Future life need not be either/or proposition

A reality check for civic leaders

Re: What happened to public service? (Think Tank, July 17)

Erna Buffie’s recent commentary was a breath of fresh air and a much-needed reality check for our city’s leadership. I strongly support her assertion that true public service requires prioritizing people, communities and the environment over an outdated, debt-fuelled model of endless expansion. Cities of the future should be planning for sustainable projects that benefit everyone, rather than catering to developers at the expense of our existing neighbourhoods.

It is incredibly frustrating to see our leaders push for outrageous projects like the Chief Peguis and Kenaston expansions. Spending hundreds of millions of dollars on more roads will do little to reduce congestion — thanks to the well-documented reality of induced demand — while simultaneously piling onto Winnipeg’s generational debt.

Pothole move risky

Re: Seeds of ‘gentle activism’: flower pot(holes) protest state of city road (Aug. 10)

Sure it looks like fun and a novel way to garner attention to potholes by planting flowers in them. Being polite and not raining on anyone’s parade, the City and the media did not mention the serious liability issues associated with such actions.

If a motorist lost control of his vehicle because of driving over these flowers and crashed into a house, ran over a pedestrian, child or pet on the boulevard, the planter of the flowers would be liable and could be sued. The City has to give written permission before citizens can alter city property and if permission was given for this stunt, the City would then become liable.

DEAR MISS LONELYHEARTS: When I lived in Vancouver, my parents were both messed up on drugs and drinking. To survive their craziness, I spent all my spare time as a teenager working hard at different jobs. The day after I graduated high school, I hitchhiked with a guy I knew casually all the way to Winnipeg for a cool job I found online.

We became great friends on the road. He took me to meet his family at their house and they invited me to live in their basement suite. I happily paid rent and felt like I had a new family.

But now, here comes trouble. My parents have gotten sober and want to move back to Manitoba — their original home. They’re hoping I will welcome them back into my life.

Fat chance. I grew so sick of them, I don’t really want a reunion. But now, my girlfriend is curious about my “new and improved” parents, as she calls them. She wants to meet them face-to-face.

The word “Luddite” carries a particular connotation. Typically, it’s a term of mockery hurled at a person deemed technophobic, perhaps simply too stupid to appreciate modern technology. But the Luddites were a real group of people with an important place in history. And it isn’t fair they’ve become synonymous with ignorance.

In 19th century Britain, technological advances in the textile industry reduced the amount of labour necessary in manufacturing. Unsurprisingly, this new tech was implemented to undercut labourers, reducing both jobs and wages, with zero social safety net in place to compensate the workers’ loss of livelihoods. The capitalist owners profited massively as they shunted workers aside.

Rather than accommodating these displaced labourers, the government passed legislation restricting workers’ ability to collectively bargain. People began to go hungry and the institutions of society met their rumbling bellies with indifference.

Then the riots started. With no other recourse, workers began to smash, loot and burn, all under the aegis of a mythical leader they named Ned Ludd, which is how they earned their moniker.