Governments and leaders come and go, but the friendship between our peoples should endure, Ron Alleva writes. Photo by rarrarorro /GETTY IMAGES

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The friendship between Canada and the United States is greater than the politics of any one moment.

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As an American living in Alaska, I want Canadians to know that many of us continue to value our shared history, democratic traditions and the sacrifices our nations have made together in defence of freedom.

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For my family, Canada is more than a neighbouring country. Through our documented family connection to Sir Wilfrid Laurier, my children qualify for Canadian citizenship under Canadian law. While that heritage is deeply meaningful to us, our admiration for Canada is rooted even more in the values our countries have long shared: democracy, mutual respect, compassion and being good neighbours.

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May future generations on both sides of our border continue to choose co-operation over division, respect over resentment and hope over fear. That is a legacy worthy of both our nations.

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Ron Alleva, Anchorage, Alaska

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There is no question that the 40-plus-year-old St Laurent Station tunnel needs repair, likely urgently. But not urgently enough that OC Transpo can’t take three years to prepare plans and do the job.

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More to the point, OC Transpo is a public transportation service. For the benefit of the PUBLIC. Yet the announced plans to totally shut the station (and sever the eastern leg of LRT) for a period of 6-8 weeks, plus single-track running and delays for several more months, is the antithesis of a public transportation service.

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OC Transpo and the city must reduce the duration of closure to the absolute minimum. One way to reduce the closure time by two-thirds would be to run three shifts 24 hours a day. The cost increase would be marginal (same work, just faster turnover). That rapidity is owed to the travelling public, especially after all the delays in opening east and west extensions to the LRT.

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OC Transpo must give around-the-clock work serious thought and planning.

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Bruce Morgan, Orléans

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Re: CTV News anchor was ‘fearless and fair’ (Aug 6): Lloyd Robertson was Canadians’ Walter Cronkite.

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Politicians and others come and go, but he was a continual staple that Canadians on a national level could depend and count on to bring trust and truthful facts into their lives.

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Lloyd was also was one of those old-school journalists who learned and perfected his trade not in a university classroom coming out the other end with a degree, but rather on the beat and out in the world, where all the news takes place. His lack of ego in a profession where it’s found in abundance speaks volumes to his authenticity of someone who believed that it was not about him, it was about you.