As pretty much all Canadians immediately wondered when reports first came in (of the Saddledome stadium supposedly flooded up to its roof, for one thing):
“What will happen to the Calgary Stampede?”
Now in its 101st year, the Stampede calls itself “the greatest outdoor show on earth” and is the province’s most important event in terms of economics, tourism, community pride — and politics.
An Israeli friend asked me about a tweet he’d spotted, sent by former singing (and not-really-tweeting — he used government ghostwriters) Canadian astronaut (and this year’s Grand Marshal) Commander Chris Hadfield, inviting folks to join him at the 17th annual Ismaili Muslim Community Stampede Breakfast.
I explained that, despite its reputation as Canada’s redneck central, Calgary’s mayor is actually Ismaili Muslim Naheed Nenshi, currently being hailed far and wide as the Giuliani of the flood; if Hadfield wants his possible career in politics to go better than that of the last former Canadian astronaut, I added, he’d best attend such an event.
Ismailimail 