A Master Class

 

If you have been reading my blog lately, you will see that I have posted a few times about the ongoing bribery by Doug Ford in his efforts to secure a second majority come this June's election. Indeed, for the student of politics, Ford's government is a master class in political sleaze. 

Whether or not he finds success in buying people's votes, it is at least a bit comforting to know that others are not so easily swayed by his all-too-transparent efforts. The following letters attest to that fact: 

Doug Ford’s obvious desperation for victory is troubling | The Star

 With the volume of economic announcements being made by the Doug Ford provincial government, one gets the impression Premier Ford is desperate to win the next election.

The incumbent leaders can wield a lot of persuasive power to grease the rails for a victory. But winning at all costs is not in the democratic handbook.

We all know Donald Trump wanted to win too badly and was prepared to do so at all costs, such as doing so illegally and trashing his own reputation in the process. But here in Ontario, I have never seen a government in power deliver so many pre-election perks. For instance, the most foolish of all was the refund for past years’ licence sticker payments. Waiving future fees would have been enough.

The question is: does Doug Ford want to win the election too much? And why? He hasn’t shown any natural ability for the job of premier.

Greg Prince, Toronto

 Ontario vehicle owners will get rebates for licence plate renewal fees, Doug Ford says, Feb. 22

I can’t tell you how disgusted I was when I opened my letter from Service Ontario and it was a cheque for my licence rebate.

I’m sure there are people in Ontario who could use that money. But is this what we have been reduced to? Like a sheriff walking into a saloon and buying drinks for anyone who will vote for him. (Oh, that was last time with buck-a-beer.)

I hope Ontario voters are smarter than that. Vote for someone who will really help those who need it.

William McCulloch, Toronto

The Most Dangerous Bribe

 

H/t Theo Moudakis

I wrote recently about the large-scale bribery that Doug Ford is engaging in during the run-up to Ontario's June 2 provincial election. Cheques in the mail, promises of gas-tax reductions, ending toll fees on some highways,  pending cheaper childcare - all measures to convince an often credulous public that his is an activist government concerned about making life more affordable for ordinary folks. 

While all of these 'giveaways' carry with them great potential harm to our economy, perhaps the biggest political bribe of them all goes much further, this time jeopardizing people's health, even their lives: the ending of all Covid-related mandates. Of those, the most injurious is clearly the termination of mask mandates almost everywhere, a massive gift to his base, and one that has given rise to a sixth wave here. 

Bruce Arthur writes:  

About a month after the province announced masking was no longer mandatory, Omicron is everywhere. With testing limited and hobbled, wastewater data shows there is more COVID in circulation than there was at the peak of the January Omicron wave. According to Dr. Peter Jüni, the scientific director of the province’s independent volunteer science table, Ontario is seeing an estimated 100,000 COVID infections per day right now, give or take. That number will continue to grow. 

As Arthur points out, the ending of the mandates was in essence a message to the public that they could relax their guard, that the government can handle anything untoward arising thanks to fictitious hospital and ICU space. If you have been to grocery stores or pharmacies of late (the only two public places I go to these days outside of the library), you will know by the number of maskless you encounter that Ford's message has been lustily received by many. 

Linda McQuaig has little but contempt for this tactic.

... the throng of anti-vaxxers, white supremacists and other assorted hate-mongers who held Ottawa hostage for three weeks are a key part of Doug Ford’s base, and he’s managed to quietly deliver them a victory while seemingly just lifting constraints because the COVID situation has improved.

Except that it hasn’t. And it’s absurd that the premier is trying to pass things off as fine when they’re not. Estimated infection levels are now almost equal to the Omicron peak in early January and hospitalizations across the province are up 40 per cent this week.

Ford insists that the province can “ramp up” to 3,000 ICU beds if needed. But all those beds won’t help without nurses to staff them, and the province has the lowest number of nurses per capita of any province in Canada.

None of these facts, however, are of any consequence to the base; all of us, however, will potentially pay the price for this pandering. For example, this morning we got a call from my brother-in-law who, despite being triple-vaxxed and religiously mask-wearing, has contracted Covid. Right now, it sounds like he has a very bad cold, but even if it does not progress beyond that, who is to say what his chances are of having to live with long Covid?

As I have written before, this entire pandemic has been been a sobering revelation of what we, as a species, are made of. While many have made great sacrifices, both personal and for the collective good, others in substantial numbers have shown themselves to be reactive rather than reflective, railing against any restrictions on their personal freedom, as if the latter were an absolute.

We are all the poorer for the Ford government's abandonment of its responsibilities to its citizens. Clearly, in an election year, politics trumps the public good.