Claims about golf club are not correct
Re: “Saanich looks to raise fees, scrap club privileges at Cedar Hill Golf Course,” Sept. 23.
To say the Cedar Hill Golf Club receives preferred teetime bookings is a misleading claim. Worse, to say our events cost more than $8,000 per day in lost green fees is an outright lie.
In fact, pass holders (not all of whom are club members) and daily green fee players all compete equally to book tee-times.
Sometimes we luck out and can get a morning time for our foursome, sometimes the best we can get is a single spot late in the afternoon.
The only “preferred teetimes” we get are with our annually scheduled tournaments, and the weekly two-hour block for Ladies’ Day on Tuesday mornings. (These bookings have only recently been reinstated after being cancelled for a year and a half due to pandemic restrictions.)
There is no parallel Men’s Day block of bookings. And tournament bookings are also available to the public.
Even when we play in prebooked tournaments or Ladies’ Day, we don’t cause Saanich to lose green fees. As club members, we all pay green fees. Those of us with an annual pass paid $2,330 in April, prepaying for up to three games a week.
Extra fees are charged to anyone playing a fourth game in any week. Those who don’t play often enough to justify the cost of the pass pay full green fees every time they play, or they purchase a 25-game card that provides a $5/game discount. Passes and discount cards are also available to the public.
The only difference with tournament bookings is that we’re able to play together, rather than scattered throughout the day. But we’d be playing regardless, so are not depriving Saanich of any green fees.
As for the questionable figure Saanich cites for boardroom usage, that’s an easy thing for the club to relinquish, especially since the clubhouse has been closed since January 2020.
Val Mieras
Director, Cedar Hill Golf Club
Saanich
Endangered orcas are of vital importance
The Times Colonist’s priorities were bang on: The endangered orcas are now the “canary in the coal mine.”
What happens to them will happen to other endangered species, including ourselves. Climate change, food shortages, and increasing pollution will destroy our natural habitats if we don’t take immediate steps to address these critical issues.
The article pointed to the sad fact that in the past, only two out of six baby orcas survived. Let’s hope the next three have a better outcome.
Dorothy Mullen
Victoria
A nothing election, but it was free and open
We have just endured a dreary campaign in an election few people wanted, except perhaps for a tone-deaf prime minister whose ambitions seem to exceed his abilities.
It cost hundreds of millions of dollars and accomplished nothing of substance.
But let’s not lose sight of the fact that millions of people ruled by the likes of Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong-un, the Taliban and Xi Jinping would happily trade places with us.
We all had the opportunity to vote, no one harassed us at the ballot box, and there was no violence (unless you call a handful of gravel violence). We are still free to criticize the government, and no one will haul us away to prison.
While not all will celebrate the outcome of the election, we can all celebrate the privilege of having free and open elections.
David Bly
Highlands
To end protests, stop covering them
In 1962-1963, a religious sect marched from Nelson to Vancouver and proceeded to protest their cause for several months, occupying a square in the busy downtown area. Their protests did nothing for their cause, but became a huge disruption to the city.
At some point the editors of the local papers met and decided to stop all coverage of their protests. The group left after three days of no publicity and took their group back to the Kootenay.
Protesters only seek publicity. Cut off that resource and their cause becomes pointless.
Anne Bell
Victoria
Reality of COVID was lost on Kenney
Re: “We should have helped the province next door,” letter, Sept 21.
The letter writer opened with “Shame on our provincial government for refusing to help our sister province, Alberta, with their COVID crisis in hospitals.”
First off, that claim is not even close to accurate. The B.C. government has offered to help Alberta in any way it can, just not with hospital beds.
We have our own crisis here in B.C., and because we have our own fair share of ignorant, delusional and selfish anti-vaxxers and so-called “freedom fighters,” our own heath-care system is getting close to flashing-red-light territory as well.
The difference here in B.C. is that the provincial government here recognizes what’s at stake, and has the ability to look ahead — something that is completely lost on the inept government of Alberta.
“Best summer ever,” Alberta Premier Jason Kenney declared upon opening up the province to “business as usual” in July, right at the onset of the fourth COVID wave.
The people of Alberta are not at fault for the Kenney disaster, they deserved much better guidance than what they received from their own government.
The B.C. government has offered to help in any way it can, contrary to what the letter-writer claims — just not to the tune of filling up our hospital beds with out-of-province patients when we’ll beyond a doubt need those beds ourselves.
Sadly, we may need them all very soon.
G.A. Saunders
Sooke
Closed borders could have an easy solution
Let me get this straight: The United States really, really really wants its cruise ships to be able to sail to Alaska.
But Canada says, “No, we can’t possibly allow cruise ships in our ports.” Canada wrings its hands and wails loudly about how those nasty Americans are keeping the land border closed.
But the U.S. says, “No, we couldn’t possibly allow non-essential travel across the border.”
Perhaps somebody with more brains than our politicians can connect the dots and suggest a solution.
Ted Harrison
Sidney
I am sorry about the unvaccinated
I am so sorry about the number of critical-care unvaccinated patients.
I am sorry that they are exhausting already exhausted medical staff.
I am sorry they are causing delays in needed surgeries.
I am sorry they are endangering the vaccinated.
I am sorry they are costing taxpayers enormous amounts of money.
I’m sorry the government doesn’t have the sense, balls or gumption to say you refuse the vaccination, you pay your own bills.
I’m sorry they are ignorant. Really sorry!
Julia Pollard
Victoria
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