There is a fellow citizen in Caledon who offered me wonderful words of wisdom today. Crystal Larouche wrote in an email that we should all try to be nicer. Beautiful.

Unfortunately, I am an only child, alpha male, and if anything threatens my pack, I go on instant defense mode. So was the case when I was sent Crystal’s Facebook blog about members of Town Council who I deeply respect. Sorry Crystal, when you attack mine, I respond.

Before she reminded us all to play nice, this is what Crystal wrote: that the Mayor and his cronies were all rich landowners. First, Crystal is partially correct here. The Mayor, as a result of approved land sales , made a mint. And the false charges brought against the  Mayor by Darnley and Bristol were not “dropped” as you wrote – he was found innocent of any wrongdoing and the complainants were charged $90,000 in court costs

The Mayor is legitimately a wealthy landowner, as are many political candidates in rurban and urban settings. With no children to take on the family farm, owners have no choice but to sell to developers.

Dear Crystal, Jennifer Innis is NOT a rich landowner, Johanna Downey is NOT a rich landowner. Their parents, or in-laws as in Ms. Downey’s case, may become rich landowners if they sell to urban development but what’s it to ya”? Not your land, not your problem. For a farming family to give up their historical title to a rapacious developer is not an easy thing. It cuts to the soul. But when the children move on and out, and no one is left to take care of the farm, what next?

In the meantime, in their roles as democratically elected politicians, do they each do a respectful and intelligent job representing their constituents? Absolutely yes! And we all have to remember that Bolton is NOT the Town of Caledon, or the belly button of the world.

Next, Crystal, sweet nice Crystal, wrote that those same members of Town Council treat their citizens “like shit”. .. her words, not mine. Really?! And you had the audacity to call me a bully? Dear sweet Crystal, saying that the democratically elected members of your Town Council are treating you “like shit” is hardly a “nicer” comment.

In summary, the Mayor was cleared of all false charges and awarded court costs. Any innuendo that he was guilty of anything is smear. The complainants were charged for court costs and who paid for that is still a mystery. The Regional Councillors you attacked are people who care, NOT like those funded by litigious developers. We’re not left with much here Crystal.

Yes, we should all try to be nicer.

Sincerely,

Skid

There has been a recent controversy in Ontario politics with Liberal leader Kathleen Wynne declaring that Doug Ford, the latest provincial leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario is similar to U.S.A. President Donald Trump of the Republican Party. Nothing could be farther from the truth.

While it is a fact that both are the spoiled sons of wealthy men who inherited their father’s money, so much about them is different. And while it is a fact that both the Republicans and the Conservatives use the same marketing teams for electioneering (not sure about Facebook mining), and that Donald holds lavish events at Mar a Lago while Doug hosts BBQs for Ford Nation in his backyard, it really is unfair to draw a comparison between Donald Trump and Doug Ford.

First, Donald Trump is a billionaire and Doug Ford is only a millionaire. Secondly, Donald has a full head of blonde comb over hair and Doug has short cropped blonde hair. Thirdly, Donald tends to an orange complexion while Doug Ford tends to ruddy. Fourthly, Donald allegedly enabled sexual assault abusers wile Doug alledgedly enabled addicts. Donald had no legislative experience while Doug had one term in the most dysfunctional city council in municipal history.

Now, it is true that both are populist sloganeers (Make America Great Again vs Make Ontario Great Again and America First vs Ontario First, and Lock Her Up vs Put Her in Jail) and the fact that they espouse the same mantra: Cut the red tape, help the taxpayer, especially the wealthy, support the hard-working white male voters (and the women who live with them), reduce government size, stop the welfare gravy train for the 30% chronically impoverished, and the blacks love me, “I’ve done more for the ethnics than anyone.”

Despite the fact that the U.S. economy and employment were on the upswing under Obama’s Democrats, and that the Ontario economy and employment were on the upswing under Wynne’s Liberals, why confuse the masses with facts when you can convince them to deny the birth certificate and “Burn the Witch!” Admittedly it’s hard to “Lock Her Up!” or “Put Her in Jail” if “she” hasn’t been charged or convicted of anything. But that never stopped a bullying populist liar before.

