Tag: toronto

City planner Jennifer Keesmaat: Today Toronto, tomorrow the world

by Mitch Wolfe, posted in Politics

(CONTENT WARNING: Satire) High profile Toronto Chief Planner Jennifer Keesmaat suddenly resigned her position yesterday.

According to anonymous and unreliable union sources employed at City Hall, Keesmaat – frustrated by being muzzled by Mayor John Tory during the recent epic debate surrounding the fate of the eastern portion of Gardiner Expressway – decided to throw in the towel, and called it quits at City Hall.

Keesmaat had also publicly gone on Twitter and publicly tweeted her support for her position and tried to shame Tory into changing his position.

“@johntory: tyme2 show some cojones+ #deep6GardEast” – @jen_keesmaat

“@johntory: bikes be4 hiways, bro! Yur hybrid=another DumbTrack” – @jen_keesmaat

It did not help Ms. Keesmaat with the mayor and his supporters on council when in March, at an event hosted by the Urban Land Institute, Keesmaat embarrassed Mayor Tory by publicly correcting Mayor Tory, not once but twice when Tory was called upon to respond to questions about the planner’s budget.

Obviously referring to Toronto’s previous mayor as well, Keesmaat was heard to mutter, “What’s the deal with you old white guys? Why is math so difficult for you guys?”

According to the Globe & Mail, Keesmaat also did not endear herself to certain male councillors repping the Toronto suburbs, when she referred to them, as “insufferable Neanderthal knuckle-dragging troglodytes” for their continued support of the use of the automobile as a means of transport from the suburbs of Etobicoke, North York and Scarborough to downtown Toronto and throughout the GTA.

To his credit James Pasternak, councilor for North York Ward 10, had previously publicly criticized Keesmaat for her highly impolitic comments when, referring to Keesmaat, he stated, “To take to the air waves and trumpet your own  personal beliefs when you’re serving a city council and serving a mayor, for many around here, that’s going too far.”

To Keesmaat and her loony leftist supporters on City Council, such as Joe Mihevc and Paula Fletcher,  “cars and trucks should neither be seen or heard south of Highway 401”.

If Keesmaat had the power, she would ban cars and trucks from downtown Toronto entirely.

Rumour has it that Keesmaat has been urged to throw her hat in the political ring and challenge Mayor Tory in 2018.

Maggie Atwood, political activist and sometime author recently took to Twitter.

“@jen_keesmaat: We got yur back. #BuryGardiner+Toryin2018” – @MargaretAtwood

As Keesmaat was leaving City Hall, she sounded almost Churchillian as she issued these parting words to her cheering supporters and the press:

“We may have lost this battle against cars, but we have not lost the war against cars.

“As for you gas-guzzling and carbon-emitting suburbanites, we shall fight you on the Lakeshore. We shall fight you in the Beaches. Er, Beach. Whatever.

“We shall fight you in the hills (Forest Hill) and the valleys (Rosedale.)

“We shall never allow this island of old and new wealth and white privilege to be befouled by you and your kind and your mobile instruments of death and destruction.”

It looks like we have not heard the last of the unsinkable and unstoppable Jennifer Keesmaat.

Leafs blame Residential Schools for decades of losses, demand reparations

by Mitch Wolfe, posted in Entertainment

(CONTENT WARNING: Satire) Yesterday, Maple Leaf President Brendan Shanahan held a press conference to announce the findings of a five year investigation by the Maple Leaf organization into the cause of the Leafs’ decades of incompetence, ineptitude and simply lousy hockey.

Standing outside of the former Maple Leaf Gardens on Carlton Street – now Loblaws, a fancy fruit and produce emporium – and flanked by former Leaf legends Wendel Clark and Doug Gilmour – Shanahan  laid the blame for the Maple Leafs’ horrible decline since the 1960s on the notorious Catholic Church-sponsored residential school system.

According to the Shanahan, up until 1968 (1967 being the last year that the Leafs won the Stanley Cup) the Leafs had won thirteen Stanley Cup championships, second only to the twenty-four championship, won by their arch rival, the Montreal Canadiens.

But apparently during the 1968 hockey season, then Leaf captain George “the Chief” Armstrong (whose mother was part Ojibway) often spoke in the locker room about the experience of his distant second cousin by marriage. As a young Ojibway man, several decades prior to the 1968 hockey season, Armstrong’s cousin was a day student at the residential school near George’s hometown.

This school was run by Catholic nuns and they demanded that George’s cousin wear a jacket, shirt, tie and grey flannel pants every day to class, be on time, do his homework and study every night. The nuns would rap his knuckles every time he failed to do or complete his homework. Furthermore, the nuns would not let his cousin play his beloved hockey unless he successfully completed his studies.

According to Shanahan, Armstrong’s teammates were shocked by this blatant mistreatment of George’s second cousin. Over the subsequent years, Armstrong would retell this horrible tale again and again to his distraught teammates.

And after awhile, consistent with the Leafs’ oral tradition, even after Armstrong’s retirement as a Leaf,  this apocryphal story would be passed on, season after season to subsequent Leaf teams.

According to Shanahan, the impact of this residential school story on the Toronto Maple Leafs has been profound, the damage seemingly permanent.

Since 1968 the Toronto Maple Leafs have never won a Stanley Cup championship. Since 1969 the same Leafs had never even made it to the final series of a Stanley Cup championship.

The Leafs’ historic culture of fishing for the puck around the net and aggressively hunting for goals has been dramatically transformed to a culture of  defeat and dysfunction. A never-ending cycle of dependence on booze (beer commercial endorsements) and drugs (to deaden the pain of perpetual defeat and vicious cross-checks by opposing players,) especially among the younger players on the Maple Leaf teams.

