I think we should change Edmonton’s slogan to the City of Antimony.

Antinomy is a contradiction between principles or conclusions that seem equally necessary and reasonable. In essence, it is the ability to embrace two contradictory ideas.

We got lots of examples of our alleged city leaders doing exactly that last week.

The old Bank of Montreal building on Jasper Avenue will not escape the wrecking ball. Apparently, it was not old enough to qualify as a historical building and city officials were worried that delaying the demolition of the building would leave the city liable for forking over money to the owner because of the delay.

It is worth remembering that this is the same city that managed to sink $12 million into the Indy.

It is also the same city that picked a plan for the City Centre Airport, which promised to develop the site in such a way that it acknowledges the fact that it was once an airport.

I am sure that a nod to the airport warms the cockles of your heart.

You are probably waiting for the day that you can take the kiddos there and tell them that the land was once an airport.

Another amazing contradiction issued from the mouth of our mayor: Apparently, he thinks that we should make sure that traffic lights in the city are properly synced so that cars can move along freely.

Geez, I would have thought that leaving them the way they are just might encourage people to use rapid transit as it becomes more readily accessible. Seems to me that to make our transit system work well, we will have to wean people off their cars.

Leaving them to stew in stop-and-go traffic just might be one way of doing that.

Then again, maybe the mayor wants people to be able to access the parkade that will be part of the redevelopment of the Bank of Montreal site.

Developers went to city hall last week to warn councillors that the city’s green plan just might bring suburban development to a halt.

That alone is a reason for us to go forward with the plan.

We are not going to be able to have it both ways.

Either we keep expanding ever outward or we really try to become a sustainable city.

If not, we will just be one more city of contradictions.