Archive for 2012

Lighter side of life…

Posted on November 28th, 2012 Comments Off on Lighter side of life…

This fall has been just amazing for myself and our family.

First off, I got to have the birthday’s of all birthdays! I honest to God did not expect that I got to have 3 bday celebrations thx to the bestest man in the world! (my birthday was October 1).

Friday, Saturday, Sunday (I treated Him to a private brunch!).
That brings us to Monday, Oct 1, 2012, the best surprise gift day I ever got!!
What was so special? Patrick made reservations forTwo at the Fairmont Royal York!

Brunch was beyond words amazing and fairly priced to boot!

We have since gone to Kit Kat on King West, etc etc.

If you’re in town hit me up and we can go to great places together!

Love is healing my heart body and soul AND throw in some good food then you have it made!

PS: follow your life’s passions and have a drink to celebrate!

ttyl!

SarahD <3

Filed under: Dispatches, SarahD

This week’s Awesome happenings!

Posted on November 28th, 2012 Be the first to comment

Hello again to the desk (bed… ) of SarahD!

On Monday at 10:32am Mayor Robert Bruce– who names their kid Bruce?) Ford got FIRED!! :-)
He intentionally breached the codes of office and a high court judge told him what was what.

The man who fires people at will clearly received the city’s retribution.

I have some questions for you all: do you think that he did what he did intentionally?

Given the dynamics of the Ford family, do you believe that played a part in the manner of Rob’s tenure as Mayor?

I frequently wonder if things would have been different had DOUG not had been sitting there telling him how to function lol.

Would Rob Ford have been a good Mayor of Toronto all by himself without Doug?

I can understand that family is family and they should be by one’s side however, Toronto did not elect a two-person Mayor…

My thoughts request your thoughts so feel free to write back!

Peace, love, and good health to you,
SarahD!

Filed under: Dispatches, SarahD

Ford re-election: done deal!

Posted on November 27th, 2012 2 Comments

The idea that Ford would easily win a re-election if ousted was making the rounds before the judgement was announced. And, of course, every fool pundit and their dog was claiming that, for sure, he would be re-elected. Hands down. No doubt.

After all, the people of Toronto love Ford and think he’s doing just a great job with everything!

Sites like Canada.com have dedicated more than one column to propping up a man who, by his own admission, can barely tie his own shoelaces. The National Post typically marches in lock-step with the Ford dictatorship, so they’re not shy about showing their own support. And, of course, the Toronto Sun might as well be called The Rob Ford Daily, though that future is uncertain since he recently turned on them.

Yup, it’s pretty much a done deal … if Ford runs again, he’s a shoe-in and his ouster will just be  a huge waste of time! Easy!

Toronto Sun poll (November 26)

Toronto Star poll (October)

Toronto Star poll (November 26)

Metro News poll (November 26)

Globe and Mail poll (November 26)

Global Toronto poll (November 26)

Globe and Mail poll (October)

Hamilton Spectator poll (November 26)

So…yeah…there you go; when it comes to Ford, the bullshit just won’t stop. The media lackeys … erm … pundits, may not have learned that lesson, but at least it looks like the voters have.

Filed under: B Sides, Patrick Bay, Pictures

“A stubborn sense of entitlement, and a dismissive and confrontational attitude”

Posted on November 26th, 2012 Be the first to comment

No one can say that this was  a “Leftie” conspiracy against Rob Ford — the judge who passed the judgment was in favour of the Harper government in the Guergis case.

And despite the blatantly false, grossly uninformed, and incessantly misleading bleating of ardent Ford supporters like CP24’s Stephen Ledrew (I’m sure Jerry Agar won’t be far behind), Hackland’s judgement was not a mere “technicality” (“highly unlikely” to go anywhere, according to Ledrew, mere moments before the verdict was delivered), or based on “Ford helping the kids”.

