A letter dated August 8, 2013, which Wind Concerns Ontario (WCO) received from Elections Ontario, finally exonerated us from allegedly spending money in support of a political party during the provincial general election in 2011.
A complaint was officially lodged with Elections Ontario January 13, 2012 by lawyer Clayton Ruby on behalf of Jude MacDonald. In an article in the Toronto StarJanuary 17, 2012, MacDonald claimed WCO allegedly spent in excess of the “$500 threshold on political advertising during the provincial campaign without registering as a third party.” MacDonald was quoted in the article: “I believe in democracy,” MacDonald said. “How much money they (WCO) are spending, I don’t know. All I do know is they did have billboards, lawn signs, they had a number of events where they had what looks like professionally printed signs and that adds up.”
WCO did not contract for the sign(s) but that didn't stop Elections Ontario from investigating despite the denial of then President of WCO, John Laforet. Laforet was quoted in the same article: “WCO had no budget for advertising. It’d be interesting to see what their concern is,” he said, while also denying WCO put up a billboard.
In the almost two years it has taken WCO to prove the response from Mr. Laforet we also learned that Elections Ontario reviewed posts in a blog going by the name of “Big City Lib.” The individual(s) behind this blog even went as far as to try to connect WCO to the Power Workers Union.
What is truly interesting is that the writer personallywrote two lettersto Elections Ontario about OSEA, Environmental Defence, Working Families, Sierra Club, Pembina Institute, and a dozen others in October 2011, groups that were also not registered with Elections Ontario, but who seemed to be spending huge sums. By late September 2012 all of those, except Environmental Defence, were cleared despite the millions of dollars (collectively) they allegedly spent after the writ was dropped for the provincial election campaign. Even the latter was cleared by February 15, 2013. Many of those same organizations received funding from various parts of the Provincial Government like the Trillium Foundation as has been noted in many previous articles.
While not trying to draw conclusions, it is puzzling that it took Elections Ontario almost two years to clear WCO of any breach whereas those environmental non-government organizations (ENGOs) who spent millions fighting to ensure the Liberals were re-elected and the Green Energy Actwas retained, could be cleared so quickly. A quick call to CBS media—owner of the rented billboard—would have gotten an answer within a few days as to who leased it. This would have eliminated the requirement to investigate the extensive complaint lodged by Clayton Ruby on behalf of Jude MacDonald against WCO. Further, a simple call to a WCO Board member by MacDonald or Ruby would have saved the taxpayers the expense of the (almost) two- year investigation.
It is truly amazing that a grass roots organization such as Wind Concerns Ontario comprised of volunteers who contribute their after-tax dollars to fight intrusive industrial wind should be singled out for the “special” treatment received from Elections Ontario and by those ENGO wind turbine proponents, resident chiefly in the urban communities.
Jude MacDonald told the Toronto Star, “I believe in democracy.”
This writer believes “democracy” should apply to all Ontarians, not just those who are blinkered to anyone beyond their field of vision! Perhaps MacDonald and her counsel, Clayton Ruby, could have visited some of the communities to see where the Queens Park version of “democracy,” via the Green Energy and Green Economy Act(GEA), has placed 500-foot turbines that create health problems, reduce property values, kill birds and bats, and drive up our electricity bills—all without any input from those affected communities!
Then MacDonald might say, “I believe in democracy” and the GEA has destroyed it for rural Ontario communities!
Parker Gallant,
August 9, 2013
The opinions expressed here are those of the author, Parker Gallant.
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