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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2013-10-03, Page 4PAGE 4. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2013.Editorials Opinions Publisher: Keith Roulston Acting Editor: Shawn Loughlin • Reporter: Denny Scott Advertising Sales: Lori Patterson & Sue Brindley The Citizen P.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 October 5, 1961 The Brussels Centennial Fall Fair drew 3,000 people to the event, which also showcased a number of “high quality” exhibits. The fair was opened when the Brussels Legion Pipe Band and the Seaforth District High School Trumpet Band led approximately 20 schools to the fairgrounds for the centennial event. Bert Yuill of RR5, Brussels was the first prize winner at the Brussels Livestock Sales Yards Stocker and Feeder Sale. George Wheeler took second place. The sale was reported as “very good” with 814 yearlings and calves making their way through the sales rings for total sales over $127,000. A steel structure bridge on the 12th concession of Grey Township was moved to a new location on the farm of Ken Tyerman. The contractors in charge of the move were Sam Sweeney of Brussels and Don Nicholson of Monkton. It was reported in The Brussels Post that the move greatly improved the property of the Tyerman family. Ethel Presbyterian Church was set to host its anniversary service on Sunday, Oct. 15. October 5, 1988 After a $450,000 grant was announced for the Blyth Festival from the federal government, Huron-Bruce MP Murray Cardiff was pictured on the front page of The Citizen receiving a kiss on the cheek from both Festival Artistic Director Katherine Kaszas and former board of directors president Sheila Richards. The funding would go towards the Festival’s $1.8 million capital expansion project. Brussels Village Council began discussing its annual measures to combat vandalism on Halloween night. The measures included leaving no garbage out on the street that could potentially be burned by vandals. It was reported that a Kitchener developer planned to develop the old Belgrave Hotel to its previous use, but had to first battle the government before any changes to the building could be made. The Huron and Bruce Districts of the Ontario Public School Teachers’ Federation was bringing in one of the country’s top educators, Lloyd Dennis, to speak in Wingham, presenting his views on the realities of education in the day’s society. October 5, 2006 Incumbent North Huron Reeve Doug Layton was squaring off against Neil Vincent for the reeve’s position in the upcoming municipal election. In Morris-Turnberry, Councillor Neil Warwick was taking a run at incumbent Mayor Dorothy Kelly in the race for her position. Four candidates were vying for three councillor positions in the Morris Ward of Morris-Turnberry, including incumbents Edna McLellan and Paul Gowing and newcomers Mark Beaven and Ken Warwick. In Central Huron, both Reeve Bert Dykstra and Deputy-Reeve John Bezaire returned to their incumbent positions, acclaimed to the chairs. As a result of the election, school boards in Huron and Perth Counties remained largely unchanged. More than $1,000 of damage had been done to several kiosks along the Greenway Trail in Blyth as a result of vandalism. A group of area florists were raising money for the Huron County breast cancer screening clinic. It was the third year that the “Take Care” campaign had taken place. October 4, 2012 Quebec MP Justin Trudeau spent some time in Seaforth talking with Liberal Party supporters. Approximately 300 tickets had been sold to the event that included some time with Trudeau and a world class meal prepared, in part, by local chef and Part II Bistro owner Peter Gusso. Speaking, in addition to Trudeau, at the event were former MPP Murray Elston and Huron County Warden and Huron East Mayor Bernie MacLellan. Interim Artistic Director at the Blyth Festival Peter Smith was busy in his first week on the job trying to find actors for A Country Carol, a Christmas play he hoped to produce with local actors. Wingham’s Stephanie Currie began her time at the Emergency Services Training Centre just south of Blyth as its new program co- ordinator. She said she hoped to continue on the path of the late Fire Department of North Huron Chief John Black. Walton-area business Barmy Tech celebrated its 20th anniversary. The business has been producing canvas bags for several different businesses over the course of those two decades. Blyth Festival Artistic Director Eric Coates bid farewell to the Festival after spending over 10 years in its top spot. With his parting words, he urged the people of Blyth and its surrounding communities to support the Festival, saying that it is supported well at both the federal and provincial levels, so too does it need to be supported at its local level, he said. 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 Who’d want the job? The job of a municipal councillor is never easy but for more and more councils like Huron East, it’s getting harder as provincial cutbacks squeeze their income. Huron East councillors are currently debating the level of service they should provide their residents given their subsidy from the province under the Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund was reduced $134,000 in 2013. Brad Knight, Huron East’s chief administrative officer, told his council taxes would need to be increased by three per cent just to cover this reduction. What’s worse, similar provincial cuts are expected in each of the next three years. Under our constitution, municipalities are the creation of the provinces and over the years Ontario governments have treated them like puppets. Provincial governments of all political stripes have used their power to require local governments to provide increased services. Often there’s a carrot with the stick, with the province offering to provide at least partial funding to pay for the new service. But sooner or later some provincial politician or bureaucrat, looking for ways to cut the province’s budget, decides the subsidies aren’t needed anymore. Of course they expect the service to continue. The people who make these cuts at the provincial level never have to deal with the consequences of their decision. If a local council raises taxes to make up for less provincial funding, it’s the local politicians who will face the ire of taxpayers. If other municipal services are cut in order to keep paying for provincially-mandated services, again the frustration of local residents will be vented against councillors. When it comes to decisions on how municipal money is to be spent, taxpayers are second in line in terms of influence – after the province’s priorities as to where money should be spent. Our local councillors, who are the politicians closest to their constituents, are at the mercy of both provincially-mandated services and on the whims of the province when it comes to funding those services. Constitutional change is almost impossible in Canada but if it could be done, restructuring the balance between municipalities and provincial governments should be one of the first orders of business. –KR Right is right Everybody, in the western world at least, holds up democracy as the most important of our institutions. Even those who claim to believe in democracy can have a hard time, however, when the majority supports something they think is wrong. As of Tuesday morning (here’s hoping sanity will have prevailed by the time you read this) the United States government had been virtually shut down because Republicans in the House of Representatives refused to support a temporary spending bill unless President Barack Obama agreed to suspend the implementation of health care reforms for a year. Not all Republicans support the action but a small group, about 40 in all, who represent the rabidly right wing Tea Party wing of the party, are insisting they get their way. More moderate Republicans are afraid to oppose the radicals because the Tea Party has been successful in targeting its enemies within the party and seeing they don’t win the Republican nomination the next time there’s an election. The sad irony for the Republicans is that the very right wing policies they must adopt to satisfy the Tea Party faction, are opposed by the majority of Americans and will keep the party from its goal of achieving power. In the 2012 Presidential election Mitt Romney turned himself into a pretzel trying to appear right wing enough to satisfy Tea Party Republicans and win the Republican nomination, then trying to appear moderate enough to convince ordinary voters to support him. Despite Romney’s acrobatics, Americans supported Obama and despite vicious attacks by the Republican right wingers, they supported Obamacare. For Tea Partiers the majority was stupid, therefore democratic results don’t matter. They are right and must save their country, even if they bankrupt it. They don’t accept that democracy means yielding to the wisdom of the majority, even if you sometimes don’t agree. –KR & Letters Policy 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.