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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2011-07-07, Page 4PAGE 4. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, JULY 7, 2011.Editorials Opinions Publisher: Keith Roulston Acting Editor: Shawn Loughlin • Reporter: Denny ScottAdvertising Sales: Ken Warwick & Lori Patterson The Citizen P.O. Box 429, BLYTH, Ont. N0M 1H0 Phone 523-4792 FAX 523-9140 P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, Ont. N0G 1H0 Phone 887-9114 E-mail norhuron@scsinternet.com 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 $34.00/year ($32.38 + $1.62 G.S.T.) in Canada; $115.00/year in U.S.A. and $175/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: Monday, 2 p.m. - Brussels; Monday, 4 p.m. - Blyth. PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT NO. 40050141 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO CIRCULATION DEPT. PO BOX 152 BRUSSELS ON N0G 1H0 email: norhuron@scsinternet.com July 10, 1974 Blyth Village Council won its fight to bring a motor vehicle licensing office to the village. At its July 8 meeting, Blyth Council received a letter from Huron-Bruce MPP Murray Gaunt saying the establishment of a bureau for Blyth had been officially approved. The question was initially asked at the beginning of the year when council wrote a letter to the Department of Transport and Communication requesting an office. The initial request was denied, but council then asked Gaunt to intervene on behalf of the village, which he did. Planning for a potential mobile home park was also discussed by Blyth Council. Due to the growing concerns of numerous Blyth residents, Blyth Council had begun investigating the hiring of a special constable to police the village on the weekends. Clerk-Treasurer Larry Walsh was instructed to get in touch with the Ontario Provincial Police in regards to what jurisdiction the council would have to hire such an officer. Morris Township Council approved a payment towards the expansion of Blyth Union Cemetery at its July 3 meeting. Council agreed to contribute $600 toward the expansion. Robert E. McKinley was elected in the Huron-Middlesex riding once again, beating Liberal John Lyndon by a majority of 7,000 votes. While his victory was touted as impressive, his votes were down significantly from 1972 when he won the riding with a majority of 10,000 votes. McKinley said his election was considered an anniversary present in his house, as he and his wife celebrated their 24th wedding anniversary on the night of the election. The Blyth Public Utilities Commission announced that electricity rates would be increased, reflecting the billings after September 1. July 2, 1986 Leah Cherniak and Daniel Brooks from Theatre Columbus were in Blyth running a five-week workshop teaching local drama students how to properly clown around. Lessons for the week included teaching the students the timing, rhythm, character development and movement associated with a clown. In addition, there were also special classes that included juggling, stage combat, magic, music and other clown techniques. The workshop was to culminate with a performance at the end of the five weeks created by the participants and Cherniak and Brooks. Rehearsals were beginning for the Blyth Festival’s next two plays, Suzanne Finlay’s Gone To Glory and Lily, Alta by Kenneth Dyba. The season had already opened with performances of Another Season’s Promise and Drift. The Huron County Library began its summer programs at local libraries, including branches in Ethel, Belmore, Bluevale and Gorrie. July 1, 2004 Local hockey prodigy Justin Peters was drafted into the NHL in the 2004 NHL entry draft, being selected by the Carolina Hurricanes. Peters, the son of Jeff and Janice, was ranked as the 38th overall pick and was selected by the Hurricanes in the second round. He was one of eight players to join the Hurricanes in the 2004 draft. The draft was hosted in Carolina, where Peters’ family accompanied him to help calm his nerves. Huron-Bruce MP Paul Steckle was re-elected for fourth term on June 28. Steckle celebrated his victory at Sacred Heart Parish Hall in Wingham with his family and dozens of Liberal Party supporters. Steckle won by a relative landslide, beating his closest opponent by nearly 10,000 votes. Steckle defeated the NDP’s Grant Robertson and the Conservative Party’s Barb Fisher. The Bluewater Kennel Club Dog Show and Obedience Trials returned to Blyth for its 22nd annual show. Entries were slightly down from previous years, but organizer Florence Pullen said there were still well over 400 dogs registered for the event. The Morning Star Rebekah Lodge wrapped up its meetings for the summer, holding its final warm weather meeting on June 22. The next meeting would be held on Sept. 14. For the 2004-2005 school year, the Avon Maitland District School Board designated the hiring of nine more full-time staff members. This was in response to a government- mandated reduction in class sizes, which required many schools to hire more teachers. Huron East Councillor Mark Beaven raised a motion at a council meeting to have local internet providers block any website that could potentially promote child pornography. This suggestion to council came after the murder of Holly Jones in Toronto. The Blyth Festival’s annual day camp for children began its stint. The day camps, hosted by the Young Company, were planning on promoting the inner artist within those who attended. