Rob Ford's Toronto

[Peepers]

Just to add to my above post I found out something interesting that the Globe & Mail reporter "neglected" to mention in his article.

The two "experts" quoted in the article, Messrs. Longo and Mascarin work for the Law firm Aird & Berlis. Guess who else works for Aird & Berlis? This guy!

http://www.airdberlis.com/Templates/Lawyers/LawyerBio.aspx?LawyerID=237&page=8

Why was this crucial fact left out of the article?

 

[adma]

So, big deal. Them big downtown law firms are so big and expansive, His Broomness is merely one fish in the barrel, he doesn't represent the whole shebang. I've never heard of Aird & Berlis being some lefty pinko socialist operation.

Oh, and Peepers, the way you capitalize Law and Lawyers reminds me of the way you capitalize Freedom.

 

[MetroMan]

Somebody asked me an interesting question. If Ford's verdict is confirmed, does that mean that any decisions and votes he made as Mayor and as part of Council are void retroactively to the the judgement?

I've discussed with a friend who's a lawyer and on one hand he was considered guilty as of November 26, 2012. But on the other, because Justice Hackland stayed the ruling for 14 days, and again the Divisional Court stayed it pending appeal, Ford's sentence will not be deemed to be in effect until after he loses his appeal.

However... if a critical vote or act takes place between the original verdict and the confirmation, a case could be made that Ford was effectively not Mayor and unimpowered to vote because he was found Guilty of a Conflict of Interest. His day to day business as Mayor will probably not have such influence as to go through such a constitutional soul searching but it's an interesting possibility to ponder.

 

[Automation Gallery]

I think he could win re-election if he runs in 2014 but as you point out, Ford will not stay out and will run again. The vote split will bring a progressive to power.

Hahaha, you are looking way to far ahead, i doubt those two would step on each others toes...just like Adam Vaughan wouldnt with Olivia

By the way, is a progressive another word for a left-wing politician

 

[ShonTron]

Unless it were a tie or single-vote decision in the mayor's/allies' favour, and he was present and voted, I don't think it matters at all. Even if so, council is free to vote in whatever way it decides and I wouldn't have thought about this.

 

[MetroMan]

Hahaha, you are looking way to far ahead, i doubt those two would step on each others toes...just like Adam Vaughan wouldnt with Olivia

Hey, I just want to have all the bases covered. After this is done, I really don't want to see or hear about Rob Ford again. Ever.

By the way, is a progressive another word for a left-wing politician

No, it just means progressive. I tend to fall in the left of centre camp but what I really want is a Mayor with a progressive vision for the City. Conservative candidates generally focus all their attention on cutting entitlements and services and miss the big picture as a result. On the other hand, I'm not pro-union and think that a lot of our public employees are paid way too much (i.e.TTC fare collectors). I don't think political ideology is as black and white as people like to think. I'd be willing to consider a Conservative like John Tory but I just haven't met many Conservatives that I like

 

[ttk77]

Hahaha, you are looking way to far ahead, i doubt those two would step on each others toes...just like Adam Vaughan wouldnt with Olivia

By the way, is a progressive another word for a left-wing politician

I wouldn't be so sure of that. Ford will run again because he's Ford. He hasn't, nor will he ever care what anyone else thinks or what anyone else's chances are. He thinks he should be mayor so he will run.

If asked privately and off the record I doubt you'd find a single councillor, with the exception of Doug Ford, who thinks Rob Ford should be mayor of this city. Those that still support him do so because he represents their agenda. If Holyday becomes interim mayor there will be immense pressure from the right, both on and off council for him to run again in the next election. He represents a right-wing agenda and he has a proven record of being able to effectively work with council. Holyday himself has been critical of Ford at times, and once Ford is out of office there will be absolutely no reason to remain loyal to him.

 

[Riverdale Rink Rat]

I wouldn't be so sure of that. Ford will run again because he's Ford. He hasn't, nor will he ever care what anyone else thinks or what anyone else's chances are. He thinks he should be mayor so he will run.

If asked privately and off the record I doubt you'd find a single councillor, with the exception of Doug Ford, who thinks Rob Ford should be mayor of this city. Those that still support him do so because he represents their agenda. If Holyday becomes interim mayor there will be immense pressure from the right, both on and off council for him to run again in the next election. He represents a right-wing agenda and he has a proven record of being able to effectively work with council. Holyday himself has been critical of Ford at times, and once Ford is out of office there will be absolutely no reason to remain loyal to him.

