Letters, Dec. 12

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 12/12/2023 (1019 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Using privilege wisely

Re: Manitoba’s North Star (Letters, Dec. 8)

Miigwech to Bill Martin in sharing the idea that the economy is a tool, or the means, not the end.

The dilemma of course is both knowing and acting on what could be a good “end.” There’s no end to variations on “what is a good end, purpose, collective goodness?” It’s no secret that many Manitobans love their neighbours, their relatives and the natural world around them.

It’s no secret that many of us live in comfort, a material comfort sustained by one of the ends of our economy: investments, salaries, energy, food in excess and laws. While I may be a reconciliation accomplice, an equity, justice and Earth advocate, I too live depending on and benefiting from the many ends of how we currently organize ourselves.

To be a more equitable community, I will need to hold up the mirror and learn more how the ends justify the means in our ways, and that I’m part of what ends up marginalizing many people whose daily realities I can’t even imagine even though I walk among many who suffer. Those of us on the higher privileged end of the spectrum literally drive, then walk back into our comforts at the end of the day and recharge for our next time out, our next time helping, earning and then buying the best, the latest, the most convenient material ways of living all sustained by the current “ends” of our system.

What to actually do? How to spend privilege? Actually spread the wealth? Those are some pressing questions.

Peter Krahn

Winnipeg

Ministries must co-ordinate on fixes

Re: Health care and education – not tax cuts (Think Tank, Dec. 9)

The article by Joanne Seif reports on the negative effect that cuts to education funding by the province have had on health care. The article recommends that additional training is required to meet the demands for nurses and doctors by our healthcare system.

Not only do I strongly advocate for such a change, and suggest it needs to be extended to staff that provide essential services, including maintenance, personal care and diagnostics, but I will point out that this approach to improving health care requires a collaborative effort that extends beyond health.

To achieve this goal, an independent umbrella organization is required with representation from all of the relevant ministries, since this will ensure effective co-ordination of this multipronged effort. Only in this way will it be possible to make the necessary decisions that will lead to improvements in health care.

Peter Zahradka

Winnipeg

Word of caution

Re: Workers should be part of PC coalition (Dec. 8)

I note that Royce Koop’s advice regarding working-class Canadians’ involvement in Conservative politics is not directed at workers themselves, but at the various parties of the right, including the Manitoba Conservatives.

He offers the British Labour Party and the American Democratic Party as examples of worker discontent with left political parties, suggesting that “these parties have become less attentive to the needs of workers.” These examples are not very persuasive, given that an American president (Biden) recently joined a United Auto Workers picket line and the U.K. Conservatives’ Brexit disaster and general incompetence continues to harm working people.

That citizens can be persuaded to vote against their own interests is a long-standing frustration, and cynical exploitation of legitimate working-class grievances, and advice to that end, should give us pause. Red Toryism is long gone and garden variety conservatism can too easily morph into populism and authoritarian nationalism.

Alternative examples of populist Conservative wooing of working-class voters should include: in the U.S., Trump’s GOP, of course; in France Marine Le Pen; Georgia Meloni in Italy; Viktor Orban in Hungary; and Poland’s Jaroslaw Kaczynski. Apart from regressive social values and dangerous nostalgia, not much real benefit there.

And contemporary Germany provides us the example of the populist AfD (Alternative for Deutschland), but also the prototypical historical example of Weimar Germany, 1933. So I would curb ill-considered enthusiasm for Conservative overtures to working-class Canadians and add a word of caution: be careful what you wish for!

Sig Laser

Winnipeg

Take CSIS dysfunction seriously

Re: CSIS boss apologizes for response to rape (Dec. 9)

CSIS Director David Vigneault is acting and talking like a man desperate to save his job.

All of a sudden, the employee responsible for this disgusting behaviour has been fired even though allowed to continue working for several years after the rapes. Now we have an “urgent” creation of an ombudsman years after the fact. As usual, CSIS trots out an overused soundbite, apparently taking the issue “very seriously”, now that the “sh-t” has hit the fan. If that was the case why was nothing done immediately when “Jane Doe” first reported the incidents in 2021?

Lacking any concrete actions, a second female officer was sexually assaulted by the same culprit. Now CSIS has a scandal on their hands. Any publicity about our country’s security intelligence agency is detrimental to its operations.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau calls the allegations “devastating” and has promised his government will follow up “very directly.” If Trudeau is taking this situation “very seriously,” he should “urgently” relieve Vigneault of his position for his lack of leadership.

Gary McGimpsey

Winnipeg

Thoughts on the season

So I’ve been thinking about stuff lately and it covers many topics.

One in particular at this time of year is Christmas. While based on religious ideals originally, it has become for the lack of a better term bastardized into a weird set of expectations that really not many of us mere humans can live up to.

I say this with respect to those of devoted religious belief as it is not for me to say what is true or what is not and I won’t bore anyone with what I believe.

I am sure other religions have similar festivals or recognitions that I would include in this review.

I will say based on the economic status that us mere humans have fallen into the trap of material expectations and there are more than enough companies that take full advantage of us. If you are expecting me to name them, I won’t because it is all of them!

They literally shamed us all into making sure our “loved” ones are taken care of even at the expense of our financial well being. Which is completely destroyed each year by January.

In my 67 years there are a few things I would like to share, not as suggestions but observations and you take from them what you will.

I love Christmas but not for the reasons you may think. It is not religion or commerce, nor decorated trees or songs like Jingle Bells or White Christmas or feel good movies like A Christmas Carol, A Christmas Story (my personal favourite), or even Home Alone! All of which I will admit I do enjoy.

Why am I really crazy about Christmas, why you ask? It is the general feeling of warmth in the soul that the season provides.

Once a year it seems like most people seem to raise their standards for acceptance and tolerance of each other which is truly noticeable and to me sad, as I do not understand why it only lasts few short days or weeks.

I truly hope anyone who reads this can get the “Christmas spirit” no matter what their situation or religion is and realize that feeling good about our fellow man is all that really matters, if we truly get that right, there will be hope for this world!

Hope you have someone with you to love and if you don’t know it does come even if you may not recognize it!

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

Ken Shaw

Ste. Anne