Urbanists and planners flocked to the city to study its transit, the co-existence of its multicultural citizens and its two-tier government that thrived even as U.S. jurisdictions clung to tax-defined borders.

If anything, Toronto's intelligentsia hated the Metro government. It was big, less susceptible to ratepayer influence and had majority political representation from the suburbs of Scarborough, North York and Etobicoke.

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But about three-quarters of services were already amalgamated under Metro. Citizens may have felt close to their city councillor, but it was the Metro councillor who was getting them to work on transit, sending out ambulances and police, setting the policies that helped build social cohesion.

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So when Harris, fulfilling his tax-cut, less-government mandate, rode into town with a plan to eliminate a level of municipal government, it was logical to keep Metro and eliminate Scarborough, North York, York, Etobicoke and East York. The biggest fight since "Stop the Spadina Expressway" was on.

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Ten years later, it's virtually impossible to determine which of Toronto's problems are the result of amalgamation, of downloading, or simply inevitable in any case.

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Toronto has updated a property tax system that was outdated and unfair, and approved a progressive climate change plan that will have influence well beyond our city. The mayor's campaign for a new deal from senior governments has resonated across Canada, lending credence to Toronto's claims of clout.

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Twelve neighbourhood councils might be better than the four community councils we have now. And party politics would more clearly define the platform and expectations of city council.

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And Miller doesn't sound like a suicidal hero of the C4LD crowd. In solidifying the mayor's office and investing it with more power, he moves in the opposite direction.

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