The hypocrisy of Dalton McGuinty
Dalton McGuinty says Mixed Martial Arts is not a priority for Ontarians — but online gambling is? Premier Dalton McGuinty…
Dalton McGuinty says Mixed Martial Arts is not a priority for Ontarians — but online gambling is?
Premier Dalton McGuinty said Tuesday that if he was to ask 1,000 Ontario families about their top three concerns, I would be surprised if anyone said, ‘You know on my top three is we’ve got to get this new mixed martial arts (MMA) started in Ontario. That’s going to mean a lot to me and my family and our future together.’
It’s just not a priority for our families, it’s not a priority for me.
McGuinty probably has a point about MMA, which Ultimate Fighting Championship president Dana White, who was making a promotional appearance in Toronto — a hotbed of fan support — is trying to get sanctioned in Ontario.
Then again, if McGuinty were to ask 1,000 Ontario families how they feel about his government setting up an internet gambling site to cash in on that growing phenomenon, they’d probably say that wasn’t one of the their top three concerns either.
After all, you can’t imagine many people saying Queen’s Park having its own online poker playing site is going to mean a lot to me and my family and our future together either.
So why the double standard, premier?
Indeed, when he was asked a month ago about Ontario entering the online gambling industry by setting up its own site, as other governments have in order to get a piece of the action, McGuinty was all about practicality and the money.
While he didn’t commit to establishing an online site, which would be run by the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. (OLG), he noted virtual gambling has arrived, other governments across North America are cashing in by setting up their own sites to compete with private ones and that’s a reality Ontario simply can’t ignore.
The issue is whether or not we should be involved in that, and I think we’re going to have to make a call. It’s something we can’t avoid the premier said.
That was in the context of new OLG chairman Paul Godfrey, whom McGuinty appointed, lobbying for the idea, saying it would be better for the money to go into Ontario coffers rather than to other provinces and offshore. Hmm.
Well, since the situation with mixed martial arts is virtually identical — right down to Ontario losing substantial revenues to other Canadian and U.S. jurisdictions that allow these events — why is McGuinty, as he put it, tapping out on MMA, while taking the issue of internet gambling so seriously?
If anything, given the OLG’s recent dismal track record, including everything from an insider lottery ticket scandal, to a scathing Ombudsman’s report, to not one but two house cleanings of senior management under McGuinty’s watch — Godfrey was brought in as part of the second cleanup — one could argue this isn’t the best time to give the OLG even more power. Sure it makes $6.5 billion a year, but since it’s basically a government-run gambling monopoly, how could it not make money?
Toronto AM 640 talk show host Mike Stafford likes to call McGuinty Premier Dad and suggested this week McGuinty looks down on MMA because it’s frowned upon as a working class sport by the sophisticated, liberal crowd the premier hangs with.
Could be, but in any event, Premier Dad is a good description, I think, of McGuinty, who is big on nanny state ideas and likes to adopt a Father Knows Best pose in deciding what Ontarians want and don’t want.
The problem is, just like dear, old Dad, McGuinty can be a maze of inconsistencies, contradictions and hypocrisies.
I don’t gamble online or watch mixed martial arts, so I don’t have a dog in this hunt.
But I do want my premier to be sensible and consistent in how he approaches these issues, and to act thoughtfully and rationally in the interests of all Ontarians, not just on personal whim.
You know — sort of like being a leader.
