Rex Murphy: Until his resignation today, Rod Phillips was a cabinet minister in Ontario, a province that set a vast squad of police upon restaurateur Adam Skelly for keeping his barbecue diner open. A minister in a province where the Toronto Mayor, John Tory, with the flair of some old-time preacher scourging the town sinner, publicly harangued Skelly for “not thinking about (his) fellow citizens … about public health.”
You could multiply examples by the hundreds. In every province and state, the Lords of Lockdown — politicians, the very powerful, rock stars and famous rappers (the “set” in other words) — turn a face of mockery and disdain toward everyone who is not them. They flout the rules they insist you — low creature — must follow.
In a precious moment I must note Mayor Tory did not send 50 or more police to Mr. Phillip’s home — or to Phillips’ vacation spot in St. Barts for that matter — and did not harangue the itinerant lockdown slacker. He instead found his voice of forgiveness for a fellow public “leader.” “He made a mistake,” intoned Mr. Tory, that’s all. Mind you, if Phillips starts flogging spare ribs, there might be a change of tone.
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