Something is rotten in the state of CBRM.

Something is rotten in the state of CBRM. 

Yes, this is a line from Hamlet, and it is uttered after the ghost of the dead king is seen walking over the palace walls, because if all were well, why would the dead king be roaming around, trying to get people's attention?

 

While we have no ghost gliding up and down the esplanade to show us that something is amiss, we do have CBRM Council meetings.

I plan to write a couple of posts on the process behind the recent decision to ban night parades, and to hold a vote on whether to ban parades that do not celebrate Christmas or the GLBTQ community, and parades in small communities. 

First - the issue paper. 

1. An issue paper should be written and researched by unbiased CBRM staff with useful expertise. 

2. Council should analyze the issue paper and do their own homework. 

3. Sensible issue papers should lead to sensible decisions. 

Here is an excerpt from the issue paper, titled PARADE SAFETY, and presented to Council on October 9, 2019. 

Council should obviously ask where these rules came from - specifically. What research was done, and from what sources? 

But instead, Councillor Darren Bruckschwaiger accepts the parade rules without evaluating them because, as he states on video (1.39.16), he considers deciding whether a parade is safe to be "above his pay grade." 

Unbelievable. 

The fact is that the rule that parades cannot be held at night is a regular rule across "Canada and North America" (by the way, is Canada still not part of North America?) is not accurate.

And Councillors should know this.

Here are some parades that will be held in Nova Scotia this year: 

Council cannot make sensible decisions without accurate information. 

(Truro has decided to hold a day-time parade for safety reasons.)  

Council is elected to make decisions. They are not elected to blindly accept misleading information that is presented to them. 

(I do not include Councillors Kendra Coombs and Amanda McDougall with those Councillors who do not do question information as I have seen them do so. )

Please, Council of CBRM, understand that it is your job and duty to make decisions on behalf on the people of CBRM. If you believe that you must accept direction from staff without questioning it, why are you necessary? 

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Lillian Dolomont Follow Me
Great post.
Lynn Hussey Follow Me
YES something definitely IS rotten in CBRM. In my opinion I think residents should just GO ahead with the nighttime parade and practice civil disobedience. Who is going to make an issue over it? This is an unfair decision on the part of CBRM and our own councilor ( Amanda MacDougall) is opposed to it and held a public meeting about this decision.
Joe Ward Follow Me
I find the "pay grade" comment interesting. Should we be paying them more to make less informed decisions? Weighing such decisions is exactly what we elected them to do. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtmtlNB22WY
Mathew Georghiou Follow Me
That video is so hard to watch.
Lillian Dolomont Follow Me
Hey Joe, speaking of "pay grade", yesterday I read the pensions the losers and quitters in the past election will be getting . Makes me sorry that I had chosen to be a stay at home mom until my son was 8. My husband served 28 years in the military and his pension is about 1/8 of what some of these politicians will be getting. He also didn't get any perks.
Lillian Dolomont Follow Me
Sorry Joe, should have said 1/5th, not 1/8th,
Martin MacLellan Follow Me
The post by Lorna hi-lights the serious disfunction in Council. There is little doubt that CBRM was constituted to suck the cash from the outlying communities, leaving them with no authority and even less services. It surprises me, although it shouldn't that, council can find endless hours to debate such things as parades, and pole signage which are best left to the discretion of community and volunteer groups who put the long hours and dedication to making these a success. Having lived in Moncton for a good 20 years and returned to Cape Breton in the early 90's; I marvel at the stagnation and decay that has festered in our community relative to say the Moncton Region. It's simple shameful indeed and I believe the political leadership at the three levels of government; Civic; Provincial and Federal are principally responsible. The status quo is not working; we need real change in our communities that will foster growth and community spirit.
Joe Ward Follow Me
IMO, any community group that wishes to continue their parade, should simply notify the CBRM that they intend to ignore the directive if it is not overturned. And then follow through.
Mathew Georghiou Follow Me
I was thinking the same thing. But I wonder how this would affect police participation? For example, if a group wanted to run a parade contrary to the bylaw, does that mean the police cannot participate in a supportive way? The police would likely have to participate for safety reasons, but participating by requirement may not be the same as being part of the parade itself. Similarly, citizens in Canada have the right to assemble and protest, so perhaps a parade could be positioned as such and therefore be protected under law.
Joe Ward Follow Me
Great questions. It's unlikely that parade organizers would attempt to do so. However, CTV's Ryan MacDonald says Councillor McDougall's attempt to overturn it has failed in a 6 to 4 vote against doing so.

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