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Rob Ford's Toronto

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CJan said:
I didn't understand her point about "I’m a migraine sufferer and taking public transit is hard on me." Huh? What about all the people
who suffer from asthma? It's okay for them to put up with car pollution because she suffers from migraines?
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I don't quite understand her point. I'm also a migraine sufferer and I've taken transit every day for the last 20 years without issue. When a migraine hits, you're in for agony regardless of how you get your ass home to curl into a tight ball of pain and nausea in a pitch black room, so why use it as a con for public transit?
 
expat said:
bingo - of all the things to praise Ford for, vision is bottom of the list. Coming out of a recession, I can definitely see why some people like the idea of a belt-tightener. I can also see why people appreciate the 'retail politician' aspect that makes previously ignored or marginalized people feel respected and included.

but as a 'leader,' Ford is just a walking balance sheet. I literally have no idea what Ford's vision for the city is, after nearly 4 years in power. I know he wants to cut taxes, I guess, but which ones? Why? To what end? Are there things he's willing to pay for? What is fat and what is meat, when he's cutting? What if two similar taxes are side-by-side and we can only cut one - which would he prefer? What does Ford want this city to look like in 5, 10, 50 years? We have no idea (though I think some people might project onto him.)

I've said it before: a group of highschool math students could balance the city's books - it's not complicated. The complicated part is the vision: is laying out a plan for how you want the city to be, and a road map to get there. That means clearly spelling out what's important, making tough choices, taking a stand, and balancing tactics with strategy. He's done none of that, ever.

I'll hear people out if they want to applaud him for bringing discipline to city hall spending, or for engaging at the grass-roots - especially at the margins. But to describe him as visionary, in any way, tells me that you're not ready to be taken seriously at all.
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The idea of Rob Ford as a "visionary" reminds me of the beginning of the movie Envy, where Ben Stiller is annoyed with Jack Black for claiming to have "invented" a solution for dog poop when all he did was think it would be cool if you could just make dog poop disappear.

Regarding the balance sheet, I think we have seen over and over again that Rob Ford doesn't comprehend that the ledger has at least two sides, or what they are for. He is proud of cancelling the VRT, so he counts that amount as his "savings". He doesn't appear to understand the concept of cost/benefit, just that cost is bad.
 
Yaitsme said:
Was this on the twitter?
And yeah. His brain must be just fried.
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Yup, and it was actually just before 2, not 1. The guy posted a pic of his phone, caller M. Rob Ford and the time stamp on twitter and his phone were about an hour apart. He said it was almost 2 when the call came in.
 
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expat said:
Are there things he's willing to pay for?
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surprised you had to ask this, but yeah... SUBWAYS SUBWAYS SUBWAYS

get those plebes off the road so i can wheel my 'lade downtown with alacrity

oh, and cyclists? yeah, let's spend a bit on paved paths through parks and get them off the roads too
 
"Remember when u said they took the Canadian flag down & replaced it with rainbow flag LOL- little fib-lil bit lil bit"
https://twitter.com/blahblahto/status/496287348158906369

View attachment 30814

"Pressing the flesh: To meet people in person, particularly at an event where you can network with other people."

View attachment 30812

"This just happened. Mayor Rob Ford just called me back it's almost 2am. what a boss."
https://twitter.com/jonogreener/status/496156393423245312/photo/1

View attachment 30813

"Rob Ford a no-show at BBQ, chief of staff says he never confirmed, organizer has confirmation email. Another day: http://on.thestar.com/1kgv1Nk"
https://twitter.com/ddale8/status/496099011292459009
 
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wombat said:
I can't reveal the source. Sorry. But I do have inside information.
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The Golem said:
Ford's not a visionary, he's a short-sighted idiot. I was down at Sugar Beach yesterday. There are billions of dollars worth of condo development going up which will make use of that little park. If anything, the city should be investing more money along the lakefront, putting in more all-season parkettes and alternatives to the concrete landscape for the citizens, the taxpayers, the folks who will be moving into that area.
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The resistance to the mayor’s ambitions is revealing: it comes from patrician Toronto hipsters who, it must be said, like their leaders to look and act just like them. These are the infamous “latte-sipping elites,†those downtowners who refer to themselves in the ironical and who are gleefully taking Ford to task for his appetites and the videos they’ve spawned. Read More... http://goo.gl/CXYFFq

I have inside info too, which is why I was asking, Wombat. I've heard she's a part-time dominatrix and gets her kicks by writing this provocative sh*t. *Cannot" reveal my source :)
 
What really kills me about the "Rob Ford is for the regular guy" line is that he really really isn't. It recently came out that most parks in Toronto require private money for them to be kept updated, the private money goes to the parks in the wealthier areas, which means that when Rob Ford votes against public dollars being used to maintain or redo parks (like he did recently) he's really voting against having parks in poorer neighbourhoods redone and maintained. Wealthier neighbourhoods can and do take care of their own parks, poorer neighbourhoods don't have that option. He literally votes against regular people all of the time. He also at one point made a comment about a proposed condo development that would include TCHC housing and market rate housing that would be on the waterfront, essentially stating that poor people shouldn't get homes on the waterfront. Not to mention that having cars in the city is expensive and being pro car and anti public transit is in it's essence turning his back on poor people. Argh!
 
I think it's more accurate to say that Ford appeals to selfish people. And there's no shortage of them in all tax brackets and demographics.
 
fattiger said:
The resistance to the mayor’s ambitions is revealing: it comes from patrician Toronto hipsters who, it must be said, like their leaders to look and act just like them. These are the infamous “latte-sipping elites,†those downtowners who refer to themselves in the ironical and who are gleefully taking Ford to task for his appetites and the videos they’ve spawned. Read More... http://goo.gl/CXYFFq

I have inside info too, which is why I was asking, Wombat. I've heard she's a part-time dominatrix and gets her kicks by writing this provocative sh*t. *Cannot" reveal my source :)
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Send me a private message and we'll talk.
 
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