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Political Times by Mike Roache – February 3, 2012

admin — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:25:48 +0000

CFN – Here is today’s installment of Political Times by Mike Roache!

About Mr. Roache:

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Mike Roache was born in Halifax and began cartooning for a school newspaper while in junior high,often putting the paper together by himself. Over the years some of his work has appeared in newspapers in the United States and Canada. Presently his work appears in the Klondike Sun and the Sackville Tribune. Married with three adult children he lives with his wife in Halifax.

If you wish to sponsor his feature, email or call CFN at info@cornwallfreenews.com or call our hotline at 613 361 1755

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The Cornwall Free News Introduces Political Cartoons from Mr. Mike Roache – February 1, 2012

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 20:28:18 +0000

CFN – The Cornwall Free News is happy to introduce our latest contributor; Political Cartoonist Mr. Mike Roache of Halifax Nova Scotia!

About Mr. Roache:

If you wish to sponsor his feature email or call CFN at info@cornwallfreenews.com or call our hotline at 613 361 1755

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Point of Order by Stéphane Groulx – Canadian’s right to consume digital content for personal use in jeopardy under bill C-11

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 13:59:09 +0000

CFN – Some people have noticed that CFN really wants to play a role in helping young people become more active in politics and find their voice.

What I like to do is find politically active young people and share our platform with them. And that’s where Stéphane Groulx enters. We are proud to create this column for him to share his views as he works his way through University studying Political Science.

Here is his first entry for his new Column; Point of Order.

Not that long ago, the fear that the United States government was going to police the internet and infringe upon online freedom through proposed bills SOPA and PIPA led to a massive online protest spearheaded by websites such as Wikipedia, Google and Reddit. The protest ultimately led to both pieces of legislation being postponed indefinitely. The successful online protest to these bills served the purpose to both inform individuals of the propositions of SOPA/PIPA as well as what they could do in opposition to the bills.Canadians got swept up into the debate when it became apparent that SOPA/PIPA had the potential to have a profound effect on the websites which host user-generated content we hold dear to us – such as Facebook, Youtube, Wikipedia, and Twitter. Many Canadians came out in opposition to SOPA/PIPA and that was great, however one must not forget that these are American pieces of legislation. Canada cannot intrude on the domestic policy of another sovereign state.

Since Canada can not meddle in the affairs of government south of the border, what can Canadians do to fight to keep their digital and internet freedoms? They can come out en masse against similar legislation proposed by the Conservative government. I’m speaking of course of bill C-11, which would bring sweeping reforms to Canada’s current copyright laws.

Bill C-11 was introduced September 29th 2011 by the Conservative government in the House of Commons and is essentially a carbon copy of bill C-32 which was tabled in June of 2010 but was killed in March of 2011 when the Conservative government lost the motion of no-confidence in the house which led to the last federal election being called; a fate similar to that of bill C-32′s predecessor, bill C-61 which also died on the floor after the call of the federal election in 2008.

An issue of concern related to bill C-11 is the proposal to prohibit the breaking of digital locks, which is software placed on digital content which attempt to limit the ability to copy or save the content somewhere else after its been purchased. Take for example you have a DVD of your favourite movie and you want to save it onto your computer for personal use, under current copyright law in Canada nothing stops you from breaking the digital lock (if there is one placed on the DVD that is) and going forward with the saving of the content on your computer, however if bill C-11 becomes law, such an action would be deemed illegal.

Even if you legally purchased the original piece of digital content, it would be illegal to save it to your computer or make a back-up copy of it if the content were to have come with a digital lock. These locks can be found on DVDs, CDs, eBooks, Internet music (like songs found on iTunes) from a great many industries including music, film, television, video games, and etc.

The Conservative government has stated that such restrictions on the breaking of digital locks are in line with world standards however as Professor of Law Michael Geist rightly points out “the Canadian digital lock rules are more restrictive than those required by international law, more restrictive than those found in many other countries” most of the countries which have implemented similar laws relating to digital locks have differentiated between the legality of breaking the locks for personal use, and the prohibition of the breaking of the locks for the purpose of sharing these files non-personal use; such as online piracy, the selling of bootleg copies, and etc. Bill C-11 does not in its current form make a distinction between breaking the lock for personal use or for the intention to counterfeit.

