The Province

Crude thinking, maybe, but oilsands support is sensible

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Thursday’s editorial on oil is a solitary voice of calm reason in an otherwise emotionall­y charged topic, which produces a cacophony of well-intended but inane, poorly reasoned arguments opposing fossil-fuel developmen­t.

If but a small portion of the energy expended in opposition to that which is inevitable were turned to helping develop safer, more environmen­tally friendly methods of teasing Mother Earth into releasing her treasure, all of mankind would be so much better served.

One way or the other that crude is coming out of the ground. Very few of us are prepared to return to cooking our chateaubri­and in an unheated cave over an open flame.

By refusing to accept the inevitabil­ity of oilsands developmen­t and working against those who will ultimately provide me the gas for my car and my barbecue, attention is deflected from those who have less respect than me and thee for our environmen­t.

Be inclusive and foster respect for your position; be exclusive and run the risk of ultimately being ignored — in the end, a loss for us all. Jim Ryan, Chilliwack

I agree

I could not agree more with your concise and pithy editorial on oil. Jerome Henen, North Vancouver

Vintage Liberals

The decision by B.C. Liberals to privatize liquor distributi­on demonstrat­es again that this government values commercial interests above public health.

Six years after a rash of new private liquor stores were authorized by the government in 2002, the provincial health officer reported higher alcohol consumptio­n and binge drinking by B.C. youth.

When the Liquor Distributi­on Branch disappears, its profits of over $900 million a year will move to the private sector.

Alcohol will be more widely available and more aggressive­ly marketed, and the increased social costs of alcohol abuse will fall to the public-health system. Privatize the profits and socialize the costs — the enduring legacy of the B.C. Liberals. Larry Kazdan, Vancouver

Grabby Grits

Excuse me. If B.C. Hydro is in such a hole from deferral debt to the tune of $2.2 billion, why are the B.C. Liberals continuing to use the Crown corporatio­n as their own personal bank?

Why are they still helping themselves to dividends?

And why are they still siphoning money from the Insurance Corporatio­n of B.C. instead of returning overpaymen­ts to us, the shareholde­rs? Cheryl Baron, Maple Ridge

Bullying abounds

In this day and age, when bullying has become a crime, I and many like me are being bullied by the Harper government.

In the last month I have been called a radical environmen­talist for not supporting the Northern Gateway pipeline. Because I do not support the government reading our emails with Bill C-30, I have been called an enemy of the Crown and a supporter of child predators and pornograph­ers.

It appears the “True North Strong and Free” has sadly become the “True North Strong and Bullied.” Cheryl Leask, Chilliwack

Copper bonanza

Great idea having electric-vehicle charging stations all over.

Now the crackheads can have easy access to six metres of copper wire at the ready to sell to reputable scrap dealers. You better carry spare cords to keep up with demand. At $400 or so to replace, I’ll keep my gas guzzler. Grant Husdon, Lac La Hache

Drummin’ for Drummond

Having read the executive summary of Ontario commission­er Don Drummond’s public-service expense/efficiency analysis, I recommend it as mandatory reading for every politician and bureaucrat in every village, city and province from sea to sea to sea. His fiscal responsibi­lity precepts are crucial to adopt to prevent all of Canada from being deep-fried in its own deficits like Greece. W. Baird Blackstone, Tsawwassen

Green acres for me

I was relieved to read Jon Ferry’s column on suburban living.

As a suburbanit­e I concur with the points he raised. Not everyone wants to live in the heart of Vancouver. Downtown is a nice place to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live there. I’ll take my half-acre with towering trees, privacy and quiet any day over feeling like a mouse in a shiny condo all day long.

To each his own and I respect others’ choices. Maybe one day those smart-growth zealots will choose to respect mine. Until then I’ll enjoy my half-acre piece of paradise and just visit the concrete jungle. Susan Jensen, Langley

Willing volunteers

Letter writer William Perry obviously doesn’t realize there are “able-bodied” people who appear employable yet have disabiliti­es and do not “choose not to work.”

Indeed, many utilize their notable non-physical talents toward daily, progressiv­e, societally productive volunteer work. Frank G. Sterle Jr., White Rock

 ??  ?? Reader says it’s folly to fight against developmen­t of oil reserves.
Reader says it’s folly to fight against developmen­t of oil reserves.

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