Cars were towed without warning
Recently, my family and I plus some friends and their families were at Weir’s Beach in Metchosin enjoying a beautiful day. This is a beach that we have been frequenting for 12 years, enjoying what the region has to offer (farm stands/ local businesses/ natural beauty). All of a sudden, we heard that cars are being towed.
I was parked in an area with no signage, no warnings and no markings. I didn’t even think about it. I thought I was parked legally.
Then my friend, who had gone to his vehicle to get something for his three-year-old daughter, came back and said his car was gone. I checked and mine was gone as well. No warning, no notice, no anything.
I didn’t know who took our vehicles and where they were taken, leaving us stranded with our kids at the beach. We found out from some random person the name of the tow company that took our cars and luckily got our friends who just left to come back and take us to the tow yard.
We found out from the tow company that the Metchosin fire chief ticketed a bunch of cars and then called for the tow trucks, no chance for us who were “illegally” parked to correct our wrongs.
What if I hadn’t found out where my car was? No signage was posted as to who is towing cars. No signage saying cars will be towed.
Luckily, we found out who took our vehicles; unluckily, we had to find a way to get to them and pay to get them back, while leaving our families behind waiting for us. I think the District of Metchosin should rethink how they do things. This is not the way to enforce bylaw infractions.
Erik Mcdormand
Victoria
What’s expected of Canadian citizens
Re: “Increased citizenship supports our police services,” Steve Woolrich column, Aug. 23.
In his Sunday column, Steve Woolrich speaks of the partnership between the police and citizens in protecting the community. Each of us can protect Canada and our community every day by meeting the final line of the Canadian Citizenship Oath (oath of allegiance): “… And fulfil my duties as a Canadian citizen.”
In return for our rights and freedoms, which are founded in the 800-year-old Magna Carta and enshrined in the Canadian Constitution and Bill of Rights, that promise peace, order and good government, Canada asks very little of its citizens.
A responsible citizen is expected only to: obey the law, take responsibility for oneself and one’s family, accept jury duty when summoned, vote in elections, take leadership roles to help others in the community as we are able, and protect the environment and heritage of Canada.
In return we are free to speak without fear, worship as we please, peacefully stand up for what we believe is right and oppose what we believe is wrong; love whom we please; and choose those who would govern us.
Gerald Pash
Former citizenship judge
Victoria
Use downtown parkades to house homeless
With the reduced traffic in the downtown core due to business closures and many employees working from home, why have we not utilized our empty city car-parking buildings as a good place to set up camping for homeless people?
Portable toilets and other essential amenities could be easily set up. Campers could be monitored and provided all the necessities required.
Also, these car parks are constructed with concrete so are pretty much resistant to damage and can be cleaned easily. This would place many people in a central location where they want to be and where services of all kinds can be provided without the continued confrontation, overuse and destruction of our public spaces.
Tom McColm
North Saanich
Erin O’Toole’s unholy alliance
If the Conservatives heard the hint during the 2019 election that their party needs to court the moderate, centrist swing voters in the densely populated, urban megalopolises of Central Canada in order to win next time, they ignored it by voting in Erin O’Toole over the safer, progressive Red Tory choice in the now-completely-finished-in-politics Peter MacKay.
O’Toole’s campaign harkened back to a Reform Party/Canadian Alliance mindset while opening empathetic arms to social conservatives he would need for second or third-choice support as progressive balloting went on. It was a daring strategy that worked like a charm. The members who felt MacKay was too soft on the fundamentals, expanding too far into the mushy middle for their comfort, gave O’Toole a surprisingly strong first ballot opening which grew with social conservative help while MacKay’s support stagnated.
O’Toole — who has embraced a harder-right, truer-blue, left-is-radical campaign narrative as well as courted homophobic and anti-abortion social conservatives — now has a difficult choice to make. Was he just acting out the role to win the race and will now reset to moderate-middle leadership? Or will that narrower vision of conservativism and his political indebtedness to social conservatives dominate the party’s electoral messaging, making the biggest winner last night a prime minister named Chrystia Freeland, oops, Justin Trudeau?
I have a feeling that the well-oiled Liberal war machine will not soon let Canadian voters forget the unholy alliance that O’Toole made with social conservatives in order to win the Conservative leadership, whether or not he upholds his end of the bargain.
Frank Sweet
Vancouver
You can shop local while working from home
I am supporting downtown businesses while I work safely from home. More than 85,000 people live in Victoria as of 2016; are they not also shopping downtown?
I don’t feel comfortable returning to a busy office. If I am forced to do that, then I will need to minimize my other risks and will switch to shopping online.
Let’s all put on our masks and shop local while we are able to work from home.
Ashley Peter
Victoria
Fifty people indoors is too many
Why are we allowing gatherings of up to 50 people indoors? This seems far too many. How can they possibly maintain distance with those numbers? Also, once you allow that many it is easy to see how it could rapidly escalate via social media.
I see Hawaii is considering limiting indoor gatherings to ten only. I think we should be reducing our allowable gathering size to a much smaller number than 50.
Dr. John Miller
Family physician, retired
Victoria
Teachers will indeed find a way
Re: “Teachers need to find a way,” letter, Aug. 25.
The letter-writer uses the usual criticism about class size and wages as if somehow teachers are milking the system because of COVID-19. As a retired high school counsellor, I know how hard teachers work to prepare for a new school year and how important it is to be ready for their new classes.
With COVID-19, parents and teachers are trying to navigate the new normal to allow students to get a quality education while at the same time making sure it is a safe environment.
The B.C. Teachers’ Federation is working with the provincial health guidelines from Dr. Bonnie Henry to make it a safe return. Rather than cynical letters blaming teachers, try to be more supportive of how difficult the 2020 school year will be and how hard all parties are working together for all students. Rest assured, teachers will find a way.
Doug Puritch
Campbell River
Free supply of syringes is creating problems
Perhaps the answer to the serious problem of discarded needles here in Victoria and elsewhere across our country would be to stop supplying irresponsible drug users with free needles. Yet another social justice solution gone miserably wrong. It’s clearly not solving the problem and is instead creating more problems for the 99+% of the population who are not irresponsible.
Brian Rossnagel
Victoria
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