Being the best little shrub

With regards to “In Pursuit of Greater Education” it would seem that both parties are correct. Given the premise that all men are not created equal, I believe the words of an old song say it best: “If you can’t be a pine on the top of the hill, be a shrub in the valley but be the best little shrub on the side of the hill. Be a bush if you can’t be a tree.”

Just remember that a tree bears a great variety of fruit and never underestimate the power of a bush; the closing lines of the same song are paramount: “We can’t all be captains, there’s got to be a crew, there’s something for all of us here.” Yes, in this sense, all men are created equal.

That fire in the belly needs stoking, not quenching and if Brentwood is the stoker, so be it! Congratulations Desmond Kong on all of your accomplishments thus far. Enjoy your studies abroad!

Harold and Donna Schultz

Re: Pakistan Editorial

This week’s Guardian details the impacts of the Pakistan flooding disaster:

•UN warns 3.5 million children are at risk from deadly waterborne diseases

•20 million people are affected by the disaster and a cholera scare

•UN’s Secretary General Banki Moon stated he had never seen such devastation and that the world must stand with Pakistan – but not the Fitzhugh apparently.

How many dead, starving, displaced, cholera-struck refugees have to happen before the editor approves help?  This financing help seems to be one of the few good things the federal government has done. In Pakistan, due to governmental procrastinating Cyclone Bhola caused approximately 500,000 deaths in 1970. Corruption is rampant, appointments are too often “inherited” and assassinations and military takeover are always a threat. Their present PM has had time in gaol for corruption.

Your editorial appears somewhat smug, coming from the comfort of Jasper.

Serving in the Indian Army in the 1940s, I was stationed in three hard-hit areas, the NWFP, Nowshera and the Sindh Desert. The locals are mostly sturdy farming types, too many living on less than $2 a day.  They are suffering an unbelievable disaster, one that we in Canada cannot even imagine. They deserve all the help we can give.

To avoid the corruption we can subscribe to agencies operating in Pakistan such as the UN, or to ENGOs like UNICEF and MSF.

Basil Seaton

Long-gun portion of the national gun registry

The Government of Alberta has long supported the abolishment of the long gun portion of the national firearms registry.

Our priority as a government is to support police efforts to make our communities safer, and we believe this registry has not contributed to this goal in a meaningful way.

As such, we view the long-gun registry as an ineffective use of taxpayers’ dollars; dollars that could be better used to combat serious and violent crime. Registering long guns does not prevent their use in the commission of crimes.

Under the leadership of our Premier, the Alberta government supports a comprehensive approach to the prevention, awareness and enforcement of crime through innovation and cooperative solutions, which includes actions to strengthen legislation to better handle firearms offenses. We feel that this is the best way to make our communities safer and make a real impact on reducing serious and violent crime.

Hon. Alison Redford, Minister of Justice 
Hon. Frank Oberle, Solicitor General