NATALIE DAVIS

Rob Ford, Toronto’s 64th Mayor and arguably Canada’s most infamous political train wreck, has been the subject of much controversy since he was elected to office in 2010 — and rightly so. He’s a mess of a mayor who should be removed from office.

The often incoherent politician has been filmed multiple times giving offensive speeches and stumbling around in the streets ranting and raving, apparently under the influence of alcohol and drugs.

Some of his most well-known antics include, but are not limited to: announcing to Toronto city council during a meeting in 2008 that “those oriental people work like dogs…the oriental people are slowing taking over,” and, my personal favourite, being caught on video eyeing up a slice of apple dipped in honey as part of a ritual for Rosh Hashanah. Ford proceeded to sneakily devour the slice as everyone else listened to the explanation of the ritual attentively.

On the subject of his racist comments towards Asian people, Ford was forced to issue a painful apology, stating that he meant it as a compliment and was using the example to support his case of possibly extending business hours for stores.

Being under all this negative scrutiny seems to have taken a toll on the politician, forcing him to turn to substances to ease the pain of being an adult with a high profile job. Please note the sarcasm.

Was it always this way with the Chris Farley tribute mayor, as he’s been called by Stephen Colbert?

Surprisingly, Ford was fairly popular with the public in the beginning of his career. He earned 47 per cent of the vote, beating out George Smitherman with 35.61 per cent and Joe Pantalone with 11.73 per cent. Ford now operates as an independent politician but is affiliated with the Progressive Conservative Party.

He lobbied on four main points: “putting people and families first, focusing on the fundamentals, reducing waste and eliminating unnecessary taxes.”

He gained support by opting out of perks reserved for members of politics in Toronto, such as a private driver — though the Toronto police force later encouraged him to employ one following Ford receiving a DUI and getting photographed reading while driving on the Gardiner Expressway.

He has a love of sports, as he was a high school football coach — his position was revoked due to an argument with a student player on the field over said student’s poor performance.

His hands-on approach to the removal of drugs from the streets of Toronto seems to also have gone awry. Can one really blame him for taking it upon himself to chat with drug dealers and remove crack from the public market personally, one hit at a time?

When questioned on the situation, Ford goaded the press into re-asking the question, “Have you smoked crack?” to which he casually replied, “Yes, probably in one of my drunken stupors,” according to an article by Karen McVeigh of the Globe and Mail on Nov. 13.

It is frankly terrifying that a mayor would think that a phrase like ‘drunken stupor’ is an acceptable way to excuse any of his actions, never mind the use of crack-cocaine.

Ford has also supported the abolishment of bike lanes, calling bicyclists a “pain in the ass” in a city council meeting. He supports the addition of a helicopter to the Toronto police force, even though the police did not call for one to be added.

When city councillor Pam McConnell asked him to clarify his request, he stated, “We have the authority to spend the money out of our budget the way we want to,” to which she replied, “Actually no we don’t.”

Ford advocated for a new subway extension of the Sheppard line, opposing the cheaper Light Rail idea that had been favoured previously by members of city council.

After his election, the idea was halted because of lack of funding.

Bruce McQuaig, the Chief Executive Officer of Metrolinx, a transit company involved in the Light Rail system, spoke on the cost of qutitting the project in an article by cbc.ca on April 1, 2011. He noted that “$49 million is what would be known at this point in time and then there would be additions based on how the discussions go with some of the suppliers.”

It’s apparent that Rob Ford is not misunderstood. He’s just a big a mess. This man is an embarrassment to all Canadians, not just those living in Toronto. The longer he stays in office the more trouble surfaces around him, yet he remains in place because there is no easy way to remove a Canadian mayor from his position and he refuses to step down.

Ford is clearly mentally unstable and has gotten more press for his ridiculous actions and brass commentary than he has by being a successful leader of a major Canadian city. Toronto has a $9.4 billion budget, according to an article in the Toronto Star; it seems to me Ford shouldn’t be allowed control of that kind of money when he can’t even control himself.

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Graphic: Stephanie Mah