Dear editor,
It’s easy here in the Comox Valley to think we are insulated from the problems of the broader world: we are lucky to live in a peaceful and safe corner of the planet, far from almost everything.
But the war in Ukraine has reached us, profoundly.
Many Ukrainians have come here to escape the destruction of their nation.
Many Canadian Forces personnel posted to CFB Comox have deployed to Eastern Europe to stand guard against the designs of Russia’s Putin regime.
And yet, right here in the Valley, a few echo the misinformation coming straight from the troll farms of St. Petersburg. They spread pro-Putin, anti-democracy lies. They try to undermine our own democracy by weakening trust in our institutions. They spread conspiracy theories.
Our democracy, our freedom, and our safety depend on truth. All of us, every resident, need to be alert to those spreading pro-Russian misinformation. We cannot allow domestic enemies of our nation to destroy it from within.
John Dacombe,
Courtenay