‘A slap in the face’
Dear Editor:
RE: PC candidate Joseph Racinsky not planning to attend debates, Feb. 13.
According to the report in the Advertiser, Joseph Racinsky, the PC candidate in Wellington Halton-Hills has decided that he will pass on any of the debates/all candidates meetings that are being organized by various groups here in the riding.
Here’s a simple question for Racinsky: are you afraid to speak publicly? Or is the party afraid for you to speak publicly?
No nomination process. No debates. Should you be elected, are you planning on speaking at Queen’s Park?
Your decision to skip the debates is a disservice to our democratic process and a slap in the face of the people you say you wish to represent.
Mike Vasil,
Fergus
‘Very unhappy’
Dear Editor:
RE: PC candidate Joseph Racinsky not planning to attend debates, Feb. 13.
I am very unhappy about the Wellington-Halton Hills Conservative candidate refusing to appear at any of the all candidates meetings. This election is a very short time line and all candidates need to be attending these debates as they are televised or on the internet and it is not only helpful but actually more imperative for our voters here to make an informed decision on voting.
We know nothing about this new fellow and oddly the PC Party wants us to know nothing, which to me is a scary thought!
This is a short campaign. And actually not a needed campaign at this time, as Doug Ford already does have a majority government … there was no gain in this campaign to the province of Ontario or to Canada.
At this point in history, we need to put Canada first – all of us!
It is not possible for all candidates to get to all doors in this large area, so the debates are crucial in making a wise choice.
Please get out and vote, but be wise, vote carefully – vote for someone who is willing to debate and make their viewpoint known before the election.
Don’t accept someone who is not willing to share their views in an open debate!
Brenda Chamberlain,
Elora
‘Afraid to show up’
Dear Editor:
RE: PC candidate Joseph Racinsky not planning to attend debates, Feb. 13.
The Ontario PC Party put Racinsky in place because they know this is a “safe” riding.
So why is Racinsky so afraid to show up for any debates or all-candidate events? This is a cynical choice to ensure that he can retire at age 55 with a pension unavailable to most people. Just what we need: a coward representing the interests of our riding.
If you want the job you have to show up to an interview.
Michael Madden,
Elora
Under Ford’s thumb?
Dear Editor:
RE: PC candidate Joseph Racinsky not planning to attend debates, Feb. 13.
It seems Joseph Racinsky doesn’t want to participate in any all-candidates meetings. I think the people in our riding, whom he hopes to represent, are concerned with the declining availability of public health care. But, how would he know unless he meets with us?
It doesn’t bode well for the constituents of Wellington–Halton Hills to be heard, should Racinsky be elected, nor that he would act on our concerns, as he appears to be under the thumb of Doug Ford.
Besides health care, there are many other concerns for which we would like to hear his position. Since Racinsky is more concerned with obeying Doug Ford’s edict (thou shalt not attend all-candidates meetings) than meeting with us in a public forum, he will not get my vote.
Ron Moore,
Hillsburgh
‘Lack of integrity’
Dear Editor:
RE: PC candidate Joseph Racinsky not planning to attend debates, Feb. 13.
Wellington-Halton Hills PC candidate Joseph Racinsky’s refusal to participate in local debates reflects an unfortunate and deeply cynical approach to subverting democracy.
This compounds the decision to call an unnecessary election at the worst possible time. Local PC canvassers who came to my door explained that they have no choice – they have been told by Queen’s Park that they can’t participate in debates. Which is a really great reason not to support a party that operates in this high-handed fashion. Our daughter in Brantford reports that they have the same problem with their local candidate.
And let’s be honest. Racinsky is putting his name forward and going along with all this just the same. That’s a deliberate choice he is making and illustrates the lack of integrity he brings to this contest.
This clearly-young man, who has been anointed by the PC brain trust in Toronto, is hoping that he will be able to become the successor to Ted Arnott, and hoping to hold that office for the rest of his career in return for a remarkably-generous pension. Clearly, that’s the bargain he’s decided to strike.
