NB: This is a repost from Dec. 9, 2021. See below. Last year, I wrote about how Councillor Bob “Lapdog” Madigan had behaved in a churlish, misogynistic manner towards female members of council during open council meetings, first in March, 2021, and again in October. But if you thought the boorish Madigan — who, it’s rumoured, plans to run for mayor or deputy mayor next election — … (more–>)
After my last post, I was informed about a similar incident of disrespectful behaviour during a previous public council meeting this year. It’s also by Councillor Bob “Lapdog” Madigan. And again his disrespect is again aimed towards female council members. Are you seeing a trend here? And why are local media silent about what seems to be abusive behaviour? The meeting was held March 15, 2021, … (more–>)
There’s a video clip being shared on social media from the “special” meeting of the Strategic Initiatives Standing Committee Agenda, on Thursday, October 14, 2021 (full video here). It shows a dishevelled Councillor Bob “Lapdog” Madigan in the upper right corner of the screen. It’s worth watching to see how poorly some of our councillors treat their role and their office. The meeting was held to … (more–>)
The proper collective noun for a group of politicians is “an odium,” at least according to James Lipton in his delightful book, An Exaltation of Larks (Ultimate Edition, Penguin Books, 1993). I was thinking of how appropriate that term is, this week, when I read the odious comments from our mayor in the Connection. Odium, the Collins Dictionary tells us, means “dislike, disapproval, or hatred that … (more–>)
The headline in CwoodToday reads, “OPP concludes investigation into JI events; no charges laid.” After ten years, the OPP finally shut down the investigation that actually concluded several years ago. And even then we knew the results: no one under investigation broke any laws. Not even the Municipal Act or the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act. Ten years during which innocent people were under suspicion, had … (more–>)
I attended a two-hour seminar hosted by the town about Collingwood’s Code of Conduct last week. It was intended as an introduction to the policy for new candidates and a refresher for incumbents, and was presented by the town’s Integrity Commissioner, whose slides ranged from conflicts of interest to accountability, from public behaviour to confidentiality. Councillor Bob Madigan wasn’t there. Four incumbents running in this election … (more–>)
This headline appeared in CollingwoodToday: “Town councillor, deputy-mayor candidate charged with assault.” In Simcoe.com (Collingwood Connection), the headline was “Collingwood councillor, deputy mayor candidate Bob Madigan facing assault charges.” Bob Madigan is running for deputy mayor of Collingwood. Is this the sort of behaviour you want in your elected representatives? Given his past behaviour, this latest event didn’t surprise me. But by the time this reached … (more–>)
Among those incumbents running for re-election, are (so far), three who were part of the cabal on the 2014-18 council that actively and aggressively tried to block the Collingwood General & Marine Hospital’s redevelopment. Their efforts did cost the hospital money and time, and set the redevelopment back at least five years. Who can forget when that previous council brought in a highly-paid lawyer and a … (more–>)
Councillor Bob “Lapdog” Madigan — council’s most notable bully and misogynist — filed his papers for deputy mayor, a position for which he is supremely unqualified. Well, to be fair, he’s not really qualified for any council position, is he? In almost eight years in office, Madigan’s accomplishments have been… well, nothing. Aside, that is, from being a misogynist bully; showing disrespect for not only other … (more–>)
Councillors Mariane McLeod and Yvonne Hamlin have both filed their papers to run for the mayor of Collingwood after a mere single term serving in the least effective, most inept council ever, serving as loyal sycophants to the worst and most disliked mayor in the town’s history. What hubris! Aside from their abilities to vote the way Saunderson expected, to express oleaginous praise for him in … (more–>)
As a recent Connection story noted, our acting mayor wept openly when a decision he supported took some community flack. Seriously. He cried at a council meeting. Hardly the sort of behaviour one expects of the man chosen to replace the head of council (our much-disliked mayor who couldn’t wait to get away from his responsibilities). You can watch the entire discussion on video on the … (more–>)
The Town of Collingwood’s Facebook page has a post that shows photos of our council members grinning at the camera while holding a piece of paper with a word handwritten above a printed text. I am not aware that this bit of self-promotion has been covered in any local media (but then, so little is, these days).* This paper they are holding comes from a County … (more–>)
Last night, our council contemptuously appointed a replacement for former councillor Tina Comi, who had been bullied out of office by the Gang of Six of the eight currently at the table. The man they chose was former mayor, Chris Carrier, who also: Is a registered lobbyist in Collingwood for a major property developer and an insurance company (potential conflicts of interest); Donated money to the … (more–>)
This week, the Town of Collingwood again raised the pink flag to show its support against bullying. It’s an initiative that local resident Trevor Henson has been promoting for the past 16 years. How ironic that Mayor Saunderson was there to hoist it. And look, there were councillors Doherty and Berman beside him, two of the Gang of Six Bullies. Given council’s role in bullying former … (more–>)