Thank You for Your Support!
Thank you to everyone who endorsed my nomination papers, who donated to my campaign, who took a lawn sign, and, of course, who voted for me in this 2022 municipal…
Ian Chadwick
Should mayoral candidates endorse council candidates?
One of Collingwood’s current mayoral candidates is doing meet-n-greet events and openly endorsing a fixed slate of the seven council candidates she wants to be elected with her (but not,…
Back to Horace No. 2
I was browsing online recently because I wanted to order another book of Horace’s Odes or maybe his Epistles in my efforts to understand and appreciate the poet more fully.…
How to Win an Election
Anyone running for office should consider reading How to Win an Election, by Quintus Tullius Cicero, translated by Philip Freeman. It’s a short, small book subtitled An Ancient Guide for…
Back to Horace
During the pandemic lockdowns, I heard a lot of people bemoan their inability to travel; on vacation, to visit relatives, to shop, or just to get out of their homes…
The Science Fiction of Robert Frost
Robert Frost was a great American poet, and I’ve enjoyed many of his poems over the decades I’ve been reading poetry. Some are a tad bucolic for my taste, but…
Exceptions to the Law?
There seems to be a whiff of hypocrisy in the fall air this year. And it is also tinged with the greasy odour of entitlement. You see, there are rules…
A Call to Arms
A newly-formed group calling itself “Arms Around Collingwood” sent a questionnaire to candidates for this municipal election. And while I have never heard of them, they claim to have “a…
Another Abuse of Power and Position
As this term of council winds down, with only a few weeks before the election, it seems some members at the table can’t help themselves abusing their position and their…
What About the Code of Conduct?
I attended a two-hour seminar hosted by the town about Collingwood’s Code of Conduct last week. It was intended as an introduction to the policy for new candidates and a…
Just Gonna Leave This Here…
This headline appeared in CollingwoodToday: “Town councillor, deputy-mayor candidate charged with assault.” In Simcoe.com (Collingwood Connection), the headline was “Collingwood councillor, deputy mayor candidate Bob Madigan facing assault charges.” Bob…
Hobbesian vs Benthamite Politics
Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679) was not an optimist about human behaviour. Writing more than a century after Niccolo Machiavelli, the English political philosopher argued in his masterwork, Leviathan (1651), that the…
Ancient Election Wisdom
I recently came across this piece by Marcus Tullius Cicero (one of my favourite classical authors) on the Sententiae Antiquae website (a good source of classical Latin and Greek translations),…
What Just Happened?
I was startled to see that one of our candidates for municipal election — the third person in the deputy mayor’s race — dropped out shortly after submitting her papers.…
Please Take an Election Sign
C ollingwood residents: I would very much appreciate it if you would allow me to place one of my election signs on your lawn. Please fill in your name, phone…
Hypocritical Candidate Wants to Return to Council
Two more of our local “basket-of-deplorables” incumbent councillors (aka quidnuncs) have filed their papers for re-election: Steve Berman and Kathy “Me! Me! Me!” Jeffrey. So has former councillor Cam “Sleepy”…
Don’t Forget Who Blocked the Hospital Redevelopment
Among those incumbents running for re-election, are (so far), three who were part of the cabal on the 2014-18 council that actively and aggressively tried to block the Collingwood General…
Yesterday’s Laughs
It may be a small conceit to say I was brought up watching the Marx Brothers movies on TV, but there’s some truth in that claim. I remember seeing them…
Council’s Inappropriate Pay-Raise Decision
Late last month — less than three months before the next municipal election — council made significant decisions about their own pay and the role of the mayor. Given that…
Our Troubled Urban Forest
On August 8, Collingwood council will “consider” a proposal to spend “up to $100,000 to retain a consultant to inform the next council on how Collingwood can better protect tree…