Ma belle dame.

By now, if you've been paying attention attention to Canadian politics, I'm sure you've hears of Ruth Ellen Brosseau by now. It's a mind-boggling story: no matter whether you accuse or defend her on any number of claims, it always seems slightly bizarre that this is even happening in the first place.i

But for me, the real story here is what's going on behind those doors at the NDP headquarters. Now, is it just me, or does this seem like the first chapter in an adaptation of "Pygmalion"? Look at it this way...

An eccentric gentleman, hoping to prove himself to his peers, takes up the challenge to pluck a young lady from an unassuming background. Through extensive language and social training, he plans to present her as a flawlessly integrated member of high society -- and possibly reveal a few truths about the nature of this society in the progress. It's a perfect plan, save for the fact that it requires incredible strain to be placed upon the one lady at the center of it all.

And, just to make it an impossibly Canadian adaptation, she's English and has to pass herself off as a defender of the French people, on behalf of the NDP!

Ten years ago, this would have been considered too ridiculous to even begin developing as a project, and now we're watching the whole thing unfold in real life. If we could only be treated to scenes of her French education while simultaneously learning the ropes as an MP, we'd have a comedy worthy of being performed at every Shaw festival in the country.

If only I knew whether this was going to end in triumph or disaster! If I knew that, I'd start writing the script this very day. But instead, I'm more than happy to keep watching this as it unfolds -- even if it does give away spoilers for the inevitable movie version.