It should not be against the law to break a digital lock on something you have legally purchased as long as it is for your own personal use and is not done with the intention to counterfeit. To make such an action illegal is to punish the consumer.

Unfortunately given the current make-up of Parliament, the Conservative government is going to get its way in passing this legislation unless we stand up against bill C-11 with the opposition parties in Ottawa. Canadians need to stand up and not let the government take away their right to use the goods we have legally purchased to our own discretion! Whether that be through writing your MP, speaking up against the bill when it reaches the committee stage in either the House of Commons or the Senate, or taking part in peaceful protest. If enough Canadians get involved, we can send a clear message to Prime Minister and the Conservative Government, because this could very well be just the tip of the iceberg.

Born and raised in Cornwall Ontario, Stéphane is a social activist and political science student at the University of Ottawa who is avidly passionate about politics, policy-making, as well as getting youth involved in the democratic process.
Stéphane also loves to observe and explore his surroundings, take part in rational discussion, learn new things, write, and meet new people.

If you wish to contact or sponsor Mr. Groulx email us at info@cornwallfreenews.com or call our hotline at 613 361 1755

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Letter to the Editor – Elaine MacDonald On Harper Canada Pension Jacking – February 1, 2012

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 13:44:52 +0000

To the Editor, re Threats to Old Age Security

The Harper government is crying poor on pensions for seniors while it lavishes 13 billion in tax cuts for big corporations that don’t need the money. What’s wrong with this picture? They can’t afford to staff the EI phone lines so workers can access benefits for which they’ve paid, they can’t afford to maintain meat inspection levels that were instituted after the listeriosis outbreak, they can’t afford the non-taxation of veterans’ disability benefit, they can’t afford to let the ecoENERGY Retrofit program run its course till March, even though less than half of the budgeted funds have been allocated, and they can’t even think about a national childcare, homecare or pharmacare program.

But on January 1, 2012, the corporate tax rate was cut to 15%, right on schedule. It’s hard for a government to cry poor when they are shovelling money out the back door. It’s high time tax expenditures were reviewed like all other program spending. The conservative government of Canada is using the Eurozone crisis as an excuse to inaugurate a spiral of diminishing support for and investment in the programs that people count on. Canadians understand the need to economize and manage shared resources, but a tax cut program that is depleting the common treasury just looks like a cynical and opportunistic attempt to minimize government and shrink public services.

Harper’s plan for the OAS is a way to download cost and responsibility to lower levels of government which will have to pay out more to support seniors who are forced into poverty. Old Age Security and the Guaranteed Income Supplement are inadequate now. The right way to deal with a looming retirement income crisis is to expand the Canada Pension Plan now to raise incomes for seniors in the future. Income supports for seniors need development, not diminishment.

Elaine MacDonald, president, Cornwall & District Labour Council

(Comments and opinions of Editorials, Letters to the Editor, and comments from readers are purely their own and don’t necessarily reflect those of the owners of this site, their staff, or sponsors.)

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Harper Government’s Looming Health Care Fiasco by Zach Paikin – January 31, 2012

admin — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 22:10:55 +0000

CFN – In a speech given this past weekend in Vancouver, Interim Liberal Leader Bob Rae took aim at Stephen Harper’s approach to Canadian federalism, citing the issue of health care as one example in which Harper’s Conservative government has adopted a non-collaborative approach.

Rae’s comments are timely, particularly as our country’s health care system is at a vital crossroads.

Harper’s government recently announced that it would unilaterally set the levels of federal-provincial health care transfers through 2024. Supporters of this policy hold that it puts the messy debate over funding aside and allows for the issue of health care reform to be addressed more centrally — all while respecting the constitutional jurisdictions of both the federal and provincial governments.

