Mayor John Tory's Toronto

[salsa]

City is projecting that the residential taxes for an average house, will increase 3.2%. That's not matching the inflation rate.

Nor is the 6% TTC Metropass increase, or the water increase, or the garbage increase.

I'm not massively concerned about this - though that John Tory being so quickly outed as a pathological liar amuses me ...

I think Tory excludes the Scarborough subway tax from his "at or below the rate of inflation".

 

[salsa]

City is projecting that the residential taxes for an average house, will increase 3.2%. That's not matching the inflation rate.

Nor is the 6% TTC Metropass increase, or the water increase, or the garbage increase.

I'm not massively concerned about this - though that John Tory being so quickly outed as a pathological liar amuses me ...

I think Tory excludes the Scarborough subway tax from his "at or below the rate of inflation".

 

[Videodrome]

A lot of people seem to have a short memory. Someone named Ford was mayor when the Scarborough subway was approved.

Ann Hui ‏@annhui 10m10 minutes ago
Exec committee has decided to basically shelve the whole gender-neutral O Canada motion and not deal with it #TOpoli

That had to be the dumbest thing ever considered in Council...

 

[Riverdale Rink Rat]

I had no issue with the VRT, but it was never a very 'smart' tax -- a very blunt instrument. I don't really care if you own a car, but I do care how you use that car. Toll roads or CBD congestion charges are the way to go.

Tory is not a pathological or even egregious liar. He does say the odd dumb thing, but he can normally be trusted to make informed decisions and speak respectfully in public.

The whole nitpicking of the budget is hilarious. Ford raised fees and taxes, Miller raised fees and taxes, Tory will raise fees and taxes, because (unlike the GST, e.g.) our municipal taxation system is designed that way, but our municipal contracts and other costs rise with inflation and the needs of an expanding population.

I do think it's kind of fun to see how some of UT's more conservative members are happy to see Miller's policies enacted, now that they're coming out of the mouth of a 'right-wing' Mayor, who can be 'trusted fiscally'.

 

[DarnDirtyApe]

Well, you know, Tory is a progressive conservative despite all the hyperbole from Chow supporters during the election campaign.

When it comes down to it, wages are by far the largest component of the city budget, and we all know how badly Miller managed that file. In contrast, Tory has put the garbage workers on notice that full contracting out is an option (but not a certainty) so they will be sure to temper any excessive demands and generally stay on best behaviour.

 

[DarnDirtyApe]

The VRT was more of annoyance than anything else - yet another fee layered on top of property taxes, water bills, garbage fees, street parking fees, provincial vehicle registration fees, driver's license fees, and so on. The typical Toronto taxpayer who owns their own home and a car suffers death by a thousand cuts as various governments look for ways to balance their budget.

The money also went into general revenues, so was perceived (correctly) as a simple cash grab that penalized people fairly indiscriminately.

 

[salsa]

Well, you know, Tory is a progressive conservative despite all the hyperbole from Chow supporters during the election campaign.

Tory ran as a right wing Ford-lite candidate, not a progressive conservative. Now that Tory is reneging on some of his campaign promises, he's starting to look more like a progressive conservative.

 

[nfitz]

A lot of people seem to have a short memory. Someone named Ford was mayor when the Scarborough subway was approved.

A lot of people seem to have forgotten that not only did John Tory promise to keep that subway (on which almost nothing has been spent yet, so easily cancelled, especially given the master agreement with the province is still for LRT that doesn't cost Toronto anything), but he supported and funded Rob Ford's mayoralty campaign.

 

[Videodrome]

Tory ran as a right wing Ford-lite candidate, not a progressive conservative. Now that Tory is reneging on some of his campaign promises, he's starting to look more like a progressive conservative.

He did what he had to do to win the election and beat Ford Nayshun. Broken promises are part of politics.

 

[TheTigerMaster]

Tory ran as a right wing Ford-lite candidate, not a progressive conservative. Now that Tory is reneging on some of his campaign promises, he's starting to look more like a progressive conservative.

Seriously.

I've always known Tory to be a progressive conservative. When I heard he was running, I jumped at the opportunity to support him.

As the election campaign ramped up Tory was unrecognizable to me. Like you said, he was Ford-lite.

Now that's he's mayor, he's taken a very centre position.

This guy has been bouncing all over the political spectrum. I suppose he's going to pretend to be Ford-lite when it's politically convenient for him.

 

[TheTigerMaster]

A lot of people seem to have forgotten that not only did John Tory promise to keep that subway (on which almost nothing has been spent yet, so easily cancelled, especially given the master agreement with the province is still for LRT that doesn't cost Toronto anything), but he supported and funded Rob Ford's mayoralty campaign.

JT said what he needed to say to win. That includes supporting the subway.

 

[DarnDirtyApe]

Seriously, do you guys have any understanding how politics works? Most swing voters are uninformed and not particularly intelligent, so to win you need to craft a message that will resonate with enough of them to push you over the edge. Tory worked hard to siphon off enough Ford voters to win by making making the right noises about subways and taxes, and it worked.

 

[picard102]

A lot of people seem to have forgotten that not only did John Tory promise to keep that subway (on which almost nothing has been spent yet, so easily cancelled, especially given the master agreement with the province is still for LRT that doesn't cost Toronto anything), but he supported and funded Rob Ford's mayoralty campaign.

No one has forgotten, you bring it up any chance you get.

 

[Riverdale Rink Rat]

When it comes down to it, wages are by far the largest component of the city budget, and we all know how badly Miller managed that file.

No, we don't. Because no, he didn't. I know I'm flogging a dead horse, but still by far the best Mayor in my decades in Toronto. Although Tory is starting off with energy and promise.

 

[TheTigerMaster]

A lot of people seem to have forgotten that not only did John Tory promise to keep that subway (on which almost nothing has been spent yet, so easily cancelled, especially given the master agreement with the province is still for LRT that doesn't cost Toronto anything), but he supported and funded Rob Ford's mayoralty campaign.

I still don't get how someone seemingly intelligent such a John Tory could say something as profoundly stupid as this. It forces me to question his judgement.

'Doug is a smart, button-down, no-nonsense business person. If you're looking for a better-run government, Doug Ford is the kind of person you would want.'