Naheed Nenshi vs Michelle Rempel

[calgaryblood]

Originally Posted by The Yen Man

Rempel's an idiot, but man does Nenshi like to add in snarky remarks. You can tell a lot about a person by the way they act, and Nenshi is not a nice person. Guy must be a total tool to talk to, always trying to show you how much smarter he is than everyone else.

Well he is smarter than everyone else he deals with.

Nenshi is the best mayor this city has ever had and he's never thinking of himself and only of the well being of Calgary no matter how he looks as a politician or how unpopular he will be.

This is a mayor every city would and should want.

[zamler]

I don't see how what Nenshi said and how he said it could be considered sexist. Condescending and dooshy yea for sure.

[MoneyGuy]

The MGA is being amended as we speak, um write.

[Boxman]

Nenshi is the left wing Donald Trump. A cult of personality based on a series of snippy one-liners and bullying attitude, appealing only to the group of people that agree with him.

Nenshi has been the mayor since 2010 and has given us what?

- cycle track
- higher property taxes
- public art
- higher business taxes
- Olympic bid
- library
- dance center

Remember that the majority of city spending goes to city worker salaries, wages, and benefits. The majority of that money goes to police services. That's people writing you tickets for going 60 in a 50 zone. Just what we need... Any mayor that doesn't have an adversarial relationship with the police, firefighter, and public sector unions is not representing the interests of the taxpayer, but is instead a union puppet. All the public art, etc is a smoke show hiding the real cash flows.

Remember the Sunshine list? It's not going away and won't until Nenshi is gone.

[Bunk]

Originally Posted by MoneyGuy

Actually, that first comment isn't true. I don't know how it is in Calgary but in my city property taxes make up 27 per cent of revenue and it isn't the largest revenue source at all.

42%, followed by user fees at 30%.

[Bunk]

Originally Posted by Boxman

Nenshi is the left wing Donald Trump. A cult of personality based on a series of snippy one-liners and bullying attitude, appealing only to the group of people that agree with him.

Nenshi has been the mayor since 2010 and has given us what?

- cycle track
- higher property taxes
- public art
- higher business taxes
- Olympic bid
- library
- dance center

Remember that the majority of city spending goes to city worker salaries, wages, and benefits. The majority of that money goes to police services. That's people writing you tickets for going 60 in a 50 zone. Just what we need... Any mayor that doesn't have an adversarial relationship with the police, firefighter, and public sector unions is not representing the interests of the taxpayer, but is instead a union puppet. All the public art, etc is a smoke show hiding the real cash flows.

Remember the Sunshine list? It's not going away and won't until Nenshi is gone.

Airport Tunnel
Macleod/162nd Interchange
Glenmore Ogden Interchange
Bowfort/TransCanada interhange
Was a big reason a SWRR deal was finally struck
2/3 of Green Line Funding (only waiting on Province)
4 major Recreation centres
Cycle tracks
Pedestrian improvements (such as he downtown underpass improvements, Kensington streetscape upgrades).
Dedicated Transitway routes like 17th SE
National Music Centre
New Central Library
SE film studio
Zero Based Reviews department by department
Cut Red Tape program
Fairer development levies
Better City Auditing
New Council ethics rules
Revised public art policy
City Charter (coming soon)
Flood response and recovery
Strong and effective pipeline advocacy
Helping fix Enmax (remember Gary Holden?)
Helping fix the Calgary Parking Authority
Overhauling the snow removal system
...

[Table 5]

Originally Posted by Boxman

- cycle track
- higher property taxes
- public art
- higher business taxes
- Olympic bid
- library
- dance center

I'm confused, is this bad stuff we're supposed to get angry about?

[Bunk]

Originally Posted by Delgar

It would be fun to have Bunk comment on Nenshi's personality. But I understand why he won't

He's an incredibly kind, generous, loyal, ethical person. A joy to to work for and continue to be friends with.

Politics offices usually have very high turnover - in 6 1/2 years, myself and my successor are the only ones to have left the office since 2010.

