NYC Mayor Speaks Mandarin!

Mamdani makes a video announcement in Mandarin

A few hours ago, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani released a video -- in Mandarin -- and makes a damn good effort.

He starts off by introducing himself and says he doesn't know how to speak Mandarin, but he wants to try.

Then Mamdani announces the city is giving away over 2,000 free tickets to high school students on August 17 to watch Broadway shows. 

While some criticise his staccato delivery, fans are thrilled that he even attempted to pronounce the tonal language relatively well for a beginner.

As one person said online: "Is there anything this man can't do?"

We also have to give kudos to his language coaches, as Mandarin pronunciation along with the tones aren't easy.

Maybe there will be a BTS or behind-the-scenes video of how Mamdani had his crash course in Mandarin?

In the meantime, this video throws the gauntlet down for Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim to try to woo the Chinese vote by speaking Cantonese in time for the October 17 municipal election... 

Toronto's Biggest Cheerleader

Chow talks to the media after her speech

On our second last day in Toronto, we walked from Union station to City Hall, and when we approached, we could see several small booths set up in Nathan Phillips Square.

It turns out Mayor Olivia Chow declared that day, May 29 as Newcomer Day, where those in the booths were many non-profits that offer social services like employment counselling, health and mental health programs, arts and education programs, and shelter and housing supports. 

Chow speaks at Nathan Phillips Square

Kicking off the event was Chow herself, who gave a speech about how she was an immigrant too, as the Hong Kong-born politician immigrated to Toronto with her family in 1970 when she was 13 years old. 

She encouraged the crowd to explore the various booths and take advantage of the non-profits' services to help them settle in Toronto.

Later we spotted Chow talking to the media backstage; one of her assistants indicated that she would be available to meet some fans, but after her media interviews, there was no time and she slipped in a back door into City Hall.

I've heard that Chow is a great cheerleader for Toronto and is very supportive of community events. She apparently goes to almost every one of them, even dressing up in an elaborate purple and pink feathered costume to participate in the Caribbean Carnival Grand Parade last August.

Chow seems quite popular, and has indicated she will run for a second term this October. Chow was elected in 2023 after former mayor John Tory resigned. 

Vancouver Will Have One Night of Fireworks

The city will have a fireworks show this year

What does $2 million (US$1.46 million) buy you in Vancouver?

A two or three bedroom condo in Kitsilano or downtown, or perhaps a detached house in East Vancouver.

The $2 million could be used to keep libraries open seven days a week, or give to food banks to ensure people have food to eat, fix potholes, or fund arts groups so they can hold their annual events.

But no, Mayor Ken Sim and his ABC Vancouver majority have voted to spend $2 million on fireworks for an hour this summer.

The three-day Celebration of Light, a fireworks competition that was held for three decades was cancelled indefinitely last year because of the lack of federal funding, and Sim felt it was necessary to bring it back -- kind of.

He said it was a "deeply personal" issue, claiming his family had "struggled financially" when he was young, and really looked forward to free events like the fireworks.

Sim added the city had "never pulled our support" from the fireworks, and "had already committed $1.4 million to the event", so the increase is actually $600,000.

Sounds like someone is trying to massage the numbers.

His opponents on city council were not impressed, smelling smoke.

Green councillor Pete Fry, who has also announced he will run for mayor later this year, said that the event was not financially viable.

"The reality is that it was a business model that was not sustainable," he said. "They couldn't make it work, for a variety of reasons, including the lack of federal funding. We need to recognise that we are in this austerity budget. ... We're talking about the allocation of $2 million at a time when this city has talked about a zero means zero austerity budget."

In November City Council voted for a zero percent increase in property taxes, but that meant 400 jobs cut, while utility fees for water, garbage and sewer will go up 4 percent.

Meanwhile COPE councillor Sean Orr also questioned if it was worth spending $2 million on a one-hour fireworks show.

We also wondered that too. The fireworks show would be literally burning money in the sky for an hour. And then what?

While there are complaints that Vancouver is a "no-fun city", now isn't the time to put on something so frivolous. 

It's Sim's attempt at getting in voters' good books before the upcoming civic election later this year. Will voters return the favour?

Post 9/11 The Highs and Lows of Giuliani

Giuliani's book back in 2002

One of the heroes following September 11, 2001 was then New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who gave a lot of media briefings, coordinated emergency response and comforted residents in shock, sadness, and anger. 