Shanahan did admit that the white British colonizers (the Weston family, owners of Loblaws) brutally taking the hallowed lands of the Leafs – the Gardens on Carlton – in part contributed to the Leafs’ downfall.

The loss of CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada dealt another blow to the Leafs’ fortunes.

Accordingly, Shanahan issued a set of 94 demands which must be implemented immediately by the NHL and the Wynne and Harper governments.  Prominent among the demands:

A full apology by the Pope to current and past Leaf players and their victimized fans.

A full restoration of funding to the CBC and the return of Hockey Night in Canada.

The replacement of hockey host George Stromboulopoulos with the dynamic duo of Don Cherry and Rod McLean.

The press conference concluded as hundreds of Leaf Nation survivors gathered around Shanahan, Clark and Gilmour in healing circles, locked hands, swayed and chanted together: “Go Leafs, Go.”

Toronto Globe’s Antipathy Towards the Fords Has Tainted Its Coverage of Olivia Chow, John Tory

by Mitch Wolfe, posted in John Tory, Olivia Chow, Politics

I have been reading the Toronto Globe and Mail, religiously, for over 40 years.

At one time, the Globe was considered very highly as Canada’s national paper, “The New York Times (NYT) of the North”.

Note this was during the golden newspaper years of “The Pentagon Papers” and “Watergate” when the Washington Post and NYT were the “go to” media for objective, unbiased reporting and analytical and critical commentary.And the Globe was not far behind.

But today, the Globe- a mere shadow of its former glory.

I must confess. I still enjoy reading some Globe’s columnists. Liz Renzetti’s Saturday column is always sharp and funny. Ian Brown still writes beautifully.

Margaret Wente still impresses me with her courageous anti-liberal writing. And Liam Lacey’s film reviews are consistently bang on.

I also miss the excellent political reporting of Karen Howlett, former Queen’s Park senior reporter, who was always tough, but fair and never pulled any punches- with any politician regardless of political or ideological background.

But the same cannot be said for the current crop of Globe urban reporters and columnists- especially those involved with the almost year long Toronto mayoral election.

Globe’s professionalism

Okay. I get it. The Globe and its staff were so turned off by the personal problems of Mayor Rob Ford ( the crack smoking, the alcoholism, the inappropriate language while inebriated) that it parked its journalistic integrity at the door, when it came to reporting on Rob Ford.

I do not agree with this position. It reflects badly on the Globe’s professionalism.

But what I further do not understand is why has the Globe failed to hold to account the other candidates- Olivia Chow and John Tory.

From practically the moment Chow entered the race in March, 2014, her campaign was in trouble.

Although Chow had name recognition and was known as popular Jack Layton’s spouse, Chow also carried a ton of political baggage. She was feared as an extreme “tax and spend” lefty, way to the left of David Miller and closer to the scary John Sewell.

Many Toronto voters had never forgiven her for living in a subsidized three bedroom co-op unit while her family income exceeded $120, 000. Chow also had a negative reputation for having one of the highest office and personal expense budgets of all Ontario federal politicians.

Right out of the box, she insulted and alienated a majority of the Toronto voters in the vote-rich suburbs of Etobicoke, North York and Scarborough with her proposal to terminate the very popular and fully funded Scarborough subway for a third-rate bus and LRT solution.

Her first debate was a disaster. She was clearly defeated by Rob Ford. Chow came across in that debate as inarticulate, uninformed, confused and unintelligent.

I believe that Chow never recovered from that disastrous performance and her campaign went downhill from there.

But as to the Globe reporters, they ignored all of Chow’s negative baggage and they ignored her poor debating style,  her uninspiring speeches and her unpopular policies.

Instead, it appeared the Globe reporters and analysts tried to prop up Chow for months with biased and uncritical “puff” pieces as indicated herein. (Here, Here, and Here)

It took the Globe about 7 months (September, 2014) to publicly admit that Chow’s election was in serious trouble.

But consistent with its anti-Ford bias, the Globe then turned to propping up and implicitly promoting John Tory, by once again failing to do its journalistic job and critically holding Tory to account.

For example, the Globe failed to take Tory to task for his classless personal attack on Doug Ford on the very day Doug announced that his brother Rob had cancer, was withdrawing and Doug was taking his place in the campaign.

Secondly, the Globe failed to properly call into question the gaps in John Tory’s business career- ie his many years of being on the board of directors of Charter Communications which went into bankruptcy.

The Globe also failed to question how John Tory with very little media experience could be hired as CEO of Rogers Media by family friend, Ted Rogers.

Recall Ted Rogers was first a lawyer at the firm founded by John Tory’s father and uncle, Torys. And then Ted Rogers and Rogers Communications became a major client of the same firm.

In this instance, the Globe failed miserably to ask and answer the musical question, “If John Tory’s last name was “Smith”, would John “Smith” have had any business career?”

The Globe’s crack investigative team also failed to delve into John Tory’s involvement with Rogers’ publicly disastrous “negative option billing scheme, during Tory’s time at Rogers Media.

In a Toronto Region Board of Trade debate, Tory had the chutzpah to deny that he was at Rogers when negative option billing was introduced.

In fact, I recall Tory was hired in 1995, one month after this negative option billing policy was introduced at Rogers Cable. And I remember distinctly that John Tory was given the task of managing consumer opposition to this Rogers’ policy, where consumers were additionally billed for services to which they had not consented.

