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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2004-02-26, Page 4Looking Back Through the Years PAGE 4. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2004. Editorials Opinions Publisher, Keith Roulston Editor, Bonnie Gropp Advertising, Jamie Peters and Alicia deBoer 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 $30.00/year ($28 04 + $1.96 G.S.T.) in Canada. $80.00/year in U.S.A. and $100/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 PUBLICATIONS ASSISTANCE PROGRAM REGISTRATION NO. 09244 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO CIRCULATION DEPT. PO BOX 152 BRUSSELS ON NOG 1H0 email: norhuron@scsinternet.com We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Publications Assistance Program (PAP) toward our moiling costs. We are not responsible for unsolicited newsscripts or photographs. Contents of The Citizen are Copyright Member of the Ontario Press Council P.O. Box 429, P.O. Box 152, BLYTH, Ont. BRUSSELS, Ont. NOM 1HO NOG IHO Phone 523-4792 Phone 887-9114 FAX 523-9140 -FAX 887-9021 E-mail norhuron@scsinternet.com Website www.northhuron.on.ca ocna + CNA The Citizen ,sae Federal aid needed For beef farmers and rural communities, something good might come out of the federal'government's defensiveness over the recent sponsorship scandal. Rumours suggest a $300 million financial aid package for farmers hurt by the BSE crisis may be approved as early as this week. It's money that is badly needed though still not enough. With the U.S. border closed to live cattle, there just isn't enough capacity in Canadian packing plants to process all the cattle, resulting in continued depressed prices for Canadian beef producers. Prices are also hurt because countries that once took meat products that were unwanted in Canada, such as tongues, have banned imports of Canadian meat. The problem is worse with older cull cattle that have virtually no market at all because the meat from these animals can't be exported. And sheep producers have also been hurt because western Canadian lambs that would normally go to the U.S. are coming to Ontario instead, overloading the normally self-sufficient market here. This aid package, if it comes, on top of al: the other federal and provincial aid given earlier, won't make much of a dent in the massive losses the cattle and sheep industries have suffered since the lone case of BSE was found in Alberta last spring. Anything will be gratefully received in rural Canada however because the situation is getting desperate, and for more than just the farmers. When farmers have money they spend it with their suppliers, they give to their churches, they buy meals in restaurants and they pay their taxes. When they don't, the entire community suffers. Municipal governments, for instance, are considering substantial tax increases in an effort to balance their budgets for 2004. How are farmers supposed to pay those taxes if they're going broke? The provincial government wants farmers to implement nutrient management plans but how can they afford the capital costs and the consultants' fees under their current situation? Governments get so wrapped up in their own problems that sometimes they fail to recognize the reality out in the countryside. So new federal money won't just be a subsidy for farmers. It will be a badly-needed gift to the entire rural community. — KR Give us a moderate alternative Angry Canadians showed in their responses in polls last week that far from being forgiving of the federal Liberals over the sponsorship scandal, they were willing to punish the party. Almost overnight support for the Liberals plummeted while figures for the Conservative Party leaped upward for the first time in years. But even at the heart of that anger, the Liberals still were far ahead of the Conservatives, and with good reason. Who knows what this new party stands for? Most Canadians want a moderate government. They have no great allegiance to the Liberals but like their middle-of-the-road approach. They'd like a middle-of-the-road alternative but who knows if the moderate policies of the old Progressive Conservative Party or the more right-wing ideas of the Alliance will eventually become Conservative policy. A moderate stand would go a long way toward a victory.— KR Letter to the editor THE EDITOR, Shawn Thomson is a young man with cerebral palsy. He is confined to a wheelchair and has limited use of his arms. At 27 years of age, Shawn is a mature, passionate, determined and caring adult with a dream. Shawn wants to make a difference in the lives of others. He has developed an association with MADD Canada. To honour a family friend who was a victim of drunk driving. Shawn started plans for an awareness and fundraising initiative. Using a specially-designed bicycle (hand propelled), Shawn will be riding from Ottawa, to his hometown of Goderich, accompanied by Laurie Dinning, president, Huron/Bruce Chapter of MADD Canada. The 740-kilometre tour will take place in May 2004 and the goal is to raise $500,000. We need your help! Corporate sponsors lend credibility to the event and increase our visibility. Funds and/or material donations are needed for advertising, bike maintenance, accommodations, food, water, fuel