June 8, 2005: Back-door restructuring?

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As Winston Churchill might have said, "This was not her (the old gray mayor's) finest hour."

Whose idea was it to begin Tuesday's council meeting by hearkening back to the days when local television stations "signed off our programming day" with a montage of photos of mounties, beavers, combines in rolling wheatfields etc. with a military band playing the national anthem in some recognizeable time signature. Same photos to start the council meeting, but the anthem was sung by, oh I don't know, was it Aretha Franklin, or Chuck Berry or maybe Joss Stone? Whoever, it left Council and the audience in the musical dust, despite councillor Quaranto's valiant effort to bring the video sound-track and the live crowd down the home stretch together. Don't give up on the idea of a pre-recorded anthem. Most renditions of the anthem at Council are on virtual life-support for pernicious anaemia. But find a singer more in tune with us senior citizens. We just ain't got no soul.

Next, with a visitors' area packed with people who had come to see a little kid receive a well-deserved commendation for heroism, the mayor kicked everyone out of the room to go into closed session. Could not this closed session issue, whatever it was, have waited until later in the agenda under, perhaps, Closed Session.?

Consider the following:

"prepare a report on the feasability and implications of a new ward scenario combining wards to create seven (7) in total." Mayor Kelly's resolution 2005-108.

"There is no move being contemplated for changing the number of wards or Councillors." Mayor Kelly, e-mail to resident.

"Eliminating the ward system altogether in favour of 16 councillors and a mayor elected by all residents is a possibility." Mayor Kelly, quoted in Lindsay Daily Post, June 7th.

Well which is it? 16 wards, 7 wards, or no wards at all? Instead of accusing unnamed individuals of spreading misinformation, the Mayor should examine her own sorry record of spreading confusion. With an attention span like this, who needs fruit flies?

Thanks to all those who came to the Council meeting to see how this issue was dealt with (harshly). The plan to monkey with the present number of wards went down in flames.

And as if it isn't enough to rely on the Criminal Code, libel and slander laws, the Municipal Act, laws relating to conflict of interest for municipal councillors, a councillor's own conscience, good manners, the code of the hills, and probably what councillors' mothers taught them, Council had directed staff to write up a draft Code of Conduct for municipal councillors. Sanity prevailed and the idea was scrapped. It would have been toothless, expensive, redundant, and just plain silly anyway. (although a gold-mine for consultants)

-- John Panter --

mulrey@redrockeyeopener.com

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