First Period played

First period over. Players identified on the ice by the media were were the Mayors of Burlington and Mississauga. The two municipalities successfully persuaded the Province in the previous election to shut down two to shut down two coal burning plants because of negative health effects. The Province kept the commitment, shut down the plants and replaced them with natural gas. Within four years, the coal burning plants were shut down, new plants were designed,specifications prepared,bids called, contracts awarded and construction was well under way. The Honorable Dalton McGuinty kept his commitment. Or so he thought. Scuttlebutt has it Ontario Hydro,were left out of the loop. As was apparently the Honorable Chris Bentley, Minister of Energy, who has since fallen upon his sword. Word is Mr.McGuinty took control and guided theOntario Power Authority to the correct and prompt decisions. Nothing it seems,was too good for Burlington Burton, the Mayor of the beautiful city by the lake and Hazel,the Mighty Icon,Mayor of Mississauga. All should have been well. Alas it was not. Despite hundreds of millions of public resources already committed, contracts signed and construction underway; opposition apparently continued in Burlington and Mississauga backed by the twin cities' councils. On the eve of the election, faced with the threat of losing two seats and the government, the Honorable Dalton Mc Guinty lost his nerve and cancelled the contracts. Not a politician in Ontario who heard of it could have failed to comprehend the enormity of that error in judgement. Since then, we have watched unfold the weaving and dodging to avoid the accounting. denial of the true cost; shut-down of the legislature; resignation of the Premier; leadership conference and a new Premier who claimed to know nothing of the matter. New documents were discovered. An initial figure of $40 million for cancellations was acknowledged perhaps not to be correct. Figures of $828 million were indicated by outside experts. Still figures the government must knows best have not been released. A committee of inquiry has been appointed. Appearing before the committee,the big guns in the government's arsenal, the two Mayors of the twin Cities of Burlington and Mississauga. Mayor Burton informed the committee, gas fired generating plants were not good for the health and well being of the people of his community. However much the cancellation cost, he inferred, was not too much from that perspective. Mayor McCallion appeared the day after and informed the committee, the people in her city AND the Council were opposed to gas-fired generating plants. Mayor McCallion went further and scolded opposition members of the committee for "playing games". They should be getting on with the government's business, she said, instead of concerning themselves about who made the decision and how it was made. The decision that involved wasting upwards of a billion dollars of public funds. And quite possibly will be the record of the McGuinty stewardship of public trust. The game is not over yet. Neither Burlington Burton nor Hurricane Hazel scored any points in the first period.