and start up costs such as postage and communications (video production, phone, Internet, website development). We invite you to log on to our website www.shawnmaddmanthomsonbiket our.com Here you can access more detailed information regarding the bike tour and also view the video Shawn has produced. You will also find a link to the MADD Canada website that provides statistical information on the devastating effects drinking and driving has on society. Donations can be made at any Scotiabank branch along the route (Ottawa to Hwy. #2, #7, and #8 to Goderich), or they can be forwarded directly to Huron/Bruce County Chapter MADD Canada, Box 388, 153 John St. W., Wingham, ON NOG 2W0. We encourage contacting us if you require further information on Shawn, committee members, the tour and its needs. We hope you will find this cause to be as a worthwhile as Shawn has and be in a position to support the Shawn MADD MAN Thomson Bike Tour. Sincerely, The Committee. Feb. 26, 1959 Mrs. Stanley Cook and Norman Hoover were the high winners at the euchre party sponsored by the East Huron Agricultural Society. The American Physical Society was told by John A. O'Keefe, a NASA geodesist, that the earth is slightly pear-shaped with the narrow end in the Arctic and the broad base in the Antarctic. Brazil named Brasilia as its new capital. The Queen's Badge, the highest') honour in Scouting, was presented to Lloyd Skeoch of Goderich. Feb. 27, 1969 Dianne Turnbull of Grey Twp. placed first in the Junior division of the annual speed typewriting contest. Connie Mann of Bluevale was second in the same division. Max Watts purchased the D.A. Rann Furniture and Funeral Service business in Brussels. The district finals in the public speaking contest sponsored by the Royal Canadian Legion held at the Brussels Legion Hall, had 16 contestants from several municipalities across the province. Among them were Waterloo, Wiarton, Clifford and Kitchener. Feb. 23, 1972 Mrs. and Mr. Doug Callander announced that Callander Nursing Homes had been sold to Grenville Austin of Orangeville. Plans were advancing for the Brussels Centennial which was to be held on the the July 1 Canada Day long weekend. There were some changes when the committee in charge of arrangements worked out further details. A model of the new beef research centre was under construction at Elora. It was scheduled for completion in late 1972 and would house 600 cattle. H.A. (Bud) Olson, former agriculture minister, announced that the federal government was" preparing to proceed to implement a Small Farms Development Program on a natidnal basis. The Brussels Public School girls volleyball team won second place in an intermural tournament in Goderich. Feb. 26, 1986 Members of the Blyth Figure Skating Club took their turns on the ice during the club's annual achievement night. Directors were happy to receive a good annual report for the Maitland Valley Conservation Authority at the annual meeting. Councillor Graeme MacDonald was appointed as the Grey Twp. representative on the Brussels, Morris and Grey industrial committee. A landowner attended the meeting to discuss with Hullett councillors the loss of four purebred sheep and injuries to another after dogs attacked the animals. Council agreed to pay $300 each for three ewes that were in lamb and $150 for one that wasn't. Hundreds of Brussels area skating fans crowded into the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre to enjoy the Brussels Figure Skating Club's carnival. The event turned a profit of $1,300 for the skating club's activities. The Brussels Guides and Brownies held their annual mother and daughter banquet. Blyth public speaking winners were Conrad Bos, Tammi Medd, Kevin Souch, Catherine McDonald and Craig Bauman. Nearly 500 people turned out to see the new barn of Ross and Ruth Veitch in Grey Twp. and about 100 more came the next day for the tour. March 3, 1994 Brussels Curling Club hosted its annual invitational bonspeil with 14 teams competing in the event. It was good news for Brussels council with the presentation of the financial statements. The accountant from Ward & Uptigrove said the village was in good shape with a surplus of $33,973.34. Barb Knox was the recipient of the Blyth Scouting Citizenship Award for the year. After two years as principal of Brussels Public School, Howie Morton retired. Betty Battye of Blyth participated each winter for four years in the Keskinada Loppet in Gatineau Quebec, an international cross country skiing competition. In 1994 she came home with the bronze medal. Feb. 23, 1999 Students from Brussels Public School held a Winter Games competition in the spirit of the Olympic Games in Norway. Wild boars were a problem in Huron County with sightings reported from along the Maitland River. At the annual meeting George Wickie and Ivan Suggitt were re- elected to their posts as.chair and vice-chair, respectively, for the Maitland Valley Conservation Authority. The Blyth Ventures hosted a duck/turkey dinner. Seven retiring directors for the Maitland Valley Conservation Authority received certificates in recognition of their many years of service. The 1994 budget for the Maitland Valley Conservation Authority was expected to drop about 8.5 per cent to $2,207,105 from $2,413,990.