By now, most of our readers are familiar with the Octagon - an influential association of capital city conservatives who have been having lunch every Friday for the past seven years. As we reported earlier, former federal Tory candidate Faith Collins organized a competing lunch at the Sticky Wicket Pub and Restaurant after her husband Jim was excommunicated from the group. That lunch hasn't exactly been packed with politicos. But on Wednesday evening, Mr. Collins launched an aggressive bid to...er...increase attendance.

Speaking at the Victoria Conservative constituency association's board of directors meeting, Mr. Collins raised concerns that visiting MPs haven't been attending his wife's lunch - which is now an official party function (although they are still breaking bread at the Octagon). And, amazingy, Mr. Collin, the lunch coordinator, managed to convince at least some of his fellow directors to vote for a motion instructing party regional organizer Andrew Jackson to make sure those MPs were aware of said function. Nevermind the fact that Mr. Jackson doesn't report to the constituency association - a fact realized by a substantial number of executive members who sensibly abstained from that vote.