Dear Editor:
In addition to the environmental importance of the sa国际传媒 Springs Golf Club, golf is very popular, and people pay $100,000, $200,000 and much more to belong to golf clubs. Obviously they are getting plenty of pleasure and benefit, be it physical, social, economic, so why can鈥檛 we, as a city, provide benefit to the folks at the other end of the economic scale, middle and low income?
My advice to city officials is to buy sa国际传媒 Springs, establish an economic model whereby adult residents can pay $40 and kids less so we have a tremendous facility for the pleasure of all residents.
The sa国际传媒 planning department favours the destruction of this golf course, to be replaced by warehouses. Forget about human benefit, surrounding agricultural benefit, ecological benefit, letsa国际传媒 just store stuff and pay workers minimum wage to move it all around.
Planning staff downplays the environmental importance of the land, and the adjacent wetland. They are not to be trusted as evidenced by a couple of examples.
Firstly there is the UBCO debacle where developers were given the green light by staff all through the approval process and beyond while knowing the soil conditions, and ignoring several warnings on the construction process used after work began. Their chief engineer merely said 鈥渃rap happens鈥 as surrounding buildings were being damaged, with one entire, new residential building having to be evacuated.
The second example is the Heritage Area which is on a flood plain according to the city, limiting what can be placed in crawl spaces of homes in that area. However, for developers of large apartment buildings the area is not considered a flood plain by city planners, so they can build at will.
Planning staff opinion appears strongly biased towards developers and we must do everything we can to protect and improve our quality of life.
A round of golf at a typical 18-hole, full length course (other than KS and Shadow Ridge, the latter to be part of the airport) costs $150-185 and $80 for juniors, so an adult wanting to play with two kids will pay $310+GST for an afternoon of golf. With a municipal course priced right we could have the same family paying about $80. That would open up individual and family activity for so many more of our residents. What a positive impact it would have on their lives.
Don Henderson, sa国际传媒
Wooldridge is great on council
Dear Editor:
In the upcoming election, I鈥檓 voting for Loyal Wooldridge because he is the most experienced candidate by far -- his six years on city council and in this regionsa国际传媒 politics make him the only choice in the sa国际传媒 Centre riding. Wooldridgesa国际传媒 deep knowledge of the issues that truly matter to sa国际传媒 residents and how to bring about change are truly impressive.
He also has a proven track record of listening to his constituents and following through on issues -- from safety to healthcare, and even in the short time since Loyal stated his intentions to run, he has already made a positive difference for our city. I find it inspiring to have such an experienced and knowledgeable candidate to vote for, and I can鈥檛 wait to see what he does for us as MLA in Victoria.
Fiona Lehn, sa国际传媒
Dear Editor:
Was William Stollery even at the recent NDP event in Summerland where attendees were denied admittance? (letters, Sept. 28)
Probably not, given his hollow words that do not include any examples.聽聽
I have read a lot of recent letters to the editor that cause me a great deal of concern.聽 We need our elected officials to remember that they are accountable to the constituents they wish to represent.
The recent track record of both the federal and provincial NDP clearly demonstrates their eagerness to obliterate any form of open, transparent and honest discussion about key issues like drug dens and their Needles, Drugs and Poverty programs.
Equally disturbing is the local sa国际传媒 Conservative Party candidatesa国际传媒 efforts to silence opposing views by often blocking 聽and deleting social media posts on anyone who disagrees with her.聽聽
I feel we can improve society if we elect individuals who are independent, unburdened by any party line and not beholden to any political leader.聽聽
Equally important is their ability to think critically and challenge the status quo.
Naomi Aoki, Penticton
Dear Editor:
The more astute readers will notice that the sources Robert Handfield cited (letters, Sept. 28) are closely tied to the pharmaceutical industry and subject to intense regulatory capture.聽聽
Anyone who wants accurate information simply cannot trust the numbers from agencies that make a fortune selling sickness.聽 If you want valid and reliable information go to independent sources who do not have ties to government and/or the industry.聽聽
A much different picture emerges when you look at data that has not been massaged and altered to suit those with financial and political conflicts of interests.
Shawn Brown,聽Penticton
Conservatives bad for climate
Dear Editor:
The last person we would want as premier of this province is John Rustad. He was, after all, kicked out of the BC United party because he was a climate change denier. That alone should disqualify him from office.
Since he has taken over the Conservative party, he has changed his tune somewhat, but that does not mitigate his previous stance. He strongly believed that climate change was not due to human activity. That kind of belief does not change overnight unless for political gain. And even with this new stance, he still hedges on human activity as the major cause of climate change.
Nuclear energy is his new hobby horse. And that, of course, has its own problems, the main one being what do we do with nuclear waste.
Aside from that, he is a serious danger to health and education. Because he is obsessed with reducing the deficit rapidly, he would chop $4.1 billion from our health budget. David Ely has just announced that this past year, 250,000 British Columbians newly connected with a doctor. This is the first time in a long time that fewer people are seeking a doctor than in the previous year.聽聽
We can鈥檛 afford to abandon a government that has made that kind of progress in health care.
The small 鈥楥鈥 conservative movement in this province has always looked to cut spending on health and education. Whether they were Social Credit, Reform, BC Liberal, Conservative, or some combination of those parties, they have always been against spending money on people. Business and jobs was all they tended to preach. You can鈥檛 expect them to change now.
Rustad has benefited from the unfortunate surge in popularity of Pierre Poilievre, a wannabe Trumper who is a very scary person to possibly become prime minister. The provincial and federal Conservatives are not affiliated, but, nevertheless, Rustad has gained a lot of support from voters because of the name of his party.
And the man has limited experience leading a party, let alone a province. Witness the hash he and Kevin Falcon have made over the withdrawal of the United party and the failed melding of the two.
If we want a stable and progressive government in this province there is only one man and one party to vote for: David Ely and NDP.
Lee Karvonen, West sa国际传媒
Dear Editor:
Euthanasia of habituated bear is completely avoidable.
Itsa国际传媒 time every municipal government in sa国际传媒 adopt clear and firm bylaws and infraction punishment to save bears from becoming habituated to garbage and other attractants humans leave exposed.
Shame on all local governments.
Mike Wilkinson,聽Duncan
Comparisons to Shakespeare
Dear Editor:
鈥淪ome are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.鈥
Act II Scene 5 of Shakespearesa国际传媒 鈥淭welfth Night鈥 is a tapestry of the current provincial election. Locally, three ladies 聽are leading the race, but only one will achieve greatness.
My recommendation has to be Tina Lee, an established and recognized local activist. Tina has been involved in the area for a number of years and 聽has always displayed integrity and common sense.
She has shown leadership in her positions and is a formidable adversary. She engages with aplomb, is a natural listener, and will champion your concerns.
Jim Calvert,聽Penticton
