Comments on The Burd Report: Announcements

For you information the quote re: officer Barker c...

2010-10-03T15:26:27.625-04:00

For you information the quote re: officer Barker comes from the Northumberland News.

To set the record straight Mr. Barkhouse is NOT a ...

2010-09-05T10:33:01.892-04:00

To set the record straight Mr. Barkhouse is NOT a police officer on or off duty. He is a civilian volunteer. NO money involved.
Check your facts before you run off on a tangent.

Some satirical comments remind me of the people m...

2010-09-03T15:50:19.523-04:00

Some satirical comments remind me of the people merrymaking, feasting, and working painted by Pieter Bruegel; the Netherlandish Renaissance painter and printmaker known for his landscapes and peasant scenes(toothless, amputees,harlots etc..) There is nothing but a blog to expose human weaknesses and follies, in a little Town.

Merk's got a point!

2010-09-02T13:51:34.475-04:00

Merk's got a point!

Write a letter-to-the-editor of NorthumberlandToda...

2010-09-02T11:02:31.889-04:00

Write a letter-to-the-editor of NorthumberlandToday eh, Wally?

What a great idea. Just make sure you agree with everything the paper says and they just might publish it. Or, better yet, sign it 'Roy Cowan, Port Hope', make sure it's utterly irrelevent, totally pedantic and so full of hot air that -like a fibre-filled dump- it floats to the top of the bowl.

Yeah -a letter to the editor. Just like all the letters asking where a particular columnist disappeared to a few months back that never saw the light of day.

It's called 'censorship', Wally. That's the stock and trade of Sun Media -right wing censorship. And good luck to anybody who dares question the cult called Rotary.

"officer Barkhouse spends four mornings a wee...

2010-09-01T12:29:01.139-04:00

"officer Barkhouse spends four mornings a week at the Cobourg Police Volunteer trailer(...), offering a friendly greeting to the early visitors each day."

Thank you Mr. Critic for your work and reporting it. I hope I could be allowed to present two different arguments on that phrase;

1.- Do we need an expensive employee, such as a policeman (off duty)as a member of the Welcome Wagon? Is it the best choice of people in a Town ? What does it signal to the tourists ?

2.- The fact that we question his double role on someone wearing this uniform indicates it is perhaps not its best place. On the other hand (anti thesis) he does the work that businesses (or chamber of commerce) should do in Town, if only they would be friendly.

Conclusion: At least, someone is friendly in Town; perhaps not the best role for an officer. An officer should have an eye on advising people to moderate their noises, fine for littering, fine for bicycle on sidewalks,shouting, spitting,(we have all those by-laws)dogs on beach, etc...;

To extrapolate the interesting text of Mr. Critic, let's say Mr. Keeler has a sharp tongue, I agree with him. He enjoys insulting people and it gives him a higher stand. He should thank his supporters instead, even if they are quidams. Unfortunately, it is part of his narcissistic personality.

I hope he will learn how to be patient and proper in front of the Council. You have to learn how to be gentil, if you want to win the heart of others.

It would be ashamed, on account of a lack of manners, loosing such a good point. He seems to take a sincere position for the cleanliness of our HERITAGE park (of course except for coloring all the stones on OUR HERITAGE PIER yack........

dear critic. it works for wally so he just assumes...

2010-09-01T11:50:11.860-04:00

dear critic. it works for wally so he just assumes it works for everyone else, get it?

Possibly because I have been the constant punching...

2010-09-01T11:49:18.423-04:00

Possibly because I have been the constant punching bag by virtually everyone who posts to this blog. Yes, I punch back, as Irving Layton suggests, preferably two for one.

In any event, my character is totally irrelevent to the issue. It is the issue that is important. If they decline to participate in the solutions to the park cuz that Keeler guy exhorts it, then their caring is shallow. Pity.

I fully expect that people may show up at town council for no other reason than to see me get shot down. The last thing I have ever expected from Cobourg residents is support for anything. I'm not running for election. Just doing what an individual citizen has a right to do.

I'm not there on behalf of anyone -- just myself and my enjoyment of Victoria Park. Whether anyone else cares about Victoria Park or not can do as they please.

Memo to Mr. Keeler: Time to sharpen up your comm...

2010-09-01T11:07:41.789-04:00

Memo to Mr. Keeler:

Time to sharpen up your communication skills sir!

Here's a hint. When exhorting people to speak up on something you care about, DO NOT first call them whiners and then predict they will not act.

Insulting people does not motivate them except to cause them to want to insult you.

Get it? Probably not.

The Northumberland Ribfest 'media partner'...

2010-09-01T10:36:25.390-04:00

The Northumberland Ribfest 'media partner' known as Northumberland Today published an article today that you all may find interesting.

