Why Ford is Going to Win the Ontario Election

Why Ford is going to win the Ontario election

Ontario's Premier Doug Ford is one of the best from all retail politicians in Canada. Remember how he used his own car and shovel to help dig out drivers caught during the snowstorm? It made the news, and got all the attention. It played to Ford's image - a man of the people. Liberals hate him, but he knows how to do politics. Here are four reasons why he should handily win the election:

1. Justin Trudeau is the Prime Minister of Canada

Ontario is a smart province. The people of this province want different parties in power in Ottawa and Queen's Park. With the Liberals winning federally, Ontario would want a Conservative in charge of their province. Besides, if Pierre Poilievre succeeds in winning the leadership of the federal Conservatives, and turns hard right, this just plays into Ford's image as a centrist (which he is). Ontario loves their moderates.

2. The NDP and the Liberals are fighting for second place

Ford's opponents are acting as if he has already won. Do you even know the leader of Ontario's Liberals? Or recognize his face? And the leader of NDP has lost more elections than she can count. Their ideas seem all over the place as well. Liberals blamed Ford for not shutting down the province early on during the pandemic, and then held a rally. NDP, despite being on the left, supported the people not getting vaccinated as a "Charter right". Their criticism was seen as criticism for criticism's sake, and not as valid opposition. When you are seeing "doing politics as usual" you are going to lose.

3. The pandemic handling

Ford has certainly done some mistakes (I have called him out on this many times). He famously told people in March 2020 to go for Spring break and "have a good time". He was late in getting the province ready for the vaccination drive. He was late in many of the restrictions that would come into play. Yet, despite those mistakes, which every government made, he generally handled the pandemic well. Almost 90% of the province is vaccinated. Ontario had strict lockdowns, and strict vaccine mandates. Ontario kept the mask mandates the longest. Ford generally listened to the science and to the experts, even if it went against his own instincts. 

The right was angry at him for the restrictions and lockdowns, and left angry at the lockdowns and restrictions not coming down fast enough. When both extremes are mad at you, you are probably doing something right. Ford also rightly called out Justin Trudeau and the federal government for their lax security and screening (or rather, NO SECURITY and SCREENING) at the border. The 2021 autumn wave of the virus was purely due to open borders - a federal fault - that Ford rightly called out. His government, despite being Conservative, handled the pandemic with smartness and caution.

4. Keeping his promises

Ford kept most of his promises. He got shovels in the ground on Ontario's notorious on again off again public transit projects. The Crosstown is going to open soon, the Ontario Line and the Scarborough extension is well on their way, along with LRTs in other cities. He has removed the tolls on highways 412 and 418. He kept his promises to reform the education curriculum, be it sex ed or Maths. He has kept public spending in check (too much, in fact). In his battle against the teachers, the people generally support him. 

All in all, everything looks rosy for Ford. Yet, he has challenges in his second term. Healthcare in this province is at a breaking point. It is almost non-functional, except the bare basics. Education is going to be a rocky battle, as he has to take care of bigger classes, lower tax base, and a teachers' union that is in the mood for a fight. Other public unions are coming up for negotiations. Ontario is facing a housing crisis - with buyers facing high house prices, rising interest rates and higher mortgages, not to mention higher property taxes and utility costs. All these add up in higher rents, which harm renters. And the LTB is a pure disaster.

So... much fun awaits. For now, all roads lead to Ford.

Did dumping Patrick Brown cost the PCs?

I am the perfect undecided voter.

I like the local Liberal candidate in my riding, but I am extremely unhappy with the Liberals (or, as I call them, Lieberals). McGuinty (well, McGuilty) looked straight into our eyes and said there will be no new taxes, and then proceeded to levy a health "premium". And did our healthcare increase as a result? No! Our eye care went away, and then our hospitals are reduced to "hallway medicine". When Wynne came, we thought we would be spared from the scandals, but no. Mismanagement and extremely left wing policies spurred the deficit on. Spending money like it's going out of style is never a prudent fiscal policy. So it would be extremely unlikely I would vote Liberal.

So let me consider the NDP. With the mismanagement of Bob Rae still fresh in our minds (anyone remember Rae days?), the NDP had a chance to turn the leaf. Instead, their policy calls for a dubious buy back of Hydro shares that is fantasy (to be polite). Subsidized daycare for all? Why? It would be a boondoggle for the ages. And who knows how much my taxes would go up under them.

