Dirty Little Secrets - Chapter 1

Good afternoon Regina!!!

What a gorgeous weekend it is out there. Today started with a heavy ice fog, and left a lot of beautiful hoar frost on the trees and anything else it could cling itself to. To me, there is nothing more beautiful in the winter than the sights that you see today.

So, after months upon months, threats of legal action, actual legal action, City Hall Banning and follow up from the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, numerous Freedom of Information requests, today is the day you've all been waiting for. Today, I am posting the first of many weekly blog posts intended to expose the Dirty Little Secrets that have been happening at the City of Regina, the RM of Sherwood, and those who we've put our trust in by electing them into the positions to represent you and I - the taxpayer.

I would like to first start off by setting the scene. Please bear with me as this is essential in understanding the enormity of what I will unveil over the coming weeks. There are those out there - I like to refer to them as my haters - who may say they've known about this or that for a long time, and "what's the big deal?" Well, I believe in being completely open and up front about everything I put out there, and part of that process is ensuring that everyone is able to understand anything that I post on this website. Unfortunately, there is no way to detect the level of knowledge of the thousands that read this blog monthly, otherwise I'd skip the "newbie" stuff and get right into the meat and potatoes. Consider this your prologue, and also the opportunity for those involved in the situations described to also come out on their own before they are exposed for the dirty little crooks that (in my opinion) they are.

DEVELOPMENT INDUSTRY AND CITY COUNCIL

There is a basic law of Economics, and that is the concept of Supply and Demand. In short, the idea is if you reduce supply, or are able to increase demand (for whatever product or service you are supplying), then you are able to increase the prices accordingly. We see this basic concept most often at the gas pumps. When you had the Iraq war way back in the early 1990's, gas spiked from averages of $0.35-0.40/L to $0.60-0.70/L in a matter of weeks. This was due to a shortage of supply, and the threat of this continuing for a long time, due to the oil supplies in Kuwait and Iraq at the time. An example of demand increasing is when a long weekend approaches, and prices suddenly spike. With more anticipated travel expected to happen, the demand is obviously going to go up, and - in theory - to protect the supply from running out, you see the prices jump at the pump. I firmly believe there is more collusion to this than the actual law of supply and demand, but that is the theory anyways.

Most industries are majorly influenced by the global economy, with very little impact from local economies. Using the gas example, you generally see gas prices around the same level nation wide, within a reasonable range. However, one industry that is very unique, and very suceptable to local economies, is the housing and land development industry. City Councils are granted pretty powerful authority over regulations that can have a very direct impact to this industry. I'll get into more detail on this concept next week, but in short, City Councils can ultimately (artificially) create a "bubble" by controlling the Supply of housing and developments in a municipality. Obviously, global economics do play a (minor) part in this industry, as a global recession wouldn't allow much investment in new housing, for example.

Where this gets downright disgusting (hence the Dirty Little Secret concept) is when you have those major developers being able to directly influence City Council and City Hall. In an ideal world, you'd have elected officials and senior administration that would remain impartial and wouldn't bow to this pressure. However, in reality, more often than not, this pressure is enough to turn even the most honest of people into what I would certainly call a crook (in my opinion). The concept of housing booms moving from City to City isn't just happenstance, and in the coming weeks, I'll share with you why I feel that way. For now, I'll leave you with two situations that you can review at your leisure.

The first is playing out right now in Calgary, where Canada's most popular and nicest Mayor is being sued for $6M by a - surprise, surprise - developer, for alleged defamation. Thankfully, Mayor Nenshi isn't taking this lying down and is going to fight this to the end.

The second is a very candid conversation that I had with our Mayor back in January 2013. So far, I've only published half of the meeting - that I feel eventually led to them banning me from City Hall. Obviously in my opinion, this banning has far more to do with my objecting to the Mayor, and my recordings of public meetings like this, rather than anyone actually feeling uneasy about me allegedly "roaming" through City Hall.

Here are the portions of the Job Description that I referred to in the interview:

Have a great week Regina!! Oh, be sure to check out the City of Regina Facebook page and website for candid feedback from actual taxpayers, and for the upcoming agendas of various committees. This week proves to be something fun - proposed tax abatements for a company that is represented by none other than THE Mr. John Hopkins (CEO of the Regina Chamber of Commerce) - perhaps this is his reward for helping to push the "Vote No" side of the referendum?

UPDATE: After posting the above, the following was contributed from another member of the Saskatchewan Taxpayers Advocacy Group. Please forgive the grammar and language - it is this individual's way of speaking. I try to post as submitted.

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I wrote a small bit showing how rumors and falsities - created by and forwarded by family - when left unaddressed can and will grow out of control. Over the course of time by my direct experience, as one who was used as an experiment to see how false stories are skewed, as the lies are passed around and for reasons unknown to me - and though this sounds all very soap opera-ish - I'm telling you that just as investigative journalist writer Chris Hedges and others like him have had to deal with similar B.S. in their careers that what often is never spoken about are the travesties that are the result of false negative projections onto them.

