I'm the son you never had

On the late great Mary Tyler Moore show (younger readers can ask their parents), the blowhard anchorman Ted Baxter was perpetually afraid to go on vacation, lest the station find his replacement more to their liking. In a memorable episode, he even went so far as to pose as his own stand-in. Now I know how he felt. I asked Andrew Potter to guest blog for me while I was away (in Whistler and Calgary -- Winnipeg was the week after, for a speaking engagement). I didn't ask him to be so consistently interesting and entertaining -- to the point that I feel a certain sheepishness about returning. Ah well, what do you want for free? Anyway, my thanks to Andrew -- I guess -- and to the rest of you for making him feel welcome, in your own inimitable style. To freshen the tank, here are some recent columns, the first two posted from hotel rooms on the road: my take on the Rothstein hearing (a start, but not nearly enough), on the Klein health care plan (a copout on real reform, going both too far and not far enough), and the Harper-Shapiro imbroglio (Shapiro may be a fool, but Harper is obliged to respect the office). Bon appétit.