Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - February 08, 2014, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE A15 T HE long- awaited U. S. State Department Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement on the Keystone XL Project is now a public document. It concluded environmental effects of the pipeline are not negative in a broad context. It awaits comment from a variety of departments before the final consideration by U. S. President Barack Obama, so the final decision is still months away. Reaction to the report confirms the importance of the role Keystone has played in bringing consideration of environmental issues into some degree of balance with economic development. First, it raises the question of why large companies, petro- based or not, have not been inclined to consider environmental impacts as a matter of course. They may argue they do, but one has to wonder if Trans- Canada had seriously considered re- routing around the Nebraska aquifer in the first place. Conceivably, with such a change, the project might have received approval years ago, and received credit as a proponent for environmental balance. Surely, they could have foreseen the potential outburst of opposition when local concerns were ignored. Although it's hindsight to say it now, that might have avoided the problem on the spot. Second, as the State Department report makes clear, it is no longer an environmental issue, but purely a political one. This comes from the line in the sand drawn first by the proponent, then vigorously and publicly supported by the Harper government. Not only has Harper made Keystone into a political matter, in the broader purview of international diplomacy, he has made a point of tweaking and annoying the U. S. on many fronts. It begs the question of why he feels justified interfering in internal U. S. policy debate. Imagine his reaction if the U. S. did that to Canada. Although this may appear to get him some votes from anyone concerned about a perceived need to stand up to the U. S., it also has the effect of making U. S. decision makers wonder why they should do anything in particular to support their neighbour. Any chance to tip the scales in a close decision has been foregone. Harper has set an unusual precedent by spending heavily on advertising and special appearances in the U. S. in support of Keystone. This may have done the Canadian position a major disservice. It has clearly helped polarize the political issue. One is tempted to ask what other possible needs were foregone to fund the lobbying, and the resulting loss to Canada's economy. For example, what benefits might have derived from spending those millions on urban infrastructure? The positive side of the whole situation is the general public, particularly in Canada and the U. S., is much more aware of environmental issues, particularly climate change, than might otherwise have been the case. The issue is not really Keystone, but the broader social concern regarding environmental impact of human activities on land, sea and air. In this case, the oilsands have become the " poster boy" or, perhaps more appropriate, the " baby seal" on the issue of climate change. The oilsands development is huge by any standard of measurement. Whether it's CO2 emissions generated in the process of extraction, or the potential for water pollution from the " tailing ponds" or landscape destruction from the surface operations, one cannot deny the magnitude of the potential impact on land, water and air. Considerable efforts have gone into addressing these problems, but more needs to be done to improve security from a major event, or a series of smaller ones that in combination could become major. Water quality concerns alone over time could sneak up on the downstream like gray hair: it's not just an overnight phenomenon, but a long- term pervasive effect. The positive benefits of the entire issue are bound up now in the recognition, at least by most citizens who think about it, both environmental and economic factors deserve equal attention in any developmental project. It means existing developments need to take a new all- inclusive perspective. Certainly, this is true for the coal industry, especially in the U. S. and China. It is now clear this applies to the oilsands and transportation issues. Recent weather anomalies, even within North America, cannot be passed off as simple long- term trends. Concurrent high- moisture events leading to flooding in the eastern parts occurring in parallel with severe drought in California and other parts of the Midwest and west make it clear human impacts are substantial and likely to get worse even if all emissions stopped today. No amount of advertising or rhetoric can change this new reality. It's time to take climate change seriously, and we have Keystone to thank for improving our awareness of it. Overall, politics aside, Keystone still makes sense under appropriate regulation. Let's hope that by pushing too blatantly, Canada hasn't screwed it up. Jim Collinson is a management consultant specializing in the complexities surrounding energy, economic and environmental issues. Winnipeg Free Press Saturday, February 8, 2014 A 15 POLL �� TODAY'S QUESTION Should Winnipeg police crack down on head shops ? �� Vote online at winnipegfreepress. com �� PREVIOUS QUESTION Did the province go far enough in liberalizing liquor laws? TOTAL RESPONSES 2,645 Winnipeg Free Press est 1872 / Winnipeg Tribune est 1890 VOL 142 NO 89 2014 Winnipeg Free Press, a division of FP Canadian Newspapers Limited Partnership. Published seven days a week at 1355 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba R2X 3B6, PH: 204- 697- 7000 BOB COX / Publisher PAUL SAMYN / Editor WFP JULIE CARL / Deputy Editor SCAN TO VOTE ON TODAY'S QUESTION JIM COLLINSON Keystone benefits are huge A CCORDING to the Oxford Dictionary , vitamins " are a group of organic compounds essential for normal growth and nutrition and are required in small quantities in the diet because they cannot be synthesized by the body." As humans, we long for perfect health and longevity. This desire leads us to try an endless variety of interventions to achieve the goal, with varying degrees of success. It may be this yearning for unattainable perfection that leads to decisions