Please vote for someone else next Thursday.
Paul Taylor,
Elora
‘Contempt for voters’
Dear Editor:
RE: PC candidate Joseph Racinsky not planning to attend debates, Feb. 13.
For five years now, I have seen our country, along with its institutions, devolve from that of being nominally tolerant, to highly intolerant of thoughts, ideas and writings that are contrary to the “accepted” narrative.
This intolerance is comparable to sealing off a pressure cooker, and adding unlimited heat to it. We all know it is going to blow, we just don’t know when or where.
Evidence of the intolerance I alluded to is the attitude of Wellington-Halton Hills PC candidate Joseph Racinsky. Opting out of all candidate debates is not only a slap in the face of our democracy, but it shows contempt for his fellow candidates and the office to which he aspires.
Unfortunately, this obvious contempt for voters, fellow candidates, and our democracy is not unique. Last spring the Durham riding elected Jamil Jivani as a Conservative MP. Jivani demonstrated the same contempt by refusing to participate in any debates during that by-election.
As Canadians, outrage is the one and only viable response to such contemptible behaviour. Otherwise, the unthinkable 51st state might become a very real possibility.
On the 27th of February, if you live in the Wellington-Halton Hills riding and you think our democracy, and ultimately our country is worth protecting, please help take some pressure off the “pressure cooker” and consider what I just said before casting your ballot.
Wayne Baker,
Wellington North
‘Limited’ candidate
Dear Editor:
RE: PC candidate Joseph Racinsky not planning to attend debates, Feb. 13.
Last Saturday I saw three men putting up a sign for Joseph Racinsky, Ontario PC candidate for Wellington-Halton Hills.
When I asked why Racinsky would not publicly debate other candidates, none of the volunteers would answer. I also explained that lifelong Conservative voters are very upset. Volunteer Tim did eventually ask me why I was not friendlier! Clearly my friendliness was the only thing that he was allowed to talk about.
Racinsky was not chosen by local members of the Ontario PC party. He was given that privilege.
Racinsky will not publicly debate other candidates and help us get to know him. The Ontario PC Party thinks 22-year-old Racinsky, with limited skills, limited experience and limited education, should represent us. Two years ago, less than one in five people in Ward 2 of Halton Hills chose him at age 20, for his part-time councilor job.
Please, Ontario PC Party, why are you not respecting us?
We had the best provincial representative and now you are giving us no choice, a candidate who will not debate in public and your volunteers won’t answer simple questions.
Barb Zink,
Ariss
‘A waste of time’
Dear Editor:
RE: PC candidate Joseph Racinsky not planning to attend debates, Feb. 13.
After reading all of the negative comments about Joseph Racinsky, I just have to say a few words. Having worked closely on elections for 28 years, I have concluded that all-candidates meetings are, indeed, a waste of time.
Never have I seen an objective question raised without an ulterior motive. Almost all questions are posed to try to embarrass one or more candidates.
To Racinsk I say, “If your job is to meet people, go do it.”
To those who claim they didn’t have a chance to nominate him, I ask, “What other candidate did you nominate?” The way to nominate a candidate is to join a riding executive and help with the process.
Bill Baxter,
Fergus
*Editor’s note: Our reporters have attended dozens of all-candidates meetings and debates over several decades and, in general, the questions raised at these events are fair and objective.
‘Let people have fun’
Dear Editor:
Re: Township shuts down Elora tobogganing hill over safety concerns, Feb. 13.
All I can say is ridiculous – absolutely ridiculous. Does Centre Wellington not have anything better to do than ban a long-held winter traditional activity because they see it as unsafe and is “not an approved activity on township property?”
I didn’t know there was an approved activities list for Centre Wellington parks. This is a joke in itself.
I think the township and council have forgotten what it’s like to have fun tobogganing down a hill – flying down a hill, getting a face full of snow, hitting a few bumps along the way, and laughing all the way down.
