Toronto mayor confronted by comedy interviewer calls 911, reportedly shouts "You bitches! Don’t you fucking know? I’m Rob fucking Ford, the mayor of this city!

Rob Ford is Toronto's buffonish embarrassment of a mayor, elected by the suburbs to "end Toronto's war on cars" and "open the city for business," he declared that he would save money by "ending the gravy train" of city spending, only to take office and discover that the only discretionary funding that remained to be cut was to things like well-loved, well-used libraries.

Marg "Princess Warrior" Delahunty is a character played by Mary Walsh on the comedy-news-show This Hour Has 22 Minutes. It's complicated, but basically she dresses up like a middle-aged housewife, who is, in turn, dressed as a warrior princess, who is, in turn, a political journalist. It actually works really well and has resulted in some of the best political reporting in Canadian history.

But when Marg Princess Warrior tried to interview Rob Ford, Ford reportedly went crazy, called 911, demanded faster service, and said, "You bitches! Don’t you fucking know? I’m Rob fucking Ford, the mayor of this city!"

To be clear, the emergency that prompted this outburst was that Mayor Ford was in danger of being interviewed by a comedian.

This isn’t the first outburst of this type to emanate from His Worship. A few years back, Ford got into an altercation with fellow fans at a Leafs/Sens game after they asked him to dial down his obnoxiousness. He responded with “Who the fuck do you think you are? Are some kind of right wing Commie bastard [sic]? Do you want your little wife to go over to Iran and get raped and shot?”...

“I’m Rob Fucking Ford!” (or: The Mayor, the Ambush and the 911 Call)

I write books. My latest is a YA science fiction novel called Homeland (it's the sequel to Little Brother). More books: Rapture of the Nerds (a novel, with Charlie Stross); With a Little Help (short stories); and The Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow (novella and nonfic). I speak all over the place and I tweet and tumble, too.

MORE: canada • christ what an asshole • politics • public broadcasting • rob ford • toronto

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Mr. Ford was said to be inspired by the ads of politician, Jerry “suck my balls” Smith.
davegroff

Who did the photoshopped sign? Nice work.
- http://www.bitpicture.com Marc Lostracco
  
  C’était moi. I might have worked a little harder on it if I knew it was gonna pop up everywhere, but thanks!
- sgtdoom
  
  No way! He incorrectly spelled “bitches” — it should have been, “bitchez” !!!
Mister44

I thought Canadians were more laid back, eh?
- Trent Hawkins
  
  This is Toronto. It’s like New York without all the stuff.
  - Mister44
    
    I’ve been to Toronto a couple times. I loved it. I saw an old school italian spat late at night in a deli shop. I even got to stay one time at the Royal York. The VIP level, even. Easily the nicest place I have ever stayed at – or was allowed into the door.
- ArghMonkey
  
  Conservatives here arent real Canadians, just wannabe republicans
- Rhys S/V Alchemy
  
  This is a common misconception Canadians cultivate for foreign consumption. Actually, our legendary peevishness and forced politeness is only a thin veneer over Sasquatch-level rage and killiness.
  
  Ask a German from World War II, or a North Korean, or anybody, really. A Canadian soldier will share his dinner, help you across the street and then pulp your brains with the nearest brick in a Wolverine-style rage.
  
  Obviously, the export of Celine Dion cannot be thought of as anything but an act of extreme and visceral hostility to the rest of the world. Recall the national sport consists of ice brawling with clubs and knives on one’s feet. Got a brain injury? You get called a “pussy” and a “malingerer”. Mayor Ford is an exemplar of Canadianess in this respect.
Trent Hawkins

How I wish we were back to the good old days of Lastman.
plus MEDIC

Just another non-event in Rob Ford’s daily life, like giving the finger to a woman asking him to get off his cellphone while driving (illegal), or receiving a DUI and mairjuana possession charges in Florida. Or the time he claimed only drug users and gays get the AIDS.
- macguffin
  
  It’s not just that he claimed that only drug users and gay people get AIDS. He said this when he was arguing against funding an AIDS prevention programme – saying, in other words, that gay people and drug users deserve to get AIDS, and don’t deserve any help when they get it.
  
