Winnipeg has a new Civic Weasel No. 1! St Vital councilor Brian Mayes' embarrassing performance at the last city council meeting was enough for him to leapfrog over this new council's frontrunner for the title, I'M-MARTY-MORANZ-AND-I'M-A -LAWYER!!!! Brian Mayes went ballistic over a suggestion that the former city council showed favoritism when voting in favour of an amended route for the second leg of the bus rapid transit plan in south Winnipeg. Gee, who would think that? How about EVERYBODY IN WINNIPEG! Why? Maybe it's because three audits of city construction projects have found BLATANT FAVORITISM IN THE AWARDING OF CONTRACTS! Nevertheless, Mayes wants people to think this time it's different. And he demonstrated he's willing to insult, attack, belittle, and denigrate anyone who dares to disagree with him. But while Mayes was playing the right fool, he made the mistake of challenging someone a lot smarte...
The origin of the Usher of the Black Rod goes back to early fourteenth century England . Today, with no royal duties to perform, the Usher knocks on the doors of the House of Commons with the Black Rod at the start of Parliament to summon the members. The rod is a symbol for the authority of debate in the upper house. We of The Black Rod adopted the symbol to knock some sense and the right questions into the heads of Legislators, pundits, and other opinion makers.