Editor, The Times:
Oh, I expect I’ll have ruffled some people’s feathers after my last letter to the editor was printed. Yes, I did make a mistake as to the actual headline. But to me “going paperless” means the same as “save our trees.” Maybe I’m wrong but I don’t think so. I’m sure someone will try to correct me.
I also expect I’ve been called a few names but I doubt there weren’t any I haven’t been called before.
So where do we go from here? I’ll clearly state I’m not against progress. If it wasn’t for progress many of us wouldn’t be here today, myself included. So due to progress you have to put up with me.
I enjoy my modern conveniences – refrigerator (the last year I had to use an ice box in the home was 1962); our modern stoves (though I do admit I miss the old cook stove – they made better bread, among other things); I like the fact I don’t have to chop wood anymore. I love my microwave. I like my truck. Many of us used shank’s pony and put many miles on that way. I love my washer and dryer (at times when my children were little I didn’t even have the luxury of a scrub board, it was bare knuckles (many times they bled).
My first office job (head office of a major insurance co.) there was one computer in the building. This computer was as big as a room, in a climate controlled room and you only touched it with gloved hands. That was a long time ago, in the mid 1950s.
Yes, we’ve come a long ways, but why do we figure every person (human being) on the planet needs a computer or electronic handheld device? I don’t think so. Many people in this world, even in Canada and B.C. do not have enough food to eat, a place to call home, clothes to keep warm or clean water to drink.
Why, oh why is there a need for all these electronics in every home when people don’t have jobs or homes?
Another thought/question – what happens to the children who are not visual learners? Are they forgotten in this new world of electronics? We do not all learn the same way.
Oh yes, I did read a recent article that said, “Green buildings shun wood.” According to the U.S. and Canada Green Building Council materials must be “rapidly renewable,” defined as within 10 years, so I’m guessing our trees are not now considered a renewable source.
Maybe we need to stop and remember the tortoise and the hare. Slow and steady wins the race. Does everything now-a-days have to be fast and faster? Why can’t we just slow down, smell the flowers and appreciate some of what we already have?
Thanks for bearing with me once again.
Jean Gross
Clearwater, B.C.
