I had thought that Toronto was one of the most progressive cities in Canada.
Yet, here we are on the verge of electing Rob Ford, who is the polar opposite of progressive.
"If you are not doing needles and you are not gay, you wouldn't get AIDS probably, that's bottom line."
This is Rob Ford's quote, to explain why spending $1.5 million dollars to prevent AIDS is a waste of money. This quote illustrates that Rob Ford does not care about the lives of gays, or intravenous drug-users.
Yes, it was a few years ago, and yes, it was just one quote. But isn't that enough?
Mel Gibson's career took an abrupt downturn after just one quote about Jews.
He at least had the decency to be drunk at the time he made the statement.
Michael Richards has been pretty much removed from public life since his outburst.
Again, he at least had the excuse of it being part of a comedy routine gone wildly astray.
In both of the above cases, the two men apologized profusely, but it is not enough.
Rob Ford, made his statements, not as part of a comedy routine, or while drunk, but rather through the course of representing his constituents at City Hall. It was not intended to be a joke, nor was it taken out of context. It was said as a viable justification for denying funding to prevent AIDS.
How, can this be excused?
Regardless of whether or not you like his economic plans, or you can overlook his other flaws, this is simply inexcusable.This is the kind of statement that would get a mail room clerk fired. It is raw, and unadulterated bigotry laid bare for all the world to see, and we are actually considering promoting him to the highest position in our city.
I lose respect for each and every person I see with a Rob Ford sign on their lawn.
They may as well have a sign on their lawn that says ' I don't mind bigotry, as long as I can save a few bucks on my taxes"
Shame on Toronto.