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Rob Ford: Still smoking crack. On video. Taking leave of absence.
- Thread starter Divvy
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Just what is he expecting to come to light if he thinks now Toronto's opinion of him is as good as it's going to get?
Zombie James
Banned
Is he this stupid? Rhetorical question.
Rather than just resign, he's going to cost the city an early election. Good gravy.
You Are Viewtiful
Member
I am pretty sure he's not allowed to do that unless he resigns his seat on condition that council call a by-election (which I'm sure is a promise they don't have to keep). And since the election campaign is 9 months the only thing this means is that you will vote 3 months early. On the plus side, Ford isn't the mayor for at least 9 months.
Maybe the difference between those 3 months is when those videos will be released. That would be pretty strategic. Either way, he would lose.
Maybe the difference between those 3 months is when those videos will be released. That would be pretty strategic. Either way, he would lose.
Rules, schmules. He doesn't care. He thinks he has the final call on it. (He had to go to Wynne, though.) He also thinks Ford Nation is gonna save his ass.
Anyway, he's gonna get destroyed in any debate. The problem is twofold, though:
1) He simply won't show up for any debate. (Arrogance.)
2) Ford Nation won't tune in for any debate. (Ignorance.)
C00kie M0nster
Member
Having moved up here from the States, this infuriates me to no end, even ignoring how his approval rating went up. This just speaks volumes for the city and not in a good way.
One's way of thinking must be incredibly backwards to legitimize the notion that a ranking government official dealing with drug dealers and doing coke on a regular basis is no big deal.
People in the States complaining about their own government don't really know how good they have it. Seriously.
One's way of thinking must be incredibly backwards to legitimize the notion that a ranking government official dealing with drug dealers and doing coke on a regular basis is no big deal.
People in the States complaining about their own government don't really know how good they have it. Seriously.
Speculating what's contained within the redacted parts of the documents is a waste of time.
IISANDERII
Member
Apparently he's making some announcement today [on his radio station?]. Anybody know what site to go to for listening?
And they just showed him kicking reporters out of an underground parking lot. Guess he was right to do it but he's such a douche bag.
And they just showed him kicking reporters out of an underground parking lot. Guess he was right to do it but he's such a douche bag.
Q
qizah
Unconfirmed Member
Or you can just listen to his show from 1-3pm EST.
http://www.newstalk1010.com/shows/robford.aspx
I won't listen to it though because it's excruciating listening to him and his brother speak.
I'm going to chalk it up to vocal minority. No way in hell he gets re-elected (if he does,shame on Toronto and shame on the other candidates).
That said, the political landscape is way worse in America. Don't get me wrong, Ford is a huge embarrassment but at the end of the day, a mayor here just isn't that powerful. The dude hasn't had support of the council in a very long time, making him a lame duck.
He may have a huge uphill battle to actually winning his job back, but he'd have the advantage in that he's [likely] ready (and has been in for a while it seems) to go out and campaign. Do any of the other candidates have any of that infrastructure in place yet?
Liberty4all
Banned
To be fair even the Sun came out against him while still lauding his fiscal conservatism. Personally I'll likely vote for him again. I'm glad Scarborough is finally getting a badly needed subway.
What does "badly needed" mean though?
By "a lot of" you're referring to less than a million in city council spending over 44 council members, which he did in his first year -- you'll recall, the first year in which he inherited a $350,000,000 surplus from Miller and Ford blew through it to a $774,000,000 deficit, which resulted in massive service cuts, raised taxes, raised TTC fares just to get back in the black.
The Interrobanger
Member
The fuck?
Makes sense to try and call an election before the video is made public (or before he's charged with a crime)
You know, to replace the SRT that doesn't actually need to be torn down and the only reason it was being torn down was because the Eglinton LRT that's ending at Kennedy Station would've instead continued along the SRT route making the SRT redundant. When the Eglinton LRT extension past Kennedy Station was scrapped it made the SRT proposed tear down completely unnecessary. "Badly needed" indeed.
.. and that, in a nutshell, is conservatism for you. Talk about reducing spending to get elected, and then do the exact opposite when in power.
Yeah, all good points. I was going to go for the fact that SRT has a daily ridership of 40,000 whereas the Sheppard Line -- which everyone agrees was an awful waste of money -- has a daily ridership of 50,000.
Liberty4all
Banned
He campaigned on getting Scarborough a subway, he got a subway. He said he would eliminate that extra license tax, he immediately did so. He has saved a bunch of money by privatizing garbage collection (also a campaign promise), and as mentioned above eliminated wasteful (borderline corruptive) spending of individual council member via discretionary budgets (including eliminating his own, leading by example).
No doubt Ford has a whole slew of personal flaws, however, for good or for ill he has kept the vast majority of the promises he campaigned on.
