Archive for 2013

Ford “pounds” Orthodox rabbis

Posted on March 22nd, 2013 3 Comments

Or rather, he “pounded” out a thinly veiled threat to anyone opposing him (as Ford does), to a group of Orthodox rabbis. This, according to Councillor James Pasternak anyway. In any event, it was all re-election  this, casino that, pressure your Councillors the other. Blah blah.

True, I wasn’t there to get a gauge on the crowd so I don’t know how bothered they were by Ford’s diatribe and his “disheveled”  appearance, but I imagine that since they were there to discuss the Toronto Eruv (which, I’m taken to understand, is some sort of Jewish Sabbath cheating map), it probably wouldn’t have been appropriate.

Councillor Joe Mihevc said of Ford, ” he (almost) grabbed the mic … he did not do honour to our good city. He did not make people tremble with fear [over yet another election threat]. It was just an awkward and embarrassing moment.”

Classic.

Filed under: Dispatches, Patrick Bay

Mammoliti and the rent-a-cops

Posted on March 21st, 2013 1 Comment

I don’t mean to make light of threats, and if this whole thing turns out to be genuine I certainly hope that Mammoliti gets assistance tout suite. I make no light of my dislike for the man’s political flaccidness,  but even if I think he’s bordering on criminality, I always hearken to what we’ve all been told is “proper procedure”. In other words, police (doing their job properly), a court of law (applying the law equally), etc. Or is this Utopian idealism now?

But don’t you find it odd that, if this is actually true, Mammoliti’s assertion that Executek International is holding on to some possibly dangerous (for him), evidence seems kind of the wrong way to go?

Perhaps Executek is dispatching shadowy goons to neutralize the source of the attack  — computer and phone tampering, as well as a “threatening letter” — but you’d think you’d double up and get local PD on it too, no? Seemed okay for the mayor.

Executek says cops will be contacted “when appropriate.”

Private police force. Neat.

Filed under: Patrick Bay, Why I'm Right

Checking in: Union Station Revitalization

Posted on March 21st, 2013 3 Comments

This city project that I was blogging about as early as 2009 has always been a bit difficult for me to imagine. I mean, I knew that the areas beneath the station (where the daily commuter crunch happens), were going to be gutted and something new was going to go in, but I recently discovered some new images showing what it’s really going to look like in the end. (Yes, I did borrow these from blogTO.)

The best one is probably the basic cross-section showing how the ground beneath the trains is being transformed:

20130321-Union-Diagram

Basically, they’re splitting the lower mezzanine into two levels from the existing one.

I’m not sure how this is going to connect to the TTC and PATH, but presumably (see below), this is being done to accommodate more foot traffic, so hopefully they won’t try to jam double the people into the same entrances and exists.

The builders, NORR Architects, also provided some artist’s renderings of the upgraded station:

20130321-Union-GORender  20130321-Union-RetailRender

Based on the illustration above, it seems like there’s a lot of wasted vertical space. This is where my doubt (above) comes from.

Don’t get me wrong, aesthetically it’s nicer, but the fact that this is being done in a limited space beneath the trains make me wonder how efficient this will actually be. But I’m staying optimistic.

The one thing we can definitely look forward to is seeing a newly scrubbed exterior on the station, and new moat roofs over the lower-level outdoor pedestrian areas (where all the smokers hang out):

20130321-Union-ExteriorRender

20130321-Union-MoatRender

I don’t take GO, or the TTC for that matter, nearly as much as I used to. However, even when I was commuting daily (and this was many years ago), the crush was sometimes unbearable and the station just seemed horribly dated. The decor would probably have been pretty cool in the 70s, but with the wear of age and constant traffic, it was just starting to look rundown.

Personally, I look forward to seeing the newly reno’ed station — it’s an indelible slice of Toronto, and worth an occasional (but sensitive), upgrade or two.

Filed under: B Sides, Patrick Bay, Pictures

Rob Ford’s casino: build it first, maybe consider the facts afterward

Posted on March 16th, 2013 3 Comments

Ford brilliance on display yet again:

“They’re saying (the city’s revenue) is going to be $100 million, $150 million, $200 million — we’ll see,” Ford said. “I want to get (a casino) first and then we can talk about proposal second.”