He quickly became known as "America's Mayor", and was named Time magazine's Person of the Year and his approval ratings shot up for his resoluteness.

"America's Mayor" comforted NY residents

"Tomorrow New York is going to be here. And we're going to rebuild, and we're going to be stronger than we were before... I want the people of New York to be an example to the rest of the country, and the rest of the world, that terrorism can't stop us," he said.

Giuliani struck while the iron was hot and penned Leadership that came out in October 2002, where he talked about his "broken windows" theory, detailed his memories of 9/11, what he did during that horrific period, and how he helped revitalise New York City's economy following the attacks. 

When the book came out, I was in Toronto at the time and even went to Indigo where Giuliani visited and had my copy of the book signed by him, who by then had left the mayoral office and set up his own consultancy.

Five years later in 2007 his book was reissued during his presidential campaign the following year, and added his perspectives on various issues the country was facing.

He became Trump's personal lawyer

But since then Giuliani has spectacularly fallen from such high respect to scraping the bottom of the barrel.

During his presidential campaign it came out he was having an extramarital affair, Giuliani's police commissioner was indicted for tax fraud, and eventually he had to drop out of the race having run out of money and scandals followed him.

He laid low for several years until Giuliani resurfaced clinging to Donald Trump's coat tails as he ran for the White House in 2016. He stumped for Trump and became his advisor and later personal lawyer. 

Perhaps most memorable was following Trump's loss in the 2020 election that he wrongfully claimed was stolen, Giuliani held a press conference not at the Four Seasons hotel, but at Four Seasons Total Landscaping that was mocked by the media and late night comedians for days afterwards.

Hair dye was not a good look for Giuliani

There was also another press conference in 202 where Giuliani's hair seemed to melt -- as hair dye dripped down his cheek. 

Then Giuliani was sued by two election workers, a mother and daughter in Georgia for defamation and he lost big time. The judge was so fed up with the former mayor, he ordered him to pay US$148 million in damages. Giuliani was forced to turnover his US$6 million apartment, US$3.5 million residence in Palm Beach, Florida, jewellery and a Mercedes-Benz.

So circling back to his book Leadership -- it's still available on Amazon for US$19, hardcover, US$12 for paperback.

But mine is a signed vintage copy! Any takers?

Can Former Vancouver Mayor Tackle Housing Nationwide?

Carney revealed his new cabinet today at Rideau Hall, Ottawa

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney unveiled his cabinet this morning and there was surprise when it was reported Gregor Robertson, the former mayor of Vancouver would become the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure. 

While he's a federal rookie, Robertson has served in municipal and provincial politics -- one time as an NDP MLA. In the recent federal election, he handily won in the riding of Vancouver Fraserview - South Burnaby. 

But can he tackle the portfolio of housing? That's what critics are wondering.

Robertson reading out his oath of office

Carney's election platform was that the Canadian government would focus on building homes, promising to double the rate of residential construction in the next decade to 500,000 homes per year across the country.

"We're going to have to change how we build. And a lot of that expertise, not exclusively, but a lot of it has been developed in British Columbia," Carney said.

"Minister Robertson is very familiar with it. We're going to incorporate that, but in a pan-Canadian strategy to really drive this."

It's a big challenge, with the cost of building materials and labour constantly rising, but people do need roofs over their heads. 

But is Robertson the best person for the job?

Looking at his track record as mayor from 2008-2018, data from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation shows the average price of a single-family and semi-detached homes rose 179 percent across the broader Metro Vancouver area.

The number of homeless people also went up from 1,576 in 2008 to 2,181 in 2018.

Robertson says now at the federal level, things are different, because as mayor he was dependent on federal and provincial funding, and claimed the then Stephen Harper government was not interested in tackling housing affordability, and he also had to deal with the 2008 financial crisis.

"What's different now is that we've got a prime minister and a new government here in Ottawa who are saying we need to double the rate of construction, we need to work across all levels of government, we need to engage the private sector to do this," Robertson said on the CBC's Power & Politics. "We didn't have any of that going back to 2008."

We'll have to see what plans Carney and Robertson have to build this country and as fast as possible. 

