If true that thousands of married Canadians have been caught up in the world-wide Ashley Madison affair (no pun intended), telephones should soon be ringing off the hook, as we said before cell phones and texting took over, at the offices of divorce lawyers, who will become the big winners in this sordid scandal.
In case you have just emerged from a cave, Ashley Madison is not a cosmetic line. That’s Mary Kay. The two have nothing in common. Ashley Madison is a website that facilitates/encourages cheating by spouses, also known as clandestine one-night stands.
The Madison client list, said to include thousands of names, has been breached by hackers and is now available for anyone who has the know-how and time to play private detective.
Nobody should be surprised that more than a handful of Cornwall and area names are showing up on the list, most of them said to be husbands.
It is natural for most of us to wonder who is on the list.
But is it any of our business?
The short answer is no.
This doesn’t concern the Criminal Code of Canada.
Not all that long ago in this country, gay folks lived in fear of being outed. And if their secret lifestyle was discovered and dragged into the court of public opinion, some committed suicide.
In the wake of the Madison client list being hacked, a Toronto newspaper has reported that two persons said to be on the list committed suicide.
Most, if not all, mainstream news organization will choose not to print the names.
However, the names will find their way to less traditional news sites. And the names will be read and tossed around in the court of public opinion. Many lives and families will be destroyed.
During the debate over homosexual rights, Pierre Trudeau said that there is no place for the state in the bedrooms of the nation.
Long before that, Jesus, speaking about adultery, said “Let he without sin cast the first stone.”
It is something we should keep in mind when it comes to the Ashley Madison client list.
THIS AND THAT Preem Kathy’s decision to campaign against S. Harper and Co. might help the federal Liberals in some parts of the province, but throwing verbal darts at the Conservatives and calling for their demise isn’t going to be of any benefit to the uphill Liberal uphill in Stormont-Dundas-South Glengarry where the preem and her government are as popular as a backside boil. … If election day is the only poll that counts, why do political parties and candidates spend millions of dollars on pre-election day polls? … Cornwall native Royal Galipeau, incumbent Conservative MP in the new riding of Orleans (Ottawa), is seeking a fourth term but it won’t be easy. He is up against Liberal candidate Andrew Leslie, a high-profile retired lieutenant-general who would be a shoo-in as defence minister in a Justin Trudeau cabinet. … Good bet that all three federal party leaders will put in an appearance at the International Plowing Match (IPM) in Finch. Does anybody care?
DEATH-BED WISH An obituary for a New Jersey woman asked that in lieu of flowers “Don’t vote for Hillary Clinton”.
TRIVIA ANSWER Former mayor Nick Kaneb defeated former alderman Gerald (Gerry) Parisien and incumbent mayor Dr. Elzear Emard in the 1966 mayoral election. In 1968, Parisien again lost to Kaneb. Former alderman Doug Webster was the third name on the mayoral ballot. The election was for the first three-year term of office (now four years). Third time would prove lucky for Parisien when he was elected mayor in 1974, replacing Ed Lumley who had been elected MP. Parisien would go on to serve three terms.
TRIVIA Cornwall Civic Complex had an Oct. 31 official opening. Was it a) 1974, b) 1978, c) 1977, d) 1976.
SPORTS STUFF Dave Murphy over at the Cornwall Colts office tells us that shortly after Dave Ezard’s death 20 years ago, then team owner Al Wagar, a friend and former Ezard team-mate, retired Eazy’s No. 6. … At the start of the season – way back in April when Canada was emerging from the annual deep freeze – the odds of the Yankees and Mets meeting up in the World Series were slim to nil. But with summer slithering away and the Major League clubs heading for the autumn stretch run, the Yanks and Mets have more than a good shot at the post season derby. The last time the two met in a Subway Series was in 2000, with the Yankees winning in five. An all a New York World Series has happened just 14 times. … Talk about overlap, the Quebec Junior Hockey League and Central Canada Hockey League are into the pre-season.
IN THE REAR-VIEW MIRROR When folks leaving on vacation registered with city police and patrols would check on the home while they were gone, and beat cops checked on businesses twice during a night shift. … Before on-line reporting and collision centres when police responded to ALL traffic accidents and property crimes. … Going to the police station on Saturday morning to get a tin bicycle licence plate (later changed to plastic) that had to be attached to the bicycle. … Patrol cars without air conditioning and the silly rule that officers had to wear their forage hats in public. Ball caps and beards were a no-no. … Police call boxes affixed to utility poles. … The outdoor police shooting range on the south side of the canal just west of the Cotton Mill factory. … The motorcycle cops – Harry Levere, Ray Jodoin, Roger Pilon and Gerry Kirkey. One motorcycle had a side car. A reader tells me that when he was kid his dad, a motorcycle copper, sometimes gave him a ride in the side car when he came home at noon hour, a big event for a kid. … When cops did traffic duty for shift changes and lunch hour at Courtaulds and Howard Smith Paper Mill. … The best-known street cop (when they had them) in the force’s history, the imposing, no nonsense Sgt. Dave McCracken. Away from the job, the First World War veteran enjoyed growing tomatoes in his garden. One night a couple of practical jokers painted his green tomatoes red. McCracken never found out who they were, which, for them, was a good thing. … When you could walk through the front door of the police station, unlike today’s unfriendly Fort Knox type security.