Now that I am at the point of addressing who these psychos are, these small minds of neo cons who rather enjoyed steamrolling a witch-hunt - mostly members of my mothers family - they seem to freeze up and or run when in my sight. So you see that using my own well placed informants, using Freedom of Information legislation, and I have a photographic mind when it comes to noticing people suddenly changing their dance steps (this includes voice body language etc.) I keep journals, I have searched the history of these folks which confirmed their participation. Over the years, their sickness has caused much damage in my life but, yes, documents prove this. But, psychos like these are busy every day creating havoc and ruining many people's lives. Not just I, no; I know that many family members avoid these same sickos for the same reasons that I do. How many non family members avoid them?.....maybe 100's.

Research proves these types of psychopaths - many of who end up in positions of power such as police work, nursing/medical, government justice, unions, etc. - their menu of potential victims is very large. At their home or in the workplace or in their family system they place themselves high up demanding servitude from others in ways that are blatantly obvious or subtle. Either method indicates its game on...a victim is sure to be had. I have a psycho cousin who likely fucked his way into employment opportunities, married a few times as he can't admit to monogamy who spent years trying to slander my community successess. And...he's not alone....that family is chalk full of sickos who will only throw a person in need the short end of the rope. This is a telling truth about these psychos - all psychos really - their claims are they help people often being employed in jobs that cater to helping folk but, no one is ever really helped. In fact, they are harmed by these fucks. Anyone who is a family member or not, who was perceived to be friendly and helpful and ready to address social injustice,s who when it comes time to step up to the plate and get it done doesn't, is in my view and from my research on these sickos, is a perpetrator of the highest order.

The following is from Dr. Judith Herman. She wrote a concise letter about these psychos. Family or not these sicko inbred non-humans will be stopped. I've slowed them down, it took years for them to know I'm on their trail now, soon, they will be totally ceased. And now a few words from the Doctor.

In order to escape accountability for his crimes the perpetrator does everything in his power to promote forgetting. Secrecy and silence are the perpetrators first line of defense.

If secrecy fails, the perpetrator attacks the credibility of the victim. If he cannot silence her absolutely, he tries to make sure that no one listens. To this end, he marshals an impressive array of arguments from the most blatant denial to the most sophisticated and elegant rationalization. After every atrocity one can expect to hear the same predictable apologies, “it never happened, the victim lies, the victim exaggerates, the victim brought it upon herself, and in any case it is time to forget the past and move on.” - NOTE: All of this has happened to me from individuals who shall remain nameless at this point, but I will refer to them as my haters.

The more powerful the perpetrator, the greater is his prerogative to name and define reality, and the more completely his arguments prevail. The perpetrator’s arguments prove irresistible when the bystander faces them in isolation. Without a supportive social environment, the bystander usually succumbs to the temptation to look the other way.

This is true even when the victim is an idealized and valued member of society. Soldiers in every war, even those who have been regarded as heroes, complain bitterly that no one wants to hear the real truth about war.

When the victim is already devalued (a woman, a child), she may find that the most traumatic events of her life take place outside the realm of socially validated reality. Her experience becomes unspeakable.

Judith Herman M.D.
Circa.1997

Regina's Dirty Little Secrets...

EXCLUSIVE: More Property Tax Increases Expected in 2014

Happy Grey Cup Weekend Regina!!

In what is seeming to be an ongoing trend, we here at the Saskatchewan Taxpayers Advocacy Group are the first outlet in Regina to bring you this breaking story. What began as a simple story where our dear Mayor Fougere was complaining that the Province is set to "reduce" the anticipated revenue sharing amount in 2014, has developed into a bit of a leak on social media, courtesy of the Chair of the Finance and Administration Committee.

Ward 6 City Councillor, Wade Murray, who was re-elected in the 2012 Civic Election by easily the fewest votes in all of Regina (sadly, those in his ward just don't get out to vote, making his victory a pretty easy one based on name recognition alone), posted the following on his Twitter account yesterday.

It would appear that Mr. Murray was simply trying to push his weight around, saying that he knows better than anyone else, just because he is the Chair of F&A Committee. What he apparently doesn't realize is that there are true economists and accountants out there who could budget better with their pinky finger than this self-proclaimed expert. I can't say I know much about Mr. Murray's education or employment background, but I do not think he has been trained in anything financial or otherwise. And, well, if he has, I think he needs to go and ask for a refund.

Thankfully, the Province came back swinging, stating that this should not be a surprise to any municipality, in that it is a formula that has been known for some time, and in fact, any reasonable person ought to have forecasted this all the way back in August, at the latest, based on the formula that is based on a percentage of the PST. Which, I might add, is something that the municipalities had been fighting for, for years now, for "fairness"....yet somehow this is the Province's fault now.

