JOHNZEUS.COM

You Americans are unique amongst the world’s nations and cultures. With a can-do spirit you hit slumps and slowdowns, rise again and soar for the moon, stars and beyond. Indeed your great nation and it’s people are blessed, you have been for generations the beacon of hope and freedom for untold millions around the globe.

You live in the most exceptional country in the world, you have a lot to be thankful for. Sometimes I wish my father had sailed to New York rather than Halifax when he left Europe in the 60’s, then I too would have been born American.

During my college years I studied American History and American Politics. While in high school I worked weekends as a busboy and saved money to further my education. I remember a specific day in grade ten when I played hookie from school and with great joy purchased a bus ticket to Buffalo to visit the offices and possibly volunteer in the Reagan 1984 election campaign. I got in trouble for it later, suspended from my school’s Rugby team, grounded by my parents but had no regrets. It was what I wanted to do, and a great learning experience in US politics.

Today America faces the greatest of threats, the loss of your individual independence and the very freedoms endowed by the Creator. For too long you have allowed your rights to be eroded gradually and subtly. You have for the most part failed in your duty to watch and safeguard the very liberties you take for granted. And now because you have allowed your governments, radicals and terrorists to manipulate and denigrate those very same freedoms, you may be in danger of losing them.

The world is a better place with a free and strong America. My hope is that the greater majority of Americans do all and give all to maintain their individual rights and freedoms for the greater good of your nation and for the rest of the world.  ^

Thought of the day by John Zeus, Toronto, Canada

Toronto’s Mayor, now stripped of his non-statuatory powers by city council continues to grab international headlines and provide free fodder for late-night comedians.

Why is Rob Ford still the Mayor of my city? When will this circus at city hall end? When will Mayor Ford finally get help for his problem? I keep asking myself the same questions, every time I go online, turn on the TV, listen to the radio, pick up a newspaper, talk to my colleagues.

It must be extra tough being Mayor in a city the size of Toronto, which really should be its own province. And, when you add on vast quantities of booze, a crack pipe, coaching football, maybe a little sex and a lot of public drunkenness, a video rant and god knows what else onto the mayoralty agenda it makes it even tougher. Eventually the addiction, the destructiveness and the lies catch up to you and everything in your private and public life unravels.

In a few months alone, Mayor Rob Ford brought dishonour to public office and our city. His actions continue to embarrass Torontonians and provide still more joke fodder for late night TV comedy. On The Tonight Show, host Jay Leno called the mayor ”God’s gift to comedy” and mocked Ford’s statement to Fox News last week that he one day wanted to become prime minister.

Jay Leno, Jimmy Kimmel, Stephen Colbert, Jon Stewart, Jimmy Fallon, Conan O’Brian and David Letterman continued to mock Ford on their shows this week as they have done since Ford admitted to smoking crack cocaine earlier in November. ^

“I love him, I really do. Every time he’s in public he does something great.” – Jimmy Kimmel

Video clips sourced from YouTube

Chris Daughtry Sings “The Ballad of Rob Ford” – Jimmy Kimmel Live

Whoopi Goldberg On Mayor Rob Ford – The Tonight Show with Jay Leno

Ron Burgundy Sings Mayor Rob Ford’s Campaign Song – Conan O’Brian

by John Zeus
Video Source: YouTube

Toronto’s Mayor Rob Ford has made global headlines since the police announced they have a video of him smoking  “what appears to be a crack pipe”,  and the Mayor himself later admitting to smoking crack cocaine.

There’s a few lessons we can take away from the Mayor’s public struggles. Although his actions are the main problem, his struggles are made worse by how he handles situations when confronted with the issues.

How you phrase things matters

When asked if he smoked crack, Rob Ford replied, that yes he had, “probably in one of my drunken stupors.” #inoneofmydrunkenstupors was trending on Twitter for days. The line was repeated on every news broadcast and comedy show. His choice of words compounded the issue. Now he was saying that not only does he smoke crack, but that he also has ‘drunken stupors’.

In a workplace, be careful how you say things. Taking greater care of how a message is delivered can have a huge effect on how others react to it.

Taking responsibility for mistakes is good

It would have been better if Mayor Ford said, “Yes, I have tried crack cocaine. It was on a night when I had too much to drink, and that led to my making a very poor choice that I deeply regret. I apologize to anyone who is let down by this, and I have entered into an alcohol addiction program to ensure that nothing like this ever happens again.”

With that choice of words he would not only owned up to his mistakes, but he would also have apologized, and detailed an action plan for ensuring that it would not be repeated. That is what people want to hear.

Learn from the mistake, and fix the problem

Sometimes we all make mistakes at work and they don’t have to be career-ending – I’m not talking about mistakes as severe as Mayor Ford’s or mistakes that break the law. The key is to learn from mistakes, be up front in taking responsibility for the things we get wrong, and implementing changes to ensure that the same mistakes aren’t made twice.

That kind of honesty actually builds trust in the workplace. Denials and half-truths just tend to spiral out of control and end up making things worse. ^

Canada’s largest online job site, Workopolis polled users after the mayor’s admittance asking them if the news stories were having an impact on workplace productivity, 64% of people said yes, because “nobody is talking about anything else.”

A map entitled “The Corporate States of America” created by writer and graphic designer Steve Lovelace. Here, he creatively illustrates the most famous brands that represent each state.

Thoughts? Do you agree with his brand selection for your state?

Source: Steve Lovelace: The Corporate States Of America. The map is available as a poster for order on his website.

Toronto, mayor Rob Ford was shown on videotape pacing around an unknown living room ranting gibberish and gesticulating wildly.

