It’s interesting to see what hits a button with people and what doesn’t? In this age of internet newspapers like CFN we get to see direct results by page view counts, comments, and of course Social Media chatter.
In 2015 we also live in an age of near Orwellian times. Mass media, the delivery of information and entertainment is essentially owned by large corporations which clearly have agendas in controlling the message and messenger.
They tie in to political machines frequently making and breaking elections such as this very independent outlet did in our local Cornwall election in 2014.
Essentially we’re told what should be important which many times isn’t what truly is important while hiding real issues.
Here are some of the biggest issues facing the World today. The impact of Fukushima as its nuclear charged waters edge closer to the West Coast of North America and poison ocean life en route. The real issues of climate change and what can be done rather than how to tax the end results. 18 degrees on December 24th is not the norm for Canada.
The situations in the Middle East are frankly scary. It’s Cowboy time with Mr. Putin and the West trying to see who has the biggest cod piece at the expense of millions of lives.
We live in an age it seems that clearly has lost any accountability. We essentially have an elite that scientifically knows not only how to break rules, but does so with impunity knowing that the penalties, if ever even remotely enforced will not come close to the gains from the wrong doing.
Those of us that dare defy or simply point out the truth are punished; usually to the point of being discredited and destroyed in almost every way possible. In non Western countries it usually means death, but here in Canada for example your reputation is destroyed and your finances ruined.
The scariest thing is that many people know this happens but sit in silence for fear of it being their turn next.
With oil crashing and economies in China, Russia, and the West slumping financial distress will only push people past the brink.
Healthcare is literally crumbling in front of our eyes. Clearly if you can afford care you get it, but if you can’t your life span and quality of life will be significantly less in many places.
Here in Canada many let out a sigh of relief after Stephen Harper was voted out. His near Totalitarian, angry old man, us or them rhetoric finally led to an embarrassing defeat and majority government for Justin Trudeau which was an election victory of desperation by many and not a true win for Mr. Trudeau who already has had to drop many of the Used Car sales promises that helped him to a majority.
We live in times where we have to work harder to earn less. Those stresses cause a multitude of changes in how we live and play.
Culturally we go to less events and concerts. More and more people live their lives digitally. I attended a party where people were shooting selfies and sending them to each other while standing next to each other. People are losing their ability to communicate and comprehend. If you don’t understand what’s communicated is it any wonder that so many react the way they do?
I live in a city that is a microcosm of the ills of our society. While not unique, Cornwall Ontario certainly is above the average line of the dysfunction and corruption that impacts the world around us.
Power is consolidated with those that remotely question or oppose it attacked to the point of being forced to leave the community as many have publicly stated yours truly should do.
This newspaper has barely survived a four year boycott actually led by City Hall. From its lawyers trying to slur us by calling an Online newspaper a blog to try and discredit it with advertisers, to mystical attacks from newspapers that get the most advertising from the City. It also has led to a false arrest with connections to City Hall.
Recently I filed a Conflict of Interest complaint against Mayor Leslie O’Shaughnessy and two city councilors as they sat on a steering committee of a group that came to council and asked for cash. They then participated in the meeting that the group received money. It was all on video from the city itself.
At first the Mayor fumbled, citing the need for a second legal opinion. That led the same City Lawyer that had slurred this newspaper representing them which in itself was another conflict.
After reading that writing I offered to do a push. I’d withdraw my complaint with all parties bearing cost (essentially because it was felt that it was like changing a poker game to no limit when you showed up to play with a limit), but the City lawyer refused. He then asked for a new court date because the judge sitting on the date scheduled was also on the same steering committee. A reasonable person might suggest that if there was a conflict for the judge that his clients themselves were indictable.
Instead a new judge appeared. A hearing resulted in an initial motion for dismissal of the city legal firm and lawyer being waved off and then a tirade by Judge Eric Leroy, the application dismissed, and myself slapped with a maximum amount of cost in spite of attempts for resolution prior and that I was self represented and not expected to have a grasp of the minutiae of the legal system. Essentially the Conflict of Interest was cemented over.
However Judge Leroy failed to state that he was a partner with the law firm that I had outstanding current litigation against sitting councilor Brock Frost, and several other cases defended by same firm. The cryptics of the legal system, especially if you don’t have funding, or have a lawyer, can be daunting.
And even writing about this could prejudice other judges against yours truly. In fact some have asked if I could get a fair trial locally? We already know that area police refuse to charge those that break the law against yours truly.
I recently had to scrape up $4, 500 security for cost for the lawsuit against Councilor Brock Frost which was awarded based on what happened in the award by Judge Leroy. While a complaint is to be filed against the judge, justice will most likely not be served on any of this process.
