Full investigation of death required

Re: Mental-health crisis ends in man’s death (July 15)

Why? That is my question as a former pastor who has sought to support people with mental/emotional health issues. I know of the dangers that law enforcement officers encounter.

But why was the Linden Woods resident killed by police? Are police only trained to shoot to kill? What about shooting to injure or maim?

A mature prime minister

Re: Carney plays well on the road (Editorial, July 14)

The editorial discusses Mark Carney’s strengths from being head of the Bank of Canada and Bank of England.

There is merit in this analysis, but it overlooks Carney’s major contribution to date. This is the simple fact he has replaced Justin Trudeau. Trudeau’s primary personal characteristic is petulance. He slapped a moral label on every issue. If you agreed with him you were amongst the virtuous, if you disagreed with him you were morally culpable and/or stupid. He polarized Canadians in a blink of an eye.

Multiple approaches required downtown

Re: Frustration, not fear, swells in Exchange after drug crackdown (July 9)

The recent coverage of Winnipeg’s drug crisis makes it sound as though compassion and public safety are somehow opposites. They are not.

One business owner said she was “absolutely enraged” by the police response and insisted, “This is not an unsafe situation” because she was not personally seeing violence.

This is the new abnormal

I’m sure we all have read with concern articles about “new” events we are having to deal with. Very specifically: more in number, and intensity, wildfires and the smoke that comes with them; flooding, as we have seen this summer; the hottest days on record and potential for heat domes; more tornadoes; drought conditions affecting forests, crops, even lowering the water table.

We are also informed to expect these events to happen on a regular basis — every summer!

What I take issue with is the phrase “new normal.” These events are not normal, period. They are abnormal. The word “normal” somehow implies that what is happening is all right; it is OK. That we just have to get used to them.

Reporter’s contributions lauded

As an entity on ‘the other side of reporting’ — in my former role as vice-president of communications and marketing with the Winnipeg Foundation — our city has to know that working with recently retired Free Press reporter Kevin Rollason on stories about Winnipeg’s charitable community was an honour and a privilege.

At a time when philanthropy was not a mainstream story, the Free Press, through Kevin, shone a spotlight on the generosity of Winnipeggers in every corner of the city.

Kevin’s reporting in this arena was always generous, kind and accurate. We worked together for more than two decades — when opportunities presented themselves — to showcase the best of the city. As a reporter, he was always curious, kind and generous digging up the stories of Winnipeg’s best side.

Rethinking mental illness and MAID

Re: Canadians with mental illness who saw MAID as an option feel abandoned (July 6)

Following the death of his daughter Katherine, who took her own life earlier this year, Martin Short said the following:

“The understanding (is) that mental health and cancer, like my wife’s, are both diseases, and sometimes with diseases they are terminal. And my daughter fought for a long time with extreme mental health, borderline personality disorder, other things, and did the best she could, until she couldn’t.

LRT is the answer

Re: Anything seems possible now (Editorial, July 4)

The Free Press editorial is absolutely correct, traffic “did not gridlock” at the intersection of Portage and Main.

I happen to be old enough that I can remember driving across Portage and Main both before and after the underground concourse was opened. It made no practical difference.

Party switch begs questions

Re: Daudrich to run under Keystone banner in northern byelection (July 2)

Wally Daudrich’s decision to leave the Progressive Conservatives and immediately become the Keystone Party candidate in The Pas-Kameesak raises serious questions about political opportunism and representation.

The timing alone is difficult to ignore. After being prevented from seeking a PC nomination, Mr. Daudrich now presents himself as the solution to Manitoba’s political problems under a different banner. Voters are entitled to ask whether this move is driven by principle or by personal political ambition.

Drug situation requires complex solutions

Re: Police begin massive 10-day drug sweep (June 26)

While many residents understandably want safer streets and less visible drug use, the recent police operation in Winnipeg raises serious questions about whether enforcement alone can address a complex public health crisis.

Police officials state that the initiative is not aimed at people struggling with addiction, yet the operation appears to have overwhelmingly targeted those very individuals. Reports from front-line workers suggest that people were detained, searched and had harm-reduction supplies confiscated.

Alberta’s alternatives

It’s the ‘Battle of Alberta’ and not in sports vernacular.

So, you want out of Canada, eh, Alberta?

You know what? If that’s what you want, I will not stand in your way. You’ve had the good fortune of being a rich province because of your petroleum resources, but this is apparently not enough. You want even more. You are hard done by because you have been blessed with sources of revenue “lesser” provinces do not have.

Forgotten backyard artist

Manitoba summers are beautiful. So, whenever we have the opportunity to visit our parks, we take that adventure. Recently I did just that, visiting Assiniboine Park and, in particular, the Leo Mol Sculpture Garden. Personally, I was astonished what we have in our backyard. Something amazing, something unique and something international.

We are lucky to have Leo Mol’s artwork and to share his work with Canadians and the rest of the world. If you ever been to the sculpture garden at Assiniboine Park, you know what I am talking about — it is, as they say “awesome.”

Mol contributed immensely to Canada’s multicultural mosaic. He dedicated his talent and skill to the tapestry of Canada and to his heritage in the area of history and culture. The sculpture garden displays his personal collection of priceless bronze sculptures, paintings, ceramics, porcelains, sketches and more than 300 pieces of artwork that he donated over to the City of Winnipeg over the years

Social media ban undercuts parents

So the current government of Canada thinks it can parent our children better than we can.

I completely disagree with banning social media for children under the age of 16. My late wife and I raised two kids who are currently 22 and 20. They had cell phones and tablets since they were nine or 10, and not once was there an incident of someone who was trying to manipulate them or bully them. We made it clear to them that we would track their browsing on their phones/tablets, as all parents should.

Our government should be worried about dealing with countries who allow child labour and who allow sexual-orientation discrimination, and leave the parenting to parents.

FIFA knows no bounds

Re: FIFA’s financial fiefdom (June 12)

I don’t always agree with Dan Lett, but his views on FIFA are bang-on. It is without a doubt the most corrupt organization in sport — it makes the International Olympic Committee look like a convent.

This World Cup is a total price gouge. A check on StubHub shows tickets in Toronto for a game between soccer “powerhouses” Senegal and Iraq (hey, first time making it in 40 years — they must be good) marked down from $4,000 to $3,100 … each!

A return of serve

Re: Sala fails budget test (Think Tank, June 13)

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is right to be concerned about the growing provincial debt (and attendant debt payments) and some levels of taxation, but their unrelenting tunnel vision is borderline dysfunctional in terms of contributing to a useful discussion. If they want to be taken seriously, then I think they need to also respond to a number of other important issues including the following:

What about the out-of-control growth of income inequality here and around the world? What about the fact that systems of progressive taxation (primarily established after the Second World War to ensure taxation equity) are being steadily eroded? What about the huge amounts of money being put into tax shelters and offshore tax havens by wealthy people to avoid paying taxes?