Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during Question Period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill on April 27.BLAIR GABLE/Reuters
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Nothing to see here
Re Political Renewal (Letters, June 22): “The Trudeau brand seems to be getting stale and boring.” Stale and boring is good when most of the world finds itself living in “interesting” times.
Have we already forgotten how the pandemic provisions of the government reduced the death toll in Canada to one-third of that in the United States? How about the financial relief offered to out-of-work Canadians, which supported millions of families? Those were not the achievements of a “stale” government. Is it really so boring when the government introduces such things as $10 daycare and adds dental coverage to the Canada Health Act?
It seems to me that Justin Trudeau is trying to find the new Canadian centre and, as Ralph Klein put it, find out which way the parade is going and get in front of it. Sounds like democracy to me.
Nicholas Tracy Fredericton
Come down
Re Trudeau Government’s Anti-inflation Plan Offers Nothing New (Report on Business, June 17): I just finished reading an article from The Globe and Mail where Prime Minister Trudeau was spelling out Liberal policy regarding out-of-control inflation. The article was from 1982 and was discussing Pierre Trudeau’s 6-5 program, which kept federal wage increases to 6 per cent in 1982 and 5 per cent in 1983, and also calling on others to do the same.
Of course, the policy was not very popular. Déjà vu.
Dan Petryk Calgary
Re The Government Can Do More On Inflation (June 22): The agreement between the federal government and the Bank of Canada includes support for “maximum sustainable employment,” which I presume is the language columnist Andrew Coyne considers “extraneous.” For most Canadians, full employment is vital. If they keep their jobs and receive wage hikes in line with inflation, then rising prices are usually tolerable.
Unfortunately, the main operating tool of the central bank is to depress the economy through sharp rate hikes. When spending falls, more people are laid off and worried workers are unable to demand higher wages that match the rising cost of living.
A more sensible approach would be to maintain a fully productive economy, but the central bank seems determined to proceed otherwise. Their scorched-earth policy will likely leave a destructive trail of impoverished workers, mortgage foreclosures and business failures.
Then the central bank will celebrate a victory over inflation, and throw a staff party.
Larry Kazdan Vancouver
Slow down
Re MPs Unanimously Agree To Expedite Passage Of Intoxication Bill (June 22): I recall scratching my head after Parliament gave us Section 33.1 of the Criminal Code. It answered, yet flew in the face of, the Supreme Court of Canada’s earlier Daviault decision by purporting to limit defences of extreme intoxication. How could this be?
At that time, as now, it appears the Supreme Court was driving toward a reformulation of the Criminal Code to deal with the persistent issue of violent acts committed by the voluntarily stoned or drunk. I find the comparison to drunk driving, as suggested by Justice Minister David Lametti, to be inapt precisely because it involves the act of driving, which is a highly regulated and inherently risky activity. Foreseeability is much easier to see.
I also remain skeptical that “societal change” in attitude, toward tragedies resulting from self-induced intoxication, will somehow lower the bar and meet the fundamental need to provide justice.
Ron Beram Retired Crown attorney; Gabriola, B.C.
No piece of legislation introduced by any government that alters the Criminal Code should be rubber-stamped, just because the Justice Minister feels a sense of urgency. Bill C-28 should be no exception.
The Supreme Court of Canada invited the government to consider the issue; the court did not order it to rush changes through. Indeed, rushing legislation through Parliament, without expert witnesses and consultation to help interpret its meaning and impact, will likely result in predictable confusion. Litigation, ultimately and ironically, will then be scrutinized before the Supreme Court years from now.
Justice committees of the House of Commons and Senate should be reminded to carefully study this important intoxication bill and give it, if you will, the sober second thought it deserves.
William Trudell Chair, Canadian Council of Criminal Defence Lawyers; Toronto
Big problems
Re Your Car’s Expanding Waistline (Editorial, June 20): While the greenhouse gas focus is on carbon dioxide, the increase in oxides of nitrogen should also be considered.
NOx are a major contributor to the brown smog we see on hot summer days, which makes breathing harder for all and has attendant effects on the costs of our health care system. Studies show that increasing energy consumption by larger vehicles adds to PM2.5 particulates also implicated in increased health risks.
Increasing vehicle sizes and weights have a greater impact on traffic congestion and wear and tear on roads. This leads to a size “arms race” to maintain safety levels, which leads to more weight. There is also the intimidation factor of giant SUVs and pickup trucks, adding to driving risks.
In my opinion, there is no need for these vehicles other than to satisfy egos and demonstrate wealth, while ignoring the damaging effects on our shared environment.
E.L. Springolo Aurora, Ont.
The … of letters
Re Tech Leaders, Investors Confront Industry’s Slump As Collision Conference Returns (Report on Business, June 23): “Quite a number of the other leading lights in crypto, we were informed, got COVID – all collectively, it seemed – late last week, and were therefore unable to travel.”
When pitching investors, technology entrepreneurs are known for using tag lines to quickly communicate the value of their product or service.
In Chaos Monkeys: Obscene Fortune and Random Failure in Silicon Valley, author Antonio Garcia Martínez describes the practice of explaining a business idea as the “X of Y,” where X and Y are two easily understood things, but their intersection is novel or intriguing. “The Tinder of real estate.” “The Netflix of men’s underwear.” “The Uber of bicycles.”
Between the crush of maskless delegates and the optimism of the cryptocurrency CEOs, Collision Conference 2022 merits a tag line inspired not by Silicon Valley, but by Hollywood: “The Jaws of tech conferences.”
Katherine Gougeon Toronto
Reality show
Re Bar Mitzvahs And Older Women: Welcome To Cooper Raiff’s Hollywood (June 21): Dakota Johnson, a gorgeous 32-year-old actress, is playing the ”older woman“ in the new movie Cha Cha Real Smooth? Seriously?
Definitely my best laugh for the day. Love and best wishes to Hollywood.
Edie Lewis Brantford, Ont.
Letters to the Editor should be exclusive to The Globe and Mail. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. Try to keep letters to fewer than 150 words. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. To submit a letter by e-mail, click here: letters@globeandmail.com