"Cowardice asks the question...is it safe? Expediency asks the question...is it politic? Vanity asks the question...is it popular? But conscience asks the question...is it right? And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular but one must take it because it is right." ~Dr. Martin Luther King

Tuesday 13 March 2012

The Dragon Is Smouldering

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Mayor Rob Ford Is A Piker in Contrast.":

And this my friends is exactly the kind of mindless bullshit that pisses off the constituents again and again , it’s this, can't play nice in the sand box mentality that the politicians crave ,its all about tit for tat , instead of spending their time wisely, taking care of the business they were elected to take care of ,Is it any wonder politics is attracting fewer and fewer quality candidates ,who in their right mind would sign up for this tour.

************
The late Dick Ilingworth used to say. "You don't have to be crazy, but it helps."


People in their right mind suffering from this  particular type of
craziness have to be willing to"sign up for this tour"


If they don't, the field is left wide open for the others.

Politics has never been  about playing nice in the sand box. Are you kidding?

It can't  be overlooked this Provincial  government created the  puerile permissive legislation  for Codes of Conduct to be adopted by municipalities  that allowed  this particular brand of  mischief  to flourish in municipal politics.

I never voted for it. I never signed it. I never filed any complaints . Although God Knows I had reason enough.

But maybe now  the Mayor of Toronto is being taken to court on a charge of Conflict of Interest over paltry $3,000., contributed to a kids' football  team , someone might begin to recognise the harm that has been wrought.

There can be little doubt  from Clayton Ruby's comments, the effort is to remove the Mayor from office.

And how will that be read by the public?

 They couldn't do it in an election with a hand-picked candidate with the entire Liberal establishment behind him.

Who would doubt this is a plan to deny the people of Toronto their choice of  Mayor?

How could anyone argue differently?

$3,000. for a cause the Mayor declares he believes in passionately.

Good, bad or indifferent, the choice was Toronto's to make. They made it. Their Mayor is doing what he said he would.

His adversaries are doing what they can to stop him. The memdia is on top of things. The system is working as it should.

There don't appear to be any secrets or poltergeists

Then up comes Clayton Ruby, the fearsome one, to stick his oar in.

Someone asked if the Mayor would be defended with the City's dime. It is certainly a possibility. It has happened elsewhere.

We will await the next  chapter.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Should we not also be looking at puerile permissive municipal councillors for a bit of bashing?

The political system is overripe for a good spring cleaning.

The only trouble is you can't tell the good from the bad.

How do we resolve this dilemma?

Your thoughts -

Anonymous said...

Take a look at Lawrence Martin's op-ed column in today's Globe and Mail.

Headed: "Ottawa's ethical low ground is well-trodden"

And it doesn't stay in Ottawa - it travels, everywhere.

Anonymous said...

You have to wonder about Ruby's motive for getting his name up front and centre in this affair. Even if he manages to bring Mayor Ford down, it will tarnish his image at the end of his career. He will not be in the same ranks as dragon-slayers and whistle-blowers. At the end of a nasty fight, people will see him as merely petty. Very sad when his record suggests he should be regarded as one of the white hats.

Anonymous said...

Hey Aurora. I'm glad I watch you from a safe distance.I think you guys are contagious. Like you have people who go the the city and look what they have now. I think its that nut mayor you had who hung out with lawyers and went weird. Now you've all got it.

Anonymous said...

To 10:11 AM

You may be right, or maybe not. I'm thinking that doing what is right is always a good thing no matter how big or small.

One thing for sure, if Morris goes down for the count then George Hervey's lawyer will be celebrated as a hero ! George is already a hero for standing up for what is right.

Anonymous said...

You may want to read the March 14 story in the Toronto Star entitled "Mayor Rob Ford’s conflicts of interest date back to 2005". There appears to be a pattern of behaviour that deserves our attention.

Anonymous said...

I'm not calling anyone in particular a psychopath but look at the following quote from the Globe & Mail, March 15 story entitled “How to deal with an ‘almost psychopath’ in your office.” It makes you wonder where we should draw the line in holding people accountable.

Quote:

You can spot a psychopath, he said, as those who exhibit "glibness and superficial charm, conning and manipulative behavior, lack of remorse and empathy, refusal to take responsibility for one's behavior, and others."

Here are some other traits:

• "Consistent decisions in their self-interest, even where it is ethically questionable"

• "Chronic, sometimes transparent lies, even with regard to minor things."

• "Persistent focus on gratifying their own needs at the expense of others."

You want that type of person gone from your office, Dr. Schouten said, but there is some good news.
"While full-blown psychopaths are not deterred by fear and do not learn from punishment, 'almost psychopaths' can get the message that adverse consequences will follow misconduct," he wrote. "As a result, strictly enforced firm policies can be effective in deterring those who may be tempted to engage in illicit conduct. As long as the firm wants to deter them."

Anonymous said...

8:25 PM
You can have a look right here in Aurora. The Bellamy Inquiry identified ' donations to charitable events sponsored by PUBLIC OFFICE HOLDERS as ' problematic
corporate benefits' because they ' erode public trust'. If
Ballard's Ranger Gala solicitation of donations for the auction and flogging tickets to corporations such as Magna doesn't break the rules, show me why not.