Welcome to Ontario, where Ford-wards means backwards

Doug Ford's government rejected Toronto's proposals to restore traffic lanes and keep bike lanes: sources, Sept. 4 As Doug Ford seems committed to making Toronto road users less safe by forcing the removal of bike lanes on major streets, this is an opportune time for the city to re-examine road safety conditions to ensure pedestrians are able to move safely in face of the increased traffic congestion the premier plans to inflict on our streets. I would suggest starting by considering such measures as all-way pedestrian scrambles at busy intersections like Bloor and Dufferin, Bloor and Dundas, and Yonge and St. Clair. Surely Ford would want pedestrians to be safe even at the risk of delaying drivers for a couple of seconds? Jim Gough, Toronto Ford-wards usually means backwards in Ontario, and the fuss over Toronto's bike lanes is no exception. Hamish Wilson, Toronto Aftermath of Toronto's 'red alert' storm reveals downed trees and hydro lines, a flooded DVP — and a devastated Rogers Stadium, Sept. 3 After an evening during which I had to take shelter in my basement due to multiple severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings, I could not applaud the 'Elbows Up for the Climate' campaign more. Former Toronto mayor David Miller is right that Canadians are facing two emergencies: climate change and economic insecurity. And we need to address both. The organization's proposed solutions are spot-on, too: a clean energy grid, housing that's both energy efficient and affordable, and a national resilience, response and recovery strategy. This is one campaign all Canadians should get behind. Donna Freedman, Milton, Ont. My partner and I, like many residents of southern Ontario, were caught on the road when the big storm hit. We were on the way to pick up our seven-year-old from camp and saw that rain had been forecast and that dark clouds were gathering, but we didn't realize there might be real danger until about 60 seconds before impact, which is when we finally received emergency alerts on our cellphones. We backed into a narrow driveway between two houses for shelter, while some 10 metres away a huge tree fell over. We were lucky. And we all must learn to expect more of this. For my partner and I, that means being more paranoid about storm forecasts and not hesitating to change plans when necessary. For governments, it should mean coordinating fully systematized responses. Mayor Olivia Chow, for example, said Toronto had activated emergency plans as of the previous morning — so why didn't we receive an emergency alert until it was too late for us to change our plans? Thousands of drivers who wound up stuck on dangerous roads could've used an earlier warning. And let's go further. Let's have armies of volunteers on call to clear storm drains and place sandbags the day before an expected storm. Let's invest in more full-time staff to find and remediate at-risk trees. Let's have an emergency alert system that actually gives us enough time to act. Linus Rachlis, Toronto I disagree with the notion that Canadians need to choose between a healthy economy and a healthy planet. One of the many problems created by recent weather disasters like the storm in Toronto (which are made worse by our changing climate) is the cost of rebuilding. If we want to have a contented and healthy populace, then we need to have a healthy planet. John Madden, Toronto Carney pushes back on Trump administration claims about collapse of trade talks, Sept. 3 Howard Lutnick is toady par excellence. First he hopped all over the Gordie Howe International Bridge opening; now the U.S. Secretary of Commerce is sliming up trade talks with Canada. I've been watching a PBS lecture on the American Revolution. My, how sincerely the Founding Fathers tried to prevent the possibility of President Donald Trump and his collection of toadies. They should have just stuck with the King. I'm certainly glad Canada did. How could life in a country headed by Charles III (or George III, for that matter) possibly be worse than life under Trump? Rochelle Carrière Hatton, Sudbury, Ont. This Ontario ER doctor's shifts ended in anger and tears. Here's what led her to quit and why she worries about the future, Sept. 3 It is telling that Ontario's ministry of health, in response to serious concerns about the province's emergency-medicine workforce, indicated that it would strive to reduce the number of ER visits that occur. That isn't the problem — and given this government's fundamental lack of understanding of the health system, is it any wonder so many of us have considered leaving the profession? What's killing us is not the number of patients we see but the daily soul-crushing grind of having to fight for every single patient to get the treatment they need within a health system that no longer seems to care. Dr. Alan Drummond, Perth, Ont. Is the U.S. still a decent country? Sept. 4 The answer to the headline's question is complicated, as the United States isn't always easy to define, even though many people, including some Americans, tend to paint the country with a broad brush. I've been to 46 of the 50 states thanks to my mother — she didn't like cottages, so for a month every August our family would camp all over North America instead. My experience leads me to believe most Americans are decent, high-minded people. Tragically, Trump does not fit into the same category, and neither do the majority of his followers. The more worrying question is whether the U.S. has permanently moved away from being decent or has done so only temporarily. American money carries the motto 'In God we trust,' but Americans themselves need to make their collective mantra 'In democracy we trust.' Douglas Cornish, OttawaError! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page. Opinion articles are based on the author's interpretations and judgments of facts, data and events. More details