So, there you have it Regina. Get ready for AT LEAST a 3-4% Property Tax hike, straight from the horse's mouth. Now, keep in mind, this is only to account for this supposed "lost" revenue. We also have many other things that have been mentioned over the past few months that hinted toward the need to "find the money somewhere". In related news, expect to see the Grey Cup return to Saskatchewan by 2022, at the earliest - new stadium or no new stadium.

Further contribution from another member of the Saskatchewan Taxpayers Advocacy Group:

What is irrelevant about this is: a meager 2 million dollars shorted from Regina's overall yearly budget. A budget dedicated to a population as large as Regina's = 2 cents missing from a bank account of which the balance is 10,000.00. Enough remains in the bank to assure the missing money cannot cripple the services or cause to raise fees and taxes.

What is relevant about this is: Regina's financial books and bank account is not able to function when a few pennies are missing. Termination with cause exists at this time for all administrators who set up the city's financial book, and services plan based on the financial book. 3 to 4 % property tax increase cannot be justified just because a mere 2 million will be shorted from City Operations.

Regina pulls in 2 million dollars per year just from the few parking meters it has. Doubling the parking rates would cure the city's sick excuse for the need of more revenue, as a few pennies are missing from the bank - but, this does not have to be done either. All parking can be free without hurting the bank account. Simply cancel a few of the private contractors from outside of Saskatchewan that are doing City work normally performed by City of Regina staff. Terminate the inbreds who wrote the financial book and do not fill those positions as there is no need for them. Immediately Regina will have enough extra money to waive all parking fees for one year and still have money left over. The Commissionaires who currently write up the parking tickets will not be needed, the savings in wages can allow for free bus service for all disabled people and seniors over 52 for one full year. 

There will remain still more money left to fund lunches of quality food for the many school kids in Regina who's homes function on, below or just above the poverty line. In fact, Regina could lower that poverty line, fulfill all of this and still have money left over.

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/chad4mayor

How Would YOU Explain Suicide to an 8 Year Old?

Good morning Regina!!!

Another beautiful Sunday morning in the Queen City, and absolutely fantastic weather for November. Here's hoping that the rest of the winter remains relatively mild and snow-free, but as one who grew up in Saskatchewan, I know that anything can happen, and will happen without notice!

Originally this weekend, I had planned to unveil the First Edition in a series of reports on the Corruption and Collusion that is happening in and around Regina, but I have chosen to put that off a few more days. I have my own personal reasons for that, but publicly, I'll tell you that I honestly have had more important issues to work on, and unfortunately, this report has taken the back burner to those issues. Suffice it to say, though, that there is currently a great discussion happening on Twitter (@cavon76) regarding this Corruption and Collusion, where I've been talking candidly about some of the items that will appear in the First Edition of the Report.

What issue has occupied a majority of my time? Well, it relates back to the tragic situation that happened almost two weeks ago, and that being the Suicide of a very beautiful soul, Ms. Savhanah "Savy" Turcotte. This poor girl was bullied so intensely that she felt the only way to get away from the situation was to take her own life. Now, there are those out there who feel it isn't appropriate to be talking about Suicide, in the apparent fear that others may see this as a solution to their own personal situations, and "repeat" that same "way out". I find this attitude truly disturbing, even moreso when you consider the efforts of campaigns such as the "I Am Stronger" campaign, and the "Right By You" campaign, both of which are designed specifically to address this very situation. We should never be afraid to talk about situations where a poor, lost soul felt there only way out of the bullying was to take their own lives. Quite the opposite, in fact, we should talk about it openly and widely, so that others suffering from those very same circumstances know they are not alone, and that there are people willing to listen and to help.

Ironically, poor Savy continues to be the target of some pretty disturbing behaviour online, which is the exact situation that led to this tragic situation. In our City, there are those who feel it's pefectly acceptable to talk publicly about the recent homicides in our City, but somehow when the same situation happens but it's a suicide, it's time to shut up and say nothing until the grieving family is ready to publicly talk on their own. There are so many issues with this attitude, but one of the major things that I see is that suicides like this should very well be treated as a homicide investigation. Why? Because those parties who tormented this poor soul to the extent that she took her own life, should be just as guilty as those who physically attacked someone to the point of their death. Why should we differentiate between a physical cause and a mental cause? I know this viewpoint may be considered extreme, and is going to be attacked by many out there, but just give it some thought. It is something that we, as a society, should be pushing for, in the sense that there are parties out there that are responsible for her death, whether they like it or not, and it should be treated no differently than someone pulling that trigger on a gun, or plunging that knife into someone's body.

Finally today, I share with you a heartfelt email that I was provided by a grieving parent, Crystal Strong. This parent has an eight year old daughter, who was Savy's reading buddy. Obviously there are questions that her eight year old is asking that no parent should ever have to try to answer. Let alone try to answer why there were individuals at the memorial who accused the mother of poor parenting, and others who chuckled throughout the ceremony.

Here is the letter sent from the School. Note, they didn't even spell Savy's name right, if you compare it to the spelling in the obituary.