Letters, Sept. 21

Treat the disease

I understand there are valid concerns regarding specific short term rentals (STR) in Winnipeg. However, the article raised other alarms for me.

Winston Yee, the city’s manager of licensing and bylaw enforcement, stated the purpose of the new requirement (reporting 911 calls for STR) is “so we can become aware of issues.” So he isn’t aware of “the issues” yet? Are there not systems in place to obtain this information? Doesn’t the city know which addresses have high calls for emergency service? I sure hope the city’s systems aren’t so antiquated that it can’t cross-reference emergency calls with the STR registry.

I think the focus needs to be on the behavior, rather than the ownership structure. Part of the proposed solution to “parties, noise, violence, vandalism and other criminal activity” is to require owners of STR to advise the city when an emergency responder attends the property.

I am not seeing how this will help improve the quality of life for residents of Winnipeg. Living near any problematic property is tough, regardless of whether it’s a STR, long term rental or owner occupied.

The mayor said he wants to “ensure violations are enforced with meaningful consequences” and “doing all they can to hold owners accountable.”

I am sure most residents of Winnipeg would love to see that apply to everyone equally, whether its a dwelling, business (eg. liquor licence), et cetera, and whether the annoyance relates to property maintenance or behavior.

Again, I don’t see how the proposal will help reach this goal. It seems like an ineffective administrative burden for STR owners and a poor use of city resources.

Sadly, as a tenant identified as Craig in the Free Press news story City wants short-term rental unit property owners to report all emergency-service responses said, “you never know what you’re going to get” in any setting.

I want to live around people and businesses who care for the physical condition/appearance of the property and behave respectfully towards people around them.

I fail to see how requiring a select group of people to call 311 after someone calls 911 will improve the quality of life for anyone.

Surely, Winston Yee’s team and city council can come up with something better.

Michelle Burdz

Winnipeg

Sage advice

A long time ago, I remember while growing up that my parents always warned me and reminded me to look both ways when crossing the road.

This was very good and life-saving advice.

Presently, not only do Winnipegers have to look both ways when crossing a street, but now, they have to look both ways when crossing a sidewalk.

Citizens are getting run over and hit by electric bikes and scooters being driven on city sidewalks.

Robert Moskal

Winnipeg

Moral balance

I found Professor Dennis Hiebert’s piece (What constitutes criminal justice?, Think Tank, Sept. 16) exploring the important differences between retributive and restorative justice both enlightening and challenging, particularly his characterization of legal punishment as serving societies’ need for “moral balance.”

I was reminded of Rene Girard’s work on the primitive mechanism of scapegoating, in which an animal was symbolically burdened with the misdeeds of a community and sent into the desert to die, so absolving collective guilt.

Though we no longer practice scapegoating, I wonder the concept still has relevance in the 21st century.

Could it be that those designated as criminals make it possible for people in a community to avoid coming to terms with their own ‘shadow selves”?

Is the guilt of questionable business and personal dealings assuaged when lawbreakers are punished and segregated and so become the ‘bad people’ (not like the rest of us ‘good folks)?

I wonder if such psychological and spiritual dynamics make it difficult to successfully advocate for restorative justice.

Hiebert’s alluding to Christian theology is important, given its centrality of forgiveness.

I have come to believe that one is able to forgive only to the extent that one has the courage and humility to acknowledge one’s shared humanity with its culpabilities. We need teachers such as the professor to continue to shine light on that less well-travelled path towards more just ways of living together.

Edwin Buettner

Winnipeg

Taking care

Premier Wab Kinew’s announcement that Manitoba intends to triple mineral production over the next five years is certainly ambitious and there is no doubt that mining can contribute significantly to Manitoba’s economy, create employment and attract investment.

However, ambitious targets should be accompanied by equally clear plans and measurable commitments.

The premier’s message that Manitoba will “do mining right” is encouraging, but Manitobans deserve to know what that actually means.

Faster environmental approvals and reduced permitting times may help attract investment, but speed should not come at the expense of thorough environmental assessment, public consultation or long-term accountability.

Mining projects can bring jobs and economic activity, but they can also have lasting impacts on land, water and communities. The government should therefore clearly explain how it will ensure that environmental standards remain strong while approvals are being accelerated.

Indigenous governments and communities must also be genuine partners in this expansion, rather than simply participants in the process. Economic benefits, employment opportunities and ownership should be meaningful and fairly distributed.

The government should also provide more detail about the infrastructure required to support this rapid expansion. Increased mining production will require reliable electricity, transportation infrastructure, roads and potentially expanded port capacity. Manitoba taxpayers deserve to know how much public investment will be required and what the expected return will be.

Finally, the premier should explain how the province will measure success. Is success simply the volume of minerals extracted or will it also include Manitoba jobs, Indigenous ownership, value-added processing, environmental performance and increased provincial revenues?

Tripling mining production is a headline-grabbing target.

The real test will be whether Manitoba can achieve sustainable economic growth while protecting its environment and ensuring that the benefits reach Manitobans.

Manitoba should welcome responsible investment — but we should also ask the necessary questions before celebrating the numbers.

Yog Rahi Gupta

Winnipeg

Essential pay

If the Dynacare workers are deemed to be “essential” to bust the union and the right to organize and the right to strike protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, then Dynacare workers should be paid as essential workers.

I detest manipulative managerial rhetoric and whomever is running Dynacare and the Manitoba Labour Board. Provincialize the services Dynacare provides and get rid of Dynacare (a U.S. company no less).

Health and fair working conditions, including remuneration, are both human rights.

Why are we not providing all lab services publicly in Manitoba?

David Albert Newman

Winnipeg