  He’s repulsive.
uglyredhonda

The CBC’s video of the encounter is here:

http://www.cbc.ca/22minutes/clips.html?ID=2160573368

(Some of their stuff is region-locked to Canada, but this one seems to be region-free.)

I like how he runs away from his minivan with it idling in reverse.
- EH
  
  Was gonna watch. Wasn’t gonna sit through multiple commercials to do so.
  
  And what’s up with this “late-loading comments” junk, is Disqus broken?
chiataur

I would love to have a Marg, Princess Warrior confronting politicians down in the US. You’ve got to answer questions without the run around when you’ve got a warrior princess staring you down!
- Brainspore
  
  I would love to have a Marg, Princess Warrior confronting politicians down in the US.
  
  As Canadian-born-comedy-news-show-interviewers go we could do a lot worse than Samantha Bee. And we got Sacha Baron Cohen on loan from the U.K. long enough to see Ron Paul screaming “He’s a queer!”
http://twitter.com/vid_kid C. Medley

I live in Toronto. He is a constant source of embarrassment.
Lobster

I would never elect a man who thought communism was a right-wing system. Get your insults straight, Rob F. Ford.
http://www.jjsaul.com Jim Saul

Having never heard of him, it took me a bit to catch on that this guy is some kind of parody like the “Lord Mockton” character. Whoever the comedian is playing that role should watch his weight and blood pressure though, for fear he’ll be the next Chris Farley.
jimh

To be fair, she does wear a sword.
Aaron Hodges

I smell memehood.
John Fleming

Anyone else reminded of this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCGJ4coriPc
liquidstar

The 911 calls were just the icing on the cake. When i saw this on CBC I laughed and I laughed. On a darker note, this shows just how frightened ignorant elitists like Ford are becoming; and frightened people are dangerous. Oh, and for some reason he reminds me of this old fellow:

https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/File:Ubu-Jarry.png
- Charles H.
  
  “Ignorant elitist”? Really?
  
  I mean, the “ignorant” part is rather undeniable, but calling Rob Ford an elitist is setting the bar for what counts as one pretty fucking low.
  - Guest
    
    You do not have to be elite to be an elitist. You just have to want it, real bad.
  - liquidstar
    
    ha ha ya I was thinking that after I wrote it, but really, I see elitists as basic compost anyways sooo… . I have no doubt he
    regards himself as vastly superior to other people, because you know,
    he’s fucking Rob Fnord. It seems the days of the well bigoted and educated 19th century upper class snob who was irritating because they actually did have a brain are over.
- abstract_reg
  
  Please, I’m an elitist. Don’t sully the good names of people who Know they are better than most by lumping us in with this idiot. He isn’t elite, he is only unaware of how low on the totem pole he is.
semiotix

I’d vote for any candidate who had that as his or her ACTUAL sign in a heartbeat.
- ridestowe
  
  seems like something the pirate party in germany might do
Heartfruit

Every week he finds new ways to make me ashamed that he’s my mayor.
- sparkdale
  
  This picture has been circling on Twitter. From the article, a list of “related articles” all about Ford’s… charm, let’s say.
  
  http://yfrog.com/h07nh5j
http://twitter.com/Glinner Graham Linehan

“buffonish?” :)
gloriana232

Just to be fair, this guy received a couple of death threats (last month?) and he *was* accosted at his home. I don’t really care for CBC comedy (snooze … except for the Mercer Report, which is AMAZING) but I am a fan in general and I think it was inappropriate to try to pull a gag at his house. (Yes, I live in Toronto, and nope, I did not vote for him.) What I remember from the episodes of 22 Minutes is that they generally jump politicians at scrums, press conferences, on the street, etc.

There are also now reports that this allegation came from a transcript, and the actual audio of the 911 call doesn’t include this.
- http://www.facebook.com/people/BigVic-Proton/1112763277 BigVic Proton
  
  You were that kid in school that told everyone Santa was not real aren’t you?
- sincarne
  
  Sorry. It was a camera crew and a late-middle-aged woman in a Xena costume. And he talked to them for a couple of minutes before going inside and calling 911. He clearly did not believe his life was in danger.
  
  The only report saying the audio call doesn’t include the swearing is the Mayor’s Facebook page. Where he also claims he was “attacked.”
  
