Action needed now to fight Omicron
Call me a Grinch if you must, but at least face up to the facts of our present predicament. Our politicians might wish that nothing will upset Christmas this year, but that does not make it so.
The Omicron variant is the most infective mutation so far, with R values between 5 and 8. With an infection doubling time of around 2.2 days, that means that 500 cases on a Monday translate into 4,000 cases by Sunday and 32,000 by the following Saturday.
Even if the hospitalization is 20 to 30 per cent, that has major implications on our health-care system — much more than with the original strain or the Delta variant.
In fact it seems likely that nearly everyone in British Columbia will catch the virus before the end of February.
What about vaccinations, you say? The chance of getting the Omicron variant and remaining asymptomatic may be about 70 per cent BUT only after a third (booster) dose. Little or no protection is provided against Omicron after three months of the second dose. A booster shot is essential now, not after a six-month wait.
The timing is unfortunate, but social gatherings over Christmas will accelerate the spread of this virus. We must limit our social contacts over Christmas to less than seven persons and maintain mask protocols with an N95 mask along with at least six-foot distancing from others.
Wake up, you politicians, and give us the booster doses now and make the rapid test available to everyone in pharmacies and liquor stores like the other provinces have done, and implement capacity limits immediately.
Waiting until the New Year and hoping will cost us lives.
Dr. David Turner FRCPC
Salt Spring Island
Some points to ponder from a 90-year-old
It may be a strange attitude, but this 90-year-old woman is glad she won’t see the outcome of what is now denominating the discourse in Canada today.
It seems trust in Canada has disappeared and been replaced with distrust in everything: Health-care professionals, politicians, science, the media, educators and anyone who makes a decision affecting our lives.
Even our hard-won democracy is attacked in the mistaken belief that almost anything would be better than what we have now. Beware! What I have learned in my long life is that this type of populist upheaval too often ends in a dictatorship.
Finally, I often wish I knew half as much about anything as these outspoken critics profess to know about everything. It must be comforting to them.
But it is disturbing to those of us who’ve survived the results of two world wars, two major depressions and repeated periods of economic insecurity.
We have learned is that there is no certainty in life, and that this too will pass.
Beverley Christensen
Victoria
Decisions need to change as knowledge grows
How disappointing to see Raeside’s cartoon in the Saturday edition. I usually look forward to his work, as he so often nails it with his humour and social messaging.
However, this cartoon was not accurate at all.
Dr. Bonnie Henry and her colleagues, both within and outside of government, are following the science. Scientific knowledge is not a linear acquisition of facts.
Decisions and pronouncements are made with the most accurate information known at that time. As the pool of scientific facts and knowledge grows, decisions may need to change to reflect this.
Leslie Rogers-Warnock
Victoria
Don’t minimize efforts of our top doctor
I’m appalled at Adrian Raeside’s Saturday cartoon mocking government’s COVID response.
B.C. has had one of the most effective pandemic responses of any jurisdiction in the world, saving hundreds, if not thousands, of lives.
That is due to the incredible leadership of Dr. Bonnie Henry, and the decision of government to follow her directions — based on science — instead of letting politics run the show.
One has only to look at our neighbours next door to see what happens when politicians think they know better than experts.
To suggest B.C.’s response has been misguided and futile not only minimizes the efforts of Henry, health-care professionals and all of us who have placed our trust in them, but gives the anti-vaxxer idiots fodder for their ridiculous and dangerous claims.
Joanne McGachie
Saanich
Two towers planned for a wonderful street
Langford has approved towers up to 24 storeys, and four condominium buildings are to be built in neighbourhoods of aging single-family homes.
Scafe Road is one of the streets affected; two towers will be built on this street. I have been living in an “aging single-family home” on Scafe Road since 1973.
The majority of homes, on Scafe Road, and the land on which they stand, are well-maintained. Yes, there are a few that could use some TLC, some of which are owned by a developer.
My neighbourhood is quiet, my neighbours are friendly and caring. I live within walking distance of bus stops, a dentist, a doctor, pharmacies, restaurants, coffee shops and shopping.
This area is home to a lot of large beautiful trees. In season, I can go into my back yard and pick peaches, three different kinds of apples, raspberries and blackberries.
Why would I want to live anywhere else?
Eleanor Cyr
Langford
No public need? Evidence suggests otherwise
“After having dilated pupils after an eye exam, I waited two hours in the cold for a taxi on a Friday evening,” an 82-year-old wrote in the letters column on Dec. 14.
Meanwhile, the Passenger Transportation Board “is not convinced that there exists a public need” for Uber and other ride-sharing services. See “Uber’s request to operate ride-hailing in Victoria turned down,” Dec. 17.
Clearly the board members did not talk with the letter-writer.
Bob McIntosh
Victoria
Communal loss coming as Old Town is torn down
There has been much ado recently about the soon-to-be-perpetrated vandalism of Old Town at the Royal B.C. Museum.
The extraordinary outpouring of support for the magnificent exhibit is hardly surprising. Its creation, like that of all works of art, must have been a labour of love. And as a result it is reciprocated by a public encompassing all ages.
One might think that such expressions of support for this cultural treasure would be cherished, not pooh-poohed by the institution. The current directors do so at their peril.
The destruction of Old Town is likely to leave in its wake not only feelings of communal loss, but of institutional betrayal and lingering bitterness that will take a very long time to dissipate.
Tom Masters
Chemainus
Long-term plan needed for school crossing guards
The saga surrounding funding for the Greater Victoria Crossing Guard Association has been going on in our region for far too long.
Why should a well-meaning non-profit providing an essential and needed service for our children be forced to go cap in hand to different councils looking for funding every year?
Why should local municipal governments, which are facing monumental budget challenges, be the primary source of funding for a service that is arguably not within their mandate?
Especially when those same municipal governments must provide all the funding to improve safety around our schools.
And it is worth nothing that these schools, while vital parts of our communities, do not contribute financially at all to the said communities.
Why does the Greater Victoria School Board consistently refuse to involve themselves in any discussions of solutions? Surely if there is one body that should be working towards permanent and equitable solutions, it is the very body that is responsible for the schools themselves.
Twenty years ago there were a variety of funding models for the crossing guards, including corporate sponsors and PACs at the schools. Over time most of the responsibility has transferred to the municipalities.
The school district in Abbotsford was forced to take over the crossing guard program in 2018 when the non-profit operator decided not to continue with the service. Delta has a collaborative arrangement that sees the municipality pay for the crossing guards in return for enhanced use of school facilities.
The time has come in Greater Victoria for all parties to come together and develop a long-term strategy for funding this worthy service. And that should be done before the Greater Victoria Crossing Guard Association has to apply for more “emergency funding” just to continue their good work.
View Royal has consistently raised the concern that the current model is unsustainable, and that solutions must be found before the non-profit group simply folds its tent and moves on.
David Screech
Mayor of View Royal
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