Kudos to the Vrolyk sister for starting food program
Sir: The St. Vincent de Paul held a special volunteer day recently, when the Vrolyk sisters, Abby, Paige and Sydney, kick-started their “Snacks for Summer” program to provide food to students in need this summer.
Thank you girls, for all your hard work and dedication to the program. Thank you as well to Sarnia Police, local industry and businesses, and to the public for all their contributions.
Redeemer Christian Church, 5834 Blackwell Side Road, will be happy to accept donations for this much needed program this summer. Sincerely,
Linda Evers
On behalf of the volunteers,
St. Vincent de Paul Foodbank
Trudeau’s push to legalize marijuana is irresponsible
Sir: Legalizing marijuana in Canada is a huge mistake.
Justin Trudeau once again shows how irresponsible and incompetent he is as a leader and Prime Minister.
This is a reckless decision that obviously didn’t consider all the negative effects the law will have on the everyday lives of Canadians.
Why didn’t they learn from the problems experienced in other places that legalized weed, like Colorado, where children gained easier access to their parent’s stash, similar to alcohol. It’s a known fact marijuana is dangerous to the brain development of persons under the age of 17.
We don’t need more impaired drivers high on weed. Legalizing it will do nothing to eliminate the black markets, because they will sell it cheaper than the government price with high taxes. Trudeau needs to grow up and deal with more important issues than weed. I hope Canadians have learned from their mistake by voting out this clown in next year’s election.
Greg Hamilton
Sarnia
The legalization of marijuana by October inspires poem
The Free Green Grass of Home
(Think Tom Jones)
The hood won't be the same,
We're out standing in the rain,
To encourage sprouts as we once did our children;
For down the road you see it's as legal,
As a coffee and cheese bagel,
We're good to grow the free green grass at home.
On this side of the border,
Starting in late October,
We'll bake it, vape it, roll and bowl to take it;
Down the road you see it's now legal,
The price of home grown's dropped to zero,
We're good to grow the free green grass at home.
Yes we're all on board to greet it,
Some inhale and some will eat it;
We're good to grow the free green grass at home.
I'm awake and it astounds me,
My four plants that surround me;
We've realized what we've long been dreaming;
For there's a store where we can get some,
Come the fall and you can score some,
Or grow your own free green grass at home.
Yes we're all on board to greet it,
Some inhale, and some will eat it,
We're good to grow our free green grass at home.
Francis Lynch
Sarnia
‘Thank you’ to all who helped with the Dirty Dash
Sir: On June 9, nearly 500 people attended the 4th annual Assante Dirty Dash for Sarnia-Lambton Rebound in Canatara Park.
Despite the rain, 400 participants completed the five kilometre muddy obstacle track and enjoyed entertainment, food and prizes. The event raised $20,000 for local youth.
The money will support Rebound drop-in programs, and other programs that help youth through music, theatre and the arts, teach resiliency and goal-setting, and provide mentoring, meals, and employment, education and housing support.
A special thank you goes out to all of our sponsors, and to the nearly 100 individuals who volunteered their time to ensure the Dirty Dash was a fun and safe event for the whole community.
Emma Mallon
Fund Development Coordinator,
Sarnia-Lambton Rebound
MP Gladu inconsistent when it comes to freedom of speech
Sir: Our local member of parliament, Marilyn Gladu, has been an outspoken critic regarding the Liberal Party’s actions concerning the summer jobs program.
She had stated: “What we are seeing is a dangerous precedent where the Government seems to want to crackdown on the language and the thoughts of Canadians.”
Although this might be legitimate criticism had it been made by someone with credibility, it loses all meaning when coming from her.
How can someone who supports freedom of religious expression reconcile that with their belief that women who wish to wear a niqab while taking the oath of citizen ought to “pick a different country,” or their belief that "Christianity was written into constitutional proceedings"?
How can someone who supports freedom of speech reconcile that with their support for a ban on cannabis paraphernalia?
It has become clear that Gladu believes these freedoms, ones that supposedly form the basis for our democracy, don’t extend very far. An attack on the speech of white Christians such as her is horrific, but attacks on the speech and expression of religious minorities or those who don’t share her own sensibilities are fair game.
In the end, I can’t help but pose the question: Why is Marilyn pretending to care about our rights?
Cameron Matthews
Ford’s confusion over carbon could hurt Sarnia-Lambton
Sir: If people voted for Doug Ford because they were angry with the Liberals for wasting our money on things like the cancelled gas plants, they might like to think again, because “you ain’t seen nothing yet.”
Doug Ford’s promised first act as Premier is to cancel the Carbon Tax, which is a sad reflection of his level of understanding, because Ontario doesn’t have a Carbon Tax.
What we have is a Cap and Trade market for carbon, which is totally different. The cancelled gas plants cost Ontarians around $1 billion, but early estimates of the cost of cancelling the Cap and Trade market are around $4 billion, according to the Ivey Foundation, four times what the Liberals wasted.
The Ivey Foundation’s Bruce Lourie says Ford’s decision runs against the current of “economists and sensible corporations” across Canada that support carbon pricing. Taxing carbon pollution “is so blindingly obvious to anyone with even a modicum of economic sense,” he writes. “Scrapping cap and trade and the Green Ontario Fund will do nothing to lower electricity rates, what it will do is cause huge disruption and costs to Ontario businesses.”
The Ecofiscal Commission, a group of eminent Canadian economists, has provided convincing research on the economic benefits of pricing carbon, which is supported by the CEOs of oil companies in Alberta and the Canadian Council of Chief Executives.
But it doesn’t end there, particularly for Sarnia-Lambton. This kind of legislative flip-flopping just creates business uncertainty and anxiety, which impacts investment decisions.
In a climate where businesses are contending with uncertainty in NAFTA talks, new trade tariffs, and the concerns over competitiveness with the U.S., the announcement from Ford only adds to the insecurity that businesses are feeling.
Of particular concern to Sarnia-Lambton is the impact this decision will have on the bio-based and low-carbon green industries that we have done so much to attract.
Eliminating the economic benefit of lower GHG emissions on which they rely seriously impacts the economics of these companies, potentially driving them to locate elsewhere where their green credentials are worth something.
Peter R Smith
Sarnia