Rob Ford, mayor of Toronto UPDATES

WWWTT · December 24, 2013

Going to have to agree with Shady here.

If you criticize Ford for not calling a state of an emergency than you will have to also criticize several other mayors around the GTA for not doing the same thing!

WWWTT

Boges · December 24, 2013

This Ice Storm has brought everyone together. :-)

jacee · December 24, 2013

This Ice Storm has brought everyone together. :-)

On Guard for Thee · December 25, 2013

Exactly. The so-called state of emergency is pure symbolism, and won't actually speed up the process of restoring power to those that don't have it. It's just a new way to criticize Rob Ford, that's all.

You must be kidding! Are there more ways to criticize Ford that he hasn't already revealed? He won't declare an emergency because when he does the deputy mayor takes over as per motions from within council This thin veneeer of "taking care fo business" is a bit of a joke. But as the old saying goes, "you can fool some of the people, all of the time"

jacee · December 25, 2013

He won't declare an emergency because when he does the deputy mayor takes over as per motions from within council

Toronto would have looked foolish if they declared an emergency. It wasn't necessary.

They just need Hydro workers.

.

BubberMiley · December 25, 2013

I guess you can get into the semantics of what a state of emergency is and whether it's just a symbolic declaration. I would think that whenever you're begging other provinces and states to please send people to skip Christmas and come and help restore power to homes in December, that's a state of emergency.

Bob Macadoo · December 25, 2013

I guess you can get into the semantics of what a state of emergency is and whether it's just a symbolic declaration. I would think that whenever you're begging other provinces and states to please send people to skip Christmas and come and help restore power to homes in December, that's a state of emergency.

There's something to be said for that. But again types on here will be first in line to bemoan these line workers as soon as the sunshine list will come out showing the amount of overtime they worked, and not a word will be mentioned about how thankful they were that their tree twinkled Christmas morning.

Boges · December 25, 2013

There's something to be said for that. But again types on here will be first in line to bemoan these line workers as soon as the sunshine list will come out showing the amount of overtime they worked, and not a word will be mentioned about how thankful they were that their tree twinkled Christmas morning.

It's their job. Also this situation isn't just a Toronto problem.

jacee · December 26, 2013

I guess you can get into the semantics of what a state of emergency is and whether it's just a symbolic declaration. I would think that whenever you're begging other provinces and states to please send people to skip Christmas and come and help restore power to homes in December, that's a state of emergency.

Some explanation here

toronto-manager-says-not-currently-necessary-to-declare-state-of-emergency

Bob Macadoo · December 27, 2013

It's their job. Also this situation isn't just a Toronto problem.

So you're not thankful for people "doing their job", hate to be your waiter.

Its their job to give up their holidays so you can roast your turkey? Good to know. Your name won't be one of those complaining when they are paid appropriately for it I take it. I somehow doubt it though, they probably should be salaried right?

Edited December 27, 2013 by Bob Macadoo

Boges · December 27, 2013

So you're not thankful for people "doing their job", hate to be your waiter.

Its their job to give up their holidays so you can roast your turkey? Good to know. Your name won't be one of those complaining when they are paid appropriately for it I take it. I somehow doubt it though, they probably should be salaried right?

I'm not aware how Hydro workers are compensated. I'm sure overtime associated with this has been budgeted for, similar to snow removal. This is an extraordinary situation. I don't begrudge them there overtime as they are skilled workers. It's not like they are ticket collectors for the TTC raking in 6 figures.

We've seen some serious corruption associated with hydro officials in the news lately. I don't think that's necessarily a problem with front-line workers.

And yes it is their job to give up their Christmas when large swathes of Southern Ontario are without power. What would be an outrage is such workers said they are entitled to Christmas Day off so they decided not to work while people sat in the dark.

Edited December 30, 2013 by Boges

PIK · December 27, 2013

This Ice Storm has brought everyone together. :-)

Except the deputy mayor which I heard snuck off to florida. I have heard ford is receiving alot of praise for his handling of the situation and not panicing and calling a state of emergency.

jacee · December 27, 2013

Except the deputy mayor which I heard snuck off to florida.

For 24 hrs. I don't know why this even warrants mentioning.

BubberMiley · December 27, 2013

I have heard ford is receiving alot of praise for his handling of the situation and not panicing and calling a state of emergency.

