A Long Rusty Groove

originally published in the spring edition 2016 of Your Ward News

A Long Rusty Groove

  I would like to say thank-you to Your Ward News fan of the month, Kelly Fairchild. Kelly is a local Artist and activist who donates ten percent of her art sales to charitable causes she believes in.

   Kelly has been a big help to our little paper this month by promoting our paper not only within our publishing area (where we distribute the paper for free) but well outside of it and even internationally! Because of a petition Kelly started, the hits on our web site and paid subscriptions from outside of our publishing area have skyrocketed. This is the petition that Kelly posted on change.org.

Canada Post

This is a formal Petition asking for you to discontinue delivering the hate-speech paper Your Ward News to the general population. 

Every month this paper is delivered to thousands of homes.  Every month this paper uses name-calling and false allegations as a way to bully people.  Every month this paper calls women sluts, whores, she-hags, bitches, cock-teasers, and femi-Marxists.  Dr. James Sears who runs the paper, regularly degrades women of various ethnicities (Asian, Jewish), by commenting on their sexuality (saying that “Jewesses” are frigid, but good at giving head).  He regularly posts photos of women in sexually degrading photo-shopped images. Images that should not be slipped into our mailboxes. 

These pages are filled with profanity, and slanderous comments about politicians and regular civilians.  These pages are filled with lies.  Lies about women, lies about feminists, lies about religions and races, lies about immigrants, lies about homosexuals, and lies about men who don’t believe that women should be submissive.  This paper spreads false allegations against female nurses, and false allegations against organizations that work to help women and children who are victims of violence.  Those who speak up against James Sears end up as targets in his paper, and are subjected to name-calling, personal insults and sexually degrading remarks and/or photo-shopped images. 

This paper is offensive and dangerous, and we should not be subjected to this trash invading our homes.   James Sears values “Freedom of Speech” above all, (above integrity, above humanity, above decency) and we wouldn’t dream of denying him this ‘right’, so we are simply asking Canada Post to discontinue delivering this paper, to those who don’t subscribe.   This “newspaper” offers no factual information, or constructive input.  It exists solely as a platform for those who wish to spread hate and misinformation.  Your Ward News is not a “newspaper”, it is propaganda that is meant to insult, and degrade those who are different than its editor James Sears.  Which is why we are asking that this paper not be delivered to unsubscribed homes.  

Those who subscribe to Sears’ distorted and harmful way of thinking should simply subscribe to his paper.  While this hate-speech paper should be shut down entirely, we will settle (for now), with Canada Post agreeing to discontinue delivering Your Ward News to non-subscribers.

   Of course Kelly had help from her friend Warren Kinsella and his collective in promoting this to the large numbers it received. Right away Kinsella tweeted and facebooked Kelly’s petition far and wide amongst his brain washed minions which made it such a success.

    The only problem is most of what Kelly says about us is just not true. For starters I don’t lie Kelly. I stand behind every word I have ever had published in this paper. Now it’s true my bat shit crazy editor James and our warped graphic artist Robert tend to put satirical pictures and outrageous by-lines to my work but I do have journalistic standards and I do not lie. Many of the stories in this paper are satirical in nature and outrageous in subject but that is opinion not hate. We openly denounce violence and injustice towards all people regardless of ethnicity or gender. That being said we also reserve the right to talk about these matters and believe that having the right to free speech to openly discuss matters of ethnicity and gender is a right to practice and defend.

     Here’s something you don’t have a right to Kelly, the right not be offended.  Just as beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so too is “feeling offended” in the realm of the beholder. Words are words; each person is in charge of their own emotions. To blame us or anyone else because you feel angry, offended or upset shows an abandonment of responsibility and an utter lack of emotional maturity. Since when did people become such crybabies that we couldn’t stand hearing a certain word or phrase, being called a name, or tagged with a label?  

   When idiot box talking head Warren Kinsella or puppet politicians like Dimwit  Arthur Potts or Marxist Mary Margaret McMahon make public statements about us it has a profound effect on people. That’s why it’s fair game to talk about them.

     But it also does something else, for one thing it encourages that abandonment of responsibility and an utter lack of emotional maturity in people like you Kelly Fairchild. When somebody like Kinsella campaigns against us nonstop, calling us hateful, racist, Nazis and misogynists, it’s like he is taking a big rusty nail and scratching a grove in the minds of people. He’s coming to conclusion and judgement for you, he’s circumventing your critical thought process. Most of all he’s using you to shut down the voice of those who politically oppose him and his political friends who make a very good living off the backs of the public.

