In Ontario, We Are Not A Happy Family

Here in Ontario, it is Family Day, but all is not well. We have an unnecessary election pending, the premier has cloaked himself in his Captain Canada regalia, and he has done everything he can to buy votes, plunging the province into even deeper debt while education, housing and healthcare, to name but three deep, go vastly unnourished.

Yet according to polls, despite his malfeasance, Mr. Ford will be romping to another electoral victory, thanks both to the current crisis with the Amerikans and the fact that the march to the ballot box is in the dead of winter. Apparently, despite all the talk about rising patriotism and supporting our country, voting is not part of the calculus, with pundits predicting a very low turnout.

Come February 27, heedless Ontarians will undoubtedly and, unfortunately, get the government they deserve.

The only bright spot in this morass of indifference is the knowledge that not all are fooled, as evidenced by these letters to the editor:

Well, it seems clear from election polls Premier Doug Ford will be re-elected in a landslide even though most Ontarians were not happy with the early election. He’s done a masterful job. The hat slogan “Canada is not for sale,” $200 cheques before an election and mentioning possibly 500,000 lost jobs likely all contribute to his strong poll numbers. He has rushed to Washington to plead Ontario’s case regarding tariffs with seemingly little success as the U.S. has just announced a 25 per cent tariff on our steel and aluminum. He’s promised billions for infrastructures and a tunnel under Hwy. 401 but has completely forgotten to support our health-care system, end the long wait times in ERs. A four-year mandate to fight tariffs seems to be in the cards. Voters are forgetting his health care and housing failures, feeling he’ll fight for them even though it’s the federal government that has the power to counter the U.S.A.‘s tariff attack.

Peter J. Middlemore Sr., Windsor

I have just seen Premier Doug Ford’s latest campaign ad, and I am livid. The Premier’s Washington, D.C. visit was supposed to be about defending Canada’s interests, but instead it appears Ford’s main focus was creating sparkling footage for a campaign ad. It’s bad enough that the Premiers emerged empty-handed from their meeting with mid-level White House staffers, but Ford’s new campaign ad rubs salt in our collective wounds. In the voice-over for the ad, Ford repeatedly puts America first — “made in the USA” before “made in Canada,” pride in the work of American workers before the work of Canadians, and the push for his Fortress Am-Can. That’s right, even the name of Ford’s economic plan puts America first. Where’s your hat, Doug? Did it blow off while you were busy bending the knee to Trump?

Carol Kroeger, Ottawa

Before You Vote

 If you live in Ontario, you will know that on February 27 we have the opportunity to participate in a wholly unnecessary election. It was called by Premier Doug Ford to exploit his Captain Canada persona, insistent that he can only deal with Trump's threats with a strong, new mandate. (We are to ignore the fact, of course, that Trump does not deal in subnational jurisdictions, and that Ford has a strong majority government already.)

As well, he knows that a mid-winter election almost guarantees a low, perhaps record low, turnout, and opposition parties that have not even nominated candidates in all ridings.

Of the contempt he is showing to the citizens of Ontario I will not even speak. However, an informed vote means having as much information as possible. Hopefully, the following sheds light on both the duplicity and the character of Ford:

A Transparent Ploy

H/t Moudakis

Well, that stalwart 'steward' of the Ontario economy has called an early election. Flush with confidence that his $200 rebates (which only cost us $3.2 billion) and his beer everywhere policy (at a cost of $621 million and counting) will notch him a new majority before the walls come tumbling down, Mr. Ford claims he needs a new, strong mandate.

That blatant balderdash is the sorry excuse for a trip to the polls in February, a cruel choice in a cruel month where people are either huddling in their homes or fleeing to warmer climes. (However, I have been informed that there is a vote-by-mail option, a link to which I shall put at the end of this post.) Am I rash in predicting a record low turnout that will cost us at least $150 million, and the spectre of four more years of economic mismanagement?

However, judging by some letters to the editor, I don't think I am the only one feeling deep disenchantment over Ford's contempt for the citizens and taxpayers of Ontario.

With an Ontario election looming, it’s time to reflect on what has gone on under Doug Ford’s premiership. Anybody been to the hospital recently? How were the wait times? I hear ORs at SickKids are not able to function properly due to a lack of nurses. Anybody have a kid in public school or at an Ontario college? Given the chronic lack of funding during Ford’s tenure, how’s that working out ? Have you been to the grocery store? We know consumers are being gouged, but has Ford stepped in to help us? Instead of listening to voters, Ford pushed through with the closure of the Ontario Science Centre, and he plans to add a foreign-owned luxury spa to Ontario Place. People need to recognize that other leaders are as well suited to talk business with Trump, or even better. Ford is not the people’s premier. He’s in it to make himself and his buddies rich at the expense of public education, health care, and affordability. He’s not our guy.

Jennifer Chambers, Toronto

 Dear Doug Ford: do not call an early election. Ontario is facing a threat of epic proportions in President Donald Trump. You already have a mandate to deal with him. Aware of the seriousness of the current situation, the opposition parties have pledged to work with you. Do not get distracted. This is not the time for crass, self-serving politicking. A real Captain Canada wouldn’t abandon the fight just as it was about to begin.

Trish Plant, Toronto

Ford’s plan to announce a provincial election on January 29 is a sham. He is again wasting taxpayers’ money to keep himself in power, and he is clearly using Trump’s tariff threats as a pretext for doing so. Ford already has a clear majority to do as he and his party see fit. Why does he need a “clear mandate” to address potential American tariffs? I feel that this just an excuse to deflect attention away from the issues Ford is facing. These include the RCMP investigation into the Greenbelt scandal; the underfunding of health care, education, and social programs; the closing of safe-injection sites; and delays to the Ontario Line and the Eglinton Crosstown LRT. Ford may get a clear mandate to fight the tariffs, but that will take his government away from dealing with issues that are more relevant to Ontarians.

Joe Bortolussi, Toronto

The election Ford craves will reportedly cost between $150 million and $175 million. If you include the total cost of the $200 buy-a-vote cheques that the government is sending out now — which will add about $3.2 billion to the deficit and thus the total debt — the election will really cost nearly $3.4 billion. Last election, about 4.7 million votes were cast. To allow for some population growth, let’s estimate that maybe 5 million votes will be cast. That would make this the most expensive election ever, at about $700 per vote.

My cheque, labelled the “Ontario Taxpayer Rebate,” arrived today. It will be pinned to the wall and never cashed so that I will not be responsible for having added to the debt that Ford is using his existing strong mandate to create. Goodness knows how much more debt he can create with a “very” strong mandate. Curiously, the blurb attached to the cheque says, “to help with the costs of the federal carbon tax and interest rates, the Ontario government is putting money back into peoples’ pockets by providing a tax-free, $200 rebate....” I already get a much, much better rebate on the federal carbon price from the federal government.

Say, wasn’t it Doug Ford who, during his first strong mandate, scrapped the cap-and-trade plan that existed when he took office and thus forced the federal carbon tax on the people of Ontario? Can we afford any more mandates for Doug Ford?

Graeme Elliott, Toronto

This is the link providing information on how to vote by mail in Ontario:

https://www.elections.on.ca/en/voting-in-ontario/voting-in-provincial-elections.html