This is where cold facts yield to the hottest of takes.

Here you'll find reader responses to stories and newsletter editorials, or letters to the editor for the week of June 9. They may have been edited slightly for readability. The opinions expressed are not those of iNFOnews.ca, unless we occasionally add our own style, like this:

Countdown Timer

That's our official Recall Tara Armstrong Countdown Clock!

Tara Armstrong is currently the MLA for Kelowna-Lake Country-Coldstream. As far as we can tell, she has never lived there, never showed her face or said anything in the election campaign where she rode the coattails of the BC Conservative Party, got elected, then rejected and left the party to serve as an Independent because the Conservatives were too left wing. Now she gets to spout moronic, hateful rhetoric and claim that her riding supports her.

Elections BC says you can recall an MLA if 40% of eligible voters in the riding sign a recall petition — but not for the first 18 months after an election. Some people started an online petition calling for a byelection once she made a shift to Independent, but it won't mean anything until the countdown clock hits zero.

So let the countdown begin!

Got something you want to add? Send an email to editor Marshall Jones at mjones@infonews.ca.

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RE: Wednesday, June 11 newsletter editorial on defending democracy over politics.

When you are splitting up families, which is exactly what sending all the non-citizens out of the country, or banning people from twelve countries is doing for people who have family in the US, is a highly emotional and volatile exercise. Trump may not be doing anything illegal, but he seems to be purposely poking a very painful bear. He is either incredibly stupid not to know this would trigger a riot, or he is someone’s ulterior motive puppet and all those poor people about to lose family played right into his nefarious hands. Same with our truckers. Their very livelihood was being controlled. Is it not up to the leaders of our democratic countries to ascertain this and find a better hammer to use? — Helen Price, via email

'Oh, you don't like being forced? Then I have two suggestions. 1. Stop calling for it against your opponents and 2. Fight for democracy before politics.'

Observation between the truckers in Ottawa and the LA riots with the Marines and National Guard being ordered in despite local government protest has merit. The loser in all this, as you correctly warned, is not the political left or the right. Rather it is democracy itself. — Victor Khong, via email

Well, he bragged he would be a dictator when he got elected! He has such lofty thoughts that he puts into action with no real percussions. I mean, he sues news networks when the comments are not what he likes, and they pay him! Some judges try to rein him in, to no avail. The man is proving he can do whatever he wants and citizens, and businesses and countries pay the price. 
Now he and his boyfriend have broken up, what will come out of that is anybody's guess.
Thanks for your view on the fiasco of President Trump. He has some good ideas, but is ruining the country with no idea of how to implement them. — Glory Bee, via email

Hi, Marshall. Trump has broken many US laws, including deporting people living in the US without due process. — Karen Klein, via email

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BC woman sexually abused by stepdad awarded $900,000 

Having suffered over a decade of sexual abuse by a man in her home from the time she was 3 yrs old, this little girl was repeatedly ignored and doubted by the very people whose jobs are to "rescue children".

When she tried to find help, all the adults in her life, including both family and "professionals" such as cops, teachers, counsellors, social workers, etc. did absolutely nothing to save her from a very sick sexual predator.

As common as her story is, victims of rape - including children - are further victimized by an ancient unenlightened and inadequate patriarchal legal system. We must do better. — Karen Klein, Kamloops, via email

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RE: Monday, June 9 newsletter editorial on Interior Health leadership

I can't believe taxpayers have let this go on for so long, this lack of medical staffing, but then how many medical staffers did we lose over the unlawful and insane pandemic rules?

Canada needs to move on this asap. I'm all for educating doctors and nurses and medical staff for free if they agree to a long term contract to work in the medical system in Canadian provinces. We are burning out the people we have left. Soon, we'll be closing hospitals.

I don't know how to get taxpayers fired up about this but we are all going to pay far more than the cost of educating medical staff for free. Please keep expounding on this, do special editions, encourage commenting and brainstorming solutions, obviously the people have to take this into our own hands because we obviously can't depend on elected officials and the ministries to fix this issue. — Deborah Stevenson, Penticton, via email

BC is definitely battling the shortage of doctors!  I personally know of immigrant doctors who could not afford to undertake the requirements BC expects. Why could these trained doctors not do a 1 -2 year internship to meet the qualifications? Also why not encourage nurse practitioners? They can deal with minor health issues freeing up doctor time to deal with more complicated health issues? — Sandy Calder, via email

No question that the issue of the lack of medical personnel has been "smouldering for years" as you rightly put it, and both the Province and the various health regions have failed residents by not taking decisive action as the situation worsened. Another matter, which in my view makes the situation worse, is that the five regions use different systems and standards as they oversee health matters in their region.

In each, obviously, there are highly paid "administrators" (bureaucrats) and management — including in Interior Health, the soon-to retire CEO, Susan Brown. Learn of the outrageous income this former nurse (not even a more highly-qualified physician) made over the last number of years. Learn of the benefits she has had, the pension she will receive on retirement, and consider that essentially similar expenses are paid in the other four health regions. Shame on the management of Interior Health, and of the Ministry, for the shortcomings in the system. — Bob Mason, Summerland, via email

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'I sympathize': Judge wants them to stay, but upholds eviction notice for Kootenay houseboats

Regarding the house boats, and many other situations such as the couple who were staying in a trailer on their parents land, I find this so unfair when these are honest people trying to make ends meat, yet we have camps all over every city that crap on businesses front steps, vandalizing property and theft! How unfair! — Jenn Bauer

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RE: Friday, June 6 newsletter editorial on buying local produce

I believe, even before the "Buy BC" campaign I was inclined to buy local, despite the higher prices. I remember a cherry tree in the yard my first home was on. I picked blueberries at local farms to earn money for the P.N.E. and I did so with a friend and his family, my family never did that to my recollection unless they did so when they were younger and healthier.

