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w at er lo oc hr on ic le .c a W at er lo o C hr on ic le | T hu rs da y, Ju ly 9, 20 20 | 4 ABOUT US This newspaper, published every Thursday, is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 80 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are urged to bring their concerns to the attention of the news- paper and, if not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca editorial@waterloochronicle.ca facebook.com/waterloochronicle @wlchronicle WHO WE ARE VP, Regional Publisher Kelly Montague Regional General Manager Nelson Parreira nparreira@metroland.com Regional Director of Media Heather Dunbar hdunbar@starmetrolandmedia.com Advertising Representatives Cassandra Dellow, Jan Bodanka, Matt Miller, Lisa Humphreys, Sheri-Lyn Blair, Chris Rego Managing Editor Robyn Wilkinson Online Editor Adam Jackson Reporters Bill Jackson Namish Modi CONTACT US Waterloo Chronicle 475 Thompson Dr. Cambridge, ON N1T 2K8 Phone: 519-886-2830 Fax: 519-623-9155 Web: www.waterloochronicle.ca Letters to the editor All letters must be fewer than 320 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. Published letters will appear in print and/or online at waterloochronicle.ca Delivery For all delivery inquiries, e-mail customerservice@metroland.com or call 519-894-3000 OPINION TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT WATERLOOCHRONICLE.CA EDITORIAL LETTERS & COMMENTARY SUPPORT ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION We recognize that our region has been hard hit -- long-term care homes, businesses, social services, recreation, transportation; COVID has left no stone unturned. Citizens, elected offi- cials and municipal staff have an opportunity to re- imagine our communities. We all have a desire to move safely, efficiently whether we're walking, cy- cling or driving to the gro- cery store, to work or to shop locally. Climate Action Water- loo Region's Open Streets proposal addresses a num- ber of issues very collabo- ratively. Here's why: • It enables the region to pilot key cycling infra- structure with significant- ly reduced traffic (30%), making it more cost-effec- tive and giving drivers am- ple time to adjust. • It responds to the ris- ing trend locally of people buying bikes and biking equipment. • It provides more equi- table access to citizens who can't afford a vehicle and for whom using transit in a pandemic is a real health concern. • Providing safer walk- ing and cycling opportuni- ties addresses mental health and physical health issues while reducing noise pollution and our greenhouse gas emissions. Doing so is a big step to- ward a more vibrant, equi- table and sustainable com- munity and future. DOROTHY MCCABE TRANSPORTATION SECTOR, CLIMATE ACTION WATERLOO REGION TOWNSHIP'S REPUTATION HAS BEEN TARNISHED (Recent times have been) disturbing and dis- appointing for residents of Wilmot Township after hearing about Mayor Les Armstrong's posting on so- cial media. Mayor Armstrong's ac- tion displayed extremely poor judgment when he ne- glected to check out the va- lidity of the post and when he thought that it would initiate a conversation about racism. People have definitely been talking in response to Armstrong's action, but the words express hurt and disbelief, not a productive conversation about rac- ism. Wilmot's reputation has been tarnished. As Councillor Hallman indicated at the township's special council meeting on Thursday, June 25, the ef- forts of service clubs, churches and other organi- zations to build a commu- nity in Wilmot have been devalued. Many examples of the important work that these groups and individuals have done and continue to do in this community to promote justice and create a safe and welcoming envi- ronment could be listed, but to do so would detract from the fact that there are people in Waterloo Region - including Wilmot - who are suffering from trauma be- cause of ongoing racially based discrimination. A positive outcome from the events would be that each of us in Wilmot com- mits to taking action to support anti-racism initia- tives in whatever way we can. DOROTHY WILSON, NEW HAMBURG The idea of a Universal Basic Income (UBI) has al- ways made sense. That is why it has attracted such broad backing from sometimes unlikely supporters. Conservative thinker and author Milton Friedman supported it, as does Canadian Conservative Sen. Hugh Segal and Martin Luther King. But we now know one thing we didn't before CO- VID-19. UBI works. We know that because the federal government quickly realized a crisis basic income was essential to cushion the pandemic's economic impact on millions of Canadians. The government came up with the Canadian Emer- gency Response Benefit (CERB), $2,000 per month to Canadians suffering pandemic-induced job loss. CERB has not been perfect, but it did the job. But what happens after the pandemic? Will Canada's econo- my, and its workforce, slip comfortably back into the status quo, with high employment and an enviable qual- ity of life? As time and the pandemic drag on, the increasingly obvious answer is no. Even with the worst of the first round of COVID-19 behind us, the future for many Cana- dian working people is not what it was. Businesses by the thousands are gone or operating at reduced capacity. Recent statistics show the economy has contracted by an unprecedented 11 per cent. Many people who have jobs are seeing fewer hours, less if any benefits and more precarity. This is the new normal. What do we do to adjust to this new normal? Part of the answer is, or should be, some form of per- manent basic income that replaces the patchwork of social support measures now in place. Basic income is not new to Canadians. It exists in various forms. But what about the cost of basic income? The Parliamentary Budget Office has calculated the cost of providing UBI to about 7.5 million low-income work- ing-age Canadians at $43 billion annually. That's less than half the cost of the CERB and other existing emer- gency benefits. Critics who argue UBI isn't affordable typically do not mention the cost of poverty. Sheila Regehr, chair of the Basic Income Canada Network, points out "COVID hasn't created anything new. It has put a spotlight on all of the weaknesses in our system." Further, she argues in a recent Torstar interview, the old normal, wasn't working equitably to begin with: "Normal was people starving on social assis- tance, using emergency rooms for health care because they can't eat properly, it's police activity in disadvan- taged neighbourhoods to quell the gun violence because people don't have enough to get by through legal means." She's right. The pandemic gives Canadian policy- makers and politicians a great opportunity to make the new normal a more equitable, sustainable place. The question is, will they have the spine to seize it? LET'S MAKE THE NEW NORMAL A BETTER PLACE