I wasn't surprised by yesterday's outcome in the Ward 7 by-election. This area has historically voted NDP in both civic and provincial elections. The edge young candidates have is social media. Prior to this medium younger voters did not turn out at the polls. And no doubt many of these young voters did not vote so much on issues but simply for one of their own. Pat Atkinson trained her well and no doubt we will see the results of this mentorship in the months to come.
I'm not sure I would agree that this win could be seen as an overwhelming endorsement of her views on mandatory recycling. But garbage has always been an issue in this area. It was the good folks in part of Ward 7 that opposed front street pick-up and won the battle. However if you have to put your recycle bins out on the street, why not your garbage can.
In closing, I thank all the candidates for their efforts and ideas. I might not agree with many but I do admire them for stepping up and throwing theirs hats in the ring.
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Lets do the numbers 33% of 19% = 6.27% of eligible voters and even less if you count everyone that lives in the ward. Another reason our civic governments can so easily be swayed by a couple vocal people as the person being elected knows they only have support of a small segment of their constituency.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I sure hope she doesn't think she can shake up the establishment in 6 months. I am scared that our council is so red now that those of us paying the highest taxes will see even more of our green leaving the wallet.
What a socialist city council, and people thought taxes and spending were already bad enough.... just wait now.
ReplyDelete$5.30 for a recycling program? Not anymore, now that they have the votes sign everyone up for a program somewhere in the area of $10.00 per home..... or more likely $15.00 per home for the higher income areas and a discount for the rest.
Let's let the city unions run this program too. What is this city coming too.
Wow....you guys are really paranoid and bit crazy. If you paid attention to our council, it's the old boys club of good business minded right wingers who have done the most to raise your taxes!
ReplyDeleteIf you are concerned about big, wasteful governments get over the right/left paranoia and look at peoples track records while in power.
here here Anon 958am
ReplyDeleteIt's not that I think this council will change its stripes any time soon, but having another person looking as increasing costs and not in ways to save us money that I am scared with and her statements to date haven't shown any confidence that she will care about the financial costs to civic programs. Time will only tell.
ReplyDeleteHeck if the current council can gift $15,000 to first time home owners we are probably doomed already.
curious where Loewen has said such things Road Warrior?
ReplyDeleteOne of the main issues in the by-election was the current drunken spending of Council - all candidates pledged to be more prudent with tax dollars in the debate last week.
Nice to see a tar and feather of the new Councillor before she has even taken her seat.
I echo what you said Road Warrior, even scarier is the fact that she is a former political assistant to a spend heavy-tax heavy MLA and the extent of her experience is through a grad studies program.
ReplyDeleteIt is scary to think a policy oriented studies person with no real world experience or any business experience period is being given an agenda to start spending tax dollars.
I'd be more scared about an ex-hockey player, university dropout who got a job helping at his dad's suits store.
ReplyDeleteHey Road Warrior....how do you see Loewen pledging to increase costs? especially over the long run?
ReplyDeleteAre you one of those people that thinks we don't play to have our garbage removed?
"I'd be more scared about an ex-hockey player, university dropout who got a job helping at his dad's suits store."
ReplyDeleteI'd take a business owner as my elected representative over a grad student every single time.
Hey Anon 8:57, she's all for a mandatory recycling program. That will increase costs. Get your head out of your butt.
Can somebody point to the fiscal conservatives on city council or in this province? Last time I checked it was the ring wingers who ran up massive deficits.
ReplyDeletezing! Atch, Heidt, Neault, Dubois, and Donauer - who some might call right wing - all promised to keep tax increases below the rate of inflation in 2009 (throw in Hill making the same promise. In 2003, Atch promised not to raise taxes.
ReplyDeleteSince 2003 property taxes have increased nearly 40%, spending by over 50%.
And your worried about one new Councillor (who btw did not make the same silly promise) single handedly raising everyone's taxes?
Talk about mis-placed worry and anger!
Can people please stop citing the a new landfill as a savings in the recycling program. The diversion of recyclables will only delay the need for a new landfill, not remove it entirely. While that is a laudable point, let's not run around pretending that adding mandatory curbside recycling is going save us this cost. A new landfill is a reality it some point, and judging by the incompetence of City Hall in evaluating anything I suspect recycling or no recycling we will need one much quicker than we are being told with the current growth of the city and construction.
ReplyDeleteI know the old adage is to never judge a book by it's cover but I'm becoming somewhat concerned about this new Councillor after hearing her talk the last day or so after winning the election.
ReplyDelete"Whoa! So excited and honoured. Maximum love to ward 7"
and now....
"I think it's kind of a cool factoid"
I wish her all the best but I hope she realizes that she is now representing the City of Saskatoon and will be meeting with several professional working people who will dismiss here without a second glance if she is doing interviews and coming into meetings talking about 'cool factoids' and sending out 'maximum love' to the residents.
