphrase from one of Laurier's more prominent Toronto financial supporters, who was prepared to rather abruptly put an end to the Laurier era simply because he was against the Liberal leader's support for reciprocity.

Of course, the Liberal turncoat/bagman had help in his campaign against one of the more successful Liberal administrations in history. A chief actor in this reversal of fortune was Conservative leader Robert Borden, who essentially entered into a non-compete agreement with Quebec nationalists in advance of the 1911 federal election. This entente with Henri Bourassa et al. was termed an unholy alliance, but proved to be quite effective politics. Laurier, one of the giants of Canadian history, was effectively torn to political shreds by opponents with little in common except a shared desire to see someone else in charge of the Canadian government.

Those of you who fret about the agreement between Stephane Dion and Elizabeth May might do well to remember who won the 1911 vote.