More money
Re “Stellantis halts construction at Windsor EV battery plant over federal funding” (May 16): If I were the CEO of Stellantis, I’d be really unhappy that Volkswagen got $13-billion from the federal government, billions more than what I got. I don’t blame the company for wanting equal treatment.
Good luck to Justin Trudeau in sorting this out, without raising our debt to unmanageable levels.
T.S. Ramsay Guelph, Ont.
Swift justice
Re “Is a stern rebuke from our Chief Justice enough to get judicial vacancies filled? Don’t hold your breath” (May 16): Justice delayed and inaccessible justice also cause great harm in the civil system, where life-altering cases in areas such as family, personal injury and elder law (my practice area) are decided.
Any government that says it cares about the mental, physical and financial health of its people would maintain a robust justice system that provides timely and accessible services and results.
Jan Goddard Toronto
Cancer response
Re “B.C. government to send cancer patients to the U.S. for treatment” (May 16): So, let me get this straight: The B.C. government fought doctor Brian Day tooth and nail, all the way to the Supreme Court, to deny his ability to provide private health care to the province’s underserved populations.
In the meantime, it will spend untold millions to send thousands of underserved cancer patients to for-profit medical centres in the United States for treatment, paying travel, food and lodging for them and their support persons.
Oh, Canada.
Morris Sosnovitch Toronto
Re “The earlier …” (Letters, May 16): There seem to be individual differences regarding mammograms in Ontario. Like a letter-writer, I’m over 74 with a family history of cancer. My mammogram is booked for July.
Felicity Pope Cobourg, Ont.
I echo a letter-writer’s plea to remove restrictions for mammograms to those over 74.
My mammograms every two years until 2015 were clear. In 2017, I was not called since I had reached 74.
If I had a mammogram then, I might have been able to avoid a double mastectomy in 2018.
Maria Edelman St. Catharines, Ont.
Better pay
Re “Nursing shift” (Letters, May 11): I could not agree more with a letter-writer’s plea: “Give our nurses decent pay and working conditions and stop this reliance on stopgap measures.”
I recently spent a few unexpected days at St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto with my wife, who required emergency surgery. At every level, the staff was, without fail, superb.
Their compassion in the most stressful of circumstances; their communication; their patience as I processed and documented what was happening and possible outcomes; their good humour as my wife recovered. And this was not just with my wife – I saw it repeatedly with so many patients.
I cannot imagine the nightmare of challenges this position of care held in the midst of the pandemic. There are several professions that, until one sees it close up, one cannot fully appreciate the effort involved.
Treat these people with the respect that they treat their patients. Pay them accordingly.
Neil Phillips Toronto
Business of government
Re “Want to help businesses grow? Keep it simple, Ottawa” (Editorial, May 15): I spoke with the CEO of a Canadian charity that works in Africa and receives both private and Canadian federal funding. He estimated that projects funded by the government cost 40 per cent more than those funded privately because of red tape.
The less governments interfere in economic matters, the better off we would all be.
Tony Woodruff Burnaby, B.C.
A major deficiency is highlighted in the federal government’s administration of programs: little uptake, unspent funds and few results are characteristics of a failed program.
Most classes in policy development emphasize that a program should incorporate the ability to monitor efficiency and effectiveness. Last fall, the auditor-general reported that the government had no idea whether its program supporting homelessness was improving the situation or not (”Federal government unlikely to cut chronic homelessness by half in five years, warns auditor-general” – Nov. 16, 2022), noting that it had not collected any data for evaluation.
I find it likely that governments generally do not want to know how effective various programs are. If the news is bad, they are subject to criticism. If the program was effective, that might be good news – but not knowing serves just as well.
The Opposition and the auditor-general should be making more demands of government to evaluate programs, report results and build upon that knowledge to ensure better use of our money.
Wayne Dybvig Regina
Help found
Re “On mental health education, Ontario is now in a class of its own” (Editorial, May 13): I welcome Ontario’s introduction of mental health literacy in schools.
I hope that those responsible will devote the time and effort to make these programs meaningful and effective to raise awareness, help reduce stigma, provide practical evidence-based self-care tools that students can adopt and allow for dialogue in safe and non-judgmental environments. Most importantly, I hope students are included in designing courses that will be most helpful to them.
If these courses cause just one student struggling in silence to reach out for help, maybe there will be one less student who feels that death by suicide is the only available option.
Michael Herman Toronto
Tune out
Re “Mental health group calls on Ontario to ban gambling advertising” (May 16): If the federal and provincial governments, the National Hockey League and Sportsnet are at all serious about lowering mental illness, they should immediately ban the advertising of sports gambling on television.
I am even turning off the TV instead of watching hockey, with only American teams remaining now and all those incessant gambling ads at every commercial break. My respect for formerly esteemed NHL players who appear in these ads, promoting an activity that causes multiple problems in society, is quickly fading.
As a retired clinical psychologist, I am aware of how gambling contributes to the mental illness epidemic, including an increase in suicides. I insist that these ads stop immediately, and that those who approved this despicable phenomenon be defeated in the next election for this highly irresponsible act.
Bruce Hutchison PhD Ottawa
Believe
Re “A new centreman won’t help the Leafs. A new leader might” (Sports, May 15): Perhaps the Leafs should hire Ted Lasso.
Rick Walker Toronto
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