Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - January 18, 2025, Winnipeg, Manitoba Keep pensions, politics separate Re: Pension funds and provincial dreams — or nightmares (Editorial, Jan. 17) What is also important to this issue is the human element. Currently, the Canada Pension Plan (and I assume the Quebec Pension Plan) is kept totally separate from other government programs and funds. Considering today’s political environment, what sane person, employed or retired, would want their political leaders to have access to their pension funds for pet projects? If a province wants to set up a pension plan to supplement the CPP, or to replace the CPP, then the potential beneficiaries of the plan are going to want to know that it is totally separate from other government programs and never becomes part of the province’s general coffers. Otherwise, no thanks. Political leaders are only the flavour of the moment. Pension plans are everlasting! BRIAN FRASER Winnipeg Teach all kids the same Re: Probe into literacy one of human rights com- mission’s ‘top priorities’ (Jan. 16) It is great news to hear in Maggie Macintosh’s article that after a year of silence the Manitoba Human Rights Commission is moving ahead with their investigation into reading instruction. But after two other provincial human rights investigations in Saskatchewan and Ontario, the problems are not a mystery. It is worth noting that most other provinces improved reading instruction without human rights investigations. Children don’t learn to read differently based on their province, but unfortunately, they are taught differently. Manitoba is way behind. For too long educational leaders have relied solely on blaming poverty for illiteracy. While poverty and food insecurity no doubt influence educational outcomes, this narrative has taken on classist undertones — that Manitoba children are too poor to bother teaching how to read effective- ly. This further deepens structural disadvantage. There are more than enough parents of strug- gling readers who are not living in poverty, like me, who say “B.S.” All kids deserve effective reading instruction. Shame on the educational community, especially faculties of education, that parents have to go to the Human Rights Commission for you to do your job. NATALIE RIEDIGER Winnipeg Keep open mind about leadership race Re: A look at a race that’s hardly started (Edito- rial, Jan. 16) Although the editorial is caveated with “if current trendlines hold,” the overall tenor of the piece seems to be confidently predicting that the fate of the Liberals in the upcoming general elec- tion is a foregone conclusion and therefore the race for a new Liberal leader is irrelevant. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Or worse, pos- sibly contribute to a result we may not want by promoting the idea that result is inevitable. This is politics; nothing is inevitable. The recent U.S. elections weren’t decided by the average voter engaging in penetrating policy analysis. The importance of preserving the rule of law probably got the same traction with that average voter that promoting the idea of eating broccoli for its health benefits would have re- ceived — i.e. “Hmm, interesting, I guess.” And our elections aren’t likely to be much dif- ferent. Ask the next three people you encounter in any public place to explain the carbon tax or Canada’s trade surplus/deficit with the U.S. But, get a simple idea out there that people can easily understand and relate to, and maybe the direction of the political winds changes. As longtime American political consultant James Carville quipped: “It’s the economy, stu- pid.” Maybe Mark Carney read that because, in his recent exchange with Jon Stewart, he stated that many Canadians have experienced prices rising faster than their wages in recent years and the Liberal government hasn’t adequately taken action to address that fact. While Carney is a former adviser to Justin Trudeau, Carney is not now and never has been a decision maker in the Liberal government, either alone or as part of a team. So, let’s keep an open mind. Wait and see what the new Liberal leader has to say and compare it to what other party leaders are saying. And let’s count the votes on election day. The fat lady has yet to sing. GREG MARTIN Winnipeg New helicopter a bad purchase Re: Police, mayor push for new $13.5-M police chopper (Jan. 16) What kind of thinking is going on in city hall?! There are so many things wrong with this deci- sion its hard to itemize them all. Lack of boots on the ground, inability to get more police in cars, lack of outreach for the poor, etc. I can list so many things that should be a priority, yet here we are dealing with another high-cost, low return investment that has little value to those who live in the neigbourhoods deeply impacted by this particular device. I have lived in the central North End for the last few years. I live here by choice because the only way to really understand your neighbours is to live with them. I have tried to sit outside in the evening during the summer. The noise and intrusion caused by this machine is not only irritating but has driven us indoors on numerous occasions. This is a common experience in this neighbourhood, with many people telling me the exact same story. Our police argue that this improves their polic- ing. How does a machine improve their policing when the vast majority of their work is dealing with the public? How do you build community when sitting in a machine 3,000 feet in the air? By the way, who feels better about this pur- chase? Everyone around here knows that the vast majority of its air time is in this neighbourhood, circling around us for hours at a time. When noise, intrusion and ominous presence is the constant feature, creating fear and unease, driving people indoors, this does little to build community, which is the most important aspect of a healthy neighbourhood. Health and resiliency are the primary factors achieved through com- munity building. It’s not new and shiny. Rather, it is hard work, always established in relationship with others. The desire for this equipment is about a police state using a colonialist approach to deal with the poor. I am really surprised that our mayor is ignoring the founding principles of community building — namely building relationships, and not buying machines that will do the exact opposite. If we need more police, hire them. If we need more cars, buy them. If we need more programs, invest