John Nunziata’s off, John Tory’s on
A few days ago, I mentioned that I would consider John Nunziata in the upcoming Toronto mayoral elections. He has since been removed from the list of likely candidates. I am wary of Nunziata’s platform, which looks to be of the cut and slash variety. I especially don’t like his stance on the homeless, which includes the following promises:
- Will “set a target of getting homeless people off the streets and out of other public places within one year of being elected.”
- Will “propose a bylaw to make it unlawful to sleep on streets and other public places in Toronto.”
- Will implement “a centralized computer system [to] keep up-to-date information on those who use shelters and hostels.”
- Will ban pan-handling on city streets.
Keeping the homeless out of sight and out of mind by making homelessness illegal does not solve the problem, even if it is accompanied with a promise to request support funding from the provincial government. I don’t believe in treating the underprivileged and unfortunate as criminals.
I also did not appreciate Nunziata’s attempts to spend a night in a Toronto homeless shelter. This obvious stunt would have cheapened the plight of the homeless. Thankfully, Nunziata was not allowed to hold his sleep-in.
While it’s “goodbye” to John Nunziata, it’s “hello” to John Tory. I previously discounted Tory as a mayoral possibility as he seemed to come from the government-as-business school of thought. I firmly believe that government can’t be treated as a business. Sometimes you have to carry a deficit. Businesses don’t balance their budgets all the time, but for some reason people expect their governments to always do so. I’m not sure where I got the impression that John Tory was a strong proponent of efficiency at all costs. Perhaps it was his past experience with Rogers Cable and Rogers Media Inc. Regardless, his platform doesn’t read that way and so John Tory has been placed on my list of likely candidates.
I like much of what Tory is proposing, especially his plans to confront the provincial and federal governments for proper funding. One statement caught my eye, as it summarises my contempt for other governments’ treatment of Toronto:
“Federal and provincial governments have to stop treating Toronto and other cities like geese that will just keep on laying golden eggs no matter how badly they are treated. Between 10 and 20 billion dollars more are taken out of Toronto in taxes than the city gets back in funding for programs and services. While Torontonians are committed to doing their part for nation and province building, the city has a huge physical and social deficit that must be addressed.
While I appreciate Tory’s vision for a better Toronto, I am none too fond of his focus on crime. This is not to say that I enjoy crime, but I am often wary of politicians who promise to crack down on a problem which has been in decline for years. Money spent on police would be better spent on social services to prevent the increase of a criminal element in the troubled regions of Toronto.
For those who are keeping track, I am considering the following candidates for the mayor of Toronto, in order of current preference:
Stay tuned for more updates as I reduce my selections for the upcoming November municipal elections.
Update: I have since finalised on David Miller as my choice for mayor of Toronto.
Posted on September 12th, 2003 in ontario, politics - No Comments »
Tories slammed over meat
I’m a sucker for a good headline, especially one which packs a visual punch. Naturally, I had a nice chuckle over the mental image in the banner headline of today’s Toronto Star: Tories slammed over meat.
I can only imagine how much I would pay to see several high-ranking Ontario Tories thrown and body-slammed into a heaping pile of rancid meat. If only it were true.
Posted on September 12th, 2003 in ontario, politics - No Comments »
Ernie Eves: Immigration lets in criminals
Last week, I jokingly speculated that Ernie Eves would continue his string of empty statements by spouting off on immigration, a federal matter. As it turns out, I wasn’t far from the truth, which leads me to wonder: Is Ernie Eves running for the office of Premier of Ontario or that of Prime Minister of Canada?
“Now, Dalton McGuinty and his provincial Liberal Party are, of course, good friends of their federal cousins in Ottawa — the same people who have saddled Ontario with a broken immigration system that shuts the door on literally tens of thousands of skilled workers, yet seemingly welcomes criminals into our community,” Mr. Eves said.
First off, where is Eves getting these figures? Secondly, what is he implying? That Canada turns away thousands of skilled workers in favour of thousands of criminals? That the Liberal governments are somehow scheming to bring proven criminals into the province instead of skilled workers? I was going to write a lengthy rant, but Globe And Mail columnist Murray Campbell does a much better job of it than I would have done.
Who are the provincial Conservatives to make immigration an election issue? If they felt so strongly about immigration policy, why didn’t they attempt to negotiate a new deal during the eight years they’ve been in power? The answer, of course, is because they never truly cared enough to bring it up. They only raise the issue during the election campaign in order to use it as a tool to scare would-be Liberal voters. This is in line with the smear fest which has been part of the Tory platform since day one. The mud-slinging continues unabated even though it runs counter to Eves’ policies and promises when he ran for the Tory leadership:
It was Flaherty, currently enterprise minister, who early last year announced he would ban teacher strikes if he won the Tory leadership and, subsequently, the premier’s office.
