THERE CAN BE NO EXCUSE

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "A PERSON CAN ONLY TRY": 

16:08
We are not talking genius-level here. It is quite possible that the target of the evening was Mr Gallo and what
happened to Evelyn a big ' Oops '. Once the damage was done, there was no way to fix it. Not that they tried 
from what I gather. 

Posted by Anonymous to  Our Town and Its Business at 1 September 2015 at 16:24

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I sat beside John Abel.  

I heard clearly what he said. 

His  friends and associates confirmed it in different ways during the election. I watched it unfold. 

Others disassociated themselves  from "the group" after it was over.

Apart from his family, being elected is likely the best thing that ever happened to John Abel. 

Heading the poll was  probably added satisfaction.  As it would be to most. 

It's a pity he did not grow to warrant the trust bestowed.

What was done can't  be undone. Lack of judgement is hardly an excuse. 

John Abel chose his target deliberately and it wasn't John Gallo.

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I don't know  the peak  for readership . There's a lot I don't know about social media. 

Today's Views at this moment are 765. I think that may be the highest yet.

NOBODY LIKES A WHINER

Monday morning. 

Already 271 views today. Half a dozen comments .None that needed to be published.  Several castigating me and lamenting about how tired they are of reading what I write. 

Like it's  forced upon them. 

One ponders . "What would you say, if I said, I was the one who made the comment" 

First I would have to re -call  the comment that generated the hysterical hullabaloo.

Oh Yes. I said it was time  for Councillor Mrakas  to write a blog. Then the eruption began. A person  commented;  "Councillor Mrakas is your informant about what's going on at the town hall and there's no point  in his writing a blog because it would be the same as yours(mine) He should keep his hands clean and let  you continue to get yours dirty. "

 That was the noble sense of it. 

Councillor Mrakas is a tattle -tale, doesn't have a mind of his own and I am an unclean person. 

Accompanied by a warning; I should be careful about making accusations. 

It reminds me of an Abbot and Costello comedy routine about Who's on first base. 

How would I know if the person making the new comment was not the person who made the original accusations while not actually claiming to have done the deed himself? 

So what accusation did I make ?

I deduced the name of the anonymous individual who made the accusations.  

It's certainly,certain,somebody did. We have seen it in print. 

He is easily identified because he's not far from the scene and he's done it before.

When one has been on the receiving end, it's neither wise nor necessary to forget. it's  much more easily recognized when repeated and circumstances make it definitely easier to respond the second time. 

Iin politics it's an occupational hazard. You really need to know what you're doing because it's a long road that doesn't have a turn. 

If heat is not your element,  the kitchen is not the best place for you. 

Nobody likes a whiner. Suck it up, pal.  You had it coming. All your friends know it.  

Blog Views today 583

A SLIP OF THE FINGER

The last comment was accidentally rejected. Please send it again. 

To respond to the point of deriving revenue from posting, I've felt the narrow focus of the blog keeps  readership down and makes it an unlikely vehicle for advertising. . As a Councillor I didn't feel it was appropriate to use for that purpose. 

The  last couple of posts have generated strong negativity. Not surprisingly.

Interestingly, reader numbers jumped by an average of a hundred. The current count is 625. Once up readership tends to stay up. 

Not all readers are from Aurora. I am well aware of non-readers and Hostiles. I suspect it's true of most publications. 

Numbers show interest can be generated and how.  Councillors and the Mayor could be easy pickings if readership was my sole objective. 

It's not. As long as I feel the blog throws a light where light would not normally shine the current focus  will hold.  A bit of this and a bit of what might ordinarily come up in an Aurora conversation about politics which is not everyone's cup of tea, will suffice for now. 

Being out of Council, it seemed  the town's business might become less informed . It hasn't happened yet. Readership is building. I take that as a positive. 

I owe Geoff Dawe and John Abel nothing. Councillors Mrakas and Michael Thompson work hard and apply themselves. We will not always agree and I will say so. Other new members make slight impression. Time passes fast, 

I am expecting a decision on the court action by mid-September. It's been a long haul with many ups and downs, twists and turns. i have to believe the outcome will be positive but experience tells me to make no assumptions. 

Whatever happens will be a step forward .

 

HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "WHEN HARM IS INTENDED WITH MALICE AFORETHOUGHT": 

You are such a bloody hypocrite. You make accusations all over the place - some of which landed you in a lawsuit - you might want to tread a little more careful. The comment sounded like they were poking at you, not Tom. 

