Every time I use this space to comment on something political or controversial, I get myself in trouble.
So a while ago I stopped doing it.
But after a Canada Day weekend when the Hip, William & Kate, Wimbledon finals and the Pride Parade, all reminded me why the first weekend in July is one of the best in the year… one issue has kept chewing at me. I can’t ignore it.
So I am going to pile on.
In fact, as one volunteer high school football coach (me) to another (our Mayor Rob Ford) knows, piling on is entirely unnecessary. If you don’t know the expression from a football sense, it refers to a penalty called when additional players jump on the ball carrier, long after he or she has been subdued and wrestled to the ground. In other words, the play (hopefully not the player) is dead.
In business, debates and politics, the equivalent of piling on is when every public figure or media pundit thinks they have to add their two cents worth to an issue that has been well discussed. In this TMZ – CNN – Twitter age of reporting, pretty much every issue suffers from “piling on.”
I could have gone with the expression “beating a dead horse,” but as an avid fan of the Calgary Stampede, I don’t like that one. Not at all.
So, back to the football theme.
In this case, I am launching myself in the air to add my voice of displeasure over our Mayor’s unbelievable snub of the Pride Parade and, more importantly, the community of people who celebrate the event.
It’s not that I feel I need to do this because I have friends who parade or because I have clients who support the event. While both of those facts are true, I am not doing it for them. I am doing it for my city.
I didn’t vote for Mayor Ford. Most of the people in my ‘hood didn’t either. But he won. Fair and square. He executed a brilliant campaign and his competitors bungled their efforts. I can live with it.
So now he is my Mayor. But as my Mayor—of my city, my adopted hometown, the largest metropolis in Canada, where I gainfully employ dozens of people and contribute mightily to the tax rolls—I want him to represent my city. And, my friends, my city is not just bricks and mortar. It’s people. Places. Events. Culture. Community. It’s the Film Festival. It’s Taste of the Danforth. It’s the EX. It’s Caribana. It’s Long Weekends. It’s the Santa Claus Parade. It’s the Ride for Heart. And yes, it’s escaping to the cottage.
But as my Mayor, you must sacrifice some personal things for your city. Your life is ours now. You made that decision. Not me. Not my neighbour.
When you made that decision, you said you would represent us.
Well my dear worship, you’re not! You picked your high and mighty Muskoka cottage over my city. That’s right. You didn’t choose the cottage over the parade. You didn’t choose the lake over a community of people. You didn’t choose the dock over the thousands of visitors. You didn’t choose your bathing suit over costumes. You choose you over me!
Not acceptable.
You are my mayor. I have learned to live with it. Now so do you.
So don’t embarrass me. Attend the most important events of our year. Yes there are more events than you can possibly get to. But if there were a Top 10 or even a Top 5 that you HAD to be at in a window of 365 days, the Pride events were undeniably in there.
At least there’s one member of the Ford family who will understand my notion of “piling on” – the literal notion, that is. In case you haven’t heard, the Lingerie Football League (LFL) is making its Canadian debut this September in Toronto, with none other than Krista Ford, niece of Mayor Rob and daughter of Councillor Doug, getting ready to tackle the crap out of scantily clad women as the (Toronto) Triumph’s middle linebacker and, to boot, the team’s Captain.
LFL players wear typical football pads, but with only a bikini top and spandex shorts. It is no wonder that it is the fastest growing league in sport today, with plans to expand into as many as five other Canadian cities next year. And, some might say, it is no wonder that our dear Mayor Ford says he will attend the home debut to watch his niece Krista, 21, hit the gridiron for the first time on Sept. 17 to take on the Tampa Breeze.
Now, I am not sure how many Torontonians will attend this new spectacle of “beauty and brawn,” but this event apparently rates more important to Ford than a Muskoka getaway or the million-plus people who came out for the Pride parade last Sunday.
Go ahead ref, throw the flag. I will gladly take my punishment. Cause I feel a whole lot better…