If Noah had to build an ark today...

This -- whatever this is -- started off as really just something that could have been cleared up at no cost or cause for any embarrassment to government. But you know what happens when lawyers get involved, "Why go for a quickie resolution when you can be Thompson Dorfman Sweatman, creator of a Seinfeld case where top level execs make a lot of money protracting a complaint based on a defence of nothing, now held over for its 8th season.” See posting: Law at Lunch -- More Cowbell

 

#1 QUESTION ASKED -- WHY BOTHER?

Don't ever question the value of unpaid work by a Whistleblower.
Noah's Ark was built by a volunteer -- the Titanic was built by professionals. 

From the time my sons were able to sit up at the dinner table we have had family meetings. ‘No bullying' as agreed, went both ways -- and double for authorities like teachers and parents --  so, whenever the boys did something wrong--and they often did (they're kids right?) -- the experience was always used as an opportunity to teach; oftentimes the student becoming the teacher.

  

In their teen years it became even more important to check out how my sons' own personal mission statements were developing in place of the family one. Talk is cheap, and often has little impact, which is why I made the decision to use my experience of taking each step of the complaint process as an opportunity to teach. For the plethora of lessons that were derived from my experiences, I guess I should say -- thanks...?

Secondary Education Lessons such as:   

1. the importance of protecting your name 
2. the importance of protecting your reputation (how people see you) 
3. the importance of protecting your character (how you see yourself)
4. the importance of sound work ethics
5. it’s easier to remember ONE truth than MANY lies
6. if suspect someone is cheating -- call out 'bullshit' to see their hand
7. feelings of anger are OK, re-acting in anger is NOT
8. 100% compliance with work computer usage i.e., no texting, surfing, Facebooking
9. information by phone must always be followed up in writing, and
10. document everything, don't leave important details to memory.

The Government Bipolar Dance

 

Life lessons to live by --  so when government (through privately hired lawyers with our public funds) went to great lengths to fabricate an unbelievable smear campaign,  I would take it to the next level and challenge them on it to show just how unbelievable it actually was. For years, the boys and I would do The Government Bipolar Dance, celebrating when we thought we were "UP," and then get crushed with the toll of the "LOW".

Re-defining 'Closure' 

 

Wednesday, March 13, 2013,  I received the most moving email from my oldest son which he sent after reading my latest posting, It's about having the courage to pursue truth wherein he wrote,

 “… I take pride in the Rowan name and take pride in that we are not quitters...”

 

There's no greater feeling for a parent than knowing you've done something right. I now have great inner peace knowing (however this ends) that I have left my sons with what matters most and it's reassuring to see I am not alone as covered in a USA News.com article: "Parents Say Money Isn't the Most Valuable Inheritance".

To my family (and friends from too many years gone by)  I apologize that I have been so distant for so long – to the point of being a hermit. I ask for your understanding. The challenge I had undertaken is tantamount to someone today accepting the mission to build The Great Ark: Some things are best kept under wraps while still in development -- if you know what I mean.

 

As Edgar Schmidt (lawyer who spoke out against Canada putting through laws that violate the Constitution) stated in an interview on CBC Radio: It took a trip to Egypt for him to truly realize "how fragile democracy is and how much it needs care and tending." As I put it in my earlier posting, it’s about The State of the Canadian Constitution eh?

 

 

News flash: Youth at Risk!

 

7 Deadliest Words as a community and a parent, we don't want to rely on:

 

I'm the government--I'm here to help.

 

 

Definition of Insane is doing the same thing, over and over again, and expecting different results. In my opinion, adding another Bill (like Bill 18) -- to our other 'rights-only-on- paper' benched Constitution and Charter Rights, is just another case of our upscale legal community's way of making a lot of money without any expectation of getting any results.

 

But what can you ONE person do? 

1. feedback is needed from people that have found themselves in a similar situation
2. provide resources from that combined knowledge: what's working and what's not 
3. form relationships within our community to include professionals ie., mental health, legal, community, and government (free and/or inexpensive)
4. get a real movement going for real change; and
5. bring out the 'inner child' in all of us when we never would have considered taking 'no' for an answer or look away from a friend being bullied.

"MAKE SOME NOISE" cause I'm pretty sure we can do better.

Resource:

Highly recommended and living testament for 15+ years by this DCP family:  Developing Capable People for Educators and Parents: Classes may be offered at University of Winnipeg, or check online or at your library for more info.

 

It's about having the courage to pursue truth



During the Great Provincial Deficit, a common hero, Marielle Rowan a.k.a. the Cinderella Woman* -- vied for a position among other greats in Canadian history like Viola Desmond**.

July 2008 a Civil Service Commission clerk was terminated from employment as a result of a mental illness break down due to a toxic work environment. Beaten-up and out-of-luck -- seemingly having hit rock bottom;  her career appeared to be finished as an unfair negative employment reference removed all chances to gain new employment.

Rowan was concerned about being able to pay tuition at Linden Christian School which she believed to be essential in raising her two sons. The school provides a pro-active learning environment that complements family values and principles.