  So you’re really reaching here in an attempt to be fair.
  - http://pulse.yahoo.com/_TRDAWDLDAQ4AFHK27DSMI4XD2Q Designz
    
    sorry the police are confirming that the swearing is “not” on the transcript. Makes for a good attention getter though even if its made up.
    - sincarne
      
      If that’s the case, I apologize. I’m willing to be wrong … I hope I am. However I’ve been unable to find anything to back this up. Link please?
      
      Doesn’t change anything about the rest of the story, though. He lied about the circumstances under which this happened, the time, where his kid was, and he placed the 911 calls after it was absolutely clear his life was in danger.
      
      If he didn’t say “I’m Rob Fucking Ford”, then his behaviour goes from hilarious and pathetic to just plain pathetic.
  - http://pulse.yahoo.com/_TRDAWDLDAQ4AFHK27DSMI4XD2Q Designz
    
    http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/10/27/i-apologize-for-expressing-my-frustration-inappropriately-rob-ford/
    
    Edit: naww I took out the “wrong again” because it was posted before I saw your apology. I’ll put it back in again now though.
    - sincarne
      
      I’m sorry, wrong about what? What am I supposed to be looking for in that article? Are you referring to the unidentified source?
      
      EDIT: Ah, I see you’ve removed the part of your response where you’ve told me I’m “wrong again” about the police confirming the report.
      - http://pulse.yahoo.com/_TRDAWDLDAQ4AFHK27DSMI4XD2Q Designz
        
        you are free to have your opinions of another person as are others. Attributing unverified statements one way or another (i.e. all of it at this point is unverified), to support your POV is reaching a fair bit. Cory’s unsubstantiated headline “reportedly” echoing made up facts, is the more troubling issue. Gets eyeballs for BB though and CBC’s antics have been quite effective as well. Make your point, just don’t make it up.
      - sincarne
        
        Absolutely true. Making unverified statements like ‘sorry the police are confirming that the swearing is “not” on the transcript’ when in fact what the police have said is they are not commenting is not okay. As far as I can tell, this is the only thing that has been stated as an undisputed fact that doesn’t hold up to scrutiny.
        
        The Globe and Mail link you just posted says the exact same thing about a “source”, and in fact paints Ford in an even worse light. I will happily admit I am wrong when a police spokesperson makes a statement about the contents of the tape or the tape itself is released, and we hear no “I’m Rob Fucking Ford.” This has not happened.
      - http://pulse.yahoo.com/_TRDAWDLDAQ4AFHK27DSMI4XD2Q Designz
        
        ummmmm where did you hear he said it………………
      - sincarne
        
        In news reports that said “allegedly,” and went to great lengths to stress this information was not verified. Metro Morning even mentioned Dougie’s denial.
        
        At any rate, I’m boring people and hurting my here-to-fore awesome comment-to-like ratio, so this is the last thing I’ll say in response. Unless we get conclusive proof it didn’t happen, and then I promise I’ll apologize. The last word is yours, if you want it.
      - ArghMonkey
        
        Actually its all been backed up by facts with the exception of Ford calling dispatchers bitches, thats the only part of this story that we arent sure of.
        
        We have video of the confrontation in his driveway, ford admits to calling 911 over it, he admits to swearing to dispatchers, he says he didnt call them bitches.
        
        Shrug, hes a dumb ass embarassment no matter how you slice it.
      - http://pulse.yahoo.com/_TRDAWDLDAQ4AFHK27DSMI4XD2Q Designz
        
        http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/toronto/torontos-rob-ford-verbally-abusive-but-reports-of-911-profanity-inaccurate-source/article2215608/
    - KludgeGrrl
      
      Some context, for those who aren’t familiar with the local press scene… The National Post is considered a right wing, conservative, paper; The Globe & Mail is viewed as centrist, generally Liberal, and the Toronto Star is considered more lefty (although it too tends to support the Liberal party, not the NDP). The CBC, our national broadcaster, is often derided as reflecting the interests of the left-wing elites, whoever they are ;)
      - sincarne
        
        … and the Toronto Sun is excellent for training your new puppy. :)
      - TimRowledge
        
        And to clarify a bit further for American readers, Liberal in KludgeGrrl’s post refers to the Liberal Party, which is pretty right-wing. I wouldn’t characterise anything about them as centrist…
        It was a shock to move from California to British Columbia and discover this.
        The federal Conservative party makes US republicans look … nah, nothing can make them look good, what was I thinking. But it was a popular idea a while back that Harper (Canadian PM, conservative christian dominionist) was so far up W’s rectum that he could almost see Tony Blair’s feet.
      - ArghMonkey
        
        Hey Tim, I just wanted to add to your comment there.
        
