"I can see why people think I'm a nutcase"
Ah, good old Rob Ford. EYE Weekly has a great cover story piece on this wackjob Councillor from Etobicoke in this weeks issue.
You may remember Rob as the drunken ass at a Leafs game who kept yelling things like "Green Party fuckin' rules!" and causing a scene, and then attempting to deny it before getting caught in his lie and confessing.
But EYE gives a few other gems you may not have known about Robby boy:
- Referred to the pesticide ban as "the worst thing that could happen" and labeled it dictatorship. Arguing that individuals should be able to do anything they want on their property. He also felt that the argument against pesticides was stupid because weeds are ugly and previous generations used pesticides frequently and lived longer than ever.
- Suggested Toronto be declared a "refugee- free zone".
- Felt $1.5 million for AIDS prevention was unacceptable because prevention was easy. "If you are not doing needles and you are not gay, you won't get AIDS probably." But when questioned then as to why women are the largest growing group of AIDS patients, Ford responded "How are women getting it? Maybe they are sleeping with Bisexual men."
All these gems and more are in the current issue of EYE. Pick it up and see a stellar example of why increasing the terms of City Councillors is a terrible idea.
You may remember Rob as the drunken ass at a Leafs game who kept yelling things like "Green Party fuckin' rules!" and causing a scene, and then attempting to deny it before getting caught in his lie and confessing.
But EYE gives a few other gems you may not have known about Robby boy:
- Referred to the pesticide ban as "the worst thing that could happen" and labeled it dictatorship. Arguing that individuals should be able to do anything they want on their property. He also felt that the argument against pesticides was stupid because weeds are ugly and previous generations used pesticides frequently and lived longer than ever.
- Suggested Toronto be declared a "refugee- free zone".
- Felt $1.5 million for AIDS prevention was unacceptable because prevention was easy. "If you are not doing needles and you are not gay, you won't get AIDS probably." But when questioned then as to why women are the largest growing group of AIDS patients, Ford responded "How are women getting it? Maybe they are sleeping with Bisexual men."
All these gems and more are in the current issue of EYE. Pick it up and see a stellar example of why increasing the terms of City Councillors is a terrible idea.
"Rob Ford may be a raving lunatic, but he's a raving lunatic who will come to your home and stand in the rain to ensure you get 15 minutes with the city staffer who can help you. And that, as anyone who's tried to navigate the city hall bureaucracy will know, is no small thing."
I'm disappointed in how City Idol turned out, because what I hoped was that it would bring in people with Ford's work ethic but without his hard-right social conservatism to challenge lazy incumbents.
Instead the CI people are mostly going into vacant seats rather than shaking up the incumbents - many of whom have been there much longer than Ford's two terms.
Posted by
Mark Dowling |
1:08 PM
As someone who lives in Ford's ward, I will come to the rescue of my fellow ward-members and say that the reason Ford keeps getting elected is not because the electorate is stupid, but because Ford - as the Eye article pointed out - actually gets stuff done.
The majority of the people in this ward aren't too interested in the waterfront or the island airport or the Gardiner Expressway: they're wondering how to deal with landlord disputes and why the lights on the basketball courts don't turn on any more. Ford's remarkably good at getting those things sorted, so he keeps coming back.
That being said, you've just inspired me to write a post about my city councillor, it should be up on Monday. I mean, I'm no fan of the guy, and definitely opposed to his politics, but he's good for the community here.
Posted by
Vasta |
8:02 PM
You make a very good poing about Rob Ford's dedication to his constituents individual issues. It is fantastic he realizes who elects him and is responsible for their needs, not the rest of the city's.
Except that many big picture issues like the Gardiner, the waterfront and AIDS funding have major impacts on every corner of Toronto. I am not suggesting Ward 2 abandon Ford for someone who is only concerned with city-wide issues, just that they make sure when Ford speaks, he is accurately reflecting the voice of his ward.
Posted by
Matt Ross |
12:10 PM
Ah, you're absolutely right Matt. My major frustration with Ford is that he seems to be a little ignorant of the political perspectives of his constituents.
Hopefully he learns to truly be the voice of the ward (instead of just the muscle), or hopefully we find someone else that can balance the big picture with the small.
Posted by
Vasta |
2:35 PM