    Your needle gets stuck in a big rusty groove so you will have a knee jerk reaction to what? A small community paper that prints alternative news, politics, opinion and satire? This big rusty groove makes people who have never even seen our paper think it’s some kind of illegal hate speech Nazi rag. How do I know this is true? Below are just a few examples taken from the first couple of pages of responses to the petition.  

These people are not even Canadian who are signing this petition to Canada post! No link to the paper was published with the petition and these people have never seen the paper!

      Most of the people who signed this on line petition calling us Nazis and accusing us of spreading hate speech (which is illegal) have never seen the paper and have come to this conclusion because somebody told them it was so. If this paper were really hate speech I would be in prison or in court saying this instead of printing it and putting it in your mail box!

   Kelly it’s you who lie when you call opinion hate speech, you do so because you have had a groove scratched in your mind by a political philosophy that tells you that you are not responsible if you feel offended by those who you don’t agree with. They have tricked you into thinking that your free speech is not as important as somebody else’s feelings.

   Now here’s something else you and Warren will wrongly consider hate speech. If this paper or my words in it are offensive to you, TOO GOD DAMN BAD!  

Lawrence McCurry

February, 2016

originally published in the spring edition 2016 of Your Ward News

Elliott Not Guilty, FREE SPEECH 1 – MARXIST SHE HAGS 0

originally published in the February Edition of Your Ward News

Elliott Not Guilty, FREE SPEECH 1 – MARXIST SHE HAGS 0

    On the morning of Friday Jan 22, I was waiting for a tweet from a friend of mine who was in a Toronto court room, waiting to find out if the Canadian court system would be standing up for freedom of speech on the internet in Canada or if they would be giving in to the femimarxist she hags that had arranged this farce to be brought into a criminal court in Toronto.

   In last month’s edition of this paper I brought you the story of Gregory Alan Elliott and the She Hags of Twitter. Elliott, a 54 year old graphic artist, was embroiled in a political disagreement with a gang of radical feminists on twitter over their treatment of a young game designer. At no time did Elliot ever threaten or sexually harass these women, he just strongly disagreed with their political tactics. In the end three of these woman convinced a Toronto cop (Who one of the women was close to) to charge Elliot with criminal harassment, a charge that carries up to four years in prison!

   The leader of these femimarxist hags was Steph Guthrie, the founder of a group called Witopoli or Women in Toronto Politics. This group has close ties to many of the radical far left female Toronto city councilors such as Kristyn Wong-Tam and Shelley Carroll who called on young women to “cyberbully” people.

    The women involved in the case, Steph Guthrie, Heather Reilly and a third woman whose allegations were dropped from the case when rumors started circulating that she was romantically involved with one arresting officer.

   This case is a shining example of how modern feminists and social justice warriors believe they not only have the right to control everybody’s speech but are more than willing to use force to push their far left radical political agenda right down your throat.

   Politics aside, Steph Guthrie is a particular type of vindictive psychopath. In November 2012, a few weeks before Elliott was charged with criminal harassment, Guthrie and others started spreading lies that Elliott was a Pedophile. Guthrie testified that she knew these rumours about Elliott propositioning an underage girl weren’t true, but neglected to tell Detective Banglid because “I wasn’t trying to harm him unduly, but I was not trying to help him.”

   Remember Guthrie's problem with Elliot started when he opposed her over her vindictive treatment of a young game designer, Ben Spurr. Guthrie accused Spurr of making a “misogynist” game and then proceeded to ( in her own words ) “sic the Internet on him” to convict “the fuck” in the court of public opinion. When Elliott’s defense asked Guthrie if she was concerned her attacks against Spurr could result in his being harmed, she unabashedly stated that she was “okay with that.” When the defense repeated the question, Guthrie once again made it very clear she believed he deserved whatever was coming to him.

   People close to Elliot describe him as an “Overly helpful” sort of guy, a really nice guy who will bend over backwards to help you out with whatever project you are working on. He is a prolific artist and poet with examples of his graphic art work all over Toronto. This father of four offered his services for free to Guthrie for her group. She repaid him for his offer by turning on him the first time he suggested that what she was engaging in was  “every bit as vicious as the face-punch game” Spurr had created.

   Guthrie and her coven of Marxist witches enthusiastically conspired to totally destroy Gregory Elliot’s life. With the help of the Toronto police dept., the crown prosecutor and the left controlled media that’s just what they did.

   Even though the Judge came out and said not guilty on Friday, Elliot still suffered greatly. The arrest and harsh bail conditions not only caused Elliot to lose his job, but the restriction on not being allowed to use the internet has not allowed him to work at all. Add to that the loss of his reputation and lies in the media and the humongous legal bills, it quickly becomes clear that these evil she hags of twitter are still giggling like the little bully’s in the schoolyard they are. They win this little game of “culture Marxist firing squad”. It never mattered to them weather Elliot was found guilty or not, only to everyone else in Canada.

