Calgary Sun Letters to the Editor for Tuesday, August 19, 2025

Article content

Push over

It looks like Prime Minister Mark Carney won’t even stand up to Air Canada flight attendants in negotiations. They are illegally striking, blocking the shipping of essential goods in this crisis economy and stranding Canadians all over the globe. He also won’t stand up to Donald Trump.  If the Prime Minister next takes on Kindergarten kids in negotiations, my money is on the Kindergarten kids to win!

Article content

Recommended Videos

Article content

Article content

Chris Robertson

(Have you ever tried negotiating with a five-year-old? We should send them in! If they don’t win, no one wins.)

Enabling the bad guys

The late Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson must be rolling over in his grave over current Prime Minister Mark Carney declaring a Palestinian state. In 1947, Pearson, then a leading Canadian diplomat at the U.N. was instrumental in securing a Jewish state, and also securing self-government for that state. Carney, Anand the foreign minister and Melanie Joly before her have pushed for a Palestinian state which only enables Hamas. Recognizing this state will cause irreparable damage to any peace agreement.

Bruce Haynes

(Any solution that brings peace to the region is a good one. We will see how this pans out.)

Article content

Article content

Diplomacy first

It’s difficult to know how to interpret the headline “Trump and Putin come close but don’t strike a deal”. How close is a major question. As far as we know Putin has not yet given up any of his territorial claims on Ukraine including over territory not yet occupied by Russian troops. 

It would be good if the final agreement were consistent with the UN Charter. Article 2(4) of the Charter says that member states should not use force against the territorial integrity or political independence of other states. Russia has not yet achieved this goal. As a member of the Security Council, it’s important that it set a good example for less powerful member states. Trump should encourage it to do so even if it requires tough love.

Article content

Bruce Couchman 

(You’re asking a lot of the American president.)

Tariffs’ reaction is OK

Letters and columnist are unhappy with the PM Carney tempered approach to tariffs but most Canadians support his position The softwood steel oil aluminum auto industry plus fisheries and farmers are all expecting government support while economists are calling for government spending cuts and debt reduction The U.S. has threatened to reevaluate the USMCA free trade agreement if further Canadian tariffs occur and changes could destroy Canada’s auto industry What would you do in this situation? 

Peter J. Middlemore Sr.

(Fight fire with fire, that’s what we would do.)

Article content