The big leak
Why in the world would Canada's ambassador to Afghanistan offer to resign because he spoke the truth about Afghan government corruption? Since the West is paying heavily (with lives and money) for the Afghan war, shouldn't it be Canada and other NATO allies demanding that President Hamid Karzai resign unless he cleans up this mess?
Marty Cutler, Toronto
......
I am reluctant to enter into the WikiLeaks controversy, but, at the age of nearly 93, what do I have to lose? My comments concern diplomatic reporting and the no-less-valuable reports from those engaged in the collection of intelligence outside Canada.
From 1944 to 1970, I was a Canadian foreign service officer. Prior to that (in 1942), while a very junior officer in the security and intelligence section at Canadian military headquarters in London, I was asked by Britain's Special Operations Executive, with whom I had numerous contacts, whether I'd be willing to train to be a potential secret agent in German-occupied France.
Not particularly happy with the inactive administrative tasks I was being given, and with little apparent chance of more active duties, I accepted the offer. After protracted dealings with the Canadian military establishment, agreement was reached, albeit reluctantly, that I might join the SOE. But when the appointed time arrived, instead of releasing me to the British, the Canadian military sent me to the War Staff College in Kingston.
Any breaches in the security of SOE's operations (intercepted wireless traffic, defectors etc.) obviously placed its agents in jeopardy. What I describe took place when Canada was engaged in a very rough, all-out war.
In 2010, Canada is still at war (Afghanistan) and in other potentially dangerous situations (Iran). Thus, the release of any highly classified documents from our diplomats that reveals information of potential assistance to our enemies, if not treason or sedition, certainly is a serious crime, and its perpetrators, whatever their motivation, ought to be treated accordingly and without further palaver.
John Starnes, director-general of the RCMP Security Service from 1970 to 1973, Ottawa
Democratic disgrace
Your editorial Liberals Seek Safe Haven (Dec. 2) makes many fine points in its critique of Bill C-49, but it errs by suggesting that the legislation aimed at combatting human smuggling could be salvaged in committee if the Liberals, NDP and Bloc Québécois worked with the Conservatives.
Once the unconstitutional provisions are amputated from the bill, there's nothing left but the swaggering title - Preventing Human Smugglers from Abusing Canada's Immigration System Act - and provisions that purport to "get tough" on offences that already carry potential sentences of life imprisonment.
The title and the provisions that address actual smugglers are largely symbolic. Solutions must be found elsewhere, in other policy tools such as transnational co-operation. It's the Tories, not the Liberals, who are playing politics by stoking moral panic.
Audrey Macklin, professor of law, University of Toronto
Civics lesson
Like all high schools in Ontario, Toronto's Northern Secondary School requires Grade 10 students to take a course in civics. One of the three core strands in that course is "active citizenship," which, among other things, sets out to teach students "what it means to be an informed, participating citizen in a democratic society." This includes developing the knowledge and skills necessary for effective participation in civic life.
As Christie Blatchford makes clear (High School Earns Red Card For Soccer Player's Suspension - Dec. 2), Emil Cohen was a very effective citizen of his school, using his skills of advocacy and knowledge of policy to figure out a way to restart a soccer program that had died.
Unfortunately, the powerful civics lesson he and other students were taught when he was suspended for articulately expressing his concerns for the future of soccer at the school was that, at Northern, good citizenship means sitting down, shutting up and doing what you're told.
Alan Sears, professor of citizenship education, University of New Brunswick
We are Canadian!
While entertaining as always, TV critic John Doyle is misleading about the writing of our CBC-TV series The Border, the subject of a U.S. embassy memo released by WikiLeaks. In his column From Briefing Notes To Black Ops In The Embassy TV Room (Dec. 2), he says "much of [ The Border]was written by an American guy." The series was written by an all-Canadian team, under the leadership of senior producers Janet Maclean and David Barlow, including Sarah Dodd, Greg Nelson and Alex Levine.
The Border was conceived by my late wife, Lindalee Tracey, and co-created by her, Ms. Maclean, Jeremy Hole and me. We are all very much Canadian. Lindalee and I were the executive producers of the pilot episode, and I was the sole executive producer of the three-season series of 38 episodes. For the first two seasons, one writer, Denis McGrath, was a dual Canadian-U.S. citizen.
Mr. Doyle also writes, "Now hands up, who remembers The Border? Not many do because hardly anybody paid much attention when it aired on CBC for a couple of years."
In fact, The Border had very high ratings, particularly in its first two seasons. Indeed, the 710,000 viewers for the first episode are referred to by the writer of the leaked memo as "impressive" and "equivalent to an American show drawing about eight million U.S. viewers."
Peter Raymont, president, White Pine Pictures, Toronto
Transit City troubles
Wonderful news (Ford Declares Transit City 'Over' - Dec. 2): The war on cars stops. The war on people starts.
John Ison, Toronto
......
Isn't it ironic that the day after Toronto Mayor Rob Ford declares the war on cars is over, the price of gas rises 4.4 cents a litre.
Ian McCrea, Toronto
Barking Cynic
Scott Bakker (Not All Hypocrisies Are Equal - Dec. 2) says the ancient Greeks were so impressed with Diogenes's deprecation of hypocrisy that "they began calling him kunikos, from which 'cynicism' is derived." It's perhaps worth noting that the word "cynicism" has its root in the Greek word for dog, and appears to have been, at least initially, a term of derision (i.e., men such as Diogenes either lived like dogs or barked like dogs).
Diogenes himself apparently appreciated the slur; he was a hard man to insult.
Frederick Sweet, Toronto
When in Vegas …
"A Kobe beef patty topped with Maine lobster, caramelized onions, imported Brie cheese, crispy pancetta and 100-year-old balsamic vinegar" - positively orgasmic! And a bargain at $777 (Will We Ever Reach Our Burger Limit? - Life, Dec. 1).
Just don't choke on the $100 tip.
Colin Thornton, Shediac, N.B.