What's the deal with Mayor Rob Ford??

[Josephus]

I don't consider myself a puritan, but I'd probably have some qualms with my Mayor strolling around town meeting with drug dealers that his driver knows, and smoking crack cocaine. Crack cocaine is a poor hood drug, I don't really know what a respectable member of the ruling class is doing using it when he could have been snorting coke or something more appropriate for his economic/societal station.

That might be part of it. If he was snorting coke that might be different. But crack? That's for white trash, blacks and hoes.

[Josephus]

I don't consider myself a puritan, but I'd probably have some qualms with my Mayor strolling around town meeting with drug dealers that his driver knows, and smoking crack cocaine. Crack cocaine is a poor hood drug, I don't really know what a respectable member of the ruling class is doing using it when he could have been snorting coke or something more appropriate for his economic/societal station.

You don't seem to appreciate what Rob Ford's "economic/societal station" is.

Bingo

Otto,  Ford got elected on a platform which proudly declared his anti-establishment, anti-intellectual and anti ruling-class status.  If someone in one of those groups had been around to advise him he probably could have turned this story to his advantage early on.  Who knows he still might do.

Maybe that's what they say out west. he was nver anti-establishment. Anti-intellectual, obviously, since he didn't belong to that club. He got elected simply on a "I will cut the fuck out of your taxes, and on wasteful government spending."

[Malthus]

Unfortunately, unless he resigns voluntarily, or is tried and convicted of something, there appears to be no mechanism for removing a mayor for being a drunken and drugged-up wreck.

I am not sure if this is a form of social commentary predicting he will be re-elected or not

The odd thing is that, so far, the circus hasn't affected his poll numbers much. 

[crazy canuck]

Maybe that's what they say out west. he was nver anti-establishment. Anti-intellectual, obviously, since he didn't belong to that club. He got elected simply on a "I will cut the fuck out of your taxes, and on wasteful government spending."

When one considers wasteful government spending to be public libraries what do you call that back East?

[crazy canuck]

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford is expected to make an unspecified announcement shortly after admitting earlier Tuesday to smoking crack cocaine _ a stunning development that came as councillors drafted motions to limit many of his mayoral powers.

On his way out?

Now what are Josephus and I going to disagree on?

[viper37]

Unfortunately, unless he resigns voluntarily, or is tried and convicted of something, there appears to be no mechanism for removing a mayor for being a drunken and drugged-up wreck.

I am not sure if this is a form of social commentary predicting he will be re-elected or not

The odd thing is that, so far, the circus hasn't affected his poll numbers much. 

It's not very odd.  Some people tend to have loyal followers, no matter what.  Look at Laval, 2nd biggest city of the province, the island North of Montreal.

It is a very corrupt city.  Well, at least it was, we have no proof it is corrupt now (neither do we have proofs it's a clean city either).
Nothing got done without the old mayor's interventions.  he was there since the 80s, the guy before him was just as corrupt.
He offered cash to some politicians, wich they claim they refused.  He had millions in offshore accounts, hundreds of thousands in bank vaults in Quebec, multiple properties, nice, expensive sports cars.  Everyone in the city knew how he was, but they kept electing him.  When his story became officially public, even when he was first arrested and accused, he still had the support of the majority.

It seems that when it comes to city politicians, people are willing to tolerate a lot more than on the provincial&federal scene.

[viper37]

When one considers wasteful government spending to be public libraries what do you call that back East?

"mayor".

Had one like this in my city for a while.  The other city we pay taxes into had a candidate like too, she got 40% of the vote, no more libraries, no more ice-ring, no more soccer field, nothing.
These kind of politicians seem popular in very small cities, what's unusual is seeing them in big cities like Toronto.

[Barrister]

When we talk about Ford I'm somewhat reminded of good ole Ralph Klein.  Same kind of aw shucks man of the people persona, fairly strident right-wing politics, and his alcoholism was an open secret.  Klein at least used to habitually hang out in a really old, run down hotel that served a semi-transient population.  And he was loved by the people of this province.

What did him in, oddly enough, was one incident were he was drunk and he became verbally abusive with a homeless man.  That was the straw that broke the camel's back.  He went out into rehab, and came back a sober, humourless asshole.

[Malthus]

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford is expected to make an unspecified announcement shortly after admitting earlier Tuesday to smoking crack cocaine _ a stunning development that came as councillors drafted motions to limit many of his mayoral powers.

On his way out?

Now what are Josephus and I going to disagree on?

Apparently not.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/mayor-rob-ford-not-stepping-down-1.2415533

[Malthus]

When we talk about Ford I'm somewhat reminded of good ole Ralph Klein.  Same kind of aw shucks man of the people persona, fairly strident right-wing politics, and his alcoholism was an open secret.  Klein at least used to habitually hang out in a really old, run down hotel that served a semi-transient population.  And he was loved by the people of this province.

What did him in, oddly enough, was one incident were he was drunk and he became verbally abusive with a homeless man.  That was the straw that broke the camel's back.  He went out into rehab, and came back a sober, humourless asshole.

Ford doesn't need rehab for that last bit. 

[Admiral Yi]

Klein at least used to habitually hang out in a really old, run down hotel that served a semi-transient population.

Doing what?

[Barrister]

Klein at least used to habitually hang out in a really old, run down hotel that served a semi-transient population.

Doing what?

Drinking, of course.

Here's a picture of him from the mid 80s when he was Mayor of Calgary (Klein is in the middle):

[OttoVonBismarck]

That's my kind of politician.

[Josephus]

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford is expected to make an unspecified announcement shortly after admitting earlier Tuesday to smoking crack cocaine _ a stunning development that came as councillors drafted motions to limit many of his mayoral powers.

On his way out?

Now what are Josephus and I going to disagree on?

Well....we really haven't touched the Mike Duffy thing yet...

But in any case, I don't think he's resigned has he?

[HVC]

But in any case, I don't think he's resigned has he?

not as of yet. Probably won't. I may vote for in the next election just to keep the fun going