Critics — and I am one of them — counter with two important facts:

First, the unilateral offer promises increases in federal funding that are unsustainable. Finance Minister Jim Flaherty’s plan allows for the automatic six per cent annual increase in size of the transfer to continue for three years beyond the end of the current federal-provincial health accord in 2014.

This offer is in line with the Harper government’s promise not to reduce transfers to individuals and to the provinces in order to get Canada’s fiscal house in order. The result is that it is going to take longer for the feds to balance the books while the overall debt of both Ottawa and the provinces will continue to climb. The Chrétien-Martin war on the deficit was won very quickly (taking only three budgets, 1995-97) in part due to sizable reductions in the size of transfers to the provinces.

The fact that it is going to take longer to get back into the black has already been announced as the Tories have backtracked on their election promise to balance the books by 2014-15. Our gross debt-to-GDP ratio has already climbed to 84 per cent.

The feds’ unsustainable offer has another negative consequence: With such generous funding assured for the provinces through 2017, the latter have less of an incentive to reform their health care systems at the pace necessary.

With health care set to eat up 80 per cent of provincial budgets by 2035 if no substantial reforms are implemented, and with a labour shortage set to hit our economy following the end of the recession due to the retirement of the baby boomer generation, failure to begin reforming our health care system will have serious consequences for the ability of provinces to spend on departments other than health care.

Second, despite the claim that the federal government’s offer allows for the issue of reform to be addressed front-and-centre, the fact remains that the feds haven’t provided much leadership or much of a vision when it comes to how the system could actually be reformed.

Supporters of Harper claim that health care is a provincial responsibility. Without question, one must admit that the provinces have a distinct role to play in advancing health care reform. Indeed, it was provincial experiments such as those of Tommy Douglas’s CCF government in Saskatchewan that led to the eventual adoption of a national, universal, publicly-funded health care system and the Canada Health Act.

Health care delivery may be a provincial responsibility according to Section 92 of the Constitution, but the issue of health care as a whole isn’t — it’s an issue of national importance.

Our federal government needs to find innovative ways to reduce spending and acquire additional revenue — all while insuring a competitive economy — so that it has the fiscal capacity to address major long-term issues such as reducing our public debt, addressing economic inequality and climate change, and dealing with the rise of revisionist powers around the world.

On the health care reform front, whether these spending reductions and revenue increases are achieved through innovation in our public health care system, the introduction of private health insurance plans, or both remains to be seen. Mr. Harper’s government has been tight-lipped on the issue. And that’s the problem.

No matter what, health care reform is going to require a federal government that has a vision and that is willing to work with the provinces. Mr. Harper’s “watertight compartments” approach to federalism demonstrates neither of these qualities. Bob Rae’s comments in Vancouver this weekend were spot on.

Follow Zach Paikin on Twitter: www.twitter.com/@zpaikin

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The City of Cornwall Chokes Voices on Its Facebook Page – Deletions; Censorship – Is this Really 2012?

admin — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 02:53:36 +0000

Bob "Vienna Sausage" Peters - Economic Development - Cornwall Ontario

CFN – Cornwall Ontario fascinates me. It’s part Twin Peaks; part Peyton Place, and full bore Cornwall. Since founding the Cornwall Free News nearly three years ago the person I have dealt with the most has been Mr. Bob “Vienna Sausage” Peters with the Economic ~~destruction~~ Development department.

Mr. Peters was the author of the report to council; voted in 6-3, that essentially has started the City on a slippery slope; on how it’s perceived by the public online.

At first it was Online Anonymity that was the issue; but deep down it’s more about being highly thin skinned; like say a possum…

Mr. Peters wrote the following in his report which was signed off by his boss; Cornwall Ontario’s Million Dollar Man, CAO Paul Fitzpatrick.

A review of local news websites show that only two allow anonymous posts: the Standard-Freeholderand the Cornwall Free News. Both sites have some moderation of comments, but a review of activity over the past several months have led staff to concur with the generalized assessment of the practice by the American Journalism Review: “Comment sections are often packed with profanity, and vicious personal attacks.”