        A few things:
        
        1. The conservative party of Canada is more like the democratic party in the U.S. really
        2. Provincial liberals in B.C. are very right wing but they are a different party from the federal liberal party of Canada, infact the B.C. liberals are not only seperate by design they were created from old so-cred members and even some early reform members, its a toilet of a party and they called themselves “liberals” because it was felt they wouldnt get votes in B.C. otherwise (though they would say its a representation of old liberal ideas.
        3. Federal liberals continue to become more right wing as the middle class loses money and power because the conservatives spread propaganda that says they can fix the middle class (oddly by taking more of their money and power away).
        
        Have pity on Canada, everything good about us has been destroyed by conservatives or is in the process of being destroyed, all we can hope for is the collapse of the u.s. to scare our ruling elite into some benevolence.
      - TimRowledge
        
        The conservative party of Canada is more like the democratic party in the U.S. really
        
        Hunh? What?
        Shurely some mishtake, offisher? Hic.
        I know – from years of living down there in the Excited States – that the Dems are right-wing loonies, but the Repugnicants are waaaaaaaaaayyyyy out there. My perspective – from living several years north of the safety line – err, border – is that the Canadian conservatives have moved well into the penumbra of the fascist, er, Republican, movement. As evidence I offer the treatment of supposed terrorists that turn out not to be, the behaviour of the trade minister licking the scrota of the record and movie industry, the retreat from any faintly sensible action on climate buggeration, and … well the list goes on to catatonia.
      - ArghMonkey
        
        Its a tough call, both dems and repubs are way more conservative then the most conservative party here in Canada but then our PCs (progressive conservatives) seem like liberals compared to the fairly new “conservative party of canada”.
        
        Suffice to say that the conservatives here are terrible, extremely right wing, borderline fascist yes and our liberal party is very right wing, even the NDP (my party) tend to compromise to the right too much.
        
        I am just waiting for the collapse, itll hurt in the short term but I hope itll mean a fresh start, though, most likely, things will stay the same (more or less) or get worse.
- Antinous / Moderator
  
  Just to be fair, this guy received a couple of death threats
  
  It’s the direction of causation that’s in question.
  - ArghMonkey
    
    He received death threats from middle aged women dressed as xena accompanied by a camera crew?
    
    Otherwise I dont buy that excuse, its nonsense and the only thing Rob Ford could cling to given the situation.
- KludgeGrrl
  
  Regardless of whether you think it is ok for comedy/news people to “accost” people outside their homes (and “real” newspeople do this all the time when covering a story), Ford’s reaction is completely over the top. When confronted with a sixty-year old woman with a mike, it is not reasonable to feel so frightened for one’s personal safety that one must call 911, and then call again to berate the police for not appearing instantly. It’s a bit crazy.
  
  However, that Ford acts a bit crazy should not surprise anyone who has followed his career. For example, we know about the aforementioned death threats from crackpots he received because he publicized them — even though, according to Mel Lastman, death threats are “part of the job”. Until then it would appear that Ford was used to being the one making the threats (to his wife, according to the police). If anyone wants a quick review of his outlandishness, see this Globe and Mail article summarizing it.
  - gloriana232
    
    One of my problems with this entire debacle is that it’s often shared by the same people (not necessarily here, obviously) who find every opportunity to mock Rob Ford … whether for his clumsiness, his weight, or his other personal escapades. Many of my friends and acquaintances are against Ford, like myself, so I hear it a *lot.*
    
    I don’t disagree he acted over-the-top. It was stupid to call 911, and I do concede that in retrospect, bringing up his death threats wasn’t on topic.
    