"Ribfest easier on Victoria Park councillor says"
http://www.northumberlandtoday.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2737921

I'm sure all you whiners out there know that Ribfest was easier on the park, and that you all will let this untruth prevail without protest. How can I predict this? Because none of you will write a letter-to-the-editor with an alternative perception. Prove me wrong, all you pseudonymous bravehearts.

Maybe the "Waterfront Festival" should b...

2010-08-31T18:41:15.956-04:00

Maybe the "Waterfront Festival" should be moved somewhere else too.
It's kind of outgrown the Park. And, after all, it really has no connection with the water other than its name. Where are the canoe races, swimming contests, water skiing competitions, antique boat shows, harbour histories and other fun stuff that might be presented? Surely Cobourg could offer more than trashy vendors, junk food, duck art and bad rock music.

For the 'Pierfest', there is plenty of par...

2010-08-31T15:46:15.403-04:00

For the 'Pierfest', there is plenty of parking available, more so than around Victoria Park. Parking lots behind the stores along King Street, along harbourfront, and the town land around the Yacht Club. All that parking.

Can Victoria Park withstand an ever increasing Ribfest, where more and more people attend? How much burden can we ask Victoria Park to bear?

Lets sing the deserved praise of Northumberland Ribfest as a successful fund-raising event that has outgrown Victoria Park and should be moved to a better location where damage from the cooking oil/grease business can be more easily contained and controlled.

Canada Day has set a good precedent when it permits the set-up of carnival rides out there. 'Pierfest' could include some diving contests as part of the entertainment. The funds raised from such a Pierfest could continue the fine work that the Rotary Club has done to enhance the waterfront.

wally move to top of the class for the most imagin...

2010-08-31T14:41:52.247-04:00

wally
move to top of the class for the most imaginative suggestion of the decade - point the amps to the South!

Not in your wildest dreams will the gentry along t...

2010-08-31T14:30:46.974-04:00

Not in your wildest dreams will the gentry along their waterfront take these suggestions lying back on their rooftop shangrila's. But that doesn't mean new ideas shouldn't be tested and developed. The hard part is thinking far enough into the future to see yet even better solutions that don't make sense at this time. Visionaries are too often scoffed at long before their forward thinking is finally embraced. Where are the visionaries?

The Town could make a killing off of the East Pier...

2010-08-31T13:54:24.973-04:00

The Town could make a killing off of the East Pier if they did it right.

It would be a lovely spot for an outdoor wedding and likely booked weekly. Plenty big enough for a large tent to ensure ability to get out of the weather. The only thing that would have made it more suitable would be a harbourfront hotel.

I am sure people would go out on the pier in drove...

2010-08-31T13:44:40.767-04:00

I am sure people would go out on the pier in droves. Location, location, location -- finally a pier that needs some of that Rotary largesse. The amplifiers can all face south so that good ole rock and roll can blast the ears of ribbers and continue on out over the lake, instead of up towards the town past Elgin Street.

The suggestion to put the Ribfest on the Pier lead...

2010-08-31T13:30:26.406-04:00

The suggestion to put the Ribfest on the Pier leads us to the suggestion that the Pier is an underutillised resource. Pave and fence it, with pedestrian barriers as opposed to G20 link and we have another outdoor convention centre - dirty deeds done dirt cheap!

Northumberland Ribfest was cognizant of the damage...

2010-08-31T13:27:25.334-04:00

Northumberland Ribfest was cognizant of the damage the event did to the grounds of Victoria Park last year. I photographed it then.

It was disappointing to see that the same sort of damage to the grounds was done again this year. If they require Victoria Park as the ambience to maximize their do-good fundraising, then they need to look at options.

Close down Queen Street between Church and McGill and let the big rig ribbers park their heavy machines on top of that asphalt. That would eliminate the cooking oil/grease from despoiling the lawn. Most of the beer bottle caps and plastic ties that littered the grounds around where the big rigs were would be easier to clean up off asphalt.

The little mini-strip-mall hawking cheap crap that acted as a gauntlet for guests who were there for the ribs, beer and music, might be better placed around the flower clock.

Ben offered a great idea that it be held out on the east pier. There is much to recommend this idea. I have heard other suggestions: Donegan Park, or Northam Industrial Park which has a wide open grassy area, lots of parking, no nearby neighbours to bother with loud music.

If Northumberland Ribfest wants to continue in Victoria Park, then it needs to convince the new town council that they will treat Victoria Park as "the crown jewel of Cobourg"

Best wishes on your presentation Councillor Keeler...

2010-08-31T10:26:23.774-04:00

Best wishes on your presentation Councillor Keeler.

As the mayor is a ROTARY and a man who likes to work surrounded with a genderless, loose-knit association of other rotarians who agree their way into the fortified compounds of commerce, who else is brave enough to remind him ?

The newspaper is not representing with fairness the interest of the citizens of Cobourg at all. They failed again. They deserve an "f" for failure.