Perhaps you鈥檝e seen a suspicious number of similar-looking tweets in your feed today. Hint: they all begin with 鈥淚 found my #FirstTweet.鈥�
It appears that the social media network that turns eight tomorrow is celebrating by digging up the uttered by every single user ever, to be shared with (hopefully) far more followers the second time around.
Here鈥檚 mine:
Hello, dear followers (er, Mary and Rani). I've leaped (leapt?) into the 21st century with an Android phone and Twitter account. Stay tuned!
鈥� Andrea Janus (@AndreaJanus)
If you haven鈥檛 looked already, brace yourself. While you may have honed your Twitter technique over the years, there鈥檚 a pretty good chance your first Tweet won鈥檛 have Shakespeare spinning with worry in his grave.
But what about Canada鈥檚 heavily scripted, media-trained, don鈥檛-stray-from-the-party-line Members of Parliament, who have to navigate the social media sphere blending political obligations with a little personality?
Here are a select few first posts from some of Parliament Hill鈥檚 best-known tweeters.
The leaders
Making like a good politico, invited followers to view the Conservative party website.
Check out the new Conservative Party web site: http://www.conservative.ca
鈥� Stephen Harper (@pmharper)
Current Official Opposition Leader (and Quebec MP) tweeted in French, bien sur.
Je suis à Vancouver aujourd'hui et je serai heureux de vous rencontrer au Dentry's à partir de 19h30. À bientôt !
鈥� Thomas Mulcair (@ThomasMulcair)
Liberal MP and now-Leader announced that he was off to celebrate Greek independence.
On my way to a Hellenic event for Greek Independance Day
鈥� Justin Trudeau, MP (@JustinTrudeau)
Green Party Leader was celebrating her hard-won inclusion in the election debates.
I am celebrating my inclusion in the televised leaders' debates! Going out to dinner at my favourite restaurant in New Glasgow.
鈥� Elizabeth May MP (@ElizabethMay)
Parliament鈥檚 prolific tweeters
Astronaut-turned-MP used a space analogy, natch.
My first tweet - we have liftoff
鈥� Marc Garneau (@MarcGarneau)
Making like a good Canadian, tweeted a lyric from the Guess Who鈥檚 鈥淕uns, Guns, Guns.鈥�
"Godspeed Mother Nature. Never really wanted to say goodbye."
鈥� Tony Clement (@TonyclementCPC)
Perhaps appropriately for a sommelier, tweeted a wine review.
2005 Bodegas Juan Gil Monastrell Jumilla gos - 88, bold and meaty, some fig.
鈥� Michelle Rempel (@MichelleRempel)
Liberal MP was in a hockey state of mind after a day of work.
Back from the St Paul's riding association meeting.... inspirational as always...now watching the playoffs with my Dad and Pete...
鈥� Carolyn Bennett (@Carolyn_Bennett)
To the surprise of no one, , then-immigration minister, tweeted about leaving a political event to meet with local cultural communities.
Leaving the PC Ontario Convention for events with the Lebanese and Somali communities in Ottawa.
鈥� Jason Kenney (@kenneyjason)
NDP MP pretty well exemplified the life of an MP, particularly one who lives thousands of kilometres from Parliament Hill.
Sitting in the fog in Prince Rupert, waiting for a flight to Lax Kw'alaams.
鈥� Nathan Cullen (@nathancullen)
Foreign Affairs Minister was with 鈥淧ierre P,鈥� who we might assume is Pierre Poilievre.
Kicking off the campaign with my friend Pierre P at Greenfields
鈥� John Baird (@HonJohnBaird)
Perhaps not surprisingly, kicked things off with a partisan swipe.
Ignatieff on defense over his proposed tax hikes.
鈥� Pierre Poilievre (@PierrePoilievre)
NDP MP surely wasn鈥檛 the first or the last new user to tweet about need to figure out how to communicate in 140 characters.
A day of downtime after convention means I can actually try and figure Twitter out. :)
鈥� Megan Leslie, MP (@MeganLeslieMP)
