Letters to the editor, Dec. 4: ‘Blame Vladimir Putin and his atavistic, egotistical drive for power through warfare’

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SOS

Re “Canada’s foreign aid cuts might be what the Global South needs to chart its own course” (Dec. 1): There is a lot to dislike about the way foreign aid is planned and delivered, and cuts will certainly force recipients to chart a different course. “Self-reliance,” however, is a term that rolls easily off a keyboard, as do generalities about foreign aid and a mythical place called the “Global South.”

More than a dozen poor countries in Africa have moderate to high reliance on foreign aid for health expenditures. Low domestic revenue (i.e. taxes), weak exports, competing fiscal priorities (education, infrastructure) and a high burden of communicable disease (malaria, tuberculosis, Ebola) limit options and alternatives. Sudden and wholesale cuts to U.S., British, French and now Canadian foreign aid won’t improve matters.

Instead of applauding cuts as a magic route to self-reliance, critics should demand more and better development assistance, properly co-ordinated with recipients and other donors and targeted more clearly at solving longer-term dependency issues in the poorest countries.

Ian Smillie Ottawa

What I feel is being missed is the impact of Canada’s billions of dollars in cuts to global health initiatives. We have already fallen short in recent funding for Gavi, the prime distributor of health aid around the world.

It might seem pragmatic: When in the hole, we don’t give away money. But a better metaphor would be a house with several roommates, each with their own bedroom. Many are ill with awful diseases, such as Ebola, tuberculosis and yellow fever, and a few show signs of something disturbingly novel.

Since we have our own bedroom and feel fine, we don’t worry too much about everyone else. That we caught COVID-19 from one of them – that seems to be history now.

It’s too expensive to help roommates? How much is the pandemic costing Canada?

Reducing funding for GAVI is like putting in earplugs so we don’t hear the coughs.

Nathaniel Poole Victoria

Canada’s international assistance should not be blamed for slow progress on sustainable development.

This view of history ignores the economic exploitation and debt experienced by much of the Global South, resulting in a world where nearly half the population lives in countries that spend more on interest payments than on health or education. The global financial system mostly diverts scarce public funds toward debt servicing instead of schools, hospitals and climate resilience. Aid does not hinder self-reliance – structural debt and market conditions do.

Cutting international assistance while ignoring these forces delivers a double blow to the autonomy of low-income countries. Instead, Canada should champion debt cancellation, fairer lending rules and reforms to a financial architecture that traps countries in perpetual repayment.

At the same time, Canada should strengthen support for local partners, especially women’s organizations, that are best equipped to advance independent, sustainable and inclusive development.

Beth Lorimer Kairos Canada, Ottawa

Know thy enemy

Re “Behind enemy lines” (Letters, Dec. 2): Unlike another reader, your recent images of wounded Russian soldiers did not make me feel that it was unfair to Ukraine – that implies blame for the Russian wounded lies solely with Ukraine’s military.

To the contrary, my immediate thoughts (after “oh god, those poor, maimed men”) were to rage at war in general and specifically blame Vladimir Putin and his atavistic, egotistical drive for power through warfare.

To dehumanize soldiers on one side is to fall prey to war’s propaganda.

Tuula Talvila Ottawa

Of the essence

Re “About 10,000 Jordan cases thrown out annually as Ottawa, provinces call on Supreme Court for change” (Dec. 1): Municipalities across the country are struggling with police budgets that have skyrocketed over the years. Meanwhile, alleged criminals are being released on bail, or released for good, because there are extraordinary delays in cases being brought to trial.

Police have enough trouble hunting down today’s alleged criminals. Not enough money has been allocated to courtrooms and judges, but I’m sure millions of dollars could be saved if all cases could be brought to trial in reasonable time, if government – taxpayer – money was spent properly.

Doug Hacking Sarnia, Ont.

Surely extending trial deadlines is not the answer to the problems in our courts.

We should be focused on providing enough resources, in terms of judges and court time, to ensure trials can be completed to comply with Jordan deadlines.

In addition, I’m sure defence lawyers not only make more money by extending trials, but realize if they can keep delaying decisions long enough, cases will be stayed.

Vic Aiken Mississauga

To market

Re “To fix Canada, we must fix our troubled stock market” (Report on Business, Dec. 1): While “fixing our public markets” may be part of the long-term solution to fix Canada, I believe our tax system, policies and laws should also be profoundly modified to provide clear and significant tax advantages to corporations that can clearly demonstrate - not simply claim - having invested in research and development, and having implemented the results of such investments.

Furthermore governments should reduce, if not totally eliminate, a bureaucracy that I believe produces nothing. Of course I am dreaming, as the object of bureaucracy seems not to be offering valuable services, but continuing to grow.

Luc Lachapelle Hudson, Que.

While I agree that regulatory efforts to attract capital to our junior markets are important, there has never been a shortage of capital interested in emerging companies. We can see that in the amount of private equity and venture capital invested in emerging companies, eclipsing public markets.

The real problem, then, isn’t that junior public markets are not of interest to investors; it’s that they are not terribly interesting to companies. The regulatory burden is enormous, as is its cost, wildly disproportionate to the risk that regulators are trying to mitigate.

Fix that and junior companies would find an initial public offering on the TSX Venture Exchange to be well worth it.

Nelson Smith Prince Edward County, Ont.

Thank you for highlighting a problem that has been brewing for years.

While this trend is not unique to Canada, the shrinking universe of publicly investible companies is a major issue that most market participants overlook. A persistent decline in public markets has a negative multiplier effect across the economy.

While ideas such as capital gains deferrals merit consideration, the more fundamental question should be this: Why don’t private equity firms view a public listing as a viable exit strategy for their portfolio companies? Encouraging such listings can reinvigorate public markets and broaden access for investors.

Jamie Coulter Former CEO, Raymond James; Toronto

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