Freeholder editor Hugo Rodrigues, former President of the Canadian Associations of Journalists, sat in the audience as Judge Leroy performed. Nary a word pointing out the clear facts. Hugo serves his masters quite well.
Of course the bad guys would offer their own versions and explanations, but the facts are low hanging fruit. You don’t need Freedom of Information requests to clearly see what happened or report on it.
And this culture extends. Since I have been on the board of our local 35 year old public art gallery and charity the City of Cornwall has not only cut off funding, but even refused to post events to its Facebook pages. I kid you not.
The issue is not that the bad guys behave this way; but that the good guys stay silent on their hands.
And the biggest issue facing our City is our toxic mound known as Big Ben. A ski hill in the centre of the city that this same culture allowed to be constructed without a membrane and that allegations of illegal dumping have occurred over the years.
So what is the future for our community?
I’m not sure I’ll be a part of it. The ills that face Cornwall and the area were here long before I arrived in 2004, and sadly will probably be here long after I’m gone.
CFN has been the Canary in the Coal mine for this area. We’ve shown some of the ills facing our community and even fixed the issues we could. We’ve surprised a lot of people including yours truly many times.
However time is a funny thing. As my late dear friend Howard Perry once said, well he said it many times actually,
In 100 years none of this will really matter.
What do you think dear CFN viewers? Do any issues really matter to you and what do you do to make change happen?
You can post your comments below.
Your a stubborn man Mr.Gilcig If you would of just kissed their asses like the rest of the so called bigshots in this city i believe you would of shutdown a couple of our two faced kiss ass papers.Thats how threaten they were of you and CFN at the begining.I believe 5 or 6 years of kissing their asses you would of been in a position and have the support to bring change to our corrupted city.Hell you might of even been voted in as our mayor.
Good luck in the future and Merry Christmas to you and cfn readers.
Marc, while not getting into the definition of what you term “kissing ass” it should be noted that CFN was ultra positive about Cornwall (we still are btw) even though we were getting a lot of abuse in our first few years.
The drama started when Chris Savard, who was our IT guy, started a little online media outlet of his own allegedly to take CFN down. He had support of his Conservative chums and people like Elaine MacDonald. The lies and spin as the divisiveness grew from that. I myself am amazed that I’m still standing and owe a lot of thanks to people like my paralegal James Moak, and many behind the scenes people that really do care about our community and are embarrassed and tired of the hijinks.
There have been so many lies and mistruths shared about myself and CFN that it’s boggling. Even yesterday, the Freeholder removed several false and defamatory comments left by some very special people in a story reporting our trial vs South Stormont for not paying the balance of their contract.
The rate payers of South Stormont have now, by conservative estimates, spent two to three times the actual cost of the claim in legal bills. Hope they remember Tammy Hart, Donna Primeau, and Jim Bancroft for that come election time.
Merry Christmas to you and your family as well. Here’s hoping to a much better 2016!
The city boycott of CFN has had an effect on CFN to do its job. It has also had a domino effect as advertisers or potential advertisers have been “advised” not to advertise with CFN. If the city boycott wouldn’t have happened then I believe CFN would be a profitable business and would have been able to do a better job here in Cornwall.
Hugger if you measure the economy of Cornwall it’s gone downwards since the city initiated a boycott which essentially was a ploy to help the media they preferred using.
IE the ones they gave more money to for less results prior to the boycott. If you add the positive impact of what would have happened if we had our market share the overall economy of our city would be stronger. While this has all but destroyed us financially, it’s actualy hurt the local economy and region.
Likewise the direction given by the city boycott impacted us with National and regional agencies. It all has a spin off impact.
Jamie you eclipse all the toilet papers of record of Cornwall and they are all mighty jeolous of you and they cannot compete at all with CFN and I am surprised that the toilet papers of record are still in business but not for long. I kiss nobody’s ass and that is why we are here in Ottawa. I don’t bend down to nobody except God Himself and no human being not even the queen of England or anybody. That is your Jules wacky nor not that is me.
Cornwall’s economy is dead and will never recouperate at all in any generation. Jamie everything that you said is 100% and more accurate and I couldn’t add is a single thing to make any improvement – you said it all “par excellence”.
