* Can anyone deny that much of the investment in Canada comes from the far east?
* Check Statscan and you will find that immigration from the far east is growing.
*Walk into the majority of secondary industry plants in Canada and look at who the majority of the employees are behind the machines.
* If you had to hire someone and had a choice between an immigrant and a native born Canadian which would you choose......personally I would choose the immigrant because they haven't lost the work ethic.
*Pickup the majority of the products in any retail outlet and read the labels to see where the product was manufactured.
So I ask again did Rob Ford lie....NO! So what does he have to apologize for? We see these characteristics with every wave of immigration.
Is Comrade Miller so insecure that he wants to stifle freedom of expression ? Is he nervous that his union supporters might feel threatened by having their work ethic questioned?
CITY HALL BUREAU
Mayor David Miller sharply criticized Councillor Rob Ford today for “outrageous and absolutely unacceptable” comments about Asians during a council debate.
Speaking last night during a debate over expanding business openings on holidays, Ford said, “Oriental people are slowly taking over.”
Ford went on to describe people from the Far East as workaholics. “Those Oriental people work like dogs … they sleep beside their machines.” he said. “They’re hard, hard workers.”
Miller denounced the comments, calling on Ford to make a public apology on the floor of council.
“We’re one of the most diverse cities in the world. We don’t stereotype people by the racial or ethnic background in this city,” Miller told reporters this morning after announcing plans for Nuit Blanche, the city’s all-night arts bash in October.
“It’s wrong,” he added. “An elected official should know better.”
When asked what sanctions Ford should face, Miller said he did not have the authority to punish councillors, and he had not had a chance to consider what would be appropriate.
“He has to start by profusely apologizing, Miller said. “It’s unacceptable in this city and unimaginable that you would have an elected official making these kind of comments.”
Asked Wednesday night about his comments, Ford said he meant Asians are further advanced in business than they were a century ago.
T.O. councillor apologizes for 'Oriental' remarks
toronto.ctv.ca
Toronto councillor Rob Ford came under fire Wednesday for a backhanded compliment he paid to one of the city's largest minority groups.
The outspoken councillor said he was trying to compliment the hard-work ethic of Asian shop owners. His colleagues say his comments were offensive and inappropriate.
"You want to see workaholics, those Oriental people work like dogs, they work their hearts out, they are workers non-stop. They sleep beside the machine," he said during a council debate on whether or not to keep retail stores open on statutory holidays.
"I'm telling you that's what makes them such hard workers. Those Oriental people are slowly taking over," he said.
Coun. Shelley Carroll quickly retorted by quoting comedian Margaret Cho who said, "carpets are Oriental, people are Asian."
It's not the first time the councillor has been accused of uttering racially-fuelled remarks. In 2002, his colleague Giorgio Mammoliti filed a complaint under the harassment and race relations policy at city hall, saying Ford called him a "gino boy." Ford denied making that comment.
On Wednesday after the debate, Ford apologized for his choice of words and said he was trying to pay a compliment.
"If I offended anyone I will apologize, it wasn't my intention," he said.
Many of his colleagues said Ford should be more sensitive, especially in multicultural Toronto.
"I don't think as elected representatives we should make those type of statements," said Coun. Raymond Cho.
"It's very distasteful, especially here in Toronto, in Canada, a nation of immigrants," said Coun. Maria Augimeri. "I'm very uncomfortable with what happened here."
Mayor David Miller reacted to Ford's comments Thursday morning, calling on the councillor to make an official apology in chambers.
"I haven't had a chance to consider what sanctions are appropriate but his comments were outrageous," he told CTV Toronto. "I think he has to be held to account and that starts with profusely apologizing.
"It's just unacceptable in this city and it's unimaginable that you'd have an elected official making these comments," Miller said.
With a report from CTV Toronto's Naomi Parness
Rob Ford Refuses To Publicly Apologize Over Asian Comments
It happened Wednesday night as City Hall debated a plan to allow stores to open on stat holidays. The proposal was eventually defeated but not before Councillor Rob Ford got up to speak his mind.
By the time he was done, the chamber was in an uproar and demands were being made for Ford to apologize. What, exactly, did he say? It appears Ford wanted to talk about how Toronto's Asian community was expanding and doing well in the city. But it didn't quite come out that way.
You can judge his comments for yourself with this excerpt from his impassioned statement before his fellow councillors.
"Those Oriental people work like dogs. They work their hearts out. They are workers non-stop. They sleep beside their machines. That's why they're successful in life. I went to Seoul, South Korea, I went to Taipei, Taiwan. I went to Tokyo, Japan. That's why these people are so hard workers (sic). I'm telling you, the Oriental people, they're slowly taking over."
The comments have provoked outrage, with Mayor David Miller leading the call for him to publicly apologize for his comments. "They're absolutely unacceptable," he insists. "We're one of the most diverse cities in the world. We don't stereotype people by their racial or ethnic background ... And it's wrong and elected officials should know better."
"He should apologize publicly."
But while Ford is willing to allow a blanket mea culpa to any Asians he may have offended, he won't bow down to Miller's request.
"If it was taken out of context, then I want to explain the whole story. Just to get up and apologize for the sake of apologizing when you pay a community a compliment because the mayor tells you to, no, I don't take my marching orders from the mayor. I take my marching orders from the taxpayers."
Ford notes that many of his constituents have written him letters of support.
"I don't see a big deal in your comments. It sounds very complimentary," Ford read from a print of an email.
So how do Asians feel about it?
The few that CityNews spoke to seemed to take offence.
"It is very ignorant because we live the same way as everyone does," one notes.
"It's supposed lto be like a compliment, but somehow the way he phrases it is somewhat offensive," another adds.
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