So let's take the PCs. Under Patrick Brown, I would have gotten roughly the 'good' parts of the Liberal policies, such as protecting the environment, having a sustainable wage, and commitment towards transit spending. Brown also spent a lot of energy making the PC party very diverse and broad. He was the first one to honour Bangladeshi Canadians and make a Bangladeshi night at Queens Park. It is not a stretch to say I probably would have voted PC had Brown been the leader.
Brown knew that people liked most of what the Liberals were doing, but not the Premier. So he offered change, but not too much change. And that is why he was popular. And that is why the NDP is now popular.

Now comes Doug Ford. A man with no plan. No way to know how he will pay for all of his outrageous promises. A man who likes Donald Trump (less said about him, the better). A man who is running for job as Premier without knowing basics of how laws get passed in this province. A man who proudly says in a debate "we have to protect our own" when talking about a program to ship immigrants to the north. A man who nixed the badly needed LRT plan in Scarborough (remember Transit City?). If not for the Fords, Scarborough would have had proper transit by now. This man now wants to run our province and he couldn't even run a city. So how can I vote for him?

 So I am back to square one. And like me, how mant supporters did the PCs lose when Patrick Brown was set up and sabotaged? Who knows. Maybe it will be a moot point come election night. But boy, if it turns out the PCs get far less than what they expected, wouldn't it be fun?

The Power of Voice

Take a look at this picture.
For many of you, this might not be such a big deal. Here's a food booth at a cafeteria and they have halal meat. So common here in Toronto.

But this is not Toronto. This is a city way up in the north of Ontario. Now let met tell you the story of the power of the voice that leads to this picture.

When I moved here in Canada, not only were halal stores far and few in between, but food and religious services in campuses across Canada were not very minority-friendly. In the late 1990s, a major Quebec university actually went to court to prevent the Muslim students from booking a room and using it as a prayer space. And there was a scandal as one of the universities were serving "vegetarian" food but the gravy was beef based, which incensed the Hindu students.

Now there had been Muslim Student Associations (MSAs) and Hindu Student Associations (HSAs) in Canada for a long time, but they had often been neutral in student elections, existing merely to organize some cultural events. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, that started to change. Both the MSAs and the HSAs started to actively participate in student elections. They would field candidates and promote candidates. Often many of these organizations would collaborate and coordinate to create a voice. After all, it's nice to have a student president who is friendly to Muslims (or Hindus), but only a Muslim or a Hindu student would know the importance of dietary restrictions and ensure school functions would either cater properly to a diverse student body or at least label their food properly. In addition to prayer spaces. After all, in a Toronto university, a Hindu pooja function set off the fire alarm. Letters of request written to the university had no effect.

Suddenly, these candidates started to win. And ALL of a sudden, you could see the affect. UTSC first got a permanent prayer space in 2001. Suddenly other universities followed suit. Halal became widely available across student cafeterias, as did proper vegetarian, vegan and other options. Prayer space fire detection system at the University of Toronto Multifaith Building now cater for pooja that will have incense and fire, etc.

These are not just mere stories or the achievements not just mere trivial issues. They are important to those who take their religion and their lifestyle seriously. MANY of the things we take for GRANTED today came about because SOME people ahead of us chose to UNITE, ORGANIZE, and create a VOICE.

The first step is of course to vote.
YOU MUST VOTE.

The second step is to run.

Be a Candidate.

Get involved in the political parties here. Know the issues. Knowledge is power.

AfD - The News That Could Occur Next Year in Germany

In a stunning upset, the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has been declared the victor in the national elections, carving out a clear majority in the Bundestag.

The victory makes Frauke Petry, the spokesperson of the AfD, next in line for the Chancellery. The unexpected result also questions the very existence of EU, as Ms Petry repeatedly denigrated the institution during the campaign, and promised to take Germany out of EU if it meant, in her words, "subsidizing the lazy people of Greece and Spain with hard working German money". The results have thrown world markets into turmoil, further depressing the Euro.

Europe is in the midst of a stunning upheaval. Following from Brexit, and the shock election of Donald Trump as the President of USA (and the dismantling of NATO, followed by the cancellation of Paris Accord and the TTIP), Hungary, Holland have both voted to leave the troubled organization.

If Germany, a founding member and leader in the EU chooses to depart, it may well be the death blow to the EU. The Chinese yuan has already risen ten fold in thirteen hours since the election result.

