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Tolls, polls, kneecaps
The leaders of Ontario's three major political parties have now come out against the proposed tolls for the Gardiner Expressway and the Don Valley Parkway, despite the overwhelming support of Toronto's city council and mayor.
Provincial politicians of all stripes are putting their polling concerns above what is clearly the most sensible option for paying for the upkeep of these roadways and public transit.
Premier Kathleen Wynne, who initially suggested that she would not stand in the way but is now blocking the plan, has suggested her reason for doing so is that there is a lack of public transit options. True enough, but the $2 toll is still less than the current TTC fare, and a car can carry more than one person. Lost in this small-minded approach is the chance to reduce both congestion and air pollution. An appalling lack of leadership.
David Sisam, Toronto
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It's hard enough trying to make ends meet without paying tolls, too (Bitter Over Tolling Veto, Mayor Says Toronto Being Treated Like Child, Jan. 27).
Open the door to Toronto's tolls, and what's next? Electronic gatekeepers at the entrance to every burg in the land?
I pay enough taxes to drive. I do not want to pay more. And it's going to take a lot more than this obvious vote-getting ploy to make me forget the hydro bills I'm paying because of Liberal mismanagement.
Helena Simpson, Oakville, Ont.
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This matter illustrates yet again the long-standing need to update our constitutional relationship between cities and provinces.
That arrangement, whereby cities are considered "creatures of the province" dates from the Victorian era, when Canada was still largely agrarian and the politicians of the time, having counted the votes, decided to kneecap the cities. Some things clearly never change.
Steve Soloman, Toronto
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While I welcome Ontario doubling the share of gas tax revenue that goes to municipalities, this could easily have been done in conjunction with new road tolls on certain highways in the Greater Toronto Area.
It won't cost the province anything if Toronto collects tolls, which would have the added benefit of reducing traffic congestion. From the municipality's perspective, this seems like a win-win.
Peter D. Hambly, Hanover, Ont.
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Premier Wynne to Mayor Tory:
"Tolls, tolls, what are they?
Polls, polls is how we govern."
Michael Beswick, Toronto
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A way to help
Re Private Donor Funds Suicide-Prevention Plan For First Nation Community (Jan. 26): This act demonstrated a wonderful possibility. Many Canadians feel they would like to help, but honestly don't know how. What about the government setting up a charitable foundation, where citizens could donate to First Nations causes, including suicide prevention, water issues and education?
Money could be directed to specific communities and/or specific needs with possible pictures and reporting back. What about the government sponsoring twinning projects, where municipalities could be twinned with needy First Nations communities to share in truth and reconciliation workshops and assist in a variety of ways to be mutually determined?
There are many other possibilities. Let's get personal. We need to get on with this.
Mary Farrar, Kingston
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Reform reactions
Re Electoral-Reform Survey Findings Released (Jan. 25): If the government leaves our first-past-the-post system in place, the NDP will be disappointed and the Conservatives will be pleased (even if secretly.) If the government uses its majority to push Justin Trudeau's favoured "ranked ballot" system through, both the NDP and the Conservatives will be furious. Which would make for a better, more workable House?
Michael Ufford, Toronto
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About those spines
Re World Leaders Need To Stiffen Their Spines (Jan. 27): What if you were walking alone at night on a foggy, unfamiliar street and suddenly encountered a very large, wild-eyed, raving person?
Would you step close and start an argument? Not unless you enjoy the possibility of being seriously hurt or killed.
It's no wonder world leaders are behaving cautiously toward Donald Trump. He has powerful economic and military weapons at his command. Until world leaders agree to call his bluff unanimously, or his fellow Americans find a way to disarm him, we should all proceed carefully.
Jean Gower, Kingston
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Three cheers for Gary Mason for expressing so well what I have been thinking. Not only is Donald Trump's behaviour unacceptable in the leader of a country like the United States, but it is unacceptable that our leaders are not speaking out against it. They need to support women, they need to support the environment, they need to support immigrants and they need to support Mexico.
I will be writing my MP and the Prime Minister on this issue. I encourage everyone to do the same.
Sandra Murphy, Halifax
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Humpty Trumpty
Re Tensions Flare Between Trump, Mexico Over Costs Of Building Wall (Jan. 27): So the cost to Mexico for not funding the wall could be a 20 per cent tariff, although it needn't mean that. It could be something else in the "buffet of options." In this Humpty Trumpty world, things mean whatever Humpty wants them to mean. But however much his executive commands say "it will be better to obey," the small fish that he views the Mexicans to be might decide to sleep on it. After all, things change rapidly.
Alternatively, knowing what happened to Humpty in the end, they might think the wall is worth the investment.
Anne Spencer, Victoria
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With selfies, the medium is indeed the message: Drawing and painting require time, whereas selfies are but a flash (Our Selfies, Ourselves – Life & Arts, Jan. 26).
The sober frowns of artists painting their portraits could well be the boiled-egg look of focus and concentration.
If Humpty Dumpty had the technology to capture a selfie's evanescence, he'd still be sitting on a wall holding us entranced by the soap-bubble allure of a captured, fleeting sensation. As it is, we have at least four years to render an expression of his fall.
Lor Pelton, Cornwall, Ont.
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Re Trump Says Torture Works As His Government Readies Review On Terror Interrogation Methods (Jan. 25): I'm confused. Does Donald Trump mean torture results in accurate information being obtained from the victim – or that torture works to mollify his core political constituency?
Eric LeGresley, Ottawa
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Re Scientists Advance 'Doomsday Clock' Closer To Midnight (Jan. 27): "Atomic scientists reset their symbolic 'Doomsday Clock' to its closest time to midnight in 64 years." So the big hand is on the 12, and the little hands are on the button?
Robert Dawson, Halifax