in them. After all, you have $13.5 million hanging around. BRENT NEUMANN Winnipeg Cutting team shortsighted Re: U of W kicks women’s soccer team, English Language Program to curb (Jan. 14) I strongly urge the University of Winnipeg ad- ministration to reconsider its decision to defund the women’s soccer team. While it’s true that universities are grappling with financial pressures — due in part to reduced international student enrolment, a policy worth re-examining — targeting the modest budget of the women’s soccer team as a cost-cutting mea- sure feels both shortsighted and troubling. As one player aptly noted, it sends a “troubling message” about the value of women’s athletics. The introduction of women’s soccer, alongside men’s wrestling and baseball, was a progressive step by the university to recognize the role ath- letics plays in providing opportunities for young people from diverse backgrounds to engage with and thrive in the educational experience. Sadly, not everyone in the Athletics Department shared this vision, and now, that bias appears to have influenced the administration’s decision. The women’s soccer program represents far more than a line item in a budget — it’s a source of empowerment, community and opportunity. I hope alumni and friends of the university will join me in urging the Board of Regents to reverse this decision and reaffirm their commitment to equity in sports. LLOYD AXWORTHY Winnipeg LETTERS TO THE EDITOR WHAT’S YOUR TAKE? THE FREE PRESS WANTS TO HEAR FROM YOU. The Free Press is committed to publishing a diverse selection of letters from a broad cross-section of our audience. The Free Press will also consider longer submissions for inclu- sion on our Think Tank page, which is a platform mandated to present a wide range of perspectives on issues of current interest. We welcome our readers’ feedback on articles and letters on these pages and in other sections of the Free Press. ● Email: Letters: letters@winnipegfreepress.com Think Tank submissions: opinion@winnipegfreepress.com ● Post: Letters to the Editor, 1355 Mountain Ave., Winnipeg, R2X 3B6 Please include your name, address and daytime phone number. OUR VIEW YOUR SAY COMMENT EDITOR: RUSSELL WANGERSKY 204-697-7269 ● RUSSELL.WANGERSKY@WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM A8 SATURDAY JANUARY 18, 2025 Two campaigns — going in one direction? W ITH months yet to go in the race to determine who will lead Manitoba’s Progressive Conservative Party, one thing is already clear: the party is on a rightward trajectory. The party won’t announce a new leader until April 26, with members choosing between former cabinet minister and Blue Bomber Obby Khan, and Churchill businessman Wally Daudrich. Daudrich has drawn much attention since he entered the race due to his explicit desire to bring the party further to the right, embracing social conservatism and expressing disdain for both legalized marijuana and safe consumption sites. That one such as Daudrich would enter the race should come as no surprise. Conservative parties far and wide are facing pressure from within segments of their constituencies to embrace ever more right-wing positions, whether those positions be related to drug policy or LGBTTQ+ rights. By comparison, Khan seems the more palat- able candidate, both to non-PC voters who might wish for a more moderate leader of the party and for party members who fear the destruction of traditional, small-C conservatism — and in Manitoba, its “progressive” element — beneath a rising, reactionary tide. Khan’s resume and skills as a retail politician paint a portrait of him as the more moderate of the two. However, this is not necessarily the case. Critics of Khan haven’t forgotten that during Heather Stefanson’s ill-conceived 2023 election campaign, Khan was the face of its “parental rights” plank. When the party promised to en- hance “parental rights” — the term for a decid- edly anti-LGBTTQ+ movement which sought to eliminate students’ right to privacy regarding their gender identity at school — Khan’s face was on the posters. He has since voiced support for the federal Transgender Day of Visibility, but that appears to be thin gruel for those who would like a more full accounting of his position. That disastrous campaign is something Khan has largely left behind him. However, his in- volvement hasn’t been forgotten by activists who remember its sting; Charlie Eau, the executive director of Trans Manitoba, told this paper in November last year that both Khan and Daudrich have bad records on trans issues. (While Dau- drich has said he is not opposed to transgender rights, he has also stood behind old social media posts in which he referred to a trans woman as a “man dressed in woman’s clothing.”) The campaign for PC leadership will not be solely about social conservative issues, of course, nor will a future provincial campaign. However, Khan’s involvement in that ’23 campaign pitch leaves a lingering question: are his politics actu- ally more moderate than his opponent’s, or does it just seem that way because he’s more quiet about it? Does Khan have any lingering regrets about his involvement in that campaign, or does his involvement prove he’s willing to co-sign regres- sive views if it will capture a chunk of voters? Where each candidate stands on these issues is important for more than one reason. For starters, a potent opposition party can damage efforts to bolster the rights of marginalized people without having to actually be in power. But more than that, it is because of far-right actors constantly forcing discussions on cul- ture-war issues that we must constantly return to them. Subjects such as LGBTTQ+ rights in Canada should be considered a done deal, yet we repeatedly reopen the debate because of the insis- tence of reactionary politicians and their voters. It’s all energy and time wasted, which could instead be spent on discussing actual crises in, for example, health care and climate change. Whether or not one is a PC voter, it matters whether or not their next leader is willing to lend an ear to these views. Manitobans deserve a political discourse that focuses on pressing issues affecting us all, instead of one contingent putting its energy into dragging us backward, over and over. A pity, then, that both of the men gunning for the PC leadership seem likely, in their own ways, to do just that. EDITORIAL Published since 1872 on Treaty 1 territory and the homeland of the Métis PC leadership candidate Obby Khan ;