which appear logical but, in fact, are not. The " vitamin logic" states, " if the body needs small amounts of vitamins to function, the body will perform even better if given more." It is important to remember that using the " need a little so take a lot" philosophy has not turned out so well with food, alcohol, medications or vices. There is the unfortunate reality that multiple large well- designed studies have quite consistently shown no advantage in taking vitamin supplements for relatively healthy people. To date, well over 100,000 people have been studied over a number of years and the results have confounded vitamin logisticians and sales reps everywhere. Almost without fail, for relatively healthy people without obvious vitamin deficiencies, no change in overall death rate, cancer or cardiovascular disease has been shown. In fact, anti- oxidant vitamins, like Vitamin A, E or betacarotene, have actually been shown to increase death for approximately one in every 300 who take any of those supplements for roughly three to five years. B vitamins, believed to potentially reduce cardiovascular disease, have also been shown to have no effect. A very recent review also suggests no overall important clinical benefit from using Vitamin D supplements, except maybe reduced hip fractures, but 300 to 400 people need to take it to benefit one person, so the clinical importance of this is questionable. " Vitamin logic" is so powerful that many of you may still be reluctant to believe the evidence, so we have devised some fool- proof ways for you to get the maximum benefit from vitamin supplements. 1) After purchasing any vitamin supplements, immediately drive to the house of a friend or family member that is at least five kilometres from your house and ask them to store these vitamins in a safe place. Every day, when you generally take your vitamin supplement, simply walk to their house, pop that pill, and then immediately walk home. Briskly. The results will astound you. 2) For those of you who swear by higher dose vitamins, choose a home 10 km from your house, run there at a comfortable pace, take two pills, and run home. Note: You can actually just take one and get the same effect, which immediately cuts costs in half. Note 2: You can also take none. 3) If you have no friends or family - hopefully not a result of your vitamin " habit" - and are thus forced to keep and take your vitamins at home, there are still ways to maximize their effect. The ultimate technique is to place your favourite vitamins on your dinner plate and surround them with a variety of fresh vegetables, fruit and fish/ poultry. Should you at anytime during the meal feel compelled to take one of the vitamins, pick it up, lick it, and then compare it to the taste of any of the food on your plate. If you prefer the taste of the vitamin supplement, go for it. Delicious Flintstones chewables are, of course, an exception, especially the Dino ones. 4) Fortunately, your body is equipped with a tremendous filtering system known scientifically as " your kidneys." So effective are these organs if you ingest more than the small amount of vitamins required for health, you pee out the excess. To avoid any possible strain on your kidneys, however, we suggest, before taking your vitamins, place them directly into the toilet and flush. Although this avoids the " middle man," we'll have to pray it won't harm the fishes. 5) When you purchase vitamins, make sure they come from " natural sources" as it is well known that natural things are completely safe - for example, natural arsenic, natural tornadoes and natural snake venom. 6) Finally, if you can't live without the belief vitamin supplements really do work, then package up the ones you buy and send them to countries where vitamin deficiency is a serious health concern. You will be proven correct, they are vital, and the effect of this generosity may be the only daily supplement you need. Mike Allan is a family doctor and associate professor and the director of evidence- based medicine in the department of family medicine at the University of Alberta. James McCormack is an expert advisor with EvidenceNetwork. ca and professor with the faculty of pharmaceutical sciences at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. By Dr. Mike Allan and Dr. James McCormack Vitamin supplements - how best to use them A S a newly minted lawyer in 2008, I took on a case involving injuries to my client C. A. She had tripped on an extension cord running from a house to a residential street. This is not exactly the type of case that wins plaudits or fame, but it is instructive given recent news about tickets given to " illegal plug- in parkers" ( to quote a recent headline). The incident took place in late January, 2008. My client C. A., an elderly lady with a history of shoulder problems, was walking down a residential street towards her job. She worked part time as a house cleaner and had an early morning appointment. It was dark out, cream- popping cold, and the frozen ground was dusted with a fine layer of snow. In other words, it was Winnipeg in January. While walking down a sidewalk running between a row of houses and the street, C. A. tripped on an extension cord plugged into a car parked on the street. C. A. fell and aggravated her shoulder problem. The cord, which powered a block heater, was unfortunately partly concealed by the thin layer of snow and shrouded in darkness. As a result of the accident, C. A. had to undergo numerous physiotherapy treatments and could not work for a period of time. Seeing obvious negligence on the part of the plug- in parker, I served notice on the owner of the vehicle and home, one in the same, indicating that we would sue for damages. You may surprised to learn this case went all the way to the Manitoba Court of Appeal. The litigation process started with a smart decision on the part of the homeowner. They immediately notified their home insurer. From then on, I dealt with a representative of Aviva Canada who was quite competent and dealt with the case professionally. Unfortunately, Aviva took the position the accident was caused by an automobile or the use of an automobile and that C. A. should make a claim with MPIC under the Personal Injury Protection Plan ( PIPP). Doubly unfortunate was the fact an