Rob Ford's Toronto

[DSC]

I had forgotten all about that, with so much going on it's like a juggling act and the Fords keep adding more plates. As to Doug's role at Build Toronto, I'm sure he did his best to stack the board, but he got caught. Do we know who is on the Board now?

A quick look at Google gives you the answer. http://www.buildtoronto.ca/directors

 

[pattycakes]

Thanks DSC, I notice Doug is the only one on the board that doesn't have some sort of post-secondary degree. It mentions he attended Carleton and Humber, I'm seeing a pattern here.

 

[the lemur]

Looking at Scott MacIntyre's Facebook pic he looks a lot like that actor Tim Olyphant.

I notice amongst his fairly small group of friends there's this guy with an A/N tattoo. Does that stand for Aryan Nation?

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...0279613525468.523263.750890467&type=1&theater

It could, I guess. If not it looks like a European soccer crest, but I can't think of a team that fits. I did a little Googling and it seems that Aryan Nation is not really unified or organized enough to have just one official logo.

 

[notshocking]

Two things about that Facebook profile:

1) pretty sure it belongs to the guy doing the tattooing, not the subject in the foreground

2) they're generic 21st century hip hop/thug types, very definitely not skinheads or race weirdos. The tacky fitted cap and 420 tattoos are the opposite of skinhead.

 

[mrtinfoilsocket]

2.6.3 Employment Standards Act, 2000
"Councillors must ensure that their staff work hours and assignments are in compliance with statutory requirements including overtime."

2.10 Hours of work
"The regular work day and work week are seven hours per day and 35 hours per week."
http://www1.toronto.ca/staticfiles/...lerks/city_council/files/pdf/handbook_ext.pdf

Honest question though - do you think most political staffers actually GET overtime pay? Most people that work (even salaried employees) are entitled to overtime pay but many people don't actually get it because the expectation exists for you to just get the job done.

Saw this in a Toronto Star article when Ford's people were coaching football:

http://www.thestar.com/news/city_hall/2012/09/14/rob_fords_own_staff_raised_red_flags_over_football.html

His duties appear to have been taken over by other special assistants, Chris Fickel and recently hired Andrew Gillis, who is a former University of Toronto quarterback.

The jobs, typically held by recent university graduates, start at about $35,000 a year, “and (then) a bump after they stay a certain amount of time,†said the young aide.

The job is a demanding one and working 60 hours a week is not unusual, said a former high-ranking staffer.

“It’s not volunteer. They’re just not being paid for it,†they said, noting unpaid overtime is an expectation for young staffers in many industries.

“So when Doug Ford says they’re working 40 hours a week and volunteering their time with football … he’s not far off,†the source said, acknowledging that when special assistants are asked to do football-related work by the mayor, they don’t have much choice.

 

[ahm]

i had joined UT to look at neighbourhood issues and because jason paris posted about UT on facebook a while ago. i started reading this thread after someone posted a link to it on n3rdal3rt in our ford thread there.

 

[typezed]

Ford's driver must have had most of Friday and Monday off while Ford was out of town. Maybe he had use of the Escalade for the weekend. Who knows? They've come to some arrangement. If Ford had continued to lose weight and buff up, and was using that as proof as his stability, opposing candidates might have used Ford tactics and labelled the driver a taxpayer-funded fitness trainer, just like Ford and the Sun went after Giambrone and Stintz for the French and speech lessons. While showing to pick up the family looks like it's not city work, I don't see this as a big deal. It's normal practice in the mayor's office, and none of this has stuck so far.

 

[John_Dee]

So, did anyone attend Doolittle's reading last night? Any reports/comments/scoops?

 

[the lemur]

Two things about that Facebook profile:

1) pretty sure it belongs to the guy doing the tattooing, not the subject in the foreground

2) they're generic 21st century hip hop/thug types, very definitely not skinheads or race weirdos. The tacky fitted cap and 420 tattoos are the opposite of skinhead.

Good points both, although there seems to be quite a diversity among white power types these days in terms of esthetics (and skinheads are not necessarily racists at all).

 

[Jude]

Honest question though - do you think most political staffers actually GET overtime pay? Most people that work (even salaried employees) are entitled to overtime pay but many people don't actually get it because the expectation exists for you to just get the job done.

My understanding is that political staff typically gets time in lieu. That said, there is also an understanding that staff are committed to the office ... and, if they have political ambitions of their own, they will often be eager to prove themselves. And not complain about long (unpaid) hours.

There is also a lot of grey - what is part of the job, and what is voluntary, in terms of the worker's own interests? This applies to volunteering for the boss's favourite sports team, as much as helping out several nights a week at community meetings.

 

[atodaso]

I was watching the news and they showed Mayor Ford and family arriving at Pearson Airport. I noticed their driver "Jerry" was there. If he is a City employee, he must be accumulating a lot of overtime.

Rather than use a City of Toronto chauffeur on OT, would it not be more cost efficient for Mayor Ford to put his family in a taxi?

They don't live far from the airport, and it was a personal trip, not a business trip. Transportation for him and his family when not on City business should not be at the expense of the taxpayers. Or, am I missing something here?

He's gotta soak up as much of that 'Kennedy' feeling as he can while he can. In his mind his fans were waving and blowing kisses to him the whole time.

 

[JWBF]

He's gotta soak up as much of that 'Kennedy' feeling as he can while he can. In his mind his fans were waving and blowing kisses to him the whole time.

It will take two bullets and a car accident for the Fords to feel like the Kennedys.

 

[notshocking]

Some hard-hitting investigative journalism here:

http://news.ca.msn.com/canada/video/?videoid=cbcc2014-0302-2109-0013-243469571000

Eye-rolling aside, this really does illustrate the power and resonance of Ford's contrived narrative, even 2000 miles away. I'd also prefer to believe that it's more evidence of the Low Information Voter syndrome-- people who sympathise with him because they don't really follow the news too closely and think occasionally getting high or showing up drunk in public are the worst of his sins. Probably more of these people out there than the real diehard Ford Nation cretins, and while I don't imagine they vote, they might be more readily brought around by solid evidence of serious wrong-doing.

Lastly, the phenomenon of mayor as celebrity trainwreck has officially achieved the sort of reach that has him immediately mobbed by yahoos at suburban Vancouver gas stations after midnight. Truly pathetic.

 

[notshocking]

Good points both, although there seems to be quite a diversity among white power types these days in terms of esthetics (and skinheads are not necessarily racists at all).

I'm a left-leaning guy with a very short crewcut sitting here in Docs and a Fred Perry with a 1982 Cock Sparrer LP playing in the background, so yes, I would tend to agree!

 

[PinkLucy]

From the Toronto Star:

ON NOW: Chat live with ‪#‎CrazyTown‬ author Robyn Doolittle http://ow.ly/tgR6z ‪#‎RobFord‬ ‪#‎topoli‬