Our dependency on opinion-polling is a poor and reckless substitute for actual democracy, but that did not stop me from enjoying Tristin Hopper’s exceptional summary of “What Canada's 'silent majority' believes” in the Thursday edition of his First Reading National Post newsletter. The middle is quiet but sensible, as ever.

“In the end,” writes Justin Ling in the Toronto Star about the foreign interference crisis, “the only institution that can fix these problems is Parliament.” He’s right, and he gets bonus points for a very subtle Arrested Development reference.

Anne Applebaum joined Slate’s Political Gabfest to talk about the recent European Parliament elections and offered a very sensible take that’s a better use of your time than all that other catastrophizing punditry.