I've had a few emails asking me when I'm going to write about the incident at Rob Ford's house yesterday evening. Here's Daniel Dale's account of what happened, if you're a bit behind.
The fact is, I don't want to write about this. This story annoys the shit out of me. Rob Ford is such an alienating figure in this city, that everybody either loves him or hates him. Depending upon which side of the fence you're on (no pun intended), this story simply reinforces your aforementioned decision.
Take my pal Freddie P, for example. He's the biggest Rob Ford apologist I know. Of course he sees this as the Toronto Star threatening the Mayor's security late at night. It doesn't matter that:
It was still bright outside
Dale was on public property the entire time
Dale clearly stated who he was and why he was there
All of that is irrelevant, because Rob Ford is defending his family. Those who love Rob Ford, love him even more because of stories like this. His fan base eats this shit up.
And if you don't like Rob Ford, this is yet another example of how ridiculous he has become. Rob Ford's first account of a controversy has never been accurate. Now, whether it's Marg Delahunty or Daniel Dale, Rob Ford's in danger. The most legitimate threat reported from Ford's house since he became mayor was his sister's ex-boyfriend who entered though the front door.
Another day, another silly controversy involving our mayor, and everybody will use the incident as further proof of how horrible / awesome Ford is. That's why the story annoys me and that's why I refuse to write about it.
This isn't a political blog. If it was, I'd have been writing all about the firing of Gary Webster and the new Rob and Doug Ford radio show, but there's more to life than Rob Ford. But I would like to bring attention to an article former Toronto Mayor Art Eggleton has written for the Globe and Mail.
It's aptly titled "This is no way to run a city" and here's an excerpt.
Toronto Mayor Rob Ford says a major decision by City Council on public transit policy is “irrelevant” because he doesn’t like the result. He then sends his hit squad to fire the Toronto Transit Commission’s general manager because he doesn’t like advice that doesn’t correspond to his own views.
This is no way to run a city. The mayor has to work with City Council. The law says City Council, not the mayor, is supreme. And don’t believe the bluster about his mandate from the people – most voted for him as a reaction to the ways of the former council, not because they supported every last detail in his platform that he follows only when convenient.
Every great leader understands the importance of building consensus. This is Rob Ford's greatest failure, his refusal to work with City Council. Art Eggleton says it best:
I had the privilege of serving 11 years as mayor of Toronto. I learned very quickly that the job is to bring people together, not drive them apart. The mayor’s office ought to be a place where, on difficult issues, you bring in all the stakeholders – many with opposing views – and hammer out practical solutions, solutions that move the city forward.
Eggleton concludes by stating Toronto can't afford to slip into mediocrity. With Rob Ford in office until 2014, mediocrity might be the best we can hope for.
I've mentioned I have a Toronto City Hall informant. I call him / her Cardinal. Cardinal just sent me an email following the city's deal reached with CUPE local 416 to avert a strike.
Here's Cardinal's email, in its entirety.
just so you and your blog followers know.... ford claims that there is no money in the budget for anything, yet they spent $20,000 at each transfer station to move the fence lines to within 15m from the road so that in the event of a strike/ lockout, the people picketing couldn't park on the property and would be fined for parking on the street. Also, they had warehouses rented out so that they could dump the city's waste there. That sounds like gravy to me.
The power struggle over what transit to build in Toronto continues at City Hall, with Mayor Rob Ford telling reporters, at his weekly weigh-in: “It’s all about subways.” An excerpt of the scrum follows.
Reporter: Mr. Mayor, some people at 11 o’clock are discussing the legal standard of scrapping Transit City and they are saying you may have overstepped your boundaries. What do you say?
Mayor: I didn’t overstep my boundaries, I did what the taxpayers want. They want subways, that’s it. They don’t want streetcars. I was out in Scarborough over the weekend, people came up to me and said, they want subways. That’s it.
Reporter: Is there any wiggle room for you on this issue?
Mayor: It’s the taxpayers. The taxpayers want…I was elected on subways, they want subways, I was out on Saturday, people want subways. That’s it.
Reporter: Do you think you’ll win this vote? It doesn’t seem like you have the votes.
Mayor: It’s all subways. It’s all about subways.
Reporter: What are you going to do though if council votes against that?
Mayor: All about subways. So, it’s the taxpayers that elected me to get the subways in and that’s what we’re going to do.
Reporter: So, you think that gives you authority to, if council votes against that.
Mayor: It’s like winning an election. So if they voted me in, that means [stutters a bit] I don’t win an election? It doesn’t make sense.
That makes sense. I'm so proud of our mayor when he argues so eloquently. Really, you can't argue with his logic, which clearly proves he had the authority to cancel Transit City.
Here's a little clip of TTC Commissioner Maria Augimeri riding the Finch bus. It's important public servants eat their own dog food to understand what regular folks have to put up with every day.
I'd like to see Rob Ford get himself from Etobicoke to City Hall via the TTC. From where he lives it's just a little walk, a bus to the Bloor subway line and then a transfer to the University subway line. I dare Rob Ford to try it once.
Meanwhile, the Globe and Mail (note, it's not just the Star) is reporting that Rob Ford's plan to cancel Transit City will cost us at least $65-million, and counting.
And I seem to recall his "guarantee" that there would be no service cuts with him as mayor, but the TTC is planning to reduce service on 62 surface routes. That certainly sounds like a cut to me. And of course fares are going up again, and that hike has nothing to do with the $65-million cost of killing Transit City.
One day, I hope to post an entry about Rob Ford riding the bus. As if.
I have one more photoshopped Rob Ford football kick that I'd like to share. This was emailed to me by Patrick Corrigan, editorial cartoonist for the Toronto Star.
I agree with Torstar chairman John Honderich when he says the blatant attempt by the mayor to block the flow of public information to one newspaper cannot go unchallenged. The blackout on press releases and notifications of public events is a clear and blatant abuse of power.
Prior to the Metro Bowl at the stadium formerly known as Skydome, Rob Ford kicked things off... literally. Here's the picture from the Toronto Star.
Over on Reddit, the redditors had some fun photoshopping Rob Ford all over the place. It sort of became a thing, so I thought I'd group a bunch of them here, for folks who actually know who Rob Ford is.
I have my very own Toronto City Hall informant. I've met this source and can vouch for his / her authenticity. I call him / her Cardinal.
Cardinal will report to me periodically regarding his / her observations at City Hall, particularly with regards to Rob Ford. Here's the first instalment from Cardinal.
Hey... I just found out that the $700 whatever million that this city is apparently in debt with, is actually more like $400 million... The car registration tax actaully brings in $300 million a year. So guess what's most likely going to happen.... the registration tax is most likely going to come back, as well as some other bullshit ploy, just to make Mr. Ford's administration look like they saved the day. The registration tax coming back is just speculation, but the figures about the deficit are straight from the top finance guy! Basically, Ford can wipe away the deficit in a year, but he's making it look like this big ordeal just so he can carry out his agenda and look like a hero. Not to mention that they just happened to find another $140 million lying around this week!
We're starting slow, but this could speed up quick. Stay tuned...
I've had a few emails asking me when I'm going to write about the incident at Rob Ford's house yesterday evening. Here's Daniel Dale's account of what happened, if you're a bit behind.
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The headline of today's Toronto Sun is "THAT KINDA DAY", but it's the picture of Rob Ford that makes it sing.
I've mentioned 
Here's a little clip of TTC Commissioner Maria Augimeri riding the Finch bus. It's important public servants eat their own dog food to understand what regular folks have to put up with every day.
