TORONTO - 
Members of the self-appointed establishment which continues to scrutinize Mayor Rob Ford seem drunk with envy.
They also seem unanimous in their collective disapproval.
In the meantime, Ford may be laughing his way to a legendary status that he is certain to attain if the civic leader can win this fall’s election.
With that a possibility, he must be stopped is the decree of many.
Oh man are they trying.
He’s become the media’s punching bag.
But the mayor has a few moves of his own.
Quite a few.
From the push back and social media indignation, you’d think Ford’s appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live on Monday was an apocalyptic moment in Toronto’s history.
For some mayoral candidates it could be.
Do you know what was going on Monday with any of the others who are putting their names on the ballot?
No matter how you cut it, a major late-night comedy show appearance before millions of viewers is just that.
Huge.
This is why Hollywood movie moguls trot out their stars nightly.
Not on this night.
Just 24 hours after the Oscars, Kimmel did not bring out a movie star but a new kind of sensation.
And it doesn’t matter that the skilled comic relentlessly poked fun at Ford and his Chris Farley, Tommy Boy-like journey and skillfully lampooned him.
It doesn’t matter if people were laughing with him or at him. He has proven himself to be a good sport with a sense of humour.
Others should give it a try. Some of the haters could try to lighten up some. The election is Oct. 27 and they have plenty of time to get their revenge.
Meanwhile, this appearance is a victory for Ford and Toronto — much to the chagrin of those who loath to acknowledge his mayoralty let alone offer some deserved credit for pushing Toronto’s strong points in a nontraditional way to an audience much larger than any conventional platform could provide.
This was vintage Rob Ford.
“It sheds a bit of a negative light on the city,” says Councillor Jaye Robinson.
Says who?
Worse than O.J. Simpson’s impact on Los Angeles?
Or Rodney King?
The truth is Ford’s foes just don’t know what to do. Normally, a mayor’s admission about crack smoking would lead to a resignation, but instead it has made Ford world famous.
Meanwhile, the City of Toronto is not burning to the ground. In fact, the city may have never had as much exposure or as wide a platform.
Ford will not get any credit either way. It seems there’s a like-minded mob trying to cherry pick and spin his every move as negative.
If Ford mentions Toronto’s film industry or the success of the Toronto International Film Festival premiering such Oscar-winning movies as Dallas Buyers Club, Gravity or 12 Years a Slave, you’ll find people in the movie office, or on the board, with their nose out of joint.
If he gets taken out to dinner or shows up at a Hollywood party, there’s talk about him breaching the city’s gift giving protocol. If he goes to the bathroom, there are media types prepared to follow him there.
It’s an approach that does not seem to be moving the needle. It’s not stopping people wanting to be in pictures with him — in Toronto or Hollywood.
The truth is they just don’t know what to do with this guy. They have no answer.
And some of their jealousy is more grotesque than anything Ford has done.
If they heap on the ridicule, it seems to come across as piling on. If they ignore him, the mayor finds media who did not get the memo.
The organized shaming and shunning of Ford — also directed at anyone who dares to point out it’s up to voters to pick the next mayor — is unprecedented in my time in Toronto media. In some ways, it’s backfiring because his foes are making him a victim — one people are starting to feel sorry for.
There’s no question he’s made some mistakes, but as of today there have been no criminal charges and he still is sharing the lead with the other top candidates in the race for mayor.
Like his appearance on Jimmy Kimmel, that’s a reality difficult to ignore.