Brennan or Ruttan?

[HenryHackett]

The statement that Nanaimo City Council meets prior to council meetings in order to review/discuss the agenda is widely repeated in the community. In fact if you watch meetings you will realize there is a lack of questions/discussion related to almost all items.

I have been to meetings where the mover and the seconder were named without the mover/seconder showing any sort of indication of this including verbal.

So it is possible then that Diane actually opposed Korpan, in principle, less than 4.4% of the time and only voted against him a few of those times for political posturing, knowing the issue would pass anyway.

A vote for Diane pretty much is a vote for Gary then?

[Rickj]

So it is possible then that Diane actually opposed Korpan, in principle, less than 4.4% of the time and only voted against him a few of those times for political posturing, knowing the issue would pass anyway.

A vote for Diane pretty much is a vote for Gary then?

Or alternatively, Diane did not bother voting against Gary because she knew it was going to pass anyway.

[mrraulduke]

Or alternatively, Diane did not bother voting against Gary because she knew it was going to pass anyway.

then what is the point of having her on council if she was just gonna sit there and not vote at all. If you care about it, you vote, no matter what the outcome is. To have someone not vote, and sit there is a waste of a seat on council, IMHO

[Rickj]

then what is the point of having her on council if she was just gonna sit there and not vote at all. If you care about it, you vote, no matter what the outcome is. To have someone not vote, and sit there is a waste of a seat on council, IMHO

However, part of getting your personal agenda to be agreed to by Council is knowing when to pick your battles. Look at Loyd Sherry... He couldnt get anything passed by this council because he doesnt know how to pick his battles.

[James Younger]

Henry
Dianne had read your 4.4% number on line and joked she agreed 95.6% of the time with Gary on adjourning. Also that she thought your math was flawed. She did give the forum a plug at the same time.

[Smokey©]

Diane and John overused the words " I think" too many times for my liking at tonight's all candidates meeting. Maybe they have read too many of my posts here! I want a politician that KNOWS what they are going to do, not one that THINKS they might do something.

Larry caused a lot of laughter with his " walkway from Dodd's Narrows to Lantzville " speech over and over again. Someone should let Larry know that it is impossible to build a walkway from there to there. There is not room to build one in front of Harmac, the Nanaimo river estuary or in front of any reserve land. Also out of limits for a walkway is the area from Departure Bay to Neck Point, although the area from BC Ferries to Departure Bay and possibly from Neck Point to Lantzville could be done.

Gary had the figures and facts readily available in his head and even admitted that at times he is arrogant.

[Evergreen]

We seem to be getting a lot of focus on why Diane is just like Gary (a rather unlikely notion for anyone who attended this evening’s all-candidates debate or has ever had any exposure to either of them), and very little input on what John would actually do differently.

The 4.4% “voting against” statistic is highly flawed and misleading. This number includes the workaday procedures of Diane voting with Gary to adjourn meetings, accept minutes, adopt agendas and allow delegations – and so in large part it does not illustrate any particular similarity of point of view.

This weak attempt at statistical analysis doesn’t take into account the numerous measures Gary opposed and Diane supported, such as the creation of a downtown performing arts centre. She also voted to move from a volunteer firefighting force to a professional one – the wisdom of that decision was proven with the containment of the fire on Stewart Ave two years ago. In addition, Gary made an impassioned plea not to legalize secondary suites in all neighbourhoods, and Diane wholeheartedly supported the initiative. Gary either didn't want them or thought it best to have them in someone else's neighbourhood.

Diane votes differently from Gary, not because it is safe or politically expedient to do so, but because she makes decisions based on the best interests of citizens after listening to all sectors involved.

There is a long list of matters on which Diane disagreed with Gary while on council, but adjourning meetings was not one of them. Maybe a focus on what John can bring to the table, rather than inflammatory and inaccurate comments about Diane, would be a better strategy for Titan5 to adopt.

[James Younger]

Who did better Brennan or Ruttan tonight?

[kickidee]

I was expecting some posts from last nights forum ie who looked best as candidate for mayor and why from those of you who were able to make it. How did they do? anyone?

[kickidee]

I didnt scroll far enough back, there are some posts from the regulars. I am so happy to hear that Gary Korpan was able to own up to being arrogant at times. I am tring to decide about the personality factor. I think we need someone who represents us well in the world, someone who is approachable and has some sparkle. All the platforms on spending and city improvements are interesting and important but the mayor is also a figurehead and Nanaimo has been missing its pizzaz since the days of Frank Ney. I'd like to see some of the city spirit comming back. Goodness knows the money isnt going to be there and I almost pity the ones voted in. There will be a lot of challenges with the budget to say the least!