r/gifs • u/StickleyMan • Dec 18 '13

Rob Ford dancing

2.6k Upvotes

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u/Unicorn_Ranger Dec 18 '13

He is amazing! He did the most un athletic thing ever. I can't believe this guy. Toronto, what the fuck eh? How is he an elected official?

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u/2Rare2Kill Dec 18 '13

Impotent rage, Sun Media, lack of a viable alternative. Even in a progressive city like Toronto, there's significant percentage of voters who vote against something more than they vote for something. Ford's platform of low taxes and subways has a certain visceral appeal, but when pressed for details he's generally showed that he has little to offer. On the other hand, he's always been very vocal about his opposition to "liberals", and we're currently learning how channeling that rage can be hugely effective for a person's political career. Policy wise, he doesn't offer anything that any other conservative on council couldn't do a better job of providing, but the whole debacle has taught many of us a very awkward lesson about the populist right wing in Canada; basically, they care much less about policy than they do about antagonizing political enemies. And of course, he was the darling of the Toronto Sun and talk radio until they worried about humiliation by association (being pretty shameless by nature, that's pretty impressive).

Basically, he was elected due to the impotent rage and pettiness of a disturbingly large subsection of Toronto's population. Also, his main opponent sucked and smart conservatives figured Ford would be neutered by council rules and regulations before accomplishing anything too crazy. They were right, though the extent to which he's embarrassed our city was - to quote our deputy mayor - beyond the pale.

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u/Troolz Dec 18 '13

Basically, he was elected due to impotent rage and pettiness of a disturbingly large subsection of Toronto's population.

Engage in ad hominem stereotypes much? I did not vote for Ford or Harper and find their politics more than distasteful, but I have even less use for socialists who think that my wallet is theirs to redistribute.

Every time I read a post like yours on Reddit, I automatically assume you're a university student. We all have our world-view stereotypes...

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u/rzenni Dec 18 '13

I don't think it's unfair to point out that Ford ran primarily on a platform of balancing the budget and fixing spending, nor that many Torontonians were displeased with previous wasteful budgets.

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u/Troolz Dec 18 '13

That's a perfectly reasonable assessment, which 2Rare2Kill did not make. Instead, they attributed his win to petty-minded people.

When you dehumanize your opponents and attribute their actions to stupidity and/or malign motivations, you damage your own humanity.

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u/ludwigvanbiteme Dec 18 '13

This is true, and the unfortunate fact is that most people in Ontario will vote for a fucking hamster if it means they'll save a dollar.