Rob Ford's Toronto

[themarc]

Did he? I didn't know that.

Certainly no MLSE involvement these days ... and Tanenbaum has no control over MLSE these days ... the agreement between Rogers and Bell requires them to vote in a block. Still, Tanenbaum doesn't sound very Sicilian to me ... and looks like his constuction empire is now mostly part of the French multinational Lafarge - a widely-held corporation that's going to be relatively immune from large-scale corruption.

I you implying that Tanenbaum is corrupt, or are you just being pointing out a construction link?

Someone else implied that there was a link to construction and made mention of aggregates (also) then there is the "hockey analyst" mention... maybe a retired player/broadcaster type close to management (and I'm not implying management is involved but the optics reflect they have a good relationship)? People on this board jump to the DC reference... we have the wrong guy maybe??? Correct context - wrong era? Might not be Toronto or Canada - could be NHL HQ in NYC...? NHL in Chicago? NHL/KHL Russian connections even... because yeah, I can't see a 70 year old guy doing "you know what".

 

[MetroMan]

This kind of hyperbole isn't helpful.

Most of Toronto lives in ignorant bliss. The kind of shit that happens in this city every day would baffle just about anybody. This past week alone, Brant House and Jacobs restaurant got firebombed with molotov cocktails and an undetonated pipe bomb was placed at another venue on King St. as a warning. Armed bank robberies are routine. People get shot and stabbed all the time but most escape with their lives. Some of this stuff doesn't make the news to discourage copycats but it does happen.

By not helping the police in their investigations, the Mayor is absolutely complicit in protecting organized crime. Yes, he is responsible for putting Toronto in real danger and no, this isn't hyperbole.

 

[newearthling]

Most of Toronto lives in ignorant bliss. The kind of shit that happens in this city every day would baffle just about anybody. This past week alone, Brant House and Jacobs restaurant got firebombed with molotov cocktails and an undetonated pipe bomb was placed at another venue on King St. as a warning. Armed bank robberies are routine. People get shot and stabbed all the time but most escape with their lives. Some of this stuff doesn't make the news to discourage copycats but it does happen.

By not helping the police in their investigations, the Mayor is absolutely complicit in protecting organized crime. Yes, he is responsible for putting Toronto in real danger and no, this isn't hyperbole.

Did anyone get hurt with the molotov cocktails?

 

[dforthandbview]

All this mafia talk again reminds me of the comment made on Warren Kinsella's page by "marc rosen". The rabbit hole is slowly being looked into by the general public. Where will it lead us? We shall see...

 

[OSS 117]

Drinking and driving is a danger to individual people, not the city. Unless he plows into and destroys some key piece of infrastructure, the city will be just fine.

Obviously when people say he's a danger to the city, they don't mean literally everyone in the city all at once. Jesus Christ.

 

[MetroMan]

Did anyone get hurt with the molotov cocktails?

No. It appears to have been done to send a message to someone. It was done late in the night when there was nobody there after the places closed down but before there was anybody out on the street for the morning rush.

 

[RC8]

 

[Peepers]

All this mafia talk again reminds me of the comment made on Warren Kinsella's page by "marc rosen". The rabbit hole is slowly being looked into by the general public. Where will it lead us? We shall see...

Which comment? Was it this one:

marc rosen says:
August 2, 2013 at 10:28 am
Point 1 – TPD / CROWN / FORD all working together ( you will need to do you home work – for the answer as to why they are working together )

Point 2 – Crown is not obliged to disclose evidence that is irreverent to the charges. Stitchcombe and/or O’connor motions need to be brought. The “relevance” test on such applications is significant… Defense will need to prove relevance of the disclosure they seek… Proving the Mayor smoked crack is irrelevant to the case before the accused so it is likely the judge would rule that applications were “fishing expeditions”

Point 3 – The fact that Daniel Brown is recusing himself from the representing Siad is very telling… See point 1

With all the recent talk on this forum about the mafia and the role that construction companies play in organized crime I am reminded of the fact that the brother of a certain very senior law enforcement official has a brother who is the head of a construction association in Ontario!

 

[Coltaine79]

Most of Toronto lives in ignorant bliss. The kind of shit that happens in this city every day would baffle just about anybody. This past week alone, Brant House and Jacobs restaurant got firebombed with molotov cocktails and an undetonated pipe bomb was placed at another venue on King St. as a warning. Armed bank robberies are routine. People get shot and stabbed all the time but most escape with their lives. Some of this stuff doesn't make the news to discourage copycats but it does happen.

so, these events are unusual for a city of Toronto's size? are you then saying that crime in Toronto is worse than most of the other major population centres of Canada/USA?
does Toronto experience more bank robberies per capita than the rest of the Top 10 Canada/U.S. cities?

I remember reading last year somewhere (maybe it was on UT?) that all the new condos being built were to launder mafioso money.

So essentially, UrbanToronto is a "fanboy" forum of the preferred investment vehicle of Italian-Canadian mafiosos?

