Why Term Limits Are a Bad Idea for Municipal Government
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 politics
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…
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:
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
#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…
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…
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…
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.…
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…
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…
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.…
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,…
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…
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…
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…