We contacted the mayor; council, and of course Mr. Fitzpatrick and told them straight out. You can’t repeat lies about a local business; especially if you aren’t going to allow us to speak before council to repudiate them.

See Syd Cuss & Swear

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CTb9UCI5KE

This was not only refused, but of course resulted in being commented on at council; picked up by the CBC and other media. As you can imagine as we have always been moderated, and extremely RARELY as opposed to OFTEN have any profanity or vicious personal attacks on CFN this was shocking.

But the City’s new online position posed another very interesting question. What about their Facebook page? It had zero pre-moderation and as any facebook user can tell you there is quite a bit of profanity and attacks.

It also resulted in Mr. Peters and his sidekick Kevin Lajoie spending countless city hours at the taxpayer’s expense moderating the facebook page; which at the end is a city tool and therefore falls under usage similar to how City Hall would be.

See “some” of the elected officials and city management aren’t perfect either like the rest of us. Some of them have funny notions as Councilor Grant had in the video below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6FIdNl7vB4

Cronyism and Bullying are not rarities to how business is done down at City Hall in Cornwall; nor unique in the world. Here is Councilor Carr responding to a polite media question from yours truly on the mural covering the empty pit on the Corner of Pitt & Second that Heart of the City spent a minimum of $12,000 on and that the owners of the land didn’t have to pay a penny for.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fm9QhKWv55k

Today Kevin Lajoie posted that the city has decided to not allow users to post subjects any further. He and Mr. Peters had been deleting comments, posts, and even quotes in the name of their terms of service which of course had nothing to do with Facebook’s terms of service.

One local lawyer last week stated that it was a gross charter of Canada violation for Messer’s Peters and Lajoie to behave in this manner in such a heavy handed manner. Some people’s posts would be removed and some not for the same alleged infraction.

One long thread attacking this scribbler was allowed for days. It was all frankly; embarrassing for the City of Cornwall and we residents and business people.

What the City now has is a Facebook page where they only can post something and they pick and choose which comments to allow.

Those actions of gross censorship and manipulation of information to the public so outraged a portion of their Facebook users that a new page was created, and has had over 700 people join in less than 10 hours as of this printing.

It is now the fourth spin off page as the public reacts strongly condemning Mr. Peters actions.

You can find that group by following this LINK to Facebook. .

Here are some quotes remaining on the City’s Facebook page (many have been deleted as the city has now added two more admins)

JpVee Desaulniers I agree whether comments were rude or not the original post wasnt and as fire attacking moon she simply started she was disgusted and wouldn’t be back as a resident of Cornwall these are the types of things as well as events that I personally would like to know I urge someone to create a new group too in which the truth can be spoken about Cornwall good bad and ugly without having to ask someone if its ok to post the truth

Chris Mellon thanks Corey Roachi requested to join this group was BS to begin with! this group is nothing but fake they wanna post all the positive but what about the negative that they fail to tell us about this town????? The admins are trying to portray this city as though nothing ever goes wrong, nothing is bad here when in fact there is alot of stuff needing to be fixed here! Like our medical care that ive seen NUMEROUS people post about but all post get deleted! It almost seems as though they are trying to hide something!

Cory N Ashly I think the city is AWESOME, I think the ppl trying to “run” it are in over their heads! HAVE FUN withh this! I know the media will!!

Steph Beaudette ok i understand what your saying Paul, but what about the people who are wanting to move their families here and want to know everything they can about Cornwall? Are we gunna give them false views that Cornwall is the perfect place in the world where nothing ever goes wrong? I love Cornwall personally but there is a lot of issues here that need to be resolved! Just like every other city!

David Jans Not able to post anymore? Depending on your own view of the purpose of this group, it’s value can vary quite a bit but for me and probably hundreds, if not thousands of members, this group just lost pretty much all of it’s value.

