Change your tune
Raising some important questions, Luke Rinaldi “Death of a Middle Class Musician“(July/August) suffers from a misplaced emphasis on reforming a broken system rather than existing outside of it. As an independent musician, I understand the protests against the meager payouts of Spotify, SiriusXM, gutting CBC royalties, etc. But the only two promising solutions Rinaldi explores – a universal basic income and celebrities advocating for fair pay for streamers – are generally insufficient and politically boring. I'm more drawn to the idea of success that Rollie Pemberton details in the last paragraphs: releasing small numbers of records, touring to sell them, and playing to decent crowds in every town you pass through, this idea of music as a labor of love, a humble way of life driven by social participation, provides the clearest path forward in the current climate, with little incentive to blunt external financial stability.
Jack Mackenzie
Montreal, Quebec
Private practice
Bruce Brady's Letter to the Editor in the July-August issue, responding to legend Monica Kidd: “Need a knee replacement? You can get it at the mall(May), misses the point. Everything is good and wonderful He received good private care in the UK; the question is how he would feel if he did not have the means to pursue private options. Or, more simply put, how did everyone else cope? I used to think of Canada as the gold standard for universal health care; Now, underfunded and limited to private healthcare providers, our healthcare system is barely breathing. The solution is not privatization, but complete nationalization of health care, including insurance, primary care and drugs.
Keith Koricki
Toronto, Ontario
Branch line
Although I think the last person you would want to hear information about the problem of separatism from is an American, Cristina Frangu:Alberta talks about secession again“prompted me to think about a similar secession discourse regarding the state of Texas. Many Texans are fed up with the American government and think they can be independent. There are a number of issues to consider: As an independent nation, Texans will have limited or limited freedom of movement to and through the rest of the US. There will then be international pressure from other countries, including annexation and exploitation. And how will this new free state pay for itself? Problems plenty when you decide to go it alone. But I'm confident you'll overcome the separation in true Canadian style.
Tom Koehler
Two Harbors, Minnesota
