"Cowardice asks the question...is it safe? Expediency asks the question...is it politic? Vanity asks the question...is it popular? But conscience asks the question...is it right? And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular but one must take it because it is right." ~Dr. Martin Luther King

Thursday 26 June 2014

Vice and Virtue..... Vice Vercae

Almoat forty years ago, I was Chair of Family ad Children's Service We had launched a Child Care Service. The economy was in bad shape and the Province had provided a hundred per cent fundin for a beautiful new Child Care facility.

Infant care was accommodated and a facility  outfitted for Children with Special Needs.

I already had a bad feeling about the future of the program. The Province had set the child/teacher
ratio and the workers  were organised .

The union felt the workers  were educators and entitled to the same compensation a school teachers.

They may have been  right  The problm was the ration of teachers to children was six tomes higher and for babies even more than that.

It would have been  considerably less expensve to pay mothers a salary to  stay home and take care of their children

It took a decade, The Region went from  growing the service many times over before getting out of the field altogether. Infant care went first.

At the time I'm talking about, the Supervisor and some others attended a conference. They met a fellow called Max. He  sold them on a  development program for children with special needs.

For $18 thousand a year, he  would provide a development program for  children with special needs.
The Director felt  it was worthwhile and  it wa s recommended . The committee accepted the recommendation.

I wasn't sold. Everything was verbal. Substance  and form were lacking .

I  made  enquiries. No hours of work were established in the contract.  Details of program delivery were hazy.  Max was a student doing post-graduate work at Toronto University. He was  paid assistant to a Professor. His contract  with the University limited hours he could work outside his post-graduate studies.

He had no credentials to deliver a program. There were to be no specified hours for delivery.

Max was unsuccessful in exploiting  the needs of specail children. No contract was offered by the Region.

I found out later I had become  known in University circles as the woman who stopped fast-tlalking Max in his tracks.

Children with the greatest needs were  to be the source  of his financial advantage. I have been equally offended  in vartious helping institutions many times since. Never more offended.

It was before my grandson  Adam came into our lives . Before we learned to let Adam teach us about ability as opposed to disability.

As I listened on Tuesday to the  arguments for $578,000 to be spent on a playground  for children with special needs I remembered Max.

Councillor Pirri argued the project is a fitting tribute to the Queen who is known to value volunteers.

Councillor Abel stated  a lack of enthusiasm for the project signified a lack of willingness to allow  children with special needs to be included in society.

He said;

 Why don't those opposed just come out and say they  are against inclusivity. don't want to help children  with special needs and stop making excuses for  trying to delay or stop the   project

The Mayor had little to contribute other than the authority of the Chair to give  free rein to  Councillor Abel to repeat personal castigation and insult. Councillor Abel speaks very highly of  the sterling quality of his own  position.




7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Like you I come.from that sector.I.must say I have heard too many negative comments in public about people with autism using the playground at town.park.Residents have said"they scare the other childten".God damn it councilor Abel didnt.even say a word about Mr.Heard not being included at the market.Its all shameful.

Anonymous said...

They were in full throttle, weren't they ? They seem to forget about people such as Adam except for a few times a year when they make a photo-op at an event. And the event is generally organized by someone other than the town.
As for Cllr Abel, he has been enthralled by Prince Andrew's appearance & will bandy the man's name around for decades.
" And the Prince told ME......."

Anonymous said...


So the crap continues to flow.....

Same old - same old.

It's time to invest in some new models, those with the capability to think,

Anonymous said...

You must remember Councillor Buck that Councillor Abel does not have a care in the world about spending taxpayers' money. He will jump on any bandwagon traveling through town and throw money from the sidewalk.

Anonymous said...

You are in the wrong line of work, E. Some Norwegian won about $2700 by betting that piece of work in the soccer matches would bite an opponent. You just have to figure out how to make your knowledge contribute to your base line.

Anonymous said...

10:57- He through money at the sidewalk earlier in the year. Apparently we're getting some stamp concrete to spruce up the place. You really don't want to know how much that's going to cost us.

Anonymous said...

11:37
I have not made any decision about the next election yet. And I was not thrilled with Cllr Abel during the on-going crisis about 3 ill-defined heritage trees. But I do find it odd that you place so much responsibility on the one man for majority decisions of council.