Posted by Anonymous to  Our Town and Its Business at 30 August 2015 at 07:45

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Good Shabas morning to you too Sir.

I don't normally publish comments like the above but it suits my purpose.

Does  anyone doubt the author ? 

So he doesn't want to be considered the enemy of Tom Mrakas. Only moi. 

He put his name forward for political office and received solid support but  he does not appreciate criticism. 

Law suits are an implied threat.

How soon we forget. Or  were we ever aware?

Which politicians recently sued citizen moderators of a blog for  an anonymous critical comment?  

Which CAO twice wrote to the blog and ordered the comment removed implying threat with a deadline?  

What did Aurora electors think of all that ? 

Four of a gang of six were replaced.

After that the new Council published a full page ad of apology to the residents who were obliged  to defend themselves  at significant cost against their own municipality.  Courtesy of elected and  appointed officials, administrative,legal and financial. 

Then the town paid the cost of the  litigation against the residents. 

The complaint was  dismissed. Ruled as a SLAPP Action. 

The town solicitor filed the  action and provided the only affidavit. The Judge ruled he evaded answering questions and lied to the court.

The town solicitor was under authority of the CAO. He would have had his instructions. 

The story bears repeating . Not to be forgotten. 

Does history repeat itself ?

Do we have another thin-skinned politician who thinks he is above the madding crowd and can afford to make veiled threats with treasury backing  ?

Did he ever comprehend why he was elected in the first place? 

I doubt it. 

WHEN HARM IS INTENDED WITH MALICE AFORETHOUGHT

Whether made anonymously, an accusation is equally damaging. 

Who has vested interest in bringing Tom Mrakas down save someone threatened by his honesty.

An accusation without substance has been made. Should it remain unchallenged? 

We know who is capable because he's done it before. We experienced it. 

It doesn't matter why he did it. Only that he did. Consequences  are outstanding. 

In life, lessons learned have stood me in good stead. 

I trust everyone. 

Until they give me reason not to. 

Then I never trust them again. 

It's a simple maxim. 

Let them show themselves. 

They mostly do. 

When trust is betrayed and it will be, don't dwell on it. Life is too short.

Pick yourself up,dust yourself off and start all over again.  

Sooner or later opportunity presents to even the score. You will know it when you see it.  

Payback is sweet. 

By living, I learned to enjoy life,take chances and eventually had the privilege to participate in politics without fear or trepidation. 

I did it my way and found others to share. 

Sufficient  to obtain a seat on Council and for our voices to be a force through several generations. 

Satisfaction enough. 

No other reward needed. 

A reputation jointly established and shared

A community within a community.

It happened once, it can happen again in Aurora. 

Not with John Abel. 

OH DEAR WHAT CAN THE MATTER BE ?

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "TIME FOR TOM TO BLOG....THE MORE THE MERRIER": 

Bu then who will provide you with all the insider info for your blog? It wouldn't make sense to have two blogs posting the same info, taking the same stance? We think you should keep doing the dirty work and let him keep his hands "clean". 

Posted by Anonymous to  Our Town and Its Business at 28 August 2015 at 13:08

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Read and contemplate for a minute. Now... Quick..  Guess who might have written that? 

Who on Council, would feel sufficiently threatened by the amiable Tom Mrakas to make an accusation like that?

Right. You got it in one. 

It would be the little fella with the big ego. He  who feels everyone should  just be quiet and let him be 

In charge.

It's odd how an oversized ego doesn't equate to self-confidence.  He still needs to bring Tom down by accusing him of giving away Council secrets to moi. 

One would imagine winning the highest number of votes would make him secure in the knowledge of 

being  Supreme Being.

Feelings of unassailability must be his constant companion.

Surrounded by sycophants, assuring him of his superiority. 

Oh Dear...what can the matter be

Dear Dear what can the matter be

Oh  Dear what does the boyo fear

When he's already ahead of the pack. 

What more can we do for a man who has everything to make him feel loved? 

TIME FOR TOM TO BLOG....THE MORE THE MERRIER

Tom Mrakas uses Facebook to communicate with residents. With more than a hint of frustration, lhe brought up an issue yesterday. I think he should publish a blog. It has its advantages. 

First it opens a dialogue and second, it takes the edge off frustration Third , it makes other Councilors and the Mayor aware of people and what they think about town affairs. 

It's nknsense to suggest a blog doesn't matter. Everything  matters to a politician. Even the ones who haughtily pretend they are not politicians while enjoying all the perks of political office. Silly asses. 

