MP naive on legalizing pot
Dear editor: I was disappointed to read the naive column by MP Richard Cannings concerning Bill C-45 and the legalization of pot (Herald, June 26).
There won’t be a school in Canada that won’t have issues and problems with stoned students. And there won’t be anything that anyone can do to correct the damage that this will do.
There won’t be an apartment complex in Canada that won’t have issues and problems with the grow-ops in apartments, with the heat apparatus and noise stimulation used to make a better product causing serious problems.
When Mr. Cannings resigns or retires and says he didn’t know this would be the result of his naivety and totally ignorant views on marijuana, Mr. Trudeau will have moved his family to somewhere in the Indian Ocean and smugly say Canadians should not have made fun of Pierre Trudeau with deriding remarks.
The once proud Canadian flag will be a subject of derision worldwide. Gary E. Stevenson Penticton there are more than enough of them in China to take care of. As much as I detest Donald Trump, he may be on to something when it comes to keeping our jobs and companies Canadian. Gord McLaren Penticton
Has anyone else noticed that the opponents of PR seem to be wellmonied? Not families, not workers. Seems the super-loaded understand quite well how to keep their power entrenched.
Our current first-past-the-post voting system gives the rich a pretty good return on their lobbying investments. That is why their front people are the same paid lobbyists that work for big money interests.
Are they afraid of democracy? Proportional Representation increases voter influence through better representation, which makes it harder for big money to buy politicians.
Proponents of PR are environmentalists and social justice advocates that understand that countries with PR have more co-operative decision making and longterm thinking. They have stable governments with more diverse representation and better policy for real people struggling with affordability.
The yes to PR camp includes professors of political science, teachers, workers, families, renters, health care advocates and poverty reduction experts. We are grassroots people asking for a better system that makes everyone’s vote count. We are not paid lobbyists or millionaires.
The full-page ads from the no side are pretty revealing. July 1 begins the official campaign period for the fall referendum, this means no more funding from unions or corporations. Clearly, they were spending money while they could. I think we need to ask ourselves why there is so much interest from big money to maintain our current system?
How about the novel idea of learning from an associate professor at York University who is our nation’s leading expert on electoral reform.
Let’s stop getting info from ads from millionaires, we all know what happens when money “trumps” facts.
Consider attending Dr. Dennis Pilon’s presentation, “Changing BC’s Voting System, Arguments and Facts,” Tuesday, July 3, 7 p.m. at the Shatford Centre. It’s free. Tina Lee Penticton
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