Summer delight
Re your kindergarten series: Leave the kids alone. Their few endless summers are a precious gift.
Mick Mallon, Iqaluit
Venial or mortal?
Clifford Orwin calls for the dismissal of University of Alberta dean Philip Baker on the grounds that plagiarism "strikes at the soul" of the university (Forgive? Not A Chance. The Dean Has To Go - June 15). He allows that "circumstances may extenuate plagiarism, but they never excuse it." True.
The extenuating circumstance here is that plagiarism in a convocation speech doesn't undermine the entire meritocratic evaluation system of universities in the way a plagiarized assignment or research does. What he allegedly did doesn't strike at the soul of the institution.
But he has let people down. Does humiliation and public rebuke suffice as punishment? That judgment call I leave to those who know the details of his performance on the ground.
David Checkland, associate professor (philosophy), Ryerson University
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For crying out loud, do we destroy a man just because a bunch of tweeting, Facebooking geeks think they Sherlock Holmesed their way into the story of the century. Plagiarism is an academic crime. But there are crimes and then there are crimes. He's been accused of plagiarizing a convocation speech, not a thesis.
Ask yourself how many mistakes you've made for which you think you deserve to lose your job. Now apply that same standard to him, and I bet you're in a much more forgiving mood.
Michael Ahmadi, Toronto
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Like Caesar's wife, a dean must be above reproach. If the dean falls below the highest standard, the school he represents can be brought into disrepute. And we have enough trouble policing the students without worrying about the supposed guardians.
Alan Mendelson, professor emeritus (religious studies), McMaster University
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Clifford Orwin sets up a false dichotomy when he pits forgiveness against accountability. Plagiarizers can be both forgiven and held to account. Forgiveness chooses to let go of the pain the perpetrator caused us, releasing us from our anger and disappointment and opening the door to reconciliation.
I can forgive a busy dean for crossing the line - there but for the grace of God go I - but he must face the repercussions of his actions. In so doing. he'll come to appreciate the true value of the forgiveness we give him.
Rev. John Van Sloten, New Hope Christian Reformed Church, Calgary
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Wow! Clifford Orwin nails this so completely, it made me want to steal it and present it as my own.
Rita Smith, Toronto
Clear, indeed
Canadian investors, you say, "should strive for a better understanding of Chinese businesses" (Clear Waters Needed - editorial, June 15), so I'll give you the key: In tinpot dictatorships, you have no property rights.
Doug Innes, Toronto
Wente watch
Margaret Wente (Unions Fight A Rearguard Action - June 14) talks about defined benefit pensions in the same way some people wistfully talk about large, gas-guzzling cars - nice but no longer an option. People need good pensions. Our children won't be able to take care of us if employers grind down the wages of new employees; they'll barely be able to take care of themselves.
Rather than call on employers and governments to protect retirees, Ms. Wente suggests that public-sector workers need to adapt to a new reality and recognize that defined benefit plans are no longer feasible and that they are a burden on the taxpayer.
We don't know who Ms. Wente thinks will provide for the growing number of boomer retirees expected to live on increasingly bad pensions. Charities? Her? But we do know it's time to improve the CPP and maintain our own plan so we don't have to rely on her generosity.
Denis Lemelin, national president, Canadian Union of Postal Workers
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Margaret Wente (Our World Needs More Peter Munks - June 11) addresses the wrong question by arguing that Barrick Gold and Peter Munk are not "the face of corporate evil." Too often, when politicians and pundits talk about corporate social responsibility, they're just debating the intentions of multinational companies. But it's accountability that's key. The bottom line is that companies of all stripes regularly fail to prevent serious abuses such as those that Barrick is investigating in Papua New Guinea and Tanzania.
Barrick's failures don't prove the company is abusive by nature. They prove that, like every other member of society, companies need their government to set clearly defined standards of acceptable behaviour. Robust regulation of companies' overseas operations is the best way to prevent the sort of problems that Barrick faces.
But Canada's government and its companies have refused to accept that basic fact, leaving firms to write their own rules and then figure out how to implement them in difficult contexts overseas. That model simply doesn't work.
Chris Albin-Lackey, Human Rights Watch, New York
Search and rescue
Ottawa's proposal to shut down the Maritime Rescue Sub-Centre in St. John's affects many people, including me (Newfoundlanders Baffled By Coast Guard Cuts - June 9). It includes you if you're one of the following:
A passenger on tour boats in and out of St. John's harbour, Corner Brook harbour or around Gros Morne; a passenger on Marine Atlantic ferries between North Sydney and Port aux Basques or Argentia; a passenger on ferries between Newfoundland and St. Pierre, and inland ferries in Newfoundland; a yachtsman cruising the shorelines and bays; a worker travelling to and from St. John's and the oil platforms; and a fisher engaged in the shrimp and crab fisheries.
It's easy for a federal civil servant - or a prime minister - to fail to understand the meaning of this cutback. But we're an island. We're a people who spend much of our time working and playing on the water. And the water we're talking about is the North Atlantic - cold temperatures, frigid waters and fickle winds that change quickly and without prediction.
Marjorie Doyle, St. John's
Cry havoc
At the risk of offending the ever-considerate sensibilities of dog owners, I think the city of Westmount is taking a reasonable approach in applying a licensing fee on dog owners' use of public services (Are Your Dog's Papers In Order? - June 15).
The pleasure derived from owning these pets is personal, so why should scarce tax dollars be spent cleaning up and hauling away the tonnes of waste these pets produce over their lifetime?
Gary Labine, Toronto
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I saw a cat being walked on a leash the other day. Never saw that before. A dog on a leash I understand. But a cat? They might not be as clever as dogs, but they always show up at the back door come feeding time. No leash required.
Sebastian Grunstra, Ottawa