Picture this...

The bidding is officially open to cities across Canada and the National Portrait Gallery could be coming to a city near you.

And apparently the City of Ottawa is pretty pissed off.

A few city councilors in Ottawa seem to think that our capital has cornered the market on national institutions and have called for other cities to boycott bidding on the gallery even though the federal government decided to let them duke it out between themselves.

Well... bicker it out would be more accurate.

In the red corner...
The Dynamic Duo.
The Wallet of the Country and the Centre of the Universe;
Ottawa - defending its supposed birthright of national heritage - and her newest ally in supporting the boycott; Toronto (who really just wanted to jump on a bandwagon/fight a cause/talk, and hell, doesn't have the space for another gallery anyway, and really? Portraits? Pfft...)

In the blue corner...
The Challengers.
The Fabulous Five;
Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal and Halifax are ready to stand up to the Ontarian powerhouses and make a grab for Canada's newest gem.

Only one can come out on top and walk away with all of Canada's portraits valued at an estimated grand total of $WHO-GIVES-A-SHIT^.00.

You know, maybe Ottawa could take the millions of dollars it would spend on another national heritage institution and invest it in the artists who are still alive and trying to make a living in this city.