Instead of critically analyzing Tory’s business career, the Globe instead hit a new journalistic low with its recent so-called expose of Doug Ford’s business experience at his family firm, Deco Labels.

Crack investigative journalist Robyn Doolittle, ( remember her from the Rob Ford crack video expose) thought she made a journalistic scoop by revealing that Doug Ford’s attempt to set up New Jersey branch met with failure.

Conversely, she proved that Doug Ford was a superior businessman to Tory, because Doolittle’s article instead revealed that Doug Ford single-handedly turned a non-existent Chicago office into a successful operation, purely as a result of his own efforts.

Ironically, other large Canadian companies, unlike Deco Labels-Chicago- failed to succeed in the United States ( ie Royal Bank, Canadian Tire and Peoples Credit Jewelers, to name a few). So the fact that Deco Labels- New Jersey failed, does not detract from Doug Ford’s success in the tough American market.
In sum, how the mighty Globe has fallen.

The Globe’s failure to hold Fords’ opponents to account during this mayoral election has called into question its journalistic integrity and objectivity.

Time will tell whether the Globe will ever recapture its journalistic reputation.

Mayoral Candidate Olivia Chow’s Disturbing Support for Queers Against Israeli Apartheid

by Mitch Wolfe, posted in John Tory, Olivia Chow, Politics

In a recent Toronto mayoral debate,  leading mayoral candidate John Tory reopened the debate about whether the controversial Toronto group, known as Queers Against Israeli Apartheid (QuAIA) should be permitted to march in the very popular annual summer Toronto Pride Parade.

Mr. Tory, to his credit, argued that QuAIA, which promotes a virulent message, should not be permitted to participate in a Pride Parade that is publicly funded by Toronto taxpayers.Mr. Tory also argued that if he was elected Mayor, he would deny public funding to the Pride organization, if the Pride group permitted QuAIA to march in its annual parade.

On the other hand, Ms. Chow in the same debate,  supported QuAIA’s right to protest in a publicly-funded Pride Parade, on the basis that the Toronto City solicitor opined that the use of “Israel Apartheid” was “protected speech” and that the Toronto City Manager Penachetti believed that the participation of QuAIA, did not violate the City of Toronto’s policies against hate and discrimination.

Again, to Tory’s credit, he stated emphatically at the debate, that he believed the city’s position was wrong and such anti-Israeli and anti-Jewish views had no place in a Pride Parade which celebrates human rights, tolerance and inclusivity.

I agree with John Tory’s view and here is why I believe Chow’s support of the anti-Israeli and anti-Semitic QuAIA, is unprincipled, immoral and contrary to Canadian values.

Anti-Israeli Apartheid movement is funded, financed and sponsored by Hamas

The anti-Israeli Apartheid movement is funded, financed and sponsored by Hamas.

According to Hamas’ constitution,  it wishes to kill all Jews and to eliminate Israel from the Middle East. These views are clearly anti-Semitic and hateful.

For Hamas, the anti-Israeli Apartheid movement is an attempt to delegitimize the state of Israel and destroy it diplomatically. Hamas wants to do to Israel diplomatically, what it cannot do, to date, militarily.

Accordingly, the then Federal Liberal leader Ignatieff, labelled the anti-Israeli Apartheid movement as anti-Semitic.

This view has been endorsed by current Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau. I also believe that this is the view of Thomas Mulcair,  leader of the federal NDP.

Conservative Prime Minister Harper’s public condemnation of the anti-Israel Apartheid and BDS movements as blatantly anti-Semitic, is also very well known and has been widely reported.

Furthermore, the Ontario Legislature has unanimously condemned Israeli Apartheid week as “odious and unacceptable”.

So we have two levels of government that have condemned the Israeli Apartheid movement.

In the subject debate, Chow argued that her pro-QuAIA position was based upon her reliance upon expert opinion.

Interestingly, Chow is a bit selective when she relies upon experts. The very same City Manager Pennachetti in the past issued a major report praising the Scarborough subway extension, which Chow chose to ignore, because such a report undermined her pro Scarborough bus and LRT view.

It seems once again, Chow is hiding behind selective experts’ opinions and is refusing to take a principled and moral stand.

The Canadian federal government (together with US, Britain and the EU) has also publicly maintained that the anti-Israeli Apartheid movement, which singles out Israel ( while ignoring the human rights abuses of Syria, Iraq, Libya, Sudan, Iran etc) is more than mere opposition to Israeli government policies, but is in fact Jew hatred and hence anti-Semitism.

This is a view also held by a majority of the members of the Ontario legislature.

In view of these facts, Chow appears on shaky moral ground to support QuAIA’s right to march in a publicly-funded parade.

John Tory stated that he respected the right of QuAIA to protest , but it can protest anywhere it wants, just not in a Toronto taxpayer and publicly-funded Pride Parade.

Another point Chow should consider is that Hamas, the key backer and beneficiary of the anti-Israeli Apartheid movement – kills, tortures and discriminates against the Gazan LGBT ( lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgender) community.

Contrast that with the fair and equal treatment of the LGBT community in Israel.

So why is Chow putting herself on the same side of Hamas, which kills, tortures and discriminates against the Gazan LGBT community?

Since the Pride Parade is about tolerance, the celebration of the LGBT community and inclusivity, why does Chow not take the position that the anti-Israeli QuAIA ( which many Jewish and non Jewish Torontonians believe to be a hateful, Jew-hating, anti-Semitic organization) has no place in the Pride Parade?

