Letters, Aug. 13

Do unto others

Re: Cheers, jeers as drug site opens (Aug. 12)

I write as a former pastor and alumni volunteer at Oak Table in the basement of Augustine Centre in Osborne Village. There we welcomed, served and supported our guests with food, friendship, fellowship and guidance to social services to improve their circumstances.

I wish that our mayor, a former pastor himself, was more supportive of the safe injection site intended to keep drug users from dying and to help in rehabilitation.

A quote from Christian writings, Matthew 25:40 seems most relevant. The writer has Jesus speaking of the last judgment with these words: “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.”

May that passage guide us both morally and spiritually in improving the quality of life of all the citizens of our city and province.

John Wesley Oldham, Winnipeg

Fears and jeers are not an appropriate response. The supervised consumption site debate too often assumes a false dichotomy: either supervised consumption or treatment spots, not both.

Are there enough treatment spots for those seeking recovery from addiction? No. But creating more treatment spots won’t fix that problem — we will always have limited capacity, and sometimes this capacity will not be enough. We need to examine how we can ensure the spots are used effectively.

One example of ineffective policy is the criminal justice system mandating treatment, which makes it seem like a punishment. Addictions treatment with the aim of abstinence is bound to fail unless the user wants to quit. Drug users are human, they have varied reasons for using drugs. Some use street drugs to self-medicate their mental health disorders, others may find relief from trauma in drugs. Abstinence-only policy fails to acknowledge the very real chemical dependency that forms, even if one is in a state of good mental health. We need to build rapport to understand motivations; finding out how to help such folk requires trust founded upon patience and listening.

Drug users are human and they will falter in recovery. Some missteps will be small, sometimes they will result in relapse. Even those actively pursuing treatment will find it challenging to ignore cravings, especially if their social circle actively uses drugs. Supervised consumption can ensure that a recovering addict’s relapse won’t be their final act.

Supervised consumption is not a panacea but advocates do not suggest it is. It is merely part of a compassionate drug policy.

Kelsey Enns, Winnipeg

The fact is …

Re: Hydro takes heat over $3 billion gas power plan (Aug. 11)

James Wilt of the Climate Action Team mistakenly claims that three outages of the two current gas turbines in Brandon means that gas turbines aren’t a reliable way to meet Manitoba’s peak electrical loads.

To be clear, both turbines were available the majority of the time during those winter peaks. During the outages Wilt referenced, usually only one of the two units was out of service at any given time and often for only a few hours within a multi-day, high demand period.

As Manitoba Hydro’s chief operating officer Hal Turner stated in his Think Tank piece, “The right plan for reliable energy” (Aug. 11), our 20-year-old combustion turbines at Brandon enjoy an availability factor of 91 per cent. That indicates they are, in fact, reliable.

Manitobans deserve to hear the facts as we plan to meet their future energy needs.

Scott Powell, Director of corporate communications and marketing, Manitoba Hydro

Bipole III billions

Re: “Good debt or bad” (Letters, Aug. 10)

I wish to endorse Don Marion’s letter, particularly his reference to the routing of Bipole III.

As a retired Hydro engineering vice-president and member of the Bipole III Coalition, our group spent a tremendous amount of effort, 15 years ago, pointing out the horrible consequences of routing Bipole III on the west side of the province.

The Hydro engineers’ plan, which our coalition supported, proposed a route on the east side of Lake Winnipeg at a cost of less than $1 billion. The government of the day, led by Gary Doer, directed Hydro to avoid the east side, leaving Hydro with no option but to spent $5 billion, to build a much longer transmission line on the west side of the province.

The government’s reason for spending five times more to avoid the less-expensive east side was that a United Nations Heritage site, called Pimachiowin Aki, would supposedly bring in millions of tourist dollars. To date we have heard nothing of this “fabulous” tourist area being a cash cow. It turned out to be another government boondoggle.

Will Tishinski, Winnipeg

Support, enforcement required

Re: The drugs changed – our system didn’t (Think Tank, Aug. 11)

Marion Willis has written a persuasive article about the current addiction/housing/poverty tragedy unfolding in our city. There seem to be as many opinions about what’s needed to solve the problem as there are panhandlers at intersections.

Two things seem clear — nothing will change as long as the various levels of government pick away at the problem; and a successful solution will require significant cost, ultimately funded by individual and corporate tax payers.

As a retired person with a modest but adequate income, I am prepared to pay my fair share through an increase in tax. I suspect most people would, too — as long as additional funds are clearly and transparently dedicated to a co-ordinated attack on the problem, and the strategic plan is based on empirical data rather than political ideology. Perhaps a clearly labelled surcharge, much like school taxes are separated from municipal tax.

I have one other suggestion. The Controlled Drugs and Substances Act of 1996 outlines punishment for trafficking of controlled drugs, classified in order of seriousness from Schedule I, II, III, IV and V. If the subject matter of an offence is a substance included in Schedule I or II, the convicted person is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for life. Schedule I and II substances include heroin, methamphetamine and fentanyl.

I have no recollection of reading about a drug trafficker being sentenced to life. I suggest that the federal government be petitioned to treat drug trafficking in the same way as first-degree murder — life with no chance of parole for 25 years. The ‘life’ bit is already there.

This would be very expensive and there would inevitably be low-level users/dealers caught in the same web as the kingpins who really need to be put away. But we are in the midst of a major and worsening crisis, and what we are (or are not) doing isn’t working.

Terry Dann, Winnipeg

Just say no

We seem to have lost the thread here. We, and the media, keep talking about “trade negotiations” but we are ‘extortionees’ dealing with extortionists.

Our business has been fire-bombed and we are simply feeling out how much it might cost to prevent future bombings. Of course, any accomplished extortionist or blackmailer knows that the first agreed upon price is just the starting point.

Does anyone believe that the “plan” — essentially how much sovereignty we will have to surrender to have unilateral and unjustified tariffs reduced — to be presented to the extortionist-in-chief, even if accepted, will be the final word?

At the end of the day we may just have to make our business as fire-resistant as possible and just say “NO” to extortion.

Norman Brandson, Winnipeg