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The Citizen, 2016-03-31, Page 4PAGE 4. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, MARCH 31, 2016. Editorials Opinions Publisher: Keith Roulston Editor: Shawn Loughlin • Reporter: Denny Scott Advertising Sales: Lori Patterson & Brenda Nyveld 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 $36.00/year ($34.29 + $1.71 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. PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT NO. 40050141 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO CIRCULATION DEPT. PO BOX 152 BRUSSELS ON NOG 1H0 email: info@northhuron.on.ca The Citizen P.O. Box 429, BLYTH, Ont. NOM 1H0 Ph. 519-523-4792 Fax 519-523-9140 P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, Ont. NOG 1H0 Phone 519-887-9114 E-mail info@northhuron.on.ca Website www.northhuron.on.ca Canada ..ocna CCNA Member of the Ontario Press Council We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Periodical Fund of the We are not responsible for unsolicited newsscripts or Department of Canadian Heritage. photographs. Contents of The Citizen are © Copyright CMCA AUDITED Be careful what you wish for Farmers and rural residents often bemoan the lack of interest national media show toward rural issues, but sometimes they may wish they continued to be ignored. Heading the top of the list of national stories on the Toronto Star's website Monday morning this week was a large photo and story about 44 dairy cows that were unfortunately killed in a Waterloo -area barn fire. It's the kind of story that, until recently, might have received attention from community newspapers like The Citizen or local radio stations, but not national media. That was before the story in early January of 43 race horses dying in a multi-million dollar barn fire near Guelph. In the ranking of animals by urbanites, horses come next to dogs and cats in the sympathy scale. Some rural people at the time noted that barn fires are an unfortunate semi - regular occurrence and that if it hadn't been horses that were killed, the national media wouldn't probably have noticed. Well, that fire seemed to put barn fires on the radar of news editors. A few days later, 12 horses died in another fire near Mount Forest. Soon barn fires involving cattle and pigs also began getting national attention. The death of farm animals is a tragedy for the animals and heart- breaking for the farmer who owns them so it's not the shared sympathy of urbanites that's a concern, it's the unrealistic solutions they may demand on behalf of the animals. In the wake of the Guelph fire, there were pointed references to the fact that the barn was not equipped with a sprinkler system. With every well-publicized fire that takes the lives of farm animals, the pressure is likely to grow for governments to require such expensive protection. For the vast majority of farms, this is just unrealistic. Some barns simply couldn't be so equipped. Even for large new barns the cost would be prohibitive. What's more, farmers can't recover these costs because the price they get is capped by consumers who will buy cheap imported foods, often from countries with less animal protection than our farms currently provide, if prices rise. Every farmer, for the sake of his animals and his bottom line, should examine his barn and take all precautions to prevent fires. Still, the kind of precautions urban media and animal -lovers might prescribe are likely to be unrealistic. — KR Time for sober second thought Of all the promises the federal Liberals made as they sought election last fall, the one with endless fascination for the media seems to be the pledge to legalize marijuana. Initially all the attention focused on the opinion that "it's about time" but now, slowly, the detriments of the proposed change are coming to light. Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) has warned that people are likely to die as drivers who are high on pot get behind the wheel. Colorado, where use of the drug was legalized, saw a 32 per cent increase in marijuana -related traffic deaths. Marijuana was a factor in 20 per cent of traffic fatalities, double the number of five years earlier. The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) in Toronto conducts surveys of high school students and has found that teenagers are twice as likely to drive after smoking pot than after drinking. The CAMH has also been conducting simulated driving tests of volunteers who regularly use marijuana with some of those tested declaring they can compensate for being high and be just as good, if not a better, driver. The reality of the driving tests, however, shows that after smoking pot, people have problems coping with distractions. Police, without a handy test like the breathalyzer used to detect people who drink alcohol, are unable to detect who is impaired. Finding those who are high is difficult for police because there's no way to accurately test for how much THC, the hallucinogenic chemical in marijuana, a driver may have in his blood. So far, there's not even an accepted level (such as the .08 level of alcohol in the blood) that has been established as the threshold for safety. These