Man Charged with 8 Counts of Murder for Festival Tragedy

Rai addressing the media with Sim (left) this afternoon

Overnight news of the horrific tragedy of the vehicle that plowed into people attending a Filipino street party in Vancouver spread around the world. 

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said he was "shattered to hear about the terrible incident."

Even King Charles sent condolences via a social media post.

The damaged SUV at the scene of attack

"Our hearts and prayers go out to all those whose lives have been shattered by such a desperate tragedy and we send our deepest possible sympathy at a most agonising time for so many in Canada," he wrote.

Some people in Vancouver woke up to the news this morning, and the shock, sadness and disbelief happened all over again.

Finally there were some numbers -- in the morning it was reported nine people had died, over a dozen injured.

Then at 2pm there was another press conference, this time with Mayor Ken Sim -- dressed in a black suit -- giving a heartfelt speech conveying his sadness and anger over what happened last night and has asked for a full investigation.

It was good to see him step up and finally act like a mayor. Following the by-election a few weeks ago when his ABC party was hammered, Sim realises he needs to actually do his job. If he takes this opportunity to show that he is performing his mayoral duties properly, residents may actually cut him some slack; but he's going to have to work really hard for forgiveness.

At that same press conference Interim Police Chief Steve Rai disclosed only a sliver more of information, that the now 11 deceased ranged in age from five to 65, and that 17 people are still in hospital.

Rai also confirmed the driver of the vehicle was very well known to police and mental health workers.

Lo charged this afternoon, appeared in court

Later in the afternoon news broke that 30-year-old Kai-Ji Adam Lo was charged with eight counts of second-degree murder in relation to the crash at the Lapu Lapu Festival. There are still a lot of questions around security of the festival, though Rai said a risk assessment was made with festival organisers that it didn't require more security like other events.

However, following this tragedy, the police will have to re-examine how they conduct these risk assessments and if police need to attend every single event held in the city. There are also questions why someone with mental health issues and well-known to police, did not get the help he needed, and why he was still able to drive a car. In this case an SUV.

Witnesses came out in the media to give first-hand accounts of what they saw and heard last night. It sounds absolutely horrific, some hearing boom, boom, boom, and later realising it was the sound of the car hitting people, others who had set up stalls at the festival, were cleaning up and leaving when they saw bodies on the ground. They are completely traumatised.

One admitted that whenever he sees groups of people he is terrified and hears the sounds and remember the images he saw.

But Lo, the driver who is charged with eight counts of second-degree murder, has a troubled past. Last year his older brother was murdered and turned to the public for money to pay for the funeral. And then his mother tried to commit suicide and she spent a month in hospital.

Today Lo appeared briefly in court, did not request bail and will remain in custody until his next court appearance on May 26 in Vancouver provincial court. 

How Much Will the 2026 FIFA World Cup Cost?

Vancouver is one of 16 host cities for the 2026 World Cup

Vancouver will be one of the cohosts of the FIFA 2026 men's World Cup, but taxpayers have no idea how much money they will be on the hook for the global football event.

Toronto released its estimation of some C$380 million, up from C$300 million, and Vancouver is expected to be in that ballpark as well.

However, while Toronto Mayor Oliva Chow has been transparent with what has fallen into her lap, Vancouver City Hall has refused to follow suit, same with the provincial government.

Toronto Mayor Chow estimates C$380M

Reporters have tried many times to request a copy of the contract or the amount of money budgeted, but they have either been rebuffed or given stacks of redacted papers that are practically blank.

Finally Lana Popham, minister of tourism, arts, culture and sport says the amount will be revealed in a "few weeks".

"As soon as we are able to we will be releasing everything we are able to legally," Popham said Thursday.

The football games during the World Cup will be held in 16 cities in Canada, the United States and Mexico. Vancouver will host seven of the 104 tournament games at BC Place Stadium starting in June 2026.

Originally Vancouver was expected to host five games at an estimated cost of C$230 million over a year ago.

"We have a significant increase in opportunity, with that comes an increase in cost. So with seven games we have more security costs. So we have to redo some of the numbers from the initial estimates," said Popham.

Sim "super pumped" but no released figure yet

A big chunk of the budget will be for security, and fulfilling FIFA's requirements that real grass be installed at BC Place, with specific instructions on how the grass be watered and cared for.

However the Canadian Taxpayers Federation is frustrated that the final figure is still not known and tried to force Vancouver into revealing numbers by releasing Toronto's budget. 

