I attended the candidates meet and greet at the Cornwall Public
Library last week with the focus being on Arts and Culture, a cornerstone
to the economic wellbeing of our city. At the end of the evening it
was the Mayoral candidates turn to speak. First up was Jamie
Gilcig. Apparently he feels there is too much money being spent on
the library, and the books contained within the library, and that there was no
need for two libraries in the downtown core.
Below please find an excerpt from
one of his blogs on Cornwall Free News:
“The crowd was larger than expected at our
beautiful library that I shared should become an even more beautiful downtown
Art Centre as we have another library two blocks away which drew more support
from the Library crowd than I expected.”
The next day I poised the question “Where is the second library located
that you were referring to in Downtown Cornwall?” as a post on one of his
Cornwall Free News Facebook pages. Within a matter of hours my first
question was deleted so I posted it again and once again my question was
deleted. Much to my surprise, I was also being blocked from posting any comments
on this page.
The following day I posted the same question on his second CFN
Facebook page with some additional information. The following is the
exact wording that I had posted:
“So now two posts have disappeared from your other CFN page and now it
appears that I am not able to post anything on that page, as well.
Did you delete them by any chance, Jamie? My question was a valid one and
I, and I am sure other residents, would like confirmation as to whether there
is another library located in the downtown core. If you are mistaken you
should acknowledge it all in the name of transparency. People need to
know where you stand as your vision of revitalizing Downtown Cornwall seems to
revolve around disbanding the Cornwall Public Library – I am guessing to avoid
duplication – to save taxpayers money and to replace it with an Arts Centre.”
This post was also deleted.
I feel it is important to let people know that, in
actual fact, there is no other library in the downtown core!
The United Counties administration office is located in Downtown Cornwall but,
lo and behold, there is no library to be found. To my knowledge, there is
no other library located anywhere else within the city boundaries. I
also have to say that a library is not just about the books contained within
its walls as there are so many other facets to a library, and that
libraries are one of the cornerstones of arts and culture in a community.
This is the heading of Jamie Gilcig’s first blog
after the Library meet and greet: “Frost Flees Library Debate – I Rocked
It Even Though TC Media Won’t Cover it by Jamie Gilcig”. Below
are several paragraphs contained within that blog:
“Council candidate Brock Frost fled the debate
running down a library row through books that I doubt he’d ever read. He
appeared fine after the debate saying that he had blacked out.
Butterflies? Bad reaction to ….? Does Justin Towndale
exist? I jest, but the candidate still hasn’t shown his face at an event
yet.
It was a motley mix at the library; part high
school like running for class president; part running for issues. You
could see jitters like Davey Bedard losing it or Greg Kielec fumbling as he
filtered his message while gerrymandering some truths.
There were some low points; David Murphy totally fabricating
a reality and clearly offering little to no substance; but sounding great;
sugar coating a council record that frankly should be investigated by police
and that he being a “rookie” is no excuse for.
I won’t even mention the odd weirdness that was
Glen Grant’s speech. The crowd didn’t respond much either. Poor Pat
Clarke ate up nearly all of his three minutes sharing his various groups and
boards that he’s on (all that boycott this newspaper too!)”
Not once did he mention some of the inspiring
presentations made by council hopefuls. His only comments were that there
were some interesting speeches of note - I’m still not sure if he meant that in
a good or bad way? - and that Claude McIntosh had the funniest line of the
night. How very insightful.
He also panned TC Media (more commonly known as
Cornwall Seaway News) for covering a local fire rather than the francophone
debate held last Wednesday evening. That is very interesting as I have yet
to see CFN’s coverage regarding the francophone debate.
This is an individual that is calling for
transparency around the city council table; who is always claiming he is being
bullied; who feels he is being left out of the advertising pie from the city
and local businesses. This is an individual who is not transparent
(remember that he won’t even admit that he made a mistake
regarding a second library which begs the question - how much does he
really know, or not know, about our community; who makes people feel bullied;
claims CFN is reflective of gonzo journalism – in my humble opinion it is
vindictive and mean spirited blogging as the majority of the blogs on CFN
do nothing but ridicule people – mostly directed towards those who either don’t
advertise, or have pulled their advertising from CFN, or that he obviously
despises. Looking back on his comments regarding the Cornwall Public
Library one has to wonder if his vision has anything to do with the fact
that Dawn Kiddell chooses not to advertise with CFN? I believe an
excerpt from one of his blogs says it all:
“A Library for example that boycotts the largest
media in its city with an artist as chief owner? Why? Caving into
City Hall demands from Mayor Kilger? I’m sure Ms. Kiddell can answer that
better than I can imagine?”
He has nothing but negative and hurtful words to
say about the other candidates that are running for city council which in my
opinion takes a lot of fortitude and sheer guts to attempt; continuously refers
to cliques in our community – I am not saying there are not cliques but I have
a different take on the word “clique” – I call them friendships, business
affiliations, people who band together because they are passionate about our
community and want to see Cornwall grow and prosper. I gravitate towards
cliques that consist of people who are influencing and making positive changes
in our community, not to those that encourage people to voice their negativity
regarding our city and dissatisfaction with our city leaders.
His disdain for Cornwall residents was never more
apparent than when he recently blogged that a convenience store located nearby
to where a fire broke out last week “apparently ran out of
marshmallows”. His lack of respect in regard to the recent discovery of
remains that were found in an east end dwelling is apparent in his words “Could
the ghost possibly have nibbled at the wires” and reflects his lack of
emotional boundaries.
This is an individual who is a mayoral candidate in
our municipal election. This is an individual who claims that he is being
excluded from local media coverage however his coverage revolves around his own
campaign and maligning others, this even though he has purportedly stated that
journalists should be impartial during an election. I suppose being a
gonzo journalist makes him exempt from journalistic integrity. And
now he is asking the public to help pay for his campaign via CFN.
I was born and raised in Cornwall, moved away
for my formative years, and moved back in 1994 and have been fortunate to
witness the renaissance of our city. I love our city and am
proud at how far we have come. We still have much to do and I refuse to
remain quiet anymore and let individuals like Jamie Gilcig belittle our
city. Sure there have been some costly mistakes made and the lack of
accountability and transparency has been well documented and must be dealt
with. I don’t know of any city that does not have issues and they are all
dealt with in different ways. Who is to say what is the right and wrong
way? Everything is not black and white - there are many shades of grey.
The 2014 election is just around the corner and we
still have much to learn about all the candidates, whether it be the good, the
bad, or the ugly. I am doing my due diligence by attending the various
meet and greet the candidates, debates and other meetings that will provide me
with more insight as I prepare to make such important decisions. I am not
basing my decisions on Jamie Gilcig’s personal diatribes. How can we
allow one person to turn an election into a mockery? I have had enough
with complaints about platforms being stolen – seriously, how much can a
platform differ in a city our size- and media coverage being hijacked.
We all need to consider who is best suited to sit
around that table as they will be there for four years. I have the
beginnings of a dream team in my mind which includes candidates with different
passions, visions, strengths, intelligence, creativity and who will represent
our city well.
Everyone needs to do their part and vote.
Those who vote have the right to be vocal after the election dust
settles. For those who don’t vote, I don’t want to hear anything that you
have to say as you chose to waive your right to democracy.
As I was writing this it occurred to
me that I may be included on Jamie Gilcig’s next “naughty list”. If this
should happen I will consider that to be a badge of honor as some of my good
friends and people I admire are perennial favorites on his list. Time
will tell.
