“With only five weeks to go until election day, Mr. Ford has the backing of 45.8 per cent of decided voters, while former front-runner George Smitherman has the support of 21.3 per cent of decided voters. Joe Pantalone (16.8 per cent), Rocco Rossi (9.7 per cent) and Sarah Thomson (6.4 per cent) round out the top five contenders, according to a Nanos Research telephone poll of 1,021 Torontonians conducted between Sept. 14 and Sept. 16.”
I thought that if I was going to attend this debate, I might as well bring the notebook and note items of interest. Let’s see what happens.
The debate starts with 5 minutes by each of the candidates.
George starts with a Salaam Aleichem, Eid Mubarek. I will let you know if he says anything that cannot be found on his web site.
The bad news is that you have been the victims of a terrible swindle, denied an inheritance you deserve by contract and by your merits. And you aren’t the only ones; victims of this ripoff include the students who were on your left and on your right in high school but didn’t get into Cal, a whole generation stiffed by mine.
The right yells about left wing corruption. As an example, Rob Ford screams about spending “scandals” approved by lefty councilors. The left yells about tax and regulation cuts for corporations owned by the richest amongst us. Oddly, most of the examples shown are factual, though whether they are corruption is a matter of interpretation.
As I listen to the continual diatribes about corruption, my recurring response is, “Yes. Of course. Why is this a surprise?”
The arrival of the MV Sun Sea carrying @400 potential Tamil refugees has given our media an opportunity to start fanning the flames of our worst natures. This is a symptom visible across the political spectrum. Please let me give a considered rant for a moment.
The world leadership qualities of the United States, once so prevalent, are fading faster than the polar ice caps.
We once set the standard for industrial might, for the advanced state of our physical infrastructure, and for the quality of our citizens’ lives. All are experiencing significant decline.