LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Win or lose, every vote has value

People wonder why they should bother voting when their candidate has no chance of winning. Make no mistake; the winners and losers are all paying attention.

Take the recent Alberta election for example. The NDP received more votes in 2019 than in 2015. The Alberta Party quintupled its support from 2015. The Independence Party received just over 13,000 votes.

Strictly by the numbers, more people liked what the NDP had been doing since they were elected than voted for them in 2015. Even if they lost (strategic) votes, they gained overall. That tells them they’re moving in the right direction. The Alberta Party gained steady support across the province, and the independence movement is growing.

What has Premier Kenney talked about since the election? Separation (thank the Alberta Independence Party), digital pink cards (thank the Alberta Party), and either maintaining or increasing education and health-care spending (thank the NDP).

This is what happens when you vote for the loser — the winner takes notice.

This is why you should vote, even if you’re voting for someone who isn’t going to win; everyone is watching; and your vote does, absolutely, make a difference.

Deirdre Mitchell-maclean, Strathmore

Contentious issue needs compassion

I would like to congratulate Catherine Ford for bravely taking on the issue of access to medical assistance in dying (MAID).

This is a fiercely contentious issue that we can only hope to resolve if we address the practicalities of providing legislative authority for advanced directives.

In my view, it is impossible to define in advance all the future medical conditions that I would choose to merit MAID for myself. There is inevitably going to have to be some discretion exercised as to whether MAID is warranted in a particular situation.

So who should give consent when the individual who wrote the directive no longer can? This is a very difficult responsibility that should not be placed on any single individual, even a doctor. Consent should be delegated to a panel, similar to a jury. The panel could consist of two doctors and two family members.

Right now, an individual with advancing dementia who wishes to end his life faces the situation of having to have MAID done this week because he may no longer be able to give consent next week. We owe it to all our citizens to provide better options than this. Ed Dunnett, Qualicum Beach, B.C.

Half the service for small cost cut?

Got a warm and fuzzy note attached to my Enmax bill yesterday telling me that I would be the fortunate beneficiary of a 50-cent-per-month reduction in my $9.15 Green Cart charge over the coming months to reflect that my cart will now be emptied two times rather than four times per month.

I cannot think of any service provider who would seriously dare to offer any customer such a pitiful service cost reduction of less than half of one per cent to offset a 50-per-cent reduction in service provided and expect to be in business for the foreseeable future.

I guess when you are running a city-owned waste management program, you can do as you will.

Basil Cuddihy, Calgary

City needs better snow removal plan

Why does Calgary throw gravel and rocks on the road during the winter, damaging and chipping our cars’ paint while also damaging our windshields while other cities such as Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Regina and Edmonton use sand instead!

Also. the roads division does a very poor job of removing snow and ice from Calgary’s roads!

They need to hire private contractors to help boost productivity to help clear streets effectively and efficiently.

An impartial and independent survey would tell the roads division that Calgarians are not getting their money’s worth regarding snow and ice removal while still getting our car’s damaged by putting rocks on our roads!

William Harris, Calgary