Let’s hope it was a lesson learned for Mayor Keith Hobbs.
The first-term mayor is a man of the people, with a touch of Don Cherry’s say-what-comes-to-mind philosophy.
In many ways it’s a little refreshing, to see a politician who doesn’t play things quite so close to the vest.
But in Hobbs’s case, on occasion, the attitude can get him in to trouble.
Case in point his much-publicized dispute with former police chief Robert Herman.
Hobbs alleged to local media that the chief had gone overboard trying to persecute him and some of his police association cronies. Hobbs, of course, once headed the union during his career as a Thunder?Bay Police Services officer.
Herman didn’t like what Hobbs said and filed suit, seeking $500,000 for libel and $200,000 in punitive damages.
On Wednesday the pair kissed and made up, so to speak, with Hobbs issuing a public apology.
By saying he was sorry and eating a little public crow, Herman, living the retired life after more than a decade at the helm of the police service, agreed to drop the lawsuit and move on.
Hopefully our Boston?Bruins-loving mayor has learned his lesson. While transparency in government is the democratic way – or it should be – some things are best left unsaid in public.
The first-term mayor is a man of the people, with a touch of Don Cherry’s say-what-comes-to-mind philosophy.
In many ways it’s a little refreshing, to see a politician who doesn’t play things quite so close to the vest.
But in Hobbs’s case, on occasion, the attitude can get him in to trouble.
Case in point his much-publicized dispute with former police chief Robert Herman.
Hobbs alleged to local media that the chief had gone overboard trying to persecute him and some of his police association cronies. Hobbs, of course, once headed the union during his career as a Thunder?Bay Police Services officer.
Herman didn’t like what Hobbs said and filed suit, seeking $500,000 for libel and $200,000 in punitive damages.
On Wednesday the pair kissed and made up, so to speak, with Hobbs issuing a public apology.
By saying he was sorry and eating a little public crow, Herman, living the retired life after more than a decade at the helm of the police service, agreed to drop the lawsuit and move on.
Hopefully our Boston?Bruins-loving mayor has learned his lesson. While transparency in government is the democratic way – or it should be – some things are best left unsaid in public.