MPIC case manager took the opposite position. Just like the extension cord, C. A. was stuck between two immobile objects. Both sides could not be right, so we ended up taking the least costly route to force a resolution. We appealed to an MPIC internal review officer who agreed with the case manager. When that failed to move Aviva's position, we decided to appeal to the independent Automobile Injury Compensation Appeal Commission ( AICAC). The AICAC panel for the case ended up being a group of three heavy- hitters in the legal community: Mel Myers, QC, Trevor Anderson ( former dean of Robson Hall) and Guy Joubert. Luckily, even though C. A. was the appellant, I was able to sit on the fence and let lawyers for MPIC and Aviva do the real arguing. The panel sided with MPIC and ruled the accident was an incident that falls outside the coverage of the PIPP. If you want the full eight- page decision, which is most unlikely, feel free to look up File No. AC- 09- 83 on the AICAC's website. The story mercifully has an ending. Aviva sought leave with the Manitoba Court of Appeal to challenge the AICAC's decision. In October of 2010, Justice Steel denied leave, essentially leaving the AICAC decision to stand. What does this case have to do with recent ticketing for bylaw infractions? What can we learn? First, actions have consequences: if you run your extension cord over a sidewalk, you only have yourself to blame if someone gets hurt. Second, check with your home insurer before running that cord - the insurer may not want to cover you. That means you will have more than a $ 100 ticket to worry about. Third, let's leave the impugned city bylaw in place. We have it there for a reason. And finally, if you are a first- year law student, read Dickens' case of Jarndyce v. Jarndyce in Bleak House before deciding if a career in law is for you. Andrew Moreau is not currently practicing law. By Andrew Moreau Don't pull the cord on sidewalk bylaw I N light of all the negative publicity concerning the Harper government's systematic dismantling of Canadian veterans' benefits, and the overall shabby way this government treats its veterans, I would like to introduce you to a veteran I knew intimately, and who I love with all my heart and soul. He is my father, Henri Besson. My father served with the Royal Canadian Engineers, during the Second World War on the Atlantic Ocean ( where he saw German torpedoes sink ships in his convoy while crossing over), in England during the Battle of Britain and in France, Holland, Belgium and Germany. This following is a story he told me, a few months before he died at the age of 82. " We were bridging on the Leopold Canal in Belgium," he recalled, adding the Canadians had been given the task of pushing the German forces out of Holland and Belgium so they could open the inland seaport of Antwerp to allow their ships up the Scheldt River with supplies for the front, as the Allied assault had ground to a halt. The Leopold Canal was one of many battles making up the battle of the Scheldt, and it saw the Canadians locked in some of the fiercest fighting of the war. Much of the time my father was forced to fight out of flooded polders, inch by inch through Holland, into Belgium, often crawling on his hands and knees in wet, soggy conditions. All of that, while under heavy enemy fire. Soon his story zeroed in on the Leopold Canal. " The Germans were on the other side, so we ( the engineers) had to build bridges for the infantry to cross over. " We could not defend ourselves while we were bridging, so we had to depend on the infantry to cover us. We were up to our necks in the canal at times and men were dying all around me. " The Germans poured everything they had down on top of us, and it was all we could do to just keep our minds on getting the job done. But we had a job to do, and we did it." At this point my father's face was stone cold, and tears were welling up in the corners of his eyes. I saw that the pain in this tired, old soldier was excruciating. This was my father speaking, and he had deemed me worthy to listen as he unloaded the ponderous burden he had carried for so long. I was now comforting the man who, at one time, had so gently cradled me in his powerful arms. I was never so proud of him as I was at that moment. " We opened up with the flame throwers, and in no time the canal was red with the blood of both German and Canadian soldiers," he whispered. The Canadians suffered enormous casualties during that battle, but eventually they crossed the canal. " On the other side we were pinned down," he continued. " The Germans were beaten back, but they were putting up a fierce fight, just the same. I crawled on my hands and knees up the bank, and I saw bullets coming out of the back of the soldier in front of me. Another soldier, several yards ahead of me, had also been killed. When I reached him, he had no face left. I learned later that he was someone I had threshed with in Saskatchewan during the Depression. That was some of the dirtiest fighting I ever saw," he said. Then he began to weep. My father's story is only one of countless stories, told by countless men and women, who have offered up their lives for this country, in all of the wars, conflicts, and peace- keeping missions the Canadian military has built its impeccable reputation upon. Prime Minister Stephen Harper, I suggest you try walking a mile in my father's battle- torn boots, or the boots of any Canadian veteran for that matter. Then see if you still want to shortchange Canada's true heroes. Maybe then you'll agree it's time that our veterans receive all the honour, respect, health care and support they are due. God knows, they've already paid for it. Allan Besson is a retired Free Press sports reporter. PM might try walking in vets' shoes ALLAN BESSON This photograph of my father, Henri Besson, writing a letter to my mother ( Jessie), was taken in England during the Second World War. The superimposed photo on the left is of my mother and their daughter ( Ruth). It was superimposed on the picture to indicate that they were on his mind. Yes, the changes are enough 14% No, stand- alone bars should be allowed 19% The province went too far 11% I'd like to see six- packs in corner stores 57% A_ 15_ Feb- 08- 14_ FP_ 01. indd A15 2/ 7/ 14 7: 49: 50 PM ;