Toronto designer Photoshops Margaret Atwood book covers to gravylicious effect
A couple of days ago, we told you about Margaret Atwood’s criticism of the Ford Brothers and their habit of, as she put it, “expressing contempt for creative people.” Well, it seems that one of those creative people has decided to wield her creative energy against the mayor and his sidekick with the kind of sardonic wit that has become the hallmark of much recent Ford bashing. Sidra Mahmood subtly Photoshopped classic Atwood novel covers in a bid to render them more Ford-friendly. Even if Doug Ford wouldn’t recognize Canada’s most famous literary figure, with anti-gravy cover treatments like this, he might just be tempted to pick up one of her novels. At Tim Hortons.
How unfunny is this wit? Does it help balance a budget drastically crippled by the inept former mayor (ironically now advising students in New York) and crippled by an equally irresponsible city council (mostly voted to oblivion, by the way)? The sophisticated urban elite have no idea about balancing more than a two-bit budget, but are always ready with insulting argumentum ad hominem. For your information ad hominem is a logical flaw in an argument analogous to not being able to balance a budget in the real world. If some libraries and librarians must be cut back or privatized, that is a lesson for our children. It is not the return of the dark ages; rather it is the return of enlightenment, and discipline returning to a totally undisciplined cohort.
I can has librariez?
Libraries are essential. Literacy is necessary. Don’t mention that to the Ford bros., though.
There was a surplus before this budget. Killing bike lanes for no valid reason costs lots of money, killing public transit plans cost lots of money, hiring outside consultants to ask city staff redundant questions cost money. There’s no sense in eliminating existing services when we could simply apply fair taxes. Bring back the car tax. I’ll happily forgo a couple of Timmi’s coffee and donuts a week to contiue driving my car and make sure that kids in the suburbs still get engaged in civilization through their local library.
Eat the rich is just around the corner, wake up!
Fran Manns is right. This wit isn’t funny. The only thing that would make me laugh right now is Ford and his half-wit brother both dead from massive coronaries. Now that’s entertainment.
If Toronto survives the Ford Brothers, this period in our history is going to make a great sitcom,… eventually.
I would vote for you Ms. Atwood if you ran for office as I too mistakenly voted for Ford under the impression that he gave a rats rear end for his non-rich voters who don’t use the library or a bike lane which I don’t anymore for personal reasons but can sympathize with cyclists to the point whereas why don’t you all wear helmets? or watch out for pedestrians and stop for streetcars? drivers I can’t say much as some are equally guilty of this (not the helmets)of disregarding pedestrians and streetcars and rules of the road or having any respect for those cyclists who have common sense and obey rules of the road. I will agree some pedestrians are stupid and do ridiculous things like jaywalk but not all of us do.
Fran Manns should get her facts straight. Conservatives often assume that liberal or left leaning governments are spendthrifts, putting us in horrible debt, only to be saved (thank God) by the next right wing regime. In fact David Miller left the city with a healthy surplus. That was due to various tax increases that allowed us to have services for a certain quality of life in this city.
Ummm … HELLOOOOoooo????
Doug and Rob Ford ARE Toronto elite! Suggesting anything else is hilarious. The restaurants they go to, the houses they live in, the vacations they take … does any of it seem “common” to you? His father was an MPP, the family is extremely wealthy … How they ever waged a war AGAINST Toronto elite is one of the best PR scams I can think of. People who voted for him because he is against the “Toronto elite” are clearly idiots.
Fran Manns should also get her definitions straight. “Ad hominem” refers specifically to attacking the character of a person making an argument instead of the argument itself. Rather than comparing it to not “balancing a budget in the real world”, she need look no further than her own attack of former Mayor Miller. He left the city with a surplus but because she (obviously) doesn’t like him, she called him inept.
The only “lesson” for our children in the slash and burn mentality of the current Ford regime is that there are people who see life and quality of life as commodities that should only exist for those wealthy people who are delusional enough to argue that society is a meritocracy.
I fear for the state our city will be in when the brothers Ford are finished.