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News break
Re Bell Executive Won’t Tell Staff Why They Let LaFlamme Go (Aug. 19): A female executive’s repeated statements that she was a woman were presented as evidence intended to absolve Bell Media leadership of accusations of misogyny, it seems to me just another miserable example of women keeping other women down and out. Sure, Bell Media has women in its ranks – that’s not the point. He is accused of not being able to stand a strong woman. The question should not be whether this executive and his peers are women, but whether they are uncomfortable women. Given the treatment of Lisa LaFlamme, the credible reports of hostility about her (gorgeous) gray hair, and the hollow apologies I hear from Bell Media brass, I think I know the answer. Alexandra Dibel Ottawa Firing Lisa LaFlamme before her natural retirement is an old trick that companies often use to exercise executive power, rather than respect or even understand the nature of their product. We lost a brilliant news anchor under disgraceful circumstances. William Rutter Hamilton
Branch
Planting a tree won’t stop climate change (Special, August 15): A valuable reminder that trees play an important role in our fight against climate change. Note that trees planted in the urban environment, where most Canadians live, work and play, provide measurably more human health, economic and environmental benefits than trees reforested in our interior. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. While Natural Resources Canada does not fully fund urban trees, it provides incentives for Canadians to do their part. Our organization is dedicated to doubling the urban tree. Our work would be much more difficult without incentives provided through the Two Billion Trees program. Any suggestion that planting or growing trees will stop climate change would be wrong. But the same could be said about buying an electric car or turning off the air conditioning. Newsflash: Fighting climate change is a business of cooperation. Mark Cullen Chair, Canadian Trees For Life; Markham, Ont. Planting trees may not significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the short term, but protecting carbon-rich mature forests could. In Canada, three-quarters of a million hectares of forest were logged in 2020, equivalent to nine professional hockey rinks per minute. Much of the harvested timber is either burned or turned into short-lived pulp and paper products, sending tens of millions of tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year. Surprisingly, the federal government’s 2030 emissions reduction plan does not mention or set targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from logging. Reducing emissions by 40 percent by 2030 will be a difficult task. Identifying – and reducing – logging emissions would help achieve this. Michael Polanyi Policy and Campaigns Manager, Nature-Based Climate Solutions, Nature Canada. Ottawa
Air apparent
Re A Healthy Environment is a Global Human Right and Canada Must Step Up (August 15): I am a member of over 10 air quality science and activist groups. While I agree with most of the authors’ points, I am concerned to see them calling for “mandatory ambient air quality standards.” A growing body of evidence is shedding light on the idea that such standards are a dangerous fallacy. First, there is no safe level of air pollution, meaning that any exposure causes immediate, irreversible, and possibly multigenerational health damage. Second, most parts of Canada do not have ambient air monitoring, and new monitors are extremely expensive (tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars per station). Finally, pollutant concentrations vary widely even over very short distances, and such variations are usually not detected by regulatory monitors. A better solution would simply be to reduce pollution emissions as much as possible, regardless of ambient concentrations. David Pedersen Central Saanich, BC
In French?
New census shows decline in proportion of French in Quebec (August 18): I am an American who married a Quebecer 51 years ago after joining a major Canadian bank in Montreal. I am now a naturalized Canadian citizen. I had a good career and raised a family here. They are all fully bilingual, as am I. My wife and I decided to stay here in retirement. I have observed the eternal language debates and evolution over the years. I also noticed that Prime Minister François Lego makes frequent reference to Louisiana, a French-speaking US state not unlike Quebec. However, the reason French disappeared in Louisiana is because in 1916, state and local governments banned it from schools and adopted English. Quebec has banned English as the language of instruction for French speakers, who still represent the majority of the population. Therefore, his comparison is incorrect and misleading. Tony Webb Montreal The percentage – not the number – of French-speakers in Quebec, as in Canada, has declined over the past five years, which Quebec’s French Language Minister Simon Jolin-Barrete claims justifies the restriction of the English language. the beautiful countryside. Of course, the decline is not primarily due to the increase in English, but almost entirely due to the increase in speakers of non-official languages. And it is there with the approval of the Legault government. If it’s some kind of crisis, it’s a government-induced crisis. Richard Martin Tillsonburg, Ont. Official bilingualism is dead in Canada (August 18): Having a second language is a boon for all who learn one. Lines in French schools for children to enter are long. When the lucky ones graduate, there are almost no follow-up programs where they can practice what they learned. Quebec needs to show leadership in teaching French by people who really know the language and appreciate the culture. “Stop” is not a bilingual sign. In British Columbia, all I see is “welcome” at the border and “Welcome” below. We can all do better in raising the profile of French. Then maybe Quebec would do the same. We lack the political will to make it happen for all children in Canada. Charles Lefaive Surrey, BC My mom, a French-speaking Western Canadian, always said that if you lose your religion, you lose your language (whoever loses his faith loses his language). Could this be another reason why French is in decline? Brian Tascona Ottawa Letters to the editor must be for The Globe and Mail only. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. Try to keep letters under 150 words. Letters can be edited for length and clarity. To send a letter by e-mail, click here: [email protected]
