Toronto deserves its problems

If it's true what Margaret Wente says, Toronto deserves its problems. It seems we won't elect Harper because he 'has reverse charisma'. Except, we wouldn't know this is the likes of Wente weren't always telling us. I like Margaret Wente. Sometimes I even agree with what she writes. Not this time.

In her column of June 14, Ms Wente takes to task those who would blame Ontario for the troubles of the Conservative Party in general, and Stephen Harper in particular.

The column centres around a 'briefing session' of the Toronto Board of Trade to which Harper was invited. Wente points out that amongst those in attendance were members of the business community, who are as she puts it:

(Harper's) natural constituency -- pragmatic, fiscally conservative business types who are red-hot furious with Paul Martin (. . .) I grant you Toronto is no Tory stronghold. Even so, it shoulda been a gimme.

Wente starts by setting out the agenda of these business people:

The business folks were eager to find out if Mr. Harper understands their issues. The main one, in short, is this. The golden goose is on short rations. The city shells out billions more each year than it gets back in support from senior governments. Meantime, it doesn't have enough taxing power to clean the streets. The country's biggest economic engine is starved for maintenance money.

Let's put aside the fact that business in this country has closer ties to the Liberals than any other party. Let's forget that business depends on regular cash infusions from their friends in the federal government. Let's forget that the myriad of connections between business leaders, economic leaders, bankers, billionaires and activists in this country all criss-cross along the web of the Liberal Party of Canada. If you are big in business, your friends probably sit on the Liberal side of the House.

Forget all that, and just remember that in the 18 months since the last Municipal election, grants to arts and cultural organizations in Toronto have increased in both budget years. This year, a $2-million top-up of city money went to the arts, including $635,000 to plan the 'Year of Creativity' event -- since renamed "T.O. Live with Culture."
Our Mayor says of the increase: "It's not nearly enough but it's the best we can do at the moment," He talks of trying to get corporate sponsors to help with all this, but he refuses to allow for any private partnerships for city services that might lessen the strain on our budget because his union buddies wouldn't approve.

Instead of putting precious and increasingly limited resources into the arts, the City needs to focus on paying down debt, and finding a solution to real issues like the continuing garbage troubles (starting with clean-burning, power-generating incineration -- which our mayor refuses to even consider). The arts are an important aspect of any society, but their funding should be secondary to such mundane things as crime, grafitti, homelessness, litter, and the city's fiscal situation.

The Toronto City Council should be held to account when it comes to solving the city's budget woes and bringing down the deficit, rather than business turning to the feds for handouts that mightn't be necessary if the money already here was being used prudently.

High costs, inefficient services and shabby infrastructure has resulted in business rapidly escaping the downtown core for the suburbs. The lost tax revenue doesn't seem to be a priority for city council, who would rather blame unfair federal funding than take action on the issues facing Toronto.

Bay Street, the city's financial core has homeless men lying on the sidewalk in the middle of the day and business people from Europe and the US stepping over them. The broken sidewalks, lack of green spaces, the panhandlers, and empty, unkept, litter-strewn lots are so common I doubt city council even notices them anymore. These problems need to be sorted out and could be sorted out by the city -- but in their myopic view of the world, they still see Toronto as the place to be in business.

But according to Wente, 'business' was not thrilled by Harper's take on the situation (which BTW did not include the harsh assessments I've made here):

Turning on his famous charm, Mr. Harper told the well-disposed crowd -- which included the head of Motorola Canada, the founder of the Timothy's coffee chain and at least one senior banker -- that as far as he's concerned, they're out of luck. Your issues aren't federal issues, he argued. He reminded them (in case they didn't know) that he was running for prime minister, not premier. He told them it was their own fault, for continuing to elect Liberals. Then, as the meeting drew to a close, Mr. Harper turned to an aide and asked (under his breath) if he should go around the table and shake people's hands before he left.

Then she provides a quote. No, not a quote from Harper, (not one word directly attributable to Harper can to be found in her entire column) -- this quote is from 'someone who was there' :

"Frankly, I've worked with actuaries, and actuaries have more personality."

Clever, eh? Someone has heard that Harper isn't that charming -- and they made a little joke about it. It must have taken them hours to think up something so witty.

Wente goes on to say:

So here's what I say to my dear Western friends: Don't shoot me. I'm just the messenger. I agree that we've probably got the worst government in a generation. The trouble is, as long as Mr. Harper stays around, we're stuck with it.

We're stuck with a corrupt, incompetent, lying, manipulating, gluttonous, pork-barrelling government because Stephen Harper wasn't willing to cut a blank cheque? Because he dared to suggest it is not the job of the feds to hand more money to a city like Toronto, a city that is squandering its own resources and alienating any new resources that might come its way. He dared suggest that the separation of powers laid out in our Constitution means something to him?

Here's a copy of a recent speech from Harper to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. Harper's understanding of the problems facing cities is apparent here.

How long will Toronto continue to be the 'engine that drives this country'? The federal Liberals have hardly been a friend to the city. Cuts in transfer payments by Paul Martin in the '90s led to the downloading from the province to the cities. Now we have a Mayor more interested in 'artistic creativity' than creating a liveable city. How is that Harper's fault?

Toronto has to get its house in order and set priorities that include being a place where business doesn't need to feel ashamed. That isn't the job of the feds no matter who is in power.

Wente's rehashing of Harper's personality is weak journalism. The decline of Toronto cannot be blamed on Harper or his attitude -- nor can Wente or those business people for whom she's speaking suggest that Martin's attitude has been or will be any better for the future of economic growth in the city.

If we're stuck with the 'worst government in a generation' because Harper doesn't spout the same empty platitudes the Liberals have been spouting for years -- maybe we need a few more years of the Liberals and Toronto's socialist city council. Maybe when we've hit rock bottom, a way out will look good even if it isn't charming.

canadianna