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POLITICALLY INCORRECT

Northwest side Mario

by Arthur WeinrebFebruary 28 - March 14 2000

Mario Gentile, the former Metro councillor who was sentenced to two years in jail in 1994 for municipal corruption and bribery, has thrown his hat into the ring for the upcoming November municipal elections (wonder which developer the hat came from).

When he announced his candidacy, Toronto City Council had a hissy fit and voted 40-10 to request the Ontario government to pass legislation to bar persons with similar convictions from holding office. Mayor Mel Lastman said that allowing Gentile to run would make a mockery out of the entire election. This is apparently the same Mel Lastman who took an oath to tell the truth and testified as a character witness at Gentile's sentencing hearing. Our Tiny Imperfect Mayor sure knows mockery. Mario has a lot of great qualities and would fit right in at Toronto City Council. Luckily the provincial government refused Council's request.

Gentile pointed out that if the province would have passed the sought after legislation, he couldn't hold office but a pedophile could. He misses the point completely. Although pedophiles (who would certainly love being on council with all their childish behaviour) should be allowed to work, they can't be allowed to drive school buses. The ex con can't see the reality of the situation. Not being able to see reality --that's one qualification for municipal office.

Although he admits that he did something wrong, Gentile downplays his responsibility in the events which led him to the slammer. He excuses his behaviour by saying that "humans are allowed to make mistakes" and "life means a second chance". What would happen if Karla said that? Then he goes on to add that the municipal system is partly to blame for his previous 'mistake'. Do we really want a councillor who refuses to take responsibility for his actions? Why not; no other councillor does. When something in the city goes wrong, it's never council's fault.

It's the fault of the federal government, the provincial government, the WTO, the media, Craig Brommell--never their fault. Councillor Gentile is looking better and better all the time.

Mario said that he learned a hard lesson in jail. It is hard to understand how doing time can make a person a better councillor; it just doesn't make sense. Not making sense--another attribute that would qualify him to hold municipal office.

Gentile thinks that he would make the best councillor in the entire city. That makes him no different than any incumbent. The guy even talks like a councillor. He also told the media that other councillors could learn a lot from him (presumbably how not to get caught). Members of city council are always willing to learn new things although this usually involves expensive taxpayer paid junkets to exotic locales to learn about sewers and prostitutes. Gentile could save us thousands by educating councillors right here at home. Maybe he should skip running for council and go straight to the mayor's seat.

When Adrienne Clarkson became Governor General of Canada, she was referred to by Jean Chretien and the media as an "immigrant" and "refugee", despite the fact that she has been in Canada since the first half of the last century. If Mario Gentile is elected he will always be referred to as a crook, a bribe taker and an ex con. Perhaps the public and the council itself would benefit by having an elected representative who will be a poster boy for political corruption.Good luck, Mario.


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