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Letters, Nov. 17: Better to wait for a party running an 'honest referendum, providing clear alternatives'

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The voting referendum seems an expensive scam by a party that promised it would hold one but doesn’t really want to as proportional representation would cut more into their voter base than into that of their major opposition. The referendum is supported by a minor party that hopes a new system will improve its election prospects. The major party needs the minor party’s support to maintain its ruling majority in the house, so it has to go through with the referendum while making the pro-rep choices unpalatable.

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We are therefore put in the position of having to either vote for the existing first-past-the-post system or buy a pig in a poke and vote for a yet-to-be-defined alternative that will add non-running politicians or their supporters to government. The best solution may be to vote for the present system and hold your nose while waiting for an honest party to run an honest referendum, providing clear alternatives.

Allen McLaren, Creston

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Pro rep brings more dialogue

I am an 80-year-old retired family doctor who has never been an insider in a political party. With the electoral reform referendum, we have an opportunity to advocate for a better democracy in B.C.

Please consider voting for proportional representation. Do not get hung up on the details. All three pro-rep options are better than our current first-past-the-post voting system. Those we have elected to our legislature in their own way do care and can be trusted with the details. With current electronic counting and calculating, the options for a better voting system are abundant. Please give our MLAs the chance to move us along the path toward a better democracy.

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As an elder, I say please help enable our younger citizens to bring in more dialogue within government.

Arthur Van Wart, Surrey

What, then, should be done?

Letter writer Barry Craig applauds Washington state voters for opposing a carbon tax. I wonder, does he agree, like 97 per cent of scientists, that climate change is a human-caused threat to humanity?

If so, how does he suggest we tackle this challenge if not by taxing companies that are polluting our atmosphere? It’s easy to criticize, but with our children’s future at stake, the onus is on all of us to support positive change, not just point fingers and accept a very dangerous status quo.

Michael Polanyi, Vancouver

Growth isn’t everything

There is more to good economics than growth. In fact, too much growth too quickly is called economic cancer. To me, concepts like stability and sustainability are more important.

Some argue that if we double our population, the gross national product would double and this would be good. I say, wrong. If the population doubles, the demand on the food supply doubles and the price of food will double. The same is true for the cost of housing.

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In order to get a stable and sustainable economy, we should reduce immigration and encourage two-child families.

Sean Murray, Victoria

Dems to blame for division

Frank Giustra’s op-ed, “United States leaders need to bring together a divided America,” fails to acknowledge that the division in America was started by the former administration of Barack Obama, and the Democrats continue to fan the flames.

The good news is Americans were spared a Hillary and Bill Clinton presidency.

Cherryl Katnich, Maple Ridge

Trough dwellers will lead to republic

When future historians ask why Canada became a republic, prominent among the causes cited will be the excesses and abuses of such trough-dwelling ex-governors-general as Adrienne Clarkson and Michaëlle Jean.

Garth Evans, Vancouver

Stop Site C

Watching the devastating fires in tinder-dry California, and suffering from seasonal water shortages in the Lower Mainland, shouldn’t we in B.C. be concerned about our food security? Yet we are about to flood hundreds of hectares of potential farmland in the Peace to supply cheap electricity to the Americans and feed the fracking industry.

Considering the potential cost overruns of the Site C dam, it is economically wise to stop flooding the Peace River Valley and put the money into producing alternative-energy jobs.

Anne Gartshore, Vancouver


Letters to the editor should be sent to sunletters@vancouversun.com. The editorial pages editor is Gordon Clark, who can be reached at gclark@postmedia.com.

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