Great piece Stephen. Like with the PMO pressuring Raybould Wilson to influence the prosecution of SNC Lav, it’s important that regular people understand just how bad this is.
From a friend who works closely with police forces and from another that knows several retired senior RCMP officers, Lucki has not been well viewed internally since her appointment over others viewed more capable and experienced. This incident has likely blown what remaining trust her internal audience might have had.
Also to note, I believe it was stated that part of the reason for the confusion in communications was attributed to Lucki and perhaps the PMO inserting themselves into the communications.
Is there room on the ballot to get rid of all 3? Tomorrow? This government has rapidly deteriorated to "Beyond reality". Jagmeet needs to pull his support, and this insane charade needs to end.
Obviously there are a lot of details missing but it seems reasonable to assume that Campbell's notes were reasonably accurate. At the same time, there is ample evidence from other files that Canada has lost its ability to get big things right and this like another example.
I agree with the premise of your piece with respect to Lucki's accountability. It doesn't surprise me that she wanted to make the Libs happy, and she needs to take responsibility for that. But I don't support your premise that the rank and file RCMP officers involved in that debacle deserve our sympathy. If you have been following the evidence in this inquiry at all you have to reach the conclusion that they were incompetent from top to bottom. It is embarrassing that this is our national police force. From cowardice exhibited at the time (the officer who passed the killer on the road but waited to turn around and go after him because he was afraid - by the time he did turn around to do his job the killer had pulled off the road) to the fact that these witnesses refuse to be cross-examined by counsel for the families. It is unbelievable. These folks didn't sign up to be librarians, they signed up to be police - with all the attendant danger and responsibility to account that the job entails.
The major players in Government better be careful. This scandal in the making has preliminary signs of a very important person in the RCMP speaking with confidence that meddling from the PMO politicized a criminal investigation.
Maybe the RCMP shouldn't be involved in local policing and provincial police forces are needed across the country? As ridiculous as it sounds. the RCMP seems to hopelessly conflicted between acheiving the political goals of the federal government and doing actual police work.
Lots of chaff here, but thank you Stephen Maher for this article, and your accurate recall of Supt. Campbell's demonstrated competence and communication skills. The knives may be out for him, but bear in mind that his sworn duty was to preserve the integrity of the multiple murder investigations underway at that time.
Wait a minute. I missed this yesterday.. Maher certainly did nothing to support Campbell's competence and communication skills. What accurate recall, it's in all the papers, no need to remember off the top of his head. Rather he wove a heartbreakingly sad story about the very fragile and sensitive NS RCMP and their mean and nasty boss who has the ability to reduce them to tears via a phone call. I expect there was a lot of eye rolling and people ducking their heads to stop grinning when the boss losses it in that call. Campbell didn't even hang around for the end of the call. Angry or sensitive? Maher doesn't mention it.
Yeah, sworn duty. All the the RCMP have a sworn duty. And as I noted elsewhere there is a chain of command. Lucki may be many things but she is the top cop and Campbell should not be showing up with notes 2 years after the fact. Can you spell distraction? The NS RCMP have not shone at their finest lately.
So Stephen Maher, who has reported professionally in the past (I will not give him a pass this time) is a smear the federal Libs and a not very popular RCMP Commish (I actually don't know if she is popular or not but it's a crappy job and she is a woman whose subordinates don't like to obey her or follow the rules, so there is that) with a cheap grab at a horrible event two years ago and not even include the entire note that Campbell offered up.
Did Campbell offer up this tid-bit anytime in the past 2 years to anyone at all?
I have to wonder if Campbell is a relative. He sounds like he could be. Many Campbell's in NS.
All the Fed Liberals are scum. Got it. Can we have summer now?
Maybe we will get pics of PePo modeling his new line of Freedom/Fear tees
Canadian Conservatives have long felt that a lot of the federal bureaucratic leadership tended to overly identify with Liberal positions. There felt like there was something to that, although heavily tempered by partisan self-pity and aversion to criticism. Since Trudeau was elected in 2015, though, it feels like those Conservative grumblings have been validated in an almost cartoonish fashion. There was the spectacle of civil servants cheering for and mobbing Justin Trudeau after his election in 2015, and booing critical questions to him from reporters. Michael Wernick running defense for the Liberals during the SNC-Lavalin scandal. Now the RCMP commissioner trying to influence an investigation to support the political goals of the governing party. This is only going to get worse if the next government is a vindictive Conservative government intent on settling scores. We need a functioning, non-partisan, professional civil service for this country to work.
I have had ZERO confidence in any of these clowns since the first day they appeared on the scene. This calls for torches and pitchforks, now that all our guns are banned. The corruption, malfeasance and incompetence is off the scale.
The Commissioner is appointed by the PM and reports to the Minister of Public Safety as the equivalent of an ADM. No Commissioner is truly independent of government and until this changes that person will always be subject to political interference and direction.
