Prime Minister Mark Carney and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Gyeongju on Oct. 31.Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press
Party power
Re “Poilievre says he hasn’t reflected on leadership style after loss of two Conservative MPs” (Nov. 13): Why am I not surprised?
Patrick McHugh Nelson, B.C.
Re “Floor-crossing is not a threat to Canadian democracy – in fact, it might be beneficial to it” (Nov. 12): Aside from any self-interested motives behind crossing over to the Liberals, the Conservatives should realize the public has awakened to the importance of leadership style and personality.
This is one outcome I see of a maturing Canadian electorate watching the impact of these factors on our neighbours to the south. Any party will forever have to more deliberately factor in these issues when deciding on its leader, over and above policy issues.
I wonder if some Conservatives are wistfully asking themselves if Jean Charest is still available.
Stephen Flamer Vancouver
Floor-crossing should not be allowed in any democratic parliament.
While Canada’s electoral system technically elects individual members, most voters choose based on party loyalty, rather than personal connection with a candidate. In my case, I have never met my MP, nor did I see him canvassing in my neighbourhood. My vote was for the Conservatives, not for him personally.
In many ridings like mine, securing a major party nomination almost guarantees election. When an MP switches parties, it betrays voter intent and undermines public trust in the democratic process.
If a member no longer supports their party, they should resign and seek a new mandate from their constituents through a by-election. I believe floor-crossing without voter approval weakens accountability and erodes the foundation of representative democracy.
Mukesh Mathrani Edmonton
Voters elected a minority Liberal government, three seats short of a majority. Now, with the defection of Tory MP Chris d’Entremont, that number is down to two.
The way politics work in Ottawa, I’ll bet two more MPs will soon join the Liberal ranks, thereby giving the Grits what the electorate did not: a plurality.
That’s not democracy – I believe that’s blatant political opportunism.
Dan Nyznik Otonabee-South Monaghan, Ont.
Glass houses
Re “Ottawa’s focus on diversifying trade overshadows human-rights issues, experts say” (Nov. 8): Have we learned nothing from the Trudeau years?
When we want to improve our trade position with another country – China and India spring to mind – in what world do we start by lecturing on behaviour? Why do some critics believe we own the moral high ground?
Perhaps when our land issues with Indigenous peoples are resolved, when all reserves have drinkable water, when our drug issues and poverty have been eliminated, amongst many other issues, only then should we even think about telling others how to behave if they want to enjoy the benefits of trading with us.
Even then, why do that? If we really are serious, let’s at least be consistent and start by ending trade with the United States until it stops deporting citizens (allegedly by mistake) and thousands of others without due process, and until it stops a policy of persecuting perceived internal “enemies.”
Anthony Keenleyside Ottawa
Bad company
Re “Crackdowns at the beach heighten Syrian women’s fears for their freedoms” (Nov. 8): Donald Trump plans to skip the G20 summit in South Africa later this month, citing that nation’s human rights record, yet he has welcomed Syrian transitional president Ahmed al‑Sharaa – a leader implicated in ongoing abuses – to the White House.
The United States had listed him as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist in 2013, at the time offering a US$10-million reward for information leading to his capture. Currently, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International report arbitrary detention, torture and sectarian killings under his rule. United Nations experts warn of extrajudicial executions and sexual violence, while his new constitution entrenches unchecked executive power.
Mr. Trump has likewise embraced other leaders accused of grave abuses including Vladimir Putin, Viktor Orban and Benjamin Netanyahu. Lifting sanctions or hosting summits does not erase such realities.
Journalists and citizens should demand consistency in the President’s foreign‑policy justifications. Human rights cannot be selective. They should apply universally.
Timothy Kwiatkowski London, Ont.
Long game
Re “Have Victoria’s millions made a difference on Pandora Avenue? The Globe returns to check” (Nov. 8): I write as the previous B.C. health officer and a PHS Community Services Society board member.
The goal of PHS is to provide supportive housing for the hardest to house. Our potential clients include the individuals featured in this article.
Many of them have multiple concurrent problems. They need not only housing, but also complex care. Needless to say such an admixture of shelter, supports and care for individuals with untreated physical, addictive, psychiatric and organic brain damage is both in short supply and, where it exists, seriously underfunded.
I believe that until such supportive housing and complex care is readily available, suggesting that the solution lies in forced abstinence, proven to increase mortality risk if relapse occurs, and involuntary care is magical thinking.
I fear there are no easy solutions, but evidence shows that thoughtful and well-resourced comprehensive interventions can and will improve the lives of all our citizens.
Perry Kendall CM, OBC, FRCPC; Victoria
Hometown hero
Re “As Neil Young turns 80, his Canadian roots mean more than ever before” (Arts & Books, Nov. 8): In the summer of 1987, Neil Young returned to Winnipeg for a reunion at Kelvin High School.
On the same weekend, there was also a reunion of Winnipeg’s music scene in the 1960s. Members of the top two bands of that era, the Guess Who and Bachman-Turner Overdrive, were there, along with many other excellent local bands.
After a few “warm-up” tunes, I remember he started playing Helpless. Randy Bachman came out with his guitar and the two proceeded to jam for the next half-hour or so.
It was one of the most amazing and memorable music experiences I have ever had, and it deserves to be added to your list.
Terry Sargeant Gimli, Man.
Hot and cold
Re “Convertibles are associated with summer, but fall is the best season to drive one” (Online, Nov. 7): Why stop at fall?
On a sunny winter afternoon in 2016, with the mercury at -15 C, I drove my 2005 Toyota Solara down Finch Street West in Toronto: top down, windows up, seat heaters on. Bus drivers gave me the thumbs up, while pedestrians whistled and shot pictures as I drove by. What a blast.
Also, this was a car I bought used for 5 per cent of this column’s big-ticket test convertible. It’s at about 307,000 kilometres now and still runs like a top.
Bill Atkinson Edmonton
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