problems may be solved eventually but until they are, the government has a responsibility to other drivers on the road not to legalize marijuana. This is one promise that anyone who can think clearly will forgive the Liberals not fulfilling — KR Letters Policy The Citizen welcomes letters to the editor. Letters must be signed and should include a daytime telephone number for the purpose of verification only. Letters that are not signed will not be printed. Submissions may be edited for length, clarity and content, using fair comment as our guideline. The Citizen reserves the right to refuse any letter on the basis of unfair bias, prejudice or inaccurate information. As well, letters can only be printed as space allows. Please keep your letters brief and concise. Looking ThroughBack the Years April 1, 1959 The annual meeting for subscribers of the Blyth Municipal Telephone System was held at Memorial Hall and those in attendance heard that much progress had been made in 1958. The Senior Choir of Blyth United Church presented a special Cantata for Easter entitled "The Glory of the Cross" under the direction of Miss M. Jackson. The Canadian Cancer Society was continuing its work throughout Blyth and beyond with a goal of raising $2.75 million to help expand the effort and to keep cancer under control, The Blyth Standard reported. In addition to its support of research, the society said it was crucial to continue its educational program as well, which was designed to help motivate people to seek early treatment for cancer. April 2, 1969 The Brussels men's broomball team was victorious in its North Huron season, defeating a team from Jamestown to capture the crown. Brussels won the first two games of the best -of -three series by scores of 3-1 and 1-0. The men's team was the only Brussels broomball team to bring a trophy back to the village in the 1968/1969 season. It was time again for the Brussels 4-H Calf Club to begin its season, and with that the club brought in a new executive. Neil Hemingway would serve as the club's president, while Warren Knight would be its vice-president and Ray Hemingway would be its secretary. A mixed bonspiel ended the Brussels Curling Club's season. Neil Hemingway and his team came up with the win for the 9 a.m. draw, while Max Oldfield and his team prevailed in the 11 a.m. draw. Robert Davidson of Brussels celebrated his 90th birthday with a group of family and friends. Described as an independent man who loved to read, Davidson was said to enjoy a walk throughout downtown Brussels every day. March 26, 1986 In a recorded vote that passed 18 to 12, Huron County Council brought in its budget for 1986 with a 4.6 per cent increase. The budget totalled nearly $19 million and included the Huronview project, which had proven controversial in recent months. A burglary attempt at the offices of Howson and Howson Limited yielded nothing but a handful of candy on March 24. Sometime after 3 a.m. that morning, burglars made entry into the office by way of breaking through a window in the rear of the offices and then breaking every filing cabinet in the office. Police were busy investigating, but had no one in custody at the time. Nine local students were among the nearly 50 who won free trips to Expo 1986, which was set to be held in Vancouver. The students would be able to make their way west thanks to the Western Student Exchange, a program spearheaded by Pacific Western Airlines and the Expo. A Londesborough house was found to be damaged beyond repair as the result of a fire that was believed to have started in the trash. Blyth Fire Chief Irvin Bowes said that the fire began in the home's trash, worked its way through the grass and then to the woodshed at the back of the house. The family of Robert Kiddy, residents of the home, had no idea until the fire ignited a drum of kerosene in the woodshed that exploded as a result of the spreading fire. April 3, 2002 The Brussels PeeWee Rep Bulls defeated Deseronto in all three of the teams' games, sweeping the team on their way to the All -Ontario D crown. The Bulls won the final game of the series by a score of 6-1, getting out to an early three -goal lead in the first period and never looking back as they played in front of the standing -room -only crowd at the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre. Matt McClinchey led the way for the team, sealing the deal with a hat trick in the Bulls' final game of the season. After 25 years of service to the Blyth community, over 100 people turned out to volunteer their time and muscle to tear down the village's old arena. "I am overwhelmed with the unbelievable turnout and want to acknowledge the people who came out to assist and support this project," said Dwight Chalmers, who was instrumental in organizing both the work and the volunteers. With two Novice teams on the ice this year, there were two winners of the Luke Anderson Memorial Award: Trevor Raynard and Matt Popp. The Brussels Local League Bulls, in tough against Hanover, came up just short in their final series of the season. The best -of -three series was tied at one game, but the Brussels team suffered a 3-2 loss at the hands of Hanover to end their season on a sour note.