I like her youth and energy, but she is going to need to learn quick that this isn't a class discussion with fellow students this is managing a major City and millions of dollars.
In words she may understand, "You, like, totally need to, like, act grown uppy now, like totally" ....this should be an interesting story to, like, follow.
again, I wouldn't be too concerned, I'd be more concerned that our Mayor still continues to use the 'word' "rememberable" in public speaches.
ReplyDeleteExample (at most public celebrations or other events of the last few years)
"I hope you all have a rememberable day!"
I can't count the number of times I've seen him say that.
Talk about being hard to take seriously!
But because of each of us ... "doing our part and polishing our piece of Saskatoon we are helping it do what it does best ..... making Saskatoon SHINE" .... barf
ReplyDeleteAnon 724am. Go and watch her Star Phoenix interview or her Global interview and then re-consider your post above. Listening to her respond to some fairly tough questions, Ms. Loewen demonstrates a good ability to give concise and well thought out answers on the fly.
ReplyDeleteBetter yet, why doesn't everyone just chill out and let her demonstrate her abilities first before passing judgement, she hasn't even been sworn in yet! Apparently the voters of Ward 7 felt comfortable enough to elect her as their representative.
My goodness, some of you sound like a bunch of mean spirited ole biddies who have nothing better to do then tear down a young newly elected councillor before she has even had one day the job.She should be congratulated for her victory and her interest in serving the public.
ReplyDeleteGive the woman a chance! And you folks who have nothing better to do then diss on everyone all day...find a life & you may be more pleasant to be around!
Anon 8:06,
ReplyDeleteI prefaced my posts by saying I don't want to rush and judge her, and I am trying my best not too. However, as I mentioned earlier there are several experienced older business people (both men and women) who have seen the snippets of her quotes and will quickly dismiss her. Will they all? No, but many will.
It doesn't matter if a politician speaks eloquently in answering 99 questions then comes of sounding like clown in answering just one. Because it is the one dumbass answer that people will pick up on and remember.
I am completely in favour of giving her a chance to establish her reputation through her work, my point was simply that in the 2 days since the election she has already been quoted in the local newspaper talking like she is entering the 11th grade.
As for the mayor's vocabulary, I would suggest that he isn't the ideal role model for Ms. Loewen to be following. If your logic is that we have a stumbling and bumbling mayor so we should be content with a stumbling and bumbling council then I think that speaks volumes to your political integrity. I personally to aspire to meet the lowest common denominator and certainly don't think that having one representative sounding like an idiot is reason to justify having another sounding like an idiot as well.
Also, Anon 7:45 if you are going to throw rocks it's best not to live in a glass house. You chide the mayor for use of the word 'rememberable', yet three words later use the word 'speaches'?
I agree with Anon 8:23 with the "bunch of mean spirited ole biddies who have nothing better to do then tear down a young newly elected councillor before she has even had one day the job."
ReplyDeleteAnd then add to it the mean spiritedness against the entire council and the mayor. Clearly all of you Anon people will be running in the next civic election and will do a much better job. Right!!
There is so much mistaken information on this blog about right wingers/left wingers, who promised what, who broke that promise. It's a complete JOKE! But who's to call you on it when it's done under the guise of anonymity??
what mistaken information would that be Anon 923am?
ReplyDeleteAnon 12:26,
ReplyDeleteIt is easier to just broadly accuse others of that in order to prove your point. By generalizing it allows them to not have to defend their position.
Isn't her boyfriend the former editor of the Sheaf that ran the picture of Jesus blowing a Capitalist Pig?
ReplyDeleteYa she is hanging in the right circles alright. So let me get this straight Ward 7 just voted in a candidate who was mentored under bleeding red Comrade Atkinson and who is dating irresponsible editor who was responsible for the most embarrassing publication in our university paper's history. Good job Ward 7.
Have to love the sad attempt at a smear by anon 1:44.
ReplyDeleteThis blog is a joke. I haven't read it in months, but came to see the discourse surrounding the by-election. What a treat...
ReplyDeleteIt is obvious that the parade of morons who salivate at the chance to voice their "opinions" is pretty sad, given their complete and demonstrated lack of understanding of local governance.
Statements on this blog are shrouded by an enthusiastic and infantile propensity for mudslinging, by in large completely devoid of a broader grasp of the direction of city council and a broader understanding of what constitutes the public good.
Further, it seems that the "host" of this blog is putting forth opinions that are nothing more than an extension of StarPhoenix website story postings. It has been clearly demonstrated that she has absolutely no capacity to add anything substantive to the public discourse, but rather she reads a single article from the SP and then huffs and puffs her opinion on that single article.
One source - a newspaper bailed from the abyss of bankruptcy - does not constitute a reasonable basis to form opinions on public directions.
This blog exemplifies the pathetic naivety of public discourse in Saskatoon. Enjoy yourselves.
Hey Anon 1:15, start your own blog if you don't like it. You can go complain pointlessly over there.
ReplyDelete