Supporters of U.S. president-elect Donald Trump celebrate after the Fox Network called the election in his favor at the site of his rally, at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in Florida, on Nov. 6.Brian Snyder/Reuters
Keep in mind
Re “The psychology of being American: The death of the rational economic actor” (Report on Business, Nov. 4): The insights of the founders of depth psychology, Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung, have not been widely integrated into our contemporary societies.
Their concepts include a central claim that much of what we experience emerges in us absent conscious intent, and drives our actions without our exercise of considered choice. Lacking this insight, we frequently find the behaviour of ourselves and others inexplicable. These instinctive and habitual aspects of our psychology determine much of our lives, often to our detriment.
Jung is one of the great humanists who has provided pathways to a better human society with his insights on human consciousness.
Paul Shaker Professor emeritus, Simon Fraser University; Port Moody, B.C.
Politics of war
Re “Escalating a war to elect a U.S. president: Is this the Netanyahu strategy?” (Opinion, Nov. 2): A Globe and Mail columnist calls out the Israeli-Hamas war for the deceit I have seen it become. I no longer view it as a struggle for defence and punishment, but an exercise in the maintenance in power of one man: Benjamin Netanyahu.
Those with some knowledge of history would recognize this as the oft-used modus operandi of Mr. Netanyahu to get his way. I believe he has become one of the most dangerous men in the world, where a slight miscalculation may ignite a much larger conflagration than that presently destroying tens of thousands of lives.
The horror, the “unspeakable” horror.
Robert Swain Kingston
I believe it has been Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran who have created the war on multiple fronts that Israel is facing.
This is neither a mystery to Benjamin Netanyahu’s government nor a strategy. Various international military experts have opined that Iran and its proxies have continuously negated any peace proposals agreed to by Israel, including those to bring home hostages still held by Hamas.
Most Israelis support the goals of their government in defeating Iran and its proxies to secure lasting peace and the return of hostages. Israel has followed Joe Biden’s advice regarding its recent retribution by not attacking energy or nuclear facilities. Israel has recently agreed to move back from Lebanon’s southern area to near the Lebanon-Israel border.
None of this indicates to me that Israel has planned its defence based on the U.S. election results.
Yehudi Hy Freedman Victoria
War or peace, like the tango, requires a partner. Israel alone cannot pursue a peace plan without Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran all wanting the same.
“Top leaders of Hamas and Hezbollah have been killed,” but the missiles and threats have not stopped. If Israel stopped fighting today, is there anyone who doesn’t know what would happen?
Grace Polsky Toronto
Fullest possible use
Re “The whole notion that AI will overtake humanity relies on a false premise” (Opinion, Nov. 2): It is proposed that intelligence cannot be measured in any meaningful way, that it is somewhat of a cultural concept and that artificial intelligence will be unable to capture it, because it is uniquely human. As much as I would like to think that human intellect and creativity are unique, I would not vote against artificial general intelligence.
I suggest watching the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey, viewed by audiences in 1968 as science fiction. Yet much of the technology envisioned exists today, even better than was fantasized.
I see no evidence that this well-articulated opinion could be written by current AI, but will we be able to disable HAL when it exceeds us? Should we?
Larry Stefan Vancouver
For real
Re “Trust, an essential building block of survival and community, is faltering” (Opinion, Nov. 2): Trust also involves “authenticity,” what philosopher Martin Buber calls the I-Thou relationship with others: a spiritual kind of trusting, a “relatedness” that involves nothing less than the human soul, focusing on a soul-to-soul sense of oneness.
Without this, one’s relationship to and with the world becomes an I-It relationship, whereby the individual simply objectifies and classifies the world at large and the people in it, overlooking the individual entirely.
Only when we relate authentically can we trust or be trusted.
S. K. Riggs Guelph, Ont.
Stay tuned
Re “Just watch” (Letters, Nov. 2): The chair of the CBC board is interested in asking those who watched the 2024 Olympics what would be lost if the CBC was no longer.
The CBC has not always been the purveyor of the Olympic Games on television. I am old enough to remember CTV winning the media rights bid in 1988. And then later there was the Canadian media consortium.
To answer his question, the International Olympic Committee would lose as there would be fewer bidders for rights in Canada. Canadians would merely watch the network that wins the bid, CBC or otherwise.
Jason New Foothills County, Alta.
It was good to see the chair of the CBC board refer to coverage of the Olympics and shows on television, CBC Gem and other platforms. I agree that the CBC is of critical importance to Canadians, giving us opportunities to hear from people across the country in a wide range of contexts.
The CBC is about much more than the news, including funds for Canadian content creation on TV, radio and online; outstanding music programming with incredibly knowledgeable hosts in a range of genres; current event and science programs; interviews with artists, authors, doctors, scientists, athletes and other professionals.
I am sure there are things I have left out. It would be devastating to lose this national treasure.
Jennie Ucar Toronto
All ages
Re “Fall mysteries roundup: Nine edge-of-your-seat reads for chilly dark evenings” (Arts & Books, Nov. 2): “I nearly skipped this excellent book because the info stressed Ryan’s young-adult credentials,” says the reviewer about The Treasure Hunters Club, award-winning author Tom Ryan’s new mystery for adult readers.
Having “young-adult credentials” didn’t hurt Cherie Dimaline at all – you know, the author whose Governor-General’s Literary Award-winning YA novel The Marrow Thieves was included in CBC’s Canada Reads and stayed on The Globe’s bestseller list for about five years?
Can reviewers and readers please drop this assumption that YA books are not suitable for adult readers? Some of the most heartfelt feedback I’ve received as an author of YA books came from adult readers.
Maybe because we were all teens once. Or maybe because good writing is good writing.
The reviewer is right: Mr. Ryan’s new mystery is an excellent book – and so are his YA novels.
Jean Mills Author; Guelph, Ont.
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