[Kjesse]

Originally Posted by Bunk

He's an incredibly kind, generous, loyal, ethical person. A joy to to work for and continue to be friends with.

Politics offices usually have very high turnover - in 6 1/2 years, myself and my successor are the only ones to have left the office since 2010.

While I agree he does possess all of those qualities, a full answer would talk about the rest as well...he's not perfect. My grin was more because it only takes a short time around him to get the rest of the story, and a friend is not likely to talk about that. That's not a bad thing, he's a great person and a rare, I dare say even self-disinterested person who takes the public good to heart, but there is an edge that shows up on twitter, and its far more apparent in person. And I mean that in the nicest way possible.

[Bunk]

Originally Posted by Delgar

While I agree he does possess all of those qualities, a full answer would talk about the rest as well...he's not perfect. My grin was more because it only takes a short time around him to get the rest of the story, and a friend is not likely to talk about that. That's not a bad thing, he's a great person and a rare, I dare say even self-disinterested person who takes the public good to heart, but there is an edge that shows up on twitter, and its far more apparent in person. And I mean that in the nicest way possible.

I did cover the twitter snarkiness problem in a previous post...

[Nyah]

What annoys me the most about this whole thing is that it was a snarky conversation on both sides, and then she was the one who brought gender into it. Her “Mansplaining” comment. Are we getting to a point in politics where people have to try and sugar coat things for women so as not to offend them? Not to be called out as or labeled as a sexist? It is absolutely not misogynistic to tell a woman that you think she sucks at math. It’s not ####ing “Mansplaining” when a man tries to explain something to you that you very clearly don’t understand. Nenshi isn’t always the most eloquent and he can certainly come across as an #######, but he’s not sexist. If you want to call him out for something, call him out for coming across as unprofessional.

Ms. Rempel is only perpetuating the stereotype that women can’t handle a little jibing; that you can’t say certain things to a woman without it being considered misogynistic or sexist. It’s exactly the kind of thing that first generation feminists worked to get rid of. Women aren’t delicate, we can handle condescension. Condescension in itself is not sexist. We’re not special snowflakes, and we certainly don’t need to be talked to like we are. IMO crying sexism like this is completely regressive and it hurts progress women have made in politics and the workforce in general.

Oh, and can we PLEASE drop the word “mansplaining”?

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Boxman

The majority of that money goes to police services. That's people writing you tickets for going 60 in a 50 zone. Just what we need... Any mayor that doesn't have an adversarial relationship with the police, firefighter, and public sector unions is not representing the interests of the taxpayer, but is instead a union puppet.

"In 2010 and 2011, when the last three-year budget was set, council was torn by successive debates over whether to include the police in citywide budget austerity measures. In each case, the force was spared having to do the same sort of trimming asked of all other city departments.

Mayor Naheed Nenshi suffered his first early political defeats when council rejected his bids to require police belt-tightening, and a hiring spree continued."

Calgary Herald article from 2014 by Jason Markusoff

[longsuffering]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

I think at this point the only level that should have taxation rights is the Federal government and they should just tax everyone 100% and provide all services, everyone gets the same housing number of rooms based on how single married and how many kids. Single people get a barracks type of home where you have a shoebox and a locker to house your two pairs of government issued coveralls and boots.

All food is taken care of in a nutritionally perfect blend oatmeal and on Sundays meat

The government then distributes funds to the municipalities and provinces who spend it where they will based on the local party apparatus

Once a year the government issues us a spending allowance of $100.00 that we can spend in the local GUM department store.

All entertainment will be carefully monitored, the only advertisement will be government advertisement. You will have the choice of watching 3cBC or the work schedule network.

Doctors can get paid more then truck drivers under this model, but it won't matter because the government will tax it all.

Of course every 4 years there will be an election at the municipal and provincial election with a full slate of candidates. At the federal level there will be an election of candidates, however the head of the party will pick the actual main leaders and approve or dissaprove the election results by the people.