Many still support him because he does what he says he is going to do when campaigning.
No doubt Ford has a whole slew of personal flaws, however, for good or for ill he has kept the vast majority of the promises he campaigned on.
Many still support him because he does what he says he is going to do when campaigning.
You Are Viewtiful
Member
How about how all other transit plans like the one "badly needed" DRL are in limbo? Yonge North subway? Finch West LRT? Sheppard East LRT?
That licence tax was paid for by raising transit fares and property taxes. He didn't "get rid of" anything.
You think corrupt spending has been eliminated? What exactly is the job that best friend David Price is being paid $130k/yr for?
How about direct links to Toronto's organized crime? Do you think Montreal is falling apart because the mafia and construction industry are strangling the city? Toronto is joining the club.
1) He campaigned on getting everyone more subway lines. When he figured out that the money just didn't exist, this joke of a subway line was proposed and pushed through council despite a team of engineers repeatedly saying how wasteful it was and how much better served the city would be by an LRT.
2) He eliminated the extra license tax the year he blew through a budget surplus. You're kidding yourself if you don't think the raised taxes the next year didn't make up for it. It was $60 annually.
He also said he wouldn't raise taxes when he campaigned (and ended up raising them substantially).
3) He promised to outsource all of Toronto's waste collection. So far he's managed to do it in the West -- you know, despite the fact that Etobicoke was already outsourced from the start of amalgamation. The savings haven't been astounding yet, and considering the growing pains, I wouldn't say it was worth it.
4) Eliminating wasteful spending in city council was a strawman from the start. As I said earlier, in the long run the amount cut was so insignificant that it wasn't worth the time. This wasn't double-billing Conservative senators, this was people spending too much on supplies and staff. Do you know why both Fords are able to spend $0? It's because they're both multi-millionaires who inherited a fortune from their father.
He also campaigned on the promise that he'd eliminate half of the city councillors. That didn't happen.
For every campaign promise you've pointed out that he's kept, I've pointed out one he's broken. You're not looking at the big picture, you're just looking at the little things that have been marketed to you.
A subway with only three stops for all of Scarborough, versus the LRT plan that had many many more. That sounds like a shit deal to me. And remember he campaigned on not increasing taxes for it either, which he ended up breaking
He didn't privatize, he contracted it out.
Except the didn't. He only claims he has and well, he's a known liar. Any cursory look at the city's finances prove otherwise:
quotes from a Metro article destroying their saved Toronto 1 billion dollars claim
Except he's costing the city in so many other ways. We've become a laughing stock across the world, and now business are afraid of coming here because of him.
Yeah, so glad he's trying to get rid of corruptive practices at City Hall, except when he's not. He contracted out his business cards and those of his staff to his family's printing company at more than 4 times the cost of what it would've been if it was done in-house by the City. Great guy he is.
This doesn't sound borderline corrupt at all!
our populace is becoming stupid
my area shut down a much needed LRT because they couldn't do U-Turns with a right of way
fucking U turns. Ford voting area yay
The Elite
BOSS
You Are Viewtiful
Member
Chow and Stintz are up and ready to go I believe. I feel sorry for Tory though lol. I think Chow said she wanted to release her autobiography before the campaign starts but I guess that will have to wait.
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Anyway, let's have a wholesome discussion about Ford's "fiscal conservatism".
Toronto has one of the highest unemployment rate in the province at a whopping 7.9%, which is higher than the provincial 7.3% and national 6.9%.
Let's talk about youth unemployment now. I'm sure Ford Nation would be happy to know that the city is making educated youth drive out in droves with Toronto's disastrous 43.5% youth employment rate, the second lowest in the country after St. John's. Compare that to our neighbours, Ottawa at 56%, Hamilton at 58%, Kitchener-Waterloo at 59%. The innovation boom in these cities isn't so surprising anymore. Thanks for exporting your talent Toronto.
In 2010, before his worship took office, Toronto was ranked the best city in Canada to invest in by Site Selection Magazine, citing the 71 'corporate facilities' being built worth more than $1 million that create at least 50 jobs. By 2013, Toronto fell to 4th place, behind Hamilton, Quebec City, and Edmonton, with only 22 such facilities being built.
Of course the solution to all this is MORE fiscal conservatism. The type where you cut the gravy train on $4,000 expense accounts. Don't mind that $2 billion subway in the forest though, that place deserves a subway.
BigJonsson
Member
Ford wants the video released....lol
BigJonsson
Member
Whoa, he is apologizing about something
The Elite
BOSS
BigJonsson
Member
He has to make changes in his life.............took him long enough lol
Q
qizah
Unconfirmed Member
Rob Ford pity party session.
BigJonsson
Member
Liar liar pants on fire
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