When we wenr down to Cornwall it is so mighty depressing that you don’t even see as much as a dog outside lifting its leg against a pole. Back in the 90’s era we used to walk at the Power Dam Park and I remember one particular morning and it was hot and a man sitting down at a picnic table and spotted the Freeloader on the ground. Well just before he spotted that toilet paper a small dog came around and peed on it. Well that man was desperate enough to read the garbage in that toilet paper and my husband and I just roared with laughter – how mighty cheap he was not to go and buy his own piece of toilet paper. The little dog knew what use it was for and nothing else. That is a morning that I will never forget at all. There is absolutely nothing in the toilet papers of record of Cornwall – not worth the time to waste reading the garbage. Jamie you are the very best there is and that is the truth and the gang of Cornwall are mighty jeolous. The town is “gang central” and has a disfunctional administration along with everything else. Intelligent people don’t stay in Cornwall to take the abuse and move on. Wild horses cannot get me back to Cornwall at all – I would have to go elsewhere but not Cornwall. When one is kicked around once you don’t go back and ask for more. Cornwall died since a number of years and never to recouperate. You cannot ressussitate something that can never be ressussitated – dead is dead.
Jules you’re making that up aren’t you? Do you realize the trouble I get in every time you post like that? One day we will have to do that interview and finally prove that you’re a real person as many still think I post as you. Merry Christmas to you and the family. Have a safe, joyous, healthy holiday!
Jamie I am a real person wacky and all and I swear on my life that I am for real. I say what I feel like saying and it comes from my heart and soul and I mean it when I said that you are the best and yes you eclipse them all in anything that you do. You are a great journalist and you are a great artist and a wonderful humanitarian and I can see that in you my dear man I mean that fully. Cornwall doesn’t like competition and that is in any business and none are capable of running as much as a dog kennel without something going wrong or even a dog catcher. You are way too good for all of them. I cannot live with that mentality at all. Jamie you have my IP address and I am a real person. I live in Ottawa South – one of the places where all the action takes place day and night. God Help Me!
Admin….I agree with your comments of 2015-12-23 at 12:33 pm.
It’s very hard to believe some of Jules’ stories. As for “gang central” in Cornwall I think the only gangs here are the senior citizen ones that hang out at the Square, Timmies and McD’s. So, now we don’t have intelligence to live here. Either provide proof or stop with the naysaying. Contrary to some beliefs Cornwall is not dead and will recuperate.
Jamie you have a wonderful Christmas and a Great New Year and give a pat and a cookie to Fitzie and Betsy and to the cats. I love animals dearly but don’t have any of my own. We walk in the park every morning and the birds and squirrels are my feathered and furry friends and so nice and peaceful. Take care Jamie and all the very best to you. I mean it Jamie when I say that you are the best and I don’t exaggerate. Take a good look at the condition of Cornwall and they went down because of the clique and the terrible mentality of kissing their asses and believe me my dear man I don’t kiss anybody’s behind at all. When I got work I got it on my own and had no help from anyone. You have to be strong in this life and depend on yourself and have all the confidence in oneself to survive and prosper – nobody will do that for you but yourself. Stand straight and be mighty proud of yourself and what you have accomplished. Not one journalist (if you want to call them journalists) in Cornwall can hold a candle to you – not one single one. Cornwall is literally finished because of the gang that runs city hall – no different than the criminal gangs here in Ottawa South, Vanier and other areas here in Ottawa – the same level and that is true.
Jamie I don’t make anything up. If I had your talent at writing I would make myself rich by writing books on the side and selling them. I would be in competition with you writing about wacky and corrupt Cornwall. I have my wacky self to deal with and that is one big challenge. No I don’t make anything up and that is the truth about me – I hit the nail on the head and send it out to you. You might find me strange and I don’t blame you since I am on the other side of the monitor but I am for real. You have my real name, where I live, my IP address and I can say that you know some of my relatives in Cornwall and surrounding areas. I will not reveal who I am but all you can do is put a little trust in knowing that I am your wacky Jules here in Ottawa South – gang central of Ottawa (one of the gang centrals) – what a place it became and it used to be so nice. You would never see us purchase because nice places go mighty bad and we feel sorry for the home owners.
Jules what you call talent is simply hard work. All you have to do is try and push yourself. The rest will fall into place 🙂
Admin said at 2015-12-24 at 4:01 am: Jules what you call talent is simply hard work. All you have to do is try and push yourself. The rest will fall into place 🙂
Hard work is the key in any job. Keep it up; you’re very good at what you do.
Hugger, Jamie and folks writing is a gift and yes very hard work on the brain cells but it does take talent as well and not everybody has it but you sure do have talent Jamie and that is true. If only I had that gift I might become rich and I don’t mean having a paper but writing books. I would love to have aritistic talent as well to do my own illustrations. Earlier I felt like I was Mary Poppins with that wind going to and from the store for last minute items. MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OF YOU IN Cornwall!
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