October 20, 2010
Knocking on doors and talking to residents about their hopes for Waterloo and what they would like Council to do better has been energizing. As we get closer and closer to Election Day, more and more people have been comparing my campaign with those of my opponents as they try to make up their minds.
The first three nights of this week took most of the candidates in Ward 6 off the streets early and into public debates and forums to discuss important issues and help you get the information you need to make an informed decision.
On Monday, the Laurier Students Public Interest Research Group and the Social Planning Council of Kitchener-Waterloo hosted a dialogue on social issues and students. I appreciated the chance to talk about these issues for an hour with students, with Anne Crowe and her family, with Mike Connolly, and with Franklin Ramsoomair. The complexity of the challenges we face requires more discussions like these: ones that don’t rely on pat answers or tired sound bites, but on thoughtful questions and meaningful engagement.
On Tuesday, the Kitchener-Waterloo Multicultural Centre hosted a forum for all municipal candidates running for Waterloo City Council to talk about diversity, inclusion, and breaking down the barriers faced by immigrants in our community. Again, I was happy to be joined by Anne and Mike as well as most candidates in other wards along with all of the candidates for Mayor. We learned several important things, including that there is a highly-effective telephone translation service used inside our hospitals that their own emergency rooms and Board of Directors seem to know little or nothing about. There are so many opportunities we can seize when we build communication between departments and between front-line operators and senior management, both in our hospitals and in our Cities.
Finally tonight, Rogers Cable 20 hosted its forty-first and final televised candidate debate. I appreciated the questions from the panel, but it was the telephone question about homelessness and poverty that was really refreshing. We know that amalgamation, rapid transit, fluoridation, and taxation are the issues at the top of most resident’s minds, but we too often forget about the poverty that exists in our community. Council can and must be part of the solution, because a strong Waterloo is one where everyone in our community can participate fully and enjoy a high quality of life.
Before you cast your vote, I encourage you to look beyond the conclusions candidates reached on one or two issues. Find out how they approached those issues and came to their positions. We will face challenges over the next four years that are not in the papers today. How a candidate approaches a problem tells you much more about how they will govern for the next four years than a five or six word position on a pamphlet.
On October 25, I encourage you to cast a ballot for the person you believe has the energy and skill to bring people together, can thoughtfully work on our challenges, and will engage you to build an even stronger Waterloo.