"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

Wednesday 28 September 2011

Making Sausage

The procedure bylaw was discussed  again last night. In a televised council meeting. The Mayor's  call.

As we were leaving the town hall, a comment was made, the meeting was so exciting, a reporter fell asleep.

Arguing about rules is like cooking porridge. You have to keep stirring or it goes lumpy. Edible but not appetising.

Rules of Order are an  agreement upon how we conduct ourselves. Without  commitment, meetings are like the traffic pattern  in the north-east  quadrant; plagued by obstructions and deterrents to the safe, smooth, efficient movement of traffic.

According to the agenda, the bylaw was recommended for approval. I had a position .

The discussion opened with the Mayor's announcement, we had already  spent eleven hours  on the issue therefore each Councillor would be limited  forthwith to ten minutes to speak.

Well, I thought. That's a new one for the book. Also not the Mayor's decision to make. Let's see how that works.

Councillor Gaertner was first up and  focused on the clause that dealt with the problem of  improper conduct. The  question and answer session certainly seemed more than ten minutes.

I may have to buy a stop watch. It will go in a bag along with the hand-cuffs I bought to chain myself to the railings in the event of an attempt to remove  me from the seat to which I was elected.

I may also have to buy a bull horn to ensure against an attempt to deny me  the right to speak or finish my thought.

Many dismiss politicians as a bunch of thieves and robbers.

In previous terms the view appeared to be shared by a select group of town representatives.

The supreme beings determined the solution was a Code of Ethics followed by the Code of Conduct followed by the  appointment  an Integrity Commissioner. 

They were the answer to the implied problem of the lack of integrity or ethics among the elected.

They brought Aurora to a "gold standard of integrity".

Extraordinary expense was incurred in a failed attempt to ensure purity and righteousness in public affairs  and bring the  main transgressor to heel.

The time came when  the community made its  own judgment.

Councillor Gaertner was  re-elected and clearly feels the  responsibility to defend the gold  standard.

Seeking to understand what  comes under the Councillor's  heading of  improper conduct, I posed a question.

When the  Councillor  accused staff of deliberately falsifying  records and  refusing to withdraw the accusation or apologize. as requested by the presiding member, would that qualify?

The Councillor called a point of order  and angrily proclaimed herself innocent of the charge.

Being so righteous an' all.

Therein lies the crux of our problem

There is no shared  understanding of  rules or even the meaning of words.  Councillor Gaertner regularly sets herself up as an arbiter of words. Meetings are frequently disrupted while she re-defines a word in someone else's vocabulary and argues it means what she determines it to mean and it's not permissible. And  somebody should apologise to somebody.

In the circumstances,  a lack of consistency or  order  continues to bog the Council down.

Providing the presiding member with power to penalise will not solve the problem. It  creates yet another.

The Municipal Act does not intend  the duties of a Mayor  to provide leadership and guidance means  wielding a whip.
Parliamentary rules have been in print in Canada since 1984. Amended regularly to keep them up to date.

They are tried, tested and true and acknowledged and used successfully throughout the world

By the Mayor's count, Council had spent, before last night's meeting ,eleven hours trying to re-invent the wheel.

Finally on recognition by the chair, I expounded on the principle of restoring authority to council .

I spoke for twelve minutes.Two minutes more than the presiding member's decree.

I was not permitted to complete my thought.

I have one more opportunity to do so when the bylaw is presented to council for approval

I can't promise it will be exciting television.

What's exciting about stirring porridge?

17 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love to read your posts. I always get a good chuckle.
Keep stirring!!

Anonymous said...

In Clr. Gaertner's case I would place the word "fool's"

immediately prior to "gold standard."

Has anyone checked to see if there is a giant key that

winds her up ahead of meetings?

That is the only sensible explanation.

Anonymous said...

Your participation in wasting time, droning on, parsing (Oh yes no wonder you sued), as you ensured that this battle, your battle, stretched out to fill the "moving along of the Town's/Corporation's business" time of the council meeting opened my eyes!

