[Parker]

Knowing full well that there is no way to end Mr. Ford's reign as mayor of our fair city, and that his vote is only 1 of 45 (as we are constantly reminded) why do you people keep getting your collective knickers in a knot over an unresolvable situation. Just sit back, relax, enjoy the show and prepare for the next election.

Childish demonstrations like John Clarke's crowd and “Occupy whatever†gathered at NPS to stamp your feet in petulant tantrums proves that you have no solutions, only complaints and are guaranteed to earn not the support but the scorn of the thinking public.

So I'm guessing the "Videos are so easy to fake"/"his head is pasted on someone else's body"/"you're a weasel" trifecta isn't working out so well for you then?

 

[blahblahblah]

Maybe it should be next Saturday. That gives us a week and expands the pool size.

It really wasn't organized well - it seemed like it was pretty much somebody's facebook event and it was announced last night, or something. For critical mass you really need a week or two for it to brew, and it has to actually be organized - to get 1000+ people out you actually need politicians or prominent people to show up, which requires a PA system, you kinda need SOME form of entertainment... it needs to be more like a rally. You can't just stand around with a few signs and stare at each other, and then leave after an hour or two.

 

[blahblahblah]

Yes please. Shall we aim for Saturday?

Mail and calls from constituents usually make councilors sit up and take notice.

Here's the last protest I mentioned: http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/0...-mayor-rob-ford-to-resign-over-alleged-video/

They had a 2-week timeframe, but it was a Facebook-based thing.

Here's the Facebook page which organized it. https://www.facebook.com/events/513882952012486/permalink/514155301985251/

Page looks abandoned, but I'll message the guy whose name is on it (Chris Wright) to see if he's interested in planning another.

 

[blahblahblah]

Why can't we get thousands?

yeah, as i said yesterday, a demo of a couple hundred people at NPS standing around chanting "Hey Ho Hey Ho" etc. would do more harm than good. you would need thousands to have any real visual impact in a area of that size, and it just isn't going to happen.

a huge night time rally in Etobicoke full of families, children, downtowners and suburbanites would be a lot better anyway, but that is even less likely to happen.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

blahblahblah:

It might be easier to create a more "spontaneous" protest, as part of a bigger event. Just think of all those NPS events coming up....

AoD

 

[tiffer24]

Can't think of another Toronto mayor in recent history who dares the Chief of Police to arrest him.

 

[W. K. Lis]

Why do I have a vision of Rob Ford doing his version of "My Way"

...
Mistakes, I've had a few
But then again, too few to mention
...

[video=youtube_share;3JxrzO3sNTY]http://youtu.be/3JxrzO3sNTY[/video]

 

[blahblahblah]

Thank you. The meek find excuses not to do things. Be bold and don't overthink I say.

>Knowing full well that there is no way to end Mr. Ford's reign as mayor of our fair city

Disagree. Start with defeatism and you will be defeated.

>Just sit back, relax, enjoy the show

I think that's what the big guy in prison says to you just before...

>Childish demonstrations like John Clarke's crowd and “Occupy whatever” gathered at NPS to stamp your feet in petulant tantrums proves that you have no solutions, only complaints and are guaranteed to earn not the support but the scorn of the thinking public.

The solution is for Ford to resign. In the NP article I linked, there was nothing about OCAP/Occupy. If we all act like Ford's record is OK, then we are enablers too. 'Shut up and wait 'til the next election' is a useless cop-out.

>Ya, Brilliant! Let's improve the image of Toronto on the world stage by picketing in front of Ford's private residence. That'll be quite a sight. Protesters outside his home with signs calling him a crack-head while his kids are out front waiting for the bus. That's the kind of image you want to put forward?

I'm brainstorming, and suggesting other do the same. You're right, that idea has problems. How about protesting outside an after-hours youth-at-risk shelter, giving out brochures saying how Ford's getting away with his behavior tells at-risk youth drugs are OK?

>Had the media focused on his record as mayor, his mayorship would be nearly over and would have passed without much notice.

Remember what Bev Oda had to resign over: a $16 glass of orange juice. People don't understand billions wasted, but they sure understand a $16 dollar glass of orange juice.

>You want to protest something worthwhile? How about the 16 Baloch political prisoners executed in Iran this week, or the billions wasted by our Liberal provincial government for personal political gain?

It's not either-or. Either you protest against Liberal billions OR human rights abuses OR Ford (can only pick one).

