Dear Mr. Tetreault,
We strongly object to the Federal government's planned expropriation
of
Nanoose Bay.
We moved to Vancouver Island five years ago to give our children the
opportunity to
grow up in a beautiful and peaceful place. How do we explain to them
that
our
beautiful and peaceful home is also home to vessels that may be carrying
nuclear
weapons of mass destruction. In fact, we are doing our best to hide
this
fact from
our children, as we don't want them worrying about what may happen
with this
kind
of horrific arsenal cruising around in their marine back yard. (And
if you
don't think
that children worry about things like this, you need to listen more
closely.)
We visit an organic farm in Nanoose Bay once a week to pick up fruits
and
vegetables that have not been sprayed with toxic chemicals. We have
the
choice to
avoid these toxic chemicals, and that is the way it should be. Why
is the
government
making decisions about our back yard that will not allow us to have
a choice
about
the welfare and safety of our family? The government may think that
the
chance of an
"accident" with nuclear weapons is a long shot. Well, perhaps it is.
But
that's how
lotteries are won, and there is no reason to believe that our number
might
not come up
in Nanoose Bay one day in the nuclear crap shoot.
It is absolutely unbelievable to us that our government would engage
in any
kind of
partnership with any country to allow them to put the safety of our
children
and our
environment in danger. If this government expropriates more of Nanoose
Bay,
they will
have let us down once again (their track record in Nanoose Bay is dismal
already - we
want all nuclear weapons banned - completely). If the planned expropriation
happens,
it will be in our best interests, and those of our children, to actively
work to remove this government at the earliest possible convenience.
We hope
it won't come to that.
We'd rather spend our time walking with our children on a "nuclear-free
beach".
Sincerely,
Deborah and Drew McVittie
6258 Azure Road,
Nanaimo, B.C. V9V 1K2
Phone: 250-751-3030
Email: mcvit@island.net