Letters, April 12 – Winnipeg Free Press

Opinion

The bike is tired

Again: Pardon the councilor for calling the group “bicycle nazis”. (April 10)

The story of Bike Winnipeg and Russ Wyatt is the work of clowns on my left and jokers on the right. No, we can't have councilors calling groups bicycle nazis, but it doesn't make sense to say he made a racial slur worthy of his resignation.

I'm definitely a grammar nazi as far as spelling and punctuation are concerned. I also probably fit White's bike Nazi category – I get out and ride in Scotland as many days as possible in the warm weather and encourage others to do the same. I'm also in favor of better bike infrastructure because what we have now is clearly not enough.

That's why I really appreciate Bike Winnipeg's efforts to improve bike infrastructure, and I believe that to make meaningful progress, we need to fundamentally change the way our city values ​​cyclists and pedestrians, and that can't be achieved by simply pushing a car-centric council out of committee against a crude car. dictionary.

Kenneth Ingram

Winnipeg

Wyatt has to go

Number. At the City of Winnipeg Public Works Committee meeting on April 9, Russ White's angry and awkward outburst was unprecedented.

Referring to Bike Winnipeg's executive director Mark Coho as a “bicycle Nazi” during a presentation on intersection safety shows a profound and frightening mindset, a shocking deterioration of morals and a general inability to cope. violent rhetoric and angry frustration: “For ordinary people who don't come to the committee, I can understand the bike nazi's desire to remove all lanes for cars.”

Faced with an experienced, thoughtful, and educated host, White's inability to restrain his impulse to insult, belittle, and make the most egregious comparisons boggles the mind.

Apparently, White should be educated in Nazism.

The Nazis were responsible for the Holocaust, the systematic murder of six million Jewish children, women and men. The Nazis also killed 11 million non-Jews whom they considered subhuman and undesirable: among them the Slavs; novel; homosexual men; people with mental or physical disabilities; Spanish Republicans; Black Europeans and others.

In total, the Nazis killed 17 million innocent victims.

The City of Winnipeg Code of Conduct for Councilors states: “9. Act with respect a. All members are required to treat community members, each other and staff with respect without abuse, harassment or intimidation.

a. Harassment includes:

i. Any behavior, event or behavior that a reasonable person would know is objectionable and inappropriate, offensive, humiliating, embarrassing or otherwise offensive, including but not limited to:

a. verbal or written abuse, harassment or intimidation;

b. racial or ethnic slurs, including racially derogatory nicknames…”

White's words and composure are unbecoming of a City of Winnipeg employee and demonstrate his inability to serve Transcona residents in a balanced manner. He is clearly unable to control the horrific violence.

The people of Transcona deserve better; The city of Winnipeg is even better. White is clearly unfit for public office.

Remove it.

Kenneth Midwell

Winnipeg

Hello Coho

Bike Winnipeg Executive Director Mark Cohoe is a rare bird. Stable, diplomatic, calm, open, committed.

For more than 20 years, he has been looking for ways to actively transport the city, organize and unite social movements and gather collective pressure. Despite the hardships and frequent disappointments, Winnipeggers have watched him faithfully and respectfully participate in city processes: providing evidence and broadly supporting plans aimed at improving life in Winnipeg.

On behalf of all of us, I thank him for his continued efforts across the city.

Kate Sjoberg

Winnipeg

Biodiversity at risk

Again: Manitoba Interlake floods again delayed (April 10)

Manitoba governments seem willing to reconsider what constitutes meaningful consultation for some projects and not others.

Backtracking is supported when the Canadian Impact Assessment Agency publishes a draft environmental assessment report, but the province of Manitoba grants Canada's Premium Sand an environmental license to make changes to a completely different mine that includes new studies of carcinogenic airborne particles. and adding plans to address acid drainage and heavy metal leaching into Lake Winnipeg, the province is using a ministerial directive to bypass public consultations and Section 35 consultations.

Biodiversity and unique ecosystems are threatened when the provincial treasury is the primary beneficiary of resource extraction. This province needs to have a consistent approach to consultation.

Mary Jane McCarron

Vanipigov

Honest Carbon Debate

Much has been written about the carbon tax recently; for him or against him. Most of those published are in favor of the tax and are presented as a necessary tax to solve the climate crisis. As always, proponents offer a one-size-fits-all rationale and deny many facts that cast doubt on the tax's effectiveness and true value. The first premise is that the tax is income neutral and leads to a “benefits check”.

The reality is that the federal government adds GST after the carbon tax, resulting in a GST of $486 million. Plus, a rebate check of $300 a quarter in Manitoba is $3.30 a day, enough to ride the bus on a diesel bus. The world's largest emitter has no carbon tax, in fact only 40 countries currently have a carbon tax. Here in Canada, one of the largest emitters, Sunoco, has used carbon offsets to lower its carbon costs to about $2.10 a tonne, about 14th of the full price of a carbon tax. Canadian drivers pay $30 per tonne, or 6.6 cents per litre, on top of the carbon tax to heat their homes. Let's have an open and honest discussion about what really needs to be done to mitigate climate change, not the way it is now.

Gil Nicholas

Winnipeg

Everyone, come in

Re: Invisible riots (LettersApril 10)

I agree with the writer's pride in Winnipeg. I've lived in two other cities and resort areas over the years and I can say Winnipeg is the best place I've ever lived.

I would ask the downtown entertainment venues why they don't clean up in front of and around their facilities; walk into any retail store or coffee shop and you'll often see an employee cleaning the grounds, whether city-owned or self-owned.

When I walk the dog, I pick up trash in my neighborhood.

It's April in Winnipeg, and yes, there's sand on the roads and tracks, it happens every year, but the cars usually require warm nights to facilitate the cleaning equipment, they use water, I don't know.

And this paved area – isn't it in an area where construction is needed and maybe they couldn't finish the road at the end of the construction season?

This will probably be fixed this summer.

All in all, it's early spring in the Pile, and I think we're all good with that.

Gary Bilson

Winnipeg