Marc, left, and Craig Kielburger, co-founders of the charity Free the Children, speak at the charity's We Day celebrations in Kitchener, Ont., on Feb. 17, 2011.GEOFF ROBINS/The Canadian Press
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What we think
Re The Kielburger Brothers’ Empire Struggles To Survive (Aug. 1): During 14 years as chief executive officer of the Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation, I had the honour to lead a team that raised more than $1.2-billion for cancer research. I know the fundraising world in Canada. In my view, there is only one way forward for WE Charity and the Kielburgers: They should immediately resign.
The WE board should then bring in a receiver to liquidate all assets, including real estate. The net proceeds should be distributed in three ways: pay fair severance to all staff; pay all outstanding funds owed to the Canadian government; distribute the remaining funds to two or three leading international development charities such as Save the Children.
The Kielburgers should stop spending money on saving a ship that seems to have already sunk.
Paul Alofs Former CEO, Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation; Toronto
As a student attending a Toronto-area elementary and secondary school that participated in WE Charity activities, I always felt that something was off about the organization. I have donated and volunteered quite a bit with various charities, but never with WE.
I could never put my finger on why WE gave me a bad feeling. Maybe it was the overuse of buzzwords, or the heavy association with celebrities who themselves were not always charitable. Or perhaps it was because WE Day seemed more like a party than anything else.
Now with all the revelations about WE, I feel extremely vindicated and only wish its operations could have been exposed sooner.
Aliraza Asrani Markham, Ont.
Learning curve
Re Four Crucial Lessons Learned In The Pandemic’s First Wave (Aug. 4): A friend who waited 20 months for a knee-replacement repair has now had his May, 2020, operation postponed indefinitely. It should be obvious that shutting down all surgeries and other in-hospital procedures was not necessary.
It should be possible to isolate specific units in hospitals, so that they can be kept open while other parts of the facility are prepared for pandemic cases. In a large city, it should be possible to identify surgical or specialty units, or even a complete hospital, which could serve an entire region for non-pandemic procedures.
This work should start now and continue until we are ready for the next pandemic.
H. M. Street Ottawa
I would like to propose a fifth pandemic lesson: educated professionals given licence to be creative and nimble in advance of the next potential bump in cases.
British Columbia’s early responses were consistently proactive and effective, whereas Ontario and Quebec’s tragedies featured reactive public-health responses that were in many cases too late. Today’s test results paint a picture weeks old, so public-health officials should be thinking weeks in advance to keep ahead of another wave.
I could also add a sixth lesson: social cohesion. Countries such as Vietnam have managed an exceptional response based on the power of people working together, and not necessarily waiting on technology to somehow save us all.
Conrad Sichler MD; Burlington, Ont.
Will government really commit resources to combat the next crisis, or will it succumb to failing memory and topical issues to make the same errors as before? We cannot answer that, but many will bet on a continued lack of commitment.
Will the public help our politicians remember? Bonne chance.
Ron Posno London, Ont.
Community-centred
Re A Civil Answer: Without Political Will, The Flaws Of Canadian Policing Will Never Be Fixed (Opinion, Aug. 1): Contributor Christian Leuprecht’s opinion that Canadian police institutions should have an increase in civilianization is profoundly different than the current systems in place – why is that the case? Is it not the point of public institutions to serve our communities? What better way to understand our communities than having input from them?
Changing the leadership composition of police institutions would likely avoid embarrassing situations, such as RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki “struggling” to admit there is systemic racism within the force – her leadership was questioned, public trust was eroded. Further, a better understanding of community needs would make policing easier for officers.
Transparency, trust and accountability are strengths of institutions, not requests that should be shied away from. Canadian police institutions would be wise to step up to the plate on these issues rather than remain ignorant.
Nicholas Demers Toronto
Home stay
Re We Should Scrap The Homeowner Tax Break (July 29): As homeowners who have lived in the same “first-time buyer’s home” in an aging neighbourhood for 30-plus years, we are perplexed that scrapping the homeowner tax break would even be considered.
Our mortgage was 11.75 per cent in the early 1990s. We rented out the entire top floor of our modest 1,900-square-foot home for 10 years. Our primary income is in self-employed construction without benefits or pensions.
This house is our retirement. Its sale may finance moving into a retirement complex. It has steadily been our best long-term investment. Our so-called diversified portfolio via a stockbroker has yielded far less – in fact, we’ve barely broken even.
Oh yes, we also raised our four children here.
Harry and Helen Alexander Surrey, B.C.
Name that tune
Re O Canada Is A Copy-and-paste Composition Drawn From Mozart, Wagner And Others, Musicologist Contends (Aug. 3): The borrowing of Mozart in O Canada was made obvious to me years ago, when I attended my first performance of The Magic Flute.
The March of the Priests was played at the same tempo at which our national anthem is normally sung. The first phrase (and its repetition later) was too close to O Canada for my comfort. I squirmed, and was glad when it was over.
At my second performance of The Magic Flute, the conductor solved the problem (accidentally or deliberately) by taking the March of the Priests at a quicker tempo.
Christopher Hunt Hamilton
Going to extras
Re At The Ballpark (Letters, Aug. 3): I must disagree with a letter-writer who suggests baseball games should consist of five innings.
Five innings! Yes, perhaps if one is watching a T-ball game. What’s next? An abbreviated version of Take Me Out To The Ball Game during the third-inning stretch?
If the length of a baseball game is intolerable, then maybe viewers should simply watch a different sport. It ain’t over till it’s over, no matter if it takes nine or (even better) more innings.
T. M. Dickey Toronto
Letters to the Editor should be exclusive to The Globe and Mail. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. Try to keep letters to fewer than 150 words. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. To submit a letter by e-mail, click here: letters@globeandmail.com