I'd be happy to support Holyday as long as his ideas make sense. It's the populist 'cut the fat and cut taxes but give the police a raise and get more officers and build subways' junk that drives me nuts.

 

[ttk77]

I'd be happy to support Holyday as long as his ideas make sense. It's the populist 'cut the fat and cut taxes but give the police a raise and get more officers and build subways' junk that drives me nuts.

Agreed, and I personally believe that the city works best when we alternate city builders with efficiency builders. After Miller and given the worldwide economic conditions I believe it was time for a more fiscally conservative candidate, but the type of neo-conservative philosophy popular today, and popular with Ford supporters (cut government, cut spending and cut taxes at any cost or thoughts on long term consequences), is nothing but destructive to a progressive society.

 

[Johnny Au]

I view a difference between left-wingers and progressives. Progressives are more willing to fight for social justice. Joe Pantalone considers himself a progressive, not a left-winger. I also consider myself a progressive as well. I am tired of the left-right dichotomy. It is better to build bridges across the spectrum rather than burning them. If there is a conservative person that I like, that person would be Karen Stintz, since she often cooperates with progressives. Yes, it would be best for progressives to appoint Doug Holyday (and we know that Rob Ford would run in 2014), thereby splitting the vote among fiscal conservatives, allowing a progressive to slip in a victory.

 

[toto]

Agreed, and I personally believe that the city works best when we alternate city builders with efficiency builders. After Miller and given the worldwide economic conditions I believe it was time for a more fiscally conservative candidate, but the type of neo-conservative philosophy popular today, and popular with Ford supporters (cut government, cut spending and cut taxes at any cost or thoughts on long term consequences), is nothing but destructive to a progressive society.

Agreed! Also, this notion that Ford is working hard for taxpayers by cutting, government, spending and taxes, is a myth. I don't know of anyone who is paying less taxes, since Ford became mayor. I'm paying a fair bit more than I saved with his VRT cut. Ford isn't working for taxpayers. He's lying to them, about working for them.

 

[voxpopulicosmicum]

Just to add to my above post I found out something interesting that the Globe & Mail reporter "neglected" to mention in his article.

The two "experts" quoted in the article, Messrs. Longo and Mascarin work for the Law firm Aird & Berlis. Guess who else works for Aird & Berlis? This guy!

http://www.airdberlis.com/Templates/Lawyers/LawyerBio.aspx?LawyerID=237&page=8

Why was this crucial fact left out of the article?

This is one of the lamest arguments I've seen in a while. Take some time to think before positing grand conspiracy theories. Even better, take some time to do a bit of research to see if your conspiracy theory holds water. If you had done that, you would have discovered that Mascarin also represents the Emery Village BIA, which last year undercut the Transit City push by rescinding its support for LRTs, a move some people thought (reasonably, I would say) was a Ford put-up job (isn't Mammoliti the local councillor?).

From the Globe:

Emery Village BIA lawyer John Mascarin writes that the group has “rescinded” its support of the 17-kilometre light-rail line that city councillors revived earlier this month.

“On behalf of the BIA Board of Management, we request that you ensure no decisions are made in regard to the Finch West LRT and public transit along Finch Avenue at this time from a provincial perspective,” writes Mr. Mascarin, a municipal affairs lawyer for Aird & Berlis LLP.

 

[Silence&Motion]

By the way, is a progressive another word for a left-wing politician

For the sake of this conversation, yes. Progressive sounds much better than "left-winger" or "left-wing politician". And "liberal" could be mistaken as referring to members of the Liberal Party, who are typically right-wing in municipal politics (e.g. Norm Kelly, George Smitherman, etc).

 

[ShonTron]

This is one of the lamest arguments I've seen in a while. Take some time to think before positing grand conspiracy theories. Even better, take some time to do a bit of research to see if your conspiracy theory holds water. If you had done that, you would have discovered that Mascarin also represents the Emery Village BIA, which last year undercut the Transit City push by rescinding its support for LRTs, a move some people thought (reasonably, I would say) was a Ford put-up job (isn't Mammoliti the local counsellor?).

He sure is. There's lots of things fishy about the whole Emery Village BIA - Mammo's influence, the giant flagpole, heck even the boundaries. (It's number 26, but it stands out anyway.)

 

[canmark]

Our next mayor? He's got a snappy slogan (YES, WE CANseco!), even better than Gravy Train.

http://yeswecanse.co/