Maybe you should come out from behind your desk and enjoy a bit of tobogganing, ice skating, skiing or snowshoeing, or is that banned, too? Let people have their fun. If people thought it unsafe, they wouldn’t take their children to enjoy this activity.
A suggestion: Do what the Toronto council has done and reverse the ban on all tobogganing hills. We have the perfect winter to enjoy tobogganing and other outdoor activities, or are they banned, too? Quit being a Scrooge and remove the ban.
Nancy Roszell,
Elora
‘Ridiculous’ decision
Dear Editor:
Re: Township shuts down Elora tobogganing hill over safety concerns, Feb. 13.
On behalf of myself and many other Centre Wellington residents, let me express disgust toward our mayor and council for banning sledding in local parks.
If there is a concern, postings should simply state “use at own risk.” Something as ridiculous as taking away an affordable outdoor activity for families and children is an excellent way to ensure you are not re-elected.
Rob Zelch,
Fergus
Ford ‘a disgrace’
Dear Editor:
An open letter to Elections Ontario.
It is completely unacceptable that there is only one early voting station open that is about an hour away from Elora, on a good day. OPP are recommending people stay off the road. To have the only early voting station be in Georgetown is unrealistic, especially with the weather we have had.
No one could spring for one additional early voting station closer to your second most populated area in Halton Hills?
Your website said to stay tuned for early voting stations after Feb. 14. So we waited, only to find out that your earliest open station is Feb. 20, two days after we leave for holiday and six days before voting day. Fedexing votes to Mexico which is apparently where many folios have been shipped leaving it to Canadians to ‘snail mail’ or pay $50 to get their vote back on time?
There is no proxy voting and there are no online options.
Is it 2025? Because it feels like early 1900s to try to vote in Ontario.
This whole process, with “Ford Nation” mailing out bribery cheques, misappropriating Greenbelt land, injecting billions for Highway 413 to make it faster a commute by two minutes, wasting over $620 million to get alcohol in stores, recommending that PC candidate Joseph Racinsky not participate in any public debates and making it difficult to vote hopefully furthers the people in Ontario to vote Ford right out of office.
He is a disgrace.
Staci Barron,
Elora
‘Shake everything up’
Dear Editor:
It is 1972 on the day that the Progressive Conservatives announced the beginning of OHIP. I am walking up University Avenue in Toronto, with a group of fellow employees and they were discussing the OHIP announcement. I turned to the group and said we are “screwed;” OHIP and our health care system in Ontario will be going downhill. And guess what – it has. I am writing this letter to remind Ontarians of what has happened over the years.
Because of my current health issues, OHIP will not pay for what I need instead of a knee replacement. I do not medically qualify for a knee replacement because of my medical problem (I would not recover from the replacement as I have degenerative muscle disease). The procedure I need is not pharmaceutically orientated, so I would have to pay for the procedure.
Recently I was in a hospital for an X-ray and while waiting I had a conversation with an elderly lady sitting next to me, who was waiting for her husband, who was having an X-ray. During our conversation we talked about how OHIP had gone downhill and we were suffering. She worked in a hospital and was the manager in the administration office. She told me that each time the Progressive Conservatives where elected, they took money away from their budgets and care for patients. This confirmed what I had thought had taken place for years.
It is time for a change; I think we all should vote for the Green Party and shake everything up. I’m sure they would get our healthcare system going in a positive direction for the people in Ontario.
David Emery,
Arthur
‘Bribe’ ideas
Dear Editor:
A perfect use for the $200 bribe?
After receiving my $200 from Doug Ford and his party I am reminded of an old joke. “If you lone a friend $20 and never see him again, it was money well spent.”
I think I’ll lone Doug Ford $200 and Pierre Poilievre $200. It would be money well spent.
Thomas Althouse,
Fergus
‘Vanity projects’
Dear Editor:
Citizens of Ontario soon head to the polls to elect a provincial government. Perhaps as never before, it is important that those eligible to vote research the options available to them and vote.
