Doug Ford is slashing funding wherever he can find it. He just announced that he is cutting funding for the Ontario Library Service Budget by 50%. Edward Keenan writes:
While this cut was unexpected and unheralded — I cannot recall any campaign promises pledging to fight Big Book or stick it to those fat-cat librarians — it’s hard to say it’s exactly surprising, coming from this premier. Doug Ford, when his brother was mayor of Toronto, made his pathological disregard for public repositories of knowledge well known.
Asked if he would close library branches then, he said, “Absolutely I would, in a heartbeat.” He said anyone who reacted negatively to that suggestion was simply taking their cues from self-interested “library groups.” The city was lousy with libraries, he suggested, complaining that there were more branches in his area than Tim Hortons franchises — which there were not — and suggesting that was a bad thing.
He felt the same way eight years ago when Ford and his brother Rob took an axe to the funding of Toronto's libraries. That decision brought on the wrath of Margaret Atwood, who complained loudly.
Ford was not impressed:
Councillor Doug Ford has fired back at world-renowned author Margaret Atwood for her criticism of suggested library cuts, telling reporters: “I don’t even know her. If she walked by me, I wouldn’t have a clue who she is.”
Ford also said that the literary icon and activist — who took him to task on Twitter for saying, erroneously, that his Etobicoke ward has more libraries than Tim Hortons — should get herself elected to office or pipe down.
“Well good luck to Margaret Atwood. I don’t even know her. If she walked by me, I wouldn’t have a clue who she is,” said the councillor and advisor to his brother, Mayor Rob Ford, after a committee meeting on proposed cuts.
“She’s not down here, she’s not dealing with the problem. Tell her to go run in the next election and get democratically elected. And we’d be more than happy to sit down and listen to Margaret Atwood.”
Sound familiar? But more than that, Ford's ignorance is gobsmaking.
Image: Toronto Public Library Workers Union
10 comments:
.. the glib ideology, deceits, excuses and crudeness of Doug Ford smacks of course.. of Stephen Harper - who simply trashed Scientific and Biological reference. Its easy to see that current 'conservatives' a la Scheer, Kenney, Palliser, Moe et at twin their dogma and strategy from American Republicans. Four bitter years of Doug Ford a comin.. four bitter years for Albertans a comin.. the so-called Liberals of British Columbia were in lockstep with Harper of course. Hold onto your hats Canadians.. look into your riding for exemplars and defenders.. you don't have a friend in governments these days.. all you have is adversaries - all they ever wanted was your vote, your donations and your tax dollars
It's been abundantly clear what they wanted, sal. What is depressing is that so many of us gave them what they wanted.
Having documented Harpers abuses in great detail I can say with some authority that both the speed and volume of Frords abuses make Harper look like an amateur. They are simply coming too thick and fast to keep up with.
This is a man whose objective is simple, Rural. He wants to get even -- with the councillors at Toronto's City Hall, with those who know more than he does, with anyone who has ever made the big man feel small.
If Margaret Atwood has to be elected to political office in order to earn the right to have her input acknowledged, then where does that leave the rest of us?
Is there some segment within the electorate for which this measure would hold some specific appeal or is it just that Ford can’t resist any opportunity to make another smartass blowhard pronouncement that he feels would reinforce his portrayal of Tuffy McNutt?
There was a girl I knew in high school who didn’t look the part but could pound the snot out of 90% of the guys. I wonder if she’s still kicking.
There must be somebody around who would do her job, John.
Margaret Atwood wrote her first contribution (Circle Game) in 1966, when I was twelve. Upon entering high school you would have to be brain dead if you didn't hear her name or come across something written by her or at least hearing her quoted. For Dougie to claim he didn't know who she was must be some indication that this man has the attention span of a newt. The thing that was so incredible was he said this before even running for Premier. Budget cuts to library funding is only the start from a man who ran on the promise of a dollar beer and allows us to have tail gate parties. Truly a buffoon.
A "buffoon," zoombats. Truly.
Of course, why would a Ford know who Atwood is, when you've spent your learning years selling drugs on the soccer fields and street corners of Etobi- coke.
Ford has always felt, waterboy, that he had better things to do than getting an education.
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