Letters, March 17

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 17/03/2025 (205 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Don’t poke the bear

Canadians need to pay close to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s negotiation skills with Trump. Sheinbaum stands firm on, “we cannot cede our sovereignty.” Protecting their sovereignty means making significant concessions to appease Trump. One does not hear Trump threaten and lambaste Mexico as he does Canada.

Sheinbaum held off on the tit-for-tat tariff threats, choosing instead patience and dialogue. Canada could be poking the bear with our counter tariffs and boycotts.

Canadians could build favour with Trump and NATO by paying more attention to increasing our military spending.

Protecting our Canadian sovereignty could involve more individual sacrifice than forgoing a winter holiday in Florida or boycotting bourbon.

Marilyn Bird

Winnipeg

Appreciating Sid the Kid

Re: Orr and Gretzky: fallen heroes (Think Tank, March 13)

I agree entirely with Mac Horsburgh. Canadians are angry with these two former Canadian hockey players, but in particular with Gretzky, due to his ongoing highly visible support of Donald Trump.

Orr’s statement that Canadians should respect Gretzky’s “personal belief and politics” doesn’t get it. This isn’t about Democratic beliefs and politics versus Republican beliefs and politics, it’s about a president who, on a daily basis, disrespects Canada as a sovereign nation and fabricates lies to justify economic warfare against the country both of these men were born in and grew up in. They probably still have extended family who live in Canada!

So enough about Orr and Gretzky. Their true colours as human beings have been made clear. Let’s instead shift our focus toward Sidney Crosby.

Besides being an exceptional hockey player, Crosby has demonstrated time and again his exceptional qualities as a human being, and as a Canadian. Mike Sullivan, Crosby’s coach in Pittsburgh — but also the coach of the U.S. team in the Four Nations Face-Off — spoke highly of him prior to the final game. Regarding Crosby, Sullivan marvelled over how much he has come to admire Crosby’s humility and grace over the last 10 years working with and observing the athlete, and described how he has always carried himself with a high level of integrity and humility.

So let’s give more credit where it is due, to Sidney Crosby, an exceptional hockey player. More importantly though, as a human being who carries himself with the qualities that we all admire and someone who has demonstrated time and again how passionate he is to be Canadian.

Craig Turner

Winnipeg

Welcoming Carney

As we welcome our new prime minister, Mark Carney, I look forward with hope to the next chapter of Canada’s future. Much has already been said about the many talents and skills Carney brings to his new role in our country.

However, his acceptance speech, while substantive, lacked the animation, energy and passion that would be helpful as he leads our government and us through our country’s existential sovereignty challenges.

Perhaps he could use a lesson or two from a certain soon-to-be unemployed former drama teacher, who has expertise and experience in that area. Just a thought!

Ellen Kolisnyk

Winnipeg

Voicing support

I’m a 78-year-old retired stockbroker originally from North Dakota. I spent most of my productive adult life there and must say the Prairies are still what I think of when I hear the word “home.”

Throughout my life in North Dakota, I spent a great deal of time in Winnipeg, and in Manitoba in general, and for that matter all over Western Canada. Suffice to say this American loves you and hates what is happening in Washington. I’m embarrassed by my country, please accept my heartfelt apology.

Dennis McMahon

Canon City, Colo.

Shout-out to arena workers

My focus in this missive is a (likely welcome) shift away from the political arena and rather one towards the hockey arenas of Winnipeg.

My wife and I have visited many of these facilities over the last few years as we became “roadies” of our three wonderful hockey-enthused grandchildren playing this truly Canadian sport.

And while, upon occasion, some of these ice surfaces seem to be in different postal codes from where we live, I was typically pleased with things like: the clean and well-stocked washrooms, friendly staff at the cafeterias, heaters that were actually on, and so on.

In addition, I continue to be duly impressed by the volunteer coaches and team managers who give graciously of their time and talents as they enhance the hockey skills of these precious young lives. Learning to play team sports also builds life skills for the larger team/society environment, a more important goal than any scoreboard can capture.

So to all of the wonderful staff and volunteers and others who contribute to this most worthy cause, I thank you sincerely!

Caregivers, don’t forget to express your gratitude to these folks as they encourage their players to play fair, to be respectful and well-mannered, and to keep their elbows down.

Then, as they grow up to be proud Canadians in the bigger national leagues of life, may we all do our part to teach them to keep their elbows up.

Phil Loewen

Winnipeg

Transparency alone won’t fix system

The Manitoba government’s initiative to implement a new surgical waitlist information system, aimed at providing patients with up-to-date data on wait times for life-saving treatments, is a commendable step towards transparency. However, it raises a crucial question: Will transparency alone improve patient outcomes, or will it merely highlight the deep-rooted issues plaguing our health-care system?

Manitoba’s surgical waitlist has reached a critical point, with over 40,000 individuals awaiting procedures — the second-largest backlog in Canada. While providing real-time information can empower patients and enhance accountability, it does little to address the underlying crisis: chronic staff shortages, limited surgical capacity, and overburdened health-care infrastructure. Transparency is only meaningful if paired with concrete actions to reduce wait times and improve patient care.

Moreover, the effectiveness of this system relies on the accuracy of the data. Inconsistent reporting or delays in updating the waitlist could result in false hopes and further frustration among patients. Additionally, we must ensure that the prioritization of surgeries remains ethically grounded, with medical urgency taking precedence over system efficiencies or technological biases.

If Manitoba truly wants to improve patient outcomes, this new system must be part of a broader strategy to increase surgical capacity, recruit and retain health-care professionals, and enhance resource allocation. Otherwise, it risks becoming a tool that highlights the cracks in the system without fixing them.

Transparency is important, but it must be accompanied by real action. Manitobans deserve more than just information — they deserve timely, effective and compassionate health care.

Yog Rahi Gupta

Winnipeg