Letters to The Sun, Jan. 4, 2020: Taxi situation leaves people with few viable options
Credit to Author: Stephen Snelgrove| Date: Sat, 04 Jan 2020 02:00:48 +0000
Dec. 31 marked the 30th anniversary for myself and my 73-year-old husband. We celebrated with dinner and dancing with friends at the Legion in old Port Moody.
Minutes after the midnight celebrations concluded, I proceeded to order a taxi to take us home and was told the wait was already at least 90 minutes. What? Really? We definitely didn’t want to revel any longer, nor wait outside until almost 2 a.m. for the cab. So the two of us — all dressed up and me in heels — were faced with no other choice but to walk home. The three-kilometre trek to our home in Coquitlam, mostly uphill, took us just about an hour.
It’s no wonder people drink and drive. If we’d have had our car there, after only having had a few drinks, we may have explored the idea of taking a chance and driven ourselves home.
ICBC, the taxi union and our provincial government should take full responsibility for every death and injury incurred from drinking-and-driving incidents as they leave us with no viable alternatives.
As for the two of us, from now on we will take our undervalued Canadian dollars and go to Seattle to celebrate, where they know how to do it up right and we can take a safe, inexpensive Uber ride back to our hotel.
Jacquie Garrison, Coquitlam
I had the pleasure of attending the production of It’s a Wonderful Life at the Anvil Centre on Dec. 27. I enjoyed it immensely and judging by the applause so did the audience.
Unfortunately, Jerry Wasserman didn’t seem to have seen the same production. I saw accomplished singers, dancers and actors who were enthusiastic and talented. When I read Wasserman’s review I was disappointed. The tenor of the review was negative.
I believe that part of the job of a critic is to point out shortcomings in a performance but also look for strengths and ways for improvement. When the overall tone of an article is at odds with the majority of the people in the audience, the critic has done the community a disservice. Especially to a small production company that is dedicated to providing excellent theatre while working ethically and professionally with the actors and young artists.
I’d like to see future reviews that don’t focus mainly on the negative but have ideas for a better production while supporting talented and enthusiastic actors.
Veda Hotel, Delta
It was encouraging to read in The Vancouver Sun on Dec. 28 that the David Suzuki Foundation is now calling for dialogue and discussion on the subject of climate change, although this is clearly a strategy to win over skeptics.
The climate change narrative is being spearheaded by the UN constituted IPCC. The UN in general and the IPCC in particular provide plenty of reasons for skepticism.
It would be so refreshing to read some genuine investigative journalism, as opposed to tagging every weather event with the hackneyed climate change label and to balance the plethora of statements in the press that begin with “experts agree” or “there is scientific consensus.” Who are these experts and scientists and when did they become infallible?
Is the IPCC a purely scientific body, or is it overseen and directed by a political layer of UN bureaucrats who influence the content of the final report. Are many of the IPCC scientists appointed in the interests of promoting “geographic diversity” rather than possessing the appropriate credentials? Finally, why is it verboten to even ask these questions?
Peter Binley, Surrey
RE: Bad haircut no reason for 911: E-Comm releases worst calls of 2019
In addition to the serious impact nuisance calls have on 911 centres, I would be remiss if I didn’t inform Sun readers that if someone dials 911 in error or changes their mind, they shouldn’t hang up.
While that’s often our natural reaction to accidentally dialing anyone, it’s important to note that once a call connects to 911, which only takes seconds, that call is locked into the 911 system for safety reasons. When there’s no caller on the line, our operators must call back to ensure that the caller is safe, further tying up emergency lines. In some circumstances, this could also result in the dispatch of police.
So if you call us — even in error — always stay on the line and let the 911 call-taker know that you’re OK. We treat every 911 call as an emergency until we can confirm that it isn’t.
Jody Robertson, executive director of communications, E-Comm 911
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