That's another layer of this onion. Official Ottawa considers the RCMP to be just another government department. Operational independence is impossible with the current structure.
Well there you have in in black and white. Nothing there on stopping murderous rampages, keeping out illegal firearms, checking on people reported to them for having illegal firearms, keeping the public safe from being shot and having their property razed by fire. Nothing about having courage, making decisions ... so I guess they are following the mandate.
They let (mostly Indigenous) churches burn down because, you know, reconciliation. They are experts in listing things that will make them and their cohort feel better rather than actually govern. And they've duped a good few public servants into thinking this is the right way to govern. Sigh.
I can't imagine the RCMP investigating itself and the Trudeau Government. The same reason they never investigated Trudeau's interference in our rule of law over the SNC Lavalin Affair. They are all in bed together. From the the RCMP, Trudeau and the PMO's staff, our judicial system, Health Care and Hospitals, Banks, to the Universities and Education system, who indoctrinated and continue to indoctrinate the youth. The entire system has been corrupted by these pathetic elites who look down on the working class and deem them unworthy of any form of entitlement. Their aim is to destroy any descent and the best way to ensure they survive the horror they are just beginning to inflict on humanity, they need the citisens unarmed and will do anything and everything to ensure they are. Hense the gun bans, internet survalence to crush any decenting views, mandates to gather and hand out Identity numbers to each Canadian. They want facial recognition on passports "for your safety", when it is strickly going to be used for theirs. They want you unarmed and controlled, so they can live the good life and do as they feel while they dictate to the peons. The sadest part of this is that many Canadians are blinded by the misinformation and disinformation that flows at a steady rate from the paid for Corporate news also backed by these power hungry, greedy, pigs at the taxpayers trough. The NDP prop these elites up in hopes they will be part of the chosen ones to rule over the rest. They are the enablers of all that is wrong in this country and they too need to be held accountable. We know that no one ever will be held accountable, no matter what these sick, power hungry, psychophants ever do. Wake up Canada your being turned into a penal colony under the rule of the globalist elites.
It is somewhat hard to fathom that a writer can include the following two statements in the same article without any explanation as to how they relate:
“should be able to trust the Mounties to release information when and how it is in the public interest”
and
“the RCMP did a terrible job communicating with the public about the shooting, holding back information for no good reason, in keeping with its long tradition of failing to properly explain itself.”
I had to keep closing my jaw so it could drop again:
1) What WAS the reason for even thinking that keeping even more information from the public - at that time of all times, when not-informing-the-public had cost over a dozen lives - would HELP an investigation? What's the reasoning? "Oh, if they know we're looking for a guy who sold a Webley .58, they'll go to ground?" Nonsense. They keep information by this rule: "Do we HAVE to let it out? Then why not keep it secret?" Overclassification by reflex.
2) There's NOTHING wrong, and much right, and it's very normal, for hired experts on a subject of public safety (the doctors with medicine, cops with guns) to have a position on that public safety issue. It becoming "political" does not reduce the right and responsibility of the public servant to have a position on it. Masks (incredibly) becoming a "political" issue did not reduce Theresa Tam's job of promoting them. Police associations and police departments, speaking officially, take public positions on gun control, normally. Like the police chief of the Phoenix police department, speaking, in uniform, to the Senate Judiciary Committee just the other day.
So, the very weak, or nonexistent argument for keeping even more information from the public, comes up against the clear responsibility of the police to follow Phoenix and dozens of other police departments and organizations like the National Organization of Police Chiefs, (below) in prioritizing public safety via gun control.
3) This wasn't even taking a opinion position on the subject like those cops above; it was simply releasing a FACT, part of their job.
The rest of it, the "reduced to tears", and so forth, simply disgusts me. They were in a "waking nightmare" because of their own incompetent failure and secretiveness, their contempt for the public ability to handle bad news. (Authoritarian mentalities always think there will be 'panic in the streets'. Myth.) Best move for them and us was to resign in disgrace two years ago, (after all, they bully harassment complainants into leaving) and get on with a career they can handle; perhaps shoe sales, or hotel management.
Great piece Stephen. Like with the PMO pressuring Raybould Wilson to influence the prosecution of SNC Lav, it’s important that regular people understand just how bad this is.
From a friend who works closely with police forces and from another that knows several retired senior RCMP officers, Lucki has not been well viewed internally since her appointment over others viewed more capable and experienced. This incident has likely blown what remaining trust her internal audience might have had.
Also to note, I believe it was stated that part of the reason for the confusion in communications was attributed to Lucki and perhaps the PMO inserting themselves into the communications.
Ms. Lucki lost my confidence during the SNC-Lavalin affair.
Is there room on the ballot to get rid of all 3? Tomorrow? This government has rapidly deteriorated to "Beyond reality". Jagmeet needs to pull his support, and this insane charade needs to end.
