Ahem, Ford Nation. It didn't have to be this way

City Budget: This isn’t about austerity & four other notes « Ford For Toronto
Here is a great look into the current numbers game at Toronto City Hall.
(read the link for the details)
Excerpt:

It’s been noted again and again, but a
simple combination of a small property tax increase in last year’s
budget and a partial retention of the Vehicle Registration Tax would
have resulted in very straightforward budget processes for both 2011 and
2012. This would have allowed the budget committee to focus on a
long-term strategy for reducing the city’s annual structural shortfall
through a combination of further monetization of city assets, good faith
intergovernmental negotiations and some efficiencies — and, yes,
potentially cuts — to programs and services.

That’s the part that’s so hard-to-stomach
about this whole process. It didn’t have to be this way. But now our
city faces an utterly avoidable scenario shaped by a mayor that
seemingly harbours a naked ambition to gut services.