Kevin Coleman Its Censorship and everyone should be entitled to oppinions. Cornwall is famous fo an elite group controlling everything. for example

Ryan Lalonde When u put a lock on the group like this it looses way to much, when people cant post and find help for employment and many other topics i know when i posted for employment it was a big help , oh well just another thing that Cornwall should really review there policy’s on.

The internet really frightens a lot of people. I guess in some ways it should as the flow of information can be lightning fast and ripe for opportunities for inaccuracies to be spread like wildfire. With the median age of the mayor, Council, and the CAO hovering near where Mr. Harper wants to move retirement age for Canadians it’s understandable; especially when some of them don’t know how to turn on their computer, never mind understand the intricacies of Social networking.

It should be interesting to see whether people on City Council and management have the integrity to right their wrongs or simply make things worse?

The founders of the new Cornwall Ontario Facebook page posted that they hope to eclipse the city’s page shortly. It should say something about social networking and the internet itself if they are successful.

What do you think amazingly valued viewers of The Cornwall Free News? You can post your comments below.

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View From the Hill by Keith Beardsley – They’re Back! MP’s return to Parliament Hill – January 30, 2012

admin — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:45:53 +0000

CFN – With the House of Commons returning today we can expect a raucous session. Already the battle lines are forming as the opposition party’s line up to take shots at the Prime Minister over pension reform. Not since 1985 when Brian Mulroney stated that he would de-index Old Age Security (OAS) have we seen such a feeding frenzy around pension issues.

The Prime Minister’s office is in full damage control mode with talk points that insist there are no immediate plans to make changes and they are pushing back on media reports that the government plans to extend the age from 65-67 (before you can receive the benefit), insisting that no final decision has been made. They even had the Parliamentary Secretary to the Finance Minister on TV discussing the issue and the Minister of State for Finance Ted Menzies was also giving interviews. All of this point to the fact that they see the potential damage this can do to Conservative prospects down the road.

With so many baby boomers near retirement age (myself included), this issue strikes close to home for many of us facing imminent retirement. Many of these baby boomers live in those hard fought for suburban ridings that the Conservatives needed to win to obtain their majority. There are political consequences for this government if they cannot turn this story around to their advantage.

This issue is a gift for the opposition and tailor-made for Question Period. The issue of extending the age from 65 to 67 is the figure that is out there. With the House recessed there was only limited opportunity for the government to shut down this line of attack. This story and those figures percolated along over the weekend, you still see it mentioned in numerous stories, it already has legs and the opposition attack will most likely focus on that point.

Whether or not that number is accurate and whether or not the Conservatives intended to act quickly on OAS will be buried in the opposition attack. The task facing both the Liberals and the NDP will be to convince the public that the Conservatives really do intend to change the OAS to the detriment of all of those retiring baby boomers. With all of us watching what has been happening to pensions in Europe as governments there fight their fiscal problems, it is not a stretch to think that quite a few Canadians will believe the opposition attacks.

The Conservative platform in the last election did address pension issues, but said nothing about making changes to the OAS. How long do you think it will take for the Liberals to resurrect their old attack points from the 2004, 2005-2006 elections and bring up the well-worn phrase “hidden agenda”?

Adding additional fuel to the fire in Question Period will be Immigration Minister Jason Kenney’s comments on revamping the immigration process. His comments will be unsettling news to many of the multicultural communities who supported the Conservatives in the last election. Combine that with the pension issue and the opposition parties will see a golden opportunity to snatch back voters that moved to the Conservatives. For the NDP it will be an opportunity to entrench their hold on Official Opposition status; for the Liberals it will provide a chance to resurrect their brand, especially in vote rich Ontario.

With so much at stake, these two issues combined with pre-budget maneuvering will guarantee that this session will be loud, noisy and full of over the top rhetoric as the three parties use Question Period to fight for the minds and future votes of Canadians.

Keith Beardsley is a senior strategist for True North Public Affairs in Ottawa, as well as a blogger and political analyst. He can often be found running or cycling on his favorite bike trails.