    But I really, really don’t care about politicians’ personal lives (and I do classify this as personal, which you may disagree with). I have many more reasons to dislike and disagree with Mayor Ford.
    
    I realize there’s a long, long tradition of mocking politicians in all kinds of ways, and it’s all part of a healthy democracy. I just find it tragic that a lot of people choose to mock him *instead* of focusing on his terrible policies. It’s the same game that politicians play against their opponents — “who cares what this guy is saying if you can’t take him seriously for X reason that is completely unrelated!” Not only that, it galvanizes his supporters.
    
    The mayor did a dumb thing on his way to work — crazy viral campaign ensues. He cancelled Transit City — not much. Took out bike lanes — yawn. Lost on the battle to cut police budget — oh well. Voted against community grants — boring. His lack of accommodation of citizens who wanted to voice their concerns about cuts at meetings too was pretty unimpressive — hey, hundreds of Torontonians, you get 48 hours, that’s it — too much democracy otherwise.
    
    I acknowledge that this kind of humour interest can potentially attract more attention to his politics and get people to actually vote. I hope so.
    
    “‘Real’ newspeople do this all the time when covering a story”
    
    For me, it depends on the story. Politicial humour is as much a democratic tool as a hard-hitting expose — not going to deny the right to either. Doesn’t mean I don’t feel this was inappropriate.
    - http://notouchtolose.tumblr.com notouchtolose
      
      I agree that it would be constructive to take on his policies with the same attention as this little scandal.
      
      But I would suggest that this is not just his private life. If in fact the reports are true, it’s a gross demonstration of his elistism and totally disregard for the 911 services and other citizens. Maybe the nice people at 911 had some actual life threatening situations to deal this with. This was not one. He KNEW it wasn’t. He was playing along, until he wasn’t. I would say that’s a pretty clear misuse of emergency services.
      Then to call back, cuss 911 out, and demand faster service, because he’s the mayor? What, 911 should cherish his life over others? He’s worried about his children’s safety, but not that of the citizens he is paid to serve?
      
      This is a reflection on his comportment as mayor, and it’s shameful. He’s lying about how it went down, he should apologize to everyone for misusing emergency services, and he thinks his position as mayor should put him above everyone else. Eee! Pretty bad for a dumb thing he did on his way to work today…
- joeposts
  
  “What I remember from the episodes of 22 Minutes is that they generally jump politicians at scrums, press conferences, on the street, etc.”
  
  That’s true, but:
  
  a) Rob Ford doesn’t talk to reporters unless they work for a paper that likes him, so you’ll never find him near a media scrum.
  b) Rob Ford almost never holds press conferences, and when he does he won’t take questions from anyone not working for a friendly paper.
  c) Rob Ford rarely sets foot outside his office, home, football field or cyclist-flattening SUV. You’ll never see him “on the street” without a phalanx of bodyguards and Sun photographers eager to show what an everyman he is by walking around “on the street.”
  
  So the opportunities for finding this public figure are limited to his driveway or a funeral, I think they chose the more tasteful route. If there’s a law against talking to someone in their driveway, I’m going to call 911 in a panic next time I see someone walking up to the door holding a bible. They could use it to bludgeon me to death, after all.
  
  Ford, like many powerful people, excels at playing the victim. He’s calling this an “ambush” and an “attack” and implying that he somehow thought an old lady in a halloween costume with a camera crew was a fucking death squad. His kids must be so well adjusted.
  
  You’d think she ran through his entire family and the football team he coaches with that sword.
  - gloriana232
    
    I admit I personally don’t know his media record, because I generally read the papers I assume he doesn’t like, and they have no problem criticizing him thoroughly anyway. I HAVE heard about his aggressive isolation and I do disagree with it. It’s not democratic. But to be perfectly truthful, he doesn’t really have to submit to media scrutiny if he doesn’t want to. It’s not like he’s shutting down papers or interfering with public records.
    
    “You’ll never see him ‘on the street’ without a phalanx of bodyguards”
    
    Every politician has handlers. They always, always have people running their conferences. His is just way “better” at it. Many politicians see the value in building a relationship of trust with journalists; he clearly doesn’t.
    
