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Rob Ford's Toronto

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On.the business card issue Ford is caught in a trap of circular criticism. The family business has always existed as a supply depot for him. The business can supply something he needs at wholesale cost so he takes it and concludes that he's saving the taxpayers an expense. Then his opposition says you can't do that, you need to bill at market rate. So an invoice is drawn up to meet those concerns, and when it is the opposition cries look, he's trying to make profits for his business by trading on his position. But if it wasn't for the process requirements he probably never would have billed the city, he would have instead covered costs out of his own pocket.

It's a trivial transaction that doesn't expose the corrupt underbelly of the Ford's, no matter how much people want there to be a gotcha here. What it does expose is how unprofessionaly the Ford's operate. The danger is that they'd operate in the same casual manner on some greater dealing, say in easing land deals down in the Portlands for friends and contributors, and would be unable to comprehend why something that is making money for some private enterprise might in any way be bad for the city, could in any way be wrong.
 
No. Don't you think it was funny?

TBH, I didn't really get it. I was trying to figure out which picture you were referencing, and then there was the explanatory note at the bottom. And the admission that you voted for Ford for a joke. It was all abit difficult to get. But I was tired and by no means should you take that as a slight.

On.the business card issue Ford is caught in a trap of circular criticism. The family business has always existed as a supply depot for him. The business can supply something he needs at wholesale cost so he takes it and concludes that he's saving the taxpayers an expense. Then his opposition says you can't do that, you need to bill at market rate. So an invoice is drawn up to meet those concerns, and when it is the opposition cries look, he's trying to make profits for his business by trading on his position. But if it wasn't for the process requirements he probably never would have billed the city, he would have instead covered costs out of his own pocket.

It's a trivial transaction that doesn't expose the corrupt underbelly of the Ford's, no matter how much people want there to be a gotcha here. What it does expose is how unprofessionaly the Ford's operate. The danger is that they'd operate in the same casual manner on some greater dealing, say in easing land deals down in the Portlands for friends and contributors, and would be unable to comprehend why something that is making money for some private enterprise might in any way be bad for the city, could in any way be wrong.

I agree there's a reasonable chance there's no "there" there, but I don't think there's any dispute that it would be actual corruption if Ford had fraudulently produced fake 3rd party invoices as purported proof of obtaining competitive bids. So what we're left with is a general feeling that Ford probably didn't fraudulently produce fake 3rd party invoices, but he's too stupid not to retain records that prove his innocence. This follows on last week's discussion about the Hume column where the general feeling was that The Star shouldn't behave like a petulant child just because the mayor is a petulant child.

I feel *so* confident that my tax dollars are in good hands.
 
BOMBSHELL!


http://www.thestar.com/news/article/1108648--911-calls-to-ford-s-home-a-sensitive-issue?bn=1

"On Oct. 25, less than 15 hours after Ford himself called 911 regarding the intrusion of the comedy show This Hour has 22 Minutes on his property, officers from 22 Division were back at the Etobicoke residence on a domestic call.

On Christmas, Ford’s mother-in-law called police between 4 and 5 a.m. to report that the mayor had been drinking and was taking his children to Florida against the wishes of his wife, Renata."
 

Not really. This is Ford's usual behaviour. What's been a bombshell is that his handlers have been able to prevent him from being Rob Ford for so long.

The bets are on for how long it will take for Ford to be arrested for drunk driving or other drunker behaviour. Nonetheless, not even a mug shot on the front page of every newspaper will get that man out of office. He's pigheaded and will stay in office just out of spite.
 
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The man needs to admit he has a drinking problem and then he needs to stop completely.
A well practiced alcoholic can keep it together most of the time, but when things go wrong, they blow up, hence the incidents like this and the time he was kicked out of the ACC.
I'm also concerned about how his wife is calling 911 and then when the cops show up "it was all a mistake and everything is fine now". How long until she starts showing up at the hospital because she walked into a door?
 
BOMBSHELL!


http://www.thestar.com/news/article/1108648--911-calls-to-ford-s-home-a-sensitive-issue?bn=1

"On Oct. 25, less than 15 hours after Ford himself called 911 regarding the intrusion of the comedy show This Hour has 22 Minutes on his property, officers from 22 Division were back at the Etobicoke residence on a domestic call.

On Christmas, Ford’s mother-in-law called police between 4 and 5 a.m. to report that the mayor had been drinking and was taking his children to Florida against the wishes of his wife, Renata."

Whatever Ford's personal shortcomings may be, this story should be considered in connection to another big story of 2011: Ford's surrender on the police budget.

In the weeks leading up to this October surprise, Ford had insisted that the police would be forced to make the same cuts demanded of everyone else. Cllr Michael Thompson had been instructed to demand these cuts, and he even threatened Bill Blair's job when the police chief refused to budge.

Mysteriously, on the weekend prior to the TPS board meeting, Ford caved and Thompson was "left to twist in the wind". "“Somewhere, a decision had been made' said Thompson. 'There was no consultation with me. My own personal thought was, ‘Okay, it’s business as usual.’ ”

James's article quotes Thompson as believing that police were attempting to intimidate him: "Inside police headquarters where Thompson’s name is mud, he says the word is: 'They are going to amputate my political career. But I don’t scare easy. I’m not intimidated.'"

Days later, the police were at Ford's house, answering a domestic call unrelated to Marg Delahunty's unwelcome appearance hours earlier. The police refused to answer questions about this call "because the personal information was gathered 'as part of an investigation into a possible violation of law.'" The Star sources suggest that there may be other 911 calls the public does not yet know about. "Exactly how many calls have been made is unknown."

As for the famous 911 calls over TH22M, a few days after being spared budget cuts, Bill Blair insisted that Ford never called the 911 dispatcher a "bitch," despite CBC sources who claimed he did. And Bill Blair is an honourable man.

As Adam Vaughan says: "If he’s involved with the police, either with calling them or having them called against him. . . he’s got to be much more clear how he’s exercising this authority and whether or not there is any potential conflict."

The whole thing stinks.

Also: Ford's costly police deal a 'rookie mistake,' critics say (May 2011)
 
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^ Yes, Armbruster, the whole things stinks, but why am I laughing so hard with all of the latest "Ford developments"? I am finding this morning's Star reports just knee-slappin' stuff !!! (Pity the poor wife, though).

Yup, folks elected the guy.
 
I can't find any humour in this incident, a drunken bully like Rob Ford is nothing to laugh at. The man needs help in this regard and to that end I actually feel bad for him and his family.
On the flip side of the coin I'm also no longer humoured by any of his flubs, poor decisions, bad leadership, verbal gaffs, secret deals, lack of transparency etc etc. Only 14 months in I'm fed up and fatigued with all the nonsense of this "Mayor". Most of us knew it was going to be a bad four years, but it's become even worse quicker than I would ever have imagined.
Certainly, more foolishness and destruction is yet to come.
 
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One in five woman, in Canada, report domestic abuse. Based on that statistic, we can assume that one in five men in Toronto make up the Ford Nation. We can also assume, that of the 30 male councillors (including the mayor), 6 of them abuse their spouses. I wonder who the other five abusive councillors are?
 
It's sad during the election Ford's alcohol use was overshadowed by Smitherman's past cocaine addiction.
 
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