By Chow failing to take a clear and principled stand against the anti-Semitism of QuAIA, Olivia Chow risks being tarred with the same toxic brush.

Does John Tory Have the Right Stuff To Face Off Against Olivia Chow?

by Mitch Wolfe, posted in Politics

As expected, a recent Forum Research poll has Olivia Chow leading as initial front runner with 36 per cent.

Mayor Ford is second with 28 per cent, his support still holding strong.

The big surprise is the third place finish of John Tory, at 22 per cent. In a previous hypothetical match up between Chow, Ford and Tory, Forum Research had Tory at 27 per cent in a February poll.

I propose to offer some hard-nosed political advice as to how Tory can kick start his faltering campaign.

But first, a brief explanation as to why Tory finds himself in third place.

Lorne Bozinoff, President of Forum Research, interpreting the most recent poll results above, concluded:

“These findings represent relative stability for Ford since the company polled him at 31 per cent in February, “while John Tory, who had just entered the race the last time we polled, has seen his vote decline from 27 per cent.”

Marcus Gee of The Globe and Mail attributed Tory’s weak numbers to the fact “Ms. Chow is a strong candidate with an appealing personal story and she is off to a fast start. She can count on the city’s well-organized left.”

As to Ford’s support, Gee concluded, “Mr. Ford has a core of supporters that seems to stick with him whatever he does. Mr. Tory has no such natural base.”

I have already written a series of Huffington Post articles that explain the unwavering support of Ford supporters, who are sticking with Ford, despite all the allegations, videos and Ford’s personal demons.

My conclusion is that Ford’s support is rock solid. But support for Chow, the new politico on the block, is much softer.

And if John Tory wants to grow his numbers, he cannot wait for seven months to connect to the voters.

As Tory claimed in his kick off speech at a downtown Toronto rally this past week.

I believe that that Tory has four to eight weeks to make a forceful and compelling impression on Toronto voters.

Marcus Gee suggests that Tory can be successful in this mayoral race by trying to occupy the happy middle between hard right Ford and tax and spend Chow on the left.

Gee stated: “The essence of Mr. Tory’s message is that he would give voters Mr. Ford’s respect for taxpayers without the divisiveness and the sideshow and Ms. Chow’s care for the disadvantaged without the hard left swing and the reversion to “tax-and-spend.” That would position him neatly in the middle as a caring conservative, the candidate who would take Toronto “not left, not right, but forward.”

In other words, John Tory, wants to present himself as a “Red Tory.”

I have four words for Mr. Tory and his illustrious brain trust: “Joe Clark/Alison Redford.”

Red Toryism is dead federally (Joe Clark/Peter McKay), provincially (has Toryalready forgotten his provincial losses in the provincial ridings of Don Valley West and Dufferin/Peel/Wellington/Grey, and the disastrous 2007 provincial campaign as Ontario PC leader?) and even, municipally.

Today, there is no happy middle in Toronto city politics.

There is the right, which is: pro Scarborough subway, pro Porter Air, pro Porter Air expansion, pro taming unions, pro garbage privatization, pro privatization, pro minimum increase in taxes, anti-government expansion and pro business/private sector.

And the left which is: pro Scarborough LRT, anti-Porter Air, anti-Porter Air expansion, anti-privatization, pro unions, pro larger increase in taxes, pro government expansion and cool to business/private sector.

If Tory thinks that he can straddle these two political poles, and pick some issues from Column A and other issues from Column B, then I guarantee that Tory will alienate Toronto voters from both the right and the left.

And he will achieve a record-breaking sixth political loss.

Alternatively, I suggest that Tory has to come out now — hard, fast and negative against Olivia Chow. He needs to “Harperize” Chow and define her in the public eye, before she defines herself. In order to wrest Chow’s soft supporters, who really do not know the real Olivia Chow, from the Chow camp.

Because Olivia Chow does not come to this city race, without some major political baggage.

Frankly, I am surprised that Nick Kouvalis, Tory’s own answer to Chow’s political attack dog, Warren Kinsella, has not done a better job in the media and the social media of raising serious questions of Chow’s subsidized co-op housing arrangement in the 1980s at the Hazelburn Co-op Apartments.

Chow, in an interview on Sun TV, with her own advisor, the above-mentioned Kinsella, once again stated that she did nothing wrong because she paid “market rent” of $800 for a three-bedroom apartment from 1988-1990.

The Tory campaign should also question whether Chow’s anti-Scarborough subway, pro Scarborough LRT position, is in reality, just Chow pandering to her downtownToronto SWAG/ leftist elitist base.

Chow has many weaknesses.

The question for John Tory is does he have the toughness and cojones to attack and fight Chow and take support away from her, in order to be the next mayor of Toronto?

On Kimmel’s Show, Ford Was the Epitome of Grace Under Pressure

by Mitch Wolfe, posted in Entertainment, Media, Politics

Initially I had my concerns with Mayor Ford agreeing to be a guest on Jimmy Kimmel’s late night show.

But I should not have worried. Despite facing a barrage of good-humoured jokes, embarrassing videos of past foibles and probing questions, Ford comported himself calmly and coolly with good humour. Grace under pressure.

And Ford even had the self-confidence under the hot Hollywood lights, to launch a few zingers himself at his City Council critics and his enemies in the press.

This was great TV. It was edgy, no holds barred, two guys flying without a net — and laugh out loud funny.

Kimmel was in fine fighting form. He might have even been training for this bout with Ford for months. He was lean, he was quick and he was very well prepared.

Kimmel admitted half-jokingly, “In a way I feel that I’ve been waiting for this night my whole life.”

