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Opening comments:  More at the end.

Internet & BLOG censorship by the public no less - this election gets more interesting every day!

To the main Judicial Inquiry page - to the Hazel McCallion page.

Comments by others to this web-page 
- 1 - to this web-page at time of posting.


Mississauga News - Apr. 27, 2010 - John Stewart - jstewart@mississauga.net

Parrish attacks City spending

Instead of curbing spending during tough times, Mississauga has been using a reserve fund set up when Hydro Mississauga was privatized to artificially keep taxes low, Ward 6 Councillor Carolyn Parrish says.

The first-term councillor has prepared a chart she plans to present to her colleagues on city council that shows how revenues from a $340 million tax reserve fund set up in 2000 have been spent.  The money was generated by turning Hydro Mississauga, a public company, into Enersource Corp., a private outfit.

Parrish says about $115 million of the funds have been transferred into the operating budget to keep tax increases low.

Tax hikes ranged from zero to 3.8 per cent from 2000-2005.  During those years, the City's total operating budget rose by about 10 per cent per year.
"They spent like drunken sailors and took money meant for future capital projects and boasted about zero, or minimal, tax increases," Parrish told The National Post.

"Had the Mayor and council not been obsessed with zero or low tax increases, or had they trimmed operating budgets as we've done for the past four years, the hydro reserve would be sitting at $680 million and Hazel (McCallion) wouldn't have to be snippy with the federal government over our future infrastructure needs," Parrish told The Post.

Parrish recently sent a memo to her fellow councillors complaining that Mayor Hazel McCallion was ungracious when she recently called the funds coming from the federal infrastructure program a "drop in the bucket" towards municipal needs across Canada.  The announcement was made in Mississauga by Premier Dalton McGuinty and Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

City Manager Janice Baker said the financial information Parrish has highlighted has been presented to council previously and shouldn't be a surprise.

There was significant pressure on the City budget in the early 2000s, Baker said.  To avoid touching the hydro reserve fund, council would have been required to scale back its capital building program (roads, bridges, arenas, community centres) and cut service levels as well, Baker said.

Ward 8 Councillor Katie Mahoney said most of the money that was transferred from the hydro reserve to operating expenses was interest money from the fund, not principal. Of the $113 used to buffer the tax bill, $109 million was collected from interest.

"Councillor Parish likes to criticize all the decisions past councils have made," Ward 9 Councillor Pat Saito told The Post, "but she neglects to recognize that our City is in good financial shape, better than most municipalities, as a result of those decisions."

Mayor Hazel McCallion did not respond to calls about the issue.  It is likely she will address the matter when Parrish presents her financial flow chart to council.


Comments by others - 1 - to this web-page at time of posting;


The Mississauga Muse     Apr 28, 2010 5:53 PM

@ people with brains who want to know

It was quite the Council meeting this morning. Have it all on video. Not really sure what all the fuss was about. Nothing for example, that couldn't have waited for a future Budget meeting. Nothing shocking. Parrish did make some good points and the three witches (and the brooms they rode in on) made their usual noises. But then Iannicca went online and disagreed with Parrish reminding her that a lot of municipal problems were the result of downloading both provincial and Federal. And essentially it's a matter of Philosophy. Do you use reserves and try to keep them up for the roofs you know will eventually need repair or use them to help citizens now keep tax dollars down (I tend to see the latter as buying votes to some extent.) Lots of fingerpointing to Province and Feds. Same song second verse. No idea why the media made a fuss about stuff. (expecting "Friends of Hazel" to erase so will videotape it)

* Agree 3


ConcernedResident     Apr 28, 2010 4:23 PM

@Mantis

I think our boy has finally blown his mind. The straight jacket crew is on the way for a delivery to a cozy, yet padded room.

Offensive 1


Mantis     Apr 28, 2010 4:15 PM

@Uatu....

You need help. Badly.

* Agree 1     Offensive 1


Uatu     Apr 28, 2010 2:51 PM

Keep proving my point, I love it

Just reposted several posts. The only way they won't stay up is for the Mississauga News to ban me. I've switched to putting repost counts in the titles. Click away, fools. Teehee, this never gets old.

