Letters, Nov. 6

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This article was published 06/11/2023 (710 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Zoning changes a fatal blow

Mayor Scott Gillingham is pushing for zoning changes that would allow unfettered development of up to four housing units on a single lot. In my opinion, this would be a death knell for Winnipeg’s older neighbourhoods.

Apparently the mayor cares little about the people already living in those neighbourhoods. I was a longtime resident of resident of River Heights until this year and the area is littered with ugly infill housing, much of which included the splitting up of single lots into multiple lots.

Giving developers the ability to buy older properties, raze them, and build multi-unit buildings without council requiring input from the people living in the area is wrong. Developers do not care about the neighbourhood. Just like the mayor, I guess.

Irwin Corobow

Winnipeg

Unacknowledged massacre

I read with interest Niigaan Sinclair’s recent article regarding the 1845 letter sent to Cuthbert Grant, who was appointed “warden of the plains” by the HBC.

I think it is difficult for our generations to appreciate the context of those times, the violence and danger. Buffalo were no longer abundant, almost hunted to extinction by that point, and everyone relied on that food source. An ugly bit of history, occurring only a few years after that letter was sent, is the Pilot Mound massacre that occurred in the 1850s. Five-hundred ninety-seven Sioux warriors were killed and buried on the western slope of the Old Mound, with two Sioux survivors allowed to carry the story of the massacre back to their people.

This terrible retribution was unleashed as a consequence of several Métis buffalo hunters having been murdered by Sioux. All there is to recognize that this terrible genocide occurred is an ambiguous sign on the highway near Pilot Mound. By comparison, Custer’s Last Stand at the Battle of Little Bighorn resulted in under 400 dead. It would be improper for the Pilot Mound massacre to go unacknowledged, and in the spirit of truth and reconciliation, this story should not fall victim to revisionist history.

I suggest that a proper memorial be built on the mound, and that this should be a National Park, much like Batoche. The Pilot Mound massacre could be the largest battle of the “Indian Wars” on the Great Plains, yet few have heard of it.

Daryl Martel

Winnipeg

Time for homegrown support

Nearly 30 years ago the Winnipeg Jets were struggling. Attendance was down and it wasn’t financially viable to keep them here.

At the threat of losing the team, and NHL hockey in our city, fans came together to do something. Citizens rallied around Winnipeg for weeks and dug deep into our pockets, tossing thousands upon thousands of dollars at the problem in hopes to correct it, but it was too late.

We didn’t have NHL hockey in Winnipeg for 15 years. An entire generation grew up without a local player as their hockey hero. Kids didn’t get to experience the thrill of seeing their favourite player around town.

My generation moved into the peak of our adulthood without the ability to see a game in person without some significant travel and expense. Most of us just stopped following hockey altogether.

And for 15 years, people sought opportunities to bring the team back. Build a new arena, find someone rich enough to carry a team in a small market, build a business plan that could make it all work. A Save The Jets campaign (starting with Spirit of Manitoba) began during the threat of losing them, and remained active and visible through all those years.

We wanted NHL back. But even more, we wanted our Jets back.

The Jets 1.0 were never champions. We had an average team and while we often snuck into the playoffs near the end of the season, we never lasted long. It didn’t seem to matter to many. I mean, we all wanted them to win, we wanted to attend games that concluded with a win. But in the end, it was NHL hockey — a chance to watch Gretzky, Lemieux, Roy, Bure, Lindros, Selanne, Hull in action in person — that made it worth going.

But a new generation came of age. Immediate gratification took over a previous humble and grateful attitude and fans began to turn their backs without considering the consequences. Attendance began to decline and there was no stopping the self-serving attitudes of people only wanting to support winners. Unfortunately, those attitudes lost us a team and devastated a city for over a decade.

We live in Winnipeg. As much as I love my city, and I love it immensely, I am well aware how basic and irrelevant it often seems. We just cannot compete with some of the larger metropolitan cities. But we don’t need to. Being average, insignificant and unknown also makes us great. It keeps us being exactly what we are and keeps us grateful, humble, content. We are truly blessed.

But many just don’t get it. They want it all, and then some, and do not consider what that attitude will cost us. The devastation of losing an NHL team has been forgotten. The gratitude of getting one back has been lost. And the threat of losing them again is once again being talked about.

So Winnipeg. Jets fans. NHL fans. This is a call to all of you. (Especially businesses who could use the write-offs). Support NHL hockey in Winnipeg by any means possible. Jets Executive Chairman Mark Chipman said they are staying for the long haul and I want to believe him, but business is business and history tends to repeat itself. So let’s not wait for fundraisers and campaigns desperately trying to save NHL in our city. Instead, put those dollars into seats and keep the Jets at home where they belong.

Sheri Stein

Winnipeg

For want of a jab

When I check with the pharmacy where my husband and I have been getting our COVID and flu shots, I’m told that their age 65-plus shots ran out quickly, and they haven’t been able to acquire more. But they are on order.

Where are these shots hiding? Why can’t seniors access what is made specifically for them?

Can someone explain?

Marianne Wawrykow

Winnipeg

Settlement hardly exorbitant

Re: High cost to settle strike (Letters, Nov. 2)

In his letter to the editor on Nov. 2, James Petsnik bemoans the fact that vehicle owners will have to pay for what he must consider to be the exorbitant contract increase of MPI workers of 13 per cent over four years. Canada’s inflation rate as measured on Oct. 12 was stated as 3.8 per cent. If the MPI contract is divided by year, the increase is less than the rate of inflation. This does not sound exorbitant to me.

It seems to me that it was not necessary that the union was pushed to the point of having to strike, and lose two months of salary in order to achieve this, what seems to me, fair agreement.

Brent Corrigan

Winnipeg

Fights appealing, for some

Re: Drop the puck, not the gloves (Letters, Nov. 3)

I am responding to Kenneth Miller’s letter in Friday’s paper. I totally agree that having concussion protocol in place is a good idea. As Mr. Miller states, many fans love to see fisticuffs,and this kind of behaviour should indeed be banned.

The problem is that would likely negatively affect ticket sales,and going by news reports, filling seats has been a problem lately.

Michael Dowling

Winnipeg