The funny separatist

Whatever the merits of his political cause, Gilles Duceppe is foremost among current federal leaders in his ability to tell a joke.

At a poorly advertised and sparsely attended news conference in Toronto yesterday, Bloc Quebecois leader Gilles Duceppe was asked why he had not scheduled a meet-and-greet with "ordinary Ontarians" during a visit to Canada’s largest city in the midst of a tour of English Canada.

"I’m meeting with people who are organizing things, so I didn’t meet with the Association of Ordinary Ontarians," he quipped, one of the few times he had to speak English.