* Agree 2     Offensive 1


Uatu     Apr 28, 2010 2:50 PM

Try to keep up, ConcernedResident [repost 4 due to censor trolls]

The Muse has had her own blog for a couple of years, and before that she had one hosted by the Mississauga News. I have one too but it has nothing to do with Mississauga. Given the behaviour evident here today, no way would I post the URL. I also want to point out that your characterization ("incessant indignation") cracks me up. I guess you really don't read what you click on. I've expressed my amusement a few times, but never indignation. Not that you'll read this far, but those who do probably already know that my reason for reposting is to expose the behaviour of the MYTHissaugans. I think you should talk to them about "incessant indignation." Have a nice day now!

* Agree 2     Offensive 1


Uatu     Apr 28, 2010 2:50 PM

Dear BurningEars oops I mean ConcernedResident [repost 10 (woohoo!) due to censor trolls]

Unless it got deleted, I saw no challenge to define democracy. Did you throw in the "cowardly" because your ears are burning from my comments branding those who won't defend their "disagree" and "offensive" clicks as cowards? If you really care (don't think you do) I define democracy as a system of government that provides both freedom and equality to its citizens, said government chosen in fair and open elections. Marking statements of fact offensive is not democratic. Disagreeing with fact is just stupid. Systematic brainwashing of the voters through self-promotion is anti-democratic. Lying to the public is undemocratic. So is suppression of dissenting opinion. Turning the "offensive" button on you as well as me doesn't show that the Muse is wrong; in fact, it supports her view. No doubt some of you will find this offensive. It must really enrage you that clicking "offensive" proves my point.

* Agree 1     Offensive 1


Uatu     Apr 28, 2010 2:49 PM

84% increase [repost 5 due to censor trolls]

I tried to answer my own question using Mississauga budget documents. It's not easy. If they document how much goes into salary increases, they hide it really well. I can, however, compare these numbers. In 2001, $205 million went into labour costs (which include more than salaries). That was 52% of the operating budget. In 2010, $378 million was budgeted for labour costs. That's and increase of 84%(!) since 2001, and labour costs are now 69% of the operating budget. I would like to be able to find comparative numbers for increases in, say, social programs or essential services, but anyone who can break that out of the opaque documents the City makes available on their website is way better at deciphering than me.

* Agree 1    Offensive 1


Uatu     Apr 28, 2010 2:49 PM

The censors have arrived! [repost 4 due to censor trolls]

Judging from the "Disagree" counts, the MYTHissaugans have logged on in full force. They sent my simple question into oblivion, which doesn't surprise me. I asked simply whether the Muse might have some numbers documenting the increase in Staff salaries. Apparently that is offensive. I did a little homework myself; let's see if they blow this away too. See next post, and by the way: I can be stubborn too, every time these two posts are deleted, I will repost them. Oh yeah, ConcernedResident: what's democratic about marking my simple question "offensive"? Is this democracy by your standards?

* Agree 2    Offensive 1


ConcernedResident     Apr 28, 2010 1:21 PM

@Uatu

The only "fool" around here is the fool who would wate time re-posting things "8 times". Get a life!

* Agree 5    Disagree 1


ConcernedResident     Apr 27, 2010 5:12 PM

@Uatu, Muse

Have given some thought to your incessant indignation about people clicking "offensive" to your comments. The only conclusion I can come to is that you both are so full of self-grandeur, that your collective egos can't accept the fact that there are people out there who couldn't care what you have to say. I know you both see yourselves as the saviours of free speech in the City and pine to be some sort of journalist, but this is not the place to have your comments immortalized. This, I think, is your ultimate goal. Buy a web address, and publish you doctine on there. Full control of content by you. No one deletes, no one finds "offensive". Problem solved.

* Agree 5    Disagree 1    Offensive 1


tankerone     Apr 27, 2010 4:45 PM

A sailor might be offended!

How much is "spent like a drunken sailor"? hmmmmm!