>Ford staying in office for another 14 months will have little effect on this city it's proper functioning or our international reputation. If the media starts ignoring him, he will go away. He is a polarizing force in this city and constant efforts to remove him from office has, unbelievably, had little effect on his support. Keep on it >and you turn him into the plucky underdog fighting against a biased media and politically organized left.

Doug Ford? Is that you? I think I recognize your voice.

No effect on Toronto's rep? Read this: http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/1...o-councillors-working-becoming-more-tortuous/

 

[newearthling]

I think the fact that Toronto citizens are being apathetic and NOT demonstrating looks far worse than any attempt at demo's.

Of course there is going to have to be a many pronged approach to riding our city of this cancerous mayor.

Another poster mentioned that they overheard someone in San Jose wonder why RF is still mayor. This points to the fact that we have all been far too passive, and apathetic in this matter!

I like the idea of the pots and pans. This was also used in Argentina, was it not? So there is a longer history there, than just with Montreal.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

tiffer:

I can't think of any mayor who dares to call himself the best of all times. This is megalomania along the lines of Kim Il Sung and Enver Hoxha.

Full quote:

"I don’t want to be conceited and I don’t want to toot my own horn. But I believe when it comes to my fiscal policy, I am by far the best mayor the city has ever had."

He didn't want to - and proceeded immediately to do so.

AoD

 

[ParkdalePetunia]

It really wasn't organized well - it seemed like it was pretty much somebody's facebook event and it was announced last night, or something. For critical mass you really need a week or two for it to brew, and it has to actually be organized - to get 1000+ people out you actually need politicians or prominent people to show up, which requires a PA system, you kinda need SOME form of entertainment... it needs to be more like a rally. You can't just stand around with a few signs and stare at each other, and then leave after an hour or two.

The anti-proroguement/pro-coalition rally at Nathan Phillips Square is a good example of this. Broken Social Scene played, and Jack Layton and Stephane Dion both spoke. It was cold but there were still a ton of people there.

 

[newearthling]

I think the fact that Toronto citizens are being apathetic and NOT demonstrating looks far worse than any attempt at demo's.

Of course there is going to have to be a many pronged approach to riding our city of this cancerous mayor.

Another poster mentioned that they overheard someone in San Jose wonder why RF is still mayor. This points to the fact that we have all been far too passive, and apathetic in this matter!

I like the idea of the pots and pans. This was also used in Argentina, was it not? So there is a longer history there, than just with Montreal.

Here it is:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cacerolazo
A cacerolazo (Spanish pronunciation: [kaθeɾoˈlaθo]), cacerolada ([kaθeɾoˈlaða]) or casserole is a form of popular protest practised in certain Spanish-speaking countries – in particular Venezuela, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Uruguay, Spain – and more recently English and French-speaking countries, most notably Québec, as well as in Turkey during the 2013 protests in Turkey – which consists in a group of people creating noise by banging pots, pans, and other utensils in order to call for attention. What is peculiar about this type of demonstration is that people can protest from their own homes, thus achieving a high level of support and participation.

The word comes from Spanish cacerola, which means "stew pot". The derivative suffixes -azo and -ada denote a hitting (punching or striking) action,[1] and has been extended metaphorically to any sort of shock demonstration.[citation needed] This type of manifestation started in 1971 in Chile, against the shortages of industrial products during the administration of Salvador Allende.[2][3] When this manner of protest was practised in Canada,[4] in English it was referred to by most media as "casseroles" rather than the Spanish term cacerolazo.

 

[kevinsp8]

Pots and pans at NFS on Saturday?

What's a good substitute for red squares?

>Why do I have a vision of Rob Ford doing his version of "My Way"

I'd hope he's sing this one:

[video=youtube;pDnXiO9wc5g]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDnXiO9wc5g[/video]

 

[Palma]

So apparently during the commercial break Rob yelled at whoever was taking calls and demanded better screening.

How do you know this? Was this shown on the watch live option on 1010

 

[Don Mount]

No politician, to my knowledge, has ever had so much attention paid to his personal life

I have heard this nonsense over and over from Ford Nation and their apologists. Essentially it all amounts to an argument that the media and the public treat Rob Ford unfairly.

For one, he seems to be the second sitting mayor in history to smoke crack on the job, and the only one who has not done jail time for it. For two, you wouldn't have to look very far at all to see that the media and protesters have been pouncing on politicians of all stripes since the start of democracy including harasment at their own homes. For example in today's news.