 

[Peepers]

Most of Toronto lives in ignorant bliss. The kind of shit that happens in this city every day would baffle just about anybody. This past week alone, Brant House and Jacobs restaurant got firebombed with molotov cocktails and an undetonated pipe bomb was placed at another venue on King St. as a warning. Armed bank robberies are routine. People get shot and stabbed all the time but most escape with their lives. Some of this stuff doesn't make the news to discourage copycats but it does happen.

By not helping the police in their investigations, the Mayor is absolutely complicit in protecting organized crime. Yes, he is responsible for putting Toronto in real danger and no, this isn't hyperbole.

Mayor Ford is the target of a police investigation. As such he would be crazy to agree to sit down to a police interrogation. No lawyer would allow his client to submit to police interrogations under these circumstances.

If there is an organized crime component to this story (and I believe that there is) Bill Blair is going to have to investigate the mob without the help of Rob Ford - that is if Bill Blair is so inclined to take on the mob - something I am not convinced of (see my previous comment).

 

[TheTigerMaster]

If there is an organized crime component to this story (and I believe that there is) Bill Blair is going to have to investigate the mob without the help of Rob Ford - that is if Bill Blair is so inclined to take on the mob - something I am not convinced of (see my previous comment).

I don't think Ford was under the influence of criminal groups. Not yet anyways. For now he is just an addict looking for a fix. However I fear that the videos would have later been used by the ‘Ndrangheta, or some other criminal group, to influence/extort Mayor Ford if news about these videos hadn't broken. Mayor Ford certainly compromised himself and the integrity Toronto's political institutions by allowing himself to be recording doing what he did.

 

[rightwingSUVdriver]

I think this is the Marc Rosen quote in question:

marc rosen says:
August 2, 2013 at 11:27 am
This video absolutely should not come to light for all of our best interests ( i know that seems weird – however the TO police and Crown know what is at stake ) … Curiosity killed the cat and unfortunately the Toronto Star unknowingly stepped in some deep shit – inadvertently exposing something that some stupid kids did not realize the gravity of … If we stop the Rob Ford hating – we will begin to see how deep and wide this rabbit hole goes – and why it is perhaps better to leave certain sleeping dogs alone.

Reply

 

[Coltaine79]

If there is an organized crime component to this story (and I believe that there is) Bill Blair is going to have to investigate the mob without the help of Rob Ford - that is if Bill Blair is so inclined to take on the mob - something I am not convinced of (see my previous comment).

historically speaking, i believe it's usually provincial or federal police forces who "dare" take on the mob, not municipal forces.

 

[Peepers]

historically speaking, i believe it's usually provincial or federal police forces who "dare" take on the mob, not municipal forces.

Certainly senior police forces , i.e. OPP and RCMP take the lead in organized crime investigations but it is hardly outside the purview of TPS in fact they have an organized crime unit.

There was an interesting comment on Warren Kinsella's blog by someone who claimed to have family that work for Toronto Police. He alleged that the second video has content that Bill Blair does not want to come out because it will raise questions of why he didn't investigate. If true what is on the second video that Blair does not want people to see? Does the second video capture bribes from organized crime?

Interesting comments below from Warren Kinsella's blog: http://warrenkinsella.com/2013/11/in...game/#comments
More chatter about the second video. If true, whatever it is, it's more than smoking crack. The mind naturally wanders to sex and/or violence.

Mulletaur says:
November 4, 2013 at 10:36 pm
What is on the second video, friend ?

Reply
Matt says:
November 5, 2013 at 12:24 am
Something neither Ford nor Blair want to be made public.

Ford, because he is allegedly involved in a crime, and Blair because he’ll be facing serious questions as to why his force never investigated said crime.

Friends and family of mine work for Toronto Police.

Some have seen the video. They’ve told me what is on it. It’s longer and other things are happening in addition to drug use in that video than the one Blair has confirmed exists.

 

[Cooper]

"I'm more and more convinced that Ford is really only a poor schmuck that got in way over his head by irresponsibly putting himself in this position."

I agree, MM. I can't see how Rob Ford can be proven to be a conspirator. The guy can barely put a sentence together, let alone think strategically. Did he tell Lisi to get the video by whatever means possible? Maybe, but I don't see it. As far as I can tell, the people around the mayor do his thinking for him. Thus, guys like Lisi are more likely to have freelanced the job on the mayor's behalf, but without genuine direction. Depending on the actual facts of the case and how Lisi plays his defence, I could imagine him rolling up on someone like David Price, although that's utter speculation. We'll just have to see what happens in court. Beyond that I just don't see Rob playing an active role in formulating a plan... other than offering to wrestle someone in his underwear.

The real issue is that Rob Ford allowed a situation to persist in which his office was beholden to criminals who had leverage over his reputation. He was/is completely compromised. How can we possibly trust someone in that situation to make decisions on our behalf? My answer: We can't.