Letter: Taxes, taxes and taxes

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Annually Calgary metropolis council has a restricted debate on how a lot improve must be added to our municipal taxes. Is it not attainable for council to evaluate packages and companies which aren’t working successfully or effectively so that these taxes could possibly be lowered? It could actually be an fascinating train for council to provoke subsequent 12 months .

JG Gilmour, Calgary

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I’m confused. The mayor and council say they need reasonably priced housing. They then crank up property taxes by 7.8 per cent that makes housing much less reasonably priced and most positively forces landlords to extend hire. They supply cash to builders to create reasonably priced housing and the primary mission rolled out has $1,800 month, 600-square-feet one bedrooms. Too small for a household and hardly reasonably priced. Then they spend $2.25M on an artwork construction that appears prefer it belongs in a cartoon theme park. Do they spend their very own cash like this or is it simply ours they spend like this that?Darrin Hopkins, Calgary

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Does the Alberta Academics’ Affiliation (ATA) imagine {that a} rambling column about class sizes will spur the federal government to motion? The federal government has been clear that public schooling and particularly the lecturers’ unions are the issue. With Invoice 1 on this legislative sitting being a invoice to require all future tax will increase to be authorized by referendum, they’ve additionally made it clear that they won’t be growing funding for public schooling. It feels like an exaggeration, however Jason Schilling’s current column merely proves that the federal government’s insurance policies are working as supposed. The ATA wants to simply accept that that is how public schooling is handled on this province and use that as their foundation when planning a method for significant modifications.

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Greg Schmidt, Calgary

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Final week, I watched Mayor Gondek doing a photo-op at a Calgary Meals Financial institution drive.  The variety of Calgarians counting on the meals financial institution has change into overwhelming.  So, whereas I drop a twenty to try to assist out, as do fellow residents, I’m left to surprise how politicians can take a look at themselves within the mirror, as they provide the nod to a $40 Million improve to Olympic Plaza, whether or not it wants it or not, whereas essentially the most useful belongings on this metropolis, our folks, go hungry.  They might assume that the excessive share of malnourished Calgarians, who’re largely ladies and their kids, are merely collateral injury to our nation’s inflationary issues, however I assure that when the subsequent election comes round, I cannot neglect.

Norm Woodhouse

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Anyone who believes Danielle’s AHS reorganization is something apart from a smoke display screen to additional her agenda of privatization, hasn’t been taking note of her historical past or her libertarian beliefs. Some surgical procedures are already slated for defunding. 

Mary King, Calgary

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That is in reference to the Nov. 18 editorial “Monetary literacy an important device in navigating rising value of dwelling.” You may’t get blood from a stone. Monetary literacy, in and of itself a useful factor, if taught to the impoverished must be taught in equal measure to the rich, households, governments, and companies who’ve a hand in maintaining the impoverished poor.

Unattached, working-age adults ages 18 to 64, AKA singles, are one of many largest teams inside the “household” who face poverty as a result of they’re excluded from monetary formulation.  They  have been made to be the “chattels” of those that make the monetary and authorized guidelines.  (Merriam Webster definition: an enslaved individual held because the authorized property of one other).

Lin Gackle, Cochrane

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The premier has adopted via on “fixing” healthcare citing many points with AHS together with an absence of accountability.  Maybe the premier (nor these advising the premier) weren’t conscious that AHS did a lot to deal with the general public accountability of our healthcare system. This included the  AHS Efficiency Report/Annual Report that outlined efficiency metrics and monitoring measures with the target of evaluating progress utilizing evidence-based definitions, evaluating to baseline, earlier reporting timelines and the place relevant to different jurisdictions.  Such monitoring included however was not restricted to province vast surveillance to determine health-care-associated infections, measuring hand hygiene, surgical web site infections, acute care outbreaks, emergency division wait instances, public well being inspection studies.  Extra data relating to AHS accountability is supplied within the supplemental data to the annual report element outcomes of AHS efficiency metrics and monitoring measures.

Hopefully the measuring and monitoring famous above can be continued as we Albertans wish to proceed to have the chance to judge our healthcare system significantly to judge whether or not the “repair” improves the metrics and measures in place….As that is our healthcare system we wish to perceive how the federal government plans to measure accountability now that the “repair” has been carried out. 

Laurie O’Neil, Calgary

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MAID is certainly a really delicate topic. The will to forestall struggling by helping in somebody’s suicide comes into direct battle with the assumption that human life is sacred. The conflicts develop intense as a result of not everybody agrees on what takes precedence. However what actually raises discord  to excessive ranges is when inflexibility takes over and completely different beliefs aren’t tolerated.Trendy palliative care can insure that ache can be significantly lowered for the terminally ailing. Folks and docs particularly shouldn’t be pressured to take part in MAID in any method in the event that they select to not. There are different methods to realize MAID for individuals who need it.I discover it ironic that Catholics are sometimes accused of being dogmatic after which I learn that folks like Cynthia Clark need Catholic health-care services to be pressured to supply assisted suicide. Who is de facto being dogmatic?

Peter Mannistu, Calgary

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Though he in all probability didn’t imply to, Mr. Mahony (Opinion Nov. 14/23: UPC coverage proposals on MAID value a re-evaluation) provides a terrific instance of democracy in motion. He factors out that “many Canadians opposed the legalization of assisted suicide”. He’s proper – many did, however extra didn’t. In accordance with an Ipsos ballot completed final June, assist for Medical Help in Dying (which is this system’s precise identify) stays robust at 84 per cent.

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Later within the article, Mr. Mahony regrets that Invoice 207, which might have given healthcare employees freedom of conscience by regulation, didn’t go. Once more, he’s appropriate. After the invoice handed first studying, MLAs have been bombarded with outraged letters and emails… Over a interval of two weeks, public outrage led to the invoice’s demise. It was redundant in any occasion as a result of conscience rights for well being care suppliers who don’t agree with MAiD are already protected underneath the Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta Customary of Follow rules that state {that a} member is just not required to supply a service to which s/he objects, primarily based on his or her Constitution rights relating to freedom of conscience and faith.

I for one am pleased with a rustic that helps democracy and selection. That’s what MAID is – a selection. And it must be a selection obtainable to all Canadians in all publicly funded well being care services, so long as the affected person meets the stringent necessities (one among which is that they need to not be coerced). As for the reduction that some sufferers could really feel realizing “they may by no means be supplied loss of life as a so-called ’remedy possibility’”, many extra would possibly welcome realizing that it IS an possibility. Then they’ll select for themselves.

Kerrie Hale, Calgary

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