There are no upcoming events right now.
Why not post one?
Recent Articles
- Justice for Indigenous Peoples is Long Overdueby Ryan McGreal, published June 30, 2021 in Commentary
(0 comments)
- Third-Party Election Advertising Ban About Silencing Workersby Chantal Mancini, published June 29, 2021 in Politics
(0 comments)
- Did Doug Ford Test the 'Great Barrington Declaration' on Ontarians?by Ryan McGreal, published June 29, 2021 in Special Report: COVID-19
(1 comment)
- An Update on Raise the Hammerby Ryan McGreal, published June 28, 2021 in Site Notes
(0 comments)
- Nestlé Selling North American Water Bottling to an Private Equity Firmby Doreen Nicoll, published February 23, 2021 in Healing Gaia
(0 comments)
- Jolley Old Sam Lawrenceby Sean Burak, published February 19, 2021 in Special Report: Cycling
(0 comments)
- Right-Wing Extremism is a Driving Force in Modern Conservatismby Ryan McGreal, published February 18, 2021 in Special Report: Extremism
(0 comments)
- Municipalities Need to Unite against Ford's Firehose of Land Use Changesby Michelle Silverton, published February 16, 2021 in Special Report
(0 comments)
- Challenging Doug Ford's Pandemic Narrativeby Ryan McGreal, published January 25, 2021 in Special Report: COVID-19
(1 comment)
- The Year 2020 Has Been a Wakeup Callby Michael Nabert, published December 31, 2020 in Special Report: COVID-19
(0 comments)
- The COVID-19 Marshmallow Experimentby Ryan McGreal, published December 22, 2020 in Special Report: COVID-19
(0 comments)
- All I Want for Christmas, 2020by Kevin Somers, published December 21, 2020 in Entertainment and Sports
(1 comment)
- Hamilton Shelters Remarkably COVID-19 Free Thanks to Innovative Testing Programby Jason Allen, published December 21, 2020 in Special Report: COVID-19
(0 comments)
- Province Rams Through Glass Factory in Stratfordby Doreen Nicoll, published December 21, 2020 in Healing Gaia
(0 comments)
- We Can Prevent Traffic Deaths if We Make Safety a Real Priorityby Ryan McGreal, published December 08, 2020 in Special Report: Walkable Streets
(5 comments)
- These Aren't 'Accidents', These Are Resultsby Tom Flood, published December 04, 2020 in Special Report: Walkable Streets
(1 comment)
- Conservation Conundrumby Paul Weinberg, published December 04, 2020 in Special Report
(0 comments)
- Defund Police Protest Threatens Fragile Ruling Classby Cameron Kroetsch, published December 03, 2020 in Special Report: Anti-Racism
(2 comments)
- Measuring the Potential of Biogas to Reduce GHG Emissionsby John Loukidelis and Thomas Cassidy, published November 23, 2020 in Special Report: Climate Change
(0 comments)
- Ontario Squanders Early Pandemic Sacrificeby Ryan McGreal, published November 18, 2020 in Special Report: COVID-19
(0 comments)
Article Archives
Blog Archives
Site Tools
Feeds
By Fred Street (anonymous) | Posted October 14, 2011 at 13:47:22 in reply to Comment 70567
Just suggesting that it would be handy to have a reference that laid bare the political record of our elected officials.(Just as it would be useful, if tedious, to have archives of council meeting audio/video.) "Extremely useful" inasmuch as it does not currently exist in an one-stop resource.
If you're familiar with the GCL example, you'll recall that they consulted with the community extensively about their priorities, then sifted votes related to the issues in question.
http://www.guelphcivicleague.ca/archive/VR2010/GCL-VR-2010.pdf
Not an easy task but with 26 months until the next municipal election season opens, surely it's worth looking into. So, too, a rigorous campaign of engagement that actively seeks engagement from every ward in the city. Luckily, there's enough time to make a couple of laps around the city with monthly town halls.
I'm not discounting the value of town halls as a forum for in-depth discourse. They, too, are "extremely useful." I'm simply suggesting that tools such as voting records can help catalyse larger change.
My note about "time served" is just to point out that there is already a lineage that is likely to exhibit patterns of behaviour. Omit the three newbies and council has collectively been around for three terms. I don't overlook the value of experience; what I would point out is that the track record of councillors serves as a reasonable predictor of how they will conduct themselves in the future. Not calling it good or bad. Not saying that knowing something about how politicians have voted is more or less valuable than talking politics with your neighbours. Just trusting in the intelligence of our fellow citizens and their ability to make informed choices about the governance of the city.
Maybe that's a lot to ask. I would hope not. Surely all citizens might find information of that sort useful -- whether they're already the 40% who voted in the last civic election or they're in the majority who didn't. I should think that it would be as hard to get politically apathetic people to spend an evening at town hall as it would making sense of a voting record breakdown. But really, all the change-seekers should do as they think best. Good on you for setting it in motion.
Permalink | Context