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Home My WebLink AboutClinton News Record, 2014-11-19, Page 44 News Record • Wednesday, November 19, 2014 opinion www.clintonnewsrecord.com Clinton News Record PUBLISHED WEEKLY — EST. 1860 53 Albert St. P.O. Box 39 Clinton ON NOM 11_0 (519) 482-3443 www.clintonnewsrecord.com SUN MEDIA A Quebecor Media Company MARIE DAVID Sun Media Group Publisher - Grey Bruce Huron Division 519-364-2001 or 519-372-4301 moN NEIL CLIFFORD Publisher neil.clifford@sunmedia.ca MAX BICKFORD Advertising Manager max.bickford@sunmedia.ca TARA OSTNER Reporter clinton.reporter@sunmedia.ca DAWN JOHNSTON Sales Representative clinton.ads@sunmedia.ca TERESA SMITH Front Office clinton.classifieds@sunmedia.ca SUBSCRIPTION RATES 1 YEAR $50.00 (47.62+2.38 GST) 2 YEAR $95.00 (90.48+4.52 GST) SENIORS 60 WEEKS $50.00 (47.62+2.38 GST) 120 WEEKS $95.00 (90.48+4.52 GST) Advertising is accepted on the condition that in the event of a typographical error, the advertising space occupied by the erroneous Rem together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged but that balance of advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. In the event of a typographic error advertising goods or services ata wrong price, goods or services may not be sold. Ad- vertising is merely an offer to sell, and may be withdrawn at anytime. The Clinton News -Record is not responsible for the loss or damage of unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other materials used for reproducing purposes. Publications Mail Agreement No.40064683 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES: CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT 53 AlbertSt.,ClintonON NOM1L0 (519) 482-3443 We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canadian Periodical Fund (CPF) for our publishing activities. Canada pocna Member of the Canadian Community Newspaper Association and the Ontario Community Newspapers Association editorial High hydro costs due to provincial bungling QMI Agency Hydro One has issued 10 suggestions on ow homeowners and others who use electricity to heat their homes can reduce their monthly bill. But not one of those tips men- tion the major reason electricity bills have risen the past year. Hydro One's first tip is to ensure trim on win- dows, between the frame and the house, are filled and secure. 'As much as 13% of your home's heat loss could be escaping through the gaps;' Hydro One says. Other tips suggest closing off air registers in unused parts of the house, moving fumiture away from vents, and installing a programmable thermostat. Some tips are ridiculously obvious. "On sunny winter days, trap warm air inside by opening window coverings to let the warmth of the sun in, Hydro One advises. "Once the sun goes down, close window coverings to help keep the warmth in.: All of this is wonderful, and per- haps necessary for some homeowners, but you have to wonder if these tips will make any appre- ciable difference in electricity bills that are rising not because of leakywindows or unfortunately - placed sofas, but because of the government's bungling in what was once one of the best -man- aged public utilities anywhere. As QMI Agency's Lorne Goldstein noted this week, in October the provincial government paid $1 billion more for electricity than market value. Of course, someone has to pay for that billion - dollar misadventure. According to energy ana- lyst Scott Luft, it could mean an extra charge on November utility bills equaling about $30. The charge is described by the government as a Global Adjustment, "to cover the cost of build- ing new electricity infrastructure:' In plain speak, it's to cover the cost of Ontario's Green Energy program — and right now, the program is finan- cially not sustainable. You can seal a lot ofwindows, and move a lot of furniture, and you're notlikelyto save $30 on your electricity bills. Indeed, a great many Ontario homeowners have been washing and drying their laundry between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m., all for the promise of saving a few bucks a month in electricity costs. But there's little satisfaction in that exercise if you get slapped with an extra $30 charge for somethingthat's out of your control. column New sex -ed curriculum will be a breath of fresh air Tara Ostner The Clinton News Record Inn September 2015 a ewHealth and Physi- cal Education curriculum for grades 1 to 12 will be implemented in Ontario classrooms. The new curric- ulum will replace the 1998 curriculum, the most out- dated sex education and health curriculum in Can- ada. Due to the out-of-date curriculum, Ontario teach- ers currently have to seek materials and lessons from other provinces. Nevertheless, the new curriculum has people con- cemed. For instance, Folks at Parents As First Educators (PAFE), an organization that is geared towards Catholic voters, are particularly both- ered by it. As the president of PAFE, Teresa Pierre, states, "We can only assume that the Wynne Liberals are deliber- ately trying to limit the extent of public input because they want to silence their critics - ordinary Ontario parents who wish to have a say inwhat and how and when their children are introduced to sensitive material:' Others describe the con- tent of the new curriculum as "contentious: Right off the bat, I have questions. What is sensitive and contentious about health and physical education? What is sensitive and contentious about human development and sexual health? What is sensi- tive and contentious about healthy living? Critics, nevertheless, state that discussing topics such as masturbation, same-sex relationships, sexting and online pornography is "graphic" and "sexually explicit" To call masturbation, same-sex relationships, sex- ting exting and online pornogra- phy "graphic;' however, is to completely miss the point The point is that these things very much exist in today's society and, therefore, the curriculum must address them. Are these issues being introduced too early? The answer is, without a doubt, no. These things must be taught before ayoungper- son experiences them. What is the point of leaming about them after the fact? Moreover, young people will appreciate the newcur- riculum. For once they will be able to have the opportu- nityto learn about these issues in a formal and aca- demic setting and from pro- fessional and informed peo- ple as opposed to attaining it from shady, unreliable and inaccurate sources. The knowledge that they will gain will be reliable and accurate as well as enlight- ening and liberating. It will be a much awaited breath of fresh air. The majority of adults today did not have expo- sure to things such as sex- ting exting and online pomogra- phywhen they were teenagers and so we can't exactly relate to what young people are experiencing today. However, it is pre- cisely for this reason that we are not in the position to forbid discussion of them. Most importantly, though, research contin- ues to show us decade after decade that young people are more likely to delay sexual intercourse when they receive proper sex education. This should not be surprising. As with everything else in life, knowledge is power. The more that we know about something the more that we can fully appraise, understand and appreci- ate the full picture. In short, with knowledge we gain perspective. Young people today are not stupid and with proper sex education (e.g., know- ing the risks involved in sexting and online pornog- raphy) they are much more likely to act more cautiously and conservatively. Just as adults desire to be informed citizens I believe that teenagers desire this too. Today's young people want this curriculum and, more to the point, they deserve it. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR The News Record welcomes letters to the editor. All letters must be signed and include a daytime phone number for verification purposes. Letters can be sent care of the Internet at clinton.news@sunmedia.ca, sent via fax at 519-482-7341 or through Canada Post care of The Editor, P.O. Box 39, Clinton, ON NOL ILO. 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