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Jimmi T said:
For sure, and maybe 10 debates max.
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Actually, I'd rather have lots of debates (any of which I can choose to ignore) than the lots of showing up at events just to shake hands that seems to occupy the rest of candidates' time. At least then they're forced to state their positions on issues they may not otherwise address.
 
kaboi said:
This last election, which was unique in many ways that were pretty much all related to Rob Ford, shouldn't be the basis for changing the rules about campaign duration. Debates started earlier and media coverage was intense from the outset, creating the sense of a much longer campaign.

I certainly don't recall finding the 10 months allowed for campaigning to be annoying in previous elections, as the campaigns didn't get into full swing until much later in the year. Keep in mind that candidates can't raise or spend money until they register, which makes municipal elections decidedly different from provincial and federal party-based politics.

A shortened campaign would only serve well-known or high profile candidates, which would undermine democracy. Is that really what you want?
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What if Rob is still alive and runs in 2018? Will you be fine with 10 more months of that?
 
Videodrome said:
What if Rob is still alive and runs in 2018? Will you be fine with 10 more months of that?
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I was under the impression Robbie had already started, slow, and playing the "recovery" card. Dead or alive there seems to be no break in the ballyhoo.
 
Videodrome said:
I don't want 10 more months of Ford, even if ranked ballots give him no chance of winning.

http://www.thestar.com/opinion/comm...-tory-wisely-moves-toronto-to-the-centre.html

Case Ootes on John Tory.
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I think I just barfed a bit reading this. What a load of BS.

The "hybrid", as voted in, is not a compromise. It is a rebuild of what already exists. It was pandering to Ford Nation in fear of the 2018 election.

Letting children ride for free on the TTC is also simply pandering to the suburban "family values" voters. How is that "socialist" in any way?

The funding for SmartTrack was an empty promise from a dead-in-the-water conservative Prime Minister. It essentially amounted to "Oh, we'll give you funding, but after 5+ years and 2 more elections, if they go our way". Not sure that this is Tory somehow bridging a gap between the city and the feds.

I desperately hope that we have a solid alternative to Ford and Tory in the next election.
 
Can Tory be blamed for the Pan-Am games like some people are doing? He wasn't even a mayoral candidate when Toronto was chosen as a host city. If he didn't hype it up, there would be something wrong.
 
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Videodrome said:
Can Tory be blamed for the Pan-Am games like some people are doing? He wasn't even a mayoral candidate when Toronto was chosen as a host city. If he didn't hype it up, there would be something wrong.
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What are they blaming him for, exactly? Traffic? I'm not his biggest fan, but any complaints should be directed at the province.
 
torontologist said:
I think I just barfed a bit reading this. What a load of BS.

The "hybrid", as voted in, is not a compromise. It is a rebuild of what already exists. It was pandering to Ford Nation in fear of the 2018 election.

Letting children ride for free on the TTC is also simply pandering to the suburban "family values" voters. How is that "socialist" in any way?

The funding for SmartTrack was an empty promise from a dead-in-the-water conservative Prime Minister. It essentially amounted to "Oh, we'll give you funding, but after 5+ years and 2 more elections, if they go our way". Not sure that this is Tory somehow bridging a gap between the city and the feds.

I desperately hope that we have a solid alternative to Ford and Tory in the next election.
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I'm inclined to agree. Tory's no centrist, though he's hardly a fiscal conservative either - a billion on a subway we don't need and another half (at least) on a highway we don't need. Not exactly keeping his eye on the family larder. You're right - all we've seen so far is policy by pandering.

But my bigger issue with Tory is his complete lack of vision. Apart from SmartTrack, I see nothing that imagines the city of the future, and how to get there. It's all so piecemeal and lacklustre. While other cities are crafting ambitious, visionary plans to manage increasing density, diverse populations, and a societal desire for more livable communities, Tory seems to be just plodding along, stuck in an old way of doing things. So great, things are more civil around City Hall. Yipdee and yawn. I want more.
 
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kaboi said:
But my bigger issue with Tory is his complete lack of vision. Apart from SmartTrack, I see nothing that imagines the city of the future, and how to get there. It's all so piecemeal and lacklustre. While other cities are crafting ambitious, visionary plans to manage increasing density, diverse populations, and a societal desire for more livable communities, Tory seems to be just plodding along, stuck in an old way of doing things. So great, things are more civil around City Hall. Yipdee and yawn. I want more.
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SmartTrack is destine to the waste bin of other discarded transit ideas. The problem isn't his lacklustre or piecemeal ideas, but the fact that any bold, ambitious, or visionary plan always requires large and stable amounts of funding. Other cities have the power to tax gasoline or impose road tolls and other sources to fund transit projects, but in Ontario we're subject to the whims of who's in Queens Park to hopefully give us funding to fund any projects with the hopes that they don't cut and run like the Harris government did in the 90's. If Toronto ever wants to move forward it needs the power to generate it own tax revenue funding without Queens Park interfering.
 
Was anyone just watching CP24? Tory's speech was on there and he got quite the good reception from the crowd.
 
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