Friday, 12 April 2013
Bear with us
Baffled Observer has left a new comment on your post "Let's have a sense of proportion.":
Speaking solely on the issue of whether or not alcohol expenses (regardless of how much or how little) should be paid by taxpayers, I stand by my words. From my individual perspective, it's a matter of principle.
I am not interested in personal attacks or partisan vendettas; simply stating an opinion on a very specific point.
If that isn't an acceptable use of this forum, I apologise for my intrusion and will respectfully decline to comment further.
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Absolutely the blog is an acceptable forum for differing opinions. One sparks a response and means the comment is respected and worthy of a response.
It's not always polite and sometimes my hand hesitates over the publish button.I may err on occasion but not on the side of caution.
We are particularly sensitive to the almighty effort at horrendous public expense to silence critics.
You may find yourself in discussion with someone with a wider perspective than your own. Obviously that's a risk you must be willing to take. I hope you'll stay with us and join the exchange.
OK, I will reluctantly try this sucker. It is my belief that Councillor Ballard suffers from a disconnect about how residents view him. Perhaps math was not his strong point at school. But he errs in thinking that we cannot see the difference between how he treated his fellow board members from the Centre and how he deals with penny ante stuff like the colour of trucks or a glass of beer with a lunch for prospective business people.
ReplyDeleteOn my own petty note, it is worth noticing that he is free to go home at noon & have a drink in private while others might lack that luxury.
He picked the wrong fight & lost. But is still twitting about whether or not the Mayor's beer money should be covered by taxpayers.
Thank you for your response, Evelyn. On further reflection, I think I will have to decline your invitation at this point in time. I am no stranger to spirited debate (though I know my too-dry humour often falls flat); my main difficulty here is that - aside from yourself - I have absolutely no idea with whom I am debating. It's like being in a darkened room full of disembodied voices. True, I haven't used my real name, but I do at least offer an identifiable monicker; all other posters are "anonymous," and therefore indistinguishable from one another. I am not interested in talking to shadows.
ReplyDeleteI'm not at all averse to finding myself in discussion with someone with a wider perspective, but too often the comments here are tainted with personal insult and innuendo, referencing people and events going back, in some instances, decades. This town has grown to roughly 50,000 inhabitants, so a wider perspective on things would seem to be a given; yet it seems like Council and its adherents have sequestered themselves in a private sandbox into which no-one else is welcome unless they've been taught the secret handshake.
More than a taxpayer, I am a citizen of this town. As such, I have a vested interest in taking part in discussions about issues that affect my life here. But I don't want to be party to any partisan wrangling and back-biting. And I certainly won't expose myself to attack by nameless responders who seem to have pegged me as a member of some secret cabal, simply because I have expressed an opinion at variance with their own.
I wish you all well.
As you were.
Please. I confess my ignorance. What is the cost of a case of beer today? What we have left has probably turned skunky in the old fridge in the garage. The sons-in-law
ReplyDeletewill grab a glass of wine these days. Surely this discussion is getting more and more bizarre every day. Is the source of this dastardly information about our Mayor's outlandish spending the Banner?
"On my own petty note..."
ReplyDeleteYou already had that when you referenced "the Centre."
7:00 PM
ReplyDeleteYou promise? You're really going?
Watched Debora Kelly on the Character Community show on Rogers.What a farce and so is the organization .Just a bunch of words its founders do not even follow.
ReplyDelete