“Dear sir, your procedure for noise complaint resolution is (to put it politely) bullshit” (Ontario)
Feb 16, 2011
Print ArticleJohn Wilkinson emphasized repeatedly the Ministry of the Environment’s mandate is “to protect human health and the natural environment” and pointed out the ministry has the power to ensure compliance with regulations and shut down renewable energy operators that don’t comply.
“We are responding to complaints and enforcing regulations,” he said.
That statement was made earlier this month by this man. John Wilkinson. Minister of the Environment, Province of (“Yours to Discover”) Ontario, Canada.
Picture his statement as a fresh, steaming, still-warm cow-flop.
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John Wilkinson
Minister of the “Clean, Green, Renewable” Environment
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Cow-flop? Turns out Wilkinson’s assurances are, for all intents and purposes, meaningless. Bureaucratic cow-pies. (I know; you’re not surprised.)
The guy ought to be tarred and feathered—except, as you all know, Canadians are too polite for that sort of thing. A pity. Wilkinson gets to lie to Ontarians and, by proxy, hammer them with wind turbines—and in return they must be scrupulously polite and decorous and deferential and follow Roberts Rules of Order at public meetings with this knave.
(What was once “We, the People” has morphed into “We, the Government.” Same in the USA. Same around the world—except, electrifyingly, in Egypt. Hallelujah for the resurrection from the dead of “We, the People“—in Egypt & Tunisia, of all places!)
Click here to learn what really and truly, honest-to-god happens when turbine noise drives you screaming mad in rural Ontario, Canada. (Though, luckily for Wilkinson, Canadians don’t scream. They scrupulously follow procedures laid out by the likes of . . . Wilkinson. That’s like Alice following procedures laid out by the Mad Hatter.)
From “Alice in Wonderland,” quoted by fenbeagleblog
Comment by Anonymous on 02/16/2011 at 2:25 pm
Just like the whole scam-based trend of wind development. Industry simply makes claims that are unproven, government is happy to accommodate and pick up the tab, and citizens? Well, the burden of proof is on us to show that the first two groups have not a clue as to what is right or wrong.
I’m sick of hearing what is “typical” of wind project setbacks. That is the lamest, Johnny Finnegan excuse I have ever heard (As in, “if Johnny Finnegan jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge, then would you jump off too”?)
There should be a monthly Johnny Finnegan award for the industry or government spokesman who best personifies this idiotic and even criminally negligent lemming mentality.
Q: What’s the difference between a dead skunk in middle of road vs. dead wind developer?
A: Skid marks in front of skunk!
Comment by Steve Bihari on 02/16/2011 at 4:11 pm
You might get a kick out of this YouTube satire.
Yes, I’m a Canadian and pissed at how passive the majority of my countrymen are.
Editor’s reply: I, too, am Canadian. Born, Toronto. Raised, rural Quebec. That’s where cow-flops became essential and vital—a philosophical master key, really—to understanding the world. Four brothers in rural PQ. Think about it.
Comment by Melodie Burkett on 02/16/2011 at 11:24 pm
Calvin,
Did you hear about Premier McGuinty being invited to a Halloween party? As the time grew near he started to panic and asked his wife, “What the hell am I going to dress up as?” Just like that she replied, “Why don’t you just put a potato on your hoo hoo and go as a dictator!”
See that, I was too polite to say dink!
Melodie
Editor’s reply: The point you are making—as I was making in my use of language, above—is important in political discourse. We can call it the Emperor’s New Clothes Principle, if you like. It’s the determination to inform all within earshot, “Hey, this guy is naked! And he’s obscene!”
Take a look at that photo of Wilkinson, above. Then click on the MOE website, with his photo showing there. He’s wearing a suit. He carries a ponderous title (Minister of the Environment). And so forth. But, when you witness what he and his MOE staff do to the likes of Colette McClean, you realize he’s “an imposter of decency.”
What he says in public (on Dale Goldhawk’s program, for instance) is 180 degrees different from what really happens. But because he wears a suit and carries a pretentious title and all that—he thinks he can get away with it—because he relies on your being courteous and respectful and accommodating to his title and suit. On your being accommodating to his “honor.”
Same with McGuinty and his pals, like the bully Smitherman.
