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Letter: A time to pause and rethink who we are as Canadians

We have lost our focus on who we are, and our basic needs as a society
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A time to pause and rethink who we are as Canadians

I believe when people who have lost their baggage going on holiday receive equal billing on the evening news with people who are homeless and our healthcare system has reached a point where people do not have access to a doctor, and our hospitals have to close emergency wards we have a serious problem as a nation.

What have we done to have sunk to this level?

We have lost our focus on who we are, and our basic needs as a society, not just for ourselves, but for those around us. We have forgotten how to make decisions and requirements that benefit the greater good for everyone, not just ourselves.

As a species we are tribal, we always have been and we still are, nationally and globally. Some are more blatant than others, i.e. Russia and Ukraine, but it is still so in our society, the haves and the have nots.

All Canadians should have a right to three basic items;

1. A roof over our heads, with a door that locks;

2. Access to education;

3. Ready access to health care.

These should not be luxuries, or options, they should be the standards we set for ourselves and for all Canadians.

With dignity, health and education we can grow, individually, and as a nation.

Maya Angelou stated it beautifully, “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”

Canadians, we know better and now is the time to do better.

Roy Summerhayes

Chemainus