It is hardly newsworthy to say that it is often difficult to take Toronto city councillors seriously, given some of their statements and antics. Other levels of government, like the federal money laundering Liberals or the gang at Queen’s Park who can never seem to tell the truth, all, on occasion act a little silly, especially during Question Period. although all of the MPs and MPPs have their moments, love them or hate them, they do manage to act like grown ups, at least most of the time.
It’s no wonder that the federal and provincial governments are referred to as "senior" levels of government. No doubt one of the reasons for this appellation is that it differentiates them from municipal politicians, who are definitely the "juniors", although that word may be too kind to them.
The decisions that the kiddies at Toronto City Hall make can have a devastating effect on the lives of the city’s residents. They bring in such things as hefty property tax increases, increased TTC fares and other user fees that are extremely difficult for those on fixed incomes, especially seniors. Even though their decisions have a significant impact on many people, some councillors conduct themselves as if municipal government exists so that they can have a good time and revisit their childhoods. This is partially due to the fact that due to a lack of public interest in what goes on at the local level, once elected it is awfully difficult for an incumbent to be tossed out. They pretty well have a free reign to act and do as they please.
Last week, as reported by the Toronto Star, Toronto City Council debated whether there should be any restrictions on what councillors can wear during public meetings. The issue was raised after Councillor Giorgio Mammoliti showed up at a committee meeting last fall wearing a t-shirt that supported a fixed link to the Toronto City Centre airport on the island. Councillor Sylvia Watson wanted to send the issue of appropriate dress to a committee but that idea was killed by a 27-7 council vote. Most adult governing bodies have rules that prohibit the wearing of clothing or other paraphernalia that express political opinions.
Those who oppose any sort of dress code for Toronto politicians have a point that similar rules in the Ontario legislature and in Parliament seem to be overly strict when it comes to the wearing of small buttons and the occasional flashing of signs. But that is really not a good reason for the "anything goes" attitude that seemed to be the feeling of the majority of councillors.
The Star reported on the statements of a couple of councillors who opposed any regulation regarding dress during official meetings. Howard Moscoe, whose left wing NDP philosophy consists of interfering with the rights of citizens as much as possible, including, had he gotten his way, forcing all taxi cabs in the city to be painted the same colour, comes out on the side of liberty and freedom for councillors to have the absolute right to make fools of themselves. The fact that the city’s councillors are sometimes seen as the public face of Toronto and the representatives of the residents seems lost on Moscoe.
But Howard was just being Howard. More troubling was councillor and Toronto Police Services Board (TPSB) chair, Pam McConnell who was quoted as saying that she might show up in a t-shirt that says "Question authority But Not Your Mother". There is no doubt about it--Ms. Pammy is definitely one of those "mothers". and no doubt the "authority" she’s salivating to question is the police, who despite her appointment as chair of the TPSB, she’s not too crazy about. What the somewhat dimwitted councillor has failed to comprehend is that as a city councillor and more importantly as the Chair of the Toronto Police Services Board, she is the authority.
How the councillors end up being dressed at official meetings (or semi-dressed as a shirtless Mammoliti once appeared) is not the most important decision that has been or ever will be before council. It is one of the few decisions that they make that doesn’t either cost the taxpayers more money (property tax increases) or infringe upon their rights (Toronto’s tree bylaw). But the dismissal of any suggestion that there should be minimum requirements for dress at public meetings shows exactly how juvenile and silly many of these councillors actually are.
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