Considering the art of persuasion, there are cases when sugar works better than vinegar.

Yet, a handful of tenacious protesters served up jugs of the sour stuff Monday night to 性视界传媒 city council, in a quest to have the civic-level politicians formally call for a ceasefire in Gaza and send a motion to Ottawa. It鈥檚 hard to argue against asking anyone to stop dropping bombs that kill innocent people, children among them.

This editorial isn鈥檛 about that. It concerns the protesters鈥� modus operandi in trying to effect change. Since Nov. 20, they鈥檝e been taking to the podium, first in council chambers to air their concerns during public hearings, and now filing in one-by-one, under the watchful eye of a bylaw officer, to speak to a cloistered council that has been meeting in a city hall that鈥檚 fenced off on account of the protesters.

Council has a policy where speakers at public hearings must specifically address the application at hand, and nothing else, during their allotted three minutes. The city clerk explains this at the outset of every public hearing, and did so well before war broke out between Israel and Hamas.

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At the outset of Monday鈥檚 meeting, Mayor Brenda Locke said 鈥渁lternative arrangements鈥� for public attendance had been made on account of meetings being 鈥渄isrupted by pro-Palestine protesters鈥� and 鈥渆scalating protests.鈥� Despite the impasse, six protesters tried to speak to the Palestine issue during a public hearing on an application concerning a residential apartment building for West Clayton. Locke bounced each of them, following up with a two-minute recess in each case.

One ventured a hybrid commentary embracing biodiversity and the conflict in Palestine. Locke wasn鈥檛 having it. The speaker retorted 鈥渋t feels as though you鈥檙e confused, though,鈥� among other comments and essentially addressed the mayor as though she were a simpleton. 鈥淒o you need some help?鈥�

Another speaker accused council of a 鈥渞acist dogsh*t response.鈥� During the meeting, the politicians read aloud two tributes to Ramadan. A speaker replied council will pay at the polls, 鈥渢he Muslim community does not accept any well-wishes from this council regarding Ramadan鈥� and 鈥渄on鈥檛 come to our mosques.鈥�

This impasse will no doubt continue to play out, repeating like Bill Murray鈥檚 Groundhog Day, as council is unlikely to yield simply for fear that doing so would broadcast to the wider community that it can be bullied into acquiescence.

鈥� Now-Leader