How things were, way back in ’19
On New Year’s Eve 2020, at 85 years of age, my mind went back to reflect at how things were in ancient times — like way, way back in 2019.
Joe Harvey
Victoria
It’s an emergency 24 hours a day
Would I make myself available for a COVID-19 injection at 10 p.m. or 3 a.m.? You betcha!
If we gave timely vaccinations the priority they truly deserve, we would offer them through a 24-hour or even 18-hour day, contingent on the supply.
Lives depend on it. Let’s get with the program. Is this not an emergency?
Neil Finnie, MD
Victoria
How to keep our politicians in line
It is absurd that the headline “B.C. cabinet staying in province during holiday season” has to even be printed.
Shame on those politicians in Saskatchewan, Ontario, Quebec, and all over the United States who have lived by the masterful political creed of “Do what I say. Not as I do.”
How about this for a provincial health order? Any politician caught breaking Dr. Bonnie Henry’s rules immediately forfeits their pension, pay and position.
Vince Herlaar
Victoria
Why take aim at the bars?
What happened to the COVID-19 leadership that B.C. was a model for?
Bars, which have been diligent in enforcing the rules and which have prevented outbreaks, were slammed New Years Eve while suffering huge financial pain — yet airlines that are not constrained continue to be flagged as contamination sites.
One has to wonder if our “for the people” NDP government is in fact acting “for big business.” Not surprising how the more things change, the more they seem the same.
Scott Clark
Victoria
Thanks for money to give to charity
One thousand dollars has mysteriously appeared in my bank account. Well it wasn’t so mysterious because I asked the government to put it there.
I did so because Premier John Horgan asked me to. He didn’t offer me any reason. He just said that we’ve got a serious problem with this pandemic and many people are suffering financially so rather than waste money chartering a plane to fly over the province dropping $100 bills we’re going to give $500 to everyone who asks for it, whether they need it or not.
That is, except all those people who do not have enough money or resources to actually pay or understand the necessity of filing income tax returns nor the ability to apply. But I applied as a married couple and the government sent me the $1,000. Thank you very much.
I applied because I knew if I didn’t Horgan would find some other hare-brained excuse to throw my tax money around that he thinks would make him a hero in the minds of the electorate.
I applied because I knew that if I got control of the money I could forward it on to someone or some charitable organization that actually needs it.
The only regret I have is the waste that Horgan created by employing a huge bureaucracy to do so and that most of that money will end up not being used for its intended purpose.
Having said all that, thanks to John Horgan on behalf of the more deserving charity that will benefit. I encourage all those others in my position to do the same.
Jack Trueman
Brentwood Bay
Use pharmacies to distribute vaccine
Why are pharmacies not being used for the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines? Pharmacists are trained to inoculate, they have the facilities, and they are local.
Michael Faulkner
Oak Bay
Leave lights up to spread good cheer
This is a plea for people to leave their Christmas lights up and lit until the end of January.
As most of you know, this is a very dark period for many in terms of the weather; COVID-19 can add several levels of “ordeal” on top of that. The rate of depression blossoms.
Many nursing-home residents are still having to exist without benefit of visits from their kinfolk — and for quite a few of us who suffer from seasonal affective disorder), it is an endurance contest to wait through, that may require medication.
The lights and decorations make a considerable difference to our dark winter environment. And by Feb. 10, the change is happening and we start to feel that spring is in the air.
Gary Brandstadt
Victoria
Strangers mingle in some cases, not all
I am puzzled. The shopping centres, grocery stores, and parking lots have been packed.
Complete strangers mingle. But small circles of friends are precluded in getting together. Why is it possible that tennis players can play singles but not doubles?
The absurdity of the rules is present for all to see. Yes, individually we must be cautious to not catch this virus.
But let people watch out for themselves without big brother looking over their shoulders.
Patrick Skillings
Victoria
We’re on the edge of extinction
Re: “Pursuing happiness, but not at the expense of others,” commentary, Dec. 30.
A thought-provoking piece by John Vincent. It does, however, cause me pause on one or two matters.
Individualism/objectivism, call it what you will, has brought us to the brink of extinction. I will leave to the readers (if any) to envisage the final acts on the course we are following.
The greater number of people on this planet follow one religion or another. Most promising an eternal afterlife. Now, eternity is a wee bit longer than our four score years on Earth.
If there is an afterlife, will the system used be objectivism? Will the same individuals have the nicest clouds?
Finally, the Karl Marx failure was not the “collective idea” but the subjugation of millions to make elitists of a few.
I suggest that future pieces by objectivists end with, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” The answer will always be, yes.
Whitney Moyer
Colwood
Don’t overlook the Cuban success story
Re: “Pursuing happiness, but not at the expense of others,” commentary, Dec. 30.
John Vincent states that “Capitalism … is the system that has raised the standard of living of its poorest citizens to heights no collective system has.”
Vincent has overlooked one fact. Before the 1959 Cuban Revolution, the level of poverty and living standard for many in Cuba were brutal. Now, the poorest citizens in Cuba have access to free medical care, education and subsidized housing, with literacy rates the highest in Latin America.
Cuba, with its collective system, has certainly raised the standard for the poor despite the mean spirited embargo set by capitalist United States. How much higher might it be without the embargo restrictions?
Larry Licht|
Victoria
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