Banning foreign home buyers is worst kind of protectionism
I find it interesting that many Canadians who oppose U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs and protectionist approach to trade have no issue with banning foreign ownership of real estate in B.C.
Our situation in Canada is very different from Australia or New Zealand as we have a very large neighbour directly beside us and many Canadians like to vacation in the U.S. to take advantage of better prices and the warmer climate.
Banning foreign ownership is protectionism at its worst. And it leads me to wonder whether U.S. states will retaliate, forcing Canadians to sell their vacation properties in such places as Birch Bay, Mount Baker, Hawaii, Arizona and Florida, to name a few.
After all, that would make it cheaper for their locals to buy homes, too. Perry Coleman, Delta
Cold water, quick thinking
Kudos to the teenager who had the presence of mind to dip burn victim Sammy Badger into the icy Squamish River. Not many people are aware that dipping burned flesh into cold water stops a burn from penetrating deeper into the flesh.
It’s a procedure that has been proven to reduce scarring, and yet very few people seem to know about it. Ray Roch, Delta
Why not a northern pipeline?
If Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is so gungho on lowering carbon emissions, why isn’t he looking at running the Enbridge pipeline to Kitimat, where the city wants it, and building a new low-emission-producing refinery to process the bitumen before shipping it to Asia, which has old and heavy polluting refineries?
This would create more jobs in B.C. and cut down on CO2 emissions. His new carbon tax will do none of this. Mark Wolrich, North Vancouver
Action needed to fight poverty
As a physician who sees many patients who live in poverty, I understand the negative impact it has on their health.
Our provincial and federal governments have both made big public announcements about the development of a poverty reduction strategy.
What I haven’t seen is concrete action that would make these strategies a reality.
We need an accountable government that will invest in a bold and comprehensive strategy that will actually lift people out of poverty.
We need to help families and children get out of poverty so that they can have better health and social outcomes. Dr. Anita Palepu, Vancouver
Trump’s funeral will be ‘yuge’
By stipulating that U.S. President Donald Trump not be invited to his funeral, Sen. John McCain sent his last, unambiguous message to his fellow Americans. The sincere, non-partisan outpouring of support for McCain would have been peevishly monitored by Trump.
Nevertheless, more people will attend Trump’s funeral than McCain’s because countless citizens will want to personally confirm that the schizophrenic, ostentatious bully is really gone. Lloyd Atkins, Vernon