Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 22/7/2021 (350 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Great place to visit, but...
Re: City makes Time’s list of World’s Greatest Places (July 21) and Demise of downtown (July 21)
It’s ironic indeed that a story about Time magazine naming Winnipeg as one of the world’s greatest destinations appeared in the paper on the same day the front-page story was how, in the city’s centre, 2,000 downtown workers have lost jobs, businesses have lost $139 million and recovery from the pandemic could take years.
All one has to do is walk from the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, to Portage and Main, to Qaumajuq at the WAG, to see the decay and decline of our city. Mayor Brian Bowman, are you aware?
Rennie Bodi
Winnipeg
Flim-flam on mental health
Re: Province to make mental health plan (July 20)
Audrey Gordon, minister of mental health, wellness and recovery, tries to sell yet another delay in taking action to address the alarming gaps in mental-health care that have been studied and studied and studied some more.
Using a government-approved flim-flam tactic, she proposes hiring a consultant. No doubt there will be community consultations and lots of listening to stakeholders. Concerned citizens and medical experts will repeat what they have pleaded for and recommended in past reports. In the meantime, lives will be lost.
But Gordon can pretend to be taking action, just as Premier Brian Pallister pretended to care by creating a cabinet position dedicated to mental health, wellness and recovery.
It seems that this government seeks input from the public before crafting legislation only when that serves to delay action that it deems too expensive or esoteric. In contrast, it has been fascinating to see the premier and cabinet dismiss a groundswell of opposition to the proposed education legislation, Bill 64, which was deliberately hidden from the public, as coming from a vocal minority.
Arpena Babaian
Winnipeg
Vaccine cards unethical
Re: Fake vaccine cards spark rethink (COVID roundup, July 20)
Another option to overcome the problem of fake cards would be to stop their use altogether considering that other provinces have decided against them. Even though they are immoral, unethical and illegal, Premier Brian Pallister has decided to make Manitoba an example of medical tyranny in Canada.
On July 27, the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, which on its walls is emblazoned "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights", will open its doors and discriminate visitors based on their medical history.
How ironic that, after 16 months, in their eagerness for more freedom, Manitobans are, perhaps unknowingly, accepting an instrument of greater control but, oh yeah, it’s for our health.
Mike Houvardas
Winnipeg
Securing vaccine QR code
Re: Missing their shot at more privileges (July 21)
I also had to wait a couple of days for my vaccination record to be corrected but, to avoid another delay while waiting for my card to arrive in the mail, I elected to take a "screenshot" of the QR code, below my name, with my phone when I was logged into the Shared Health website. Now, if asked for proof, I can open my photos app and display a picture of the QR code, which can be read by the scanning app available to commercial establishments.
Robert Nichols
Winnipeg
Medical apartheid feared
Re: Leaders lack courage at key pandemic moments (Opinion, July 20)
Why is Dan Lett so obsessive over the issue of vaccine passports, or more accurately, over the rewarding of the vaccinated and the punishing of the unvaccinated? For people who are vaccinated, and therefore safe from COVID-19, one wonders why he still finds the unvaccinated such a threat to him, and why does he find these people so deplorable for having made a different choice.
He decries our government leaders’ "lack of courage" in forcing vaccine status on every sector of public life. He needs to review his history and recall what happens when governments deliberately create divisions among their own citizens. Does he really want our country to be known for its medical apartheid?
Annemarie Wiebe
Morden
Space tourism concerning
Re: Amazon founder blasts into space on own rocket (July 21)
I’ve been reading and listening to all the hoopla with regards to recent space tourism by Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos and others. Although it’s exciting to think about all the positive spinoffs of space exploration and space research, has anyone documented the environmental/climate change/pollution results of these spaceships exiting and returning to earth?
We already have many difficulties with regards to ocean warming, glacier melting, flooding, increased air temperatures, forest fires, pollution, etc. How will space tourism affect all of these? It’s concerning.
Donna Eastoe
Winnipeg
Tomahawk Chips racist
Re: Can we still say Tomahawk? (Letters, July 20)
I agree with letter writer James Roberts’ comments in reference to the marketing of Tomahawk Chips, which has inked a national distribution deal.
I find the name racist, up there with Redskins and Eskimos. When I hear the word Tomahawk, I see an offensive weapon used in violence and hate. The name should be changed. Until then, any product bearing that logo should be removed from store shelves.
Mike Feist
Winnipeg
Rioter deserved sentence
Re: Capitol rioter who breached Senate gets 8 months for felony (July 19)
I read with interest — more like disgust — the quote from rioter Paul Hodgkins’ lawyer, Paul Leduc: "He is hurt. He is sad. Life is coming at him 100 m.p.h." Hodgkin’s pain arose when he learned he was going to jail for eight months due to his participation in the U.S. Capitol riot on Jan. 6, which journalist Michael Tarm calls, "one of the worst episodes in American history."
Consequences come from actions, both good and bad. Former police officer Derek Chauvin was responsible for the death of George Floyd. Had Chauvin been sentenced to six months house arrest on weekends, U.S. outrage would have exploded.
So it is with Hodgkins. Justice was somewhat served and a message was sent about our actions and consequences.
Dennis McGavock
Winnipeg
Teen’s letter appreciated
Re: Through an Ojibway teen’s eyes (Letters, July 20)
Riley Twovoice, 15, is thoughtful and articulate. Their letter is brilliantly spot on. I especially appreciate the comparison between the residential school system and slavery. "Saying that residential schools were meant to give Indigenous children skills and abilities to fit into society is a lot like saying that slavery in America was meant to lower Black unemployment."
New Minister of Indigenous Reconciliation and Northern Relations Alan Lagimodiere must resign. It is apparent that, despite his heritage, he knows less than nothing about Indigenous culture and what truth and reconciliation really means.
Debbie Ammeter Sipley
Cartier
Speed bumps hurtful
As someone concerned with accessibility in Winnipeg, I can tell you that speed bumps to slow traffic are barriers to those who have mobility issues and need mobility aids, and to those who have medical conditions such as chronic pain disabilities. Going over these bumps, even going as slowly as possible, is a painful experience, and bars those with medical conditions from these streets.
Judy Herscovitch
Winnipeg
