I hope Rob Ford is elected mayor of Toronto.

As one who loathes populist politics, who despises those who pander to the lowest common denominator, I would feel a smidgen of schadenfreude when those who think they've elected a guy just like them end up with a guy just like them (c'mon people, Mel Lastman hasn't receded that far into the mists of time. Have we forgotten already?).

I'd hire an electrician based on her skills and competence, not whether we'd have fun enjoying a few pints down at the pub. The running of a city is serious and needs a serious mayor.

You learn a lot about a candidate for public office when he or she first stakes out a position on a key issue.

In this case, the candidate is George Smitherman, who recently left the Ontario Liberal cabinet, to run for mayor of Toronto. In an in-depth interview with the Toronto Star, Smitherman mused that he would consider privatizing garbage pick-up in Toronto and the privatization of some of the city's public transit lines.

Anyone who has studied privatization of garbage collection and pubic transit knows that this comes down to two things: saving money by slashing workers' salaries and making it easier to lay them off; and creating a cash cow for businesses all too happy to make profits at the expense of workers and taxpayers.

Every job has bullies. Voice-raising, tough-talking, aggressive alpha types who use force and fury instead of listening and empathy

And too often these bullies are lauded as people who get stuff done, the trailblazers. Nary a peep, however, is made about the bodies these chest-thumping silverbacks leave strewn by the roadside.

But there's little to like about a bully. They hector and insult, throw and punch things, belittle and shout. They are two-year-olds throwing tantrums because mommy won't give them a candy bar. But these sociopaths are supposedly grown-ups.