    Is my Toronto apathy showing? I just don’t see the point of laughing at Rob Ford when it doesn’t make much of a difference. The people laughing are the ones who aren’t voting for him anyway. The rest vote for him or stay home on election day.
    - joeposts
      
      “Is my Toronto apathy showing?”
      
      I’d say … … YES. Might want to zip up…
      
      I know ‘every’ politician has handlers, and nobody has to talk to the media, and newspapers can openly support whomever they want.
      
      But do you see my point, though? You can’t find this guy anywhere, including the halls of city hall. Thanks to his famous customer service commitment we can call his office and his staff will take our complaints and then destroy any evidence of any complaints because everything is fine.
      
      If he made himself more available he wouldn’t have people showing up at his house threatening to murder him with free media attention. I’m surprised protesters haven’t ‘occupied’ his street yet, but I guess there’s three years to go.
    - liquidstar
      
      You make a lot of good points Gloria, and I think you are right that discussing his policies is the real issue. However, he is a public figure, and I believe public figures are liable to public scrutiny. In our day and age (ugh cliche) that means media scrutiny. If he isnt brave enough to enter into potentially hostile media, then what is he doing in a public position? How are we to have democracy without an opposite view being expressed that he can counter?
    - Genre Slur
      
      Not Joe Clark. He was out walking on 10th street and Kensington road almost everyday during his last term. No bodyguards, just chillin’ in his neighbourhood. Good human. Too good for politics, judging by Ford, Bronconnier, et cetera. Nenshi is another exception entirely.
      - Flashman
        
        I was living in Calgary Centre back then (just off 10th Street in Sunnyside) and was proud to vote for Joe, and even have one of his signs in my front lawn; first time I’ve ever done that, and the first and probably last time I’ll ever vote Conservative.
        Then I moved to Ottawa, and on my very first day there I saw Joe Clark himself, in the New Edinburgh IGA, just buying a bouquet of flowers.
      - Genre Slur
        
        He used to stop and chat with people at the Roasterie courtyard — IT’s, punks, university/art school students, local business owners. The Reformers made waves suggesting Clark caught that vote by focusing on the LGBT community. I think the reason Joe took the vote was his presence as a facet of the community (for all). It gained respect. Hilarious you saw him in Ottawa! It’s a shame the reformers took over the federal Conservative Party. But team Harper is a very good group of strategists.
      - Flashman
        
        Hey, the Roasterie was my hangout too! Man, I miss Kensington.
Naberius

Reminds me of the late William Donald Schaefer, Mayor of Baltimore who went on to become Governor of Maryland. Among his many other qualities, Schaefer was a notorious hothead who had a real problem with outside criticism.

My favorite story is the time when some random citizen got a letter to the editor published in the Baltimore Sun taking issue with something Schaefer had done or said. The next day there’s a knock on his door and there’s the Gubernatorial limo at the curb and William Donald Schaefer at his doorstep, who basically blusters his way into the guy’s living room where they have what both men would later diplomatically describe as a “frank exchange of views.”

It must be said, though, that Maryland tended to find his outbursts more forgivable than Ford’s. It was at least once suggested that he might actually be suffering from dementia, he was a fairly effective politician nonetheless. He served four terms as Mayor before becoming Governor, and was reelected to that post. While he certainly did have a tendency to say outrageous things (his 2004 observation that AIDS sufferers were “dangerous” people who had “brought it on themselves,” was particularly offensive) he was at least willing to admit that he’d said something really stupid. His obnoxiousness didn’t have quite the same self-aggrandizing character that Ford’s seems to, and he was remembered more fondly (in some quarters anyway) when he passed away this spring than Ford probably will be.
ArghMonkey

Great post Cory!

Rob Ford is an embarrassment and the shame of it is that Torontonians arent smart enough to vote for someone other than this p.o.s.

Toronto sadly is getting what it deserves since it apparently doesnt have enough brains to keep a dangerous fool like ford out of politics.
- sincarne
  
  Sadly it’s not Torontonians who are suffering. It’s those of us downtown who didn’t vote for him who are suffering whilst his inner-circle come in from the ‘burbs and tell us how we should run our neighbourhoods.
  - ArghMonkey
    
    Ive heard that excuse. The short story is there are enough voters to make Rob Ford a bad dream, most stayed home, the ignorant showed up and voted Rob Ford in.
    
