Horgan is direct, not passive-aggressive

Re: “Pipeline horror show plays on different fronts,” column, May 17.

Columnist Les Leyne accuses Premier John Horgan of passive aggression, which is defined as a type of behaviour or personality characterized by indirect resistance. I see nothing indirect in Horgan’s stance against the ill-conceived proposal to expand the Trans Mountain pipeline.

Unlike Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, he is carrying out his campaign promise. I did not vote for Horgan or his party, but I appreciate his efforts to protect the B.C. coast against a possible spill of diluted bitumen that would destroy our coast, wildlife, and thousands of jobs in tourism and fisheries. Dilbit is unlike free-flowing oil and there is no known way to recover it.

The facts behind the Kinder Morgan expansion are complicated and difficult to unravel. Many newspapers are biased in their reporting, and the prime minister has taken to talking doublespeak. Experts tell us that social and environmental costs have been ignored while economic benefits have been exaggerated.

The National Energy Board was hardly neutral, as it included members associated with the oil industry. It is not surprising that some scientists have accused the NEB of ignoring scientific evidence, and economists explain how it overlooked the economic credibility of Kinder Morgan.

I admire Horgan for having the courage to protect British Columbians and our ecosystems from this potentially devastating project. Shelagh Levey Cordova Bay