And despite CP24’s best attempt to spin the verdict by showing the “range of responses” from Twitter, which included one outraged respondent and a question about how long Ford has to appeal, my own experience both online and off (I’m sitting in a downtown coffee shop as I write this), shows an overwhelming amount of joy and a feeling that justice has finally been done. Not a “he got his” feeling, but a “law prevailed as we knew it must” feeling — something I’m sure, based on all the feedback I’ve seen, Ford supporters just can’t wrap their heads around. And there aren’t many of them around anymore (this is why I’ve mused more than once about the real conspiracy, the one that’s propping Ford up).

I can honestly say that I knew in my heart of hearts that this had to be the verdict. As I’ve stated in numerous previous posts, the judge’s job is to make sure that the law is followed, and in this case the law was very clear. Ultimately, as Ruby, the lawyer who brought the case against Ford, said in a televised conference shortly after the verdict was released, Rob Ford did this to Rob Ford. That was so plainly and painfully obvious to anyone who read the details of the case that any judgment to the contrary would’ve been a shock, not the other way around. Not that it’s stopping Ledrew and the CP24 team from trying to push this lie into the “range of responses” and trying their damnedest to steer the conversation in this direction.

But if you still don’t believe how un-shocked I am at this verdict, just scroll back through a few past Ford conflict of interest posts on TCL and compare the language I used to that used by the judge himself (be sure to read the whole judgement while you’re at it):

Hackland: “In view of the respondent’s leadership role in ensuring integrity in municipal government, it is difficult to accept an error in judgment defence based essentially on a stubborn sense of entitlement (concerning his football foundation) and a dismissive and confrontational attitude to the Integrity Commissioner and the Code of Conduct. In my opinion, the respondent’s actions were characterized by ignorance of the law and a lack of diligence in securing professional advice, amounting to wilful blindness. As such, I find his actions are incompatible with an error in judgment.”

TCL: “The real problem with Ford, aside from believing he can pick and choose which laws to follow, is that he’s personally offensive, and has been from day one. He shows no remorse for any of his actions, and if he stays in office there’s no reason to believe that things will get anything but worse. Much worse.”

Hackland: “For the reasons set out above, I have concluded that the respondent contravened s. 5 of the MCIA when he spoke and voted on a matter in which he had a pecuniary interest at the meeting of Toronto City Council on February 7, 2012, and that his actions were not done by reason of inadvertence or a good faith error in judgment.”

TCL: “This can easily be seen as vote buying — you donate to Rob’s foundation, he gets you tax receipts and special favours when he gets into the Mayor’s seat. Even if that never happens (though with Ford, it most likely would), the chance of it happening is eliminated by having things like the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act (in fact, that’s the sole reason for this law to exist in the first place!) Maybe Robbie didn’t know that it could be perceived this way? Not a fucking chance.”

Hackland: “In assessing errors in judgment, just as it may be relevant to consider the position of a novice elected councillor with limited experience with conflict of interest issues, it is also appropriate to consider the responsibilities of the respondent as a long-serving councillor and Mayor. In my opinion, a high standard must be expected from an elected official in a position of leadership and responsibility. Toronto’s current Code of Conduct is modelled on the recommendations of The Honourable Denise Bellamy, who conducted the Toronto Computer Leasing Inquiry, in 2005, when the respondent was a member of City Council.

TCL: “Thing is, Ford had gotten the book of rules just like every other Councillor — of which, of course, he has no memory but does have a clear recollection of what he ate for breakfast that morning (that’s the actual reply) — sat in and voted on meetings with reports by the Integrity Commissioner where conflicts of interest were clearly spelled out, had access to Ana Kinastowski who heads City Hall’s legal department, and could also use a part of his office budget for independent legal advice if he wants it. And don’t forget how many times Ford had recused himself in the past when the conflicts of interest were laughably far removed from him. And just in case there was any doubt, Ford is reminded how Sandra Bussin had mentioned that Ford might be in a conflict of interest prior to the meeting, and that according to the same document he kinda remembers signing, the final responsibility for such things lies with him.”

