As anyone who watches City council in action for any length of time can tell you, no one can scramble to the moral high ground faster and unleash more rapid-fire similes and metaphors of outrageous rectitude than Nando the Eloquent.
The Ward 7 councillor was close to apoplectic last fall during the municipal election campaign when one of his opponents, Shane McNeil, made several statements on his election website which were less than accurate.
Councillor Iannicca came into The News’ offices one Friday afternoon during the campaign and vowed that, no matter what the cost or the likely outcome, he would sue McNeil for the errors about how much City councillors earned, how much of a raise they had given themselves, etc. His name was more important than any lawyer’s bill and the protection of his reputation was beyond price.
McNeil subsequently removed some of the inaccuracies from his website, toned down others and put a disclaimer on the bottom saying the information was true as far as he was able to ascertain. He also pointed out that Iannicca’s outrage may have stemmed more from a fact that McNeil did get right: that Nando’s brother Sandro had emailed McNeil using a false name to defend the councillor’s record and set the record straight about a number of the challenger’s accusations.
The councillor and his challenger could not even agree on whether a suit was actually launched.
The councillor insisted he had served McNeil a notice of action under the Libel and Slander Act while McNeil said he was served no formal papers. He accused Iannicca of trying to shut him up with threats of a law suit he had no intention to follow through with.
Well, as might have been predicted, after further review, Councillor Iannicca has decided not to pursue the action. His good name and his reputation may have been sullied but it is not worth $25-$50,00 to set the record straight, he said recently.
“My lawyer says on a scale of 1 to 10, my case is an 11. But I am not going to empty my children’s education fund for the nonsense people say in the campaign.” Iannicca says the record has already been set straight in the media and he is satisfied with that.
Moral of the story: be wary of little boys who cry “Wolf, Wolf” and elected officials who cry, “Lawyer, Lawyer.”
* * *
One of the charges against mayoralty candidate Donald Barber stemming from an incident following a City council meeting last June 7 has been dropped.
Barber no longer faces a charge of disturbing the peace. He still faces two charges in connection with an alleged assault on a City Hall security guard, allegations he fiercely denies.
The environmental activist claims the charges were trumped up so that bail conditions could be imposed that banned him from attending City Hall, and “attending within 200 metres of the mayor or councillors” during the election campaign.
Barber claims the dropping of the charge may actually hurt his case. Since tapes of the council meeting show there was no disturbance and that he left council chambers quietly after a lengthy discussion about why the City was changing its long-standing policy on citizens asking questions from the floor, it would have actually been beneficial to him had the charge remained in place, he believes.
He has already fired one publicly-funded lawyer and is having a difficult time finding another.
Laying a private charge against the security guard was a lot more difficult than he imagined. He is now trying to raise funds for his own legal defence fund.
His web site calls the legal action against him “a political trial.”
If he can’t find a lawyer and he defends himself, which is looking more and more likely, Barber’s suggestion that the action is political will certainly become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Comments (6)
With respect to Minister Pupatello’s revelations to frauds …etc...concealing FOI disclosers from the crown …etc (October 2001) Louie Rosella posted an unusual “Little Boy Cried Wolf , Wolf , article November 2, 2001 when the T-4 slips and HRDC- “Records Of Employment” were on the decline, not the caseloads that were pooled off into Peel Regions $66 million a year evacuation system.
Now the Fear Factory’s mongering Ontario’s $5.5 billion deficit onto Dion’s Dog in publication to a recession coming , previously , caused by the decline of our own social programs to fund the expansion of Afghanistan’s economy with our own money??
The Sky’s Falling, The Sky’s Falling!!! Again and Again and Again , Kyoto !!
Posted by Wayne Nagy | April 20, 2007 10:25 AM
Posted on April 20, 2007 10:25
I'm back, John.
Man got to congratulate on your first paragraph.
"As anyone who watches City council in action for any length of time can tell you, no one can scramble to the moral high ground faster and unleash more rapid-fire similes and metaphors of outrageous rectitude than Nando the Eloquent."
PUT A FIVE STARS BESIDE THAT ONE, *WHOA*!
