I have given quite some thought to the recent local political kerfluffle re: Susan Cudahy CEO of the Economic Development Corp using a Toronto firm to get the tourism website up and running.
The outcry has uniformly condemned the move - we should have used a local company!
As a knee-jerk reaction, it's the obvious one and was indeed my first thought too. But I also had second and third thoughts, particularly when the Daily News reported that Mayor John Ruttan was going to "have words" with her.
So - yes, I would like to see government spending stay in the town, in the city, in the province and in the country, depending on which branch of government it is. Now seriously folks - does it? Have a look - especially on a national level. I understand the feds want to export oil from Alberta (while destroying BC's forests and rivers) so that China can make a lot of money refining it.
Susan Cudahy, on the other hand, gave a contract of about $9,000 to a Toronto firm. She was in a hurry and she knew the people. Not that big a deal. Really.
But here's the really big deal: the firestorm this generated. When Ruttan said he was going to talk to her about it, I thought, "Whoa! The Economic Development Corp was created to operate at arm's length from City Hall. Hear that? Arm's Length. So that means, I guess, that Cudahy can't make her own choices about where she spends $9,000 for a web site."
I wasn't surprised when I heard she had taken some "personal time" and could not be reached for comment. If I were Cudahy, I'd be mad as hell! I'd be fuming! I'd be taking some personal time to decide if I wanted to continue working in such a small-minded place.
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