STRANGE BEDFELLOWS

It's been sixteen years since I first learned that the Waterloo Regional Police and the Waterloo Region District School Board were in bed together. This somewhat disgusting and horribly revolting menage a deux may actually be a menange a trois if we were to add CAS (Children's Aid Society), otherwise known as Family and Childrens' Services to the mix. Now I'm the first to admit that my knowledge of CAS/FCS is very limited. In regards to the WRDSB (Board) and WRPS (cops) I feel on a stronger footing. I've had personal dealings with both of them and overall would rate them as nasty, brutal, ignorant, arrogant and unaccountable. Most recently my knowledge of CAS/FCS has come from stories primarily in the Waterloo Region Record. These stories have included comments and quotes from CAS/FCS which have had the strong odour of self righteousness and arrogance. Nevertheless, thank God my dealings with them have not been first hand or personal. Therefore I'm going to remove, at least for now, CAS/FCS from any discussion of menage a deux or trois.

For the record I have met a number of individual police officers who were calm, cool, collected and professional. That has been a relief as these are the front line people dealing with the public. It is the police hierarchy and management that are the problem. Similarily I have over my educational experience as well as that of my two children met individual teachers who were inspiring and just plain awesome. I can even admit to meeting one Principal who still had principles. That would be Mr. Helmut Tinnes at Conestogo Public School. All the rest at the public school level I hold in varying levels of contempt.

Similarily to the Jessie Sansone case I found many teachers and Principals to be uncooperative, unreasonable and frankly paranoid in a self serving way. Their paranoia including playing the child safety card was simply a method to avoid discussion or debate. They were totally unwilling to engage in frank and honest discussion on a level playing field and this was only exacerbated when they took simple, straighforward issues into the judicial system. This they did specifically to avoid dealing with them honestly and openly. At court they sucessfully (most of the time) hid behind their lawyers and their financial resources. Throughout this the Waterloo Regional Police acted as their personal blockers and bodyguards. This despite the fact there never was the slightest physical aggression or threats from myself towards anyone. The Police at the senior levels throughout acted unprofessionally. Their behaviour was juvenile and manipulative from the start and they were clearly behaving as if they were Pinkerton guards hired by a private company. Their decisions to repeatedly charge me with trespass when I showed up at normal parent/teacher or parent/school functions were outrageous , improper and I believe illegal. Eventually it was the Crown Prosecuter's office who put an end to the Police harassment of myself. Police harassment at the bidding of the WRDSB. The Crown advised the Regional Police in writing that they the Crown would no longer prosecute me for any further Trespass charges laid by them. At that point the Police then so advised the School Board that they the Police would no longer charge me when I appropriately attended school functions with my son. This symbiotic, bed sharing arrangement was finally broken in my case however it appears to have survived to the detriment of other parents who run afoul of School Board tyranny.