Rob Ford's Toronto

[Peepers]

I think it is very likely that they have trying to shake him down for a while, and when the blackmail failed, or when he refused to pay any more, they went public with it.
….

Somehow I doubt that they went to Ford in an attempt to shake him down. In such a scenario Ford would have picked up the phone to Bill Blair and within hours these people would be charged with extortion and the phone confiscated and the video "safely" in the hands of Bill Blair. Under such a scenario the video would never see the light of day unless there were other copies and I am sure Blair would mount an all-out effort to find these.

 

[TheTigerMaster]

Somehow I doubt that they went to Ford in an attempt to shake him down. In such a scenario Ford would have picked up the phone to Bill Blair and within hours these people would be charged with extortion and the phone confiscated and the video "safely" in the hands of Bill Blair. Under such a scenario the video would never see the light of day unless there were other copies and I am sure Blair would mount an all-out effort to find these.

I think you're right.

This whole thing must be very nerve wracking for the video owner.

 

[Peepers]

I think you're right.

This whole thing must be very nerve wracking for the video owner.

Yes you can bet Toronto Police know his identity and you can also bet that there is an all-out attempt to get him. I can see him being arrested on trumped up charges of "intimidating a public official" and "violation of privacy".

I hope whoever has the video realizes that they do not have the luxury of time. If they think that they can wait around until the "crackstarter" fund hits $200K it might be too late! They could be behind bars or Ford may have already resigned which would make the video far less valuable. If as reported they were offered $40K they should have taken it with an agreement that they will own any future licensing rights.

 

[Electrify]

I've noticed the donations have been getting larger too. Yesterday it seemed that most donations were in the $10-$20 range, and while there are still plenty of those, I am now seeing a lot more $30-$50 donations. Heck, you don't have to scroll too far down the list to find multiple contributors donating $100 each! The average donation, not including Gawker's, is at $17.86 - though with what I've pointed out above, it most likely has a very wide standard deviation.

Seems unlikely that it will hit $100,000 by midnight, but if trends continue it should reach it by Sunday night.

 

[Johnny Au]

I've noticed the donations have been getting larger too. Yesterday it seemed that most donations were in the $10-$20 range, and while there are still plenty of those, I am now seeing a lot more $30-$50 donations. Heck, you don't have to scroll too far down the list to find multiple contributors donating $100 each! The average donation, not including Gawker's, is at $17.86 - though with what I've pointed out above, it most likely has a very wide standard deviation.

Seems unlikely that it will hit $100,000 by midnight, but if trends continue it should reach it by Sunday night.

I suspect that the donations are fewer but larger as well, which explains why momentum is slowing, the average needed per minute is also dropping, and the average donation per person is increasing.

 

[Electrify]

Went by Spacing's website on my browsing rounds:

Thursday's headlines
Mayor Ford being investigated by city after putting magnets on cars [Globe & Mail]

Friday's headlines
Rob Ford in ‘crack cocaine’ video scandal [Toronto Star]

Well, that escalated quickly...

 

[TheTigerMaster]

Went by Spacing's website on my browsing rounds:



Well, that escalated quickly...

 

[adma]

Re sex scandals and Canadian politics: don't forget the Munsinger affair. (Yet all those past scandals--even the Maggie T/Stones one, in its way--really belong to an era before the aggressive "tabloid-ization" of the present.)

 

[HDLtd]

Is the next question ( if Rob Ford does indeed smoke crack) does he drive under the influence of crack? In that scenario, it starts to make you look differently at him stubbornly refusing a driver... Especially if the video is of him during the day?

 

[Tulse]

Yes you can bet Toronto Police know his identity and you can also bet that there is an all-out attempt to get him. I can see him being arrested on trumped up charges of "intimidating a public official" and "violation of privacy".

If the police are trying to protect Ford, the very last thing they would want to do is officially arrest the video owner, since the video would then be evidence and in the public record.

 

[TheTigerMaster]

Is the next question ( if Rob Ford does indeed smoke crack) does he drive under the influence of crack? In that scenario, it starts to make you look differently at him stubbornly refusing a driver... Especially if the video is of him during the day?

It makes you look differently at him about everything.

 

[Peepers]

If the police are trying to protect Ford, the very last thing they would want to do is officially arrest the video owner, since the video would then be evidence and in the public record.

Cops have been known to tamper with evidence. If its in Blair's best interest to protect Ford's ass (so that Blair can get a multi-million $ five year contract extension) I have no doubt that Blair would not stop at anything. Even if the video is preserved as evidence remember it can take years for cases like this to go to trial and the public would only see the video at the conclusion of the trial. The police could also make an arrest and then drop the charges at a later date and return the phone to the owner with the video deleted. Don't think for a second that TPS are going to necessarily act above-board in a case like this! Remember we are dealing with a Police Chief who refuses to co-operate with the SIU which is a law-enforcement agency!

 

[ShonTron]

As much as I love a conspiracy involving the TPS brass and/or the Toronto Police Association, I don't buy it this time. Ford has become pretty much a lame duck, unable to control the agenda at city hall even if he could run (and could even win) in the next election. I imagine Blair knows this and wouldn't be looking to suppress evidence in this matter - if he did, it'd make things only worse if a new mayor gets into office.

 

[ShonTron]

Unless it can be proven that the video is some elaborate hoax involving computer graphics I don't think that there is any question that Rob Ford's political career is finished. It's just a matter of time before the video comes out and if it shows what it is purported to show Ford will be forced to resign within hours. I also think Doug's political career is finished. With Rob Ford out of the political picture I think another person whose political aspirations will be seriously damped is Olivia Chow. I am sure the people who have been pushing her for Mayor (the Toronto Star being her number one promoter - commissioning expensive push-polls every second week!) were hoping she would be going head-to-head with Rob Ford. Since this seems very unlikely I think that we will see some formidable challengers from the right emerge making it more difficult for Chow to win a mayoral election. I wonder if this is why the Toronto Star sat on this story until Gawker forced their hand? Were they hoping to keep it in their vault until later days of the next election to use as an "October surprise".

Oh, Peepers. The Toronto Star wasn't "sitting" on this story, they were still working on it, looking for more corroboration and information. You know, responsible journalism. Gawker's publication of this story had the Star scrambling to put out what they had.

Doolittle and Donovan are both great, hard-working journalists without political agendas. I don't doubt what they say. Kevin Donovan helped break the ORNGE scandal, after all.

 

[TheTigerMaster]

As much as I love a conspiracy involving the TPS brass and/or the Toronto Police Association, I don't buy it this time. Ford has become pretty much a lame duck, unable to control the agenda at city hall even if he could run (and could even win) in the next election. I imagine Blair knows this and wouldn't be looking to suppress evidence in this matter - if he did, it'd make things only worse if a new mayor gets into office.

I think that the fears of TPS getting ahold of the video are unwarranted. I'm much more afraid the guy will delete it. It feels like the future of this city is held on a single USB stick.