I could go on but it’s kind of beating a dead horse. And I have to be upfront and say that I’m definitely not the only person to point out these “discrepancies” in Ford’s thinking and statements.

But no matter what I think or say, it’s very satisfying at the end of all of this to know that common sense, as reflected in law, has prevailed. On occasion, the law actually works!

Ford is now busily figuring out how to spend the next two weeks before he has to give up his seat. Apparently there’s an appeal in the works and we can be pretty sure the Supreme Court is going to be hearing of this outrage. In the meantime, though, City Council is thinking about if they should appoint an interim mayor or if there should be a by-election. Ford won’t be barred from this so presumably he could run (and win), once again. Considering the amount of bad blood he’s racked up so far though, even if he throws his name into the ring, I can’t see him winning again. Sorry, Ledrew, but you’re wrong on that one too.

Filed under: B Sides, Patrick Bay, Why I'm Right

Rob Ford’s manic Monday

Posted on November 24th, 2012 Be the first to comment

I know — I didn’t follow up much on Rob Ford’s conflict of interest case of a few months ago, although I’ve been eagerly awaiting a verdict.

I actually went down to the court house on the first day of the trial to hear him give testimony, and it was pretty much what I’d expected. There was a lot of side-stepping and claiming that during his decade or so at City Hall, he’d never really read the rules, barely talked to any legal aid, had most of his decisions made for him, and ignored the advice of fellow Councillors — what more could you expect from a mayor?

I tweeted from the court room so I’m sure Twitter will have some record of exactly how things went down that day, but there was really nothing new learned on that occasion except the amount of derision in the court that morning. Justice Hackland warned against “outbursts” when someone produced a quiet snicker at one of Ford’s remarks. It may have been the one where he said, “You read it to me, but I haven’t read it,” (referring to a previous conversation that he’d had with Clayton Ruby about reading the rules and which, apparently, failed to make any impression), but really there were so many that I could easily be mistaken.

In any event, it just smacked of one giant insult against common sense to hear the man speak and try to wriggle his way out of responsibility for his own actions.

The reason I mention this is because, at long last, the court is supposed to be delivering its verdict on this coming Monday (at 10 a.m.) In practical terms, Ford may not be mayor come Tuesday morning. That would mean not only a possible by-election, but also Ford’s absence from any municipal politics for a number of years (so presumably Harper would immediately take him on in some cabinet position).

Let justice, law, and the truth prevail!

Filed under: Dispatches, Patrick Bay

Harper dictatorship rolling along

Posted on November 23rd, 2012 Be the first to comment

It’s either that or this is yet another excuse to cut and slash and force people into abject poverty while handing over billions to banker buddies and wealthy mega-corporations. Either way, it’s a future of indentured servitude and some pretty bad times under the name of “austerity”.

I mean, how many more times are we going to hear the same bullshit coming out of the government about how they need to cut services and “tighten belts” (exactly like their municipal lick-boots like the Ford stooges), but that eventually we’ll make it out of our financial morass, only to discover that, OH NO! THINGS ARE NOW WAY WORSE THAN EVER! Oh, but this time around, we’ll for sure balance books by the next election (and just to make sure, we’ll fraudulently steal more time at the helm).

There are still idiots out there who believe that what’s happening in Greece (and, at this point, the rest of Europe and pretty much everywhere else), is the result of laziness, or unionization, or other complete and utter nonsense, but it’s getting hard to find people who keep buying the same crap over and over again in the face of blatant lies, theft, open criminality, and every other type of scumbaggery imaginable.

The only explanation for still believing anything that Harper and his criminal buddies dole out is to simply and boldly ignore reality and the regular headlines of massive bank corruption, or to not be able to see the painfully obvious when it’s publicly announced that those same banks are now running much of Europe (and directly responsible for the rape and pillage of the nations under their control). How stupid do you have to be?

