People shop in a grocery store in Montreal on Nov. 16, 2022.Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press
Fired up
Re “Canada and U.S. co-operation needed to solve our wildfire crisis” (June 30): Wildland ecologist Robert Gray says that forest fires in recent years have caused a “rapidly worsening feedback loop,” where forests can no longer reabsorb emitted carbon and greenhouse gases (”B.C.’s largest blaze stokes long-term carbon concerns” – June 17). Feedback loops may not be exponential, but they are certainly cumulative, greatly increasing the probability of even worse fire years in the future.
This suggests that the government target of net-zero by 2030 is nowhere near ambitious enough. We should have much more urgent action in order to avoid climate disaster.
James Duthie Nanaimo, B.C.
Word of mouth
Re “Speak up” (Letters, June 29): Two letter-writers support the necessity that federal judges be bilingual. But it’s clear to me, in 2023, that we are not remotely a bilingual country.
The vast majority of French speakers are in a province that isn’t even itself officially bilingual. Several other provinces have concentrations of people speaking English and another language other than French, in numbers far exceeding those bilingual in English and French. Mandarin, Arabic, Tagalog and Ukrainian would be a few examples. What a wonderful and edifying skill it must be to be able to communicate in a second (or third) language.
A fortunate few are able to undertake taxpayer-funded French study, something of which virtually no one outside a privileged Ottawa elite would be able to avail themselves. Continuing to insist that judges be chosen from a small and shrinking pool of French-English speakers would do the vast majority of Canadians a disservice.
Dave McClurg Calgary
Price comparison
Re “Canada’s grocery industry doesn’t give consumers enough choice, Competition Bureau finds” (Report on Business, June 28): What would stop new grocery entrants from participating in mergers to eventually become megastores themselves?
Nearly a century ago, developed nations, including Canada, rigorously invoked anti-monopoly laws. Beginning in the early 1900s, many companies over a certain size were broken up into smaller ones.
In the 1970s, this ideology changed to “bigger is better.” Dramatic policy shifts created a trend toward mergers, putting smaller businesses at a disadvantage.
Profit is what remains after shipping, labour and other processing costs. But should the cost of products be increased simply to crank up profit margins?
Maybe cost controls or profit maximums are worth looking at, not to mention stronger antitrust laws.
Michelle Matich Langley, B.C.
The Competition Bureau’s solution to high food prices is, well, competition. But hang on, haven’t we done that?
When U.S. low-price juggernauts Walmart and Costco crossed the border, many predicted doom for Canadian competition. Today I can head out and find Costco, Walmart, Loblaws and Dollarama within spitting distance of each other, and Sobeys is just round the corner.
Where’s the retailer brave enough to find profit by underpricing that lot? Maybe someone at the Competition Bureau knows, but is too shy to tell us.
Michael Poulton Halifax
In British Columbia’s Lower Mainland, probably the most popular grocer is Trader Joe’s in Bellingham, Wash. With its unique selection of goods, it has become an American icon. At the same time, its produce is at least 30 per cent less than prices I see at Loblaws.
I recently stopped at Trader Joe’s in Olympia, Wash., where the clerk said the Bellingham store has the largest sales volume in the state due entirely to Canadians. On occasion, U.S. customs officers ask, “Are you going anywhere other than for gas and Trader Joe’s?”
Why doesn’t it set up shop in Vancouver? I’m told anecdotally that distribution costs are not an issue, but bilingual labels for a limited market renders the proposal uneconomic.
Abolish bilingual labelling. Then not only would green stuff drop in price here, but I wouldn’t have to drive 90 kilometres for my maple pecan clusters and jalapeno-spiced limeade.
George Stevens Vancouver
Deep thoughts
Re “The Titan submersible was a tragic tourist trap for the wealthy” (June 29): Beyond the legal requirement to rescue is an ethical obligation to try.
It may seem unfair that taxpayers covered the tab of the search-and-rescue mission for the Titan submersible. Some are opposed because of the perceived fecklessness and recklessness of the adventure.
If, however, their opposition is with the preventable and unnecessary nature of the venture, then we can also look at, for example, lung cancer caused by smoking, Type 2 diabetes caused by obesity, worsened injuries caused by not wearing a seatbelt and a whole host of other preventable diseases and injuries. This is a slippery slope we do not want to go down.
We should instead celebrate the moxie of the five submariners, investigate the incident and mourn the dead.
Jon Heshka Co-chair, adventure studies, Thompson Rivers University; Kamloops, B.C.
Now that the shock of the Titan’s destruction has sunk in, cracks in the flimsy rationale for the dive are showing. In particular, words such as “scientific,” “research” and “exploration” can be shown as nonsense on a grand scale.
When the wreck of the Titanic was found in the 1980s, there was a considerable effort to designate the site a graveyard and treat it as such. Those voices were shouted down.
Can anyone fathom amateur historians showing up, on a whim, to dig up a cemetery and call it research? They would likely be charged with desecration.
Why are the Titanic dead not given the same reverence? From the minute news came that the Titan was missing, one word popped into my head and stayed until the gruesome end: hubris.
Helen Thibodeau Cobourg, Ont.
Picture perfect
Re “Terry Fox dies” (Moment in Time, June 28): We are reminded of the sacrifice and incredible journey that Terry Fox took. So I wonder who made the decision to remove this heroic Canadian from our passports?
I have been fortunate enough to stand by Mr. Fox’s statue just outside Thunder Bay. I have also been fortunate to visit the Vimy Ridge memorial in France; my grandfather served and fought in that historic battle. Standing in both places brought tears in knowing what sacrifices were made.
Shame on whoever decided to erase these incredible images from our passports.
Glen Grossmith Canmore, Alta.
One more
Re “The 23 best Canadian comedies ever made” (Arts & Books, July 1): Bill C-18 makes it an even two dozen.
Joseph Shlesinger Toronto
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