But Ford was ready for this match too. Ford strode out confidently, dressed in black with a bright tie and matching handkerchief. He looked more like lovable family man, Salvatore “Big Pussy” Bonpensiero, of The Sopranos fame, than a magician, as Kimmel joked.

And then Ford started chucking Ford Nation T-shirts into the crowd.

For a big man, Ford is very agile and athletic. (Later in the show, Kimmel showed a brief video of Ford on a football field, falling backward on his ass, trying to throw a football.)

This was a good, aggressive start for Ford. He had come to play. The home town crowd loved the free T-shirts.

Right from the opening intro, Kimmel was jabbing Ford with a left, then a right, then a quick combo left/right to the face and to Ford’s stomach.

Kimmel asked, “Why are you on this show? What good could come of this?”

Kimmel was clearly the quick-witted Muhammad Ali, to Ford’s more slow-moving, but very solid George Chuvalo.

If Ford was a little surprised by this comical assault, he quickly recovered and responded that he came on the show because Kimmel had personally called him on his cellphone.

Then Ford counter-punched with a brief defence of his political career, by saying that for 14 years, 10 years as councilman and four years as mayor, he always responded to the people. He takes their calls, listens to their problems and if required, he goes out to visit them at their homes to solve their problems. In effect, he gives out his number, because Toronto residents are his bosses.

Kimmel was temporarily thrown by the sincere honesty of Ford, the consummate retail politician.

Then Kimmel tried to hit Ford below the belt, by quoting Ford haters who were angry with Kimmel for having Ford on his show. These trolls claimed that Ford was racist, homophobic and other outrageous things.

Ford kept his cool. His smile never leaving his face. Calmly Ford replied, quickly and adroitly, “Is that all you got?” to the approval of the Kimmel crowd. They might have felt, as I had, that Kimmel had blindsided Ford.

Then Ford, keeping his cool, started promoting Toronto as a fantastic place. To the effect that it is booming with tonnes of cranes all over the city (accurately implying that there is still a construction boom in Toronto).

Ford stated that he wanted people to come to Toronto to see how good the city was.

Just as Ford was about to promote Toronto’s film industry, citing the success of TIFF, Kimmel cut him off, which is unfortunate.

In a earlier CBC radio news report, prior to the Kimmel show, Ford had talked with a CBC reporter at length about the fact that Toronto had a very successful film and television industry. With millions of dollars being invested annually in film and television productions, this creates thousands of well-paying industry jobs. Ford was trying to use his profile to promote Toronto as a great place to do film and television business.

In the second round, after the break, Kimmel tried to sucker-punch Ford, by moving him off the comfort of the couch to a large TV screen, in order to have Ford comment on some of his most embarrassing videos:

  • Ford’s rant against an unknown enemy, (Ford admitted not remembering that video);
  • Ford accidentally knocking down fellow councilor Pam McConnell in the council chambers;
  • Ford speaking Jamaican patois at the infamous Steak Queen fast food restaurant (Ford explained that this was a private meeting with friends and that he has a lot of Jamaican friends, undermining claims that he is truly a racist.)

Fortunately for Ford, he laughed off these very embarrassing videos and when he returned to the couch, he
defended his record as mayor:

According to Ford, he’s tamed the unions, stopping further strikes by the city garbage union and the TTC, privatizing garbage services, saving Toronto taxpayers over $800 Million and keeping tax increases to below 2 per cent annually. Yet Toronto is still booming.

Ford concluded with saying “90 per cent of what I said I was going to do is done.” Ford caught Kimmel flatfooted with that legitimate claim.

In the last round, Kimmel was easier on Ford and suggested that he may want to get help for his drinking. Ford, true to form, countered that he was not elected to be perfect. Which of course was true then, as it is now. Ford never represented himself as a paragon of virtue or a model for Toronto’s children.

Kimmel concluded that “Ford is the most wonderful mayor I have ever witnessed in my many years.” I sensed that deep down, Kimmel, like the famous Ali toward Chuvalo, respected Ford, for being such a good sport.

And for surviving this tough 16-minute comic onslaught, still on his feet, with good humour.

Verdict: Kimmel may have won on comic points, but Ford did not embarrass himself. Nor did he embarrass the city of Toronto.

And, typical Ford, he controlled the media for the last several days.

I still think Ford is the man to beat.

Ford Nation Is Stronger Than Ever and Ford Is Unstoppable

by Mitch Wolfe, posted in Politics

I am not sure Woody Allen was thinking of Rob Ford, when he quipped, “80 per cent of success is showing up.” But it sure applies in our mayor’s case.

Recall many political lifetimes ago, in June of 2013, after the Star had broken the story about Ford and the crack cocaine video, the Star and the Globe were calling for Ford’s head. And even the unelected Premier Wynne was considering stepping in to remove the democratically elected Ford from office.

I wrote then in a Huffington Post blog that, notwithstanding the incredible pressure that was brought to bear on Ford by Old Media and other forces, Ford stubbornly stood his ground and stayed true to himself. Ford also knew that his supporters, the famous Ford Nation, were intensely loyal to Ford, and would stick with Ford right through the 2014 election.

When shocking polls came out indicating that Ford’s support was still strong, Old Media and the anti-Fordists, especially in downtown elitist Toronto, beat an embarrassing retreat.

Fast forward to the present. It seems like déjà vu.

In the last three months, Ford admitted that the alleged crack video did exist. He confessed to having smoked crack cocaine.

Despite this admission in November, Ford’s approval rating held at 42 per cent with 33 per cent saying they would vote for him.