A point to make is to be sure that the signage and the product match up as even grocery store staff mess up, I've come across US products in a spot where BC products were supposed to be. I'd buy BC apples if I felt like eating them, as for BC blueberries, sometimes they too are in less than pleasing condition. Strawberries are perhaps the fruit I would be most inclined to buy BC for reasons you indicated as well as local support. When I can buy cucumbers, I buy BC. — Patrick Longworth, Penticton, via email

I loved the strawberry article. I started checking where food was from a long time ago and decided to eat less but from countries that don’t water with feces. We also eat seasonal or buy frozen.

Unfortunately, I found North okanagan farmers price gouge. I saw a head of lettuce for $8. South okanagan is more reasonable and the farmers from Abbotsford and Chilliwack who come to the Okanagan are great value. It’s a bit more work but we sure feel better knowing our money is being spent on nutritious and BC grown.

We buy 70 lbs of blueberries and split between family, as an example. All red meat is from northern BC. No food in our home is from Mexico, USA or China. Buying local is always our go-to. Unless people start valuing their hard earned money and check around, the bar will be raised as humans typically want more money and we pay it. — Sue Barclay, Penticton, via email

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Kamloops council asked municipal affairs minister for help with controversial mayor

The entire council is dysfunctional. They should all be removed, banned from holding office and a reelection called. What a disgrace and embarrassment Kamloops has become. — Len Ross, via iNFOnews.ca

What a bunch of BS. Meanwhile councillor Bill Sarai is as guilty as the mayor yet it's the big bad mayor. — Chris Webster, via iNFOnews.ca

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Minister flags concern over BC Ferries' deal with Chinese state-owned shipyard

Farnsworth forgets about the financial disaster caused by the NDP government the last time they tried to build ferries in BC. Google it. Under Clark's NDP government. — Robert Bishop, via iNFOnews.ca

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Kelowna daycare that shorted staffer $9,000 in wages loses another appeal

Thank you Ben, for continuing to provide information to the public about Jen Edge and how she runs Creative Advantage Daycares. She is a glaring example of why daycare owners need to be bound to stricter regulations.
Her threat to close her daycare because the rules don't bend to her unethical actions is one example of how she is not in it to support the families of Kelowna. She is in it for the control, because she has found her niche where families are forced to let her get away with dangerous practices under threat of losing their child's spot at her daycare in a climate where spots are so hard to find.
She is correct about one thing, if she shut down her daycares, it would be devastating to a number of families, as well as the staff who work there. But only for the short term - once these families find daycares that are safe, inclusive, and run with the children’s best interest at heart, and once these staff members work for ECC-accredited owners who don't lie and bend the rules to make a buck, then they will all realize that our community is better off without Jen Edge's Creative Advantage. — Megan Hendershot, via iNFOnews.ca

Jennifer Edge seems like a former Walmart manager in my view in terms of how she penalized someone for handing in two weeks notice. I gave same day notice to Save-On when I could not stand the pressure of working closing in the deli. They accepted it and one staff said that I was leaving on "good terms" which I was trying to do. — Patrick Longworth, via iNFOnews.ca

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BC SPCA calls for regulation after 34 Bengal cats rescued from Vernon breeder

You can make all the regulations you want but there is always going to be a wacko out there that thinks they need dozens of animals they can't maintain. It's like pit bulls, you can limit them and blame the owners for how they turn out but no matter what you do, there will always be those owners. You can't limit or ban bad owners. — Helen Price, via iNFOnews.ca

All people who wish to breed any animals should be forced to undergo a criminal record check, a psychiatric evaluation and a careful evaluation process before receiving a business licence though I suspect that some/most breeders are "underground merchants" who do as they wish. — Patrick Longworth, via iNFOnews.ca

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Kelowna’s tent city policies ‘make people want to give up’

I dunno, blaming this policy as the reason you are using drugs sort of implies you weren't using drugs before getting to this point in time in your life. I, like many others, know you didn't start using because of this policy. Your problem is you are using drugs and it creates all your other problems, it doesn't get any simpler than that and there's no point in trying to blame anything else. — Lola Giddens, via iNFOnews.ca

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iN VIDEO: Kamloops forager uses dandelions to make mead 

There also is Dandelion Tea and I recall an English drink called Dandelion and Burdock which was available at So Sweet stores when it was in business. — Patrick Longworth, via iNFOnews.ca

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Canadians divided on whether U.S. is an 'ally' or 'enemy' country: Poll

The United States of America has always been a friendly "enemy-ally" since the war of 1812 even though Canada didn't exist then. I stopped visiting the USA due to abusive American and Canadian customs officials, abusive for no excusable reason whatsoever as I was and am an honest citizen. The American state became a definite enemy upon electing the son of George Bush, never mind Reagan or his lackey Bush and more-so upon electing then later re-electing Trump. — Patrick Longworth, via iNFOnews.ca

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