Obviously there are a lot of details missing but it seems reasonable to assume that Campbell's notes were reasonably accurate. At the same time, there is ample evidence from other files that Canada has lost its ability to get big things right and this like another example.
I agree with the premise of your piece with respect to Lucki's accountability. It doesn't surprise me that she wanted to make the Libs happy, and she needs to take responsibility for that. But I don't support your premise that the rank and file RCMP officers involved in that debacle deserve our sympathy. If you have been following the evidence in this inquiry at all you have to reach the conclusion that they were incompetent from top to bottom. It is embarrassing that this is our national police force. From cowardice exhibited at the time (the officer who passed the killer on the road but waited to turn around and go after him because he was afraid - by the time he did turn around to do his job the killer had pulled off the road) to the fact that these witnesses refuse to be cross-examined by counsel for the families. It is unbelievable. These folks didn't sign up to be librarians, they signed up to be police - with all the attendant danger and responsibility to account that the job entails.
The major players in Government better be careful. This scandal in the making has preliminary signs of a very important person in the RCMP speaking with confidence that meddling from the PMO politicized a criminal investigation.
There will be nowhere to run and hide from that.
Maybe the RCMP shouldn't be involved in local policing and provincial police forces are needed across the country? As ridiculous as it sounds. the RCMP seems to hopelessly conflicted between acheiving the political goals of the federal government and doing actual police work.
You hit the nail on the head. Need to separate the RCMP federal operations and the provincial contracts - and build a firewall between them.
So you like SQ reporting into Legault? What were your issues with the OPP reporting into Wynne?
You were trying the high school approach of trying to link an idea to an unpopular person.
I raised Wynne and Legault as ON, QC (and NL) already have provincial police forces.
thanks for writing this. It needs to be said, and aired across all public airwaves.
Lots of chaff here, but thank you Stephen Maher for this article, and your accurate recall of Supt. Campbell's demonstrated competence and communication skills. The knives may be out for him, but bear in mind that his sworn duty was to preserve the integrity of the multiple murder investigations underway at that time.
I’d say he has integrity. The commish won’t be pleased with his testimony but I suspect she’ll be unemployed in short order.
Where do you find integrity in this?
Wait a minute. I missed this yesterday.. Maher certainly did nothing to support Campbell's competence and communication skills. What accurate recall, it's in all the papers, no need to remember off the top of his head. Rather he wove a heartbreakingly sad story about the very fragile and sensitive NS RCMP and their mean and nasty boss who has the ability to reduce them to tears via a phone call. I expect there was a lot of eye rolling and people ducking their heads to stop grinning when the boss losses it in that call. Campbell didn't even hang around for the end of the call. Angry or sensitive? Maher doesn't mention it.
Yeah, sworn duty. All the the RCMP have a sworn duty. And as I noted elsewhere there is a chain of command. Lucki may be many things but she is the top cop and Campbell should not be showing up with notes 2 years after the fact. Can you spell distraction? The NS RCMP have not shone at their finest lately.
So Stephen Maher, who has reported professionally in the past (I will not give him a pass this time) is a smear the federal Libs and a not very popular RCMP Commish (I actually don't know if she is popular or not but it's a crappy job and she is a woman whose subordinates don't like to obey her or follow the rules, so there is that) with a cheap grab at a horrible event two years ago and not even include the entire note that Campbell offered up.
Did Campbell offer up this tid-bit anytime in the past 2 years to anyone at all?
I have to wonder if Campbell is a relative. He sounds like he could be. Many Campbell's in NS.
All the Fed Liberals are scum. Got it. Can we have summer now?
Maybe we will get pics of PePo modeling his new line of Freedom/Fear tees
This reply is just weird.
Read your comment again. Then read mine. Not weird at all.
Canadian Conservatives have long felt that a lot of the federal bureaucratic leadership tended to overly identify with Liberal positions. There felt like there was something to that, although heavily tempered by partisan self-pity and aversion to criticism. Since Trudeau was elected in 2015, though, it feels like those Conservative grumblings have been validated in an almost cartoonish fashion. There was the spectacle of civil servants cheering for and mobbing Justin Trudeau after his election in 2015, and booing critical questions to him from reporters. Michael Wernick running defense for the Liberals during the SNC-Lavalin scandal. Now the RCMP commissioner trying to influence an investigation to support the political goals of the governing party. This is only going to get worse if the next government is a vindictive Conservative government intent on settling scores. We need a functioning, non-partisan, professional civil service for this country to work.
I have had ZERO confidence in any of these clowns since the first day they appeared on the scene. This calls for torches and pitchforks, now that all our guns are banned. The corruption, malfeasance and incompetence is off the scale.
The Commissioner is appointed by the PM and reports to the Minister of Public Safety as the equivalent of an ADM. No Commissioner is truly independent of government and until this changes that person will always be subject to political interference and direction.
