Mississauga Musings

La la la... spring is sprunging. La la la... Time for some light la-dee-dah recreational reading. Always good to look back, review, touch base, you know... cast a look behind, just as a way to check if your Moving Forward is the right Forward?

So La dee dah, tra la, I surfed to that Fount of Municipal Magniffluence ("magniffluence" -don't bother looking in a dictionary --I just made the word up. Let it mean what you want it to) mississauga.ca and --

At mississauga.ca section: City Hall > Our Values

Our Values

The City of Mississauga's values are fundamental to the relationships we have with all our stakeholders and serve as the guiding principles for the City's corporate decision-making process.

What are our corporate values?

Trust

The public trust we uphold. The open and responsive manner in which the City is governed.

Quality

The quality of life we provide Mississauga tax payers. Delivering the right services that add value to our citizens' lives.

Excellence

The delivery of excellence. Mississauga will achieve excellence in public administration and deliver services in a superior way, at a reasonable cost.

And for more reading on this fine spring day....

10 vision statements of the Strategic Plan FOR THE NEW MILLENNIUM (Click here for HTML version. And here for pdf file)

Under the heading, "A new vision for the new millennium", the first paragraph begins:

The City of Mississauga is ready for the next millennium with a new strategic direction. To respond to the challenges and growth that lie ahead, the City developed the Strategic Plan for the New Millennium. It will serve as the framework that sets the direction for long-term growth and development, and provides the link for all City plans and strategies.

The City of Mississauga has 10 vision statements that comprise the Strategic Plan for the New Millennium. These statements will serve as the guiding principles for the City’s corporate decision making process.

01. Mississauga will be a distinct major Canadian city.

02. The City Centre will be downtown Mississauga.

03. Mississauga will have distinct and recognizable communities.

04. Mississauga will have a dynamic and diverse economic base.

05. Mississauga will have a transportation system which allows for safe and efficient movement within and beyond the city.

06 Mississauga will provide the right services, delivered in a superior way, at a reasonable cost.

07. Mississauga will be an environmentally responsible community.

08. Mississauga will be governed in an open and responsive manner.

09. Mississauga will achieve excellence in public administration.

10. Mississauga will offer a diversity of cultural opportunities.

Which raises the question-- In the opening statement, "The City of Mississauga is ready for the next millennium with a new strategic direction." WHICH "next millennium" were they talking about?

In light of the above, The Mississauga Muse (aka "SUSPECT1" crank, cretin, miscreant, malcontent, ****head, nutbar, lunatic, crazie, ****disturber, citizen etc) will address Mississauga's (and perhaps even "Ontario Municipal") use of the following code words and code phrases:

"appropriate"

"appropriately"

"take appropriate action"

"appropriate steps"

"appropriate staff"

In other news, as part of our research, MISSISSAUGAWATCH has been scouring YouTube and Google Video using the search words "Big Brother" and "video surveillance". Yesterday I got two excellent "hits" and I know that there are readers who will be interested.

As you know, I have special interest in Youth, so I'll share this clip first because it was produced by high school students in their "sophmore" year.

Video description:

From: gollum42
Joined: 2 years ago
Videos: 97
Added: May 09, 2006

This is a music video based on George Orwell's "1984." It is set to the music of Oingo Boingo, as well as another song by Danny Elfman. It also features footage taken from Fritz Lang's "Metropolis..." as well as two tiny snippets from Terry Gilliam's "BRAZIL." This was made as a group video project when I but a Sophomore in High School...so...yeah. Heh.

Category: Film & Animation"

1984 - The Music Video (by: high school student, gollum42

(Click here to go directly to gollum42's video on YouTube)

Next. Lengthy (47 min) called "Suspect Nation"

"Suspect Nation" Video Description:

Since Tony Blair's New Labour government came to power in 1997, the UK civil liberties landscape has changed dramatically. ASBOs were introduced by Section 1 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 and first used in 1999. The right to remain silent is no longer universal. Our right to privacy, free from interception of communications has been severely curtailed. The ability to travel without surveillance (or those details of our journeys being retained) has disappeared.

Indeed, as Henry Porter (the Observer journalist famous for his recent email clash with Tony Blair over the paring down of civil liberties) reveals in this unsettling film, our movements are being watched, and recorded, more than ever before.

Deeper into the video, Freedom of Information is introduced and discussed in (some) detail. Yes, I watched all of "Suspect Nation" --after first watching gollum42's "1984 - The Music Video".

(Click here to go directly to the clip on Google Video)

Afterwards, I took a drive out to Malton and strolled the shared space between Malton Community Pool and Lincoln Alexander Secondary School...

Signed,
The ("SUSPECT1") Mississauga Muse

P.S. Video of Wednesday's Council meeting on Visitation Rights for "Rambo" et al is still not available. It ain't me, Babe. Something continues to be wrong with Google Video uploading. Just letting Mac's Gang and Wayne Nagy and other dog owners know that I haven't forgotten.
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"We must employ every possible tactic to dissuade those who try to silence us with fear" ---The Mississauga News Editorial (2007-03-24)

Want (or worse, need) to learn more? Link to MISSISSAUGAWATCH.CA
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