   Sure freedom of speech was upheld in that court room, But Gregory Alan Elliott paid a very high price for it, Guthrie and her disgusting little friends now play the victim’s denied justice to their deluded SJW sycophant friends.

   So for all of you smug sjw butt holes out there who like Guthrie are laughing behind your hands thinking this is a win either way just remember. You have now tipped your hand. All Canadians can now see that that you just held a gun to all our heads (collectively speaking) threatening to kill freedom of speech for all, just to close down one voice that disagreed with your culturally Marxist agenda.

   As of deadline Steph Guthrie's group of radical femimarxists  Witopoli or Women in Toronto Politics still has made no mention at all of the victory of Gregory Alan Elliott. Not on Facebook, Twitter or their web page? Guthrie and her group of vindictive femimarxists has caused great harm to this man and his family and yet there's no acknowledgement, little lone an apology.

Lawrence McCurry

January 2016

originally published in the February Edition of Your Ward News

Le Papillon on the Park shuts down

originally published in the February Edition of Your Ward News

Le Papillon on the Park shuts down

   In the seventeen years Abdul Malik worked for Le Papillon he made an amazing rise from dish washer to head chef in a in a highly rated fine dining restaurant (first at one location then in the spin off location) at Le Papillon on the Park. Most people who hold such a position study for years and work as sous-chef s and line cooks under Master chefs before attaining such a position as head chef for an establishment such as Le Papillon on the Park. To these Masters of the culinary arts their reputations and that of the fine dining establishments they work for is everything.

   It appears Malik had little respect for either his profession or the restaurant he worked in. In fact, due to his complaint with the Human rights tribunal of Ontario, I doubt he will ever work as head chef for such a place again. The 25 employees he put out of work are left wondering why they are looking for new jobs and the owner and his family have had their dream shattered because of this government’s kangaroo court that sided with Malik, his nephew and their friend when they decided to play the race card after years of employment.

   Paul Bigue originally founded Le Papillon with his friend Sandra Kane, and his brother Marc, opening Le Papillon in 1974 in the St. Lawrence Market neighbourhood. In 2008 the partners amicably split, with Kane re-opening Le Papillon on Front St. and Paul and his wife Danielle opening Le Papillon on the park. Abdul Malik chose to make the move to the new restaurant with Paul. The restaurant featured French Canadian cuisine with a special tourtiere recipe. It also had an open kitchen style floor plan where the kitchen is open and visible to the dining room. Malik made it clear he did not like it.

   The opening of the restaurant was a big success and the establishment quickly picked up a crowd of regular patrons both locally and far beyond. As time went on the only problem they seemed to have was a high turnover in the kitchen staff. After time the restaurant was a success and well received by critics, that is until Malik and his friends played the race card which generated press that killed the business. At this point cultural Marxism reared its ugly head. The ensuing press of the Human Rights Tribunal painted Malik and his friends as poor discriminated fellows who were being oppressed by a racist employer.

   Paul Bigue the owner of Le Papillon on the Park posted the following statement on his restaurant’s web site.

   On a Friday night in January 2011, our chef Abdul Malik (a 17 year employee), his nephew and sous-chef Arif Hossain (a 12 year employee), as well as a friend of theirs, Nahid Ashfaq Islam, marched out in rage and did not return because we required them to train a new female cook. Fortunately, we were able to retain a few chefs from a friend of ours and re-opened the next day until we found permanent replacements.

   In response, Mr. Malik went to the Ontario Labour Relations Board and filed a complaint of discrimination. The Board thoroughly investigated, found his accusations to be unjustified, and denied his claim.

   Not content to accept the judgment of the Labour Relations Board, the three individuals filed false claims of discrimination against my wife Danielle at the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO), and asked for $100,000 in compensation. They received free advice from the Tribunal as well as free legal counsel. In other words, they had absolutely nothing to lose.

   Six months after our hearing and thirty one months after we were cleared by the Labour Board, Tribunal adjudicator Judith Keene found us guilty. Because the HRTO is not a court of law, there was no appeal process available to us. It is also famous for its 96% conviction rate. Devastated, we have taken our case to the Ontario Superior Court in order to reverse the HRTO decision.

Meanwhile, last December the Toronto Star wrote a one-sided story which perpetuated the falsehoods, harming our reputation and in turn impacting our business.

   It remains on the front page of Google search results six months later. Our sales this year have dropped by 20%, which, coupled with our lawyers fees (past and present) resulted in us not being able to discuss the case until it has gone to the Ontario Superior Court. We were advised that risking a PR blow-up on such a touchy subject could bankrupt us, so we kept our public reply short and formal even though it frustrated us enormously to do so.

