Talk about low brow T.V. entertainment…

I was chatting with someone a week or so before we went to press and I got onto a pretty good rant about something I just don’t understand (probably something to do with our City Council’s endemic hypocrisy), suggested it might become my next column - and I’ve forgotten what the subject was, so you get this instead.

Spending time watching televised coverage of the meeting of Toronto City Council in late June I caught a couple of (endless) debates on a couple of subjects and wanted to add a gratuitous comment of my own.

So the City overwhelmingly voted to ban gun clubs/shooting ranges from City owned property. It seems there has been a range at Union Station for about 40 years, without a hint of a problem. But guns, and particularly handguns, are declared to be bad things in the City and, legally and responsibly used or not, they must go.

But it is funny: the single most accomplished Olympic athlete in Canadian history is a lady named Susan Natrass. She has won more shooting medals, I believe predominantly in trap and skeet shooting, than any other Olympian. A fantastic record largely overlooked. But by extension, I suppose Toronto City Council now thinks she could be a potential public danger. Certainly Councillor Adam Vaughn thinks shooters are just fine, “until they go nuts.”

I didn’t know using the word “nuts” to describe mental illness is politically correct these days, but it must be if Mr. Vaughn is using it without fear of reproach. (I got flak for using the word “blind” a few years ago. Naughty me.)

The reality is this ban will have absolutely zero effect on illegal handguns being used in the City. Our City councillors know it. I called a Chicago police officer a few years ago about gun registries and bans, and he just laughed at their futility.

Every Swiss male must undergo military service. One of the requirements is that even after he or she leaves active service, they must keep a military rifle and ammunition stored in their home.

The Swiss experience with murders committed with guns is relatively far lower than even that of Canada. I guess Swiss genes make them inherently more trustworthy and they go “nuts” less often than Canadians do. Or something.

Toronto is a nuclear free zone too. I’m certain terrorists are quaking at the thought of breaking Toronto’s no nuke ban and every criminal with an illegal handgun is devastated that his favorite legal shooting range is being closed. Or not. This debate and vote took almost an entire day of council’s precious time.

Twits. And I’m not referring to the Swiss.

Then Council got on to the sidewalk and road alterations to Bloor St West between Yonge and Avenue Rd. The road is being narrowed and the sidewalk widened.

This is supposed to make it more visitor friendly and to paraphrase one of our council brain trust, will make it a more pleasant visitor destination.

Let’s see if I got this right. Visitors to the City will come hundreds if not thousands of miles to aimlessly walk along a granite paved sidewalk lined with potted trees that will be dead in a couple of years for the incredible joy of either going nowhere or spending a pile of money in expensive stores in that short stretch? It took a motion by Councillor Moscoe to get the brain trust downtown to consider making the project more friendly to the visually impaired (he used the word “blind” in his motion).

So for the next six months or so, you’ll lose two or three legal cab stand spots there (but as I understand it they will be allowed back), other parking will be banned, and a left turn lane will disappear.

Councillor Moscoe did his best to try to protect 11 or so street vendors who earn their livings along that stretch, but the rest of council was having nothing to do with that suggestion. When it comes to scarce street space, our council will bend over backwards for big business and will delightedly screw the little guys, like you.

Want another example? City staff and taxi people worked, I guess, for about two years to come up with a workable list of sites for new cab stands in the downtown core. Councillor Kyle Rae led the charge a couple of months back at Toronto Community Council to kill every single one of the ideas. It seems local businesses didn’t want to give up public parking spaces. As if residents and business customers never ever, ever use cabs. Do give Mr. Rae your thanks next time you see him.

This is the City Council that can’t design a food cart. Councillor Filion probably had a good idea to start with, but why wouldn’t he hand the idea over to private business and get them working? I hate to think of how much taxpayer money has been wasted on that little taxpayer boondoggle.

Don’t forget, it costs the TTC about 20 per cent more to do the same jobs as it does European cities, according to Councillor Karen Stintz.

So I’ll leave you with my firm conviction that if you want to get any project screwed up, mismanaged and over budget, hand it to our City Council. They will be endlessly inventive at making it worse than your worst nightmares.