North Saanich Pickleball Court vs. Jasper: In times of community conflict, emotions can run high, and arguments can become skewed. But there are moments when it’s important to take a step back and recognize the boundaries of comparison. Such is the case with the recent letter by Suzanne Morphet, titled “North Saanich court closure devastates pickleball community,” where a troubling analogy was drawn between two very different situations.
The Weight of Words
As an Albertan and an educator, the response from Alvin Finkel to Morphet’s letter was one of shock and dismay. “I was mortified,” he begins, setting the tone for his critique. The issue at hand? Morphet’s attempt to link the closure of a pickleball court in North Saanich with the loss of homes in Jasper due to a devastating wildfire—a comparison that Finkel finds deeply troubling.
Finkel’s concern isn’t just with the comparison itself but with the strategy behind it. “The writer follows the unacceptable strategy of first of all recognizing that the loss of a pickleball court and the loss of homes in Jasper is not comparable and then goes on to produce an entire note in which the two are presented as completely comparable,” he observes. This tactic, he suggests, undermines the gravity of the situation in Jasper and trivializes the impact of true disaster.
The Dangers of Entitlement
Finkel doesn’t mince words when addressing what he sees as the underlying issue: a sense of entitlement that distorts reality. He likens Morphet’s comparison to the rhetoric of figures like Donald Trump, who “equates the legitimate use of the courts to penalize his questionable personal and financial dealings with the persecution of Christians at various times in the history of that religion.” It’s a sharp critique, one that shows the dangers of drawing false equivalencies in public discourse.
The problem, as Finkel sees it, extends beyond this single letter. He points to the broader trend of individuals and groups making exaggerated claims of victimhood, whether it be the convoy participants who compared vaccine mandates to Nazi persecution or, in this case, the comparison of noise complaints to the devastation wrought by wildfires. “On the surface, indeed, it would seem that those whose homes are being made unlivable by the noise and bullying of the pickleball court users have the better claim to see themselves as akin to those made homeless by the fires in Jasper,” Finkel concedes. But he quickly dismisses this notion, emphasizing that “in reality, neither side has a legitimate right to take a profound tragedy like the one in Jasper and turn it into a political football for a community dispute.”
Keeping Focus on the Real Issues
Finkel’s advice is straightforward: “stick with the real issues and stop trying to bring in extraneous circumstances that have no application to your community issues.” It’s a call for clarity, for focusing on the actual concerns at hand rather than inflating them with unrelated tragedies.
In a world where the line between legitimate grievances and exaggerated claims can often blur, Finkel’s response serves as a reminder of the importance of maintaining perspective. While community disputes like the one in North Saanich are certainly worth addressing, they should not be conflated with the kind of life-altering devastation experienced by those in Jasper. In doing so, we risk not only losing sight of the true scale of suffering but also diminishing the seriousness of both issues.
News in Brief: North Saanich Pickleball Court vs. Jasper
Alvin Finkel criticized a letter by Suzanne Morphet that compared the closure of a pickleball court in North Saanich to the loss of homes in Jasper due to wildfires. Finkel, an Albertan educator, expressed outrage at the analogy, calling it a disturbing and misguided comparison. He argued that equating a community dispute over recreational facilities with a climate-change-aggravated tragedy trivializes the true impact of the Jasper devastation. Finkel urged the community to focus on real issues without dragging in unrelated tragedies, emphasizing the importance of maintaining perspective in public discourse.
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