Filed under: Dispatches, Patrick Bay

Toronto police defend criminals in their ranks, repeatedly refuse to obey the law

Posted on March 16th, 2013 Be the first to comment

First the police use taxpayer money to defend an abusive cop who beat up his own partner, then they break the law repeatedly by refusing to cooperate with the Special Investigations Unit and thumbing their nose at the law.

But that’s perfectly fine — Rob Ford has clearly shown us that those with more power and responsibility can do whatever the fuck they want with complete impunity, so we all need to just shut the hell up and take whatever they’re dishing out. Clearly, nothing bad could ever come out of it, so why do the “lefties” keep raising a stink about such things?

Filed under: Dispatches, Patrick Bay

Mr. Ruby goes to the Supreme Court

Posted on March 16th, 2013 4 Comments

There’s a reason I chuckle and shake my head whenever “lefties” are described as pot-smoking hippy communists who haven’t done an honest day of work in their life and subsist solely off the government tit.

That reason is evident in all of the so-called “lefty” machinations against Ford, Harper, etc., -which have been ongoing and quite forceful for some time. I think it’s fair to include the Occupy protesters somewhere in the midst of this, as are the numerous court cases, protests, and other actions that are seeking to redress the wrong brought about by the “right”. I mean, that’s a shitload of work and effort to go through for a bunch of shiftless stoners, isn’t it?

In fact, it could easily be argued that the lazy “left” has put way more effort into getting their way in politics than the “right” which, at this point, has managed to put on a showing of maybe 20 people to support Ford’s subway plans in Scarborough (and that was a while ago). Of course, that demonstration was in support of the mayor so it was just and correct; anything that questions or stands in opposition is, naturally, evil, wrong, and must be outlawed at any cost (because that, according to the “right” is democracy).

In the meantime, the “left” continues its efforts in a way that proves that it’s in fact the “right” who are the lazy, shiftless armchair critics who wouldn’t lift a pinky to save their grandmother if it meant having to miss a second of their favourite nighttime television program. I would invite the “right” to argue this point, but recent history demonstrates quite clearly that, at the very least, they couldn’t be bothered to engage in anything but childish name-calling.

Consider, for example, the somewhat recent conflict of interest case against Rob Ford. Even though the mayor (I hesitate to use that term), was spanked for his actions, his inability or unwillingness to do anything differently (another prime “right” quality), has him repeating the same offenses immediately after being told they’re wrong. In the meantime, Paul Magder and Clayton Ruby, the people who proved without a shadow of a doubt that what Rob Ford did, and continues to do, was wrong, are now taking the case to the Supreme Court of Canada.

The law, after all, is quite clear, and if it hadn’t been for the technicality on which Rob Ford squeaked by, he would no longer be in City Hall. Magder and Ruby are spending time, energy, and some might argue money, in order to ensure that everyone is equally held to account (this after years of trying to do the same). On the other side , in juxtaposition, we have an admitted ignoramus who wouldn’t expend the energy to learn how to write his own name.

According to the same “right”, the people working hard on a daily basis, sacrificing, demonstrating, being vocal and getting out there to demonstrate (or whatever), are the lazy ones, and the people making a mockery out of anything we would call government through their stupidity and inaction (then covering it up by ensuring no one can see their itinerary), lashing out against anyone trying to hold them to account, and making not-so-subtle slurs and insults from the comfort of their armchairs, are the “hard workers”.

I’m sure this will continue to be the trend. The blubbery “right” seems to be going on the alternate definition of the word (as in being correct), and that definition alone is enough to convince them that whatever slurs, insults, lies, falsehoods, coverups, and other crap coming out of the mouths of their leader must be accepted verbatim, without question, and certainly without any critical thought. That would, after all, require a little bit of effort.