See its perfect, we have wealth distribution, we no longer have fashion or body issues. We don't have to worry about housing and food, and at the end of the year everyone gets a shiny $100.00 bill

And the best part, our carbon will go through the floor as the only vehicles on the road are government vehicles and limo's for the leadership class because they work so hard.

You're trying too hard.

[Bunk]

Originally Posted by Bownesian

This is not true, except in the narrowest of terms of talking about how revenues are proportionally raised. The amount to be raised could be dropped (cutting expenses), or targeted measures like Nenshi's proposed rebate measure (returning excess taxes) are two ways the increase in the tax bill could be mitigated.

Right wingers like myself would argue that expenses can be cut from the budget - capital expenditures could be postponed, policies that lead to the Blue Ring that could have been amended, hiring freezes, wage rollbacks, etc. Others would say that these things should not be done in a downturn, which is a fine opinion, but there is not Nothing That Can be Done.

To me there a few approaches to reducing costs and changing services. .

1. You can simply cut budgets and associated staff and services. Doesn't in any way systematically improve how departments go about their business.

2. You can at budget time set a very clear, tight parameter around spending and level of service and spend some time figuring out how to do it while not really impacting services. Approach staffing levels through things like attrition, for example.

3. Between budgets do a deep dive into each department. Examine closely if the City needs to be doing a specific service at all. If yes, examine how to do it both better and more efficiently. Find systemic improvements to service delivery, look for efficiency across silos, reduce redundancy, etc.

The first is the easiest and most politically satisfying for many. A slash and burn approach. Unfortunately it doesn't achieve any actual improvement, just reduction.

The second happens every budget cycle at the City. Every cycle, every year business units must identify and implement basic efficiencies.

The third is the least politically expedient, the least sexy, but by far the most important. The City (led by the mayor) implemented a "Zero Based Review" process. It's a department by department, function by function in depth audit and reform. It's results are really starting to bear fruit. It's taken some time to set up the program and get it running well, but they have gotten through about 8 or 9 of the City's ~38 departments. It's perhaps the most important thing happening at the City and is what will enable real service delivery improvement, done far more efficiently.

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by calgaryblood

Well he is smarter than everyone else he deals with.

Nenshi is the best mayor this city has ever had and he's never thinking of himself and only of the well being of Calgary no matter how he looks as a politician or how unpopular he will be.

This is a mayor every city would and should want.

You keep saying this despite the fact that I assume you probably weren't even born pre-Al Duerr.

[calgaryblood]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

You keep saying this despite the fact that I assume you probably weren't even born pre-Al Duerr.

Uh yeah I was, by a lot. And yes Nenshi is the best mayor Calgary has ever had.

[Ozy_Flame]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

You keep saying this despite the fact that I assume you probably weren't even born pre-Al Duerr.

Who do you think was the best mayor? I predict you'll say Ralph Klein.

[Clarkey]

This may not be popular on here, from my admittedly third party observer public spectator seat, I see a lot of personality similarities between Nenshi and Trump, great and bad;

-Undeterred by odds stacked against
-Unlikely champion, took advantage of vote splitting/discontent to gain power
-Prone to petty public squabbles
-Charismatic
-Control freak tendencies
-Twitter obsessed
-Patriotic (city and country)
-Strong narcissistic tendencies
-Relentless worker
-Scandal prone
-Questionable money trails (optics or otherwise)
-Bully tendencies
-Staunchly loyal to inner circle loyalists and sycophants
-Easily offended
-Holds grudges
-Cherishes adulation
-Willing to challenge established authority
-Populist grand stander but also willing to take on unpopular stances
-Self promoter

[Looch City]

Haha what?

[V]

Originally Posted by MoneyGuy

Actually, that first comment isn't true. I don't know how it is in Calgary but in my city property taxes make up 27 per cent of revenue and it isn't the largest revenue source at all.

Calgary only gets about one-third of the dividend from Enmax that Edmonton gets from EPCOR. It used to be about half, but Enmax's dividends have fallen off a cliff.