I know I said that I was gonna post the eye-opening video from my last post...but I had to push back a couple of posts just to post while this fiasco's still relevant.
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Refresher links in case you haven't been following or don't know what's up:
General Info: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/sto...e-affairs.html
Giambrone's sorry excuse of a campaign will be remembered in infamy.
I've been really interested in the TTC lately, so I've been following this closely.
He's long been hailed as Toronto's poster boy for THE up-and-coming prominent politician. At 32 years old, he's accomplished a lot... but I guess wise decisions & the ability to make good decisions based on experience isn't included in that. His list of accomplishments include (in this order): NDP youth wing affiliate by the time he was 15, Federal NDP president, Toronto Councillor, Commissioner of TTC, & Chair of TTC, before finally running for Mayor.
Mistake 1: Heading the TTC at a peak of customer dissatisfaction. Rider dissatisfaction has been building up over the years, with the steady increase in fair hikes, bad service, delays, irresponsible fiscal spending, etc. Unfortunately for him, he just happened to be the face to attack when the shit hit the fan - which I think would've been completely avoidable or minimized. If he planned his political career better, he could've resigned. Imagine how well the spin would've worked if he resigned and said it was because "he can't stand by and watch the TTC betray its customers/the city like that".
Mistake 2: the horrible excuse of a campaign video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnOUupt2f9E&feature=related). The editing was horrible, the sound was garbage, and the writing of his script was horrible. If it was meant to be satirical, it was a bad attempt at that. If it was supposed to appeal to the younger audience, it appealed...but not in a good way (check any of his campaign videos & read the comments). Bottom line, Mr. Giambrone, is that corny humour only works if it's actually funny.
Mistake 3: having a mistress. Seriously? Was there any way that this could've gone well? It's like girls who send naked pictures of themselves to their dog of a boyfriend - I'm sure they're gonna keep that all to themselves...*insert eye-rolling smiley*.
& here's pics for you dogs (lol):
- Giambrone + partner both in his private & public life
- The alleged mistress
Mistake 4: Not admitting the truth, to begin with -by trying to deny the affair. First of all, if you TEXTED someone incriminative information, why would it be likely that they wouldn't keep it? The truth(or some distorted version of it) will only eventually come out, and you just screw yourself over even more. Second of all, wouldn't it make more sense to declare something that will eventually be leaked so you can beat them to punch & make it less effective when it inevitably DOES come out?
Mistake 5: Crying during a press conference. If we can look past the fact that he's a grown-ass man...why the hell would you cry during a press conference. Sure, life's stressful, your careers over, you just made the biggest mistake of your life (okay...now that I think about it, why wouldn't you...). But STILL, think of the image that this sends. A mayoral candidate cracks under pressure. It begs a voter to question how he would handle stress if elected for office.
Mistake 6: Dropping out of the mayoral race. Although it's probably a good ting that this guy isn't going to be running the city...from his point of view, he still had a chance. The elections are 6 months away; spin control's an amazing thing, these days; and dude was 2nd place in the race. It would only take a couple of months, a hundred apologies, and the majority of the public would eventually forget that this ever happened. What makes this even worse is that he couldn't do it himself - a representative had to walk into the room after he stormed out to announce that he was dropping out.
Let's open this up for discussion now:
- Was it wrong of her to exploit the situation?
- Besides how it hurt his image, isn't all this irrelevant to his platform?
- Isn't his personal life his own business?
- Or are they supposed to give up all rights to privacy when they take up a public position like that?
- Should "skeletons in the closet" be forgotten or are they ALWAYS relevant?
Take a step back and think: should this REALLY affect what his political agenda is? Does it really take away from his character?
Personally, I'm not a fan of the guy (anti-motorcyclist lobbyists = not a good match for me)...but what he's been able to do with his political career is pretty commendable. I'll admit that it's easy to analyze all the "what if"s and point out what people do when you're on the outside looking in...so of course, nothing I just said holds any weight (except for the fact that it seems to make sense). I can't lie that I'd love to be Giambrone's Public Relations rep right now (no sarcasm). Not that I support his platform, but dude was well-recognized because of his media coverage from his TTC days - he threw the towel in way too early. I wouldn't be surprised if he decided to retract his dropping-out (remember where you heard it first!...hypothetically speaking)
Btw, this is the pre-curser to the "short-comings of Toronto" series: the TTC chapter.
Long post - I know. Hopefully you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Here's a funny .gif for being a trooper and reading the whole thing:
Figuratively speaking, guess which one's Giambrone & which one's Toronto? ;)
Peace,
- knowledge
Im glad you chose this topic to cover.
ReplyDeleteLet me say that it's a dam shame our society places such intolerance on completely irrelevant issues.
Ok sure, he cheated on his partner, which is something that personally i find morally wrong, and most people do, but i don't find it POLITICALLY wrong.
He should have stayed in the race, quitting in February for an election which is in what, November? you said it best Knowledge, spin control can do wonders. And even if he wasn't successful, he still has his whole career ahead of him, it looks good in the future that he wasn't a quitter who gave up at the first sign of trouble.
