Rob Ford's Toronto

[newearthling]

Re: Renata and and kids.
Renata is an adult and her enabling participation should be a fair point of discussion, if done with respect.
But some sensitivity is needed. Abuse victims do not always have the capacity for rational decisions. Their body is addicted to the drama, as it were.
As it turns out, she is probably also addicted to other things, which makes her stay with her abuser. (Or not, if the latest story is to be believed.)
This does not mean that posters here can mock her, and her specifically female body parts, in a gross and crude way. This is what happened the other week and should not be repeated.
RF's parenting style should be an ok topic of discussion because it is about Ford.
But making fun of the kids, or any kind of speculation about their looks is not ok.

 

[ShonTron]

Ford's children being scrutinised based on their looks or any other aspect is neither fair nor game.

Agreed, though I don't see malice in the OP. But a line was crossed and shouldn't be again - regarding Ford's children. Good to see the thoughtful reaction.

Please report posts that cross the line, mods may not see them otherwise (especially in this thread).

 

[TOBorn]

ROFOMOFO, Until you've walked a mile in the shoes of an abused woman, be it physical or psychological, it would be advisable to hold your judgement. It is a tough place to be, and I speak from experience. When you are either emotionally or financially beholden to another person it is surprisingly easy to lose yourself. At my father's funeral, many years ago, my sister, during the eulogy, very specifically pointed out my self-assurance and wished that she could be as assertive, never knowing that I was a very damaged and psychologically submissive woman at that time. Since then, due to her faith in me and out of necessity, I've 'grown a set'!

There are women out there who are putting on a very brave face but who are damaged beyond your understanding. We are mothers, sisters, daughters who prefer to struggle with our demons silently. We may professionally excel but, personally and intimately, what we are hiding is a wounded soul. Oft times, this is the result of an abusive relationship.

Rob Ford is a drunkard and a bully. His wife has to be suffering from self-esteem issues. It can sometimes be easier to allow yourself to succumb to the numbing enticement of substance abuse, whether it be alcohol or drugs, than to admit to your personal weakness. When you have committed to allowing yourself to be dependent on another individual it takes a lot of gumption to pull yourself out of that quagmire. Renata should be embraced, not lambasted, for her perceived weakness. Her children are innocent and should, most definitely, be left out of the discussion.

It took me quite some time to make the decision to respond to your request and I had to think, carefully, as to how much I was willing to divulge about my personal life, but in defence of Rob Ford's wife, whatever her motives are, and his innocent children, it was a risk worth taking. I am not a Rob Ford fan and I strongly believe he is a detriment to not only the City of Toronto but to democracy, itself.

I also believe that family is sacrosanct and, therefore, off limits to judgement.

 

[Parker]

ROFOMOFO, Until you've walked a mile in the shoes of an abused woman, be it physical or psychological, it would be advisable to hold your judgement.

Likewise, in the shoes of an abused man, be it physical or psychological.

 

[sublime]

If we stop to gaze upon a star
People talk about how bad we are
Ours is not an easy age
We're like tigers in a cage
What a town without pity can do

 

[sweetlou]

Is Rob Ford going deaf, or is he just completely unable to come up with an off-the-cuff response to a simple question? I've seen him mis-hear (intentionally?) quite a few questions recently, and just now I saw a CityTV reporter ask him what he intended do do with all those Easter eggs. He answered "Spend it with my family".

"All thousands of them?" she responded. And she was like two feet from him and there was not a lot of surrounding noise.

Not unlike the way he came up with the "Meryl Candidate" response in LA. He's been trained to pop out a talking point on demand.

 

[sweetlou]

ROFOMOFO, Until you've walked a mile in the shoes of an abused woman, be it physical or psychological, it would be advisable to hold your judgement. It is a tough place to be, and I speak from experience. When you are either emotionally or financially beholden to another person it is surprisingly easy to lose yourself. At my father's funeral, many years ago, my sister, during the eulogy, very specifically pointed out my self-assurance and wished that she could be as assertive, never knowing that I was a very damaged and psychologically submissive woman at that time. Since then, due to her faith in me and out of necessity, I've 'grown a set'!

There are women out there who are putting on a very brave face but who are damaged beyond your understanding. We are mothers, sisters, daughters who prefer to struggle with our demons silently. We may professionally excel but, personally and intimately, what we are hiding is a wounded soul. Oft times, this is the result of an abusive relationship.

Rob Ford is a drunkard and a bully. His wife has to be suffering from self-esteem issues. It can sometimes be easier to allow yourself to succumb to the numbing enticement of substance abuse, whether it be alcohol or drugs, than to admit to your personal weakness. When you have committed to allowing yourself to be dependent on another individual it takes a lot of gumption to pull yourself out of that quagmire. Renata should be embraced, not lambasted, for her perceived weakness. Her children are innocent and should, most definitely, be left out of the discussion.

It took me quite some time to make the decision to respond to your request and I had to think, carefully, as to how much I was willing to divulge about my personal life, but in defence of Rob Ford's wife, whatever her motives are, and his innocent children, it was a risk worth taking. I am not a Rob Ford fan and I strongly believe he is a detriment to not only the City of Toronto but to democracy, itself.

