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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2013-09-26, Page 4PAGE 4. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2013.Editorials Opinions Publisher: Keith Roulston Acting Editor: Shawn Loughlin • Reporter: Denny ScottAdvertising Sales: Lori Patterson & Sue Brindley The CitizenP.O. Box 429, BLYTH, Ont. N0M 1H0 Ph. 519-523-4792 Fax 519-523-9140 P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, Ont. N0G 1H0 Phone 519-887-9114 E-mail info@northhuron.on.ca Website www.northhuron.on.ca Looking Back Through the Years CCNA Member Member of the Ontario Press Council 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; $130.00/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 N0G 1H0 email: info@northhuron.on.ca September 28, 1988 Irvin Bowes officially retired as chief of the Blyth and District Fire Department. In thanking him for his years of service to the community, he was given a portrait of himself by Blyth Reeve Albert Wasson and Morris Reeve Doug Fraser. During his retirement celebration, Bowes was also presented with a 40- year medal of service from the Ontario Fire Marshal’s office. Seventeen-year-old Murray Townsend of RR3, Seaforth returned home from the International Plowing Match in Stratford with the match’s top honour. The movie Young Guns, starring Keifer Sutherland, Emilio Estevez, Charlie Sheen and Lou Diamond Phillips was playing at the Park Theatre in Goderich. September 27, 2000 Numbers were up in many areas of the Brussels Fall Fair, organizers said, with Homecraft President Liz DeWit saying that attendance at the fair was “better than it’s ever been”. One of the areas that showed a promising rise in attendance was the 4-H beef show, which had 23 participants, up from just 15 the previous year. Candidates continued to file their nomination papers for the upcoming election, as both Jeff Howson and Murray Nesbitt made it official that they would be challenging current Blyth Reeve Mason Bailey for the Blyth councillor seats. Nesbitt, who was just completing his first term as councillor, said that after sitting on the North Huron Transition Board, created in the face of impending amalgamation, he said he wanted to remain on the board and see the process through. He said he wanted to see the process through not only for his own personal satisfaction, but for the good of the community. Members of the Brussels Fire Department took to the softball field for their annual “grudge match” against the Grey Fire Department. The Maitland Valley Conservation Authority was set to hold its annual fall colour tour. The event had traditionally included wagon rides through the Wawanosh Nature Centre and guidance from a nature centre staffer who answers questions related to the changing of the leaves and how plants and animals prepare themselves for the winter. September 28, 2006 The Brussels Dam Rejuvenation Project, which was sponsored by the Brussels Optimist Club, received over $35,000 in Trillium funding, which proved to be a big boost for the project. In addition to sponsorship from the Optimists, the project was also supported by a number of other village service groups. The total cost of the project was slated to be just under $120,000. Plans for a new beef processing plant in Brussels were moving ahead after the formation of a project steering committee. “The key to making this thing work is to produce a high quality product that suits the exact specifications of what the market is looking for,” said Huron East Mayor Joe Seili. St. Augustine Catholic Church officially held its final mass and closing ceremony on Sept. 24. As part of the ceremony, a final blessing took place, which signified that the building was to no longer be a church. September 27, 2012 The Blyth Public School was sold to an anonymous bidder at an auction sale on Sept. 20. The reserve bid on the school of $210,000 was not met, but bidders in attendance did go as high as $100,000 during the auction. The eventual winner of the property wished to remain anonymous and later brokered a deal with the Avon Maitland District School Board for the purchase price of $210,000. While both attendance and submissions were down at the annual Brussels Fall Fair, Brussels Agricultural Society President Nicole Noble still said it was a great two days that did well to celebrate the Brussels way of life. One of the events that garnered the most attention was a cake decorating contest, that included Huron East Mayor and Huron County Warden Bernie MacLellan, Fair Ambassador Meagan Dolmage and Brussels Fire Chief Murray McArter. Noble added that she was encouraged by the participation in the fair from North Woods Elementary, formerly Grey Central Public School. In the wake of the closure of Brussels Public School, Noble said that because so much of the fair is dependant on student participation, the involvement from North Woods meant a lot. Morris-Turnberry Council began its restructuring process as councillors began to look ahead to the 2014 election when the municipality planned to abolish its ward system and reduce the number of councillors by two. The Huron County Fastball League’s year-end tournament was washed out by a weekend rain storm, which moved it one weekend later. The final games of the year were set to take place at the Optimists ballpark in Brussels. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Periodical Fund of the Department of Canadian Heritage. We are not responsible for unsolicited newsscripts or photographs. Contents of The Citizen are © Copyright Be cautious of merger mania Seeking efficiencies in government services is always a welcome move, but here’s hoping there’s plenty of due diligence undertaken before Huron County Council’s suggestion that the Huron and Perth Health Units merge becomes accomplished. There seems to be merger mania in governments of all levels these days – a sense that everything will be more efficient if it’s bigger. Sometimes that belief is taken for granted and a momentum takes over so that decision-makers don’t slow down to take a cold, hard look at what is actually being gained and lost. There is no doubt, for instance, that municipal amalgamation has allowed local municipalities to offer more services, such as economic development. On the other hand taxes have gone up to cover those services. Efficiency then can be interpreted on what’s more important to you: being able to offer more or keeping taxes down. There’s also the issue of engagement – of members of the public feeling the government belongs to them. Whether it’s ever-bigger school boards or amalgamated municipalities, there’s little doubt that the sense of ownership of government has diminished among the public. When you knew all the trustees of your local community school board or when you could walk into the municipal office on your village’s main street and know the name of the person you dealt with, you felt much more involved in your government. So by all means take a look at the potential efficiencies of amalgamation of services such as health units, but take the time to truly examine the gains and losses. Don’t assume bigger is better. –KR How stupid must it get? Nothing, it seems, will change the minds of the people who support the continuation of fighting in hockey, even sickening/silly brawls like the one that took place in a game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Buffalo Sabres Sunday. The brawl started when Buffalo Coach Ron Rolston sent out the hulking John Scott to engage a Leaf in a fight as retribution for an earlier fight in which a Sabre had been hurt. The trouble is the Leafs had sent out their highest scorer, Phil Kessel, to line up against Scott instead of sending out a designated fighter. Scott told Kessel he was going to fight him anyway as soon as the puck was dropped. Kessel, tiny by comparison, used his stick to defend himself and the brawl was on. One Toronto player, the highly-paid free agent David Clarkson, left the bench to defend his teammate and will be suspended for 10 games for the infraction, hurting his team. Kessel will also likely be punished, although the terms of the punishment aren’t known as this is written. The Buffalo coach, the guy who started it all, and Scott, who precipitated the brawl, will probably get the lightest punishment, if they’re punished at all because they were just living by the unwritten code of hockey. How stupid must hockey look before its leadership finally decides to join the 21st century? –KR Leave it to God to judge Pope Francis made news last week when he suggested that the Roman Catholic Church should stop obsessing over issues like contraception and homosexuality. The Pope didn’t change his church’s position on such things, but he suggested too much energy was being expended when there were other issues to be dealt with. It’s a trait strangely common among most religions that they believe that in the end, God will judge the sins of mankind, yet they can’t seem to stop themselves from trying to anticipate God and enforce what they see are God’s standards on their fellow humans. If people are “sinning” in ways that range from women exposing themselves in skimpy clothing for Muslim fundamentalists to homosexuality for most religions and no one else is hurt, why not leave it to their God to judge? –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.