Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da, life goes on

On August 30, 2014, and “independent” blogger posted a blog entitled “Safe & Respect”.  The blogger goes by the name “saysandra” and her blog is called "Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da, life goes on". (I think that's the name.)  This is her first paragraph:

On August 6, 2014, I was watching my Twitter feed when I saw some rather disconcerting tweets between Alberta Union of Public Employees (AUPE) and supporter/members of Supports for Artspace Independent Living (SAIL Inc). At that time, I’ve never heard of SAIL. I had no idea what they even did. I couldn’t really form an knowledgeable opinion to intelligently debate on this matter. All I could do was rely on someone else’s experiences. Realizing the adversarial nature of labour disputes, its best to do my own investigation to find some understanding. (note: all grammatical errors in this paragraph are Sandra’s)

Great!  Finally someone is taking the time to learn the truth for themselves.  I was curious to see what she learned and whether or not she got the whole picture.  As I read more, it soon became apparent that this person is NOT an investigator! Sure she came down to Artspace, and yes, she spoke with SAIL staff and paid picketers on the line.  But they are the ONLY ones she spoke with.

Not once did she speak with Artspace Members.  Not once did she speak with SAIL User-members.  Not once did she speak with SAIL Board Members.  There is NO  EVIDENCE that she truly conducted a fair and unbiased investigation!!

One only needs to read the contents of her blog to see how biased, how one-sided her point of view is.  She puts forth “facts” and “statements” that not only claim to be the workers’ side, but are also wrong. Oh, and by the way, Artspace IS NOT a FACILITY.  You cannot compare a private home care model to that in a facility—they are two separate entities!

For someone who wanted to investigate for herself, it is really disappointing to see that she apparently never tried to verify any of the information she got from those on the picket line.  In effect, she came to Artspace, spoke with only picketers and claims her blog information is accurate and honest. She obviously does not know how to write a BALANCED and UNBIASED report.

Sandra.  Have you at least checked out this blog?  Watched any of our videos?  Before blaming SAIL Inc. for all that’s wrong in this labour dispute (and it is a labour dispute) why don’t you come back and allow them to answer your questions?  Perhaps then you would be somewhat more qualified to write a perspective on this issue.