Many will experience information overload these days from the sheer number of issues requiring our attention and decision: the threat of U.S. tariffs, the federal Liberal leadership contest, worrisome international developments such as the need for resolution of the war in Ukraine, and front and centre for us all is the stubbornly high cost of living.
The incumbent premier campaigns in an election that few wanted, and directs virtually no attention to the hugely important issues before us. He continues to showboat on the issue of tariffs to little positive effect; in any case that matter is a federal one to resolve with the partnership support of the provinces and territories.
Left twisting in the wind on Ford’s watch has been the sorry state of Ontario’s health care, education, housing and support for the most vulnerable in society. Ontario’s economy performed better three years ago than it does now, including increases in unemployment.
The Ford government has had no mandate to privatize health care services, but pushes forward in doing so in the face of economists demonstrating that the cost to deliver health care through private for-profit providers is much more expensive than through a public system.
Why do we tolerate this? Without a significant change in direction and priorities from where Ontario has been heading, our situation will continue to deteriorate. We need a plan, people! Ontario needs provincial leadership that is responsible, transparent, accountable and free from the candy-floss vanity projects Ford has unleashed on us. Ontario Place redevelopment, beer in corner stores, closure of the Ontario Science Centre, $200 cheques to eligible Ontarians and more have cost Ontarians billions and will mortgage us for generations.
The decision of local PC candidate Joseph Racinsky and others not to attend local debates and share and defend a PC platform of priorities will contribute to the likelihood that Ontarians can expect more of the same.
Our taxes deserve better value for money than what we have been getting under the Ford government leadership. Please vote.
Vernon Lediett,
Guelph/Eramosa
‘Creeping kleptocracy’
Dear Editor:
According to Wikipedia, kleptocracy, also referred to as thievocracy, is a government whose corrupt leaders use political power to expropriate the wealth of the people and land they govern, typically by embezzling or misappropriating government funds at the expense of the wider population.
One feature of political-based socio-economic thievery is that there is often no public announcement explaining or apologizing for misappropriations and no legal charges or punishment levied against the offenders.
Unfortunately, this sounds very much like some people in high political positions that we know. The definition sounds very much like behaviour wielded by Trump and our very own Doug Ford.
They say this sort of shocking thing mainly only happens in third world countries, but now they are calling it: “creeping kleptocracy” and it is creeping in here.
Christy Doraty,
Fergus
‘Speed learning’
Dear Editor:
Recently reminded a friend in Florida of the closeness in time of our provincial election; his response was why do we even need an election and who would he vote for?
Ted Arnott has been our Wellington-Halton Hills MPP for decades and it seems, for shortness of time, he has been replaced by a candidate we in the north part of the riding do not recognize by name. The same can be said for the Liberal and NDP candidate, thus 60% of our voting choices unknown.
Ted was responsible, committed and accessible. Now, with Doug Ford focused on his big-ticket items such as the 413 highway, massive tunnel below the 400 highway, relocating the Ontario Science Centre, making beer and wine sales accessible at a $1-billion cost, there seems little thrust on decent accessible health care and housing for many. Education at the post secondary level is a shamble, with many college programs being removed.
Just two weeks before the election, signs in Fergus indicate only two parties involved: Green and New Blue, both of whom have recognizable names. I believe the PCs need a conscience to proceed and right now that conscience and concern for the individual might be better found in the folks who stand with a “colour.”
The three main ones have had their turn – we need MPP’s who stand up for the voters who placed them there, not the party elite who tell them what stand to take.
Voting is still important. Our money is being spent and the next provincial election may be beyond the Trump presidency.
Speed learning may be required for this Feb. 27 vote. Hopefully the parties who inform us best may be rewarded.
Dave Jones,
Fergus
‘Babesiosis’ details
Dear Editor:
RE: Public health keeping eye on five reportable diseases on the rise, Feb. 13.
