Workers construct new homes at a housing development in Pickering, Ont. on May 15, 2023.Chris Young/The Canadian Press
What do you mean?
Re “Trudeau rules out Quebec’s request for full control over immigration” (March 16): I am getting tired of hearing the term “illegal immigration” without an explanation of what the Leader of the Opposition is talking about. It is this kind of “fill in the blank” politicking that I find both annoying and disingenuous.
Those seeking asylum are not illegal. Perhaps he means those who overstay their visas? They are not immigrants.
So who is he talking about anyway? What measures is he proposing? It remains a mystery to me.
Sanford Levin London, Ont.
Tax implications
Re “Trudeau accuses N.L. premier of ‘bowing to political pressure’ in carbon pricing spat” (March 16): I see that when the Prime Minister gives an exemption of the carbon tax to Atlantic Canadians, it is because his hard-working MPs there are listening to constituents.
However when Andrew Furey asks for a delay for Newfoundlanders, the Premier is “continuing to bow to political pressure.”
Peter Wise Regina
A recent C.D. Howe Institute video on Canada’s deepening economic and political ties with the European Union should be viewed as a cautionary tale for “axe the tax” proponents.
In recognition of carbon pricing as an effective method of reducing carbon emissions, the EU is moving to a border carbon adjustment mechanism whereby imports from most non-EU countries without an effective national carbon pricing strategy will be subject to compensatory tariffs. If Pierre Poilievre becomes prime minister and follows through with his populist rhetoric, how would Canadian exporters respond to such self-imposed sanctions?
If our EU exports diminish because they are less competitive, it would cost Canadian jobs. The economic cost could be much higher than the inconvenience of carbon pricing. As many politicians come to discover, populist sloganeering is one thing, but the economic consequences can be net negative.
Kenneth Westcar Woodstock, Ont.
Bigger picture
Re “All in” (Letters, March 18): A letter-writer asks how the indirect costs of electric vehicles might stack up against the climate costs of continuing to use gas.
She asks us to look at the impact of heavier vehicles, though most overweight vehicles today are gas-driven pickups and SUVs. She wonders about the impact of lithium mining, though far greater reclaim deficits for tar sands and orphan wells scar the landscape and debt of several provinces.
Science shows there is a ballooning cost to every aspect of our infrastructure from global heating caused by carbon emissions. Never mind the weight impact on bridges and roads: Increasing storms, fires and floods would overwhelm any damage from a few extra kilograms of a vehicle.
Figuring out how to minimize the costs and effect of non-emitting technologies such as EVs and heat pumps seems the only way to reduce emissions and maintain some semblance of our way of life.
Dave Carson Hamilton
Price freeze
Re “Canada has plenty of good housing ideas. They need to be turned into action” (Editorial, March 18): Among the Task Force For Housing and Climate’s recommendations to increase housing stock is a call for densification.
Many jurisdictions are in agreement: British Columbia has passed legislation to eliminate single-dwelling zoning in cities province-wide. But this would do nothing to improve affordability for renters and owners.
It’s an axiom in real estate that the true market value of land reflects its potential use. Allowing fourplexes on properties previously zoned for single dwellings would only drive up resale values when sold for redevelopment. That’s great for sellers, but not buyers or renters of fourplex units.
Perhaps more legislation is needed, such as freezing prices at which such properties can be sold to their lower valuations prior to zoning changes, then requiring developers to pass along the savings to buyers.
Radical? Yes, but the problem calls for radical solutions if affordability is to be achieved.
Kevin Bishop Saanich, B.C.
Let ‘em
Re “Letting 16-year-olds quit school to go into skilled trades? What can go wrong?” (Report on Business, March 14): We have a serious housing shortage in Ontario and across Canada. We also have a skilled work force shortage in the construction industry. We can help alleviate this by encouraging young people to get into the trades, like the Ontario government is doing.
It is suggested that teenagers getting into trades after Grade 10 prematurely “lock in their career path.” I disagree: Trades work offers good pay, work-life balance and a sense of fulfilment.
Seems like a great career path to me.
James Lucas Ottawa
Bets are off
Re “How the sports betting industry is wooing female fans to the playing field” (March 18): I am not surprised that the gambling industry is attempting to broaden its target market by enticing women into the world of “their boyfriends.”
The rapid proliferation of sport gambling has been staggering, with hockey stars such as Auston Matthews, Connor McDavid and Wayne Gretzky doing their share of marketing for the industry.
I know it is all about money and market growth. It seems that all genders have the right to enjoy and even become addicted to sports gambling.
Steve Main London, Ont.
Looks like gambling is taking a leaf out of the playbook of another addiction-focused industry.
In the late 1960s Philip Morris unveiled Virginia Slims, cigarettes that targeted young women with an “empowering” slogan: “You’ve come a long way, baby.”
Mario Possamai Toronto
Night and day
Re “A total solar eclipse is coming to Canada. Is your heart prepared?” (March 14): As a teenager in 1965, I too travelled far afield with my local chapter of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada to witness a “once in a lifetime” total lunar eclipse. Accordingly, I am very much looking forward to my second “once in a life time” experience in a few weeks.
One memorable aspect was the startling change at ground level as totality approached. Just before dark, the sparrows and swallows that had scooted about the hayfield all day flew back to their roosting sites and started their evening chorus. They fell silent during the brief period of totality. As light returned, they started their usual dawn clamour, no doubt perplexed by how quickly night had seemed to pass.
Your reporter is surprised that this extraordinary event remains so vivid after 45 years. I am happy to assure him that it will undoubtedly still burn brightly after 60 years, too.
Daniel Brunton Ottawa
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