I also believe that family is sacrosanct and, therefore, off limits to judgement.

Thank you for this. My story has some similarities and it's a long time in the past. But the threats from a partner - whether of physical or emotional abuse or the "I'll kill myself if you don't ..." variety - serve to keep an abused woman in line. Many of us were raised to believe that if only we looked prettier, or lost weight, or were better cooks, or improved on any other imaginary failing, that our man would stop the abuse and love us more. In short, many women are sadly lured into believing that any abuse is all their fault. Over time, the constant denigrations and criticisms lead to such low self esteem that you begin to believe that you simply can't make it by yourself.

Add to that Rob's known tendency to a short temper and physical confrontation, and the fact that the Fords control the money, and Renata is in an impossible position. You can bet dollars to donuts that the Fords have threatened that she'll not see her children if she leaves Rob.

So yes I suppose she's an enabler but she is also quite likely to be unable to see her way clear. Living with Rob must be hell.

 

[PinkLucy]

Why would someone get prescribed oxy?

For pain. I was prescribed it recently. I didn't take it, however.

 

[animatronic]

What?
She's a fitness competitor. She looks amazing. Great abs and yet amazing legs and shoulders.

You must prefer the heffer types.

That whole family has some rather extreme relationships with body image and self image. Certainly there is an over-emphasis on physical dimensions of self-worth over the mental or emotional. It's like everyone made it to grade 10 and then just stopped.

 

[euler]

That whole family has some rather extreme relationships with body image and self image. Certainly there is an over-emphasis on physical dimensions of self-worth over the mental or emotional. It's like everyone made it to grade 10 and then just stopped.

... I don't think there's anything wrong at all with what she's doing :S In fact, the bodies of the rest of her family probably drove her to get involved in fitness. I don't know her personally, but she looks pretty darn good. Of course it's going to look a bit unnatural when she's flexing, but built men look a bit ridiculous when they flex too.

 

[FraudNation]

Haha bokeh, I hope you keep it up, you crazy bastard.

So, the consensus is that Robbie can continue to parade his kids and happy wife around, but no one is permitted to comment.

Might as well believe that what he does in "personal time" is none of your beeswax as well.
Like, it was perfectly acceptable for your Mayo to consort with known women abusing (alleged)extortionist drug dealer while fucked up?

This thread seems to be Stockholm'd.
This is fucked, Daddy

 

[Admiral Beez]

ROFOMOFO, Until you've walked a mile in the shoes of an abused woman, be it physical or psychological, it would be advisable to hold your judgement.

I don't know about that logic. So, if I haven't been a serial murderer or rapist, I can't judge them? By your logic, we can't judge anything outside of our own personal experience.

 

[jml]

So, the consensus is that Robbie can continue to parade his kids and happy wife around, but no one is permitted to comment.

We have drawn a distinction between commenting on Rob Ford's deficiencies as a father versus actually making fun of the physical appearance of his kids, which is what happened a couple of pages back to spark this whole discussion. If you can't draw this kind of distinction, then yes, you should probably just not talk about his kids at all.

FFS, if we can't hold onto the moral high ground over a guy who quite possibly engineered a prison beating, we're in rough shape.

 

[TOBorn]

I don't know about that logic. So, if I haven't been a serial murderer or rapist, I can't judge them? By your logic, we can't judge anything outside of our own personal experience.

Why would you want to pass judgement on a victim? A rapist or murderer perpetrate illegal and amoral crimes. All criminals should be judged.

 

[JWBF]

On a more Mayor Rob Ford's Toronto topic... there are specific threads concerning transit but I thinks it's still important to keep an eye on public opinion if not just Robbie ignoring experts but not actually listening to "taxpayers".

Downtown relief line top priority for Torontonians: poll
http://www.cp24.com/news/downtown-relief-line-top-priority-for-torontonians-poll-1.1782766

Downtown Relief Line tops transit priority list: Poll
http://www.torontosun.com/2014/04/18/downtown-relief-line-tops-transit-priority-list-poll

And for those who still want to talk about family, and safety:

Rob Ford's campaign fire truck angers firefighters' union
https://ca.news.yahoo.com/rob-fords-campaign-fire-truck-angers-firefighters-union-164541520.html

Fire truck used as Ford's campaign prop a 'slap in the face': Firefighters' union
http://toronto.ctvnews.ca/fire-truc...slap-in-the-face-firefighters-union-1.1781736

And for those who like self absorption:

Don Peat ‏@reporterdonpeat 40m
Mayor Rob Ford is holding a community environment day today. He voted against these earlier this term but lost council vote

Community Environment Days
http://www1.toronto.ca/wps/portal/contentonly?vgnextoid=e20d433112b02410VgnVCM10000071d60f89RCRD

On first blush it appears that most of the early crowds showed up not for recycling per se but to see Ford. And of course he is talking about a lot of topics other than recycling, especially about his own recycling efforts. He didn't even bring anything to recycle.

The Fords have to be the best at taking things off topic.