It was thought for a long time that Germans would never warm to a political party pledging allegiance to neo Nazi ideals, denigrating migrants, peddling Islamophobia and anti-Semitic propaganda and insulting long standing allies. Indeed polls right the day before the vote gave a huge lead of 29.5 points to now outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel.

The party has also pledged to take Germany back to its "Christian roots" and sought to strengthen the church and family values in Germany. Its closeness to the Vatican has also raised eyebrows, with the Pope choosing to remain silent on some of the outrageous statements issued during the campaign.

In hindsight, the Holy See must have seen something the polls had all missed. An anger at the current state of government, the bureaucracy in Brussels, the numerous Muslim migrants and the crimes alleged to have been committed by them (all debunked as false news by Politico Germany) and the "I-know-best" attitude of the ruling Christian Democratic Union.

It now remains to be seen how Europe will reshape itself in the years to come following this cataclysmic election.

Why American Muslims Should Leave USA Right Now

My American Muslim friends and family.

Before I start, I want to tell you a little reality. It's something you can ask any Canadian, especially those who were immigrants to the Great White North, and they will verify this.

We often go the United States for little trips. Disneyland, shopping, tourism, work, visiting friends and family, and so on. The Americans are (usually) very nice and we have no complaints.

But ...

On the way back, as soon as our car crosses the 49th parallel back to Canada, we heave a sigh of relief. Just a few meters over the border in Canada, everything is the same as it was in US. The highway is equally good, the scenery hasn't changed much, the weather is the same. But something is different. We are in Canada.

We are home. We belong.

Now I ask you. Do you feel a sense of belonging in America? Is it your home? Is the government of America your government? Does it serve you? Are the people yours? Do they accept you as one of them?

These are not some bland questions. I want you to think about it deeply. What does it say when your country has elected a man who has openly villified your religion, talked about putting you in special registration programs, advocated a shutdown of people of your faith coming in to the country, and refused to apologize for his numerous racist, bigoted, sexist, ultra right wing comments?

In your country the police openly shoot unarmed black civilians without any fear. And this was under a black President.

This is the same country that elected Bush twice. An illegal war killing millions (and some of them Americans) did not stop a majority of the people from voting for him. And this is a country where the Muslim FRIENDLY candidate would talk about Muslims being on the front lines of the war against terrorism, would continue the drone bombings of civilians, would continue the PATRIOT act, amongst others. Not even the other guy. The other guy is far worse. And he is now your President, elected by half of your countrymen.

I don't need to go on. I know you KNOW the situation is bad. I am writing to tell you why you should LEAVE the United States NOW. Before it gets worse, and before your options dwindle, LEAVE NOW. While you still can.

I know this is your homeland, your place of birth. This is where you grew up. Went to school. Got married. Made a life. It's not easy to even think about moving.

There is some merit to the idea to stay, and fight, and make things better. Strive for your country. Try and make the society better. Help your country.

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) stayed in Makkah for 55 years - the vast majority of his life - trying to improve the society, help the people, strive for his place of birth. But at some point, you have to realize that things are not going to get better, ever. In fact, they will get worse.

The Clock Boy - Ahmed - was a genius and he was put in jail. And he was a KID! Sure, he then met the President, and the Faceook CEO, but what good did it do? Other future Clock Boys would still be put in jail. And there are no consequences. And this was under a black Democrat President. Things are not going to get better.

They are going to get worse.

We thought Bush was bad. 9/11 happened, and surveillance and overreach of power and so on. When you guys elected Obama, there was Hope that things would Change.

But has things changed? They only became worse. Obama never undid the Patriot Act. He made sure the US government could assisinate its own citizens. He never shut down Guantanamo Bay. Drone killings became a fact of life.

And now, what? The KKK approved guy is your President, with the House, the Senate and pretty soon the Supreme Court in tow. What more signals do you need to know things in America are not going to get better. Trump will not be able to make America Great Again, the way his supporters want him to. It's not 1950s any more. And then what?

I would urge you to consider Canada. It's right next door, and the culture is very similar. As part of NAFTA (until your new President dismantles it) you can get a job here easily before applying for Permanent Residence.

We are not perfect. We have healthcare, but it has issues (we are working on it to fix it, not dismantle it). We don't have racism the way you do, but we do have the French part of the country, Quebec, that ocassionally tries to ban the niqab or hijab. In fairness, our current Prime Minister also hails from Quebec, so there's a lot of good people there as well.

We have Muslims in the Cabinet, while you will now have a person in Cabinet (Ben Carson) who rose in the polls by saying US Muslims should never serve in Cabinet.

