I Tot I Taw A Deflection …

12/02/2023

I deed, I deed taw a deflection.

With apologies to Tweety, we didn’t see a puddy tat … we saw a deflection.

A deflection is when you have a smelly decision to cover-up, you find something else interesting to absorb the attention of the public and media.

And that’s what happened at the recent audit committee meeting when the unusual (a polite way of putting it) action of the Trillium Line procurement falling off the auditor general’s work plan occurred.

But as a deflection the auditor and audit committee trotted out the case of some misguided staffers who misrepresented the actions of council to the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority about the Jock River development.

City Hall In Crisis: HERE’S THE CHAT TRANSCRIPT

Now as a Happy Town News press release noted, NOBODY BROKE THE LAW. Nobody was saying anybody broke the law. Methinks thou dost protest too much. Or a la Claude Rains … I’m shocked, shocked.

So the media jumped on the Jock River story. It was easy and fast. And let’s face it, who cares really that staff misrepresented city council. This council misrepresents a council. It should be arrested for impersonating a council.

And nobody got hurt. The players weren’t named or had retired and they DIDN’T BREAK THE LAW so no harm, no foul.

Councillors got to express their righteous outrage and then went back to sleep, dreaming of the northside Lansdowne stands.

And all the while, the audit committee slipped the biggest story right now at city hall under the rug (except here at Bulldog World Headquarters). Now you see the Trillium Line procurement, now you don’t.

And that’s called a deflection. Too bad ex-mayor Jim Watson wasn’t around to see it. He was very good at it.

Somewhere the Watsonator is smiling.

Ken Gray

I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat