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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2018-08-16, Page 4PAGE 4. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, AUGUST 16, 2018. Editorials Opinions President: Keith Roulston • Publisher: Deb Sholdice Editor: Shawn Loughlin • Reporter: Denny Scott Advertising Sales: Brenda Nyveld • Heather Fraser The Citizen is published 50 times a year in Brussels, Ontario by North Huron Publishing Company Inc. Subscriptions are payable in advance at a rate of $38.00/year ($36.19 + 51.81 G.S.T.) in Canada; $160.00/year in U.S.A. and $205/year in other foreign countries. Advertising is accepted on the condition that in the event of a typographical error, only that portion of the advertisement will be credited. Advertising Deadlines: Mon. 2 p.m. - Brussels; Mon. 4 p.m. - Blyth. Canada MAIL AGREEMENT NO. 40050141 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO CIRCULATION DEPT. PO BOX 152 BRUSSELS ON NOG 1H0 email: info@northhuron.on.ca We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada. The Citizen P.O. Box 429, P.O. Box 152, BLYTH, Ont. BRUSSELS, Ont. NOM 1H0 NOG 1 H0 Ph. 519-523-4792 Phone Fax 519-523-9140 519-887-9114 E-mail info@northhuron.on.ca Website www.northhuron.on.ca ocna ab CCNA Member of the Ontario Press Council CMCA AUDITED We are not responsible for unsolicited newsscripts or photographs. Contents of The Citizen are © Copyright Save now, pay later Ontario Premier Doug Ford is quickly carrying out his promise to reduce the reach of the province's government, but some of the proposed cuts that appear good now may not seem so wise a decade from now. Among the early casualties of the new government's change of direction, for instance, were school boards and public housing agencies that were planning energy-saving renovations of their properties. Under the previous government's Green Ontario Fund, money was provided for installing energy-efficient windows or adding insulation to public buildings such as schools and public housing units. When Premier Ford, in his first action in office, carried through on a campaign promise to axe the previous government's cap and trade carbon reduction program under which companies bought credits for the right to produce carbon, the source of funding for programs like the $377 -million Green Ontario Fund was lost. With no money for the program, the Ford government sent out the word that any project for which tenders had not been awarded would be cancelled. Whether you believe in climate change or not, it's certain that energy bills would have been cut for school boards and public housing agencies if they had money to make their buildings more energy efficient. Instead of reducing their ongoing expenses, these agencies will now go on paying higher costs for heat and electricity. Meanwhile, it was probably easy for the new government to kill off the universal basic income pilot project instituted by the previous government, even though Ford said during the election campaign he'd let it continue. The experiment, which guaranteed an annual income of $17,000 to everyone in a few designated areas of the province, goes against the core belief of many of the government's supporters that people need an incentive to get off their backsides and get a job. But theorists, including several conservative thinkers claim that, counter -intuitively, a guaranteed basic income might encourage more people to work, because they don't have to endanger their welfare payments by working — at least until they've reached a more comfortable income level. These theorists also claim that the amount of bureaucracy required to run such a program would be much lower than all the various support programs now in place. Is this theory valid? We'll only know by conducting pilot studies like the one the government just cancelled. Who knows if saving by cancelling the project might prevent us from saving in the future? Some cuts in government spending may look attractive right now, but not if they increase spending in the years to come. — KR Our education system's broken The temper tantrum thrown by young Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman over a Canadian government Tweet criticizing his country's human rights record has inadvertently exposed a serious problem within Canada's own domestic policies. One of the ways Saudi Arabia sought to punish Canada was to withdraw 15,000 government-sponsored students from Canadian universities and colleges. Probably most Canadians were stunned to hear so many foreign students are present in Canada's schools — and that's only from one country. Faced with insufficient government financial support, Canadian institutions from universities and medical schools to local school boards have turned to foreign students to help make up the difference. While they're limited as to how much revenue they can get from using a student place for a Canadian, they can charge whatever the market will bear for a foreign student. In other words, through its sponsorship of foreign students in our institutions, the Saudi government was supporting our education system when our own governments wouldn't. While the situation motivates welcome entrepreneurial instincts among our education officials, there's collateral damage for Canadian students. Unable to find a place in Canadian medical schools and other high-end programs, those Canadian students with the financial means then go overseas to countries like Australia where they are paying much higher tuition fees to get the education they can't get in Canada (and no doubt displacing local students). Meanwhile, one of the barriers preventing many doctors who immigrate to Canada from getting the qualifications they need to practise here is the lack of places for medical residents in hospitals. The Saudi withdrawal has shown some of those internships are being taken up by foreign medical students who will leave when they graduate, doing nothing to reduce the doctor shortage here. Our governments, federal and provincial, have been only too happy to off-load the expense of our education system to wealthy foreigners. Helping educate people from around the world is fine if it doesn't thwart the ambitions of Canadian students. Even if it costs us more, Canadians owe it to ourselves to properly fund our education system so that it doesn't depend on the wealth of strangers. — KR Looking Back Through the Years August 13, 1958 The Brussels and District Horticultural Society was set to sponsor its annual flower show and tea at the Brussels Library on Aug. 23. There would be a table of bulbs, flowers and plants for sale that day. A large Grey Township barn belonging to Sam Sweeney went up in flames and with it 100 tons of hay and several small farm implements that were inside. A three-way transaction that was rumoured to involve over $10,000 closed in Brussels. East Huron Produce was purchased by Export Food Producers of Toronto, while the company's orchard and the property of Mrs. Robert Thomson was sold to William Stratychuk of Brussels while George Jutzi of Brussels Transport purchased the former Stratychuk residence. August 16, 1978 Blyth taxpayers received some good news when councillors learned the village had a $23,000 credit that would help cover the expenses of the village to the end of the year without the aid of a loan. Blyth Clerk Larry Walsh told councillors that the village needed a fire -proof safe for the municipal office in the event of a fire. Walsh told councillors that the village's records included plenty of paid and unpaid bills, as well as promissory notes, and if they were to go up in flames, it would leave Blyth in a "nasty situation". He suggested that the local Public Utility Commission could also contribute to the purchase of the safe, perhaps paying half the cost. Hullett Township Council agreed with local designer Nick Hill on a new proposed subdivision in Auburn. Hill presented a draft of the design of the subdivision to council which created a zoning bylaw to aid in the approval of the design. St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church in Blyth celebrated its 100th anniversary by taking a look back at its past. In a historic piece in The Blyth Standard, Yvonne Cronyn explored the history of the church, stating that had it not been for the Irish potato famine, it's unlikely that St. Michael's and many other local Catholic churches like it would have been built. August 14, 1991 The life of five-year-old Brandon Lammerant of RR1, Blyth came to an end in Hullett Township after a devastating car collision involving over 25 people. Brandon's mother Anita was driving with Brandon and her other son Christopher when the vehicle she was driving was struck as she turned onto County Road 25. The van, which was carrying 23 worm pickers from Toronto, was travelling eastbound and struck the Lammerants' vehicle. Brandon was pronounced dead at the scene and 18 others were taken to local hospitals with varying degrees of injuries. Brussels welcomed two new pastors to its ranks with the addition of Tom Warner to Brussels Mennonite Fellowship and Father Joseph Nevett to St. Ambrose Roman Catholic Church. Three men, one of whom was Hugh Ives of RR2, Blyth, were being hailed as heroes after they pulled 16 -year-old Kenneth Graber from a flaming vehicle. The incident took place after he lost control on a Morris Township road. The vehicle entered a ditch, struck a tree and rolled over, at which time the vehicle caught fire. The men pulled Graber out of the vehicle and smothered him with a blanket to ensure his safety. Minutes later the car was engulfed in flames. August 17, 2017 After months of anticipation, Blyth Cowbell Brewing Company officially swung open its doors. Between a special Blyth -only day and its official grand opening to the public, the site welcomed over 8,000 people in its first week. General Manager Grant Sparling said that the "volume of people we had through is truly humbling" after examining the statistics. During that first week, Cowbell welcomed an average of over 1,000 people per day. Erin McMahon of Bluevale was crowned Brussels Fall Fair Ambassador. This was McMahon's second kick at the can and it was a good -luck charm for her as she cemented her status as the ambassador for the Brussels Fall Fair when it would be held at the International Plowing Match in Walton, a big move for the fair and its organizers. McMahon said she was excited to become the ambassador and knew she had a big year ahead, but that all of the hard work would be worth it. Kali Alcorn, a Brussels native, was making waves south of the border by taking part in the International Tree Climbing Championships in Washington, D.C., an annual competition for arborists around the world. This wasn't the first time she had suited up for the competition, having taken part in it two years earlier in Texas, where she placed 13th overall. The Pigeon King opened at the Blyth Festival, telling the tale of convicted fraudster Arlan Galbraith and Pigeon King International.