Lilliana Marinko, manager of infectious diseases with Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health, mentioned Lyme disease in her reportable disease report, but completely overlooked the fact that human babesiosis caused by Babesia odocoilei is a reportable disease.
The latter disease is caused by a red blood cell parasite that is carried by the blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis. Our tick research shows that this zoonotic parasite is just as common as the Lyme disease bacteria in blacklegged ticks.
Our research team have found Babesia odocoilei in Centre Wellington, and in all provinces across Canada. This one-celled parasite is often a coinfection with the Lyme disease bacterium in Ixodes scapularis ticks.
One recent study revealed that the prevalence of the Lyme disease bacterium and Babesia odocoilei in Ixodes scapularis adults was 40% and 36%, respectively. Anyone bitten by a blacklegged tick should be tested for both these zoonotic pathogens.
Common symptoms of human babesiosis may include any combination of the following: perpetual fatigue, cognitive impairment, brain fog, headaches, muscle or joint aches, numbness in finger (especially at night), night sweats, unrelenting inflammation, anxiety and depression.
In the advance stage, patients may have symptoms that mimic dementia, stroke, and Alzheimer’s disease. Treatment for Lyme disease and human babesiosis caused by Babesia odocoilei are totally different.
Migratory songbirds are the key factor in spreading juvenile Ixodes scapularis and tick-borne zoonotic diseases. White-tailed deer are the common reservoir of Babesia odocoilei in this area.
Marinko has sidestepped human babesiosis caused by Babesia odocoilei, which is now medically recognized as a confirmed zoonosis.
John Scott,
Fergus
‘Age-old tropes’
Dear Editor:
Having “almost” made up my mind not to vote in the upcoming provincial election, I paused to ask myself, “What would entice me to vote by, or on, Feb. 27? Health care seems to be a huge topic for all the parties involved, but that is nothing new. Another election fought on health care. No thank you!
One issue that has been around a long time and doesn’t get the attention it deserves is how trade barriers between the various provinces cost just about as much as the 25% tariff the U.S. is threatening to put on Canada.
Why are we so upset about the potential harm they might do, while at the same time we are willing to live with the billions of dollars it costs all of us each year by our own elected government? It makes no sense to me and the effect felt has resulted in low levels of productivity, investment and standard of living.
It is time to talk about solutions and how internal trade barriers hinder our wealth and have impacted our ability to be a richer, more prosperous country. Doing so would protect the health care we all want, our construction workers and truck drivers as well as a myriad of other services. We could be prosperous instead of drowning in debt, and having to bribe, or subsidize, other industries to locate here.
Until we get serious, tell the truth, get everyone on board through education and a media who will cover this topic, the age-old tropes no longer work for me.
Janet Calderwood,
Rockwood
Important meeting
Dear Editor:
RE: ‘Lipstick on a pig,’ Feb. 13.
I am writing on behalf of The Donkey Sanctuary of Canada (DSC), the animal rescue/animal welfare education charity, established in 1992 and located in Puslinch Township.
Along with the care that we provide to animals in need, the 200-acre DSC property is a working farm, serving as a model for sustainable agriculture and positive environmental stewardship.
Every year on our Open Days, thousands of people visit the farm to experience firsthand the many benefits of rural life and the great outdoors. Despite ongoing development pressure, we are grateful that Puslinch Township has succeeded in its goal to remain a largely rural community. This has allowed an organization like the DSC to thrive and establish an ideal home for its operations.
At the same time, we understand that new employment opportunities should be encouraged in the township and thus we support the effort to identify locations for additional industrial (employment) lands through the study, Puslinch by Design.
The study has committed to protecting farmlands, wetlands, and other environmentally sensitive areas in the township by placing newly designated industrial zones away from rural residential pockets and instead to locate them near existing industrial lands where farmland and nature have already been compromised.
On Feb. 26 at 7pm at the Puslinch Community Centre in Aberfoyle, an Open House will be conducted by the consultants working on the study. This meeting will inform residents of the proposed land options for the new employment lands. Comments and suggestions regarding the findings of the study will impact the chosen lands. We have been assured that our contributions will be respected and included in the ongoing decision-making process.
