I have been thinking about the contrast between our city as a collective being and as a collection of individual beings. As a tarot reader I could use my tarot cards to read for the city as a whole. Essentially treating it as a being of its own. I can also zoom down and see the people who make up and influence the city and read for them personally. Between these two poles I want to play and explore the life of a city through my lens of tarot with you.
If you don’t live in Toronto do not worry, as the process can be revealing and relates to any city. If you think I got it wrong somehow – either the point or the card I chose – please share you comments at the end.
Toronto is like the Hanged Man stuck in a serious way and yet all sides are sticking their tongue out at each other.
The Hanged Man has grabbed hold of Toronto. Our Mayor Rob Ford was found guilty of a conflict of interest and has been removed from office. You can catch the details here if you care to pour over them.
I know that his detractors celebrated his fall. This is certainly one aspect of the hanged man. Punishment and the ways in which people enjoy a good spectacle and righteously love seeing people fall. “At least it is now over.” was my thought when I heard the news. However, the courts and politics are rarely as clean cut as this. There is the appeal that will be filed and a request for a stay pending the appeal. Now the city sits like the hanged man swinging in the breeze of uncertainty.
As is often the case in any political conversation, both sides use the same facts to prove their point. In the middle Rob Ford rallies against the injustice of it all. I think it is very telling how quickly this particular mayor can polarize a conversation. When he was elected many people were glad he was going to punish the wasteful people who took advantage of the system. A mission to string up and hold accountable the people on the other side of his office. Now the circle has turned 180 degrees and Mr. Ford finds himself on the gibbet with the people who felt persecuted by him cheering his fall. Like the hanged man he sticks his tongue out at those who seek to hold him accountable.
Personally I think the worst part is the lack of resolution – a very Hanged Man kind of issue. It is neither the time to decry the fall of a great man if that is your perspective on him, nor show up with a box of rotten tomatoes if you fall on the other end of the spectrum. It is a time to wait, bound like the Hanged Man, until those with the power to decide can sort out the details. I think the best advice that our city can get from this time is to sit back and reflect on what brought us here and how we can work together to keep our city on track.
If you agree or disagree with the card I chose, or my view on this topic please leave a respectful comment on this post.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Andrew
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“Paperbox” image by Andrew McGregor used under Creative Commons License.