Letters to the Editor:

Another Great Fumble!

When I go to the grocery store I spend 12-13 minutes on preparing a list. I also make sure I eat before I go because it is a proven fact as emotional and spiritual beings I am driven by my primal survival instincts in the course in all my decision making. From that list I can determine what my cost will be within a few dollars. As a grocery shopper I have learned to do this from the process of conditioning, practice, and repetition.
Now I know other grocery shoppers………..………!
They go into the store without a list. They are usually hungry because they have searched their cupboards and were at a loss to find anything they desired in that moment; and that primal survival instinct drives their grocery shopping spree; which originally started off as carrying the items they planned to get because they had a vision of what they wanted and it was not that much; then they realize they have too many items and need to transition to a basket; and then eventually the basket becomes over filled and heavy and they must transition to a cart! All of these transitions happen without the help of a cost analysis!
This results in an impact that can last weeks in their household. The over spending on items that has occurred may cause them to be late on their tax bill, hydro bill, or other bills, or may cause individuals to take money from their fuel budget or other household budgets to cover the overages resulting from the spending spree; and to boot, many of these products may be perishable or have a short shelf life, which leads them to go bad or stale, and this leads to waste.
Why is it that some of our municipal governors (NOT ALL OF THEM), who have years of building experience, construction experience, engineering experience, and business experience struggle to prepare a grocery list, and execute that list for the community of Sioux Lookout?
So once again our municipal leadership (NOT ALL OF THEM) have found themselves puzzled at the decisions THEY have made and are looking for approval and acceptance of their fumble from the community members; actually they are not looking for approval from the community, or ratification or community input because only SOME OF US have voted them in.
The water front project is now in the neighborhood of $1,000,000 dollars over budget and once again we have two (2) influential governors stating “this project has been on the books since, 2007 or 2008” and “Council of the day, that’s what we wanted, we want to have, I’ll say it in quotations, a “Kenora type” waterfront and that’s what we were aiming for”.
12-13 years? Is this not enough time to develop a proper plan, a proper shopping list, that would be within budget, and accountable and transparent to the public they serve, and have a reasonable residential tax impact, and possibly come with some revenue creation aspects to help manage with long term debt implications? REALLY?
I have had many people ask me; are you not afraid of speaking out, or up, on these topics? Are you not afraid that this may impact your businesses, your personal life, or how people view you in your community? The answer simple! THAT IS NO! I am not afraid to stand up for our community or accountability or responsibility! I am also not concerned how people view me, I know who I am as a spiritual and emotional being, and this allows me to be humble enough to prepare a proper shopping list when I go to the grocery store.
Thank you Cory Lago for knowing who you are! I would like to see a run for Mayor next time round!
It’s NOT ABOUT how much you know! It’s about being responsible with what you know!
Jason Bailey (SSW, SA)
Social Service Worker & Social Activist