September already. Four months left in 2021. Will they bring happier times? One thing for sure we’ll have a new federal government later this month. Prince George /Cariboo has five candidates to choose from, incumbent Todd Doherty, Conservative; Garth Frizzelle, Liberal, PG council member; Audrey McKinnon NDP, Communications Professional; Dr. Leigh Hunsinger-Chang, Green Party, Family Physician; and Jeremy Gustafson, Peoples Party of Canada.
I’m often pessimistic. That way I’m never disappointed when things go awry, pleasantly surprised when they don’t. Lately so many awful things keep happening that even optimists are getting depressed. Having a lot of issues isn’t new. How people react to them is.
Instead of having discussions and respect for other people’s opinions, the in-thing is to spew misinformation on the internet and abuse those who disagree with you.
I hope there won’t be any more disgusting events during the campaign like the protest that cancelled a Trudeau rally last week. How is harassing Mr. T, or any candidate helpful to anyone? This particular protest said more about the protesters than it did about the candidate.
Let me be clear. I believe that in a democratic society we all have the right to express our opinions and make our own choices, but with those rights comes the responsibility to accept any resulting consequences. For instance wearing a mask and getting vaccinated during the COVID-19 pandemic are personal choices, but if you choose not to, don’t expect to go wherever you want or do whatever you want if doing so infringes on someone else’s rights.
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Some businesses say they won’t honour the vaccine passport, partly because their staff shouldn’t have to do the policing. OK, let’s have two categories of businesses. Anti-vaxxers can go to the ones that don’t follow the rules, pro-vaxxers to the ones that do.
Diana French is a freelance columnist for the Tribune. She is a former Tribune editor, retired teacher, historian and book author.
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