Then Toronto City Council stripped Ford of most of his mayoral powers.

But still Ford’s approval rating held at 42 per cent with 33 per cent still wanting to vote for him — even though Ford was shunned by City Council, and Premier Wynne only wanted to deal with Deputy Mayor Kelly.

A lesser man, a weaker man with no backbone who was overly concerned with public opinion would have resigned. But Ford is made of much sterner stuff and he was buoyed by the unwavering support of his family, his close friends and of course, Ford Nation.

Ford, just by showing up every day at City Council, even though he was a figurehead, stayed in the game.

Then the political gods shined on Ford.

A terrible ice storm was unleashed on Toronto and Mayor Ford was thrust into the spotlight, and into Toronto political history.

I have followed Ford for over 13 years, especially when he was an obscure Etobicoke councilman.

The guy has a big heart. He cares about his constituents, and he takes their calls, answers them and then tries his best to solve his constituents’ problems. Problems like fixing potholes, fixing the roads and sidewalks, installing stop signs, lights and traffic-calming road bumps.

So when the ice storm struck, Ford naturally helped out on a daily basis. He held press conferences, made speeches, and kept the public informed. He rallied and bolstered the morale of Toronto residents and the heroic Hydro workers who were working 16-hour shifts in the freezing cold.

Ford, on a daily basis, travelled all over the city to lend support to residents in distress in their icy cold homes and apartments.

Ford had the public spotlight to himself for over seven days. Deputy Mayor Kelly to whom Council had transferred Ford’s power, was caught MIA travelling to the sunny climes of Florida. Olivia Chow, putative mayoral candidate, was not seen or heard throughout the crisis.

Olivia Chow is launching her book on January 22, 2014. I am assuming she was engaged in putting the final touches to her personal memoirs and preparing for her book launch.

Then Mayor Ford, faced with the option of declaring the city in a state of emergency and calling in the troops, showed true leadership, political smarts and instincts, by standing tough and trusting Toronto’s tireless Hydro workers to restore the power across the city.

This was a gutsy call by Ford, because he was criticized by his leftist enemies on Council for not pulling a “Mayor Lastman” and calling in the troops.

Ironically, Marcus Gee of the Globe, no fan of Ford’s, supported Ford in not declaring a state of emergency (SOE) and calling in the troops.

I actually braved the cold and interviewed many hydro workers trying valiantly to re-install fallen hydro wires.

On the sixth day, on Whitehall Drive, in Rosedale, all the hydro workers I interviewed supported Ford’s decision not to call a SOE. They also appreciated Ford’s show of confidence in them and the superb work they were doing. These hard-nosed workers, dripping with ice and snow spoke glowingly of their mayor with whom they identified.

Then it struck me. OMG — Ford has captured Toronto’s union and non-union people: the hydro workers, the TTC guys, the cops, the firemen. Toronto’s hard working men and women, who help make the city tick.

Because they can identify and feel comfortable with this rough, boorish, fat everyman, with all his flaws and his personal demons. More than the elitist leftists on City Council. And more than Olivia Chow, with whom they have little in common.

Because we all have flaws. We all make mistakes. We all suffer disappointments. We all come under criticism. But the best of us, like Ford, pick ourselves off the ground, and try to stay in the game. And that is 80 per cent of the battle.

Recent Forum Research poll has Ford at 47 per cent approval rating with 41 per cent saying they would vote for Ford.

I predict that the 2014 Toronto Mayoral campaign is over. Ford is unstoppable.

Neither Tory nor Chow can match Ford in toughness, luck or political instincts. And they lack his rock solid and very broad support.

I Support Rob Ford: The Man and His Policies

by Mitch Wolfe, posted in Politics, Rob Ford

I believe Mayor Rob Ford will be re-elected.

Some of you Ford haters, critics and doubters may question my position.

You may rightly retort that all the polls suggest Ford will lose to Chow and Tory, in some hypothetical political match-ups.

All I can say is the so-called expert pollsters had NDP Adrian Dix beating Liberal Christy Clark for BC Premier. Or Wildrose leader Danielle Smith beating Alison Redford for Alberta Premier. Or the Federal Liberal candidate beating the Tory candidate in the recent Federal by-election in the Manitoba riding of Brandon-Souris.

The only relevant finding is that despite the continuous 24/7 anti-Ford feeding frenzy by old media, Ford’ssupport and approval rating have held steady in the 40 per cent range.

Unlike these robo-calling pollsters, my associates and I have actually gone out into the field, into the darkest, deepest Ford Nation, (Etobicoke, North York and Scarborough). We have talked to real people about Ford.

For months I have been writing that Ford Nation is staying with Ford. That itssupport and loyalty are growing. And that Ford is the man to beat.

Still these pollsters and old media types cannot believe why Ford Nation is sticking with Ford.

So they have come up with another cockamamie theory: Ford supporters support Ford’s fiscal agenda, but not Ford the man himself. So if another candidate (read, more presentable candidate) can espouse a conservative fiscal agenda, then John Tory can grab Ford Nation support and Ford will be defeated.

Excuse me while I go all Marshall McLuhan.

Ford is both the message and the medium. The message and the messenger. The people trust Ford to deliver on his hard-nosed, tight-fisted fiscal agenda of stubbornly keeping the rise of taxes low, city expenditures moderate and to respect taxpayers’ hard-earned dollars.

I believe Ford supporters do not trust Stintz, Tory or Minnan Wong to support, fight and implement a strong and stubborn Ford fiscal agenda.