Is it any wonder that Harper is so ardently trying to keep anyone from looking into how he manages your tax money? And you can be sure that the money, or savings, or whatever you want to call it, isn’t going to help you.

Take, for example, the “controversial” Multiple Sclerosis Liberation Therapy that the Harper government just killed. In case you’re not familiar with it, it’s a fairly simple, painless day surgery that many MS patients have found helps them to lead much better lives.

It’s fairly risk-free if done by a trained professional; it involves widening a vein in the neck with a tiny balloon (via a vein in the leg and using only local anesthetic), not unlike a riskier procedure regularly done in high-blood-pressure arteries for heart attack patients (done every single day here in Canada). The most expensive and time-consuming part of Liberation is actually the MRI that’s done to assess the patient.

All the doubters out there (many of whom have a direct interest in keeping MS patients at the status quo), have put out a great campaign to convince everyone that the procedure is incredibly risky, not bothering to mention that the risk comes from the people and places where the procedure is currently being done — the kinds of places they maintain you need various inoculations just to visit. And, statistically, you’re much more likely to have “complications” from government-approved medicine like yearly flu vaccinations.

These are the same people who advise patients that things like diet, proper rest, exercise, and lifestyle really don’t matter and that treatments like chemotherapy should be first and foremost (shit you not!) I’m speaking from personal experiences with one of Toronto’s top MS doctors here, straight from his mouth to my shocked ears.

Just because you may not know anyone with MS, however, doesn’t mean that Harper’s deceit won’t affect you. Consider that what his government rejected was simply a study to see if the Liberation Procedure even works; not to implement it, train people on it, etc.

Consider also that a typical Liberation treatment has to be done maybe once every couple of years or so (sometimes not even that), at a cost of about $10,000, while current drug treatments like Copaxone or newer ones like Tysabri (which are still not well understood or studied!), can cost upwards of $100,000 per year — and that doesn’t take into consideration the cost of medical professionals like nurses to administer the IV drugs (plus facilities for them), additional testing like regular blood work, or extra complications like PML, possible birth defects, etc.

The costs, any way you want to tally them, are way too high to be justified.

You know, maybe Liberation isn’t a good answer, but you’d think that being cheaper, easier, much less dangerous, and seemingly quite helpful, it would be worth a look. But no, Harper is working hard to make sure that you’re as dependent as possible for less effective, more expensive, and more dangerous treatments, whenever and wherever possible.

And you’re paying for it! Yup, your tax money is being used for back-asswards, experimental, extremely expensive, and in many cases quite dangerous treatments that do not have any additional benefits for MS patients except to keep their conditions from worsening. I suspect that most people would agree that this makes sense as a last resort, not as a first and only one.

And that’s just what I happen to know because of Sarah and mine’s experience with the medical community and the government. If the amount of willful, known, clear and apparent waste, squandering, and criminal behaviour were ever exposed, I full expect our society would easily revert back to the days of the French revolution. I, for one, would not mind a few heads rolling — I’ll take figuratively, so long as commensurate jail terms are included.

Filed under: Patrick Bay, Why I'm Right

A cyclist was killed in Toronto this morning, but it won’t be the last time | canada.com

Posted on November 23rd, 2012 Be the first to comment

http://o.canada.com/2012/11/23/a-cyclist-was-killed-in-toronto-this-morning-but-it-wont-be-the-last-time/

Filed under: Contributed, SarahD

‘Olivia Chow is no Jack Layton’: Doug Ford likes brother Rob’s re-election chances

Posted on November 21st, 2012 Be the first to comment

http://www.nationalpost.com/m/wp/posted-toronto/blog.html?b=news.nationalpost.com/2012/11/21/olivia-chow-is-no-jack-layton-doug-ford-likes-brother-robs-re-election-chances

Filed under: Dispatches, SarahD

Just a clarification (we didn’t vote for Ford)

Posted on November 21st, 2012 Be the first to comment

Every once in a while I get to talking to random people on the streets about Rob Ford, and invariably the comment, “that’s some mayor you guys elected”, gets tossed out.

