Vol. 8, Issue 21
Free of Charge
Vote split
Thursday, October 7, 2021
School cases
Ode to Love
Marilyn Gladu blames Conservative election loss on vote-splitting People’s Party
As COVID-19 classroom cases rise, a Sarnia trustee slams government vaccine program
TARA JEFFREY THE JOURNAL
TARA JEFFREY THE JOURNAL
T
M
arilyn Gladu is happy to put the election campaign behind her. “This election was ugly,” said Sarnia-Lambton’s MP, pointing to incidents of violence and vandalism across Canada during last month’s 44th general election. “I think everybody is generally really angry. Essentially, we spent $600 million to have an election in the middle of a pandemic and nothing’s changed.” It was her third straight victory, and Gladu earned nearly as many votes as the other five candidates combined — 26,292 votes, or 46% of the total ballots cast at 178 polls. The NDP’s Adam Kilner again finished second with 11,945 votes (21%) and Liberal Lois Nantais third with 10,865 (19%). People’s Party candidate Brian Everaert earned 6,359 votes in his second bid for the seat, or 11% — a big jump from 2019 when he took 3% of the vote. Green Party candidate Stefanie Bunko tallied 848 votes (1%) and Thomas Laird of the Christian Heritage Party 478. “I’m very disappointed in what happened with the rest of the country,” Gladu said of Canadians’ re-electing a Liberal minority government. She blames a surge in popularity for the PPC for costing the Conservatives the election. “While the PPC didn’t win any seats themselves, they kept the conservatives from winning government,” she said, pointing to 24 ridings that would have gone blue if the PPC party hadn’t been “engaged.” “Arguably, we would have a Conservative government now…and that really is the lesson of history, that when Conservatives divide, the Liberals win.” Continued on 3
THE MYSTERY of the ‘Poet Tree’ has been solved. A serialized romantic story in verse that appeared in daily installments on a tree in Canatara Park this summer was the work of an anonymous author – until now. For the complete story, please see page 4. Photo courtesy, Chelsea Slotwinski
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he Lambton Kent District School Board won’t say whether a Sarnia trustee faces disciplinary action for making anti-vaccination statements while schools contend with rising COVID-19 cases. Dave Douglas posted a series of comments this month critical of masks, vaccines, and the government’s controversial vaccine passport system. He also targeted the Premier himself. “Vaccine Passports are the most evil and totalitarian thing I have heard of in my life,” wrote Douglas, who represents Sarnia and Point Edward schools. “I can’t wait to sue the Province of Ontario for violating the Ontario Health Consent Act and the Charter,” read another post. “Doug Ford is an evil dictator that must immediately resign. “Governments want to vaccinate all employees, make them wear masks all day, and businesses still treat them like [expletive] and they wonder why no one wants to work,” wrote Douglas, who identified himself on Twitter as a ‘lover of freedom’ and staunch supporter of Maxime Bernier’s Peoples’ Party of Canada. Douglas did not respond when reached for comment. His online posts were flagged by bio-statistician Ryan Imgrund, who tracks COVID-19 data with a focus on school risk in Ontario. “Well this is embarrassing,” Imgrund said about the trustee before Douglas blocked his account. “Anti-lockdown. Anti-mask. Anti-vaccination.” Last week, 18 schools in the public board and eight in the Catholic board reported active cases among staff or students, including an outbreak declared at Gregory A. Hogan in Sarnia on Sept. 20. Continued on 3
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