Letters, April 26

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 26/04/2023 (1241 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Reminders of Lac-Mégantic

Re: Incident reopens relocation debate (April 22)

I wonder what the survivors, widows, widowers and orphans of the Lac-Mégantic rail disaster think of their town’s inaction. Our city elected officials should ponder this — then discuss the issue with prevention uppermost in mind.

I dare not think of the horror of what an equivalent (or worse) tragedy would mean in Winnipeg! These oil tankers, often immediately behind the engine, followed by lumber cars, fly through densely populated areas of our city several times a day. Through our downtown and right by the baseball diamond — on an elevated railway, no less!

What will our survivors say when we have such a tragedy? With the large number of oil tanker rail cars riding through Winnipeg on a daily basis, I expect a statistician would say the chances are pretty good that it will happen sooner or later.

Action on a project of such a magnitude requires a mayor and city council (along with provincial and federal governments) with courage to act before the tragedy occurs — not afterwards, like Lac-Mégantic.

I’m hopeful!

Ulysse Poirier

Winnipeg

Most important meal of the day

Re: Startling results in youth nutrition study (Think Tank, April 24)

Good eating habits begin in the home and proper nutrition helps to build a healthy mind and body at all ages.

In my view, the importance of breakfast cannot be overstated. Would you consider leaving on a trip without a full fuel tank?

The same applies to beginning each day. Occasionally I drive one of my granddaughters to work or school. She sometimes skips breakfast. My reaction is always this little paradox. “If you don’t have time for breakfast, have breakfast first.”

Ed Labossiere

Winnipeg

Boycott no help to surgery patients

Re: Cut Manitoba-N.D. surgery agreement: health coalition (April 22)

First, to be clear, I am a supporter of transgender rights and reproductive rights and I am appalled at some of the new discriminatory legislation in North Dakota.

But I am concerned about the article in the Free Press about the position of the Manitoba health coalition and their recommendation to stop sending Manitobans to North Dakota for surgery. I am one of those Manitobans who went to Sanford Health in Fargo last Tuesday.

Had I not had that opportunity, it would’ve been at least another six months of being in pain on the waiting list here in Manitoba. The only people that will suffer from boycotting Sanford Health are people like me in need of knee or hip replacement.

A boycott isn’t going to stop North Dakota legislators from making discriminatory legislation. But it would have stopped me from getting a knee replacement.

If we want to make changes in our healthcare system, we need to focus on doing health care better than we’re doing it now. I have to say that I was amazed by the kind of respectful service that I received at Sanford Health. Staff took the time to explain procedures and to listen to concerns — there were no waits. They have free parking and even valet parking. There was “room service” and the food was available anytime and freshly cooked on site.

I also believe in universal healthcare, but surely we could make our healthcare systems better than it is. For starters, let’s have enough nurses and doctors and pay them properly and give them the time to take care of their patients in the way that they would want to do.

So please don’t stop sending people to Fargo. Who wants to be in pain for a year or two? Let’s work towards equality, but also work towards better health care in Manitoba.

Beverly Suek

Winnipeg

Keep one Warhol

Re: New reign (April 23)

Andy Warhol is a world renowned artist. The Winnipeg Art Gallery has four of his silkscreen portraits of Queen Elizabeth which the gallery is proposing to auction off.

One portrait should be retained.

Peter Macdonald

Winnipeg

Portage and Main not so important

Re: New vision for Portage and Main coming next week (April 22)

The active transit lobbyists have lobbied city hall for years to provide a safer environmental friendly active transport way for pedestrians and bikers to get around Winnipeg.

From the increasing outrage over icy sidewalks and unplowed, flooded bike paths, to the increasing numbers of underused bike paths, to the closure of the number of active corridors from May 1 to Thanksgiving, reduced school zones limits, demand for 30 km/hr limits on residential streets, etc., all for the sake of “safety,” why would city hall even consider putting pedestrians and bikers at risk of injury or death by opening Portage and Main to active transportation?

This would be a death trap and the idea seems ludicrous at best. Portage and Main is not the iconic intersection it is lauded as — it is just another intersection, and you can cross safely a short block in either direction without difficulty. Why make it a “nightmare” and dangerous to pedestrian and vehicular traffic?

It is no longer a horse and buggy intersection. Scrap the proposal and get on with more important problems plaguing this city like homelessness, crime, addiction, and poverty.

Kim Trethart

Winnipeg

In defence of an author

Re: Grim themes and few answers in story collection (April 22)

I appreciate that a fine writer/thinker/feeler like Lauren Carter is being recognized by the Free Press for her literary presence by publishing a review of her most recent book Places Like These in the April 22 Arts and Life section. How fortunate for Manitobans to have her contribute to this province’s literary wealth.

I am, however, puzzled by Cheryl Girard’s book review. To my mind, the power of good literature lies in an author’s ability to embrace nuance and ambiguity in favour of tidy certainty. As to the book’s “grim themes”: in our world today we try so very hard to protect ourselves by adopting various forms of toxic positivity.That doesn’t serve us well.

Bravo to Carter for daring to enter the darkness with grace and wisdom and compassion. I so look forward to listening to Carter’s reflections at her McNally Robinson book launch on May 4.

Frances Ravinsky

Winnipeg

Bye bye, Tucker

Re: Tucker Carlson, Fox News have parted ways (April 25)

Good riddance to bad rubbish!

Tucker Carlson, a right-wing extremist, got up every morning and made a decision to actively lie to his audience everyday, spewing hatred and divisiveness.

His lies regarding the 2020 presidential election, conspiracy theories, and radical rhetoric have found a dedicated following in the “Trump MAGA community.”

He was also known to frequently spew xenophobic, antisemitic, racist and anti-LGBTTQ+ venom to very large audience.

Hopefully he will not find a platform to continue his extremism. The U.S. and the world are a better place without Tucker at his microphone.

Terry Meindl

Teulon