I’m writing to comment about the new look of the Asian Post. The front page is really eye-catching! My husband and I also really enjoy the different recipes - It’s really great to be able to try different cultures favourite foods! ‘One union, two worlds’ is wonderful! It shows me that there are people out there that realize that race or culture has nothing to do with love. Your paper has always set a good example for its readers! Keep up the good work!

Re: ‘BC dad fights Japan to get his kids back’, APP Dec 8, 2005

We commend you for highlighting the futile efforts of this father to be reunited with his children. However, it is not only in a country like Japan that children are unable to have meaningful contact with both parents. Denial of access to a parent, of which child abduction is the most extreme form, takes place thousands of times in this and other countries regardless of whether or not they are signatories of the Hague Convention.

A country or a parent may agree to abide by a law or ruling, but that does not mean that they will actually follow it. The law is thwarted, but most of all, the child’s identity and self-esteem suffer at the hands of the parent’s manipulation.

We offer a free group for fathers with custody and access questions and problems. Contact 604.878.9033.

Re: China’s one child policy

No one offers solutions for the one child policy. I am an adoptive parent of a child from China. I’ve been there. It is so overcrowded in China. Of course, I don’t condone the abortions, but would love to hear solutions to the problem.

Kristen Inkykey, Michigan

Re: Campaign Trail, ‘Dave Haggard puffery’

It is amazing that we’re asked to believe that a man who betrayed the trade union movement by signing up HEU replacement workers to sweetheart contracts, and who has been parachuted into Vancouver East after his last parachute failed to open in New Westminster, can do a better job than Libby Davies, one of the most effective and responsive MPs in the country.

Mac McNair,Canada

Re: ‘Public Eye: Federal Election’

Asian Canadians are not alone thinking the Liberal Party of Canada has not done a fair job in the past. The Liberals recently tried to outdo their Conservative opponents. Paul Martin committed a Liberal government to $1 billion for cleaning up Great Lakes toxic hot spots.

There is a problem with this promise. Martin made his fortune with the Canada Steamship Lines.

When he became prime minister, Martin transferred CSL to his sons in August 2003 to avoid conflict of interest allegations.

His past record at the head of this company shows one of his bad sides.

Canada Steamship Lines was registered overseas to dodge Canada’s steeper corporate taxes.

Martin closed all tax havens except Barbados in June 1994. This is where his company international operations were soon docked.

In that Caribbean country, the company benefits from a 2 percent corporate income tax rates.

Dodging tax while making money out of the Canadian government, does not show moral values or patriotism.

Re: Landed Immigrants

The difficulties and challenges of a newly-arrived immigrant has inspired me to write a poem.

Re: Foreign Qualified Workers

There has been considerable talk regarding the certification issues for several years now, but little seems to move beyond the talk, (or discussion) process. There is established need for the available immigrant skills now, but we are unable to utilize them.

We hear most often about the transferability of qualifications for established professions such as health care and teaching. But organizations and associations appear slow to establish the qualification recognition.

Other occupations, principally the apprenticeship trades, value immigrant skills and knowledge, yet lack a formal process to evaluate credentials.

The ‘qualification’ process only then begins. There are several highly capable and skilled agencies to assist but have limited influence in establishing assessment and qualification criteria. Other agencies (i.e ICES) have established high assessment efficiencies in their areas of expertise in order that immigrants face limited resistance to providing their skills and experience to the local labour market. When it comes to a language or culture barrier several federal agencies are in the works to assist the immigrant.

The need has been established and the required assistance programs are operational. So let’s have the regulatory bodies formalize the process, moving us out of the discussion stage.

Re: Minister Raymond Chan, how sincere is your Chinese head-tax apology?

I find Multiculturalism Minister, Raymond Chan, to be totally lacking in any sense of righteousness and character. He says he is all for an apology personally regarding the Chinese head-tax redress issue, but because his Liberal party and lawyers are suggesting otherwise, he will tow the party line and not apologize. If something is wrong, Mr. Chan, don’t you think that you should say it is wrong and then try to correct it (i.e. pay for damage)? Apparently, Mr. Chan, your colleague, Mr. David Emerson, Minister of Industry, had that consistency of character and courage to break from his party line.

Peter Chan,Richmond

Re: Editorial: ‘Bring on the attack ads’, APP Jan 5, 2005.

I could not agree more with this well written article. Politics has always been nasty and to lay the blame game on negative ads is just to hide your head in the sand. It is only another tactic to get the votes. Nothing wrong as long as it doesnt lie.

Re: ‘Scientists to unravel teen Buddha mystery’, APP Dec 7, 2005

If this boy is attaining Buddhahood/awakening it is he who is attaining enlightenment not Buddha Gautama. For people who may be declaring him a ‘God’ this is not logical and not part of Buddhism. The Buddha made it clear he was not a God and that there is no such thing.

I would love to believe that he is the next Buddha to arise and his doing so will end the hatred, anger, violence, hunger, the suffering of this world. But that is an emotional desire and not logical. Any Buddha has only the power through his/her great compassion to point the way. They do not have the power or desire to change anyone by force.

It is up to us to be our own saviours and change ourselves.

I have seen the Bodhisattva!

Having personally been there on the spot, I have developed a very high esteem for the arduous meditation of the teenaged boy.

My very first glimpse of him seemed to clear off half my skepticism. He was there meditating cross-legged, and I watched him without interruption for as long as I was there. It’s been about a month since that visit and some of my friends who watched him two days ago, found him in exactly the same posture and more interestingly, all of them also saw a flame radiating out from his palms, evidently seen by all visitors present on the occasion.

Rationalists might call it a mass hallucination, hypnotism, or fraud. But they would all see it in front of their own unbelieving eyes if they just took the trouble to do so.

In my opinion no matter how much advancement we have made in science and technology, we as rational beings haven’t so far succeeded in obtaining a completely rational picture of reality. We might have moved to quantum physics but something as basic as gravity is yet pending a proper definition in the world of physics.

Are we really in a position to discard anything outright on the basis of known science, when so much is yet unknown in the world of science??

Apart from the question of real or unreal, there is the question of "the cause" - why is he doing this when the rest of his age group are enjoying the fulfillment of the desires naturally cast upon adolescence.

In a world torn apart, the noble cause of bringing mankind together in a garland of peace and love definitely deserves our full support......

Re: ‘I will find my mother’s killers’, APP Jan 5, 2006

Dear Sanjay, Please know that there are many people on your side, looking for justice where there has been injustice. Your mother will never be forgotten as she lives through you and your siblings. I’m sure she would be proud. Keep trusting in God as He is faithful. He sees each tear that falls and is closer to you than you think. May he give you strength, knowledge and wisdom in your quest.

Re: ‘Sasquatch may have a Malaysian cousin’, APP Jan 5, 2005

I have always though that there are animals that we do not yet know about. Could these animals be the missing link when man became man and moved from the jungle to a civil life?