Letters to the Editor

LINDSAY

ADVOCAT E

Paramedic care appreciated

My husband was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2012. He also had two artificial hips.

As the years flew by, I cared for him as best as one could. His legs continued to weaken and he was falling much too often. Our kind neighbours would come to his rescue and lift him from the floor. However, when I did have to call the paramedics, they said, “Call us so your neighbours don’t injure their backs.”

They were here on a regular basis. Then it all came to a head Mother’s Day weekend last year. He fell on May 10 and paramedics Francine Scott and Bruce McKay attended him. Dear Francine saw the dilemma I was in and said she was sending an emergency message regarding my situation.

On May 11 he fell in the kitchen and paramedics Kevin Sheahan and Chris Barrow cared for him. They also sent an emergency message. Late that evening he fell again, and Adam Guppy and Jon Gorniak attended him. Jon also sent a message. They made the decision to take him to the hospital to at least give me a night’s rest — a very scary time as we were in the midst of COVID-19. My husband remained in hospital for nine weeks before being transferred to Caressant Care McLaughlin Road where he is receiving the care he needs and deserves.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart, Francine, Bruce, Kevin, Chris, Jon and Adam, my angels on earth. Francine, I’ll never forget you stopping by to see if I was doing okay. Dawn Maddock

What does BGC stand for?

It has been reported that the Boys and Girls Clubs of Kawartha Lakes has rebranded as BGC Kawarthas. Why? “Not to be trendy or because it’s shorter and catchier,” according to the report, but rather “removing gender from the name.” One is left to wonder what BGC stands for. RBC still stands for the Royal Bank of Canada. CIBC still stands for the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. TD still stands for ... well you get the point. But then, taking everything into consideration, this name change is no doubt preferable to having to include every letter of the alphabet in its name to echo its inclusive practices.

The present Ontario cabinet is woefully ill-equipped and utterly disinclined to adequately serve Ontarians during the ongoing pandemic. The package of restrictions announced April 16 met with an almost universal burst of shock, disappointment and amazed puzzlement. Clearly, the measures of police action and closing outdoor recreation facilities were not recommended by the science advisory table, nor would they achieve any significant reduction in COVID infections. Even more distressing, after several hours of discussion the previous day, the government had proposed even less action to try to flatten the third wave of infections. Police involvement and the closing of outdoor recreation facilities were measures added only after advisors raised concerns about the lack of any substantial action to curb the growing infection rate and overcrowding of hospital ICUs.

The science advisory table had urged closing more businesses and provision of immediate sick pay for workers in all essential businesses. However, cabinet members are said to have rejected these options because their “constituents would object.”

Protecting Ontarians during the pandemic is like a war. During wars, success is achieved by anticipating a wide range of possible outcomes and developing in advance a suite of effective strategies to combat those outcomes should they materialize. In contrast, Ontario’s cabinet evidently operates only after crises have arisen, and then only with concern for what some constituents (i.e. business owners) will say.

Possible developments in the pandemic should have been identified beginning a year ago, with plans for effective measures fleshed out, ready for implementation. Ontario’s cabinet, however, has been plagued by chronic inaction as COVID rates worsened.

Can we afford to wait until June 2022 to put another cabinet in place?

Don Hughes, Lindsay

Are ORVs beneficial for economy?

Thanks to Kirk Winter’s report from council on the ORV question. (“More off-road vehicle access criticized in pitches to council,” Advocate online.) As the financial expert asked, how do we know this is a good thing for the local economy? It was one of my burning questions.

In the May issue, a letter writer stated “... the people are nothing but economic units for the wealthy. Alas, I see no way that we will ever shake off our chains.” His essay also referenced globalization, traders and “the obsessive pursuit of money.”

Who are the “wealthy”? It seemed that his com- Tracy Hennekam ments applied to the owners and operators of global corporations, albeit none were specifically named. A large Broker of Record / Owner 705-320-9119 getsoldwithtracy@gmail.com 705-320-9119 proportion of the products we buy these days are made 46 Kent St. W., Lindsay, ON K9V 2Y2 getsoldwithtracy@gmail.com available to us via global companies. No business owner www.sellwithtracy.com forces us to buy anything they sell. I don’t see how any business, large or small, can place chains on anyone since we are all free to boycott any business or product we 051916 Tracy Hennekam BC proof.indd 1 2018-09-17 10:11 AM dislike.

