PULLING MUNICIPAL POLITICIANS OFF THEIR SELF PROCLAIMED PEDESTALS

In regards to the title above "It's an awesome responsibility but someone has to do it." Quoting the still improperly in office Mayor Sandy Shantz: "Politicians are human too." While there are some who would argue that, I would suggest that that is exactly the point. Politicians are far too human at times. They are dumb, greedy, self-serving and far too often way too full of themselves. Convincing uninformed voters that you are the best thing since sliced bread isn't difficult. What is difficult is being even half the person you've held yourself out to be to the voters.

The Waterloo Region Record published a story titled "Trouble in the townships" in their March 5, 2016 edition. I have to admit that that story was a ray of light in that it made pretty clear that some of our local politicians just aren't too bright. Again for the slow ones let me say this. You are there for the support and well being of all your constituents. You are not there for the support and well being of local big shots, developers, family or friends. Your goal is first and last, the public interest. If it isn't in the public interest then why are you doing it?

Wellesley, North Dumfries, and Woolwich Townships were singled out for their recent very public issues. Some of the best quotes and comments came from Mark Bauman, Sandy Shantz and Scott Hahn, all of Woolwich Township. All three had been caught red handed in egregious, dumb or lazy actions regarding their municipal election expense reports. Oh and just to make it very clear: illegal behaviours and actions. Some of those actions were more lazy than others. Some were more dumb than others. And some I firmly believe were done intentionally for purposes ranging from covering up earlier errors to wanting to pretend that the winning candidate hadn't outspent her three rival candidates combined by a factor of three. Ooh that might give a few voters pause if they got the idea that money can buy elections (it certainly can).

The election expense issues followed this very same council, albeit with the focus on two councillors namely Mark and Sandy, who had recently manufactured a "crisis" for the purpose of extricating both Chemtura Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Environment (MOE) from the decades long web of lies they were involved in. They had been delaying and obfuscating on the cleanup of Elmira's aquifers and of the Canagagigue Creek since they were exposed in November 1989 for their dishonesty and environmental coverups. Local citizens through CPAC (Chemtura Public Advisory Committee) had them and their lies on the ropes and were publicly exposing them. In came Sandy and Mark for the sole purpose of rescuing and restoring the status quo such that large polluters and their "captured" regulators could continue their nasty, dishonest ways without being publicly exposed for their misdeeds and dishonesty.

While all the election expense allegations against Scott, Mark and Sandy were proven accurate, nevertheless I did not hide my motivations. Mark and Sandy needed to be publicly exposed for their incompetence, laziness and or dishonesty to the public on those issues and as well they needed to be exposed as being untrustworthy and less than honest on the Chemtura, MOE, CPAC manufactured crisis. Any politician who blatantly lies and points fingers at their own appointed volunteers have crossed a serious line and there will be repercussions.