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'Deluded gigantism'
Re Hubristic, Ugly, Outsized, Wrong (editorial, June 24): I am convinced the Mother Canada figure is based on the last Spirit to visit Scrooge in A Christmas Carol: "The Phantom slowly, gravely, silently, approached. When it came near him, Scrooge bent down upon his knee; for in the very air through which this Spirit moved it seemed to scatter gloom and mystery.
"It was shrouded in a deep black garment, which concealed its head, its face, its form, and left nothing of it visible save one outstretched hand. But for this it would have been difficult to detach its figure from the night, and separate it from the darkness by which it was surrounded."
Dickens at least was a literary artist. Mother Canada would pay homage to hubris and, as you assert, "deluded gigantism."
David Gay, Edmonton
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Shame on Parks Canada, indeed. Not only have they welcomed the Mother Canada project for Cape Breton Highlands National Park, they have given the private developer behind the project $100,000. At the same time, they are supposed to be doing an assessment of the project's merits. "Going through the motions" might be a more accurate description.
Ken Dewar, Halifax
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A monument to victims of communism in Ottawa, a Stalinistic Mother Canada in Cape Breton: how ironic. Both are foisted on a country that wants neither.
Lori Ridgeway, Ottawa
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B(u)y rights
Re Taking Care Of The Canadian Music Business (June 24): Tell me why, exactly, should performers and song writers have longer copyright (or patent) protection than the 20 years accorded to inventors of new drugs, whose creations are so critically important to society?
Rob Richards, Toronto
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Randy Bachman wants to reopen the omnibus budget bill that offered performers and sound producers longer copyright terms so as to award similar extensions to composers and songwriters.
Performers' works and makers of sound recordings (the target groups of the present reforms) have their rights protected under a separate section of the Copyright Act from those that protect the rights of composers, songwriters, dramatists, artists and other "authors." To try to carve out special rights for one of these groups would be a difficult sell for the government.
Mr. Bachman may better serve his own constituency by seeking to join with "authors" of other forms of creative works to ensure they all receive extended protection for their life's works.
Margaret Atwood (among others) has spoken out against demands to shorten or undermine protections afforded authors. Several creators' organizations have likewise sounded the alarm on the notion of unrestricted "free" use of creative works available on the Web.
Mr. Bachman may want to move quickly. As one who works daily with educators and students regarding acceptable uses of copyrighted works, I can affirm that the notion of "users' rights" is firmly in the ascendant – even among those who are current (and future) members of the creative classes.
Peter James, Intellectual Property and Copyright Services Librarian, UBC Library
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Gay marriage
It is painful and baffling to hear that a vocal critic of same-sex marriage has been promoted to the Ontario Court of Appeal (Ottawa Picks Gay Marriage Critic To Sit On Ontario's Highest Court – June 24).
The Globe reported that the newest appointment to Ontario's top court, Bradley Miller, thinks same-sex marriage policies ought to be avoided because they "undermine the norms of marital permanence." If it is marital permanence that he is after, he is barking up the wrong tree.
Erica Lemieux, Calgary
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Wielding power
Re Will MPs Have The Guts To Confront Leaders? (June 24): Campbell Clark writes about Senator David Wells's criticism of Michael Chong's parliamentary Reform Act: "In his argument, the duly elected are required to dutifully follow someone chosen by the people who bought a party membership card. That's an upending of parliamentary democracy."
What the Senator is talking about is not people who have (just) bought a party membership, but people who have been deeply involved for years in party affairs, spending time and money on something they believe in.
Participating in a leadership race is hardly a minor matter.
It means actively working in the selection process, joining a particular campaign, participating in the process at every level, from riding meetings and delegate selections to attending (if you can afford it or can raise enough money) a convention.
"Upending parliamentary democracy" is when a small number of elected MPs can nullify the choice made by thousands of committed, hard-working party members. This is the most damaging part of the Chong bill – a part that its supporters have ignored and played down, in the process showing contempt for Canadians working for democracy through a party affiliation.
Marjaleena Repo, Saskatoon
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Price of a pension
Although I don't mean to doubt the very laudable reasons given for the large number of Conservative MPs and cabinet ministers who are retiring before the coming election, there should be some attention paid to the fact that things are about to drastically change financially for MPs (Baird Says Flaherty's Death Spurred Him To Leave Politics – June 24).
After the election, MPs will have to contribute about three times as much money annually to their pension plan as they do now. Cabinet ministers collect even larger salaries than MPs, so when this change is phased in, it will make even more of a difference to them. If they leave before the election, the larger contributions won't affect them.
I'm just saying …
Nancy Parker, Ottawa
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One-man band
Lawrence Martin refers to a well-known cartoon about the cabinet of R.B Bennett, then suggests "a cabinet table surrounded by empty chairs" (Empty Chairs And A Government Enfeebled – June 23).
The original cartoon shows a cabinet table with figures of R.B Bennett sitting in every chair, an image that is even more accurate than empty chairs in comparing Bennett's cabinet to Stephen Harper's.
John D. O'Leary, Toronto
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(With apologies to McNamara.)
My name is Stephen Harper,
I'm the leader of a band.
The finest in all Canada,
It's Harper's One-Man Band.
I play the pipes, I bang the
drums, I tickle the baby grand,
For no one else is good enough
For Harper's One-Man Band.
Ian Taylor, Hamilton