In Toronto, Canada lately, the news is all about Rob Ford. Another story or video emerges and goes viral. Our city hall has become a zoo with reporters camped out all the time in front of the mayor’s office. City counsellors and staffers alike engulfed in the daily drama that takes them away from important city business and their jobs. This has affected the whole city. Workopolis polls even show 65% of respondents saying they lost productivity at work because “this is all everyone’s talking about.”

Today it’s about another video. The Toronto Star released footage that shows the mayor inebriated and acting foolish in a private home. They purchased the video for 5K, released it, and it went viral. More fodder for American late night talk shows.

Most of us know by now that Ford shouldn’t be our mayor in his current state. He needs to step down and seek help. There is no need for the media to keep piling on every day. Journalists need to stop harassing him at home. This city needs to get back to work. ^

The video sourced, along with the mayor’s response is added below.

WARNING: Graphic content. 

Mayor Rob Ford Caught In Video Rant

The Toronto Star, Toronto’s highest-circulation newspaper has obtained video of Mayor Rob Ford where he appears to be in a state of extreme agitation. The context in which it was shot is unclear, but his language and mannerisms clearly indicate he’s angry. – Source: You Tube

Moments after the Star published the video online, Ford emerged from his office and apologized.

Mayor Ford’s Public Reaction To The Video Released Earlier

“The Toronto Star just released a video that I was very, very inebriated….”

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford’s statement following the release of video that show him yelling wildly, swearing profusely and acting erratically. – Source: You Tube

‘Yes I have smoked crack cocaine’ – Rob Ford, Nov 5 2013
Toronto Mayor Rob Ford admits to what many of us suspected for months.

My thought of the day
In light of Mayor Ford’s admission today at city hall and the negative media attention focused on our city, I’d like to assure my friends here in Toronto, across the country and abroad that Toronto is still a great city. A clean, green and liveable city, the place I call home. Mayor Ford does not represent who we are as Torontonians and Canadians. By his actions he’s embarrassed us internationally, he’s become our dirty laundry.

Mayor Ford has been lying to Torontonians for months about this issue and it really saddens me. Most of us have made mistakes in life we regret, and when asked about our lives most of us are honest with our responses. More importantly, we truly learn from our mistakes because we want to be better people and be responsible to those we serve and those we love.

Our mayor needs to take responsibility immediately and take a medical leave of absence or resign, and get help for his problem. It’s the right thing to do.

John Zeus

The Twitterverse was bursting with reaction to Toronto Mayor Rob Ford’s admission today. Many people were in shock, with several asking for him to resign. You can follow the buzz using  #TOpoli #RobFord.

Video Source: You Tube

Did Mayor Rob Ford call a radio show claiming to be ‘Ian from Etobicoke’?

Toronto radio host Bill Carroll from Talk Radio AM640 says he believes Mayor Rob Ford called into his program Thursday (October 31) afternoon and used a false identity to defend his now-defunct claim that a controversial video did not exist.

The caller said: “How do you know when you are being videotaped? Do you know?”
“How do you know what you do exactly? There’s cameras everywhere.”

Was it “Ian from Etobicoke” or Mayor Rob Ford?

Source: Talk Radio AM640

Here’s a fun and interesting look at the parallels between US politics in 2012 and the 1939 MGM fantasy film The Wizard of Oz. In the film, Dorothy (representing the American Every-Citizen) has been separated from her familiar homeland and needs a Wizard’s help in restoring her to her unchanging Kansas. During her journey she meets three candidates who might help her:

1. A Scarecrow in need of a brain.  2. A Tin Man seeking a heart.  3. A Cowardly Lion lacking courage.

These three candidates have striking similarities to Presidents past, present, and possibly future…

1. George W. Bush, proudly anti-intellectual, but seeking respect.  2. Barack Obama, seemingly lacking the courage of his convictions.  3. Mitt Romney, heartless chopper of deadwood.

In L. Frank Baum’s novel, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the brainless, gutless, and emotionally challenged trio often demonstrate the opposite characteristics. Scarecrow uses his head, Lion often roars, and Tin Man shows compassion. At one point the Lion even envies the Tin Man: “Perhaps, if I had no heart I should not be a coward.”

There is something familiar and timeless here. History is replete with examples of persons who acquire knowledge, timid souls who take bold action, and callous persons who become sensitive. That the Scarecrow, the Lion and the Tin Man are strikingly appropriate figures for the early 21st century is just coincidence.

The Wizard turns out to be an elderly man from the Midwest who got to Oz in a circus balloon. He has presided over the land for many years by smoke and mirrors and has fooled everyone into thinking he saved the country. He is charming and uses his genial disposition to convince Dorothy’s companions that he has given them the qualities they seek. Finally, however, he confesses to being just a clever salesman, a “humbug”.

The Wizard is a humbug, providing the model for Ronald Reagan, whom the current trio of chief executives and would-be chiefs frequently cite as their inspiration for policy and governance. President Reagan, salesman for General Electric, Van Heusen shirts, Chesterfield cigarettes, and the Strategic Defense Initiative (Star Wars), is as amiable a wizard as anyone would want to save the emerald city from wicked witches, flying monkeys, and “other terrorists”. Like Dorothy, we’ll all follow the Yellow Brick Road to the voting booth, work our magic behind the curtain, and hope for a transformation of our favourite character.

Not to forget The Wicked Witch of The West…lets just say she represents the Evils of Government and Big Business. She scared me as a child and now more then ever she still does!

Adapted by John Zeus. Original Source:  Bernard Mergen: Wizard of Oz politics  – Op-Ed Commentaries – The Charleston Gazette – West Virginia News and Sports –.