Lack of Consideration and Respect

Certain aspects of human behaviour have always mystified me, and that mystification increased while cross-country skiing on the South Star cross-country ski trails last Tuesday; March 5, 2019.

To put this in the proper context I will begin my narrative by saying that, it was a beautiful clear and crisp day and I was looking forward to a long run up the Easy Street route and then traversing over to the Moose Creek ski trail and back to the parking area.

However, my eagerness soon evaporated when I encountered significant stretches of the ski tracks on the trail severely impacted by horse activity and I quickly found a route that was not disturbed and returned to the parking lot via a much shorter route.

Back at the parking lot I spoke to another skier, that had just returned to his vehicle, and asked him if he had found the skiing difficult because of the horse use on the trails. He confirmed that it had been tough, and he also informed me that he had encountered the riders and had asked them why they were riding over the tracks on the ski route. Apparently, he was told that they (the riders) felt that they should be able ride wherever they wanted because this area was all public land.

From my perspective, this sense of entitlement, regardless of whom it impacts, is disrespectful and inconsiderate particularly when all the other users, such as people snow shoeing, cross-country skiers, dog walkers and snowmobilers, are very conscientious with respect to considering the type of use that is compatible with the maintenance of a viable network of cross-country ski trails.

So, as a horse owner and rider myself, I can’t fathom why any rider would want to damage a trail system, put together by a lot of volunteer time and labour, and disrupt a quality recreational skiing experience when there is so much public land, adjacent to the South Star cross-country ski trail network, that could be used for horseback riding.

Although I am concerned about the impairment to the ski trail system I am equally concerned about the negative public image and damage to the reputation of reputable and conscientious horseback riders in our community that this type of behaviour could generate.

Robert Neil/Local resident, cross-country skier and horseback rider

Bargain Basement

Are you as embarrassed and ashamed of our federal government as I am?

You are probably thinking I’m referring to the SNC Lavalin affair, but I’m not. That is a very serious event, but is a story for another day.

What I’m referring to is our shameful purchase of used, 30-plus year old fighter jets from Australia.

This is exactly what third world countries do. They purchase old, obsolete military equipment from modern, developed countries as they have no other option, and now our country has joined that group.

I am so embarrassed and upset by this, it’s difficult to talk about it. Every Canadian should also feel the same way, but I’m afraid that most of my countrymen, especially the social media bunch, just don’t care.

The sad part is how demoralizing this type of thing is to our Armed Forces members.

Neil Matheson/Cranbrook

Moral Authority Or Not

Has the Prime Minister lost the moral authority to govern?

I was stunned by the information that Jody Wilson-Raybould provided the Justice Committee on February 27. The facts are clear, Wilson-Raybould had detailed documentation for each one of the ten instances last fall in which she or her staff were bullied by the Prime Minister’s office to intervene in the SNC-Lavalin’s court case.

The integrity of the Canadian legal system and the independence of the Attorney General were sadly put at risk by the Liberal Government who was pressuring Mrs. Wilson- Raybould to interfere with legal process for the sake of securing Liberal votes in Quebec.

The reference to a potential loss of 9,000 jobs should SNC-Lavalin be convicted of thbribery allegations, a message the Prime Minister keeps referring to, is a fraction of the job losses in the oil and gas sector that Liberals continue to block. I have not heard Justin Trudeau or his cabinet worry about our 100,000 unemployed oil and gas workers and their families in Canada!

Trudeau said he is defending Canadian Jobs, so what happened to our oil and gas workers? Are we not all Canadians? His loyalty to Canada and his total disregard for rule of law through political interference is clear! It is time for this self-serving Prime Minister to resign.

Rob Morrison/Kootenay-Columbia Conservative Candidate