So just so everyone’s clear on this: NO WE FUCKING DIDN’T!

In fact, the record clearly shows that almost no one in the city proper voted for Ford. Just because he happens to have gotten elected by light thinkers living on the periphery of the vast region that comprises the city doesn’t mean that the city majority actually voted for him. In fact, in the final tally, only 25% of the Toronto borders, from Scarborough to Etobicoke, actually voted for Ford (about 50% of Toronto voted, and about 50% of those people voted for Ford). He didn’t get a majority by any means, he simply got the most votes in a race where votes were split between a number of people.

Ford Nation doesn’t seem to get this simple fact — adding 1 and 1 seems to be a feat for these people so that’s not surprising — and they maintain (usually on heady sounding boards like the Toronto Sun’s article response threads, brilliant groups like “I Hate The War on Rob Ford“, or brainiac power circles like the “Toronto Taxpayers Coalition“), that because he was elected by a “majority” (sorry, not even close), he should have dictatorial powers. And how dare the city practice representative democracy by allowing 43 other democratically elected Councillors to contradict His Highness on HIS  MANDATE! (doesn’t matter how many votes those Councillors got or how many people they represent).

This is why the remaining 75% of Toronto (probably much more at this point), are pissed off with Ford and his hand-up-the-ass puppet master / brother Doug.

They don’t represent us.

None of their efforts are benefiting downtown residents, which is seen by their supporters as a sort of “yeah, fuck you downtown!” response to those of us “elites” who live here (in neighbourhoods like Regent Park). And I get that the suburbs haven’t exactly gotten the infrastructure that they need, but that doesn’t mean that downtown residents are living some sort of glamorous lifestyle on the backs of taxpayers (oh, and we also pay taxes … shocker!) And they should know that — they use the same fucking transit lines and roads that they themselves congest, that we do. Or would, if only they weren’t such selfish fucks about it.

But that’s my own generalization and it’s unfair, in exactly the same way as putting all the focus on the suburbs and completely neglecting to take care of downtown is. Difference is that I can both see and admit to it. And that, along with a complete inability to see issues for what they are, are Rob-Doug’s abject failures.

Yeah, that’s right — removing the Jarvis Street bike lane based on a lie and at the taxpayers’ expense, isn’t going to ease any of the congestion issues anywhere else in the city, and barely on Jarvis at that (all the idiots that applauded this move are still sitting in traffic on the DVP, Gardiner, 401, etc.)

And cutting the vehicle registration tax saves drivers (again, mostly outside of the city), mere pennies a day amounting to a pittance in the pocket of fools who continue to rage at the real problems that are being ignored (you mean Ford hasn’t fixed traffic or parking or the price of gas?! Those damn Leftards!).

Oh, and that failure of the removal of the Land Transfer Tax (“guaranteed!” over and over again), would’ve saved people the same amount of money that Ford claimed the city was suddenly in the red for. In other words, he knew it would leave the city in a financial hole, lied about it, tried to blame it on his predecessor, and all openly under the noses of the same rubes that received Ford’s scorn because he didn’t get his way on the plastic bag tax. Yeah, he’ll turn on you faster than a rabid dog if he senses any trouble — and thanks for your support!

But at least we know that Fordo’s taking plentiful time out of his “busy” schedule (which no one’s allowed to see, but which doesn’t qualify as behind-closed-doors “skullduggery”), to coach football for his old grade school (abusing his position and city resources — and staff — while he’s at it, and telling everyone that his “commitment”  is on the field and not at City Hall), and helping out those poor, disadvantaged black kids.

Filed under: B Sides

It’s Rob Ford, bitches!

Posted on November 20th, 2012 Be the first to comment

An oldie but still a goodie. Hard to believe that things have actually gotten worse since then, huh?

 

The terror is culpable:

Filed under: Dispatches, Patrick Bay, Videos