Readers comment on Hockey Canada's new 'gender expression' rules, our 'injustice system,' nation building, rampant antisemitism, and more

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Re: Terry Newman: Hockey Canada demanding coaches take radical gender test ignores on-ice reality — Terry Newman, July 17

As a grandfather and great-grandfather of young girls, I can only conclude that the people creating the new “gender expression” rules at Hockey Canada have no concern for the lives of women.

The concept of men being involved in women’s sports who, by virtue of their DNA, have the ability to hurt their opponents during play, is inhumane. Co-ed chess or Tiddlywinks is fine. But in a contact sport, or any contest in which muscle mass is employed with force, a serious injury is inevitable.

Starting Sept. 1, Alberta will no longer allow transgender athletes who are 12 and older to participate in female amateur sports. (Unfortunately, due to Canada’s “progressive” human rights laws, the ban may not apply to athletes visiting from out of province).

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The tide is also turning in the U.S. against allowing transgender athletes to compete against women. Why is Canada regressing?

Larry Sylvester, Acton, Ont.

Re: Non-citizen johns shouldn’t get sentence discounts for their crimes — Jamie Sarkonak, July 15

On many days I read news of court decisions and wonder how becoming a judge could relieve someone of basic common sense. This implies that, at one point, the judge had some common sense to lose. Justice Paul Thomas O’Marra may have reached a new judicial low in this regard.

In sentencing Akashkumar Khant for trying to have sex with an underage girl, he took into account the fact that the defendant was a permanent resident applying for both citizenship and professional licensing and that a sentence requiring him to spend time in jail would likely deny him both. Unless I have lost my common sense, it seems that the reason he could be denied both is explicitly because Canada doesn’t want to grant citizenship to individuals who commit certain crimes and professional bodies don’t want to license such offenders.

Justice O’Marra’s decision to lighten the sentence to avoid those consequences pervert those intentions. Lewis Carroll could have written a sequel to Alice in Wonderland based on the Canadian injustice system. Justice O’Marra could be cast as a big-hearted Queen of Hearts.

John Harris, Toronto

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