Have a look at the present Commissioner's mandate letter (?) from Mendecino https://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/en/commissioners-mandate-letter. She's being micromanaged.
All departments are being micro-managed with these nonsensical mandate letters.
That's another layer of this onion. Official Ottawa considers the RCMP to be just another government department. Operational independence is impossible with the current structure.
So we won't get into the Harjit Sajjan bullshit...
Well there you have in in black and white. Nothing there on stopping murderous rampages, keeping out illegal firearms, checking on people reported to them for having illegal firearms, keeping the public safe from being shot and having their property razed by fire. Nothing about having courage, making decisions ... so I guess they are following the mandate.
They let (mostly Indigenous) churches burn down because, you know, reconciliation. They are experts in listing things that will make them and their cohort feel better rather than actually govern. And they've duped a good few public servants into thinking this is the right way to govern. Sigh.
Damn, but I am glad you are in charge of absolutely nothing!
How do you know?
I can't imagine the RCMP investigating itself and the Trudeau Government. The same reason they never investigated Trudeau's interference in our rule of law over the SNC Lavalin Affair. They are all in bed together. From the the RCMP, Trudeau and the PMO's staff, our judicial system, Health Care and Hospitals, Banks, to the Universities and Education system, who indoctrinated and continue to indoctrinate the youth. The entire system has been corrupted by these pathetic elites who look down on the working class and deem them unworthy of any form of entitlement. Their aim is to destroy any descent and the best way to ensure they survive the horror they are just beginning to inflict on humanity, they need the citisens unarmed and will do anything and everything to ensure they are. Hense the gun bans, internet survalence to crush any decenting views, mandates to gather and hand out Identity numbers to each Canadian. They want facial recognition on passports "for your safety", when it is strickly going to be used for theirs. They want you unarmed and controlled, so they can live the good life and do as they feel while they dictate to the peons. The sadest part of this is that many Canadians are blinded by the misinformation and disinformation that flows at a steady rate from the paid for Corporate news also backed by these power hungry, greedy, pigs at the taxpayers trough. The NDP prop these elites up in hopes they will be part of the chosen ones to rule over the rest. They are the enablers of all that is wrong in this country and they too need to be held accountable. We know that no one ever will be held accountable, no matter what these sick, power hungry, psychophants ever do. Wake up Canada your being turned into a penal colony under the rule of the globalist elites.
I've missed you ML. Good to see that all is well with you. Did you get your thesis finished?
Smarty pants. Still working on but the day it’s published you will be the first to know. Lol
Good!
It is somewhat hard to fathom that a writer can include the following two statements in the same article without any explanation as to how they relate:
“should be able to trust the Mounties to release information when and how it is in the public interest”
and
“the RCMP did a terrible job communicating with the public about the shooting, holding back information for no good reason, in keeping with its long tradition of failing to properly explain itself.”
I had to keep closing my jaw so it could drop again:
1) What WAS the reason for even thinking that keeping even more information from the public - at that time of all times, when not-informing-the-public had cost over a dozen lives - would HELP an investigation? What's the reasoning? "Oh, if they know we're looking for a guy who sold a Webley .58, they'll go to ground?" Nonsense. They keep information by this rule: "Do we HAVE to let it out? Then why not keep it secret?" Overclassification by reflex.
2) There's NOTHING wrong, and much right, and it's very normal, for hired experts on a subject of public safety (the doctors with medicine, cops with guns) to have a position on that public safety issue. It becoming "political" does not reduce the right and responsibility of the public servant to have a position on it. Masks (incredibly) becoming a "political" issue did not reduce Theresa Tam's job of promoting them. Police associations and police departments, speaking officially, take public positions on gun control, normally. Like the police chief of the Phoenix police department, speaking, in uniform, to the Senate Judiciary Committee just the other day.
https://www.cnn.com/2022/06/16/politics/police-organizations-gun-control/index.html
So, the very weak, or nonexistent argument for keeping even more information from the public, comes up against the clear responsibility of the police to follow Phoenix and dozens of other police departments and organizations like the National Organization of Police Chiefs, (below) in prioritizing public safety via gun control.
https://www.policemag.com/351091/police-chiefs-blast-senate-gun-vote-as-a-disgrace
3) This wasn't even taking a opinion position on the subject like those cops above; it was simply releasing a FACT, part of their job.
The rest of it, the "reduced to tears", and so forth, simply disgusts me. They were in a "waking nightmare" because of their own incompetent failure and secretiveness, their contempt for the public ability to handle bad news. (Authoritarian mentalities always think there will be 'panic in the streets'. Myth.) Best move for them and us was to resign in disgrace two years ago, (after all, they bully harassment complainants into leaving) and get on with a career they can handle; perhaps shoe sales, or hotel management.