In the wake of Jack Layton's untimely death, there are a host of articles this morning celebrating the NDP leader's life and his love for politics, our country, and our city. Here are some of the highlights:

In The Globe and Mail, Layton is remembered as a "Torontonian first" by his Toronto peers, who helped change the landscape of our city's' politics with his dedication to issues such as homelessness, AIDS, the environment, and putting together a national coalition of civic leaders to press for federal funding.

According to the National Post, a "sombre-looking" Rob Ford said that Layton advised him when he first entered politics, even sitting next to Layton during his first term at Toronto city council. Apparently Layton told Ford to never take things personally, and that "you're going to be surprised on who votes with you sometimes and who votes against you," the Mayor said.

Also from the Post, a controversial op-ed piece from Christie Blatchford, who takes issue with the hagiographic nature of the mourning for Layton. While she makes a few insightful points about the public nature of the politician's life, the article can't help but seem misplaced given its tone and timing.

In the Sun, Sune-Ann Levy, who admits she didn't always agree with Layton's politics, says she "respected him". Also mentioned in the article is former Toronto mayor Mel Lastman, who said Layton brought "a human touch to council."

An article in the Star suggests Layton's impact and legacy reached far beyond Toronto. Layton was teaching political science Ryerson University when he was first recruited into politics in 1982 as former mayor John Sewell's running mate for alderman. Sewell said yesterday of Layton: "He had this tremendous ability to think of new ideas and bring them to fruition." Sewell didn't run in 1984, but, as for Layton...well, the rest, as they say, is history.

OTHER NEWS

Tim Hudak is promising more money form Ontario-born university students as he proposes to alter OSAP guidelines to make more students eligible for loans. Should he be elected, Hudak would scrap an international Trillium scholarship fund set up by the McGuinty government in order to divert the funds to OSAP.

A fight on the 501 Queen Streetcar yesterday has sent one man to hospital. The good news is the altercation did not involve a TTC employee. The bad news is that the suspect pulled a knife and likely scared the crap out of everyone on the vehicle.

IN BRIEF

• Goderich residents given 12 minute warning before tornado hit
• Autopsy confirms body of missing Brampton woman

Photo by Jackman Chiu in the blogTO Flickr pool