We have operated restaurants in Toronto for more than 40 years with the utmost integrity. We have great respect for the men and women we have had the privilege of working with, and consider them members of our family. We will defend our reputation and refuse to allow a few misguided individuals to destroy our good name and a business that employs 25 (wonderful) people. 

   So after 17 years all of a sudden Malik realized he was being discriminated against and his employers were monstrous bigots!

   Part of the problem began when Nahid Islam joined the kitchen staff and the three started speaking Bengali in the kitchen which Danielle Bigue had a problem with and mentioned that for safety and in respect to other employees English should be spoken in the kitchen. Some of the other false claims made by the three to the HRTO was that observances for Ramadan were not respected and that one day in August 2010 he was told by his boss to taste the soup. Malik had made the soup the night before and felt he should not have to taste anything during his observances. He claimed that at first declined to taste the soup, but Ms Bigue told him that he should taste it and he was worried about being fired. He also claimed that on more than one occasion he was asked to taste a pulled pork sandwich that the owners wanted to add to the menu. Mr. Islam also testified that Ms Bigue told Islam that the tortière did not have enough flavour, and that he should taste it and tell her his opinion. Mr. Islam told Ms Bigue that he was prohibited from eating pork and that he was fasting. He indicated that Ms Bigue told him that “if you make food, you have to taste it”. 

   This brings up an interesting point here, I have spoken to many chefs and we have all seen at least one of the top chef type cooking shows that permeate the television these days. As a chef that prepares meals in a fine dining establishment you are expected to taste the food you prepare!

   A restaurant that features French Canadian cuisine is going to have pork on the menu! Here we have three people who claim to be professionals who also claim to have no need to ever taste the restaurants signature dish!

   From reading the transcript of the HRTO hearings it’s also clear that the management of Le Papillon on the park went out of their way to accommodate the three when it came to their religious practices.

   How is it that it took Malik 17 years (and Hossain 12 years) to come to the conclusion that their employers were racist and file a complaint first with the labour board and then with the HRTO? And why did this come to a head right when they were asked to train a female chef? A female chef who besides being a woman, probably took her chosen profession seriously.

   There is no appeal process for a ruling from the HRTO except to the Divisional court of Ontario and then only if the HRTO made a mistake in a legal ruling. Needless to say there was no reversal from the Divisional court, only more lawyer fees and court costs. The courts at this time ordered the restaurant to pay the three well over $100,000. Plus court costs within thirty days. Again from the Le Papillon on the Park web site.

UPDATE May 22, 2015: We lost our appeal at the Superior Court.

   The allegations were false and we were treated unjustly by the HRTO. Unfortunately, and to our surprise, there was no appeal process available. Our only recourse was to take this case to the Divisional Court not for retrial, but for review. In other words they had to figure out whether or not the HRTO had made a legal mistake in their decision. We suppose they did what they could. Had we the option to retry the case, we would have won.

   This case has ruined our reputation and our health. Our standards and integrity are what have kept us in business for 40 years in this city, and to have the public believe that we discriminated against our staff was a huge personal blow that we haven’t been able to recover from. Patrons that dined with us for years stopped coming overnight, we received menacing calls and emails and we continue to read hateful comments about our family and business online. This has been devastating and extremely frustrating.

   We’ve come to learn that the HRTO has a very high conviction rate and no appeal process. We made the mistake of wearing the truth like our shield and didn’t represent ourselves properly. The public, especially small business owners like us, need to know that there are misguided individuals that are profiting from the free legal counsel and systems that were put into place to protect those who actually need it. This is really happening. As soon as our story made it into the press in December 2013, we received dozens of calls and emails from business owners that were wrongfully convicted on discrimination charges at the HRTO and lost their businesses. People were furious, and their stories were horrible. It’s extremely disheartening to be added to that list.

   This has been the most difficult thing we’ve ever faced as a business, and above all as a family. I suppose our greatest mistake was that we were naive enough to think that justice would prevail and it did not.

    No small business can take a financial blow like the one imposed by the HRTO and survive. Few businesses can field a barrage of political correctness from the red press, especially when that press is a bunch of one sided lies from immigrants playing the race card.

   So now Le Papillon on the Park is closed with a For Sale sign on it. The building has been remortgaged (most likely to pay off the fines and court costs) 25 people are looking for new jobs and a family is ruined.

   But Malik, his nephew and their friend have hit the jackpot. They are now free to take their windfall and go open a shawarma hut somewhere. I doubt the Toronto Star food critic will ever review the place but I somehow don’t think they will care.

Lawrence McCurry

January 2016

originally published in the February Edition of Your Ward News