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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuron Expositor, 2014-11-26, Page 44 Huron Expositor • Wednesday, November 26, 2014 1 1 www.seaforthhuronexpositorcom Ilion Expositor PUBLISHED WEEKLY — EST. 1860 P.O. Box 69, 8 Main Street Seaforth Ontario NOK 1 WO phone: 519-527-0240 fax: 519-527-2858 www.seaforthhuronexpositor SUN MEDIA A Quebecor Media Company NEIL CLIFFORD Publisher neil.clifford@sunmedia.ca MAXWELL BICKFORD Advertising Rep. max.bickford@sunmedia.ca DIANNE MCGRATH Front Office seaforth.classifieds@sunmedia.ca WHITNEY SOUTH Multimedia Journalist seaforth.news©sunmedia.ca MARIE DAVID Sun Media Group Publisher Grey Bruce Huron Division 519-364-2001 or 519-372-4301 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 DST) Publications Mail Agreement No. 40064683 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT RO. Box 69 Seaforth ON NOK "IWO For any non -deliveries or delivery concerns: phone: 519-527-0240 Advertising is accepted on condition that in the event of a typographical error, the advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. In the event of a typographical error, advertising goods or services at a wrong price, goods or services may not be sold. Advertising is merely an offer to sell and may be withdrawn at any time. The Huron Expositor is not responsible for the loss or damage of unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other materials used for reproduction purposes. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canadian Periodical Fund (CPP) for our publishing activities. Canada' editorial Where's the outrage? OM Agency Many Canadians claim to care about the CBC, its integrity and credibility. These same people believe it is deeply tied to our national identity. If that is truly the case, these same Canadians should be demanding answers right now. What did those at the top know about the Dan Ghomeshi scandal, and when did they know it? Alternatively, why didn't theyknow? And how could they not know? What protection, or lack thereof, was offered to the few, brave CBC employees who brought allegations of sexual harass- ment and assault to management's attention? Are there more victims? How far back do these allegations go? Are there other alleged perpetrators? For politicians who constantly ask us to have faith in our public institutions, surely this same principle should apply to Cana- da's public broadcaster. The Conservatives have shown extraor- dinary discipline in this controversy. As the old adage goes, don't step in when the enemy is imploding on its own, lest the media narrative in the Ghomeshi scandal quickly pivots against them to, "Conservatives taking advantage of embattled public broadcaster' It's understandable the Conservatives want to be hands off— but is that good enough? Should concern over political criticism by people who don't like the Conserva- tives anyway, and who think the CBC is an integral part of our identity, be some- thing to worry about here? What about the NDP and Liberals? What's their agenda? Are the opposition parties too comfort- able with the CBC, too afraid of offending the public broadcaster? How about Canada's usuallyvocal feminists? Their beloved CBC is in a tailspin. Surely theywant it to be saved by root- ing out its perceived rotten culture of sex- ism and fear, and by standing up for its beleaguered employees? If this is the state of affairs we find our- selves in, where our elected officials pre- fer silence to asking legitimate questions of the public broadcaster, then we have failed the few brave women who have come forward with their stories of alleged abuse at the CBC. The message that sends to others still afraid to come forward is to keep quiet and continue to live in fear. Let's face facts — this appears to be the tip of an iceberg and the CBC — the Titanic of Canadian public institutions — has taken a direct hit. Left unchecked, it's going to get worse before it gets better. Judy Rebick, Justin Trudeau, Thomas Mulcair, Fli7abeth May, Margaret Atwood, Kellie Leitch and other "women power" proponents, we have to ask: Where is your outrage? Where are the demonstrations? Where is the demand for answers, accountability and transparency from the CBC? Crucial questions must be answered to save the public broadcaster's reputation, and to get to the bottom of serious and possibly criminal allegations of sexual harassment and assault. Why are those who claim to fight for women's rights so silent? Why aren't they screaming mad that the CBC is investigating itself and that the scope of that inquiry is very limited. Well-known employment lawyer How- ard Levitt told Sun News last week other CBC employees across Canada have spo- ken to him. As he put it: "Let's assume, for the moment, that (there's) somebody, and I have spoken to a couple of women and their story is consistent with what we have heard, but they are beyond the limitation period:' Who cares about their experiences? Will their claims ever be investigated? It doesn't matter if sexual harassment and assault occur on a factory floor in rural Nova Scotia, a newsroom in Toronto, or on Parliament Hill. It's unacceptable as is the apparent lack of outrage from people who have made careers out of being outraged. The national discussion is being held now. The red flags are waving. If you question Canada's public broad- caster and its explanation of what appears to be a massive scandal, it's not enough to sit back and tweet. Hashtags won't fix this. Pressuring MPs in all parties to get serious about investi- gating the CBC might The CBC belongs to all of us, and right nowwe can think of one billion reasons — the size of the CBC's annual public subsidy — that heads should roll. City mouse goes home Column Whitney South Huron Expositor The past weekend, I made what was proba- bly one of my last trips back to Kitchener for a while. I say this because, as I discovered last year, winters can get pretty hectic around these parts - granted winter hasn't officially started yet, but tell that to Mother Nature - and the driving isn't always favourable in the blustery months. It seems each and every time I head `home' I reali 7e something different about myself, and what it means to live in a rural community like Seaforth. This trip was no different. I started off the weekend with a wonderful dinner out with a good friend. She talked about her adventures in the dat- ing scene, the agony of early -morning Star- bucks lineups and the pure sense of defeat she felt at the hands of her car mechanic. I just couldn't relate. On Saturday, my mother and I ran a few errands and attended a dear friend's art show at city hall. During the excursion, my mother experienced the anxiety that comes with city driving - 10 minutes to go six blocks, really - and even more frustrating, cityparking. Again, I couldn't relate. In the evening, we headed out to yet another dinner, this time with my cousins who were in from Toronto. They talked about their insane commute times, five star eating establishments and the insanity of the mall now that the Christ- mas season was approaching. And still, I couldn't relate. Fast forward to later when I made an appear- ance at a friend's birthday party. As the girls got ready to head out to the local `country bar' I sat in silence, listening to their thoughts and ideas about which purses or boots were considered more `country: Should theytake a cab home after? Do they have any clubs in Seaforth? Hey - why do you keep a shovel in your trunk? You guessed it, still couldn't relate. Over the years, I've lived in a lot of places. From Toronto to Vancouver, I've always been able to relate to some aspect of the local culture in the places I've called home. And, I'd like to think I've taken a piece of each of these communities with me wherever I go. To be honest, when I moved to Huron County I never in a million years thought I wouldn't feel a city mouse visiting their country cousin. For some reason though, I've found myself most at home here in this community. Maybe it's the quiet, maybe it's the clear night skies full of a million stars or maybe it's just the people I've been lucky enough to call friends. I guess I'll never really lcnow. So, as for the city life? They can keep it.