I think the more blogs the better. It takes time but also gives people who pay attention an opportunity to put their oar in. 

The topic that really got Tom rattled was  lack of support for a hiring freeze. I can understand it. 

 But it's not simple. The  problem is deeper than he knows. The town has many different departments. Not all managed with the same efficiency. 

The parks department has a skeleton full-time staff withwork to keep them occupied during winter. Seasonal employees take care of summer maintenance and winter programs inside facilities. 

Good workers are brought back every year and employees  given the opportunity to gain different skills. They do not enjoy benefits and security and therefore cost less for the same output. The disadvantage is all employees seek secure employments and benefits. If you are raising a family that has to be a priority. A good employee will go elsewhere for that opportunity.

 It's a risk  the town takes. 

During the 2014 budget, the Chief Financial Officef recommended contract employees in the works department become permanent employees. He said it wasn't fair for them to be doing the same work alongside full-time employees without having the same security and benefits. Council agreed and made the contract employees permanent. It added to full - time complement and cost more and. Made the seasonal contract employees in other department second-class. 

When the town is fully built out and  the work load reduced flexibility is gone. 

A couple of weeks ago I heard of a  part -time employee,hired for customer service at an hourly wage of $29. 

Part-time town employees are paid Union rates. This one  is being paid twice that amount. 

It's inconsistent,unfair and certainly unlikely to contribute to morale. It shows no respect for the taxpayer and makes one wonder whose interest is being served. The decision was made by a Director 

and that becomes an obvious question of judgement. 

Even if Tom heard about it and brought it up at the council table at an in-camera meeting, the Mayor would refuse to determine  the facts of it. It would come under the heading of micro-managing and he is dead set against that. Although perfectly content to have whatever he wants followed up lickety-split. 

Councilor Abel would demand  "What do you want us to do about it? Climb the Walls of the Bastille"

It's like trying to do battle in a room full of cotton batting. Exhausting and futile. 

A blog is the answer .....it preserves sanity and provides an escape from frustration. 

The field is clear. 

There is little competition.  

Their ideas and objectives would collapse under scrutiny. They know that better than anyone. 

ANGER MANAGEMENT

Grace Marsh posts on Facebook  a photo of a thirty-five year old street tree marked with a red R signifying slated removal. The tree was damaged during street re-construction two years ago. 

The Marsh's have watched the tree grow for thirty- five years. Grace is sad.

I am shaking with a familiar sense of  frustration and frankly...recurring rage. 

I drove down that street on a Sunday and saw the roots torn away and canopy burned to a crisp with the heat from the ripping and tearing digging machine,

It didn't have to be.The contract called for protective fences  to surround the trees. Distance from the trunk was circumscribed. 

The town's an arborist drew up the specification. The parks department is responsible for the urban forest. The contract  called for the arborist to be on hand  to supervise at contractor's  cost.  The  contract included the specification at the award price. 

The town department responsible for the project  failed miserably. The tree in front of Grace's house will not be the only one destroyed. The entire street of thirty-five year old trees were subject to the inexcusable irresponsibility. 

I raised the issue at the Council table. No  interest. No reaction. No support. No response. 

Times  change. Yes indeed. 

In the past, shameful incompetence could not have been ignored. It would have cost at least one highly- placed individual his job. 

Two years later, one has departed. 

It's not enough. 

Responsibility for supervising  re-construction of Grace  Marsh's street was the same for renovation and addition of the Aurora Family Leisure Complex. It's still not finished and hundreds of thousands over budget. 

Imagine what it's like to conscientiously specify in a contract what must be done to protect thirty-five year old trees trees only to see the requirement ignored and trees destroyed despite best effort. 

It's  been like that in Aurora for five years. 

The years of Geoff Dawe's absolute mindset against micro-management. 

To say nothing of the maudlin hypocritical crap endlessly spouted around the council table about a Bylaw to prevent injury and destruction of trees on private property. 

A DAY IN THE LIVES OF

Theresa called and said " I've never seen Niagara-on-the lake, why don't we go today"

I first thought " Ooh a day withTheresa ...Yea .....Then ...Oh....Niagara-on-the-Lake on a Saturday in August. then ....  a day with Theresa .....right ...let's go. 

We went. .... the long way. Across King, through Kettleby, Pottageville. Schomberg....over the hills on Highway 9 to Orangeville.  

It was a favorite Spring  break out after winter drive in the old blue station wagon ....when snow still lay in shady places. 

