Shutting down vendors does not protect public health
So very disturbing that the vendors at our local market who sell their crafts and products that are not food are banned at this time.
These people are our community and work so hard to make a living and count on the Christmas season to do that. At the same time, Wal-Mart has not missed a day of being open in full force! Why have they not been forced to close off the large part of their store that food is not sold? Indoors, and apparently no limit as to number of people allowed to be in the store at the same time. Yet, the Duncan Market is outdoors and following the masking and distancing policies we are asked to follow! Wal-Mart is not the only large corporation that has been going great guns, how about Cosco, Canadian Tire, etc.?
How does shutting down small businesses, but allowing big box stores to stay open, protect public health? There is really no rhyme or reason for such a decision, other than to shift wealth away from small, private owners to multinational corporations. Since the pandemic, the collective wealth of 651 billionaires in the U.S. (Walmart) rose by more than 36 per cent ($1 trillion!) The greatest wealth transfer in history!
Heather Browning
Mill Bay