Hamilton

Saturday May 15, 2010

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Saturday May 15, 2010 Di Ianni ponders run to reclaim mayor's seat Former mayor Larry Di Ianni is considering a rematch bout with Mayor Fred Eisenberger in the October municipal election.Di Ianni, who lost to Eisenberger in the 2006 campaign, says he's thinking of stepping up because he believes Hamilton needs to have a serious mayor's race. "Obviously if I ran, it's because I think I could do a better job than Fred," Di Ianni said. He points to several issues tempting him to take the plunge, including lack of leadership and council cohesion over taxation and the city's handling of the Ticats and Pan Am stadium controversy. His comments come fast on the heels of Ancaster Councillor Lloyd Ferguson's decision not to throw his hat in the mayoral ring after mulling it over for months. Ferguson says he intends to seek re-election as Ward 12 councillor on the advice of family members and supporters who were afraid of losing him as a community voice. Ferguson's decision to opt out follows those of potential high-profile contenders Teresa Cascioli and Councillor Tom Jackson. That leaves pot advocate Michael Baldasaro and Mahesh Butani, a boutique property developer and blogger, as the only registered candidates, which virtually gift-wraps a second four-year term for Eisenberger. If Di Ianni does enter the race, however, that cakewalk could turn into an unpredictable slugfest. (Continued: Hamilton Spectator) http://www.thespec.com/News/Local/article/769206> Hamilton, Michael Baldasaro, marijuana, pot, Mahesh Butani, Fred Eisenberger, Larry di Ianni, boxing

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday May 15, 2010

Di Ianni ponders run to reclaim mayor’s seat

Former mayor Larry Di Ianni is considering a rematch bout with Mayor Fred Eisenberger in the October municipal election.Di Ianni, who lost to Eisenberger in the 2006 campaign, says he’s thinking of stepping up because he believes Hamilton needs to have a serious mayor’s race.

“Obviously if I ran, it’s because I think I could do a better job than Fred,” Di Ianni said.

He points to several issues tempting him to take the plunge, including lack of leadership and council cohesion over taxation and the city’s handling of the Ticats and Pan Am stadium controversy.

His comments come fast on the heels of Ancaster Councillor Lloyd Ferguson’s decision not to throw his hat in the mayoral ring after mulling it over for months.

Ferguson says he intends to seek re-election as Ward 12 councillor on the advice of family members and supporters who were afraid of losing him as a community voice.

Ferguson’s decision to opt out follows those of potential high-profile contenders Teresa Cascioli and Councillor Tom Jackson.

That leaves pot advocate Michael Baldasaro and Mahesh Butani, a boutique property developer and blogger, as the only registered candidates, which virtually gift-wraps a second four-year term for Eisenberger.

If Di Ianni does enter the race, however, that cakewalk could turn into an unpredictable slugfest. (Continued: Hamilton Spectator)

 

Saturday May 15, 2010

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday May 15, 2010

Di Ianni ponders run to reclaim mayor’s seat

Former mayor Larry Di Ianni is considering a rematch bout with Mayor Fred Eisenberger in the October municipal election.Di Ianni, who lost to Eisenberger in the 2006 campaign, says he’s thinking of stepping up because he believes Hamilton needs to have a serious mayor’s race.

“Obviously if I ran, it’s because I think I could do a better job than Fred,” Di Ianni said.

He points to several issues tempting him to take the plunge, including lack of leadership and council cohesion over taxation and the city’s handling of the Ticats and Pan Am stadium controversy.

His comments come fast on the heels of Ancaster Councillor Lloyd Ferguson’s decision not to throw his hat in the mayoral ring after mulling it over for months.

Ferguson says he intends to seek re-election as Ward 12 councillor on the advice of family members and supporters who were afraid of losing him as a community voice.

Ferguson’s decision to opt out follows those of potential high-profile contenders Teresa Cascioli and Councillor Tom Jackson.

That leaves pot advocate Michael Baldasaro and Mahesh Butani, a boutique property developer and blogger, as the only registered candidates, which virtually gift-wraps a second four-year term for Eisenberger.

If Di Ianni does enter the race, however, that cakewalk could turn into an unpredictable slugfest. (Continued: Hamilton Spectator) 

 

March 31, 2010

I think many people saw this day coming. One of Canada’s biggest beer companies, really a subsidiary of a much larger global monolith, has pulled of what it essentially set out to do from the get go and take over one of those pesky buck-a-beer breweries and shut it down for good. By shutting it down, essentially removing all the Burlington Street hardware and equipment making it impossible for anyone else to come in and start up their own cheap beer company. Simply put, Lakeport’s success was biting into the big guy Labatt’s profits, and they certainly didn’t want to see some upstart beer maker become a new thorn in their side. One down, more to come, and Canadians will be back to the days of over priced swill produced by 2 or 3 beer giants. The cartoon I really wanted to do was the end of a typical vision Hamiltonian’s would see say, on a hot Sunday afternoon in July. Too exploitative of local stereotypes, it seems. So while it may not grace the editorial page of the City’s hometown daily it’s here in its sketch form for my loyal readers:

November 9, 2009

I didn’t expect the Toronto bid to host the 2015 Pan Am Games would actually win so there’s a fair amount of truth to what appeared in my cartoon the day after they actually did:

The above cartoon was drawn after the one I drew below. I don’t normally do the cross hatching cartoons anymore but it allowed enough time to think of something in case the Canadian bid succeeded over Lima’s or Bogota’s:

The process of bringing the games to southern Ontario has been going on for over a couple years. I wrote about it at the time thinking it sounded like a pretty hair brained idea. The memories of two failed Commonwealth bids was fresh in my memory. The most recent failed bid demonstrated how much of a sham the process had become when Halifax was chosen to represent Canada and later dropped out when they realized they couldn’t afford holding the games. I thought if that was the sort of dubious way of deciding host cities among British commonwealth countries, imagine the hoops a Pan Am bid committee would have go through to please a jury of mostly South American countries. Seems, I was wrong. Let the games begin.

Monday November 2, 2009

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator – Monday November 2, 2009

Games or no Games, Ivor Wynne is gone

Whether or not Hamilton gets the Pan Am Games, it looks like Ivor Wynne’s days are numbered.

Mayor Fred Eisenberger says city staff are working on a stadium business plan that includes building a new facility regardless of whether southern Ontario gets the Games.

“There’s a need for stadium renewal, and we’re going to proceed on making that business case, one way or another,” Eisenberger said.

The site of the 2015 Pan Am Games will be decided next Friday.

If the Games go elsewhere, Eisenberger says the city will still seek senior government and private-sector funding for a modern multi-use stadium.

Even without the Games, Eisenberger believes the best site for a new facility is still the west harbour, where the city recently acquired a former Rheem Canada plant in anticipation of building a Pan Am stadium.

“I still think the waterfront location is the preferred site because it drives downtown and waterfront development and (light rail transit).” (Source: Hamilton Spectator)