Sometimes our police do kill an unarmed civilian. But then we have an inquiry and an investigation. It's nowhere on the same scale as in USA, which is why Black Lives Matter gets far less traction here.

We had First Nations women being killed and missing for a long time. Our last Prime Minister refused to have an investigation, and prefered "old stock Canadians" (whatever that was). We got rid of him, and now we have an official inquiry into those missing women led by a lady who is a First Nations person herself.

Yes, things are not perfect (I mean there's our weather) but Canada is a far better place to be a Muslim than America, alhamdulillah. Our Walmart sells Halal stuff without any cries of boycott.

And we need you. We need you because the election of your crazy President will embolden the crazies here. You might remember our last Prime Minister. He's not there any more but there's people trying to become the leader of his party. Some of them are crazy right wing, and they will have noted the success of your President. We need you guys here so they don't succeed. We really like it here and don't want to move (ironic, eh?).

After 55 years in Makkah, the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) realized things are not getting any better, but were getting worse. So he immigrated. He left his beloved place of birth and moved on. Your parents (or their parents) made the decision to move to this country for economic reasons. So you can't say you cannot move because it's your birth place - they did it and you can too.

Yes, some Muslims remained in Makkah because they couldn't move due to various circumstances. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) always prayed for them, and helped them when he could.

So whatever your decision is, you will always be in my prayers. And may God be with you.

And may God bless your country with true justice.

Ten Thoughts on the Historic US Election

So America has done it. Elected Donald Trump as President.

(Picture courtesy: Rolling Stone)

Some thoughts (a postmortem, if you will).

1. The racists have won. 

There is no way to sugar coat it. The man ran on a racist platform, and was endorsed by the KKK, and won.

2. White people have nothing to fear.

Notice all the talks of losing Democrats about coming together, healing, congratulating the President and wishing him well. They are all white. People of color remember what Trump said about them.

3. Muslims in USA should seriously think about emigration.

Trump cannot target Hispanics or other immigrants as easily as Muslims. Immigration from Muslim countries will be curtailed. So it's really time to think about the long term future.

Also, kind of ironic to see famous sheikhs (you know who they are) who thought Clinton had it in the bag and couldn't resist a dig at her, saying how bad she was and why third parties deserve a look and how America was facing two bad choices. Now they are calling out to Allah for help and guidance. Should have done that before the election.

4. Trump did everything wrong, and still won.

No ground game, no significant ad buys, no support from the main party, no coalition of diversity, and still won. He proved in the US you can run on white supremacy and win a national election.

As Electoral-vote said, 

"Similarly, everything we thought we knew about campaigning was apparently in error. Conventions? Don't matter. Debates? Don't matter. Endorsements? Don't matter. High-profile defections? Don't matter. Missteps? Don't matter? Commercials? Don't matter. Ground game? Doesn't matter. An All-Star team of campaign surrogates, including one former president, one sitting president, and a wildly popular first lady? Doesn't matter. The "blue wall"? Not a thing."

5. All the polls were wrong. 

Like, ALL of them. This will have significant impact future elections. Why should anyone pay any attention to what the polls say?

6. Trump controls the House and the Senate. 

In the next 4 (or maybe 8) years he could appoint as many as 5 Supreme Court justices. America has really changed into a darker society yesterday.

7. Sexism, racist, and generally bigotry was always there, it just needed a champion and it found one.

Americans can't really say it's only a fringe minority who are racist. As a nation, yesterday they proved themselves to have no qualms about electing a racist bigot. 

8. Hillary cheated Bernie out of a nomination win in the Democratic primary.

Hillary lost in 2008 to an unknown called Barack Obama and did not want history to repeat itself. So this time around she made sure she was going to get the nomination by any means necessary. The Democratic primaries should have been a signal. Despite all the advantages of the party machinery, she had trouble beating an unknown old man from Vermont. 

When facing a choice between a fake and a real deal, voters usually choose the real deal. For all his faults, Trump was Trump, warts and all. No one knew what Hillary really stood for. 

9. For all our smugness in Canada, be prepared. 

Our Conservatives must have seen that being crazy, racist and a bigot can lead you to victory. Be prepared for more craziness from our right. And we thought Harper was bad.

10. Final thought:

If you as a white person feel frightened of a Trump presidency, then think of an immigrant, a Muslim, a Mexican, a person of colour, a gay, trans or marginalized person.