Is Democracy Dead in Cornwall Ontario? By Jamie Gilcig 082818

Cornwall Ontario – Democracy dies when people don’t tend to it.  That means voting. It means being active more than just at elections. It means becoming aware to some degree of what the monkeys at City Hall get up to.   I mean we have a city clerk that can’t even get candidate contact information correct over one month since the gates opened.

In this town they get up to quite a bit.  We have had runaway tax increases which will only get worse.  We have a labour issue due to multiple terms of essentially letting the fox in the henhouse.

I can’t imagine many other municipalities having the Current/former President of the Labour Council as a City Councilor (while espousing that raising taxes is a good thing!) like we have in Elaine MacDonald.   The Labour block is a strong one in Cornwall, but not strong enough to rule the day if more people simply decided that they’d had enough of bad service and high taxes.

It’s all interconnected.  It goes to the Chamber who pooped all over the Charter during the last election and instead of coming up with a creative solution (I know we’re talking Lezlie Strasser and Mike Metcalfe) have decided to abandon debate for council candidates and have a schmoozer instead and just a mayor’s debate while for some odd reason kissing Cogeco’s posterior when there is more cord cutting than ever and Cogeco is not supposed to be competing with Commercial media.  That the chamber of all entities perpetuates that is so odd.  All media should be treated equally for such an event.

Many of us call it the clique, but it’s just one good ol boy or gal rubbin’ the others hind end and if you’re not on the inside then you’re on the out.    That’s fine for private business, but when it’s on the public’s dime quite another.

It’s even worse in the media where ol Hugo from the Freeholder appears to have given City Hall a free pass on an issue that most likely would make huge news in other cities.   If a Post Media paper won’t report news of that magnitude Democracy is not doing very well.  The scary part just might be the reasons why ol Hugo would duck such a story.

We have 31 individuals running for council.   There probably aren’t enough worthy to elect 10.  That’s scary.  Looking over nomination papers we see the same people signing sheets for the same people.  We have the kids of local big shots who couldn’t get gigs in the private world. We have kids of city managers.  We have people who have never held a real job in their lives other than those paid for by we the taxpayers and yet these monkeys want to run a near $200M per year corporation.

Do we even know why some of these folks are running and what they represent?  Or who?

Is it any wonder that Maureen Adams gets away with what she and other city managers do?  There simply is no backstop.  No device for the public to take action.  Which means higher taxes.  And more comments from developers that Cornwall

Wasn’t even in the game. 

And this election sadly is in the bag.   The bad guys are going to win this one no matter what.  It’s also why you’re seeing so little coverage by media locally and so little chatter about this election.

As for the mayor’s slot it’s kind of ironic that David Murphy has been burned by ol Les who essentially has given the election to Flipper.   Of course whether Murphy or Clement won both are in the bag of the “clique” so expect more NAV CAN action and your tax dollars heading to that facility, as well as other strange and non-delightful uses of the public purse.   Maybe we’ll hire ten more full time firefighters?   Or build a second art centre to embrace Cornwall historical francophone culture?   After all.  It’s only your money.  Right?

It’s a dark and sad time that will only lead to more good people leaving Cornwall for greener less corrupt pastures.   This week I know of two families that have left which amount to a total of four adults and nearly ten children.   Can Cornwall really afford to see young families leave?  Can you blame them?

The only thing that will change this is YOU.   That’s right. If you’re reading this editorial then you probably have digested some of this.    But honestly YOU have to take action and work to make sure that during the next four years this scary group of monkeys are kept accountable and exposed each and every decision.

And you need to focus on making sure that in 2022 Cornwall becomes Brampton 2.0.

It’s all up to you.   It really is.

j




17 Comments

  1. Democracy has always been dead in Cornwall whether you vote or not it all comes out the same about who you belong to for a job or for protection or whatever it may be Cornwall was finished well before my day and it only got a great deal worse over time. There is no democracy in Cornwall – it just doesn’t exist. You vote one turkey out and another turkey comes in to replace the outgoing one.

  2. Not trying to be repetitive, but please consider, NOT VOTING for any incumbent running for Councillor ? Has any of them really deserved or earned your vote ? “IMO”, no they haven’t, look at their track record, they cannot hold the line regarding finances, the Administration runs the show, the ridiculous arts center, no direction at all regarding our waterfront, etc, etc, etc…… ?

  3. Don’t even know where to start.

  4. Seems to me that you have as regular commentators a few persons who seem to hold. and expound nothing but negative comments about Cornwall and those who live here .
    It also seems to me that those persons seem to be more that welcome on your CFN
    site . What a pity .

  5. Author

    It seems to me that you come here fairly often pitching the same stance BM1 too. We have a clear Mission Statement and they are entitled to their opinion the same as you are.

  6. It seems what BM1 is preaching is censorship. As long as you follow the Mission Statement you are free to say what you like. Perhaps if Cornwall didn’t have a city stifling clique there wouldn’t be so many negative comments. We have a chance to change this in October, but I don’t see it happening with the list of wannabe councilors that are running. Sad, but true.

  7. Author

    It’s not this newspapers fault that the clique essentially won’t publish comments here. The only ones we don’t approve any longer are abusive troll comments. This forum is not for therapy or screaming sessions. People forget that before “anti social” media we simply shunned many folk or they simply and rightfully wouldn’t say some of the things they now write face to face with another.

    This newspaper still will allow comments, but we really do prefer they be on subject and non insane. And those with an agenda sadly will have to find another place to seek it.

  8. I don’t agree with Admin often. But on his comment of August 29, 2018 9:39 AM he has it 100%.

  9. Author

    Hugger you agree with me a whole lot more than you admit to 😉

  10. I know. Am I turning into JG? That’s a scary thought, eh? LOL!!!

  11. Author

    yes, I was told that Bob Peters at Economic Development believed I was posting as Jules, lol, lol, rolf 😉

  12. Cornwall has always been a place where you got work because of what family that you belonged to and how rich you were, etc. My daughter found out for herself about Cornwall when she went to the manpower office and since that day we told Cornwall goodbye and the hell with you. Cornwall is dead and when you see seniors leave you know that something is mighty wrong. Cornwall is finished.

  13. Author

    Jules Cornwall isn’t finished. But it won’t move forward until it rids itself of the corruption and silliness.

  14. Jamie since when did you become me (yours truly your wacky jules) Bob Peters has his head on backwards to think that one up. Oh wait someone else thought about that same thing some years ago but Cornwall is mighty backwards when some thing that about you and I. LOL LOL. ROLF! I am having such a good laugh at this end that I had to stop typing. I am the one and only and no othet but me.

  15. One man in Cornwall that we used to walk with at the Power Dam who is originally from Ottawa once said CORNWALL IS CORNWALL and Cornwall started its steep slope to die back in 1959 when the Cotton Mill closed up shop and went to Venezuela. Today nothing has changed and much later on Domtar, Courthaulds as well as the Chemical Plant ICI and Levis Jeans all folded up shop forever.

  16. That is a good one Jamie about Bob Peters thinks that you are me. LOL LOL. ROLF! Can you picture me meeting Bob Peters in person and how he would react. LOL LOL. I am roaring with laughter trying to figure out his expressions. When I think about Cornwall I roar with laughter that place is something else my friend. People who have never lived elsewhere don’t know what we are talking about.

  17. RUNAWAY TAXES ALRIGHT and I haven’t stopped shaking my head and roaring with laughter wondering what in heavens name are they paying for when everything left town. At least 18 or more stores vacant – gee that would almost be the entire town. Who is going to be nuts enough to move to a mighty depressed place like Cornwall. We would go down for about an hour and come back mighty depressed.

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