C. Gillespie, Don't Tell Us to Go to the Funeral of a 4-Year-Old.

Lorna MacNeil Follow Me

Posted this 2019-11-01 1:22 PM ADT

CBRM Council is to ban parades at night and in small communities.

Oh, and to randomly decide we can parade to celebrate Christmas. And the LGBTQ community.

But nothing else. Ever.

Because safety. (And maybe money.)

This reminds of the time that Council comically rose up against the humble turkey, seriously considering banning this bird from CBRM.

Common sense prevailed. ****-a-doodle-do.

But will it this time?

I really could not imagine what led to this decision and so I decided to watch part of the Council meeting on video. (Sure, I have the link. Just click on agenda item 6.1 on the left to beginning watching.)

My intent was to try to understand what Council was thinking. But I was diverted by a wacky and insulting rant from none other than the Councillor that banned me from his Facebook for asking him a rational question - Steve Gillespie.

I am now going to type what Steve had to say when defending his position against parades at night: "And if you think it's pretty (nights at light), try going to the funeral of a four-year-old."

(If you'd like to watch Councillor Kendra Coombs, while stressing safety, saying that the lights in Santa Claus parades at night are beautiful, go to 1.49 in the video.)

You know, we deserve better than this. We should be able to discuss whether we want parades at night or not without being accused of being for funerals of four-years-olds. This is an unacceptable thing for Councillor Steve Gillespie to say and I ask that he apologize to his fellow Council members and all of us.

I will write more on how this decision came to be as it is vintage CBRM disfunction.

Posted by Lorna MacNeil
Receive news by email and share your news and events for free on goCapeBreton.com
SHOW ME HOW

Depth
Mike Johnson Follow Me 2019-11-03 4:04 AM AST Reply 2 0 Those who pay attention, (and there aren't nearly enough!), know that we only have 4 competent Councilors, the 3 Wise Women, and Ray Paruch, who is on Medical Leave. The 3 women all voted against this, and are still trying to have the decision reversed. Based on his Campaign, people had some expectations of Gillespie, but he has has been a disappointment from the start, including this time. And like most of the others, he's not really capable of dealing with the big issues, (where the incompetents all vote with the Mayor), so they micro-manage items they understand, but not with a lot of real comprehension or compassion, so we get decisions like this! Of course, CBRM has been re-electing some of these dinosaurs for 40 years, so guess we are getting what we deserve, and apparently want! Joe Ward Follow Me 2019-11-03 11:48 AM AST Reply 0 0 I agree. Gillespie had some really strong campaign points prior to getting elected but has reverted into using Council primarily as a performance space, for either showcasing his wit or getting overly dramatic. These would be wonderful attributes if leveraged at the HAT, instead of the Civic Centre. Of course, there is nobody in the CBRM that doesn't take the death of a child seriously. With that said, that doesn't mean such a death should be exploited to make a decision without any actual data. By data, I'm referencing a sufficient study by the proponents (in this case, CBRM police) that demonstrate that there is a significantly elevated risk. They may even be able to find substantiating data. However, until they can show that nighttime events are too dangerous, they are not asking Council to make an informed decision - they are asking them to make a reactive one. And, Gillespie, among others obliged them in doing so. In a follow-up CBC interview with the more rational decision-maker, Councillor Earlene MacMullin, he spoke of a recent parade injury but was quickly reminded by MacMullin that it occurred during the daytime. He pivoted to letting listeners know that just because they disagreed didn't mean they "don't like each other" as if their personal relationship was of any consequence regarding the municipal issue. Joe Ward Follow Me 2019-11-03 11:49 AM AST Reply 0 0 There are significant risks to people in the streets of the CBRM, sometimes just crosswalks. I would love to know how many citations have been issued to CBRM drivers for failing to yield to a pedestrian. There are also significant risks to the well-being of children in the CBRM, and they relate very specifically to poverty and its association with addiction and adverse conditions inside of the home. In fact, it was only recently that Cape Breton journalists reported the death of a baby under suspicious circumstances. A primer on what really matters: https://capebreton.lokol.me/heartbreaking-realities-for-cape-breton-kids-in-foster-care With that said, perhaps their focus should be getting much-needed money into Cape Breton homes: https://civiclookout.com/equalization

Depth

Mike Johnson Follow Me 2019-11-03 4:04 AM AST

Reply 2 0

Those who pay attention, (and there aren't nearly enough!), know that we only have 4 competent Councilors, the 3 Wise Women, and Ray Paruch, who is on Medical Leave. The 3 women all voted against this, and are still trying to have the decision reversed. Based on his Campaign, people had some expectations of Gillespie, but he has has been a disappointment from the start, including this time. And like most of the others, he's not really capable of dealing with the big issues, (where the incompetents all vote with the Mayor), so they micro-manage items they understand, but not with a lot of real comprehension or compassion, so we get decisions like this! Of course, CBRM has been re-electing some of these dinosaurs for 40 years, so guess we are getting what we deserve, and apparently want!

Joe Ward Follow Me 2019-11-03 11:48 AM AST

Reply 0 0

I agree. Gillespie had some really strong campaign points prior to getting elected but has reverted into using Council primarily as a performance space, for either showcasing his wit or getting overly dramatic. These would be wonderful attributes if leveraged at the HAT, instead of the Civic Centre. Of course, there is nobody in the CBRM that doesn't take the death of a child seriously. With that said, that doesn't mean such a death should be exploited to make a decision without any actual data. By data, I'm referencing a sufficient study by the proponents (in this case, CBRM police) that demonstrate that there is a significantly elevated risk. They may even be able to find substantiating data. However, until they can show that nighttime events are too dangerous, they are not asking Council to make an informed decision - they are asking them to make a reactive one. And, Gillespie, among others obliged them in doing so. In a follow-up CBC interview with the more rational decision-maker, Councillor Earlene MacMullin, he spoke of a recent parade injury but was quickly reminded by MacMullin that it occurred during the daytime. He pivoted to letting listeners know that just because they disagreed didn't mean they "don't like each other" as if their personal relationship was of any consequence regarding the municipal issue.

Joe Ward Follow Me 2019-11-03 11:49 AM AST

Reply 0 0

There are significant risks to people in the streets of the CBRM, sometimes just crosswalks. I would love to know how many citations have been issued to CBRM drivers for failing to yield to a pedestrian. There are also significant risks to the well-being of children in the CBRM, and they relate very specifically to poverty and its association with addiction and adverse conditions inside of the home. In fact, it was only recently that Cape Breton journalists reported the death of a baby under suspicious circumstances. A primer on what really matters: https://capebreton.lokol.me/heartbreaking-realities-for-cape-breton-kids-in-foster-care With that said, perhaps their focus should be getting much-needed money into Cape Breton homes: https://civiclookout.com/equalization

goCapeBreton.com

C. Gillespie, Don't Tell Us to Go to the Funeral of a 4-Year-Old.

3

Facebook Comments

More Posts by Lorna MacNeil

Featured Posts

More Posts Under