Navigating through the political landscape can be a little like balancing on a tightrope. Jack Layton and his stance on the gun registry is an example of trying to appease the electorate, while at the same time, annoy the Conservatives and Liberals. Layton and the NDP have this weird idea that MPs ought to be able to think for themselves and represent their constituents without being ‘whipped’ by the party leader. Iggy, on the other hand, knows that he cannot allow his members to vote on anything as important to the Police Chiefs and his 29% of the voting public as the gun registry.

It is interesting to listen to the statistics spouted by the Police Chiefs as they note the number of instances of officers killed by long guns, but do not give us the stats on the number of civilians who are killed or wounded by handguns. As for the number of times per day the gun registry is accessed by officers, that may or not be an automated search, something the Chiefs are not saying. Nor have we heard any accuracy stats on the registry – like the number of people who did not register guns or the number of people who registered a non-existent gun. Whatever the outcome of the vote, police officers are still going to have to assume that there is a weapon in the building when they answer a call – even if it is the gun on a fellow officer’s hip.

The playing around with the statistics is something our local politicians are going to be doing during the up-coming municipal election. The incumbents are well versed in the art of compromise and tightrope walking, having had a number of years of practice. We had an example the other day as the Budget Chief announced a projected surplus of a $100,000 in this years’ budget. This was dismissed as a mere piffle in a budget of some $113 million dollars, and indeed, it is statistically a small percentage. Nonetheless it is an extra $100,000 that council collected from taxpayers that they did not need. This may have been a result of the art of compromise last spring when council passed the budget.

A scenario: Council has staff bring in a draft budget, warning, wink, wink, that staff had better hold the line this year. Staff brings in a carefully crafted document that says they need seven or eight percent more to continue to offer the level of service that the public expects. The increase is leaked to the public through the media and the Taxpayers Association squeals in alarm. Council says tut-tut to staff and they return with a four percent budget that council can sell to the Taxpayer’s Association and the two or three people who show up at the budget meetings. Bravo, Staff, you cut the increase in half! The compromise is lauded by the media as good government and everyone goes on their way. This happens year after year and the system works for everyone. Staff are under no pressure to reduce spending, the politicians appear to be doing a great job and the taxpayer writes the cheques.





We may never know how many building lots staff really wanted to sell in the Tweedsmuir park area. What we do know is that council and staff, after posturing at a public meeting or two, suddenly struck a compromise for 5 lots. After scaring the local residents with a big number like 23, staff relented and may have gone back to the original number of lots they needed to sell in order to fund the sandlot in the mosquito swamp. Threatening to take away almost the whole park and then being good fellas and taking only a little slice makes the whole process more palatable for the public.

The art of balancing on tightrope of public opinion takes a little practice but with weekly training and education sessions, the new mayor, with the assistance of staff, will soon having any novice councillors handling the public with ease. That is, unless some maverick is elected and wants to try to do things differently at city hall.

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