Letters, Oct. 3

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 30/09/2022 (818 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Going green has high cost

As Eurozone countries wrestle with inflation, I see Canada’s struggle is similar but not as pronounced, as we have not gone totally “as green” on energy pricing.

In Denmark, the cost of fuel at the pumps is about the equivalent of $2.80 per litre. Parking a car in Copenhagen is as much as $40 per day, sometimes more. People here are very eco-friendly; they take the bus, ride their bikes and take the train to work.

Electricity and heat are about $1,200 per month for the average home. Electricity is almost entirely wind and solar. When the sun is not shining and the windmills are idle, the cost per KWH goes up, sometimes to 15 to 20 times what we pay in Winnipeg.

Small shops are closing because the cost of energy is costing more than rent. Some small hotels close for the winter.

Canadian bankers are now a little skittish about jumping on the European bandwagon to wrestle CO2 emissions to the ground, as we can see that it may also wrestle our economy to the ground. Mark Carney, former Bank of Canada boss, is driving this bus, but the Canadian bankers are reluctant to buy a ticket and hop on.

For good reason. Our way of life may be at stake.

Peter Kaufmann

Copenhagen

ERs need gatekeeper

Re: Three out of eight people who go to city ERs, don’t need it (Sept. 30)

Why is there not someone qualified at the hospital door to tell these three out of eight people they should not be in an emergency room and send them to a clinic? Provide them with a complete list of clinics available (and their hours of operation) where they could get help.

Gerhard Epp

Winnipeg

Airport fee misused

Re: Airport costs blamed for slowing Flair’s growth in city (Sept. 29)

The fact the Winnipeg Airport Authority charges $38 per passenger ticket for the so-called airport improvement fee (the highest among Canada’s largest airports ) loses sight of the rationale behind such fees, which were originally introduced in the U.S. years ago to allow smaller airports that were not in line to receive federal funding for airport improvements to assign a fee to cover the actual cost of a specific improvement. It would then be removed once the improvement was completed.

When introduced into Canada, this airport improvement fee became a constant cash cow to pay for the running of airports, despite aircraft landing fees and ground handling fees already being charged to the airlines.

As far as treatment of the Canadian travelling public is concerned, the relationship between the federal government and airports in this country is unhealthy, to say the least.

Gary Pryce

Winnipeg

Lake Agassiz’s muddy legacy

Re: Seek N.D. advice on roads (Letters, Sept. 24)

People who compare the quality and longevity of road construction in Winnipeg and southern Manitoba unfavourably to that of other regions and cities — in this case, North Dakota — and who question the competence of the engineers and construction companies who build our infrastructure would do well to study geology.

The Red River Valley is the remains of ancient Lake Agassiz, and Winnipeg is built smack-dab in the middle of the old lake bed. Mud, beautiful mud, that shrinks and swells, shifts and lifts and subsides with the weather and the seasons.

Do they not notice tall buildings in Winnipeg are built on dozens of 20-meter friction piles sunk deep into the ground? It took several weeks to sink all the piles needed to anchor the new True North Square complex before any construction could begin on the buildings themselves.

But, it is easier, and apparently more satisfying, to complain and point the finger of blame than it is to understand and accept that we live on an unstable patch of ground and that construction of all types here will be forever subject to movement that doesn’t occur on land supported by bedrock.

J.H. Campbell

Winnipeg

Transition to EVs lagging

Re: Idling of vehicles prevalent (Letters, Sept. 23)

Letter writer James Wingert suggests closure of drive-thrus is not a good idea because we have started the process of converting from fuel-driven engines to electric motors and businesses would have to rebuild drive-thrus “in a few years” when much of their clientele is in electric vehicles.

Wingert needs to consider a few numbers before being convinced that within a few years electric vehicles (EVs) will be the solution to the emissions problem at drive-thru restaurants and beyond; then he’ll realize it’s more likely to take a few decades.

Manitoba has some 700,000 registered motor vehicles; EVs account for all of 800, while hybrids total 8,000. So only slightly more than one per cent fall into the zero-emissions category. Across Canada the numbers are only slightly better, since a mere 5.2 per cent of the 1.6 million new cars sold in 2021 were zero-emissions types.

In the U.S., six per cent is the figure, despite record-high gas prices. In other words, here and south of the border, traditional gas-and-diesel vehicles are still outselling EVs by essentially 19 to 1.

If restaurants want to help solve the idling problem, all they need to do is close their drive-thru lanes and require customers to come inside, where it’s invariably roomier and more comfortable. If the product is good enough, business shouldn’t suffer in the least. But what are the odds businesses will do this voluntarily, or governments will legislate such a stipulation?

Edward Katz

Winnipeg

Liquor buyers deserve better

On a recent trip to Kenora, I had the pleasure of walking straight into a Liquor Control Board of Ontario store without being stopped for identification. I browsed the aisles of wine, comparing the listed prices to the prices in Manitoba, and noted they are often much less for the same product. At the checkout, the clerk efficiently bagged my purchases and I was on my way.

Contrast this to the Manitoba experience. We are required to stand outside in a queue regardless of the weather, and regardless of how well-known we are to the staff. One by one, we are subjected to a criminalizing identification process, wherein a clerk takes our driver’s licence, scrutinizes the client against the photo to make sure it matches and then inserts it into some kind of card reader connected to a database. Every single time.

What kind of information is being collected? By whom? Why?

Why are honest citizens being subjected to this appalling theatrical spectacle because of a handful of criminals?

At this point, there are no security guards at all in my usual Winnipeg liquor store, which is just as well because they were not allowed to provide security. There are also no security guards at my local private wine store, where I can walk in unimpeded and receive friendly efficient service.

As I approach the checkout at a MLLC store, the clerks remain behind plexiglass barriers and do not even pack my purchases for me anymore. What exactly do these employees get paid to do?

To add insult to injury, I have experienced a substantial increase on many items at the Liquor Mart over the past six months. For example, a bottle of French Chardonnay that was $12.99 last February is now $18.99, and it hasn’t really improved in taste.

Surely there are other ways to catch the criminal minority that tries to steal from Liquor Marts than this overbearing program that penalizes honest customers. Surely the service and the pricing should be designed for Manitobans, not for profit. We deserve better.

Karen Zoppa

Winnipeg