The point is to use graphic uncivil language on these people as a way of signaling them, “I refuse to play your con game. You are not honorable. You are, in fact, indecent. You, in fact, rely on my honorableness and decency to plunder me.”
The real incivility and dishonor is not the language I use; it is the trauma and degradation and humiliation that Colette McClean and Stephana Johnston and Tracy Whitworth and innumerable other Ontarians are put through, daily, by Wilkinson, McGuinty, and the wind developers.
My specialty as a scholar is the philosophy of History. I’ve published major books on the subject. What I say, here, in this note to you, Melodie, is a “philosophy of History.” It is a means of unseating the tyrant. Wilkinson is a smiling, business-suited tyrant.
So, what response do I advocate? Basically, civil disobedience. If you have not read my “How to Fight Big Wind” essay, you should. (It’s all over the Web.) Part of the civil disobedience, as I envision it, is to change our language for the actions of the Wilkinsons and McGuintys and, by extension, change our language regarding these individuals themselves. Stop allowing them to hide behind civil discourse and politeness—from you! From me!
Think of it this way: When you’re being mugged, do you talk politely and civilly to the person mugging you? Well, Wilkinson is mugging Colette McClean. But he can get away with it because of his title, suit, and the aura of legitimacy that surrounds the man and his game. But, in the end, it’s a game. And largely a cruel one.
Comment by Melodie Burkett on 02/17/2011 at 11:06 pm
Oh don’t worry Calvin ” How to Fight Big Wind’ was the paper I chose to take door to door and hand out. I will always be grateful to your common sense. At fist I was a little shy to go out in our community because I was relatively new to the area. Then one hot summer night feeling overwhelmed and hopeless, I had been reading all day on the computer to learn as much as I could about IWT’s and a lady sent me your paper online! All she said was “Interesting read” period… I read it and phoned her back. My adrenalin through the roof! She suggested that I settle down as most of our very wealthy neighbours might think us vulgar. I said well I’m going to print out a hundred of these things and wake this sleepy little town up! Long story short, we now have over 250 members! Funny thing though Calvin.. there are some aspects of nature that you just can’t change. When a lady swears in public it just makes her look trailer trashy. I might be reading some kind of arrogant threat by McGuinty and all alone I say ” Bring it on you asshole” but if I met him in person at high noon at Bloor & Yonge I would not call him an asshole but I would sucker him into the middle of next week! Some things are just worth going to jail for!
Thanks for being you Calvin.
Comment by CommonSense on 02/19/2011 at 11:05 pm
I am aghast at how passive Canadians are! What happened to you? You were formidable fighters in WWII!
If this sort of ignoring of the effects of low-frequencies on you happened in America, the control boxes would mysteriously get thermite left on them.
Editor’s reply: I have often wondered the same thing: Why many Canadians are so timid about this outrage? It’s worse in Ontario than in the USA; here, we don’t have the equivalent of the Green Energy Act. Some states are close to the GEA, but not quite there. And I’m appalled at how Canadians (Ontarians, actually) tolerate those pony and belligerent “public hearings” put on by the wind developers.
Canadian forces in WWI as well as WWII were notorious for their bravery. It is well known among historians that not infrequently it was Canadian soldiers who willingly were the first wave in an attack. This was tantamount to asking to be shot or blown up. The Canadian soldier is a very different critter from the Ontarian who is being bullied by Big Wind.
Comment by Colette McLean on 02/21/2011 at 9:25 am
Thanks Calvin for posting this information. I hope this spurs on residents to file complaints. I am noticing a change in attitude with the MOE hotline @ 1800 268-6060 in Ontario. They are encouraging people to file complaints whenever they feel they are being disturbed. They are making efforts to compile more specific details. Calvin, I tried linking to my letter embedded as a hyperlink in your posting above. The first page does not download. Just so that you know I have sent this letter to every MPP in Ontario and to all of WCO membership to help show in their municipalitiy that Minister Wilkinson is lying about his ability to mitigate the noise problem. Since October of 2010 there has been over 130 complaints filed with a neighbouring project. I know for a fact that nothing has been done to mitigate their problems. Unfortunately mitigation efforts (reducing rotation speeds at night) reported in Amaranth Ontario are doing nothing. If we could all stop living with this delusional idea that wind energy should have a place in our energy systems, than truly we could stop the incessant swooshing and disturbed sleep.