Rob Ford
A dispassionate look at the man and his policies
by Alex Ross, Comment Editor
Last week, I extended an invitation to our pool of writers and the University of Toronto community to write an article in support of Rob Ford. This was to be part of the comment section’s municipal elections special, which would feature an article about Ford alongside articles about Smitherman and Pantalone. Despite a proactive campaign, I was unable to procure an article in support of Ford, much to my disappointment.
It is true that there is a certain amount hostility on campus to Ford and his bid to be mayor of Toronto. As documented in our article “Mayoral election comes to U of T” the crowd that gathered to hear the mayoral candidates’ debate at Innis College were primarily against Ford. Furthermore, Ford, probably sensing that those who gathered to hear the debate were mostly against him, was the only candidate to leave as soon as the debate was over. Why is this? Why is there so much ambivalence towards Ford on campus? Why don’t his supporters even want to write articles defending him? Even at Diabolos’, a University College coffee shop, Ford has been placed under their least popular coffee with large, blue sad face. The present editorial is not an apologia for Rob Ford, nor will it praise or blame him. It will merely present Rob Ford’s platform and let you decide what you will.
Rob Ford has mostly criticized what he perceives to be the wasteful spending habits of City Hall and has promised to reduce expenses in a series of drastic ways. One of his proposals is to reduce the number of councillors from 44 to 22, which he claims will save about $9 million a year in direct costs. One of his justifications is that Toronto is already served by 22 members of Parliament, 22 members of provincial parliament, and over 22 school trustees. He has also promised to eliminate the vehicle registration tax and the land transfer tax, claiming that $45 million will be saved by taxpayers on the vehicle registration tax alone.
Ford has also promised what he designates “customer service” improvements to City Hall and is looking to privatize garbage collection and possibly some aspects of TTC service. He has stated his opposition to bike lanes and has even doubted the effectiveness of streetcars.
He has proposed that he will introduce some security improvements within the Toronto Police Forces by adding 70 more offices to the Toronto Anti-Violence Intervention Strategy (TAVIS). He has also promised to add about 30 School Resource Officers within schools. These are the main tenets of his campaign.
Overall, Rob Ford has run a conservative campaign with an emphasis on reducing taxes, decreasing government, and increasing security. It’s not clear whether it’s his conservative politics or his somewhat pugilistic debating style that has made students at U of T ambivalent or hostle towards Ford and his policies, but it can not be doubted that he has made an impact in the rest of Toronto. This past spring it appeared to be Smitherman’s race to lose and now polls place Smitherman and Ford neck-and-neck with 20 per cent of voters still undecided.
This is all I have to say about Rob Ford and his campaign. I personally wish that this could have come from an impassioned supporter, because I realize that I am not the most qualified surrogate for Ford’s ideas. I just think it is important that Ford have a chance to have his ideas heard somewhere in the pages of the Varsity.
Only 39 per cent of eligible voters voted in the last election: an appallingly low number. Whoever you decide to support for mayor just remember to head out and vote on October 25. You owe it to yourself and to your city.
Joe Pantalone
Despite my past criticisms, Pantalone is the only viable candidate for progressives and the labour movement
by Arash Azizi
If you’ve read my previous articles on the Toronto municipal election then you know that I have been less than enthusiastic about the campaign that Joe Pantalone, David Miller’s deputy mayor and only left-wing candidate in the race, has run. He has failed to adopt a program that would mobilize Torontonians around a socialist agenda that would give real solutions to people’s problems. His campaign has been characterised by a lack of serious appeal or charisma. He has even made unimportant promises like Saving the Trees and Building a Cricket Stadium for Toronto, which are both ‘nice’ proposals, but do nothing to address the main concerns of the electorate.
Having said that, I’ve been actively canvassing for Joe for the last few weeks and come October 25, I am sure I will vote for him. Isn’t this hypocrisy, one might ask? How can you support a candidate whose agenda you don’t fully support? I should begin by saying that even if I think Pantalone’s campaign has been a dull one, he is much more to offer than the two other candidates.
What Rob Ford and George Smitherman have in common is a resolute will to privatize considerable portions of city assets and their desire to attack the wages of Toronto city workers by engaging in a demagogic “war on unions”. Pantalone to his credit, has stood for saving and expanding public transit and has promised not to freeze or cut worker’s wages. Compare this to Smitherman, who advocates privatizing the TTC (.i.e. leaving the quality of our public transit system to the mercy of the “invisible hand” of the market). Those who think attacking the living conditions of city workers means Torontonians will get “more for their buck” should remember that such an attack will be part of a general offensive, concurrent with that of provincial Liberals and federal Tories on the living conditions of working families and people in this city. One might reasonably ask if I am adopting a lesser evil approach? To that, I empathically say no.