Over the hills and far away, before seat belts. The kids would tumble out on Main Street and round a corner for an ice cream at the dairy bar and stroll back licking cones and the drive home.

 Sometimes it would just be my gang. Often a friend or two came. One Sunday we went to Barrie and Martin's friend Gary Simpson packed in with us. They might have been ten years old. Best friends still both living in and have raised their children in Barrie.

Orangeville had a great wide Main Street and matching sidewalk.  People gathered in clusters enjoying the Spring sunshine and catching up on the gossip. We had to walk around them. I wrote a column about that once. Councillor Walt Davis told me that' s how it was in Aurora when folks came in at the week-end from the farms around to shop and gather on the sidewalks to catch up on the weeks news. Walt said if you needed to get anywhere, you had to step out on the road, the groups were so 

tight.

Collingwood and Lindsay  and many other Ontario towns have beautiful wide streets like that lined with stores that have been in business forever. 

Orangeville has taken up a third of the street's width with raised concrete islands in the centre.  A huge sculpture  of  the founder ,Thomas Orange in the first and a massive fountain in the second. No doubt a consultant  an architect and a ton of money were involved . 

 Oh my ...Oh well 

We drove  down Highway 6 through scenery as beautiful as any to be found. 

Theresa worked as a courier for a while . Driving is her element. I like it too but am content to be driven. Theresa now works for TTC and is currently involved with the new subway construction. There's always plenty to talk about.

We went through Elora to see what might have changed. My son Frank lived there for a while In his twenties. He had a hugely successful concert sponsored in the Elora Mill Hotel owned and created  by a friend and his wife. Rooms were beautifully appointed with  Mennonite furnishings ,quilts and crafted accents .

Frank lived in a lovely old building next door in excellent condition with a balcony over the river. 

Elora was founded by an army officer from Irvine in Scotland, the place I was born. He had served in India and named the village from a place in India. At an intersection, a swinging board sign on a building  caught my attention. I looked up and read " Irvine Lodge " 

 I had no idea of the connection until that moment. 

Frank had happy times in Elora. Everybody in the village knew each other and collectively did not enjoy the touristos. 

Other than the mill,the village had changed  little in over a hundred years.It was intriguing to think people who came there as pioneers would undoubtedly have known my grandparents and their families. Maybe I even had a distant relative who helped to create that community and built the old rusty disused bridge.

It has changed. The old village is still there but less visible. Touristos pack the streets and stores. tra

Traffic was horrendous, cars filled every space.The Elora Mill Hotel  is abandoned. Surrounded  by chain link fence and a rusty gate with a rusty padlock.  

We drove on to Fergus, to Guelph and down to Burlington. 

My brother lived in Burlington, raised his two sons there and died in Joseph Brant hospital. 

Stephanie played two Christmases pantomimes in the Burlington Arts Centre. She acted in two productions in the AtriumTheatre attached to GuelphUniversity,  a play in Fergus Theatre  that used to be the local movie house and graduated from Guelph University. Pamela Wallin gave the commencement address. She was Chancellor before she was a Senator.Theresa and I were there. 

We hit the bridge and  highway at Burlington and moved  at a crawl to the other side of St. Catherine's.

It's a nice town.  I held many appeal board hearings in a government building attached to the library across from the court house and shopped  in the Farmer's Market for fresh eggs and vegetableson  Wednesdays. 

Red brick houses,white paint trim,black shutters and roofs and wrought iron railings. My house is like that. There was a dairy bar there I with black and white tiled floor. And bar and high stools with red seats and booths.  They had the best hot rhubarb pie straight from the oven. The dairy bar was a chain and there was one on College Street just west of Yonge. 

My grandson Cameron is construction manager at an almost completed Arts Centre in St Catherine's. It's behind schedule and over budget. Initial bid was too high. Cuts  were made. Change orders during construction. Architects are not without fault. HIs next project might be in Kingston. 

Finally we were in fruit land. Seemingly mostly grapes and wineries. One named .... Organised Crime Winery. 

Vines in orderly rows and extremely well groomed. Can't imagine them lending anything to a Niagara Blossom Festival.  A craft beer festival was very well attended. There were ribs. 

Then we arrived at our destination. Much like Elora only more so. The lovely old homes can still be seen on residential streets but the green lawns that once surrounded them are fully built upon with more recent construction. Stores are reminiscent of Main Street,Disneyland and thronged with similar crowd density. 

Cars parked both sides on every inch of every street. Parking meters have an eight hour parking limit.

King Edward Hotel is spruced up. Stayed there once with Theresa's Dad. It was the welfare holding.

