His election campaign signed up millions of new voters, partly by the ingenious use of modern communications technology.  Being young and vibrant, it was only a natural development that younger generations flocked to his campaign.  He had a telegenic wife and young kids.  Rather than following the historic pattern of saying that he and his party were the right prescription to get the country moving again, he asked his nation to believe in itself once more, to build optimism into its future outlook, and to engage itself in a new kind of politics.  And he won in a fashion that appeared to usher in a new age of collaboration and political accomplishment.No, this wasn't Justin Trudeau but Barack Obama, back in 2008 - a remarkable season when Americans responded to the new president's call of “Yes We Can” by stating “Yes We Will.”  It was a fascinating evolution in politics that wasn't only historic in its implications, but freeing in its spirit.What happened?  Despite his numerous successes, the Obama momentum stalled not too long after it commenced and never reached its expectations.  The obvious reason was that the opposition forces circled the wagons and disrupted the momentum from its inception.  Or as Obama operative, David Axelrod pungently put it: “For seven years, the GOP establishment knowingly and cynically rode the anti-Obama tiger, feeding the beast with a steady diet of red meat.”None of this is new to us; it has been playing out in our newsfeeds since 2009 and the political dysfunction resulted in the chaos we now witness in the Republican primaries.  Bill Clinton claimed there was a key but overriding reality that undercut everything else: “We only have one remaining bigotry.  We don't want to be around anybody who disagrees with us.”  Few observations better describe what is currently running rampant through American politics.  People are confused and angry, giving a level of credence to Charles Bukowski's view that, “The problem with the world is that intelligent people are full of doubts, while the stupid ones are full of confidence.”The question is whether it's becoming increasingly true in Canada?  Judging by the last few parliamentary sessions, there is cause for some concern.  The hyper-partisanship of recent years has made it increasingly difficult to forge a consensus, to achieve compromise, or to take all Canadians into account rather than merely catering to party supporters.Barack Obama believed he could work across party lines when first elected – an assumption prone to naïveté in hindsight. In other words, it wasn't meant to be, because the goal of collaboration was rigged from the outset.  Democracy and politics ended up being two different things: the one, the will of the people, the other, the wickedness of partisanship.The recent election win by Justin Trudeau's Liberal Party provided intriguing insights into the Canadian mindset.  One of the lessons was that, though progressivism was clearly on the upswing as a societal force, opposition remained obstinate.  We shouldn't allow the Liberals' majority mandate to gloss over the sobering reminder that millions of Canadians voted otherwise.  This is democracy, after all, and healthy dissent is a good thing.Mindful of the political chaos south of the border, Canada could nevertheless run the danger of replicating a form of dysfunctional politics through the use of blinded opposition.  We won't get far as long as citizens or their representatives view compromise of any kind as tantamount to surrender.  It is nothing of the kind.  It is rather the acknowledgement that the people have voted and there is the responsibility of respecting that reality by contributing to healthy government and a vibrant society.  Far from being an option, such compromise is the only way modern societies, with all their complexities, can survive.The Liberal Party's electoral victory, sweeping enough to provide a majority, has served to raise the expectations of its friends.  Anti-poverty activists, environmentalists, Indigenous advocates, free traders, researchers, electoral reformers, gender champions – these and so many others will have to temper their euphoria with the understanding that any government must delicately balance the interests of all Canadians in ways that are manageable.As the recent parliamentary sessions have shown, dysfunctional politics is as near as a government that only rewards its friends, or an opposition that cares only for overthrowing the powers that be through the practice of cheap politics.Only a few months prior to his assassination, President John Kennedy, mused on the future of democracy, saying, “too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought.”  Opinions are important because they reflect the views of citizens.  They are damning when they are spiced with a bigotry that can't hear or respect contrary views.  The success of Trudeau's mandate, and of democracy itself, will depend on that distinction.Glen Pearson was a career professional firefighter and is a former Member of Parliament from southwestern Ontario.  Glen is a father of seven, including three children adopted from South Sudan.  He and his wife live in London, Ontario.  He has been the co-director of the London Food Bank for 29 years.  He writes regularly for the London Free Press and also shares his views on a blog entitled The Parallel Parliament.