Ontario Premier Doug Ford speaks to media at a premiers' meeting in Halifax on July 15.Darren Calabrese/The Canadian Press
Better days
Re “The chaos of party nomination races is no longer a joke – it’s a threat to national security” (Opinion, Sept. 28), “How not to run a country: Government ineptitude and Canada’s economic malaise” (Report on Business, Sept. 28) and “Politicking Pierre can do better than silly sloganeering” (Opinion, Sept. 28): With disgust and depression, I read these opinions on the decline of democracy and civility in Canada.
Disgust at the tendency of well-meaning citizens seeking to serve via politics, but blocked by party and parliamentary rules, rendering their voices silent. Depressed by the inertia of our leaders to change the status quo.
Hopefully a dynamic one amongst us will be the prime minister to bring renewal, seize back control of our own destiny from foreign corporations and governments, encourage us to focus on younger generations and not seniors (of which I am one) and adopt policies of transparency and efficiency.
Dreaming in technicolor? Perhaps. Possible? Yes.
Ken Mackenzie Calgary
Payoff
Re “To safeguard democracy, voting should be mandatory” (Sept. 26): Rather than trying to force citizens to vote, which would create a bureaucracy to ensure compliance and sanctions on those who don’t, I suggest offering incentives to vote. Tax credits or cash payments should be considered.
Or, for a society which seems enamoured with betting, how about lottery tickets?
Paul Striowski Toronto
Drive through
Re “Doug Ford’s proposed tunnel under Highway 401 is transparently political” (Sept. 28): Doug Ford should put people ahead of cars, then he would solve Highway 401 gridlock. Removing two lanes of traffic and replacing them with high-speed train service would move far more people than all the other lanes combined, more safely and at lower cost.
If Mr. Ford were a true conservative who believes users should pay for services they use, then he would also welcome tolls on highways, based on time-of-day usage. It would be the simplest and fairest way to eliminate gridlock, stress and pollution.
These two strategies would strengthen Mr. Ford’s green credentials.
John Newell Toronto
I applaud Doug Ford’s vision, but we’ll likely have flying pigs, er, cars long before it becomes a reality.
Many of today’s delays, and accidents, on our highways are caused by motorists who refuse to get in the appropriate exit lane early enough. Their last-minute tactics slow both the lane they are exiting and the one they are trying to barge into. Nowhere is this more apparent to me than in north Toronto, on the Highway 404 southbound lanes from Steeles Avenue to Highway 401 every evening.
A short-term solution would be to make the left-most express lanes entry only from west Mississauga to east Scarborough. Cameras would monitor miscreant exiters for whom large fines would apply.
Rule changes would be required to allow long-haul trucks into the left-most lanes, saving time, fuel and pollution.
Len Ashby Toronto
Perhaps a less expensive alternative to tunnelling under Highway 401 would be to give every driver in Ontario a transponder for Highway 407, with the bill going to the Ministry of Transportation. Revenues from the 407 were “only” $1.5-billion in 2023.
That seems reasonable compared to the loss of $1.1-billion annually to eliminate licence-plate stickers and $225-million to sell beer in convenience stores a few months early.
Stephen Shevoley Vernon, B.C.
Courting solutions
Re “B.C.’s most vexing election question: What can be done about its drug crisis?” (Opinion, Sept. 27): I know what doesn’t work: legalization of drugs and public injection sites.
Unfortunately, Oregon also tried legalization with similar results. Others have tried injection sites, also not working.
Why? A belief, mistaken, that with limits, those who use drugs are capable of controlling their drug use and continue to work, parent and do other important activities.
What is effective are drug treatment courts; research supports their success whether the participant volunteers or is forced by possible criminal sanctions. Upon successful completion, the criminal charge, if there is one, is usually dropped.
Canada has numerous drug treatment courts. It is time that they are used as the primary resource in fighting the drug crisis that exists everywhere.
Eugene Hyman Judge, Santa Clara County Superior Court (retired); Los Altos, Calif.
Mother to mother
Re “It’s 2024: Why are there still formula shortages in Canada?” (Opinion, Sept. 28): In the 1970s, a local chapter of the La Leche League held monthly meetings in people’s homes to orient expectant mothers for breastfeeding.
The meetings covered everything that could possibly go wrong, and what to do, in a warm and supportive atmosphere, surrounded by women in similar situations. If there were difficulties once the baby arrived, meeting leaders were only a phone call away.
Using a breast pump to freeze milk was common. The use of formula was regarded as a last resort.
There are complex situations in which breastfeeding simply does not work. At the same time, I so appreciated the wisdom of the La Leche League and hope this kind of support will continue to be available.
I remember asking my husband’s grandmother how she weaned her five children after breastfeeding them for two years. She said, “I simply gave them milk or water in a spoon.”
Carol Lewis London, Ont.
Sign off
Re “The creeping desert eroding local news” (Editorial, Sept. 28): The “miasma of social media” is a dominant force with which to reckon. It’s also instant, up to date and free.
Therefore, it behooves traditional print journalists to remain distinctive and relevant from this force by collectively maintaining a skeletal presence on social media (beyond retweets, at most). This might be the first step to bringing audiences back behind the paywall.
Neil Rau Toronto
Afterword
Re “Brilliant British actor was a grande dame of stage and screen” (Obituary, Sept. 30): Maggie Smith’s titular character in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie is described as having progressive views. Well, yes.
But on the other side of the ledger, Miss Brodie (played brilliantly by Ms. Smith) shared her admiration of fascist leaders in Germany and Italy, as well as her support for Francisco Franco in Spain’s Civil War, with her students. Lest we forget.
Roberta Hamilton Kingston, Ont.
Re “Multilingual singer was a hit in Europe and North America” (Obituaries, Sept. 27): Your obituary of Caterina Valente included a photo with a caption that referred to her as having achieved stardom in a popular music genre known as schlager.
However, I found it a little disappointing that you didn’t make at least passing mention of the musicians in the photo: Rudy Pompilli on the saxophone and Bill Haley on guitar. She is performing here with Bill Haley and His Comets, themselves no slouches in having achieved stardom in a popular music genre known as rock and roll.
Michael DiCola Ottawa
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