Room doors did not fasten well and the fire escape was a thick rope securely tied to a radiator in front of  the second floor window. We attended a Shaw play in the old court house a couple of doors down. The  audience was mostly American. Talked throughout. 

Last Saturday, we toured the town by car. 

It was a beautiful day. The best part being the drive over the hills and far away down to Lake Ontario. Theresa had never seen Niagara on the Lake and ahe never will now because it doesn't exist as it once was. Hotels and hostelries and commercial tourist attractions have obscured the past. 

On our next outing, we plan to drive to Tobermory and take a trip on the glass bottomed boat and visit 

some of the picturesque little towns situated on Lake  Huron. 

WHAT'S UP DOC ?

Continuing reading the news report on the interim CAO, I was diverted by a rendition of a line of thought from the Mayor. It sparked a previous post.

I read the CAO item on line but hard copy is needed for reference. A monitor is somewhat ethereal. Butterfly comes to mind. Flitting here,flitting there,seldom settling anywhere. 

Scott Somerville, Aurora's last interim CAO  told me, five years in one place is  average for a CAO.  We had lunch on the last day of his contract and talked about municipal hiring patterns. Somerville was many years a municipal clerk before becoming CAO .

Authority in a municipal administration is like walking a tight rope. Politicians need to be seen to be in charge. People expect it. 

Municipal Clerks are  bound by legislation.  The  purpose  is to ensure Provincial law and regulations are observed.  A Clerk allowed to do his job wields considerable influence and control. 

Tension is inevitable. Nifty footwork is handy. Eminence Gris is the salient feature.

Mr Moyle's terms of reference for CAO  are similar to municipal clerk; except a clerk is certified. A CAO is not. 

 From an executive position of the Ontario Municipal Association,Mr Moyle has discerned Aurora does not have social problems  like other towns, has " a reasonable healthy financial situation". He observes the town is "blessed with good quality staff" His own background is land use planning. 

His task is to work with Council  over "several weeks " on credentials for  the CAO  position and  prepare a structure  to be approved by the incoming CAO. 

The last CAO re-organized within weeks of arrival. Didn't wait to see how things were before changing them. The re- organization was  regularly re-organized after that to suit exigencies. Things didn't really function well any time since. 

Up close and personal, I observed no improvement. Changes reduced  influence of the Clerk and authority of the Director of Leisure Services .

Numerous responsibilities were transferred to Chief Financial Officer, Director of Environment and Infrastructure and  Chief Building Oficial. None were long-term employees at the time nor did they possess required credentials for the new responsibilities.

The CAO came from York Region where he was manager of data base in the  office of the CAO

Impact of the changes was ongoing. 

An order prohibited staff  from speaking to Councillors. All queries were to be directed to the director to determine within days if and how  and when they would be answered.

The most dramatic shift  was untrammeled power to the Office of Mayor. Except for the in- group, Council was not in the picture.

Lawyers hired,staff  fired, Conduct Code approved, Integrity  Commissioner hired and fired almost , but not quite, before his first decision.

He found a complaint against a Councillor, written by  a lawyer, paid for by the town, on  behalf of Councilor Al Wilson, signed by Mayor and four Councillors and published in every venue possible was made for purely political purpose. It was dismissed. 

Best efforts were made to bury the decision.The Municipal Clerk decided to take early retirement the day she handed it over to the person complained about. Nine months previously the clerk had left a secure position and signed a  five year contract with the Town of Aurora.

A P.R. firm was retained  and paid from town resources  via legal invoice to avoid publicity, to mitigate bad  publicity  caused  by the Integrity Commisioner's decision.

There were other skirmishes. Too  many to list.

 A probationary employee was pressured to file a complaint of harassment against a  Councillor old enough to be his grandmother with whom he had no personal contact. The Chief Financial Officer hired over a coffee in a donut shop, in his duplicate role as Human Resouraces manager, processed the complaint at town expense.

Police were brought on site  to measure threat. Windows  in the Mayor's office were obscured for protection. The windows are on the second floor with nothing overlooking. 

Litigation was launched  and processed by the corporation against three residents of the town for anonymous criticism of the Mayor published on a blog. The complaint was dismissed  as designed to silence participation. 

Eventually there was an election.  Hard fought. The Mayor and others were replaced. 

Unfortunately,the circumstances that allowed unbridled power in the Mayor's office did not change The new-in -every -sense-of the word Mayor was content with the situation. He knew no different. 