Tory will always talk and talk and talk a good game. But Tory will cave to his elitist buddies. And in the end, he will deep six the Scarborough subway out of deference to Metrolinx Chairman Prichard, and cave to garbage union and city workers. He will also put the brakes on Porter Air expansion.

I think Olivia Chow would be worse.

I believe Chow would stop Porter Air in deference to her base, the elitist/NIMBY Toronto Islanders living on very expensive city island properties. She would undo privatization of garbage and re-institute city union jobs for life with overgenerous pensions. She would increase property taxes and land transfer taxes on home owners to further her tax and social/infrastructure agenda. In other words, a return to pre-Miller days of anti-biz and anti-development.

But what has solidified Ford Nation’s support for Ford is his public performanceduring the recent nine day power crisis. Ford was focused. He gave daily updates to the media and the people. He was genuine and sympathetic.

He stayed in Toronto in the cold and helped while his deputy mayor flew off to sunny Florida. Ford often showed up at cold apartments and homes, trying to lend a hand. Ford did what he has always done best: looking after the little important things that mean so much to the people like warm food and getting the lights and power on for Toronto residents.

Ford supporters are ready for Chow and Tory. They will leave no stone unturned, no subsidized apartment unquestioned. Bring it on! Let the games begin.

Don’t Compare the Liberals’ $1.1 Billion Gas Plant Scandal to Rob Ford’s Scarborough Subway

by Mitch Wolfe, posted in Politics, Rob Ford

The Toronto Star is still very upset that Mayor Ford has not taken its sage advice and resigned as Toronto’s Mayor.

For several months, the Star has been reporting on: Ford being caught in a video allegedly smoking crack cocaine, Ford’s public drunkenness, his profanity, his filmed meetings with his driver, police surveillance of Ford and a whole host of other improper conduct.

The Star‘s Editorial Board has called for Ford’s resignation, multiple times.

But to no avail.

Ford has not resigned and quit.

In fact, he has vowed to stand and fight.

Recent polls indicated that Ford Nation is standing tall with Ford.

In fact, I believe that Ford’s support is actually increasing in response to the constant full on media feeding frenzy led by the Star.

Recent polls also indicate, that notwithstanding the public beating that Ford has been taking in the domestic and international press, his support at 34 per cent for re-election is just 3 points below Olivia Chow, Ford’s putative competitor in the next mayoral election.

Incredibly, not only is Mayor Ford going to ride out his term as Mayor, but he has a very good chance of being re-elected in 2014.

Ford and his staunch supporters are also fighting back publicly, online and in social media, by pointing out that Ford’s conduct pales in comparison to the Ontario Liberals’ gas plant scandal in blowing $1.1. billion of taxpayer money in order to secure four provincial Liberal seats in the last provincial election.

You can almost see the heads of the editors and reporters, exploding, in frustration, at the Star‘s head office.

Accordingly, the Toronto Star has launched a counter-attack to Ford’s counter-attack.

In Friday’s editorial the Star claimed that by Ford standing up for the rights of the Scarborough residents to have a subway extension from Kennedy Road subway stop to the Scarborough Town Centre, “Ford is guilty of the same wasteful offence” as the Liberals’ blowing $1.1 billion on the gas plant scandals.

I kid you not. These are the Star‘s exact words. Read them and weep for the Stareditorial board losing all reason and objectivity. And for publicly shredding its journalistic integrity and reputation.

I believe that the Star has not merely wounded itself. With this way over the top anti-Ford editorial, the Star has publicly disemboweled itself, journalistically speaking.

“Ford is quick to attack McGuinty for the gas plant scandal. Fair enough. We too have criticized the former premier, in this space, for that fiasco. But Ford is guilty of the same wasteful offence.”

The Star further argues:

“He (Ford) flushed away $100 million of taxpayers’ money to please Scarborough residents expecting delivery on a reckless “subways, subways, subways” promise. That’s $100 million in sunk costs gone to buy — nothing.

I will try to address some of the Star‘s arguments and conclusions.

Firstly, it is without dispute that the Liberals wasted $1.1 billion dollars in a selfish attempt to secure 4 seats.

The Star accused Ford of the same offence, though clearly the Liberals blew $1.1 billion to Ford’s alleged $100 million. In what universe is this the same offence? Monetarily speaking, clearly it is not.

Secondly, in fact Ford did not blow $100 million. He also did not flush away $100 million to please or pander to (as the Star alleges) Scarborough residents expecting delivery on a reckless subways promise.

For years as a councillor Ford was a genuine supporter of subways over streetcars or light rapid transit (LRT).

For years, Scarborough residents have been pleading for a subway in their area, because they were sick and tired of taking substandard transit, ie buses and an old rapid transit system. They were sick and tired of seeing their hard-earned tax dollars going to pay for the subway transit needs of their more affluent neighbors to the south in Old Toronto. Old Toronto residents enjoyed the Bloor, Yonge and University subways.

Mayor Ford, unlike just about every other municipal, provincial or federal politician listened to Scarberians and then fought tenaciously for them like a stubborn, pugnacious bull-headed pit bull for subways against all the so-called urban transit experts. And against many of his fellow councilors.

When Ford ran for mayor in 2010, his mantra was “subways, subways, subway.” A simple but very effective political message and political promise. A transit solution in which he deeply and sincerely believed. And was in response to his voters’ wishes.

“Subways, subways, subways,” is not a reckless promise as inaccurately portrayed by the Star. Even Marcus Gee of the Globe, no fan of Ford, concedes that this subway extension is needed and justified.