    I am sick to think of ppl like Harper and Ford running our country but until Canadians get smarter we will continue to fuck ourselves in the direction of that backward country to the south.
    
    We should accept the blame where it lays, keep pressure on Ford and try to get rid of him anyway we can and we should try to do better next time.
    
    Quite obviously we didnt try hard enough to keep our government free of idiots like Rob Ford, if we want things to get worse we can either remain ignorant or apathetic and vote poorly or not at all, if we want things to get better than we need to do what it takes to remove people like Ford from power, period.
Chris Stewart

So when do the T-shirts come out?
Teller

So gangsta how he’s representing Leaftown.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Fabi-Fala/100001842737906 Fabi Fala

Wow and he is a Canadian? Sounds like he a true US-American. Did they check his birth certificate?
- hymenopterid
  
  Sorry, this one’s all yours.
- liquidstar
  
  Have you ever seen an episode of Mike Bullard? I like to call him “the ugly canadian”.
http://twitter.com/mulveyr mulveyr

As a resident of The City Across the Lake… if the ferry ever gets running again, please, please don’t let him come visit.
niktemadur

Here’s a beauty for the Spanish speakers: Going up the California coast back in May 2006, some campaign pickets in Humboldt read “John Pinches”, others “Paul Gallegos”. Side by side, the big bold lettering read “Pinches Gallegos”. That was a hoot, a real knee-slapper.

A close translation would be “Fucking Gallegos”, “Gallegos” being people from the Galicia region of Spain, the brunt of many jokes about, err… low IQ.
Example #1: Why do Gallegos study in the basement? Because deep down, they’re not as dumb.
Example #2: Why do Gallegos keep an empty bottle in the fridge? Because there’s always someone who doesn’t want anything to drink.
foobar

Ok Calgary, you’ve had your fun. Give Toronto it’s real mayor back now.
- ArghMonkey
  
  No kidding, Toronto has the most redneck, backward mayor and Calgary has a progressive mayor (in comparison), how did that happen???
joeposts

Anyone actually believing anything that Rob Ford says about this (or anything) has to pull their head out. Everything he said during the last election was a vicious, self-serving lie. Now he lies about what he lied about during the election. Next year, he’ll be lying about what he lied about this year.

Adam Vaughan, no Ford ally, says to give him the benefit of the doubt? Haha.
joeposts

Ford can get 911 call recording if he asks for it: Toronto police

Ford has admitted to using the f-word in the call, but has denied insulting the female operator, calling the CBC report “absolutely false.”

The CBC is standing by their story. “There were multiple sources who gave us information about the 911 call,” said CBC News spokesman Chris Ball. “We have reconfirmed with our sources and they stand behind what they have told us.”

Your move, Mr. Ford.
Flashman

Delahuntygate
Nightflyer

My opinion might not mean much, as I’m an American who’s woefully ignorant of Rob Ford and his politics. But thanks to living in Detroit, I’ve been able to see some of the good “Marg Delahunty’s” work on the CBC. I like her brand of satirical political journalism, and while I can understand being suprised to see her at one’s front door unexpectedly, I cannot imagine anyone taking it as *any* kind of serious threat.

In other words, “Christ, what an… ”

(With apologies to any Canadians I may have just offended. Heaven knows we’ve got our share of political loonies on our side of the border. I’m just sayin’… )
langeslag

Don’t forget this summer the mayor flipped the bird at a mother and child who pointed out to him that he was in violation of the law against hands-on phoning while driving.

http://www.thestar.com/news/article/1030393–rob-ford-accused-of-giving-mother-and-daughter-the-finger
dumbbunny

“Right wing commie,” he called them. Lolli-gaggers, that made me laugh. The man doesn’t know his left from his right. .
jaytkay

How do the suburbs elect the mayor of a city?
- wanderoo
  
  Back in 1998 the old City of Toronto (downtown parts, fairly high-density residential, more transit and pedestrian-oriented) was amalgamated with its inner suburbs (much lower density, much more car-dependent urban form) to form the new City of Toronto.
  
