Inquisition not so bad
Tom Oleson's view on the Spanish Inquisition (The state of the church, July 20) is understandable, given centuries of historical misconception, misunderstanding and misinformation about it. Mark Williams says in his book, The Story of Spain, that, by the standards of the time, the Spanish Inquisition was not particularly unfair or brutal. Religious intolerance was rife in Europe, and witchcraft and other offences commonly punished by death. According to experts, the total number of persons executed for religious reasons was fewer in Spain than in contemporary England. English historian Hugh Trevor-Davies even states that the Inquisition was "the most fair legal system in Europe at the time." And, according to the British academic Henry Kamen, the Inquisition in the New World, in operation from the 1570s, "had little impact on the colonial world." It is key to note that its role was concerned only with heresy.Jesus Ångel Miguel Garcia
Director of The Spanish Institute
Winnipeg
Trust in police shaken
The more I read about the Taman inquiry, the more frustrated I am becoming with the police officers who are testifying. My understanding of proceedings like this may be limited, but I'm certain that any person testifying should be truthful. These "outstanding" members of the police force are hired and trained to serve and protect citizens, not to cover up life-altering mistakes.
It is truly a distressing situation when certain members of our society do not have to take responsibilty for their actions and face up to the consequences. If I or any of my friends were driving the vehicle that slammed into Crystal Taman's car that fateful February morning, I am certain that the result would have been some sort of jail time, criminal record, loss of driver's licence, etc. When I return to my primary classroom this fall, I will struggle with the idea of including police officers in the same realm as people in our community who we can trust and believe in.
SUSAN HANNAH
Stonewall
City needs fun places
With the recent plans to build a water park in Winnipeg, there have been many letters about how unaffordable it would be, and how the city's money could be better spent on other things. I find it ludicrous that anyone would complain about the price of admission, roughly $15 to $30. The first thing I thought of was the price for a day at the Red River Exhibition. Sure it's expensive -- if you want to go every week. Honestly, how often do you really need to go to a water park? This is a luxury, after all.
As for spending the money on the community clubs and pools already around the city -- that's really getting old. Every time the city wants to dedicate more than a couple million to a project, many people act as if its the only money we have to spend. It's the same old complaint every time: "Why should we spend all our money on a big water park when we can have small local pools and cops and homeless off the streets and money for schools and help the starving children in Africa?"
Schools, community clubs and cops are all great things that get a share of our money, but every city needs a few really fun places where we can go to even if we have to save up some cash.
TANNA POSTLETHWAITE
Winnipeg
Traffic nightmare
It was interesting to note Winnipeg city council's decision to hand $7 million to Canad Inns to build a water park at its Polo Park location. Once again, city council has been caught up in the distracted lure of development for development's sake without properly taking the time to consider the effect that development will have.
Retail expansion in the Polo Park area continues without the slightest consideration for how the area can handle this ongoing expansion. An appeal to city council to examine how to deal with the growing traffic problem several years ago was flatly refused because we were told the money was simply not available. Magically, it suddenly seems to be available now. But it's hard to understand how city council sets the priorities for how money should be spent and why there is often very little or no public consultation before those decisions are made.
The challenge of finding money to fix the Polo Park traffic nightmare will eventually have to become a priority when driving in the area, especially during holiday shopping season, only gets worse. The city tried to make a splash with this announcement, but instead is wading into a situation where it may quickly be in over its heads.
Michael R. Mager
President and CEO
CAA Manitoba
Poor students left out
In response to the July 20 article Parents failing to cash in on education funds, I would like to dispel certain myths about tax-free savings models as meaningful ways to address the rising costs of post-secondary education for students and their families in Manitoba.
Non-refundable education and tuition fee tax credits cost the federal government about $1.44 billion in foregone tax revenue between 2000 and 2006. If this same amount were applied as upfront grants, rather than tax credits after the fact, the need for students to borrow through the Canada Student Loans Program would have nearly been eliminated.
In the most recent report by the Canada Education Savings Grant Program, only 9.7 per cent of families from the lowest income quintile were able to contribute to such a plan. In other words, these programs are essentially tax breaks for the rich. The Canada Learning Bond hardly covers one year's tuition.
Most post-secondary education-related tax credits are claimed by those in the highest income brackets. These tax credits go to those who can already afford the high costs of college or university, not those who need financial assistance. Data from Statistics Canada show that low-income families have difficulty paying rent and putting food on the table and have no income left to set aside money for their children's education.
The best way to improve access to our universities and colleges, and significantly diminish after-graduation debt, is to reduce the upfront costs to education by reducing tuition fees and increasing upfront, needs-based grants. The last thing low-income Manitobans need is more tax credits they cannot use.
Jonny Sopotiuk
President
University of Manitoba Students' Union
PREVIOUS
