Two generous stars
As I continue the forty days of biography reading, I was pleased to get my hands on this piece by Doug Ford, exploring the life and times of infamous Toronto mayor, Rob Ford. I hoped that this book would allow the elder brother to take the reader through the peaks and valleys he saw in his brother, offering a sobering exploration of all things Rob Ford. Deemed a memoir by the publisher, I was hoping that it would live up to the hype and fit nicely amongst other political figures about whom I will learn between now and early April. How effective was this book in laying a stable foundation? Let’s examine that now, though I will warn the reader that I pull no punches.
Born into a humble household, Rob Ford was surrounded by a work ethic that both parents instilled in him from an early age. Doug Ford, Sr. ran a decal business and sought to teach his children the importance of customer service, which echoes throughout this piece as the younger Doug tries to place it into the narrative whenever an opening exists. While both Rob and Doug, Jr. watched their father succeed, they felt that he had too many passionate ideas to keep him out of the political arena. After signing him up to run in the 1995 Ontario provincial election, Doug, Sr. won and became part of the Progressive Conservative Class of ’95, which saw the beginning of Premier Mike Harris’ “Common Sense Revolution”. That appeared to plant the seed in young Rob’s mind and he looked to tackle the job of running as a municipal councillor. Rob failed in his first election, as many politicians are wont to, but with renewed vigour three years down the road, a new and better prepared Rob Ford was able to win a seat, representing the people of Etobicoke by 2000. With a seat on Toronto City Council, Rob Ford sought to uncover some of the fiscal mismanagement and excessive spending that was not readily apparent to the Toronto electorate, choosing to speak out against colleagues rather than close ranks. This theme echoes throughout the narrative, as Rob Ford remained the people’s representative and did not shy away from bucking the trend, perhaps his greatest asset. Rob Ford also used his father’s customer service mantra of always calling the customer (or constituent) back and placing greater importance in face to face interaction than dismissing issues to an assistant or voicemail, which helped him build strong ties with people across the political and socio-economic spectrum. The author glosses over these years as councillor, choosing only to offer very brief snippets in paragraphs relating to years of Council service, making it hard for the reader to really grasp the depth to which Rob Ford advocated on any specific issue, which is troublesome and shall be addressed below. After running for mayor in 2010, Rob Ford sought to end the proverbial gravy train and succeeded in earning the title of Your Worship in the October election. Power firmly in his hands, it is here that Ford’s issues began. While he did advocate hard for tighter spending limits and budget cuts, as well as much needed transportation infrastructure, these pluses are obviously overshadowed by some of the curious and troublesome revelations that came to pass by 2013. Rob Ford, the People’s Mayor, seems to have taken this title a little too literally as he was caught in photos, and eventually videos, in an intoxicated state and apparently smoking crack. Whirlwinds of media interest and commentary on the matter only fuelled the Fords to deflect this and offer ideological monikers and sentiments similar to Bush 43’s “with us or against us” mantra. The author scrambles through the latter part of the book to offer up excuses and vilification of media outlets to counter the actions of his errant brother. Again glossing over any responsibility a politician has to the people he represents, the term ‘addict’ and ‘treatment’ come out, as if that can negate the proof that is being aired around the world. By the end of the book, Rob Ford has been diagnosed with terminal cancer and the entire Ford clan rally behind him. The author seeks to pull at the reader’s heartstrings and hopes that this medical death sentence can be used to erase his idiotic actions. The attentive reader who is wary of having wool covering their eyes will see through this and is left with sappy drivel as the final pages close this off-balance piece. Peppered with interesting journal-like sentiments made by various members of the Ford family, the author obviously sought to release this book soon after his brother’s death to try and sweeten the image of a man so out of touch with the responsibilities of a political figure who was felled by the one thing he could not defeat. Less a memoir than a chance to offer a soapbox speech to offset what media outlets discovered and presented to the level-headed public. Actions speak louder than words, something that all the Fords have yet to learn.
I will be the first to admit, Rob Ford did things for Toronto and his constituents. His advocacy to limit spending and curtail inflated budgets cannot be ignored and this is readily apparent throughout the book’s numerous chapters. It is very unfortunate that the author chose not to pull the reader into these battles when his brother was a councillor and fighting for the little guy in debates and actions. It would have made for a stronger build-up as Rob Ford gained momentum in his search for the mayoralty. Glossing over years in a few paragraphs does nothing to support the hard work with proof, but the reader cannot expect much from an author whose interest lies solely in praise for his younger brother, than to offer an academic or at least level approach. Interestingly enough, as soon as Rob rose to the mayoralty, the author could not have more to say, going on and on, with details on many of the initiatives. This transparent attempt to rejuvenate his brother by extolling all the things that Toronto (and Etobicoke) owes him for advocating is not lost on the attentive reader and only goes to show the gaping holes in the foundation of this piece. When things soured and Rob could be seen intoxicated and apparently smoking crack, Doug sought not to hold his brother accountable, either in person or through this book’s narrative, but instead to coddle him with being ‘overworked’ and ‘a closet addict’ poses a great problem for me. It only goes to support the jaded nature of this book and does not permit the reader to get the full story, but one has to wonder, why would any member of the Ford family want to truth to come out as their black sheep left the pen. Additionally, Ford openly uses monikers to denote the ideological nature of anyone who disagrees with his family, as if this were some form of defence. “Oh, they are ‘lefties’, Doug? That explains it and I can see, as the reader, that you are only trying to swim against those who espouse a belief other than yours. Of course they are wrong and your family is complete in the right!” The author presents his brother as the mouthpiece for the common person, though forgets that with political notoriety comes a higher expectation of maturity and an increased spotlight placed firmly around him. This is not a new concept, though the author makes it seem as if ‘leftist media’ only came out of hiding when Rob Ford emerged on the scene. Is anyone drinking this Kool-Aid? Loosely paralleling Ford to Donald Trump throughout, it is clear that Doug Ford misses the mark yet again; for while both men say they speak for the people, only Ford is dumb enough to think that he can act like one and media will turn the other way. Again, in this day of 24 hour media, could anyone expect dalliances with drug dealers and public intoxication would not be streamed? Is the author as ignorant as he seems here? If the reader wants a warm and fuzzy piece that makes Rob Ford look like a saint who had small blemishes on his robe, this is your book. Those wanting a memoir or biography that seeks to balance ideas both good and bad about a man who made a mockery of Toronto on the world stage, look elsewhere. Fair warning to the reader, read the book on loan from the library and do not line the pockets of the Ford family by purchasing it. For a book that started out with such potential, it all went up in (crack) smoke towards the end!
Shameful, Mr. Ford, that you would think you can ram this piece down the throats of the intelligent reader and make us forget the stupidity that your brother brought forward and you sanction so willingly.
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