As you know, I've been watching Council since June 21, 2007. At the time, I saw myself as a replacement for Don Barber who got turfed out on June 7, 2007. Now I know I am.
From my own observations, Iannicca is the most interesting and complex character to watch at Council. He's easily the Brightest to boot.
I bring two cameras with me plus a tape recorder as back up.
When I hear the Chair say "Councillor Iannicca?", I hit the video recorder because with Iannicca there's always a Quote Opportunity!
Agreed. I see Iannicca the same way as you do, John. "no one can scramble to the moral high ground faster".
I'd like to add, not only scramble to the moral high ground --but he's apt to stay there longer AND dump feverishly any and all that he perceives occupying the lower moral rungs.
Still.
I see no one at Council with greater Potential for Goodness than Iannicca --I really believe that.
I have zero to back up that statement. Just a feeling. We'll see.
Posted by The Mississauga Muse | April 18, 2007 2:24 PM
Posted on April 18, 2007 14:24
Hey there, John,
Regarding Don Barber, you wrote:
"Laying a private charge against the security guard was a lot more difficult than he imagined."
That's because of the 2001 Municipal Act. Last General Committee Agenda (April 4, 2007) contained a Corporate Report reassuring Councillors and Council that they are protected under the Act from liability on any decision or action they take, provided they perform it "in good faith"
Think about it, John. That's 100% protection because, after all, isn't anything at The Big Yellow done "in good faith"?
If memory serves, the report doesn't mention that this protection also extends to all municipal employees and that includes --you guessed it:
Security Guards.
Never mind that Corporate Security/Enforcement has no formal complaints process. No civilian oversight. No Code of Conduct except the same two for all of The Corporation's employees --meaning that (you ready?)the temporary summer staff you see planting flowers in parks and Corporate Security and all Commissioners --right up to City Manager-- all have the same Conduct expectations...
Expectations which include this provision:
"City employees may not publicly state an opinion which is in
opposition to an official City position on an issue."
TRANSLATION:
Barber's doomed doomed doomed doomed and DOOMdead.
Posted by The Mississauga Muse | April 18, 2007 2:09 PM
Posted on April 18, 2007 14:09
“I read the (Mississauga) News Today O boy “.
A Day in the Life of Mississauga is shaping up there’s so many holes enough to fill the City Hall. The same deal that took some ex PM Britan $300,000 from a Swiss Bank all the way to Greenspan fighting Schreiber’s (13 year later) deportation back to Germany is looking more like Don Barber’s fighting proverbial traffic tickets.
The city’s film crew may end up dragged through the trash doing forensic splicing for “disturbing the piece”.
Posted by Guitar Man | April 18, 2007 10:26 AM
Posted on April 18, 2007 10:26
Wolf, wolf; lawyer, lawyer; sheep, sheep; bleat-bleat and the beat goes on and on and on. . . .
Posted by Stephen Wahl | April 18, 2007 9:32 AM
Posted on April 18, 2007 09:32
If Don’s “disturbing the peace” was shrugged off as a non-record under By-law" 537-96, what’s ironic is the same court date falls on 14th Corporate Annual Clean Up.
The correct corporate political terms are they’ve “Actioned” the charges!
Seems silly because the security guard must have taken un-Action on the other two charges, opposite the same way the Corporation has Actioned "Addictions, Body Image, Children, Disabilities, Diversity, Education, Employment help, Faith, Harm Reduction, Health, HIV/AIDS, Housing, Immigrant opportunity, Job search help, Jobs paid, Jobs, volunteer, Lakeshore Corridor, Legal stuff, Lobbying, Mental Health, Mothers, Muslim, Newcomers, Parenting, Peel Youth Village, Seniors, Services to help you, Social Service needs, Woman abuse, Women, Youth, Youth shelter", and yes "the environment" for the reason that no one knows what the hoot “ Big Yellows” crying about??
Possibly the council meetings should stay in China until they pick up “English As A Second Language”
Posted by Wayne Nagy | April 17, 2007 7:33 PM
Posted on April 17, 2007 19:33