I suppose I needn’t dwell on this incredible bit of hypocrisy. Regardless of what I say, Magder and Ruby are still toiling away pretty much pro bono to ensure that no one, especially people with more power, are able to openly and brazenly abuse that power (I’m sure that hidden and cowardly abuse is also be unacceptable). The “right”, on the other hand, continue to exemplify the laziest of armchair criticism, comfortable in their 47% “majority” (looking up the meaning of that word must take too much effort), and clearly believe that a dictatorship (again, a word they just can’t be bothered to learn), is just fine as long as they identify themselves as being on its side.

And it’s this one fact that I try to impress on anyone who feels like Ford’s side, however you want to identify it, is winning. He just has well-connected and corrupt friends, the same sort of sleazeball associations one might find in immensely corrupt and debased juridictions like Ford’s favourite, Chicago — a mob town top to bottom. We’ve seen that it’s people like Ford and his supporters who are the lazy and ignorant ones (Ford even came right out and said as much), so it’s only a matter of time until this system of corruption and stupidity comes crashing down. Whether’s it’s going to be an emboldened Ford committing some crime that even his supporters abhor (frankly, I’m not sure what that would be), or justice and democracy do win out in the end through concerted, long-term “lefty” efforts, the man and his cadre are going to go down in a spectacular way. My only hope is that it happens sooner rather than later.

Filed under: Patrick Bay, Why I'm Right

Newer view

Posted on March 11th, 2013 Be the first to comment

Day, or night?

night-pano-small

Filed under: Patrick Bay, Pictures

The prime M.O.

Posted on March 8th, 2013 3 Comments

If you’re a Torontonian, here are two pieces for your consideration:

Three times more lobbyists signed up with the city in 2012 as in 2010. The number of subjects they’re pushing has doubled. Allegations of misconduct have tripled. And the daily communications logged between lobbyists and public office holders appears to be 10 times higher last year than the year before Ford took office, an analysis by the Star has shown.

And with the numbers on the rise, lobbyist registrar Linda Gehrke worries there is dwindling awareness around the “ethical” guidelines set out in the code of conduct.

But for many councillors, the most worrisome result of the new reality is that average citizens and community associations — people without the means to hire Bay Street professionals to plead their case — are being shut out.

This article easily demonstrates the dangers of getting too cozy with lobbyists, a prime M.O. in the Ford’s Toronto is “open for business” agenda. I recommend you read the whole thing, including all of the backroom connections and deals between the mayor’s office and the people who are responsible for all of the projects he’s pushing at any given time (no, the casino wasn’t his idea!)

Basically, if you’re okay with the mayor making hush-hush big-money deals behind pulled curtains, you’d really have to trust in him to be quite honest under such circumstances, no?

I’m going to suggest to you, then, that that mayor isn’t Rob Ford. I mean, the man (predictablycan’t even tell the truth, while (predictably) insulting a few supporters in the process, about that football charity for which he’s already received plenty of attention:

Ford called Don Bosco, in Rexdale, a “tough school” in a “tough area.” Players, he said, have told him they would be dead or in jail if not for the team.

Ford also praised the players as intelligent and hard-working. And he enthusiastically spoke of the happiness he feels when they succeed in life. “You’d be amazed what these kids can do when they have a reason to do it,” he said.

A group of teachers said in an anonymous letter to the board that Ford’s comments were “demeaning” and “filled with untruths.”

In a formal statement on Thursday, the board said some of Ford’s words represented “a completely inaccurate portrayal of our students, our school and the community in which the school is located.”

Filed under: Dispatches, Patrick Bay

Rob Ford plays grab ass with Sarah Thomson

Posted on March 8th, 2013 1 Comment

That’s not me saying it, that’s former mayoral candidate Sarah Thomson claiming that Ford decided that this was the way to go at the CJPAC Action Party last night.

She gave extra details in a later interview, but in what way will this come as a surprise to anyone at this point?

Sarah asks, “guess where his hand was in this picture?” —

529805_10151581958414673_1452298706_n

Hmmm…

Filed under: Dispatches, Patrick Bay, Pictures

Posted on March 6th, 2013 Be the first to comment

Toronto’s #4, bitches!

Toronto City Life can bring this level of exposure to your city too! Hire us today! ;)

Filed under: Dispatches, Patrick Bay