LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Better options for U of C offender Re: “Convicted sex offender banned from the U of C,” Jan. 13.

It appears that one of the pillars of our community, the University of Calgary, might be crumbling.

The judgments and fears of some U of C students against Connor Neurauter, and his expulsion, will only contribute to the destruction of, rather than the healing of, an already troubled young man.

His harmful actions were serious and against the law. He has and will serve his time for this offence.

But is he truly a risk to the U of C community?

Mandatory counselling while attending classes, weekly check-ins with an adviser and time with a mentor would have been better options. Judging, condemning and rejecting him will surely break him, not help him to become a healthy member of our community. Megan Darling, Calgary

Calgarians should stand up to threats Re: “Cancelling nude swim was a mistake,” Letter, Jan. 17.

I live in Ward 11, only five minutes from the Southland Leisure Centre.

I do not agree with bowing to the threats against the nude swimming event and people who want to attend. I am appalled that these types of threats have been levelled at citizens who want to participate in a legal event that, initially, the city approved.

This issue is not about nudity — it is about democratic freedom and the need to stand tall against those who would take that away. This time, it is threats against nude swims; next, it could be threats against the gay pride parade, paganism, people from other countries, the colour of my fence — you get the picture.

As far as pedophilia goes, it is a terrible reality in our society and every society. My council member, Jeromy Farkas, is right that children cannot give informed consent to a nude swim, but they cannot give informed consent to anything — school, having to dress warm in the winter, smoking, drinking, etc.

This instance of children being at a nude event is no different than that. Nudity does not equal pedophilia. Karen E. Lee, Calgary

Risk of harm rising for children Re: “Killing of girl sparks clashes,” Jan. 12.

The kidnapping, rape and murder of Zainab Ansari, an eight-year-old girl in Kasur, Pakistan, reminds me of six-year-old American child beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey, murdered 22 years ago.

The killers of JonBenet have as yet not been found, and the murderer of Zainab is still loose.

Zainab was returning home alone after a religious lesson at a nearby house, which was about 200 metres from her home.

Unfortunately, such tragedies cannot be stopped, even by exemplary punishments to criminals, as suggested by some speakers at a vigil for Zainab on Sunday at Falconridge Community Hall.

The bitter truth is that even in the 21st century, the world remains a jungle. Crimes all over the world are rising, including in Canada. It appears the only way to prevent such atrocities is not to leave your children alone outside the house and unsupervised at public places. Anwar Sultan, Calgary

Painted bike lanes are a waste of cash Re: “Data provides snapshot of city cycling trends,” Jan. 10.

Driving around our beautiful city, I am constantly enraged over all the paint that is on the roads for bike lanes.

Why can we not just be responsible drivers and learn to share the road? The waste and cost to paint all these lanes is crazy, and they cannot even be seen during winter. Our taxes keep rising and this is such an unnecessary use of our tax dollars. Joan Hopgood, Calgary

We have elected Liberal dictators Re: “PM resolute on grand plan,” Jan. 17.

In the last federal election, I thought Canadians were electing a government of the people, by the people, for the people.

I had no idea we had actually ended up electing a Liberal dictatorship. How else can you describe a government that insists on charities, churches and small businesses applying for a summer jobs grant program being forced to click an attestation that declares that the organization supports abortion?

So, in other words, if you’re not willing to tow the party line, no money for you. All Canadians should be outraged, as this is nothing less than a total assault on our civil liberties.

Who are they to decide how taxpayers’ money is spent, depending on your moral or religious leanings? In all my life, I have never seen such an anti-Christian government, other than maybe our own Alberta NDP. Philip Rosso, Calgary

Religion has no role in health care Re: “Religious-based health care raises questions,” Catherine Ford, Opinion, Jan. 4.

I am amazed there was little reaction to Catherine Ford’s opinion piece about public money supporting religiousbased health care.

It is absolutely appalling that public money supports Covenant Health. This has precisely nothing to do with freedom of religion, but is about the provision of comprehensive care, funded by medicare, and should not in any way be subject to the whims of Catholic bishops.

Have we forgotten that then-Bishop Fred Henry fought against the immunization of young women against HPV? Cancer of the cervix is disgusting, but largely preventable.

The point, nevertheless, is that health care, publicly funded, is a human right that we should cherish, and the religious beliefs of anyone who would interfere with that are irrelevant. James Currie, Calgary

Vice-admiral wrongly pilloried Re: “Vice-admiral overboard,” Jan. 13.

Shades of Captain Alfred Dreyfus! On behalf of his command, Vice-Admiral Mark Norman dutifully bucked the denizens of Ottawa’s political zoo to successfully overcome Canada’s lobbyist-ridden defence procurement system.

Thanks to him, our navy’s blue water capability has been restored, at the agreed cost and within a reasonable time frame. His reward has been removal from command and public humiliation.

He hasn’t been paraded through the ranks and had his insignia ripped from his uniform but, our pipsqueak prime minister has announced that Norman may be tried in court.

There is a saying that no good deed goes unpunished. In the realm of Canadian politics, that is certainly true. Lee Morrison, Calgary

How Canada could make a difference

A most effective way to combat many of our world’s pressing problems, such as climate change, gender inequality, overpopulation, food shortages and health issues is to educate our youth, particularly young girls.

Indeed, Paul Hawken’s latest book, Drawdown, depicts graphically how family planning and educating girls to at least Grade 6 is the most effective combination to fight climate change and global deterioration.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be attending the vital Global Partnership for Education Replenishment Conference in Senegal in early February. What a grand gesture it would be if he were to convince his embattled finance minister, Bill Morneau, to pony up the $260 million that should be Canada’s share, instead of stashing his immense wealth in an obscure trust account.

Morneau would have many millions left over for play money, and the planet’s poorest kids would be forever grateful.

Creative solutions like this could do wonders to bolster the Trudeau government’s tarnished image. Barring that, a simple stroke of the financial pen could serve the dual purpose of bolstering Canada’s flagging overseas development assistance portfolio and serving the world’s poorest youth. Then we could truly say that Canada is back. Robert C. Dickson, Calgary Robert C. Dickson is the founder of Safe Water Calgary.