Rowan Family Mission Statement 

1. God is #1,
2. Don't do anything you have to lie about,
3. Make faith a priority,
4. No bullying,
5. Watch your language,
6. Respect others,
7. Increase peace,
8. Be positive, true and kind,
9. Be accountable,
10. The things that matter are not even "things' at all.

The only thing that mattered to her--her family--was in danger.

She was forced to go on (un)Employment Insurance and every second cheque went to the school. Although the school would have reduced the tuition under the circumstances, a family decision was made prioritizing and separating 'needs' and 'wants'. The school definitely fell under the "needs" category and reducing funding to essential services did not align with the family's mission statement.

Deep inside, Rowan never relinquished her determination.

Driven by love, honor and an incredible dose of grit, she willed an impossible dream to come true. In a last-chance bid to help her preserve her family, her rights and the Constitution for those who could not speak out for themselves--Rowan never quit.

No one thought she had a shot. However Rowan, fueled by something beyond mere competition, kept winning unbeknownst to her opponents. By letting authorities continually beat on her in repeating rounds, she kept enduring, researching and documenting it all.

Suddenly, the victim became the mythic litigant. Carrying the hopes and dreams of the disenfranchised, the vulnerable, the invisible, on her shoulders, Rowan rocketed through the ranks of government authority, until this underdog chose to do the unthinkable: take on the heavyweight champ of the province, the unstoppable Law Society of Manitoba, renowned for killing many a just cause -- denying access to justice.

It's about having the courage to pursue truth: 
A fact-based story as depicted in the blog, A Bullish Government. Read it.
*Adapted from Sujit R. Varma version of the movie "Cinderella Man " on IMDbPro.]

With God all things are possible.

** Viola Desmond -- Leaving a legacy of inspiration.
Nine years before Rosa Parks' historical stand for civil rights, a quiet Canadian by the name of Viola Desmond made an equally bold stand against discrimination. It took the Canadian and Nova Scotia government 65 years to admit to its egregious mistake and make things right. Rowan is in year 5. She's not #WINNING by government standards but never let it be said  that what she is building--a legacy of inspiration is not worth the struggle.  Click link for story and video: Viola Desmond - The Canadian Encyclopedia.

Age of Information...Yet Wisdom in Short Supply

 

In protest to Manitoba Government's lack of support for persons with mental illness, I have decided to stop taking my medication for bipolar disorder which to date has enabled me to maintain and sustain recovery (give or take a few slips) for the past 21 years.

 

Imagine if government blamed you for having cancer?

Growing up on a farm outside of Winnipeg, life was simple: If you wanted cookies – you baked them--you planted grain and had a garden for vegetables. On Sundays everyone went to church and prayed. When there was a threat of tornado or flood–we prayed. When we were grateful for what we had... we prayed. Even when things happened that couldn't be fixed, prayers helped because those things were just part of God's plan--as much comfort as that can bring when you see your dad take the rifle behind the barn with your sick pet--but for the most part, there were civilized codes of conduct--rules.


I used to believe that bullies and thugs were not of my world. However, the sad reality is--it is the bullies and thugs that rule the world. Through no fault of my own, I feel I am trapped in some biblical crisis of God vs. the devil. Power is distributed according to wealth, not wisdom or compassion. Manitoba Justice has weaponized language and its bullet is its slanted "decisions", aimed to objectify, de-personalize and de-humanize those who can't fight back.


It is no accident that Justice did not factor mental illness in its call for action from the beginning going back all the way to 2008. It obviously did not want the rules for civilized and decent behaviour to get in the way. Although disability was always known and confirmed, there is only a nuance as to a 'claim' of mental illness as mentioned in Master Berthaudin's decision.

 

The moral test of Government is how that Government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and the handicapped. - Hubert H. Humphrey

 

As indicated in the Canadian Lawyers Insurance Association "Safe and Effective Practice" (aka "How to Screw the Public out of their Rights: Law 101) the following excerpt is quite telling:

 

"The lawyer who has been negligent (emphasis added) should not try to be the one who repairs the situation....But it is important to realize that if the Law Society makes use of able and imaginative lawyers from the earliest possible moment ... the number of ways in which this may be done are infinite... It is very instructive to see what can sometimes be done in what is usually assumed to be the most hopeless of cases..."

 

To that end The Law Society hired Aikins MacAulay Thorvaldson's, Ted E. Bock and Thomas K. Reimer. And then there are the defendants themselves, the law firm of Thompson Dorfman Sweatman who as recently as September 5, 2012 continued to play hard ball... having no interest to discuss, or inquire as to what a 'mutually satisfactory / reasonable resolution' was in my mind.

 



 

 

You will find no mention in the Master's decision, Rowan v. Thompson Dorfman Sweatman that on March 15, 2012 paramedics were called and hospital attention was required. That it was stated in the Claim that I found 'dealing with the defendants "too much" and wanted to die.

 

Common sense would tell you that a pendulum swings just as far to the left, as it does to the right. And what goes down must come UP. Considering all the odds were against me, a person of sober judgment would have concluded that going up against the likes of the powers that be, would be insane but instead, much like Daniel in the Lion's Den I threw all caution to the wind and put my faith in God.