McGuinty sincerely believed in cancelling the gas plants. But he feared losing seats in Mississauga and Oakville. So he abandoned his principles for votes. That is pandering.

What Ford did in supporting subways is not pandering. That is true democracy, a concept obviously lost on the Toronto Star, which appears to prefer rule by the privileged unelected few. And policymaking by non-partisan so-called experts, aka Metrolinx, who are clearly insensitive to the actual people for which they are working.

To both the Star and Metrolinx, politics, that is, listening to and being responsive to the actual transit wishes of Scarborough residents, seems to be a dirty word.

Metrolinx reminds me of those brilliant non partisan urban experts, who conceived of the ill-fated Spadina Expressway, which was to build a major expressway through the communities of Cedarvale, Forest Hill and the Annex, contrary to the wishes of the residents affected.

As to the Star‘s claim that Ford blew $100 million of sunk costs, my money is on theOntario government once again unnecessarily paying out claims and costs, instead of challenging these contracts and costs in court, as was the case in the Mississauga andOakville gas plants.

Ironically, the more the Star goes after Ford, the more its reputation for fairness and objectivity is undermined.

Rob Ford Is Getting His Groove Back

by Mitch Wolfe, posted in Politics, Rob Ford

This has been a good week for Rob Ford’s campaign for re-election as Toronto’s mayor in 2014.

Say what?

I can just see and hear those from the old media — the Star, the Globe, the Post and the Sun — spitting up their gluten-free almond milk all over their granola, down at their local Whole Foods store.

The consensus among the Toronto literati, intelligentsia, and Richard Florida’s creative class, (who all apparently live within the Annex or cycling distance to the Annex) is that Ford has made Toronto into an international laughingstock.

Apparently, our buffoonish Mayor has embarrassed Toronto on Saturday Night Live and Jon Stewart. Ford and Toronto have become the butt of U.S. late-night jokes.

As to whether Toronto has suffered international embarrassment, I believe that Torontonians should just get over themselves.

The city of Toronto and the people of Toronto are greater than Rob Ford.

Toronto will survive and its brand and reputation will survive.

Ironically, a very well-respected CBC reporter Neil Macdonald, has come indirectly to Rob Ford’s defence. He wrote in an article:

“But embarrassed? Us? As in ‘Oh. My. God. He’s turning us into a LAUGHINGSTOCK?’ Spare me.The only Canadians I know who actually think that are the Torontonians who never shut up about how cosmopolitan their city is.”

On Thursday night Mayor Ford spoke at the Casa Loma to Toronto’s business and investment community. He reminded the business crowd about his many cost-cutting measures and that he had reduced the council and the mayor’s budget by $6.4 million over four years. Ford added humorously “Even more in the last three days.” According to reports from that evening, that line received big laughs. This time the business crowd was laughing with Ford, not at him.

According to the Toronto Sun, Ford was applauded for his speech and was asked to pose for pictures by those in attendance.

According to the Globe and Mail covering the same event, Ford’s public claim to fight for the taxpayer was met by a receptive audience. He said, “In the coming year, I will continue to fight for the taxpayer…..Taxes are going up 2 1/2 per cent. That is not the way I ran the government and I will not be supportive of 2 1/2 per cent tax increases, when I know we could achieve a 1 3/4 per cent tax increase.”

The Globe also concluded that the audience was generally supportive as Ford leaned on his fiscal record, a strong part of his brand since entering politics.

The Guest Greg Hart also reported that he appreciated what the mayor had done on the fiscal front.

“Unfortunately all the drama going on, it’s a bit of an embarrassment,” he said. “Credibility, as far as that goes, it’s a bit of a toss-up. But, I mean, in terms of what he’s done so far, economically and what he’s done for the economy, I think it’s good. He’s certainly done a lot of good.”

Considering that Ford’s week began with Toronto City Council stripping him of most of his powers as Mayor, Thursday’s speech could be deemed as successful.

Ford conducted himself in a respectful manner. He showed grace and gentle humour in accepting public criticism. He stuck to his message of fiscal prudence. Objective reports indicate that he received a positive reception from members of Toronto’s business, professional and investment class. Which clearly liked his message and his fiscal policies.

On Friday, the spirits of Ford and Ford Nation further soared.

According to the Globe, a new poll by Forum Research suggested that, despite Toronto Mayor Rob Ford’s recent admissions of smoking crack cocaine and drinking to excess, his popularity has barely seen a dent — 42 per cent of Toronto residents said they approve of the job he’s doing, and 33 per cent still plan on voting for him.

To me these results confirm what my friends and I have been hearing and seeing for months now.

Unlike old media types, who do not appear ever to travel north of the Toronto Annex ( Dupont Street) , my friends and I have been meeting with Ford Nation members and Ford supporters in Etobicoke, North York, Scarborough and even in old Toronto.

We have been working the phones, communicating on email and Facebook. And we have been following various pro-Ford blogs and pro-Ford Twitter accounts.

We like to get up close and personal. No automatic robocalls for us.

The Ford base is holding and it is energized. Its members are bursting at the seams to exercise their democratic rights and vote for their man who they still believe respects them, their hard-earned tax dollars and who best represents their interests. That’s democracy, folks.

It’s messy. But it sure beats rule by the un-elected privileged few.

I believe these poll results underestimate Ford’s approval rating in both the outer suburbs and in old Toronto, where Stintz, Chow and Tory live.

Ford is back as the outsider. Railing against unnecessary government waste, councillors’ perks and high taxes.

It looks like Ford got his groove back.

It is going to be an exciting ride, folks.