No, Doug and Donald are two different people. Although they do wear suits cut from the same ideological cloth, and Doug is reported to have mastered the art of the deal in his youth. one is from America and one is from Canada. We always thought we were a kinder, gentler citizenry than our neighbours to the south, but if Doug Ford is elected Premier of Ontario we’ll find out that we’re really not that different at all. It will be like watching Anne of Green Gables lose out in the cable TV ratings to Keeping up with the Kardashians.

As Kathleen Wynne tweeted “We’ve seen this movie before,” shortly after Christine Elliot won the popular leadership vote but Doug Ford won the PCPO leadership via the Ontario Conservatives version of the Electoral College,  I just never thought that it would be playing in theatres across Ontario. Although it has not yet been confirmed, there is a rumour that David Price will be head of security at Queen’s Park, and Don Cherry will be making the introductory speech from the throne before taking over as Minister of Hockey if Ford is elected.

Get ready for four years of rock ‘em sock ‘em politics.

***

Skid Crease, Caledon Journalist

• image from narcity.com

Sometimes I cannot believe that I sit in the same Council Chamber as another Caledon journalist. Following the Tuesday, April 17 Council meeting, I wrote my regular news report for Just Sayin’ Caledon. It was a boring, but true W5 style news report. On Thursday, April 19 I read a completely different take on the same Council meeting in a local newspaper.

It reminded me of how different eye witnesses see the same accident depending on their perspective, which is why eyewitness accounts are so unreliable in court. Prior to the Council meeting I had attended the Citizen Recognition night at the Caledon Community Complex. It celebrated the best of the best in volunteerism and left all in the audience with a positive feeling. I took that perspective into Council.

When we regard the Town staff as people working on our behalf, and celebrating our accomplishments as a community, it puts them in that same positive light. Now, the majority of our elected representatives see their colleagues at the Town in that same perspective. A few take a more combative attitude. Ignorance is bliss. The same applies to the journalists who cover the Council meetings with a negative lens.

We recently lost an honest journalist who worked his craft with integrity. Bill Rea’s absence from the Council media desk will be sorely missed. From a news perspective, his unbiased and honest reporting was an oasis in a desert of fake news. I admit to a definite bias in my editorials – I am allergic to liars, bullies, misogynists, racists, religious extremists and pedophiles. I am particularly allergic to journalists who claim to be news reporters when they are proselytizing for local politicians and developers. It’s a character flaw of mine. But when I write a news report, I must be neutral, as was my Tuesday report on Town Council. My editorial today has a different lens.

Over ten years ago, a private speculator took the Town to task for the direction that the Province and the Town had planned for develpment. They installed one of their marketing staff as the Editor of a local privately produced newspaper called the Caledon Perspectives. They initiated a series of incendiary articles that pitted their development interests against the Town and the Mayor of the time. When a long series of litigations against the Town failed, overnight they pulled all of their newspaper boxes and the Caledon Perspectives died with a whimper.

You can read the whole history online in Hap Parnaby’s investigative report on this low point in Caledon journalism.

We do not need another local newspaper highlighting a politician who does not deserve the print space. I was at the Tuesday night Council meeting. The only thing redundant about that Council meeting were the questions asked by a Regional Councillor who seemed unable to understand the difference between an interim and an ultimate solution to all-day downtown parking in Bolton. Thank you to an Area Councillor for explaining it patiently. I know this sounds judgmental and partisan, and it is. I have lost all patience with populist politicians who don’t know their by-pass from a parking space.

I will let you know exactly my criteria for local politicians I think are doing a good job – they read the staff reports, they ask intelligent questions, they do not waste time at Council grandstanding about their accomplishments which may or may not have anything to do with the motion at hand, they are respectful to colleagues and town staff, they do not lie or spread misinformation to their constituents, and they try their best to work for the good of the Town, not their next career move. That is my criteria for judging the quality of an elected official.

And if you have medial literacy, reporters are even easier to judge.

***

Skid Crease, Caledon

For the full Hap Parnaby report go to :

Connections Between Local Media and Land Developers in Caledon   www.topix.com › Georgetown