Kate Baggott's Blog: Cornfields of the Sea - Posts Tagged "greg-miller"
The Andy Petrowski Apology Collection
Today, Regional Councillor Andy Petrowski apologized to council chair Alan Caslin.
This time, the topic was hateful remarks made by Twitter and covered in local media that compared gay marriage to murder.
While Chair Caslin now considers "the matter closed," citizens of St.Catharines, whom Petrowski represents, are not in agreement.
In fact, we have seen too many apologies from Mr. Petrowski during his tenure on council.
Making the issue more complicated is Mr. Petrowski's position as vice-chair on the Police Services Board. This is a time of deep reflection and rapid change for police services around the world. Respectful, diverse and honest policing is a goal that all of us; members of the police, residents, citizens and politicians; must improve and pursue with our hearts and minds. This latest incident shows that Mr. Petrowski is incapable of that respect and honesty.
And, we know that from his last public apology in January of this year to Chief McGuire.
Alas, that was not Mr. Petrowski's first apology either.
In November of 2013, Mr. Petrowski apologized to members of staff who were bullied and intimidated by the councilor. In this incident, Petrowski was investigated by the integrity commissioner. Alan Caslin, it should be noted, defended Petrowski during this incident as well.
Prior to being elected to public office, Petrowski was known mostly for his acts of petty vandalism. He apologized for those crimes as well.
Are these very public apologies the only ones Petrowski has made or are they the only ones I can remember? If there are others, please let me know in the comments below because so far, the pattern is an illustration of Petrowski's complete lack of regard for the code of conduct that governs councilors of Niagara Regional government.
Were Andy Petrowski at all sincere, there would not have been further violations after the first incident and apology.
Andy Petrowski's insincere apologies are a political and democratic crisis of their own, especially since the board decided to eliminate the integrity commission in February.
There are, though, additional incidents that make this crisis more complicated and disturbing.
In this latest case, the rules of fair play are also at stake. It could be the violations of ethics we learned in the sand box as children that make how this incident is being treated by the chair especially painful.
Last week,Greg Miller was outed as the owner of @NiagaraNext, a twitter handle that was known for its criticism of all levels of Canadian government. His article comment sign in information was provided to chair Caslin by an editor of Bullet News Niagara, a media outlet owned by Councilor Bob Gale and operated by his children. The incident followed a possible disagreement between Miller and Bob's son. RD Gale alluded to it in a Facebook conversation about the "investigation." As a result of the news outlet's information and Chair Caslin's involvement, Miller lost his job at the Region.
What is happening in Niagara is nothing less than a crisis in democracy. A group of citizens is compiling a formal letter of complaint to be delivered to Chair Caslin later this month. One can only hope their concerns will be properly aired.
My fear is that the formal complaint, like all the informal complaints, will be dismissed with another insincere apology. Niagara Regional Council obviously needs immediate provincial and federal investigation.
This time, the topic was hateful remarks made by Twitter and covered in local media that compared gay marriage to murder.
While Chair Caslin now considers "the matter closed," citizens of St.Catharines, whom Petrowski represents, are not in agreement.
In fact, we have seen too many apologies from Mr. Petrowski during his tenure on council.
Making the issue more complicated is Mr. Petrowski's position as vice-chair on the Police Services Board. This is a time of deep reflection and rapid change for police services around the world. Respectful, diverse and honest policing is a goal that all of us; members of the police, residents, citizens and politicians; must improve and pursue with our hearts and minds. This latest incident shows that Mr. Petrowski is incapable of that respect and honesty.
And, we know that from his last public apology in January of this year to Chief McGuire.
Alas, that was not Mr. Petrowski's first apology either.
In November of 2013, Mr. Petrowski apologized to members of staff who were bullied and intimidated by the councilor. In this incident, Petrowski was investigated by the integrity commissioner. Alan Caslin, it should be noted, defended Petrowski during this incident as well.
Prior to being elected to public office, Petrowski was known mostly for his acts of petty vandalism. He apologized for those crimes as well.
Are these very public apologies the only ones Petrowski has made or are they the only ones I can remember? If there are others, please let me know in the comments below because so far, the pattern is an illustration of Petrowski's complete lack of regard for the code of conduct that governs councilors of Niagara Regional government.
Were Andy Petrowski at all sincere, there would not have been further violations after the first incident and apology.
Andy Petrowski's insincere apologies are a political and democratic crisis of their own, especially since the board decided to eliminate the integrity commission in February.
There are, though, additional incidents that make this crisis more complicated and disturbing.
In this latest case, the rules of fair play are also at stake. It could be the violations of ethics we learned in the sand box as children that make how this incident is being treated by the chair especially painful.
Last week,Greg Miller was outed as the owner of @NiagaraNext, a twitter handle that was known for its criticism of all levels of Canadian government. His article comment sign in information was provided to chair Caslin by an editor of Bullet News Niagara, a media outlet owned by Councilor Bob Gale and operated by his children. The incident followed a possible disagreement between Miller and Bob's son. RD Gale alluded to it in a Facebook conversation about the "investigation." As a result of the news outlet's information and Chair Caslin's involvement, Miller lost his job at the Region.
What is happening in Niagara is nothing less than a crisis in democracy. A group of citizens is compiling a formal letter of complaint to be delivered to Chair Caslin later this month. One can only hope their concerns will be properly aired.
My fear is that the formal complaint, like all the informal complaints, will be dismissed with another insincere apology. Niagara Regional Council obviously needs immediate provincial and federal investigation.
Cornfields of the Sea
When I was in high school, I was lucky enough to be part of a writing workshop with author Barbara Greenwood. Every member of the workshop was to write a short story for a group anthology. I thought w
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