“When we’re throwing out these neat solutions scratched on the back of an envelope, we might want to think about what the cost is and if we really want to go there,” responded Eves, who had previously denounced a strike ban as “undemocratic.”
And it was Flaherty who was roundly criticized when he proposed a “scoop law” to get the homeless off the streets and pushed for a tax credit for private schools – two policies now at the forefront of the Tory re-election platform.
Thankfully, this massive shift to the far right is scaring away traditional Tory supporters:
I’ve been a lifelong conservative supporter, except for one occasion when I voted (to my eternal chagrin) Reform. But can anybody help wonder what is going on with the party these days? As they swing farther to the right on issues like same sex marriage, and spin half-truths about budgets into bigger and bigger lies about their opposition, it’s hard not to look at the Liberals and think that maybe it’s time for a change.
Every time Ernie Eves opens his mouth to spew forth his rancor and lies, I hope for a devastating Conservative defeat at the polls this coming October. Here’s hoping that we won’t have to wake up on October 3rd to four more years of Ernie Eves and his ilk.
Posted on September 12th, 2003 in ontario, politics - No Comments »
I’ve got my eye on you, David Miller
Like a responsible citizen, I tuned into the CBC’s Toronto mayoral candidates debate last night. I felt uninformed as to the choices, despite the fact that the candidates have been campaigning since February. Since I feel that municipal government is possibly the most important level of government, I feel that I need to be informed. The debate was helpful, but not that much.
Before the debate, I was probably able to name four out of the five front runners but knew little about their platforms. At least now I can associate a vague platform to a candidate, making it easier to trim my choices. For those interested, here are the leading candidates, in alphabetical order:
No one candidate truly shone during the debate, but David Miller certainly piqued my interest enough that I will seriously consider him when the municipal elections come around in November. Miller has experience in city council on his side. He is strongly opposed to the expansion of the island airport, which I feel is crucial to a more appealing waterfront. Under a Miller-led government, riders will be attracted to the TTC with incentives, not with penalties such as road tolls. Miller also stood apart from the rest of the candidates in acknowledging that the public’s perception of an increasing crime rate is based on fear, not on reality. I will certainly be examining David Miller’s platform and public statements a little more closely.
I wasn’t all that impressed with Barbara Hall as she opted to play it safe so as not to damage her status as the front-runner. When prompted by the others, she had no alternatives to the current choices with regards to city waste disposal. Hall pushed for more waste reduction through recycling in buildings which do not currently support it, and through the use of the Green Box for biological waste. However, she could not say where she would put the remaining garbage, but stated that both incineration and Adam’s Mine were not options she would consider.
The other three candidates failed to distinguish themselves, but I will still make an attempt to research their platforms. Truthfully, however, John Nunziata is the only one of these three which I might consider.
If you live in Ontario, do yourself a favour and make an attempt to research and exercise your vote in the upcoming municipal elections. Participation in these elections is abysmal, with the winning candidate usually chosen by a tiny fraction of the voting population. Municipal government affects you directly, and without scrutiny is much more open to scandal and corruption. Your vote can truly make a difference.
Posted on September 9th, 2003 in ontario, politics - No Comments »
I don’t get spam like other people get spam
I swear that shady persons unknown have been listening in on the conversations I have with Vic, specifically those concerning world domination. How else can you explain the spam I received today advertising the 3rd Annual Military Electronics Show?
For these two days at the Baltimore Convention Center, you will be able to see, test and compare the mil-spec components, systems, products and software you need. Focused purely on military electronics design strategies, this event offers the sessions, speakers and suppliers that separate the unique needs of the military environment from the civilian world or commercial-off-the-shelf design.
Come to think of it, if the black helicopters were listening in on our plans, they would know that Vic and I prefer a non-military solution to global conquest. Things get messy and expensive when you start involving heavy machinery. No, we prefer the silent route of slowly co-opting already existing institutions like news conglomerates and using the proceeds to covertly amass power within developing nations. (Or was it the other way around?) The incentives in my conference invitation are quite tempting, however:
And as our special guest, you will gain free access to the show floor as well as receive 25% off the conference program!
I should mention that my main email address receives maybe two or three pieces of spam per month, tops, and that seventy-five percent of that spam originates from local businesses. This makes this invitation all the more suspicious.
Foolish illuminati! Your plans to entice me with cheap access to military hardware are sure to fail! You are doomed!
Posted on September 8th, 2003 in meta, person - No Comments »