I don't think panicking and declaring a state of emergency are the same thing at all. I know in Manitoba sometimes states of emergency are declared well before the flooding starts just to get the bureaucratic machine going and resources in place.

But why was he praised for his handling of the situation? Was it because he barely showed up for work, thereby keeping out of people's way so they can actually get things done?

Shady · December 27, 2013

I don't think panicking and declaring a state of emergency are the same thing at all. I know in Manitoba sometimes states of emergency are declared well before the flooding starts just to get the bureaucratic machine going and resources in place.But why was he praised for his handling of the situation? Was it because he barely showed up for work, thereby keeping out of people's way so they can actually get things done?

I'm glad you're finally acknowledging that large bureaucracies are inefficient.

BubberMiley · December 28, 2013

I'm glad you're finally acknowledging that large bureaucracies are inefficient.

I didn't say that. I said "get (it) going", which does not mean it's inefficient. I will thank you not to put words in my mouth. :rolleyes:

Boges · December 28, 2013

I can see preparing for a flood but not much preparation can really be done for an ice storm short of pruning trees near power lines.

Edited December 28, 2013 by Boges

On Guard for Thee · December 28, 2013

Except the deputy mayor which I heard snuck off to florida. I have heard ford is receiving alot of praise for his handling of the situation and not panicing and calling a state of emergency.

Ford is like the spoilt little (OK not so little) bully in the sandbox. He won't declare an emergency because he knows if he does he's no longer calling any shots. It's quite obvious he's not calling any shots anyways. It seems to me that probably someone hands him a paper and he gets to say there are still so many households without power and then it's "G'night Rob", and others take over.

jacee · December 30, 2013

/mp-brian-jean-congratulates-rob-ford-for-meeting-bare-minimum/

Alberta MP Brian Jean is getting some attention today after tweeting his praise for Toronto Mayor Rob Ford.

Among Fords accomplishments worthy of Jeans congratulations were his ability to appear both alert and focused during a recent interview on CBC News about the ice storm that hit Toronto.

In Jeans defense, Ford does appear to be both conscious and not in a drunken stupor.

WWWTT · January 1, 2014

Is there anyone out there still supporting Ford?

Ya sure there is!

I posted this link in another thread, but it also fits this one to a tee!

http://lif.to/1k49maw

WWWTT

WWWTT · January 1, 2014

It seems to me that probably someone hands him a paper and he gets to say there are still so many households without power and then it's "G'night Rob", and others take over.

And conservatives all over Canada are praising him like some kind of messiah for spending 15 minutes reading a piece of paper that was handed to him!

Man that's so freekin funny!

WWWTT

jacee · January 1, 2014

This is an issue that hasn't received due attention: Ford's interpretation of his job as mayor, providing "customer service" one constituent at a time by intimidating and harassing staff to 'jump the queue' for Ford's preferred constituents. This is called 'vote buying' and involves Ford peddling his influence as Mayor for personal political gain.

http://torontoist.com/2013/12/2013-villain-rob-ford/

At this point you might suggest that Fords track record of constituent service disproves the notion that he is selfish. On the contrary: it reinforces it. After all, we know what Rob Ford constituent service looks like: he shows up; makes some concerned noises; and summons senior staff who are paid considerable salaries to manage large-scale problems, not micromanage individual ones. And then he goes. When he issues those summons he isnt actually addressing the underlying issues in any way; hes not thinking about or tackling root causes. Hes just using his influence to move one particular person affected by one particular instance of the problem up the queue.

The fact that Ford spends most of his taxpayer-funded time driving around from one constituent to another ... is just a bizarre interpretation of his job.

Edited January 1, 2014 by jacee

guyser · January 2, 2014

I have heard ford is receiving alot of praise for his handling of the situation and not panicing and calling a state of emergency.

Only in your head.

Oh...maybe from his mommy and equally moronic brother. I'll give you that.

On Guard for Thee · January 3, 2014

I can't wait for the campaigning to begin, it will be hilarious. I can imagine all those late night comedy hosts are buoyed by the news that "the buffon" has thrown his name into the hat. As many of them have already stated that Mayor Ford is a gift that just keeps on giving. We will get to see all those freaky videos of his "drunken stupors" a few times more before he fades into a footnote.