HYPOCRITES SEEDED IN CLARINGTON

By Joe Ingino This week, Clarington Mayor Adrian Foster issued the following statement: "We are seeing a rise in personal attacks, hateful rhetoric, and threatening behavior, both online and in our community. This is not debate or dialogue. These comments are meant to harm. They spread disinformation, target individuals, and are designed to create fear and divide our community. Clarington residents and staff—our friends and neighbours—have been doxxed and subjected to racist, discriminatory, and threatening posts. This is unacceptable. Harassment and hate undermine the values we stand for. If we ignore it, we allow it to grow. Enough is enough. Everyone in Clarington deserves to feel safe and welcome. Our community is built on respect, fairness, and inclusion. Each of us has a responsibility to uphold those values. Choose respect over hostility. Speak up when you see hate. Get your facts from a trustworthy source. If you see hate, speak up and report it. Defend the victims. Hate has no home in Clarington."— End of statement. Well, like the good Mayor wishes, I am reporting it right here.At one time, I thought the world of Adrian. Today, after seeing his actions, I call for his resignation. If he refuses to step down, then I call on voters to remove him.Here is a man who does not return phone calls from the region's only in-print newspaper. Why? Because he has proven himself to be a silent "woke" supporter. A small man, full of contempt. He uses the system to attack his opposition because he lacks the substance to argue his position on important issues.This latest statement stems from an exposé involving members of his community allegedly slaughtering wild animals in the name of religion. This sparked an outcry across Durham Region. During an election year, Foster is attempting to grandstand on the backs of real victims while painting the community at large with a broad brush: either conform and accept what others demand, or risk being labeled. No, Mr. Mayor. You are the one promoting division. You are the one escalating tensions by making sweeping statements such as these.The better approach would be to encourage open dialogue and determine where the hostility exists within the community and toward which groups it is directed.Instead, he chooses to paint everyone with a "woke" brush.He has to go. This is the same mayor who, in my opinion, practices corporate discrimination. Once again, instead of unifying the community, he uses the system to justify what I believe is a lack of understanding of corporate realities while using staff as a shield to defend policies that I view as biased. Adrian, I thought the world of you. I always respected you as one of the last good mayors. You let me down.You let the people of your municipality down. What are people supposed to think? You do not even have the character or professional courtesy to return phone calls from your municipality's only in-print newspaper. Shame on you.If this is how you treat your only in-print newspaper, I can only imagine how quickly you respond to the average person looking for guidance.I must have read this release 20 times.Everything that is wrong with society today is reflected in it.Politicians with limited intellect making general assumptions and painting people with a biased brush.Here's a free suggestion: Hold a series of town hall meetings. Talk to the people. Find out why there is so much hostility and determine toward whom or which groups it is directed. Once you identify the source of the conflict, then work toward a remedy.Instead, he attempts to make himself appear caring while issuing what amounts to a warning shot—that if you do not accept whatever the issue may be, you will be labeled and shunned. Shame on you, Mayor.