A grizzly bear fishing along a river in Tweedsmuir Provincial Park near Bella Coola, B.C., on Sept 10, 2010.Jonathan Hayward/The Canadian Press
Follow the leader
Re “Jagmeet Singh takes the fight to Pierre Poilievre” (Sept. 10): While demanding the NDP break its agreement with the Liberals, the Leader of the Opposition called the NDP Leader a disparaging nickname. A few days after seeming to get his wish, the same honourable member repeated the nickname and called Jagmeet Singh’s action a “stunt.” What did he want?
This leaves the Leader of the Opposition open to similar name-calling. Imagine his family name being preceded by “pathetic,” “petulant” or “patronizing.” His given name could follow “pious,” “poseur” or “pretender.”
However, that’s too Trumpian for mature politicians, no?
Gord Hall Toronto
It is becoming more and more obvious to me that the leaders of the Liberals and NDP might want to consider “passing the torch.”
I think both are becoming a bit egocentric and old news, thus becoming less effective than they might be otherwise. As a result, they have allowed the Conservatives to gain traction.
Both leaders have given their fair share to the governing of Canada. But there comes a time, for the good of the nation, that leaders step aside to allow for new voices and ideas.
Beverley Murray Burlington, Ont.
Bear necessities
Re “B.C. sets up a panel on bear deaths, will review conservation officer training” (Online, Sept. 9): Bears are killed too often in British Columbia because they lack fundamental protection under the law. They exist in legislative limbo, within the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy, which protects the province’s natural resources. The Conservation Officer Service enforces legislation to minimize human-wildlife “conflict.”
Herein lies the problem: Bears are not resources or sources of conflict. Last time I checked, bears are animals. Progress happens when legislators acknowledge the intrinsic value of wildlife as worthy of protection and respect under their stewardship.
The B.C. government should establish an office of animal affairs to consolidate all authorities and experts and enact modern, effective legislation for co-existing with animals. Ditch the red tape, multiple departments, ministries and staff and even save some public funds.
Is anyone listening? There’s a B.C. election in October – just saying.
Jennifer Azizi West Vancouver
Get moving
Re “Scooters, e-bikes and mopeds ride into regulatory grey zones as Canada’s cities and provinces race to keep up” (Sept. 7): As a bicycle rider, I am a bit fearful, especially when I am passed by a speeding e-bike carrying a takeout meal in a large container. It is likely only a matter of time before a cyclist is struck and injured, or worse, by one of these speeding devices.
Perhaps this deluge of electric bikes is due in part to our woefully inadequate public transit. Toronto feels decades behind similar-sized European cities.
One idea, perhaps radical, is to have one car on each subway train for bicycles only. This would allow more bicycles to move more efficiently around our city and reduce the speeders in the bicycle lanes.
Ted Parkinson Toronto
Real love
Re “Got Rizz? Co-founder of new dating app on using AI as your matchmaking wingman” (Sept. 10): Forty-six years into our marriage, I was reading this article when my husband entered the kitchen. He reported on the gastrointestinal issue that’s lingered all summer using a scale of 1 to 10, plus a few details.
Good luck to those who use artificial intelligence when dating. How will they hone the skills needed for the tender, tricky conversations that follow IRL?
Marg Heidebrecht Hamilton
Meet the letter-writers
Throughout the late spring and summer, The Globe will feature personal insights and missives from some of our most frequent contributors every Sunday in Letters to the Editor. Survey responses were collected as a part of the research behind A Nation’s Paper: The Globe and Mail in the Life of Canada, a collection of history essays from Globe writers past and present, coming this fall from Signal/McClelland & Stewart.
(The following responses were received by The Globe after a call for submissions in May, 2023.)
I try to write letters with a balanced viewpoint that others might want to read and reflect on. I try to avoid the usual emotional screaming of trolls and social media. Quite frankly, I am trying to second-guess what might attract an editor to pick my letter.
I find quite a few writers (especially on the energy front) are obviously idealists of the highest order, and do not understand that windmills and solar panels will not pave roads or give reliable and affordable energy that they so enjoy.
If I have a mantra, it is trying to get people to listen, talk and learn from each other and form a better path. I cannot remember a time when we were so polarized around the world, refusing to even consider that the other side may have a good idea.
Chris Tworek Calgary
I write letters to the editor when I think the public discourse on a subject of which I am informed has lost sight of important considerations.
I like to read letters to the editor because they provide a taste of public concerns and opinions. Although I am aware, from those of my letters which do not get published, that selection for publication is filtered through the editor’s own opinions.
For example, the somewhat uncritical views on Indigenous affairs limits the range of letters published on the subject.
Nicholas Tracy Fredericton
Usually I am provoked by some opinion expressed or feel that there is a point which has not been made. Politics, climate change and social justice are the urgent matters of the day that need to be discussed. I enjoy the clash of ideas and the different perspectives put forward.
I remember best one of my first published letter in 2010, which was the only one to be placed in the prime spot first on the page. It was about how Richard Fadden, then head of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, was probably acting on Stephen Harper’s orders.
I was a bit surprised that you published my letter on King Charles’s coronation, in which I characterized the ritual aspect as a monstrous accretion of mumbo-jumbo.
James Duthie Nanaimo, B.C.
Letters to the Editor should be exclusive to The Globe and Mail. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. Keep letters to 150 words or fewer. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. To submit a letter by e-mail, click here: letters@globeandmail.com