I support Pantalone because his bases of support are the labour movement and progressive forces in this city. If elected, he will be amenable to pressure from those who supported him and put him in office, .i.e. trade unions, NDP activists, labour activists. Since he is our candidate, he should expect to be pushed by us. When canvassing for Joe, we ask the people not only to vote but to get active in politics and hold their politicians accountable. This is a crucial difference that makes Joe different from the other candidates.
If elected, Ford or Smitherman will simply pursue the agenda of their own social base .i.e. big corporations and organizations like the Toronto Board of Trade. Notwithstanding their shallow posturing (be it ‘waste fighting’ by Ford or ‘consumer service’ by Smitherman) their agenda is one of attacking the social gains of working people of Toronto, as promised by the candidates, and they will make sure to follow it, if elected.
According to the myth of bourgeoisie democracy, elections are about different candidates, putting different policies in front of us so we can then choose which policies best reflect our needs.
The more Machiavellian reality, however, is that the real decisions that affect our lives are usually taken outside Parliament and outside City Hall. What we need is a government that would not only promise policy change, but would be determined to mobilize people to fight for them against the incursions of big business.
If you are wondering what I am talking about, a historical example may suffice. Tommy Douglas, founder of the CCF and father of Canadian Medicare, not only promised to bring free and accessible medical care to Saskatchewan but mobilized and fought for it to happen in a nation-wide scale. He did this not by some act of genius that he passed in the Parliament, but by an active struggle in which he had the support of labour movement and activist wings of the CCF-NDP.
For those who say we should vote for Smitherman to “Stop Ford,” we are entitled to ask what the fundamental difference is between the two of them?
I urge the readers of The Varsity to vote for Joe Pantalone and to say no to the agenda of wage cuts and privatization of public services. But what is even more important is to remember that the battle to improve the state of our city and conditions of its citizens don’t begin or end on October 25.
Whether or not Pantalone is elected on October 25 we should actively struggle with the ranks of labour movement and the New Democratic Party to fight for a better future. For real political changes are never results of this or that election campaign, but a culmination of a real struggle of social forces that happens not in ballots and legislative chambers, but in streets and factories of our city.
Arash Azizi is a member of the University of Toronto New Democrats
George Smitherman
Smitherman is the one candidate who has a definite vision for this city
by Meghan McCabe
On Monday, October 25, you have the opportunity to voice your opinion on who should be running Toronto. The work of the municipal government impacts how you move around the city, the services you can enjoy, and how much you pay for them. In the 2006 municipal election only 39 per cent of residents actually voted, which is pretty shocking.
At this point, the race is really is between Rob Ford and George Smitherman and it is definitely in your best interest to vote for the latter. But you don’t only need to vote for Smitherman because he isn’t terrifying like Ford. George Smitherman is the right person for the job based on his own merits.
Smitherman has leadership experience. He has been MPP for Toronto Centre for 10 years, enriching the community through initiatives like recreation and reading programs for kids and helping Toronto’s newcomers navigate the health care system. This is probably why he’s the only Liberal ever to be voted best MPP by NOW Magazine readers. After becoming Minister of Health and Long-Term Care and Deputy Premier in 2003, he created housing for persons with severe mental illness. This is the kind of proactive, big picture thinking that is critical to good leadership. More cops and prisons don’t translate into fewer criminals in the way better support systems do.
In 2008 he became Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, receiving an international award for his dedication to the environment. His Green Energy and Green Economy Act has created jobs and helped Ontario become the leading wind energy jurisdiction in North America. He also worked at City Hall as chief of staff to former mayor Barbara Hall. Smitherman has been dedicated to this city and province for years, and has shown that he can lead people and effect positive change through government. It’s like he actually cares, which is what we need in Toronto’s next mayor. Smitherman has very detailed, intelligent plans for the city. Your vote really comes down to who you can trust, who has the proven ability to be a great leader, and who embodies your vision of the city you live in. If you like to leave your home that person must be Smitherman, because Ford’s Gotham-esque image of Toronto is only for cars and corporations.
Smitherman has plans for basically everything, some of which are more directly beneficial to students than others. He wants to reduce tax for renters and to address the unfair property tax system in place. Did you know, as a tenant, you pay 3 times the property taxes homeowners pay? He has an Integrated Transportation Plan that includes Smart Cards for the TTC that you can fill through the internet and ATMs — so finally no more inefficient change/token system. He also plans to expand subway lines, build a rail link from Union Station to Pearson Airport, and keep streetcars. He’ll support cyclists by making a physical separation between bikes and cars. He even wants to help you get a job, especially through a special fund to subsidize businesses for employees under 25. Smitherman wants Toronto to be an “accessible, livable city” that is welcoming to everyone.
In conclusion, he has the proven political leadership experience we need in a mayor. Smitherman stands for fostering a sense of community, which includes welcoming newcomers immigrating to Toronto. He is a proponent of the arts, LGBT issues, sustainable development, green energy, accessibility, and making progress by tackling difficult issues that need to be addressed in order to make Toronto an even better place to live. Smitherman has clear plans that will directly benefit you.
On October 25, cast your vote for George Smitherman.
