The only thing you'll hear from me on political leaders' debates

Everyone's abuzz. Good. Be pumped. If you ask any partisan they will tell you their "man" won.

Good for you.

There is only one thing I was interested in and it came thundering in: Is Harper the "leader" he claims to be?

I could just say NO and walk away happy that I've satisfied myself and the next thousand readers will get that little piece of propaganda. That's pretty easy. (I'm surprized the Conservatives aren't recruiting me.)

So here's why the answer to my question is NO.

I learned a long time ago that leadership has more facets than a perfectly cut diamond. But there are two things a good leader must always be:

1. A quick learner;
2. Open minded.

Simple stuff.

I have a little problem with "stay the course" on any issue. If one doesn't explore outside the box, one doesn't really know what's out there. If a person isolates their view to one set path, they may never know that there is a different possible route. Maybe it's better.

Harper's performance over two nights demonstrates that he's not a quick learner. He prefers to be the expert on all subjects and "friends" let me tell you, that's impossible. We learn from our mistakes. Some people however try to hide them and personally ignore them.

Secondly, a leader is open-minded. Everyone has something to offer and a good leader considers every idea. Dogmatic people are traditionally poor leaders.

Thus, with every "Let me make this clear" line issued by Harper, he proved that his mind is closed. Nobody can possibly have a better plan than he - that's why he won't waste his time telling you about it.

Wouldn't it be surprizing if, one day, a candidate said, "Y'know, that's actually a good idea," when engaging an opponent?

Far from showing weakness, it shows powerful leadership.... somebody I might vote for. Too bad Harper didn't display any tonight.