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Cracks Appearing in Government’s Northern Gateway Pipeline Proposal by Richard Komorowski – Jan 30, 2012

admin — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 14:12:41 +0000

CFN – With the Harper Government now proceeding at full throttle to push through the Northern Gateway oil pipeline to supply China, an unexpected crack has appeared within the governing party’s ranks. Calgary West Ultra-Right Conservative MP Rob Anders is publicly questioning the proposal to sell Canadian “Ethical Oil” resources to non-ethical Communist China, despite Ezra Levant’s invention of the ethical oil mantra becoming official government policy.

Earlier this month Sun News Network reported Anders as speaking out against the Chinese takeover of the MacKay River Tar Sands project. Anders condemned the sale of project to China, whom he describes as “the world’s worst human rights abuser.” However, in keeping with government policy, he still considers Tar Sands oil as “ethical”, but describes the Chinese as being an “unethical client.”

Anders, a staunch anti-Communist, vetoed an all-party resolution in the House of Commons to grant Nelson Mandela Honorary Canadian Citizenship, claiming that the South African leader was a Communist and terrorist. He has claimed that the Chinese Government has tried to set up “unattractive male Conservative MPs with hookers”, and has compared the 2010 Beijing Olympics to the 1936 Berlin Olympics. However, despite his anti-Communist, pro-human rights feelings, Anders stopped short of condemning the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline, which will export unrefined Tar Sands bitumen crude to China.

In 1994, Anders worked for Far Right Oklahoma Senator Jim Inhofe as a professional heckler(!) and was labelled a “foreign political saboteur” by CNN. Inhofe is a prominent science denier, who benefits from major campaign contributions from the oil and gas industry, and the electric utilities.

Tar Sands Crude Vital for Chinese Economy

The Chinese, as part of their shopping list for worldwide natural resources and energy sources to fuel their economy, recently closed a deal with the Athabasca Oil Sands Corporation. The MacKay River plant currently produces 35,000 bbl of crude bitumen per day, but this is scheduled to increase to 150,000 bbl per day in a four-phase expansion project. As part of the same deal, PetroChina will also be taking over Dover Oil Corporation’s Tar Sands operations at the end of 2012, which will bring the total production under Chinese control to approximately 400,000 bbl per day when the MacKay River expansion reaches completion.

The pipeline, from the Alberta Tar Sands, will cross the Rocky Mountains and Northern BC to a proposed super tanker facility at Kitimat, BC. The pipeline has provoked major criticism from Canadians and people worldwide because of its potential for ecological damage to the area through which it will pass, that it is “dirty oil” insofar has it has an even greater global warming impact than regular crude oil, and for the long-term economic damage it will do to Canada.

Given that the pipeline will have a maximum capacity of 525,000 bbl/day, it will easily be able to transport the entire Chinese portion of total Tar Sands production to China. This will give the Chinese economy a major boost compared to the West – as the Chinese government will take all the profits from the MacKay River and Dover projects, they are, in effect, buying the oil for the cost of production, and not the much higher world price, giving them a major competitive advantage. However, what is not well known is that the Northern Gateway pipeline will be two parallel lines – one transporting the bitumen to Kitimat, the second (with a capacity of 325,000 bbl/day) carrying light natural gas condensates from the coast to the Tar Sands.

Normal Tar Sands bitumen cannot be pumped through a pipeline as it is simply too thick. To make it economically transportable, it must either be upgraded into a lighter, less viscous synthetic crude, which would require refining facilities in Alberta, or it must be thinned out with a much lighter hydrocarbon fluid (a diluent) – hence the second pipeline.

The light natural gas condensates will be imported from Mexico or OPEC sources, and would therefore not fit under Levant’s category of “ethical oil.” Although the Chinese will be paying for the product out of their profits, it further undermines the Canadian economy – profits are reduced, and therefore the already low taxation revenue from PetroChina will also be correspondingly reduced. In addition, the cost of the diluent will reflect in Canada’s overall balance of trade – the difference in the value of what the country sells abroad, compared to what it imports. The pipeline scheme will do nothing to reduce the influence of “non-ethical” OPEC countries on the world’s energy markets.

