Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Ford vows to clean up budget 'mess'

Toronto mayor Rob Ford is vowing to clean up the city's financial "mess" in less than a year despite a burgeoning budget shortfall.

The promise from the cost-conscious mayor was made Friday in a wide-ranging interview on radio station AM640. His comments come at the end of a week that saw reports of possible cuts to police, fire services, daycare spaces and park maintenance.

Toronto is facing a projected budget shortfall of $774 million. The mayor ran on a platform of eliminating the so-called "gravy" from city hall in last fall's election.

"We're not going to have this mess to deal with next year, I guarantee it," Ford said during Friday's interview.

However, he acknowledged that the process would not be pleasant for Torontonians in the short-term as no stone will be left unturned in his effort to find savings.

"It's going to be short-term pain for long-term gain," said Ford. "It's going to cost us a little bit now, but it will save us millions and millions of dollars in the long run," he said. "We inherited this mess …. We're trying to clean up a mess that was left behind."

Earlier this week, Ford's administration said it planned to offer about 17,000 city workers a buyout package.

Union, non-union and management employees are all being offered buyouts of up to six months salary. Police, transit and library workers are not included.

Ford said the cuts were regrettable but nonetheless needed.

Full Article
Source: CBC news 

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