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Offering performance bonuses to deputy ministers is a disturbing indication of the tendency of this government to model itself on business corporations, thereby subverting its own purpose. Government is not motivated by profit and individual gain; it's meant to be driven by justice and the interests of all citizens, which are often at odds with the goals of the private sector.

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In any case, bonuses are poor incentives. In the corporate world, they have fed massive greed and corruption.

In the public sector, they do not guarantee better services, because their objectives are usually related to cost-cutting. It's easy enough to revise programs to get the desired results without improving the system. For example, a waiting list for subsidized housing can be substantially reduced by altering the criteria so that fewer people are eligible to get on the list in the first place. Presto, a benchmark achieved on the backs of our most vulnerable citizens. We've had corporate principles applied to social programming before, with disastrous results. Let's learn from that experience.

It's alarming when a Liberal government so blatantly worships at the alter of the private sector.

Encouraging business development is one thing; operating like a business is another. This government recently committed itself to strengthening the third (non-profit) sector to encourage and support New Brunswickers to fulfill their socioeconomic potential.

That bonus fund should flow not to executives, but to the budgets of community organizations who struggle daily, doing the government's work on a shoestring.

SUE RICKARDS

Lower Queensbury

Election can still be called any time

Some or most citizens have seriously misconstrued the belief and rhetoric that a fixed-election-date is law. Contrary to the popular belief, reality is that the prime minister may call an election, whenever he chooses to do so.

Although there is in place a fixed election law, it is not entirely binding on the government that adopted it.

Identified as Bill C-16, which established Oct. 19, 2009 as the date of the next election, there is an important caveat, which reads as follows:

"Nothing in this section affects the powers of the Governor General, including the powers to dissolve Parliament at the Governor General's discretion."

Bill C-16 is now the law of the land; however, it is only a parliamentary statute, which clearly does not affect constitutional convention.

Westminster tradition awards the governor general power to dissolve Parliament any time at the request of the PM.

In uncomplicated terminology, Stephen Harper needs only to leisurely walk over to Rideau Hall, visit the Governor General, make clear his purpose, and acquire an election writ. End of discussion.

The House of Commons and Parliament in general have become increasingly dysfunctional, and anyone witnessing the house ethics committee can see this in its entirety on CPAC, live. The entire committee involved is behaving disobediently. Obviously Paul Szabo, the Liberal chair, has lost complete management and control of it.

An election would correct this group of malcontents in a heartbeat.

RONALD J. YASCHUK

Quispamsis

We are different than the Americans

David Baudin is correct in his letter to Stephen Harper, an Albertan closely tied to Republican United States whose declared policy is to "Shoot first and ask questions afterwards."

Canada is a far different nation. With all its faults, it is traditionally an international peacemaker, a firm supporter of the United Nations and also (with a little prodding) a supporter of its artists.

I sincerely hope that the next election will see this man gone and that our nation will return to its traditional values of peacekeeping and support for desperate countries longing for peace and stability.

KEITH ELDRIDGE

Sussex

Post office closings are not welcomed

What is our Canada Post Corporation planning next? The closure of any postal offices is a cause for concern.

Too often government corporations make changes to Canadian lifestyle without consultation or concern as to the effect on a community or the people of the communities being served.

I am the former president of Rural Dignity New Brunswick. We fought a courageous battle to retain postal service in rural areas of New Brunswick, but we could not stop some losses. Some rural communities are served by a group box, which cannot answer questions, sell stamps or help spot a missing postal code or insufficient postage before accepting an item to be sent through Canada Post.

I live in rural New Brunswick, have roadside delivery and a postal office less than three kilometres away. My family frequently takes advantage of this convenience instead of driving 10 kilometres to St. Stephen to mail items.

Deregulation and closures are not welcome. Canada Post Corporation needs a new plan. The corporation must review the serves being provided and improve, not close, offices and bring the Canada Post Corporation into the 21st century with the advent of modern technology. One would hope Canada Post would be a leader. In Canada, we need a postal service for the people, no matter where they live.

Use consultation instead of accounting practices. Canada Post Corporation may deregulate itself out of business or close all post offices and we will not need a Canada Post Corporation.

WAYNE A. SPIRES

Moore's Mills

Calculations of expert discredited

Rod Hill (letter, July 25) criticized me for not providing references. I e-mailed Prof. Hill many weeks ago regarding climate matters. I could have supplied him with more than 1,000 technical papers and information from climate experts.

I am amazed that Prof. Hill takes the writings of Sir Nicholas Stern seriously. His report was not peer reviewed before release, and his calculations have been comprehensively discredited by Sir Partha Dasgupta and many other eminent economists.

For one thing, Stern used a totally unrealistic discount rate in his calculations, thus producing totally unrealistic results. As one very knowledgeable person wrote, ".....the Stern Report is an assessment of the most extreme costs that could be imagined if all the most extreme - and extremely improbable - scenarios for AGW were to occur. Sir Nicholas was specifically tasked to provide such a biased and unrealistic report.....[The] intended use of the Stern Report is.....to be an excuse that enables the U.K. government to ignore the conclusions of the report on AGW from the U.K. Parliament's House of Lords Select Committee on Economic Affairs."

Stern is an economist and knows nothing about climate. He was completely out of his league when he wrote about severe climate change as if it were proven fact. There is no coming climate crisis.

IAN L. McQUEEN

Glenwood

No need for second nuclear plant

New Brunswick is to develop another nuclear plant.

What for? To provide energy to the United States' war effort. New Brunswick continues to put it in the eyes of terrorists. A person could easily blow up the proposed plant with a bomb.

Ordinary citizens will not profit from this or the gas pipelines or gas storage.

Most of the engineers needed to develop and operate this plant will be brought in from elsewhere and only a few will stay. New Brunswick citizens will pay, but government, industry and the CEOs and directors of electrical utilities and corporations will be the ones that win.

ARTHUR CHESLEY

Saint John

Choose health, safety over money

I was delighted and encouraged when I read the headline in the Aug. 13 issue of the newspaper - "Uranium exploration companies starting to withdraw."

However, the writer did not share my sentiments. He lamented that the "government bowed to pressure from various local lobby groups in declaring a ban on all uranium exploration"¦" which resulted in "companies pulling money from the province."

I am concerned that the economy, in the minds of so many, continues to effectively trump the health and safety of the people and protection of the environment. I would like to set the record straight for the many in the province who think differently.

ANGELINA MARTZ

Saint John