Letters to the Editor: August 3, 2024

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Shameful view

I just read a letter, Seniors should pay up (July 27), from Sheila Leber.

Seniors have paid taxes their entire working lives and Leber thinks, because they may need to access medical services, they should pay an “extra small tax.”

That is tantamount to saying seniors are a burden on the health-care system. You might as well say: “You have had your life; now, curl up and go away.”

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I would be ashamed of myself if these were my thoughts.

Julie Hunter, London

Clean up park

I contacted the city parks department about the deplorable conditions in Victoria Park. It has become a garbage dump, attracting an invasion of Canada geese feasting on the food and garbage, not only after every event, but on regular weekends. The mess the geese leave on the walkways and throughout the park, makes it almost impossible to walk, or enjoy a visit to the park.

My tax dollars are paying the salaries of those responsible for looking after the downtown area, as well as Victoria Park, and so far, those responsible have not been earning their salaries. Event organizers also must share the responsibility of park cleanup during and after every event.

Genevieve Grech, London

Garbage woes

I’m in agreement with the letter from Susan Ross, Make it weekly (July 31).

We’ve had tons of maggots and fruit flies because of this year’s heat and extra days of garbage adding up. I have to put my bag outside the garage. The condo board is right in telling me to keep it inside, but my choice is better for my family.

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Get back to weekly garbage pick-up. Maggots and fruit flies do not make good house pets.

Bill Reidhead, London

Fruit fly grief

We have recently noticed a large number of fruit flies in our kitchen, thanks to City of London’s new composting rules.

I wonder if it occurred to anyone at city hall that having a bucket of leftover food on your counter might invite the critters for a free meal?

Dan Rudell

Consider facts

Regarding the letter to the editor, Seniors should pay up (July 27), from Sheila Leber.

Try forming your ideas around facts.

The poverty rate for Canadian seniors is one of the lowest in the world at five per cent. (OECD’s poverty measure)

By the end of 2026, $1 trillion in personal wealth will be transferred from baby boomers to their families and charities. (Financial Post)

For these wealthy seniors, CPP and OAC are clawed back. Discounted bus passes and free dental services are only available for people truly in need.

From 2011 to 2021, the share of health expenditure spent on Canadians age 65 and older has decreased. During that same period, the share spent on Canadians younger than 64 has increased. (CIHI)

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This country was founded and built on the premise that we all take care of each other.

I gladly pay my taxes, even my capital gains taxes, to guarantee your child gets free health and dental care for their entire lives. Looking for people to blame is a useless endeavour.

Beth McCracken, London

Going to market

Loblaw is encouraging shoppers to shun the possible lineup at farmers’ markets and go to a Loblaw store for farm fresh produce.

I will be glad to support local farmers directly and pay cash, and not use the self-checkout lanes or be treated like a shoplifter.

R. Webb, London

Install sprinklers

Agricultural sprinklers which can water down hectares at time should be placed near all woodland towns and cities which can be activated when fire comes near.

Now, watch people blame climate change for the fires in Jasper, Alta., when it is nature’s way of renewal. Forest fires have been a reality since time began and always will be. One cannot stop a forest fire with a carbon tax.

Wayne Robertson, Chatham

Think of others

Regarding the letter to the editor, Seniors should pay up (July 27), from Sheila Leber.

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Working- class seniors should get first dibs on health care. They should be the first ones in line.

Think of someone other than yourself.

Bryan Patterson, London

Questions raised

Regarding the letter to the editor, Seniors should pay up (July 27), from Sheila Leber.

It is hard to know where to begin, but let me start with these questions:

What is the source of her data on senior use of ERs?

How does she define “senior”?

Is this per capita in the general population or based upon the number of folks in the waiting room at any given time? Are her statistics local to London, Ontario-wide, or national?

Are they affected by seniors’ inability to find family doctors as compared to other demographics?

I’d follow with these questions:

• Do you understand how taxes and public services work?
• Do you expect everyone to pay for all government services each time they use them?
• Should you pay more for the highways when you drive more than someone else?
• Should your taxes be higher if you have children in school or a sidewalk in front of your house?
• Should people in Sarnia pay more for the Ministry of Environment to police their air and water quality than the folks in Port Stanley?
• If the fire department shows up at your residence, should you have to pay for them to extinguish your burning roof, especially if you live in an older building that might be more fire prone?
• Should you then have to pay for the indirect effects of services provided to others?
• I also ask:

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Do you understand how insurance works? Public medical care, which is a form of insurance, was instituted in this country (thank you, Tommy Douglas) so when one gets sick or injured, they don’t have to sell their house or first-born child to pay to be restored to health. This social contract is a common model in first-world nations (with one glaring exception). It is based upon the premise that everyone pays regularly now for the use by whoever needs it, with the expectation that when they, in turn, need it, their fellow taxpayers will do the same for them. Everyone who lives long enough will need more medical care as they age. This is built into to the payment calculations. A 60-year-old, for example, has probably been paying into the system for more than 40 years. They may never have used it other than to get vaccines. They have paid their fair share.

Finally, I suggest that while there may be savings to found in public expenses – though given the number of promises to “cut the fat” in various election platforms, this seems unlikely – picking one group to tax at a higher level is ludicrous.

Gerald Diamond, London

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