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Turn up the volume
I must speak out against Margaret Wente's recent piece regarding sexually abusive behaviour (Please Turn Down The Volume On The Outrage Machine, Oct. 21).
Ms. Wente outlines various incidents of sexual abuse that she was subjected to as a young woman and frames them as "nuisance," when in fact most of them are objectively crimes under the Criminal Code of Canada. The older and wiser women of our nation owe it to the younger generation to encourage clarity, courage and conviction that these experiences are not merely a nuisance.
Ms. Wente's depiction of these incidents as nuisance does nothing to engender change in the perpetrators or the system, or to bolster the confidence of victims in calling out this unacceptable behaviour. If anything, we need to do the opposite of what Ms. Wente is suggesting; we need to turn up the volume on the outrage machine. Way up.
Brandi Lowry, retired police officer, Hamilton Police Service, Hamilton
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Ms. Wente says she has experienced "being trailed on the street at night," "bosses who tried to kiss us when we were teenage waitresses" and "someone's dad who made a pass when we were underage" – and then says that she would never call herself a victim.
The point of #MeToo is to shine light on a pervasive problem. Yes, there are variations to the type and severity of acts, but none is okay. And saying "Me, too" shines light on the gamut that exists. Maybe it would help if Ms. Wente did view herself as a victim (or a survivor), since all of these are unwanted sexual advances. #MeToo can be a powerful, empowering movement to bring people together. But first let's stand up and expose what's going on – all of it.
Jesse McQuay, Kitchener, Ont.
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Kids short-changed
So, Royal Bank of Canada economist Josh Nye and Bank of Montreal chief economist Doug Porter would prefer smaller deficits (Fiscal Update Prioritizes Policy Over Deficit, Oct. 24). But smaller deficits would come at the expense of enhancements to programs such as the Canada child benefit, which are crucial for reducing child poverty and improving economic growth.
Did they not notice that the 2016 census demonstrated that a shocking 17 per cent of Canadian children live in poverty?
Do they not understand that, as Nobel Prize winner Joseph E. Stiglitz said in his 2015 book Rewriting the Rules of the American Economy: An Agenda for Growth and Shared Prosperity, child poverty is a strong drag on economic growth and that child benefits are necessary to decrease child poverty and economic growth? How far away is Bay Street from the real world that Canadians experience?
Sid Frankel, associate professor, faculty of social work, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg
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More beds a blessing
Credit must be given where it is due, and the decision made by the Ontario government to improve bed access is to be gratefully acknowledged (Ontario To Reopen Two Hospitals In Bid To Ease Overcrowding, Oct. 24).
Emergency rooms are crowded on a daily basis but certainly an overtaxed system is put to a severe test during the winter season. The issue is not the number of patients who come to the ER but rather crowding in the hospital. An admitted patient waiting hours or days for transfer to the ward completely ties up the emergency treatment area and leads to backlogged waiting rooms and ambulances unable to offload. It rarely occurs when hospitals function at 85-per-cent bed occupancy but is a given when this approaches 95 per cent, a common occurrence in Ontario hospitals. Ontario has one of the lowest rates of bed availability in the entire Western world at 2.3 hospital beds per 1,000 population.
There is lots of blame to go around and much more needs to be done, but in the meantime, Ontario Health Minister Eric Hoskins' announcement is welcome news.
Alan Drummond, co-chair of public affairs, Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians, Ottawa
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Cross out
The crucifix in the legislature is Quebec's Confederate statue (Quebec Legislature's Crucifix Hangs Over Secularism Debate, Oct. 24). It harkens back to a time when the society was homogeneous, and Quebec's religious beliefs were worthy of defence. The beliefs are gone but the totem remains. It's time to give it up and welcome the diversity which is now our strength and our future.
Constance Dilley, Toronto
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Veil views
Margaret Wente expresses my sentiment exactly (Veil Bans Are Bigoted And Sexist. Really? Oct. 24). As she quotes German Chancellor Angela Merkel: "We do not want any parallel societies, and where they exist we have to tackle them."
I'm a Canadian who came here from Iran. Like most immigrants, I wanted to adopt Canadian culture and values for myself and my children. I have no desire to continue or impose Iranian values on Canada. Those in the English press who demonize the Quebec proposal to ban face coverings in public do not represent my views. I don't believe that Premier Philippe Couillard or the Quebeckers who support the bill are doing it for reasons of religion.
Shaul Ezer, Vancouver
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The niqab is not innocuous, but it is also not the problem. The problem is religious extremism, and banning loosely-associated head gear has the effect of punishing and isolating the most vulnerable (in this case, women), rather than working to solve the problem. It's as if the primary solution to public violence were outlawing bleeding on sidewalks.
Brian J. Lowry, Fredericton
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I'm definitely someone from Ms. Wente's "English-speaking Canada" who feels strongly about the niqab and its symbolism. However, I feel just as strongly that banning it is poor public policy.
Banning things that we dislike, but are not inherently harmful, is the thin end of a very nasty and divisive wedge. I'd rather not see our society functioning in such a way.
Jenna Chaplin, Toronto
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School board fail
The Toronto District School Board was is in the process of committing that easiest of sins: take away from one group to help another (To Level Playing Field, Toronto Mulls End To Specialized Schools, Oct. 23).
The only consequence of this approach is that students losing specialty resources either fight back or turn to the private sector. In either case, the result is always a weakening of our public education system. If TDSB wants to improve the quality of education of those it considers vulnerable, then it should do its utmost to find new resources.
Manuel Buchwald, Toronto
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Why does "level playing field" invariably mean "lower everyone to the same level?" Do we really want excellence in nothing?
Philip A. Russel, Toronto
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Why do clawbacks inevitably attack the arts? We endured this with previous provincial and federal governments, and now we are seeing the Toronto District School Board question the value of the contribution that arts make to our society.
Scott Megginson, Toronto