Catering staff pass by a Hockey Canada logo on the door to a meeting room at the organizations head office in Calgary on Nov. 6.The Canadian Press
In peace
Re What A Ceasefire In Ukraine Today Will Mean (Nov. 23): Sooner or later, Ukraine will likely have to negotiate with Russia, and not have peace until it finds common ground.
A ceasefire mediated by the United States, France or China, or all three, would not depend upon Vladimir Putin keeping his word, but upon constraints built into the peace plan. An obvious way forward would be Russian withdrawal to enable the insertion of United Nations peace forces in contested areas.
Nicholas Tracy Fredericton
One for all
Re Our Health Care System Needs Serious Reform (Opinion, Nov. 19): I find that contributor Brian Day makes a number of excellent points.
Perhaps the most important is that, in terms of equity and the relative treatment of the rich and poor, our “universal” health care ranks behind European countries with two-tier systems. This refutes the view that, when it comes to health, we treat everyone the same regardless of income. We have managed to produce results that seem subpar for all, and discriminate unduly against the vulnerable.
Our provincial governments should wake up and change the system.
Biff Matthews Toronto
Back in the day
Re Food Price Numbers Are Unappetizing (Opinion, Nov. 19): My recollection from the 1960s and 1970s is that food prices relative to income were significantly higher than today.
Statistics Canada reported that while average Canadian income went up 22.5 times from 1960 to 2008, the price of milk went up only 8.3 times in the same period. A dozen eggs increased 4.7 times; a can of tomatoes 4.8 times.
Furthermore, I find the selection and quality of food available to be astounding – relative to 1960. Just think about how many different fruits and vegetables land in our stores fresh, all the way from warmer climates.
My conclusion is that when one considers our food distribution system, we are indeed fortunate. I shudder to think that government wants to tinker with it. After all, just think of our bureaucracy running passport offices or airport security, just to name a few failures.
Stephen Gill East Gwillimbury, Ont.
Pension problems
Re Sooner Or Later, Pensions Will Be A Hot Political Topic (Report on Business, Nov. 19): Any serious discussion about pensions should start with philanthropist Octavia Hill’s assessment of them.
At the British Royal Commission on pensions in 1893, she stated: “I should describe it as the most gigantic scheme of inadequate relief ever devised by any human being. It seems to have every flaw in it. It would not be adequate. … It seems to me it would do a great deal to destroy one thing that is most desirous to cultivate: the sense of responsibility of relatives.”
Her observations prove accurate. Pension schemes have failed due to fraud and bankruptcy. State schemes are not protected when they fail.
People should realize that they are the best managers of their own money. I believe money managers tend to be cavalier with other people’s money.
In today’s environment, people should not take pensions for granted. Anything received from them should be treated as windfalls.
John Newell Toronto
Public safety
Re We Should Pay To Protect Politicians (Opinion, Nov. 19): If columnist Robyn Urback is right, and I don’t doubt for a moment that she is, then we should also pay to provide round-the-clock personal protection for other identified groups of Canadians at risk of physical harm. Indigenous women come to mind immediately.
There are other approaches that might help, such as increasing the severity of punishments for people who attack politicians and Indigenous women. We already punish more severely those who kill policemen; we could extend this to more groups of victims and to less serious crimes.
Patrick Cowan Toronto
To be profitable, many online media outlets must generate massive engagement: views, likes, shares, comments.
The most reliable way to “go viral” is to trigger emotional responses. Given the immediate and anonymous nature of much online media, the most viral emotion is outrage.
The same algorithms that bring together wealthy homeowners with those priced out of the housing market also cross-pollinate social-justice activists with the alt-right; Liberals and Conservatives; carnivores and vegans. The list goes on. The more opposed two groups are in opinion, the more perfect their union in the current game of revenue generation.
Columnist Robyn Urback points to an ever-worsening political climate as the reason taxpayers should pay for security to protect politicians. But how to address what I believe is the root cause of the problem: a media climate in which anger, discord and polarization are part of many business models.
Katherine Gougeon Toronto
Good game
Re We Must Remember Hockey Belongs To Those Who Play It (Opinion, Nov. 19): Those who play hockey should also be taught to be good people. Like all sports, it is used at the grassroots levels to instill life skills such as empathy, compassion and healthy relationships.
The shiny apple that Hockey Canada holds so high has a deep-rooted worm called privilege. It is supported and reinforced by coaches and parents who believe being a talented hockey player is more important than being a good person.
Contributor Ken Dryden is not wrong: Hockey Canada does need to be much better. But so do coaches and parents who guide our children through the system.
Hockey is not off the hook because no one owns it. It will likely die, and it is dying, because we are getting tired of the many worms consuming it.
Shane Verbiski Wilmot, Ont.
Reaching out
Re Losing Contact (Opinion, Nov. 19): “Communicate” and “community” are both derived from the Latin root communis, meaning common, public and shared by all. The pandemic has laid that connection bare.
To communicate is to share words, as well as the gestures, emotions and subtlety of human contact. To build a community is to have people engaged in that real, tactile space.
The digital screen, regardless of its size, convenience or number of pixels per inch, feels unsatisfying and unsatisfactory.
James Schaefer Peterborough, Ont.
I’ve gone without a cellphone, even while being constantly berated by my family for being out of touch with life in the 21st century. On the contrary.
I feel in touch with more than the numerous people on the subway in Toronto staring at their phones. I can confidently say, “I’m thinking” – a lost art in these interesting times.
Steven Brown Toronto
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