TTC exec fired, girlfriend loses $50,000 contract — Project manager John Cursio broke conflict of interest rule by helping Robin Thoen land $50,000 photo job

TTC will no longer use services of photographer Robin Thoen and has fired John Cursio, who got Thoen $50,000 gig. (MICHAEL DICK/CBC NEWS (left), BRAD PRITCHARD/TORONTO COMMUNITY NEWS)

TTC paid executive’s friend $50,000 — Senior manager’s long-time female companion got plum job taking photos at meetings, building sites

According to those who know him, this guy is an entitled, arrogant asshole who saw nothing wrong about breaking or ignoring conflict of interest rules.  If you read the story below, you will see that he clearly lied about his numerous illegal or unethical actions and is now off work–paid of course–while an investigation is underway. The Star is back in my good books…

Unfortunately, this is typical corruption that will not be punished adequately, and which was condoned and/or covered up by others in the system. Yet when an idiot had an affair that has nothing to do with politics, people drool…

TTC project manager John Cursio oversees part of the Transit City project.  Inset: Robin Thoen was also at the TTC open house, taking photographs. Thoen and Cursio met in the early 2000s. (BRAD PRITCHARD/ TORONTO COMMUNITY NEWS FILE PHOTO, MICHAEL DICK/CBC NEWS)

City budget meeting turns into screaming match — Councillor to resident: ‘Come on down, baby!’

Toronto Mayor David Miller confers with Coun. Paula Fletcher July 16, 2007 at City Council chambers (YVONNE BERG/TORONTO STAR FILE PHOTO)

Well, this MP Argument for Birth Control, Helena Guergis, is one such person.  Does she deserve to lose her job over throwing a temper tantrum at the airport when she showed up late and had to act like a normal citizen (well, a VIP normal citizen, since anyone else would not be allowed on the plane)?  I’m not sure.  But I guarantee you that this is not an anomaly.  Also, her Argument for Birth Control husband–Rahim Jaffer, a former Conservative Edmonton MP who campaigned on a drug-free platform (among other things, of course)–recently made the papers for cocaine possession and drunk driving.  This was an arrogant, entitled, “beautiful power couple” who were the darlings of the right wing/Conservatives.  Trust me, they are both assholes.  You’ll see…(the COMMENTS section contains the rest of this story).

Junior cabinet minister Helena Guergis, who allegedly arrived minutes before her flight was to leave Charlottetown on Feb. 19, 2010 and yelled obscenities at airport workers, should be forced to resign her post, critics say. (PAWEL DWULIT/THE CANADIAN PRESS FILE PHOTO)

Far from being a question of sour grapes, Russian commentators were already expressing their reservations as to the integrity of the Vancouver Lobby being able to host the Olympic Games weeks before the start. After all the IOC was starting to fire off in all directions before the first aircraft arrived.

We already have the case of a Russian skier being hounded to produce a urine sample after qualifying for a race, and if she had given the sample, she would not have had the possibility of entering the following round. Natalya Korosteleva was asked to provide a urine sample during a half-hour pause between the quarter-finals and semi-finals of a skiing event. “This seems against all the rules,” she stated, as she refused to have the sample taken, alleging that if she did, she would not have had time to continue in the next phase. Why her?

We all know Canada has problems with the future lines drawn on Arctic maps and we all know Canada lives in the shadow of its larger neighbour to the south. The abject cruelty shown by Canadian soldiers in international conflicts is scantily referred to, as indeed is the utter incapacity of this county to host a major international event, due to its inferiority complex, born of a trauma being the skinny and weakling bro to a beefy United States and a colonial outpost to the United Kingdom, whose Queen smiles happily from Canadian postage stamps.

Maybe it is this which makes the Canadians so…retentive, or cowardly. So it is not exactly a huge surprise to have international skating experts from the four corners of the Earth criticising the decision to award the Men’s figure skating Gold medal to the US athlete Evan Lysacekv over the reigning Olympic Champion Evgeny Plushenko, whose superior performance was inexplicably ignored.

As Plushenko explains, “I did a great short program but did not get the marks I deserved. When I asked why, they told me I was skating early and they had to retain top marks for the last group…Then in the free program, I was the last to skate, did everything clean and still didn’t get the marks”.

Everybody who knows anything about Olympic skating, Winter Olympic sports and international politics will infer from the pitiful and dangerous conditions provided by the Canadian authorities, which already caused one death, that Vancouver is mutton dressed as lamb. Take off the outer veneer and the stench is horrific.

It is a surprise that any Russian athlete would wish to remain in that sort of environment for a second longer.

Timothy BANCROFT-HINCHEY

Now, the doctors are apparently volunteering their services at this clinic in BC that is letting all these people take advantage of our health-care system while ordinary Canadians continue to suffer.  But if they want to do volunteer work, why don’t they go to Haiti or some under-serviced community in CANADA?  No, they want to lay their hands on these Olympic stars.  Sheesh…

The COMMENTS section contains the two CP24 stories.  Douche…

I am not a big fan of the Olympics, as I’ve stated a number of times, especially due to the sappy coverage.  However, I have to admit that I was captivated by Alexandre Bilodeau’s achievement of being the first Canadian to win gold on home turf.  And now I just got choked up watching him and his family–including his brother, who is his inspiration for greatness–being interviewed by the human sleep-inducing machine, Brian Williams (I think that’s his name).  If anyone is deserving of such an accomplishment, it’s this apparently upstanding young man.  He has warmed this jaded man’s heart…

(ANDRE FORGET/QMI AGENCY)

This link takes you to the Star, which has a video of the criminals.

In fact, judging from what I’ve seen and read about his girlfriend, I would say his being with this stupid young woman is a sign of poor judgment.  Okay, we’ll ignore her collagen lips (she does look like Octo-mom, no?) and unflattering pictures that I’m sure she uploaded herself to http://www.drinktheglitter.com/search?q=kristen+lucas .

I agree with Lily that we should question this young woman’s motives in exposing Giambrone.  Her supporters claim she’s bright but how smart can one be when she says something along the lines of “Okay, I’ll stay with you as long as you tell your real girlfriend about us.”  Really?  You think he’s going to tell his girlfriend about you?  And you think she was going to say “okay, Adam, you can keep your girlfriend on the side and I’ll continue to be your “political wife”…”  Idiot.

And yes, some will think I’m being too harsh on the young woman and maybe judging a book by its cover.  But as always, all I can say is that my “spidey sense” has never been wrong thus far and I stand by it again.  My spidey sense tells me that this woman is messed up.  Not just desperate but messed up.  Not psychotic and not psychopathic but just messed up.  Trust me…

On a side note, Giambrone showed how much of an incompetent robot he is when he literally ran out of his press conference after realizing that his scripted apology was missing a page.  Everyone claims that this guy is so bright.  Well, most researchers, clinicians and theorists alike recognize that an important component of intelligence (especially among non-elderly people) is fast “processing speed,” at least with respect to the kind of intelligence they ascribe to Giambone.  He’s not fast on his feet, can’t think for himself and is not flexible minded.  Giambrone, you’re simply a “bright” suck-up with dangerous ambition.  You have yet to prove your worth as a politician in any capacity, other than your ability to kiss Miller’s ass and land plum assignments because you’re such a sycophant.  Shame on you.  Douche.

Kristen Lucas decided to come forward about her relationship with TTC chair Adam Giambrone after reading that he was married. (Feb. 7, 2010) (CARLOS OSORIO/TORONTO STAR)