It's all fun for you. You love the theatre, drama of it all.
To you it is sport.
Perhaps you have that luxury in your eighth decade of life.

But some of us are suffering because we want ideals.
We want to believe in goodness of intention, a greater power.

You have become my beacon, as I focus on aging.

I must continue to suffer the pain of looking for what really matters in my remaining years.

I'd rather do nothing than follow your example.

You choose to feed your inner rage, striking down all in your path, with obsessive dedication.

For four decades you've used Aurora politics as your stage, to produce, to direct and to star in a role that pumps you up, at the expense of others.

I say that's the lowest form of combat, and you've settled for that.

It jumped out at me last night.
I'm glad I watched.
I have a clearer notion of who you are.

You set yourself up as someone whose opinions and direction should be followed.
Your role is of someone who readily holds others in contempt, who basks in the spotlight, who exploits the posture of outsider/target as a niche market.
Push the envelope. That's a sure fire way to take centre stage.

Anonymous said...

It's like having a jaw infection and not being able
to pull the tooth causing it. Bless you.

Anonymous said...

Brief explanation, please, about sausage and
porridge. I know about making porridge, just not
where the sausage comes in. Was it for hearty breakfasts?

Anonymous said...

What a total load of crap , can't you people just get down to business and forget this nonsensical BS, the voters sent a clear message , ditch the gold standards, ditch the commissioners , ditch the lawyers and ditch anything and everything that caused that past four years of crap, The voters set your table now get to work !

Anonymous said...

Whole lot of displaced fury out there. Hard to know theplayers withut a card but these are some very heavy
hitters taking a whack at you. Wonder why ? Could it
be that thanksgiving is coming around again ? time
sure flies when you are having fun.

Anonymous said...

3.46 p.m.is so sad. Kill the messenger but don't look
in the mirror.

Anonymous said...

"You set yourself up as someone whose opinions and direction should be followed."

Holy sour grapes!!!!!!!!
Last we checked it was the voters who set you up , and with any luck your opinions and direction will be followed, Talk about theatre and drama. What a load of malarki, No doubt about it this poster is in pain better get back to the bottle Quick !!!

Father Time said...

"Perhaps you have that luxury in your eighth decade of life."

Someone in their eighties is actually in their ninth decade of life.

Anonymous said...

To anon 6:57 pm.

It is more like Ev.is too close to the truth.
She has exposed issues to do with The Cultural Center and more.
I know a citizen in town who was physically attacked on several occasions by a councilor from last term.
We had people being harassed and chased in cars.
Thank God they lost last election.

People are getting nervous and the truth will not set them free.

It could be the opposite.

Anonymous said...

Thanks to 28 September 3:46.

Gave me food for thought.
I'm in a group of women in their 50s, sixth decade of life.

We are turned off government because of the "politics" some, like you champion.

You've set the bar too low for us. We don't care about the lowest common denominator.

We want to build from the bottom up, with a foundation of principles.

You want "all is fair in love, war and politics".
Check out the history to see have ideas are changing in all three areas.

I think you are beating a dead horse.

We have a declared difference of mission.

Anonymous said...

Just what Aurora does NOT need, a bunch of
empty nesters telling us how to behave. We have had
enough knocks to last us for years. Do your cleaning
in another town, please.

Anonymous said...

I had thought 3.46 p.m. was a female. Whatever,what a dreadful waste to blame your life on someone who
has no part in it.

Brock Weir said...

"As we were leaving the town hall, a comment was made, the meeting was so exciting, a reporter fell asleep."

Despite reports to the contrary, (and against all odds?) I remained wide awake throughout the meeting!

Anonymous said...

Are the people who post here for real?
I think someone is having you on.
Fantasy Island indeed.

Anonymous said...

Fantasy island or not it's clear there isn't a lot of human compassion here.