Too bad one has to die before someone cares.

 

 

How low can lawyers get? Along with a sympathy card from a senior lawyer at Aikins Law on the occasion of my father's death from cancer, on that same day I received from Aikins Law, a Bill of Costs claiming I owed them $3500. It is hard to tell whether the cost of the sympathy card and postage was included in the Bill of Costs but I would certainly not put that past them. In any event $3500 to not be allowed a trial is ludicrous!!

 

 

Costs are not meant to be punitive, nor should it be used as a deterrent from keeping people like me, with a valid complaint from coming forward. And then, for whatever trumped up reason, particularly in my case where I am unrepresented and vulnerable due to a mental disability, gets 'out-played' by having a provincial civil servant strike out a claim that could and would make the Province come across as looking bullish.

 

 

Justice was not done --- nor was it seen to be done.

 

 

Editorial: MB Gov't OK with flipping ‘the Bird’ -- flips off Jesus

As stated in my 2008 Human Rights complaint, my co-worker had a long standing history of constantly swearing at management and staff. When asked to stop, the co-worker responded by cutting out an outline of a hand with a middle finger pointing up and taped it to a stick -- the compromise seemingly being to give people ‘the finger’ instead of swearing. As staff found that more annoying and management took no action, it was eventually accepted over the years that nothing could, or would be done about it.

In order to have a respectful workplace environment there needs to be an atmosphere of mutual respect, responsibility, self-discipline and cooperation from entry level position all the way to the top,  particularly when it comes to human rights and political correctness.

When my mood disorder (bipolar disorder) was exacerbated in 2008 (resulting in intensified religious beliefs) I could no longer accept management's laissez-faire attitude about the co-worker's improper conduct, particularly since the swearing, heard by anyone in the reception area, would associate me with behaviour I abhorred. Had management taken the swearing more seriously, it would have likely stopped especially if the consequence involved losing an annual $40K salary.

I did speak to Potty Mouth (not her real name) on a number of occasions, asking her to stop the swearing. The response was "forget about it, you’re not the first one to ask me to stop. It won’t work. You don’t want me to do to you, what I did to them” and the co-worker laughingly recounted ‘the finger’ story as being the way she would deal with my request.

I  did try to make the co-worker aware as to how often she swore; whenever she would hear outbursts of "Jesus Christ”, "for Christ sake" or for "God's sake" I would say, “He’s probably a little busy right now. Can I help?”

Of course "the finger’ was meant as a joke but is the line not drawn when someone finds the humour offensive? How alarming is it to have a civil servant use a paper cut out of a universally known gesture in responding to a work related request, and management does not respond, or alternatively sees only the humour in it? How does that reflect Government's stated objective of a respectful work environment?

Government did not respond. In fact a Reply was signed and submitted by private lawyer, Rob Olson, and accepted by the Human Rights Commission. Olson (a third party without any corroborated facts to support) stated that the "issues of religious slurs were addressed" and he knew for a fact that I “was aware that efforts were being made" to deal with the swearing despite no documents exist or were presented. The fact that there is no single document, email or note of any action taken to deal with the complaint speaks of inaction by Government and its authorities.

Although the issue of the religious swearing was included in a formal Respectful Workplace complaint filed April 2008 with the Manitoba Civil Service Commission, it appears it was never regarded an issue worthy of investigation. It was not factored in as part of the “three key themes” of the Civil Service Commission's findings conducted by the Supervisor (Chief Operating Officer "COO") for Organization Staff Development, the department where I was employed. Clearly a conflict as the COO, had the allegations been proven, would have "fingered" herself as being responsible for allowing a violation of the Code under her direct supervision. Not surprising then that the religious issue was seemingly just 'flipped off' as not a big deal. Manitoba Ombudsman saw nothing wrong with a government officer investigating her own department..

Had a proper investigation from the Human Rights Commission or Ombudsman's Office occurred, it would have shown that the employer, Government of Manitoba did not do its due diligence in conducting a fair investigation.There was ample time to do so given the complaint was stonewalled for two years in a pre-vegetative state.

After procedures went off the rails, in 2011, I  took it upon myself to access my files through FIPPA; information that could have been easily accessed by the investigative authorities. The file provided indisputable proof that the ongoing swearing was a known problem to management but that management's attempts to deal with the problem were ineffective and quite lax. There is no mention of following procedure regarding behaviour-based issues that continue on even after warning. Instead there are excuses that the co-worker "did try to quit, but she wasn’t able to stop.”

It would seem that Government decided to accommodate a social disability that is not a protected characteristic and chose to not accommodate a person based on religious beliefs further heightened by a mental disability; both of which are categories protected under the Human Rights Code.

It seems The Code, in practice, is served up like some buffet where management and Government authorities can pick and choose according to its personal preferences and tastes.

Employees are to refrain from wishing one another a "Merry Christmas" for fear of offending non-Christian believers. However, there are no restrictions on religious cursing which may in all likelihood offend all Christians.

God help us all if these are the people entrusted with our civil and human rights!