Category: Ethics and behaviour

Collingwood’s Mystery Councillor

Collingwood / Council / Ethics and behaviour / MusingsLeave a comment

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Who is Ian MacCulloch? We were only told by the town that he’s the newly-appointed councillor, chosen this month by council to fill the seat vacated by Brandon Houston, who quit his responsibilities and resigned back in January. But unless you dig deeply, you won’t know anything more about the newbie other than his appointment. The town’s announcement about him was vague and insubstantial, although not surprising for a townhall that prefers secrecy over openness. In fact, the town said nothing about MacCulloch’s experience, his … click below for more ↓

Dither, Dally, and Doddle

Collingwood / Council / Ethics and behaviour / Municipal elections2 Comments

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If I were looking for a single word to succinctly describe Collingwood Council, it would not be ‘decisive.’ Nor would it be progressive, capable, innovative, or enterprising. I would not even apply the word ‘adequate’ much less ‘competent.’ No, the word that comes to my mind is ‘inept.’ At the November 18, 2024 meeting of council, Mayor Hamlin announced that Councillor Brandon Houston was taking a leave of absence for an unspecified period of time and an unspecified personal reason. This didn’t set off many … click below for more ↓

Council’s First Year, Part Two

Collingwood / Council / Ethics and behaviour / Publicity & CommunicationsOne Comment

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Part two of the series in Collingwood Today about our council’s first year asked “how councillors felt this council has set itself apart from previous Collingwood councils.” As with the previous piece, the article brought more face-palming moments as some of the council tried to justify their place at the public trough. In the article, DM Fryer is quoted saying “councillors attending many more community events, such as a regular spot at the Collingwood Farmers’ Market, this time around” sets this council apart. Except, maybe … click below for more ↓

Council’s First Year Considered

Collingwood / Council / Ethics and behaviour / Planning & Policies / Publicity & CommunicationsOne Comment

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I did a few facepalms while reading CollingwoodToday’s four-part piece on Collingwood Council’s first year in office.  CwoodToday approached each of them with questions “about their accomplishments so far, to how this council feels they’ve set themselves apart, and to surprises they’ve experienced so far as elected officials.” No similar coverage was in the increasingly irrelevant Collingwood Connection. Given the ineffective communication techniques the town currently has to reach residents (not to mention the abysmally awkward, user-hostile website…) it is good for readers to hear … click below for more ↓

An Odium of Politicians

Collingwood / Council / Ethics and behaviour / Saunderson's Vindictive Judicial Inquiry2 Comments

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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 people feel for a particular person, usually because of something that the person has done.” Another apt term that … click below for more ↓

Hypocritical Candidate Wants to Return to Council

Collingwood / Council / Disrespect and bad behaviour / Election 2022 / Entitlement / Ethics and behaviourOne Comment

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Two more of our local “basket-of-deplorables” incumbent councillors (aka quidnuncs) have filed their papers for re-election: Steve Berman and Kathy “Me! Me! Me!” Jeffrey. So has former councillor Cam “Sleepy” Ecclestone, who announced he was running in the provincial election for the fringe “Consensus Party” then never appeared on the ballot. Readers will recall that both Berman and Jeffrey willingly participated in the bullying of former councillor, Tina Comi. Both signed identical copies of councillor McLeod’s complaint to the town’s integrity commissioner. Both defended their … click below for more ↓

Don’t Forget Who Blocked the Hospital Redevelopment

Collingwood / Council / deception & secrecy / Election 2022 / Ethics and behaviour / Hospital3 Comments

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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 highly-paid PR consultant (both sole-sourced) to lecture the public as to why the hospital should not be allowed to … click below for more ↓

Council’s Inappropriate Pay-Raise Decision

Collingwood / Conflicts of Interest / Council / Disrespect and bad behaviour / Election 2022 / Entitlement / Ethics and behaviour / Financial follies / TaxesLeave a comment

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Late last month — less than three months before the next municipal election — council made significant decisions about their own pay and the role of the mayor. Given that four of them have filed to run again (and a fifth is pending), and two of those are vying for the mayor’s role, this was a highly inappropriate decision and of questionable ethics. In the story in CollingwoodToday, it noted: ..council voted to approve changing the position of mayor from part-time to full-time, keeping Collingwood … click below for more ↓

Grovel, Snivel & Fawn

Collingwood / Council / Disrespect and bad behaviour / Entitlement / Ethics and behaviourLeave a comment

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Grovel, Snivel & Fawn. You might think it’s the name of a law firm, but it’s the art of political sycophancy practiced by our own council.* It’s how our council behaved when the former, and much-disliked mayor, Brian Saunderson, took his leave from sucking on the municipal tit last week (it was not disclosed whether he will be paid for his brief, grandstanding appearance to accept the laurels from the committee). One last time our council cabal eagerly and publicly grovelled, snivelled, and fawned over … click below for more ↓

Signs, Signs, Everywhere There’s Signs

Collingwood / Council / Disrespect and bad behaviour / Entitlement / Ethics and behaviour / Ineptitude and bungling6 Comments

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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 of Simcoe initiative called “#itsstarts” which, the county’s website says, is, “a public awareness campaign designed to take a … click below for more ↓

Utterly Corrupt and Contemptible

Collingwood / Conflicts of Interest / Council / deception & secrecy / Disrespect and bad behaviour / Entitlement / Ethics and behaviour5 Comments

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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 2018 election campaigns of five of the six who voted for him to be the new councillor: Brian Saunderson … click below for more ↓

Brian’s Hypocrisy on Display. Again.

Collingwood / Council / Disrespect and bad behaviour / Ethics and behaviourLeave a comment

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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 councillor Tina Comi into resigning, and Saunderson’s failure to responsibly do his role as mayor and show even a … click below for more ↓

Council Gives a Bad Name to Train Wrecks

Collingwood / Council / Disrespect and bad behaviour / Entitlement / Ethics and behaviour / Ineptitude and bungling / PoliticsOne Comment

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In his latest post, fellow blogger Chris Potts opines on our council’s misogynistic bullying of former councillor Tina Comi that resulted in her resignation from the toxic environment in local politics. Potts calls our council a train wreck, noting: …my true opinion of this council and the only thing that comes to mind when I think of them is “Train Wreck”. Over the past months, we continue to watch the same crap day in day out, absolutely no leadership at the top, and to be … click below for more ↓

Comi-gate Continues to Plague Council

Collingwood / Council / COVID-19 responses / Disrespect and bad behaviour / Entitlement / Ethics and behaviour / Ineptitude and bungling4 Comments

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Mayor Saunderson and his gang of bullies continue to take flack for their hostile, childish behaviour towards the former Councillor Tina Comi, who resigned her seat late last month. The week after she resigned, the town’s integrity commissioner (IC) revealed a complaint against Comi filled by the Gang of Six because her 11-year-old son entered her room during a council training session that should have been held in public. You can read the story about their disgraceful, vengeful act here. And once again, our council … click below for more ↓

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