Leo Longo wrote in three recent Municipal World articles (April, May, June, 2014) that it is time to consider setting term limits on municipal politicians. I beg to disagree. Is municipal democracy in such dire straits that it needs restrictions that no provincial or federal politician faces? Are voters so
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Scripturient: Blog & Commentary: Twenty years of strategic planning
Twenty years ago – May, 1994 – the Town of Collingwood started a community-based strategic plan. That report was released in October, 1995. Then in October, 2000, Vision 2020 released its Blueprint Collingwood. These two documents are generally forgotten by the general public today, but they have been the basis of
Continue readingMelissa Fong: ICYMI: Funny images- Gregor Robertson, #BestWank, Hobbit House
In case you missed it- some fun images from others that made me chuckle: ^Homage to WestBank, of course. And then this.. : (Filed under: Happy rant, Marxist rant Tagged: […]
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: Chow supporters don’t think, they just attack.
Yes, Babel-on-the-Bay promised not to talk about the Toronto mayoralty until September. So, we lied. When your hobby is politics, you do pick up some political traits. What we did not expect over the summer is the constant attempts to smear John Tory by Olivia Chow’s attack dogs. They should
Continue readingScripturient: Blog & Commentary: The ACDC/AVI Site Remediation
Earlier this week, members of council received this email from Ian Adams of the Enterprise Bulletin about the upcoming motion on remediation of the empty property at Hume and Hurontario Streets: I was wondering if I could get your thoughts with regard to extending/not extending the site remediation agreement for
Continue readingScripturient: Blog & Commentary: Irony and cognitive dissonance
Politics is as full of irony as it is full of cognitive dissonance. And I don’t mean simply in politicians and their agencies: it is everyone and every group, every agency and every organization that dabbles in politics. Sooner or later, the irony comes out. And the cognitive dissonance sets
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: You should take up gambling Sousa.
Occasionally this commentator gives advice to Ontario Finance Minister Charles Sousa. It is because we actually like him. He is a nice guy. He is kind of like a slow relative whom you always want to help along. He tries your patience but you keep making the effort. It is
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: More musing on TO’s mayoralty marathon.
Obviously the Olivia Chow campaign team must know something we do not. It is hard to believe that John Tory’s mayoralty campaign is that far ahead? It is the only excuse we can think of for the unrestrained and vicious anti-Tory campaign from Chow at this time. Until now we
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: Reports from the Toronto mayoralty marathon.
A visitor to Toronto could only suppose that the election for mayor is to be held next week. The air is charged with the accusations, slurs, gutter language and snide reporting as though it were the final weeks of the campaign. And that is just in the social media. But
Continue readingMelissa Fong: #Urbanarium2014: How to build a truly “Engaged City”?
“Engaged City” was unanimously passed yesterday, and it seems like the pundits are all out criticizing the process. … Democratization of the planning process is a fundamental problem with bureaucratic institutions; government is fundamentally hierarchical. Do we target Vision Vancouver? NPA? Nah*- There is a problem with the plumbing and
Continue readingMelissa Fong: Vancouver developers- Gillespie, DTES & other thoughts on financial reform, Vision Vancouver
…. They WILL earn a profit because it is Vancouver. Gillespie knows that encroaching on DTES is best odds at this point in Vancouver’s real estate. Largest “rent-gap”/ current to potential price in the city- and he’s always known that so he’s more bold, perhaps than others, to make that
Continue readingScripturient: Blog & Commentary: Getting solid numbers makes sense
I recently was directed to read a statement that I had “…put forward a notice of motion calling on the municipality to spend the money to put a concrete floor in the building, without any kind of business case …” That is incorrect. The notice simply asked the town to
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: Rushing to claim victory—in seven months!
Torontonians now have the main contenders for the Toronto mayoralty in October. You hardly need public opinion polls to tell you who are the serious three and the lesser two. With Olivia Chow, Rob Ford and John Tory in the race and Karen Stintz and David Solnacki looking on, the
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: Larry, Curly and Moe represent Canada?
This is disgraceful. Canada’s foreign affairs seem to be in the hands of the Three Stooges. Recent events in Jerusalem, Kyiv and Hollywood appear to be making the point. First of all, Prime Minister Harper leads an invasion of Israel. That is a small country and they hardly need more
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: Achieving electoral mediocrity.
The faster you try to do something, the longer you will have to regret it. There are too many stupid things we do that seem like a good idea at the time. Take the latest ill-considered suggestions at Queen’s Park to change the way people vote in Toronto elections. The
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: Better button up Tory!
In more than 30 years of dealing with the news media, you find that you can make all the mistakes you will ever need to make in the first week. If you do not clue in during that first week that the news media are not your friends, all is
Continue readingScripturient: Blog & Commentary: Conspiracy Theories: 2014 Update
It’s time to update a piece I wrote in December, 2012, outlining the secret deals, backroom negotiations and “barbecue politics” that our council has been involved in since that date, more than a year ago. So here comes the update, the emperor without his clothes: Secret meetings: none Backroom negotiations:
Continue readingScripturient: Blog & Commentary: Time to get serious with distracted drivers
In March, the fine for being caught texting, talking on your cell phone, or tinkering with your MP3 player while driving will jump from $155 to $280 in Ontario. That’s better, but not good enough. Distracted drivers are a growing threat to everyone sharing the road – other drivers, pedestrians,
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: It is not about you Mr. Kinsella.
If it were not for the egos involved, political campaigns would be far more fun. Most political apparatchiks get their comeuppance early in the game and learn the hard way that the candidate is always the star, not the hangers-on. It is like the old ventriloquist Edgar Bergen was always
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: Toronto’s Phoney War begins.
The endurance contest in Ontario that has replaced municipal election races has its own challenges and strategies. The Toronto mayoralty race can be considered launched Monday with the official entry of Councillor Karen Stintz and former provincial Conservative Leader John Tory. And like the period from September 1939 to April
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