In an era when newspapers are struggling to survive, The Globe and Mail has foolishly given its readers one more reason to cancel their subscriptions: replacing must-read city hall columnist John Barber with unreadable international affairs columnist Marcus Gee.
After thirteen years at the clamshell, Barber deserves new challenges so I can’t really begrudge his decision — and I look forward to reading him in the Review section — but I am shocked and appalled that anyone believes that Canada’s answer to Bill Kristol is a worthy successor.
Barber is the kind of guy who loves vintage Detroit V8s — he dubbed his Grand Marquis the Grand Monkey — but rides his bike to work. Someone who understands urban issues, how city hall works (or, too often, doesn’t) and why it all matters so much, he wrote with insight, passion and plenty of wit. He never allowed himself to be sucked in by the cocktail party nonsense about socialists hordes taking over city hall and delighted in chronicling the clownish antics of the councillors who oppose Mayor David Miller. But he certainly was not shy about gleefully detailing the follies, foibles and flaws of the mayor and his allies either. Barber was, quite simply, the paper’s best columnist.
Not just bad news for the Globe, his departure is also a blow to those of us who care about Toronto, a city with great promise, but daunting challenges. The colleagues Barber leaves behind, he left behind years ago: at the Star, Royson James confuses crankiness with intelligence; at the Sun, Sue-Ann Levy sees reds under every bed; and at the Post… wait, is the Post still publishing?
My guess is the Globe bosses really do believe socialists run the city and they’ve promoted Gee to this crucial column to rant about it (and, if all goes well, influence the outcome of the next mayoral election). So here’s what we can expect: paint-by-numbers punditry, high dudgeon about high taxes and constant whingeing about the so-called war on the car.
That’s not a column I will be reading.