"Taxpayers have every right to know how much we're paying to host seven soccer games," said Carson Binda, BC director with the CFT. "The city and province must be transparent with taxpayers instead of hiding the details."

Binda said other host cities like Toronto and Seattle have already released their contracts with FIFA to the public, and that Vancouver Mayor sim should "stop the secrecy" and "release the unredacted contracts."

While Sim is "super pumped" about Vancouver hosting seven games, it does cost money. Indeed, we are waiting...

Lighting up Chinatown

There will be 16 of these neon signs installed

Vancouver's Chinatown looks brighter in the run-up to the Lunar New Year on February 10. Mayor Ken Sim unveiled a neon sign featuring a dragon that are being installed on the street lamp posts on East Pender Street between Main and Carrall streets.

In total there will be 16 of these neon signs just in time for the Year of the Dragon.

Mayor Sim unveiled the design for CNY

The initiative was from the Vancouver Chinatown Business Improvement Association, which began planning this idea two years ago. 

"Chinatown used to be famous for its neon signs and its unique designs. And it really is an homage to the past. Even though it took all that time to get here, it's appropriate that it comes out at the start of the new Year of the Dragon," said Jordan Eng, president of the Vancouver Chinatown BIA.

He hopes the signs will stay up for at least six months, and possibly remain a permanent fixture.

"It'd be nice to have something on a more permanent basis, just because of the amount of time it takes to produce and go through the process to get it certified, and all the engineering effort that goes into it to get it to where we finally installed it," Eng said.

The Lunar New Year will be celebrated in Chinatown on Sunday, February 11 with a multicultural parade through the area. Places like the Dr. Sun Yat-sen Classical Chinese Garden and the Chinese Canadian Museum will have various workshops and demonstrations, from lion dances and calligraphy lessons, wood block prints and street food.

East Pender Street with neon dragon signs

Here's to hoping these new light fixtures not only hark back to Chinatown's glory days, but also inspire people to come back to the neighbourhood more often.

Vancouver's First Chinese-Canadian Mayor

Sim giving his victory speech with an overwhelming win

An historic night for Vancouver, which has now elected its first Chinese-Canadian mayor.

Businessman Ken Sim came back from a narrow defeat in 2018 to overwhelmingly beat incumbent Kennedy Stewart in the municipal elections in British Columbia today.

When 50 percent of the voting places reported the 63-year-old Sim winning comfortably, he went up on stage in South Vancouver to give his victory speech, thanking his fellow mayoral candidates, members of his political party, ABC, and his supporters.

Stewart giving his concession speech

"The path to get here was incredibly long. One hundred and thirty-five years after the first Chinese head tax was paid just for the right to come here and work on building a railway, Vancouver has elected its first Chinese-Canadian mayor.

"The history of this moment is not lost on me," Sim said. "But the honour really goes to those whose shoulders I stand on."

He went on to name various Chinese-Canadian politicians such as Tung Chan, Douglas Jung, Kerry Jang, Art Lee, and Raymond Louie.

It's interesting Sim described himself as a Chinese-Canadian mayor because throughout the race he refused to play the race card; he also admitted his biggest regret was not learning Chinese (Cantonese).

Sim also paid tribute to his parents who have passed away. In 1967 Sim said his parents who had good jobs in Hong Kong, took the brave step of taking their three children with them to Canada to start a new life that was very difficult, but managed to have two more children including himself. 

Peppered throughout his speech, Sim said, "You can't lose if you don't give up".

Sim and his family of four boys and wife Teena

The Vancouver mayoral race was one that signalled change -- voters felt Stewart hadn't done enough to address housing and crime issues that seem to be spiralling out of control, while also tackling the Covid-19 pandemic. 

They hope a clean sweep of Sim and his party on Council and Parks Board will finally lift the political impasse of the past four years and start to really get things done.

He promised if elected to hire 100 police officers and 100 healthcare workers and reminded people tonight this would be one of the first things he would do. It is a lofty promise, but it was one that led to the Vancouver Police Union to endorse Sim -- the first time the union has ever done that.

In addition Sim promised to make it faster to get business licences and building permits to get the economy rolling.

The next four years will be interesting to watch -- a political novice becoming mayor of British Columbia's biggest city -- and how he will make Vancouver one of the best cities in the world again... we can only hope.