Canada is in the final stages of a tough national election campaign, and arts leaders are not pleased with what they’re hearing, or rather, what they’re not hearing. “Extra cultural funding through the Canada Council that was announced in November by Liza Frulla, the heritage minister in the Paul Martin government, could vanish if politicians refuse to provide campaign assurances they’re committed to it.” So far, none of the leaders of the four major political parties have offered such assurances – in fact, as nearly as anyone can tell, they haven’t uttered the word “arts” at all.