Aha i think crying in this situation was appropriate (and he forgot the second page of his speech, which is why he dipped. no props to him for not knowing how to improvise though, he's a politician for god's sake)
I wasn't much of a fan of him either, his handling of the TTC issue was a disaster. Im speaking of course of the interview he gave stating basically he wasn't responsible for any of the problems. Technically this is true, but flat out denying any involvement made him look like a child who watched a kid getting beat up in the schoolyard and then pretended like he wasn't there at all so he wouldnt get told off for not getting help.
In short, its a shame that he resigned from the race, hopefully he still runs for re-election in his ward, it would be a loss to see a young politician (however retarded at making youtube videos) fade out over a moral issue.
Ou i like this one!
ReplyDeleteIt’s unfortunate how much weight the media puts on this scandal and how his private life is now inflicting his public life and platform. I also agree that he hasn’t been quite the fan of TTC commuters; however do you really believe he should have to shoulder the blames of customer dissatisfaction? I mean TTC ridership has been increasing for numerous reasons (congestion on streets, increases in populations, switching to more affordable options and etc.) and as years pass by I think it would only get more difficult to handle and adjust to all the wants of commuters.
Touching upon Kristen Lucas, I think her actions were just pure immature and shallow on her part. It’s sad to see the things people would do for publicity and worse, damaging another’s career over a private issue during the prime time of an electoral campaign. I think Giambrone could have handled the situation much more responsibly as well, especially during a campaign. Yes, yes...it was a breach of privacy and it should be irrelevant but I think it becomes an issue when he tried he lie about it which just results in more distrust from his supporters and fans. Despite it being a personal issue, I think it somewhat sheds light to his honesty. Trust can only be built, and one it’s lost its hard to gain back. Trust is also a vital attribute for any candidate to possess. Voters look for trust, loyalty and honesty when searching for the “perfect” candidate. Yes it is a private matter and I personally do not think the affair is an issue that should be affecting his political platform but denying it makes you wonder what lies he may commit in the future if he were to be elected. I mean, why take the risk? Personally, him cheating does not make any difference in my eyes but then trying to deny it – that makes a difference (even though it shouldn’t because it is private after all).
Another area where his trust is weakened is when he walked out of the room crying, especially after “vowing” to continue running for his campaign and then withdrawing afterwards.
Overall, I’m pretty sure he’s lost numerous votes but I don’t think that people should dismiss him in the campaign just because of this scandal until his say is actually shared and heard. The way he left and handled the entire situation shows immaturity (walking out, having another rep. Speak for himself, lying) but I’m sure that this was just all acts creating by impulse and that this all would have eventually faded. I think that if any politician were to be placed under the lens of a microscope, there would be numerous flaws within their career as well, it’s just unlucky for him that his has leaked. I also think that his scandal should be forgotten and hopefully will be in the future. After all, he is young and I’m sure he must have learnt from his mistake and continues to grow from “experience”.
-Poonam
@ Spider:
ReplyDeleteAre you actually a supporter of his? (Just curious)
I just wanted dude on to see him get destroyed once debate rounds came in... :P
On the bright side...at least he can more rightfully deny his "gay" allegations.
This is definitely gonna leave a huge stain in his career, which is a damn shame because it's a pretty impressive resume to have.
Oh well, that's what happen when you get caught slippin'.
Spider for Prime Minister? Remember that when you get up there. I'll also be your PR coach :D
- knowledge
@ Poonam:
ReplyDelete"however do you really believe he should have to shoulder the blames of customer dissatisfaction?"
Absolutely. If he's unfit for the job, he shouldn't be working it. He was TTC Chair & was the figurehead at the time. It's like our Prime Minister not takign accountability for political ongoings of his country. Whether or not he REALLY had control, it's still his job, and he's STILL going to be held responsible for it.
"Touching upon Kristen Lucas, I think her actions were just pure immature and shallow on her part. "
I don't agree with what she did, but I certainly can't condemn it. An interview of her friends & peers said that being famous was all she ever wanted to be - well she got that. She saw what she wanted & went for it - even if it costed a politician his career.
When you're a public figure like that, almost everything you do (even within your private life) affects your image. This was a lapse in judgment, and he's paying the price.
"After all, he is young and I’m sure he must have learnt from his mistake and continues to grow from “experience”
Should age really be taken into consideration? I sure as hell don't want him making "mistakes" when running our city and "growing from the experiences"!
- knowledge
@Knowledge
ReplyDeleteThats exactly right man, this is what happens when you get caught slippin'.
I wouldn't call myself a supporter of him exactly, but I do always love a young bright and talented politician, who does have fresh ideas and isn't afraid to look like an idiot sometimes.
I know this isn't the topic, but I didn't know where to post.
ReplyDeleteanyway, do you think people are born naturally good or naturally bad or neutral? Furthermore, do you think people are born to be criminals or not?
(possibly next topic?)
^ No worries.
ReplyDeleteThanks for reminding me! I had something happen recently which got me thinking about similar things. Maybe in 2 or 3 weeks? I have next weeks drop planned, and unless a really recent event comes up, I can probably cover this in 2.
- knowledge