Stephen Harper announced to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, that he will make it a “national priority” to export our “energy products” (i.e. Tar Sands Bitumen) to China, and make sure there are no regulatory delays. The Northern Gateway Pipeline is now official government policy regardless of the environmental, economic or human rights consequences.

Anders May Face Consequences for Criticising Government Policy

Since taking power as a minority government in 2006, the Harper Government had strictly enforced what its senior civil servants, diplomats and MPs can say to the media. Any of these people, whether the High Commissioner to Great Britain on a speaking engagement, or a lobby-fodder back bencher at a constituency barbecue, needs to file a “Message Event Proposal” (sometimes known as a Media Event Proposal), or “MEP” through the Privy Council Office, and ultimately the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). Without an approved MEP, the person is forbidden to speak. The purpose is to ensure that whoever is speaking toes the line and only promotes official Conservative Government policy.For MP Anders to have made such a statement regarding exporting Tar Sands oil to China marks a clear rebellion against government policy, as no MEP criticising any aspect of the Alberta Tar Sands would have been approved by the PMO. Ezra Levant, author of “Ethical Oil” and the Harper Government’s Tar Sands policy considers that the Chinese will start behaving “ethically” now that they are doing business in Alberta. So far he has published no reaction to the criticism from his long-time friend Anders.

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South Stormont Township Council Meeting, January 25, 2012 by Reg Coffey

admin — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 17:39:44 +0000

South Stormont Town Council 2012

CFN – What a pleasure it is to attend a well conducted council meeting. After sitting in on a couple of the Cornwall City Council meetings it is refreshing to see local politicians behave in an efficient and well organized manner. All of the councillors were well prepared for the meeting and the township administration were there with answers to all of the councillors, mayor and deputy mayor’s questions. And one of the best things was it was short. They got down to business had brief discussions and then passed their motions. It all took 25 minutes. The only thing that was missing was concerned citizens. Well I guess you could call me a concerned citizen because I live in the township but then again the council considers me a journalist. Boy, have I fooled them.

The agenda last night was light and by-laws were passed without any grand posturing speeches. A liquor license was approved, an Agreement with South Nation Conservation was approved, another agreement for a Dog Tag Sales Agent was approve and the dates for the meetings to discuss the 2012 budget were set for March 19 and 30, 2012 at 9:00 AM in Council Chambers. The minutes of the meeting will be posted on the Township’s web site so you can see all the details at :

http://southstormont.ca/council/meetings.php

After the meeting Mayor McGillis has a brief discussion with the media about the situation in St. Andrews where to post office has announced it’s closing. He wants to assure residents of that area that he is concerned about the situation and is taking what action he can.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EQZHohHo1g

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Tea Party Tim Trashes US President Obama – Snubs Bruins White House Celebrations – January 25, 2012

admin — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:07:48 +0000

CFN – We owe Tea Party Tim Thomas a debt of gratitude. It’s a slow week in the NHL. No major news out there as the All Star break approaches. Nobody really cares about the All Star game so Mr. Thomas deciding to be a totally classless human being is making the news far and wide in sports columns.

I have a friend that works for the US government and we once chatted how he had been on “Bush Duty” ie; he was assigned to protect the President of the United States of America; a role that would require him to step in Harms Way if the President attacked.

I asked him how he personally resolved it as he certainly wasn’t a Bush supporter and he said:

It’s the office of the President you Dumb Ass!

Yes, Mr. Thomas is a free man; chiefly because his country has a President and is a Democracy. Mr. Thomas was not PERSONALLY invited to the White House.

His TEAM of which he’s simply one player as great as he is a goalie was invited to be honoured. Instead of being a TEAM PLAYER he stole the spotlight from his team mates and made it a platform to espouse his personal political position.

This is wrong on so many levels. The Bruins, in the thick of a race to win Lord Stanley’s Cup again so they are trying to not have this impact their team.

What do you think of Mr. Thomas’ play Hockey fans? You can post your comments below.

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