Hirings, firings, shifting responsibilities and the passing parade of lawyers and consultants continued unabated. 

Fantastic schemes were floated and exploded at horrendous  expense in time and  resources. 

After eight remarkable years the CAO has departed . 

In his own words ,the  new interim will spend the next several weeks working with Council developing a candidate profile for the ideal CAO. Mr. Morley outlines all qualities required in the news story.

Also planned, work on what a structure would look like "if, in fact, there are changes to be made"

Mr. Moyle has stated the town has no problems, is in a favourable financial position with "good quality staff" and an involved community. What changes can he contemplate in the circumstance?

After reviewing the story, an obvious question arises; what is the purpose of an "interim " CAO? 

Interims have been appointed before. The Chief FInancial Officer's interim appointment morphed to permanent in contravention of the Municipal Act which requires recruitment.

A communication manager was  hired by the same means. 

How many others ? We shall never know. A Berlin Wall was erected between Council and administration. Only the select were allowed to peer beyond.

Well ...y'know...when logic fails to present...speculation is rife. It would surprise me not a whit if this 

"Interim" CAO turned out to be permanent and hand-picked. 

RELEVANT TO OUR TIMES

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "THE LAST FIVE COMMENTS DO NOT BELONG": 

It must give you a bit of a jolt when you decide, and you alone, to edit someone's comment, for whatever reason.

If it is not a personal affront, libellous, since it would involve the written word, then what is the harm in publication?

We are already swamped in "virtual libel" during this brain-dead election campaign. Did you read that the PM spoke directly to the Governor of the Bank of Canada to enquire about the global market free-fall? Do you honestly think that either of them has the foggiest idea? Shares of General Electric were down over 20% at one time today, ending down 2.5%. Do either of these economists have an explanation? 'Tis dubious!  

Posted by Anonymous to  Our Town and Its Business at 24 August 2015 at 22:37

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I do not edit comments. They are published as written or not. 

The blog is not available to be hijacked for someone else's purpose. Or no purpose at all. 

I did not read about the P.M's conversation with the Governor of the Bank of Canada. 

I did see a feature on the news last night about young Ukrainian men leaving home and applying for refuge in Poland. As soldiers in the Ukrainian army they would be killing their own cousins  in the Russian army. One interviewee stated the Ukrainian army had no weapons. Soldiers are given clubs to fight heavily armed young Russians.  

A few days ago, the PM announced his intention to spend billions to increase the Canadian Army. 

He supports Ukraine against the big bad Russians. I believe he has already sent weapons to Ukraine at taxpayers expense. 

Do I think he has any idea about domestic politics between Russia and Ukraine. I do not. 

Do I believe young Canadians should be sent to kill and be killed where young Ukrainians will not for very good reason. Certainly not. 

No more caskets should pass under the Bridge of Heroes, brought home to families from countries whose government can't muster support for their own defense for reasons we cannot know. 

Fourteen thousand young Canadians suffering from post traumatic stress following experience in the Canadian army in those countries, is fourteen thousand too many. 

I am not talking about financial cost although that is a serious consideration the Harper government is apparently not meeting. Spend billions to send them into harm's way but don't take care of them when they come home damaged.

 

Thank you for your comment. It is current and relevant to our times

THE LAST FIVE COMMENTS DO NOT BELONG

 All too often I have to press the delete key. It's not my preference  If a person takes the trouble to read and respond it means something.

In this place ,information  is exchanged; ideas, humour, opinions on just about anything, leaning mainly towards the Rain in Spain and town business. 

Correct spelling and punctuation are not de rigueur..

Parliamentary rules of order  do not apply. Motives may be impugned, aspersions cast, intelligence or integrity challenged and any other means are used which might reasonably be expected to provoke a reaction. 

It is not required  to address each other  as "My Horrible Friend " or " Your Humble Holistic" or any other unlikely courtly terminology .

Neither friendship nor any relationship is needed to enjoy a tumble in the tangleweed of intelligent thought or language in conversation.  

Robust argument earthily salted is welcome. Anonymous becomes real. If an item can't be turned over a few times and examined from various angles and a conclusion drawn, it might be necessary to push,nudge or prod with a pointy stick to establish membership in the human species. 

Make music or create a cacaphony, draw beautiful or horrific pictures or just join aconversation. At the end of a day ,something needs to  give to show life and intelligence do co-exist.

Social media has made it possible like never before though  much of the stuff flying through the ether to be snatched out of nowhere is just not worth the space it occupies. 

The last five comments are not being published. 

STOP IT.