I was sickened and disgusted to read a post by one of my blogging friends Scarlett the Heavenly Healer- http://heavenlyhealer.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/the-year-of-bully.html - She muses on whether 2012 is the year of the bully. Maybe she has a point.
We've seen a fair bit of this in Barnet
* Helen Michael investigated by Scotland Yard's SO15 Anti Terrorist officers for putting up an election poster without her name on.
* Elderly residents of Barnet deprived of toilet facilities during a sit in at Friern barnet Library
* Shop keepers in High Barnet visited by Councillor Brian Coleman threatening to call the police over posters complaining about his parking policy
* Councillor Brian Coleman insulted the disabled members of the community duringa council debate describing them as "these people" and saying he didn't believe they should be provided with transport by the council.
* Barnet blogger Mr Mustard abused by a Brian Coleman yesterday for no better reason than Coleman cc'd him into a polite email to the leader of the council.
These are just a few of the examples of bnullying in Barnet.The Barnet Eye believes that it is necessary to stand up to bullies and to support your friends and those who can't stand up for themselves. If you are a victim of bullying, don't take it. Do something about it. Bullies only ever pick on the weak, when they think they can get away with it. Councillor Brian Coleman has been a bully for years. This year the electorate of Barnet and Camden wised up to his behaviour and sacked him. His 20,000 GLA majority became a 20,000 majority for the Labour candidate. Why? because people like Helen Michael refused to be bullied and stood up to be counted. A lesson for us all.
Let's make 2012, the year of standing up to bullies. As a community joined together.
Sadly, bullying at Barnet Council is nothing new. When I was an employee there in the mid to late 1990s, it was commonplace in certain directorates - although it appears that it was not as bad as in the current management climate. I was surprised then and continue to be so that the councillors who rely on the public vote do not realise that the council is a significant local employer and that employees and their friends and family are a significant proportion of the local electorate and are therefore are in a position to influence, albeit potentially indirectly, how local people vote. One of the several reasons why I left the council was the management culture - and I cannot as yet see any reason why someone would continue to want to be employed by them. It is terribly sad, and dreadful from the local taxpayer's perspective, that matters have deteriorated in the last decade or so rather than improved. Best wishes to any current LBB employees!
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