  The first mayor of the new megacity was a fairly goofy fiscal conservative named Mel Lastman, who had previously been mayor of one of the old suburban municipalities; the downtown crowd mostly couldn’t stand him. The second mayor of the new megacity was a somewhat leftish downtowner named David Miller, who was reviled by the right-wing media (even though he polled fairly well in the suburbs). During his last term there was a very unpopular city workers’ strike (no garbage pickup for weeks, during the summer) that killed his popularity.
  
  In the last election in 2010, the current mayor, Rob Ford, basically promised to cut taxes without cutting services, break the unions, get rid of all the inefficiency at city hall, etc. He won by a fairly convincing plurality that mostly depended on the suburban vote. More voters downtown voted against him than for him. Ironically, many of Mayor Ford’s actions since getting elected (like killing a major LRT project) will probably hurt the suburbs more than downtown, in the long run.
Guest

If this fellow was elected mayor, I can only surmise that no one in their right mind *wanted* the job. Ouch.
Dave Teeuwen

I hope this absolute non-story (and let’s be honest – this is a non story to beat all non stories) teaches something to us on the left of centre: there are much bigger fish to fry. Ford is so disliked by the left in Toronto, most of whom appear to be your average NDP voter – in or just out of university, no kids, saving up to move north and begin voting Liberal or Coinservative – that he is the most scrutinized mayor this town has had in years.

David Miller or Mel Lastman doing the same thing would never have gotten the coverage this story has. Because this is non-story, and at this point is doing nothing more than making the left look like a group with a stupendous case of sour grapes, since this story is about personalities and nothing else.

Ford pulling the do-you-know-who-i-am trick on a dispatcher is lame, but Bob Rae was famous for his surly, blatantly rude elitist treatment of his supporters in day-to-day interactions. It’s not like anyone didn’t know this about Ford going in. And let’s be honest, as far as approachability is concerned, the guy has always reached out to help people in a way that very few of his counterparts on council ever did. I might disagree with his ideas, but he was out fixing potholes while other counselors were expensing dinners at strip clubs.
- ArghMonkey
  
  Ford is getting this attention because he keeps screwing up and acting like a real idiot.
  
  If you have seen or read about the things he has done then you wouldnt be so surprised.
  
  Also even right wingers dont like Ford, unlike Harper, Rob doesnt muzzle himself, its great in a way, the best way to get rid of filthy conservatives is to let them speak freely, then u see they are bigots, racists, sexists, homophobes, poorly educated etc.
Ambiguity

Right-wing commie bastard for the win!

From now on, this will become my preferred epithet.
http://twitter.com/BowStLoveDrug Paxity Greene

Buffoon has two O’s, which you should totally know if you’re going to call someone that in PRINT. Just sayin’.
Craig Dawson

Looks like the “bitches” and the “I’m Rob fucking Ford” parts of this story have been discredited. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/toronto/chief-blair-backs-mayor-rob-fords-account-of-911-calls/article2217981/ I’m no Ford fan but an update to the post is in order.
- Antinous / Moderator
  
  Police Chief Backs Mayor, Neglects To Release Tapes
  
  Film at 11
- ArghMonkey
  
  Rob did swear and he already apologized for using the F word.
  
  The only thing new here is the police chief says he didnt say “bitches” and he didnt refer to himself exactly the way that was reported.The short story is this changes next to nothing. He lost it over nothing, called 911 over nothing, swore at dispatchers and apologized for it.He is a shit human being and an even worse mayor.
Paul Renault

October 28th’s Worst Person in the World!
http://current.com/shows/countdown/videos/worst-persons-glenn-beck-wonderland-party-and-rob-ford

Is this a Canadian first?
- ArghMonkey
  
  Hahahaha, thats just awesome.
  
  I was laughing my guts out, mostly over Keiths fake Canadian accent but still, good job Olbermann!
sincarne

It seems like this is all the info we’re going to get out of this, but Blair does say the mayor didn’t swear.

I’m sorry, I remain skeptical. I don’t trust Bill Blair. I think he should be out of a job, and possibly in jail. He made up a fake law during the G20, and then had the police arrest people under it. If that isn’t criminal behaviour, it should be. The police don’t get to make up whatever laws are convenient for them.