Letters, May 25

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 25/05/2024 (847 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Where Trudeau is losing

Re: Rebounding economy could deliver gut punch to Poilievre (May 22)

I’d love to agree with Dan Lett on his recent column and I actually do agree with most of his analysis re: inflation, but he’s missing a key point. Consumers, or perhaps a better term would be ‘voters,’ aren’t seeing a 2.3 per cent inflation at the grocery store, mortgages being easier to manage are nice, but the real pressure Trudeau faces is on food, and increasing carbon taxes, neither of which Poilievre is losing on right now.

We have to get used to the idea that facts don’t matter to a rather large contingent of the electorate. Spewing facts like the Bank of Canada has kept inflation to 2.7-2.3 per cent, or that a rate cut is “probably” forthcoming, is not moving the needle so much as the belief that Bank of Canada chair Tiff Macklem is part of a global cabal trying to take over the world. You may chuckle at the stupidity of this, but there is a large subsection of people that believe this and believe Pierre Poilievre is the solution to it.

Unfortunately for Trudeau and the Liberals they still haven’t made any headway on grocery prices, gasoline is still very high and carbon taxes, which I think are a good and necessary thing, are squeezing the people who have the opposite opinion as I have. What would really be devastating for Poilievre is if Trudeau could stabilize food prices and end the profiteering. The grocery code of conduct has been too slow-moving to show ordinary people any progress. If they could bring grocery bills down I think that, along with some breathing room for mortgage renewers might then move the needle a tad in the Liberals’ direction, but until then, Poilievre is not ceding the high ground of negative effects on CPI.

Will Jones

Winnipeg

Lesson learned

Re: ‘I know I did everything wrong’ (May 23)

As someone who has been operating boats of many sizes both personally and commercially for 60 years, I possess the Transport Canada boating licence and an international licence, and yet I still make mistakes. I am very, very happy that Mr. Nott and his son survived this traumatic event, and have learned a most valuable lesson. I too, have hung my life-jacket on my seat to accommodate the laws, but not accommodate my safety. I don’t any longer.

A word of caution to all you boaters out there. That Transport Canada licence you possess is just that, a licence without any boating skill necessary. Imagine getting a driver’s licence without any knowledge of how to operate a car. Other than knowing how to get in it. Silly, right?

The container that Mr. Nott has in his hand is, to put it nicely, junk. You are required to have a bailer, (the container), a sound-making device, a whistle and a rope. The container is too small, the whistle is OK; however a Fox 40 whistle is much better, and should be attached to you with a lanyard. The rope is utterly useless. It is a nylon polypropylene rope (with a memory) bundled up in the container. When you throw this bunched-up rope at a struggling individual, remember it has memory; it will land in a bunch on the water, serving no purpose whatsoever. Buy a braided nylon rope that won’t possess a memory. Tie a length of rope from the front cleat to the back cleat that is long enough to drop off the side of your boat and allow struggling swimmers to grab onto and put a foot on and climb back into your vessel.

Make sure you put the shutoff lanyard on your wrist that will shutoff the motor, and allow you to swim back to your boat. Having an out of control boat could end in disaster for you and those around you.

In the attached picture Mr. Nott is wearing a life vest that I too possess. I recommend it to everyone. It is unobtrusive, light, comfortable and self inflates when it comes in contact with the water (not rain though). It keeps your head above the water, you can self -inflate if necessary, and will most definitely save your life.

These are just the basics. Remember, if you are operating a boat you are the Captain, what you say goes. If your passengers won’t comply don’t leave the dock.

Safe boating everyone. And to Mr. Nott, and his family I am so happy you are safe and sound. A life lesson learned.

Brad McKay

Winnipeg

Poor defence

Re: ‘I’m scared that my dad will find out where I am’ (May 24)

“There are many people who were raised with family violence and alcoholism; I can say I was one of them, but that did not give me the right to hurt anyone else and take their life,” she said. “That was the choice of a coward.”

A statement made by Elizabeth Perry, an aunt to Tessa Perry who was fatally assaulted, in front of her children, for over 45 minutes by her common-law partner Justin Robinson. Far too many times I read that the assailant was from an impoverished childhood filled with alcohol, abuse, and neglect. And the defence will often use this a crutch as to why the person acted like they did.

Elizabeth Perry did not buy that “crutch” and called him out on it. We need more people like Ms. Perry to speak up to help break this cycle.

Alfred Sansregret

Winnipeg

Be a city that cares

Re: What does our city value? (Think Tank, May 16)

I appreciated the thoughtful essay by Erna Buffie about the problems with replacing aging city infrastructure.

As a resident and volunteer, I have observed this problem specifically relating to libraries and swimming pools. In 1980, I helped organize the Wolseley Residents Association. I experienced the problems of City of Winnipeg residents trying to save local resources. In the 1980s, city bureaucrats proposed closing 4 small library branches. The trade-off was a three-tier system which gave St. Boniface a new French branch with more affluent areas of Winnipeg receiving the second tier giving them more hours, staff and books (or resources).

Branches in the inner city or less affluent areas, like Cornish, had their hours cut, resources for staff and books cut. Intense protests from local residents resulted in saving St. John’s and Cornish, William Avenue became an archives, and Brooklands was closed. It was no accident that the most disadvantaged areas suffered cuts to local branches. The bureaucrats’ long-term plan was that all residents living north of the Assiniboine should go to the Centennial main branch. Residents fought for their local branches. Luckily politicians listened and scrapped the plan.

Recently, we observe the same attempts to close city pools in disadvantaged areas. Eldon Ross is slated for closure although the children have no other facilities. Sherbrook Pool was threatened with a 4 year review. Yet city policies discourage use by charging fees that are too high for low income people. I go to Sherbrook five days a week. Three days a week, people do not attend because the charges are too high ($7?). People show up on days when the charges are low (loonie-toonie, or free). Yesterday I talked to a mother with a toddler. It cost her $3 on a cheap day. With regular charges, she would have paid $14. She cannot afford the regular admission.

It is unethical that the city charges such high fees in inner city areas that the local residents cannot afford them. Then city bureaucrats say: “These inner-city people don’t use the pools anyway.” Sounds like “These inner city kids don’t read books” which was what I heard in the 1980s to justify closing branches.

The people who need the pools and libraries the most are people who cannot afford high fees and cannot drive to other parts of the city to access big fancy facilities. City councillors need to understand that disadvantaged areas need to be prioritized as most in need because people in more affluent areas have other options.

Let’s be a city which cares instead of punishing the people who are most disadvantaged.

Ruth Swan

Winnipeg