Perhaps the “wealthy” includes the public servants listed on the 2020 sunshine list which disclosed all public servants who were paid $100,000 or more in 2020 and are subject to the Public Sector Salary Disclosure Act? There could be some public services that don’t meet your approval, but you cannot stop paying taxes for them to release yourself from those very real “chains.” Faith doesn't make things easy, Some express derision towards big corporations as if they are all inherently evil. I have never understood this it makes them possible. Luke 1:37 attitude because they, like me, are paying customers of those very same corporations. 705-887-9837 | 705-320-7598 | www.gideons.ca

Global corporations deserve the respect of every Canadian for the economic miracles they are and for the great good that their millions of investors, managers and employees have collectively contributed to the wellbeing of humanity.”

Gene Balfour, Fenelon Falls

Personal service, from the team you trust.

Praise for Indigenous-focused editions

What a pleasure it was to see the beautiful cover of your May 2021 issue “How Little We Know” featuring stories of the Indigenous community.

Beginning with Mike Perry’s newfound Métis heritage and Sylvia Keesmaat’s wonderful telling of history followed by a focus on the crucial issues of language and food sovereignty, this issue was packed with excellent reading.

I was especially touched by Trevor Hutchinson’s “Trevor’s Take: A Settler’s Reflection.” Miigwech for showing leadership on our “journey of learning.” Glenna Burns, Bobcaygeon

CITY OF KAWARTHA LAKES’ ONLY COMPOUNDING PHARMACY - SPECIALIZING IN MEDICATIONS TO FIT YOUR PERSONAL NEEDS.

CATHY PUFFER, BScPhm RPh

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108 Kent St W, Lindsay Ph: 705-324-0500

Monday - Friday 9am to 5:30pm Saturday 9am to 1pm

While I appreciated the article by Jamie Morris on Rockwood Forest Nurseries and thank him for making me aware of local businesses, I am disappointed that he did not plant a native tree. While the paperback maple is a pretty ornamental tree, it is native to China and will not host the same insects, fungi and other food sources that our native birds need. I hope most of us are aware of the value of pollinator plants and allot some space in our gardens for them. The same importance extends to our native trees with their important ecological roles for supporting a greater diversity of wildlife. Native trees such as the red maple and black cherry flower early in the spring and therefore are an important source of nectar for our emerging hungry bees. A tree has a longer lifespan than our garden plants. Do some research and make a better choice with planting trees. Aldo Leopold in his A Sand County Almanac got it right:“A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise.” Gerarda Schouten, Coboconk Thanks for the comment, Gerarda. Your point is well-taken. You’ll be relieved to know that I didn’t purchase the paperbark maple after all. My final choice was a serviceberry, a hardy native that will join other natives, including several ninebarks, in my backyard. ~ Jamie Morris

Unions didn’t help these plants

I’m responding to the article ‘’Unions are good for your health,’’ from February.

My question would be, how good were unions for the health of employees at Firestone Tires in Lindsay, the Honeywell plant in Port Perry and the Caterpillar plant in southern Ontario? These are just three of the plants that came to mind; there likely are many more. As I saw it, the unions with their bullying tactics managed to get these plants shut down, leaving the employees looking for other jobs and trying to put food on the table. So maybe you could enlighten me as to how unions were good for those employees’ health?

Gary Byrne, Reaboro

Valu-mart pricing for online order and deliveries unfair, says reader

It’s a long story that led me to ordering groceries online through Valu-mart in Lindsay. Easy process, prompt delivery — seems all is well, right? Not so much; when comparing the grocery tape of the items scanned to the receipt I found, every item was marked up, except the eggs! HST was not charged by Valu-mart on grocery items, but Instacart, separate shopping service, charged HST on the food (separate from the HST for the delivery fee, which I know is required). Then I added one item, which they say you can do — what they don’t tell you is it will cost you almost $8 to do so. Imagine! So I paid a delivery fee, fine; service fee, okay; tip, all right, and a mark-up from $68.19 to $76.49. All added up my cost was $92.94. How is that okay?

Kim Kilburn, Lindsay

ORV use contributes to climate change-related deaths

According to a NASA report from October of 2018, CO2 can stay in the atmosphere 300 to 1,000 years. Of the CO2 emissions over the last 300 years, half have occurred since 1980. Our generation is a major culprit.

According to the Canadian government, using the latest data available, transportation is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions. Of the 15 megatonne increase in 2018, 7.8 megatonnes came from fuel consumption by on- and off-road vehicles. ORVs are a major culprit — a recreational pursuit, not a necessity. We keep burning more and more fossil fuels.

The World Health Organization predicts that between 2030 and 2050 climate change will result in 250,000 additional deaths per year. Plus, heat waves induce the onset of cardiovascular, respiratory diseases and other conditions, so the actual count will be much higher.

Encouraging more ORV use makes us complicit in thousands of deaths per year. COVID tells us what happens when you ignore the science.

Bill Steffler, Lindsay

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