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Periodical Fund (CPF) for our publishing activities. We are not responsible for unsolicited newsscripts or photographs. Contents of The Citizen are © Copyright We can learn from the north As the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (William and Kate) tour Canada this week, they’re learning a little about the different parts of the country they visit. Canadians can learn along with them. Take, for instance, their visit on Tuesday to the Youth Parliament at the legislative assembly of the Northwest Territories in Yellowknife and the explanation they received of the territory’s consensus government. Certainly our federal and provincial politicians, who practice an adversarial form of government, might serve their electorate well if they learned something about the northern ways. On a wider basis, however, perhaps even our local governments could learn how to better engage their local residents by looking at institutions likes the territory’s Youth Parliament. It brings young people from across the territory together to research community concerns, meet with Members of the Legislative Assembly to discuss issues, and learn more about the legislative process, such as how legislation gets passed. In Northwest Territories they also have an Elders Parliament once a year, a program designed to allow elders to voice concerns on issues that affect them. These efforts help broaden the scope of government, give people from groups that might be overlooked an opportunity to be heard and feel involved in their government. Compare this to the alienation that leads many not to vote in federal and provincial elections or to the lack or awareness of the municipal government that sees abysmal voter turnouts. Imagine how much richer our local communities might be if local governments adopted the northern model and brought together groups with special interests whether youth, seniors, farmers or business people on an annual basis to try to get a wider view of how the community could be bettered? Part of that betterment could just be getting people to think about their community and their municipal government more often. Usually a council chamber is empty except when someone has an issue to bring to council. We should be open to new ideas. Maybe we can learn from northerners how to improve government here in Huron County. — KR A shift in perception If the polls continue as they are, it seems likely Ontario voters will turf the Liberal government of Premier Dalton McGuinty in this fall’s provincial election. It might be ironic that one of the items that seems to be contributing to the government’s unpopularity may be the accomplishment that is most remembered about this government 50 years from now. Through the Feed in Tariff (FiT) portion of the Green Energy Act, the whole mindset of Ontarians toward renewable energy has been changed. For decades, for instance, we have talked about generating electricity from the sun, but it didn’t happen until FiT payments of 80 cents per kilowatt hour made a lot of people into solar advocates. Travel through Huron County countryside (or the rest of the province) and you won’t go many miles these days without seeing a solar panel in a farmyard or, increasingly, on rooftops. Thousands more such projects are hung up in a slow Ontario Power Authority approval process. Certainly the critics are right in their complaint that we can’t afford to pay 80 cents to generate electricity over the long haul, but something dramatic was needed to get our attention. Already the cost of solar panels has been falling as manufacturers can scale up production (and create jobs). This means that in future we should be able to get solar-generated electricity less expensively. Another important mental shift has been that solar electricity has turned thousands of people into generators, not just consumers, of electricity. Our power grid has thousands of thousands of small sources of electricity, instead of a few massive developments. If Tim Hudak’s Progressive Conservatives are elected, they promise to undo much of the Green Energy Act. Let’s hope they can’t reverse the shift of perception that has taken place about green energy. — 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.