A rough-hewn alpha male, possessed of some charisma and social aptitude. An inheritor of his father's successful business, whose own business savvy is a matter of debate. A man with an ear for the strains of impatience and frustration among the hard-scrabble beta lot.
Although he has been a political animal for his entire adult life, he was a newcomer to provincial politics — an outsider. The party he parachuted into was a mess. The Conservatives had just jettisoned their leader for being too old, too single, and too sexually active in a manner that appeared to border on the predatory. A woman of competence seemed to have a lock on the bid for leadership — this would have brought us an election where voters had to choose from three female candidates with similar qualifications. Then Douglas Robert Ford, Jr. announced himself, and was granted leadership under controversial circumstances.
There are differences.
The Conservatives were going to win this thing, regardless — it was a question of just how large the margin. Ford pitted himself against two women with a lifelong habit of talking down to everyone they meet. It may be his marble-mouthed chumminess increased the margins in the Conservatives' favour.
The next four years are sure to be a grotesque spectacle. There is already one family lawsuit occupying headlines — if the business is doing anywhere near as badly as this suit claims, others are sure to follow. The province's financial books are sure to be a shock. Ford will make a number of political choices that will enrage his opponents and provide varying degrees of succor to his supporters.
Had Christine Elliott won the Premier's seat, I'd have been nervous. With Ford I am just resigned. The rest of Canada already views this province with the disdain reserved for the fair-haired child in the family. For the next four years we shall provide them ample justification for national schadenfreude.
 |
| The "Goya Slider"! |
No comments:
Post a Comment