Gillian Steward's public service announcement about the UCP's anti-science ideology must command our attention. Moreover, her dire warning must be heeded because science — just the Greek word for knowledge — is a proven life saver. That's why Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and her government are basically sentencing Albertans to death from a lack of public knowledge. As such they are committing a crime against Albertans that must be rectified.
Clearly government should serve and protect its people, not harm them. In fact, Smith and her government rationalizing that they are preserving freedom to live is contradicted by those getting sick because they are deliberately deprived of life-saving knowledge.
Getting the COVID vaccine makes one better off, rather than worse as the UPC believes.
Smith and her accomplices are knowingly restraining life-saving scientific knowledge which is extreme anti-social behaviour. But such a deadly outcome is bound to happen when her government's premises are so flawed.
In Canada people are entitled to live according to their personal truths, but public servants are not justified in imposing their irrational beliefs on others. Canada has separated the legitimacy of belief from the power of the state. Thus, Smith mixing the two arbitrarily while in office betrays her job description as a responsible head of state.
Smith is establishing a bad precedent that similar flawed thinking Canadians will copy if she gets away with making the ignorant pay for her anti-science views.
Her rule of scientific ignorance is deadly and must be rectified ASAP to save lives. Science must fight back.
You might be interested in
Tony D'Andrea, Toronto
Who is the true authoritarian?
Gillian Steward defines the term "anti-science" as “a means to assert control and demand allegiance to authoritarianism, especially on the far right.” Using anti-vax movements in the U.S. as examples, she also links this to the Canadian trucker protests, and ascribes both to being part of some authoritarian movement to ignore health concerns.
This is absurd.
Who is the true authoritarian? The person who protests to protect their freedom to choose, or the person who declares that protest illegal, suspends civil rights, and seizes the bank accounts of those who are protesting against them? It seems clear to me that the federal Liberal government is the real villain here.
The trucker convoy protesters were not “anti-science.” Most of them admitted to taking the COVID-19 vaccine without issue. They were protesting the use of force to compel them to get the shot. They were protesting against authoritarianism.
Paul Graham, Mississauga
Extremist Christian far right is a dangerous threat
It is of utmost importance we take scientist Peter Hotez’s warning seriously.
“The anti-science movement is a means to assert control to authoritarianism on the far right.”
The completely invented doctrine of the evangelical far right that has gained complete control over the Republican party in the U.S. has leaked across the border into Alberta and Canada. This invented religion is the religion of white supremacists and the main source of antisemitism. Science facts are a threat to their belief system, so they discredit science with misinformation and outright lies.
Unfortunately, we are not immune, many believe them.
Here in Canada, becoming leader of the Conservative party provincially or federally generally requires the support of the Christian right.
My question is what did Alberta Premier Daniel Smith and Federal Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre promise them in order to gain their support?
I'm guessing we just need to look at last year’s sudden embrace of anti-transgender politics by Conservatives across the country to find the answer. This brand of Christianity has no problem promoting intolerance and fear of the gay and trans community by constantly promoting fear and anger against them. Fear and anger are the recipe for hate. They promote the fear that they are somehow a danger to children, ignoring the abuse of children for many decades by priests in the church.
The vaccine and cure for these anti-science extremists is exposing them with the facts and the truth which they hate. We sure as hell don’t want their political dominance here!
Paul Kahnert, Markham
Anti-science movement is an abuse of a child's right to good health
The rise of the anti-science movement is a dangerous and idiotic trend. Right wing politicians discouraging families from vaccinating children for common childhood illnesses is an abuse of a child's right to good health. Some diseases, like measles, can cause deafness.
More accurate and scientific information from doctors and scientists need to be in the public domain and in the school curriculum.
Diane Sullivan, Toronto
