Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Call for tenders - paint and related products

Calls continue for an inquiry into the actions (and inactions) of the police during the G20 summit in Toronto at the end of June. Toronto police and their allies (who came from 1000s of miles away -- kind of reminds you of Afghanistan!) are accused of both not doing enough to prevent the vandalism and violence or of using excessive force on 100s of innocent bystanders, in other words doing too much.

In response, the Premier of Ontario, Dalton McGuinty, first said there would be no inquiry. Then Toronto police chief "The Bill" Blair said the police would conduct an "internal review". In other words, they would investigate themselves.

This announcement was, for some reason, greeted with scepticism. Remarks like "couldn't find a blackberry in a saucer of milk" were heard. So now the Special Investigations Unit has been called in. That's the provincial body -- staffed by cops, ex-cops, crown lawyers and such -- whose mission is to exonerate the police of any misconduct in cases where civilians wind up in hospitals or morgues as a result of police actions.

But some people will never be satisfied. Protesters continued to demand a civilian investigation. So now the Toronto Police Services Board, to which the police are supposedly accountable, has announced its own "independent review", to be conducted at a later date, by person or persons unknown, with a mandate to be announced ... errrr ... later.

Expressions of interest are invited for the supply of several thousand gallons of whitewash for use by the three (and counting) inquiries. Bids should be sealed in a plain brown envelope (approx. 2.5" x 6") addressed to "Justice, Queen's Park".

Footnote: The TPSB, in a display of back-pedalling which would make a champion cyclist green with envy, has added that it only has jurisdiction over the Toronto police, so anything done by the Ontario Provincial Police, the RCMP, the Montréal police, the Regina police [that's enough police. ed.] won't be looked at.

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