* Agree 1


Randy     Apr 27, 2010 1:50 PM

One of the main reasons I read the Mississauga News online is I do enjoy reading the comments. I may not agree with everything I read but still, I enjoy it and do find the majority of it informative. It's a shame that someone would click the offensive simply because they may not agree. Isn't that what the disagree option is for?

* Agree 4


ConcernedResident     Apr 27, 2010 1:35 PM

@Uatu

Unless I missed it earlier, you cowardly have not answered my question. What is YOUR definition of democracy? (And do not throw another question or verbal diatribe about "my standards", back at me)Define "democracy" in Uatu's world.

* Agree 4    Offensive 1


ConcernedResident     Apr 27, 2010 1:33 PM

@Muse

Another posting to twist the message to suit you and your merry band. To wit: "What better way to control the message, Randy? ONE MESSAGE. One Approved Message. Delete the rest. That's what they're doing, that's what we're dealing with. And they claim that's "democracy". " Explain then why my messages are on the verge of deletion? That does not follow your "message".

* Agree 4    Offensive 1


Randy     Apr 27, 2010 1:03 PM

I thought that was odd that some comments vanished. They were not offensive in anyway. Mine I could understand being deleted but the others im confused about. Why does this happen?

* Agree 2


The Mississauga Muse     Apr 27, 2010 12:17 PM

@ Uatu, HOLY JUMPIN' are the quasi-fascists at it again?

A trio, hitting three "Offensives" to delete your comments? (And to think I was offended that someone was stocking up "Offensives" on ConcernedResident to obliterate him. I've just cut-and-pasted this entire thread and ask that you do the same for the Judicial Inquiry decision before we lose all of that. The reason I ask is, I'm pretty well finished researching Graffiti and have no turned my attention to Media --researching how they cover MYTHissauga and also the upcoming Judicial Inquiry. Threads like this, showing MYTHissaugans like ConcernedResident and Mantis are crucial for my record. So please save. This too, is part of the 2010 municipal election. The Perversion of One Message, even at the expense of the deletion of others.

* Agree 3    Disagree 2        Offensive 2


ConcernedResident     Apr 27, 2010 11:34 AM

@Muse

You keep empahsizing FACTS. Yet all the babble you refernce from Urbaniuks book seems to be OPINION. And it just so happens that that OPINION agrees with yours. Hmmmm.

* Agree 1    Disagree 1    Offensive 1


ConcernedResident     Apr 27, 2010 10:38 AM

@Muse

All the facts you need are in the Liberal Red Book. Probably just as good a read for you as Tom Urbaniuk.

* Agree 5    Disagree 1    Offensive 2


ConcernedResident     Apr 27, 2010 10:16 AM

Where's The News Carolyn?

Another attempt at a headline grab by Parrish. What did she expect us to do with the money? If I recall, her former boss, Jean Chretian was the best at bribing voters with our own money, so I can see why Parrish see's something evil here. So the City has a pot of money that they are using to offset a tax increase? Where is the news? In Parrish's world, she'd tax the hell out of us, and decide for all of us how to spend OUR money. Wait till this women becomes Mayor. She'll make Miller's Toronto look like a Utopia.

* Agree 5    Disagree 1    Offensive 1


Stephen Wahl     Apr 27, 2010 9:50 AM

City finances in great shape?

Do the basic arithmetic. Reserve fund is less than 1 billion. Infrastructure deficit is greater than one billion. If 1 plus 1 equals 2; and 1 minus 1 equals 0; and 0 minus 1 equals negative 1; (to the educated folks out there I apologize for my simpleton math lesson; but, obviously this is new to many) Then would that not imply that a reserve fund of less than one billion dollars and an infrastructure deficit of greater than one billion dollars puts the city in a deficit position?

* Agree 5


Randy     Apr 27, 2010 9:45 AM

I see you are all Parrish lovers, lol

* Agree 3    Disagree 1


Randy     Apr 27, 2010 9:03 AM

Parrish is the biggest waste of money

* Agree 7    Disagree 2    Offensive 1



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