We urge members of the Puslinch community to come out on Feb. 26 and provide your opinions. Together, we can do the right thing for our township and protect/preserve its priceless rural character.
Sandra Pady,
DSC Founder, Puslinch
‘Common sense’
Dear Editor:
RE: ‘Lipstick on a pig,’ Feb. 13.
Thank you to Jim and Donna Christie for this wake up call to all of us residing on rural properties here in the beautiful Township of Puslinch.
We are not saying no to industry. We want the jobs they provide for the benefit of ourselves, our families and others. Also, the tax revenue they bring to the township. But, as clearly stated, we already have great areas within the township to accommodate anyone wishing to set up here in Puslinch.
Farm land, however, is not the place. Nor is sensitive wetlands.
Township officials, we ask for your common-sense direction on any application which says otherwise.
Liz Hughes,
Puslinch
‘Foolishly self-serving’
Dear Editor:
Sitting in the emergency room for six hours provides ample time to reflect. Six years and eight months is a long time, Doug Ford – but apparently not long enough.
Not long enough to meaningfully tackle Ontario’s housing crisis, yet long enough to grant sweetheart deals to developers, attempt to open the Greenbelt for private gain, and backtrack only when caught. Instead of making housing more affordable, your government has prioritized profits for the few, leaving younger Ontarians struggling to pay rent or afford even a modest home.
Not long enough to properly fund health care and education, yet long enough to impose wage caps on frontline workers, gut essential services, and stand by as hospitals close ERs due to staff shortages and colleges and universities slash programs. Nurses have been overworked and underpaid, teachers have fought for fair wages, and postsecondary students have faced deteriorating classrooms with fewer resources – all while your government hands out tax breaks instead of adequately investing in the health and training of those who keep Ontario running.
Not long enough to fix Ontario’s crumbling public transit and gridlocked highways, but long enough to propose a ludicrous $100-billion tunnel under the 401 while spending millions to remove bike lanes.
This while the Financial Accountability Office reported in 2023 that your government was allocating $21 billion less than required to fund healthcare adequately over the past six-year period. Furthermore, the underutilized 407 could provide real relief—if only your government had the will and wits to negotiate its effective use.
Not long enough to expand services for the most vulnerable—those struggling with poverty, abuse, mental illness, and addiction—but long enough to cut programs, demonize the homeless, and pretend these issues will resolve themselves. Your government has done little to create meaningful pathways out of hardship, instead choosing to abandon those most in need.
Not long enough to safeguard Ontario’s environment, yet long enough to undermine conservation authorities, underfund provincial parks, attempt to carve up the Greenbelt and delay sustainable energy projects.
But worse still – six years was not long enough to dampen your allegiance to Trump. In 2018, you proudly declared your “unwavering” support for him. Just weeks ago, you doubled down, saying you were happy he won.
Even after his criminal convictions and years of protectionism, nativism and sexism, you remained willfully blind to the danger he represented. Now you accuse Trump of “shifting goalposts and constant chaos, putting our economy at risk”.
How gullible – or foolishly self-serving – must Ontario’s “Captain Canada” have been not to have seen through Trump?
Mr. Ford has prematurely called a cynically self-serving election with at least a $150-millio price tag to try and grab another mandate.
Six years and eight months has been a long time, he and his government shouldn’t be trusted with more.
Jonathan Schmidt,
Elora
Friends, allies
Dear Editor:
Now that tariffs are a reality, Canada must step up and see this as an opportunity to make us better and less dependent on U.S. imports (ie. – build the pipeline to the east).
I would also question the importance of being in the Commonwealth. Where is Britain and the rest of the commonwealth in this matter? Should we not be aligned in this matter? If we are to stand alone in this matter why are paying anything to the monarchy?
Now is the time to see who are friends and allies really are. Go Canada go!
Werner Raab,
Elora