We're all brothers, but not necessarily friends

The other day someone I know called me asking for advice with a problem she was having with municipal hall. During that conversation, because her problem dealt with an issue while Dean Ward was on council, she asked me if I could intercede with Dean on her behalf, since... he is a friend of yours. She is not the first person to make that assumption, and because of this I think it is time for me to set the record straight.

Dean and I have at least two common interests, one of which is we are both former councillors, the other is we both have our own blog sites which deal primarily with local matters of a somewhat political nature. Other than that we both don't know each other well enough to know much more than that?

Believe it or not we've only once had coffee together, although over the years, we have crossed paths or bumped into one another countless times and have always acknowledged each other and at times even engaged in friendly chatter or banter.

The above is the extent of our so-called 'friendship'. In other words, we are not friends but we are friendly towards one another, unlike how we (I assume on Dean's part also?) are both treated by members of our current council who cross to the other side of the street when they see us coming, afraid we might contaminate them with thoughtful intellectual conversation where they might actually learn a thing or two, or maybe even enlighten us 'unworthy ones' with their brilliance. :-)

In closing, let me just say Dean Ward is no friend of mine. But at the same time he has never proven to be a lying, backstabbing, treacherous SOB of an enemy either (unlike a certain newspaper publisher we have all come to love and hate)... although he did let me down one time when I asked him to intercede on my behalf, but that is a story for another day...




A true friend is the greatest of all blessings, and that which we take the least care of all to acquire.