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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuron Expositor, 2007-05-16, Page 4Page 4 May 16, 2007 • The Huron Expositor Opinion Proprietor and Publisher, Bowes Publishers Limited, 11 Main St., Seaforth, ON, NOK 10,10 The Net is still most accessible to urban and wealthy Ontarians It wasn't so long ago that Ontarians seeking answers could let their fingers do the walking in the blue pages and, soon thereafter, find them- selves chatting with a government employee that, at the least, could point them in the right direction. Sadly, however, such is no longer the case. The Government of Ontario, like the federal gov- ernment before it, is increasingly turning to voice automation and the internet as a way to purported- ly streamline its services. Theseare moves that go unnoticed bysome since the Net generation, which is alreay computer savvy, finds the process to be the way of the world. And yet, it must be asked how welcome these moves are seen to the senior -citizen generation and the aging Boomer population since, it is not true that every home in the province is home to a com- puter, internet access and the latest and greatest in software that makes the downloading of govern- ment forms possible and plausible. Indeed, this shift towards Net -focused servicing also leaves families that are not flush with cash out in the cold. Nor is it the most handy of services to those in rural areas, like Grey ward of Huron East, that are not yet blessed with high-speed internet access. Granted, the province is handing over cash to possible community internet service providers, like branch libraries, in order to allow them to ensure internet access is on hand. Yet, one Must ask to whether Ontarians desire a government that's services are only accessible via the sometimes insecure World Wide Web. Indeed, one must also ask what security mea- sures are in place to ensure the reams of informa- tion that are inputted on government sites are, in fact, free from the prying eyes of internet hackers that are becoming increasingly prevalent on the web, and, too often, out of the reach of the long arms of the law. As taxes continue to rise, one must wonder if making services easily accessible to the wealthier and not so much to those who need them most, is the way to go. One should also ask whether Net -based servicing is an easy escape route to faux accountability by those who recently received a 25 per cent pay hike in order to lead Ontario in the right direction. The Clinton News -Record ExppsltQr�L``� Your Community Newspaper Since 1860 E-mail us at seaforth@bowesnet.com Visit our home page at www.seaforthhuronexpositor.com OUEBECOR MEDIA Canada °""'1/A "We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada, through the Publications Assistance Program (PAP), toward our mailing costs." You don't leave a family member lying on the roadside We were on the way to Goderich. A blazing sun hung in a blue sky. A dead dog lay on the side of the road. I sped along, not com- menting until we'd passed. We hadn't hit it and Christa hadn't seen it. I almost stopped, but didn't. The dog Was still there when we came back and I didn't like that. Nearly six years ago my dog was killed on the road in front of my parents' house. It was after dinner, on my 21st birthday. The driver came to the door and told us he'd hit a dog. We went out. She was there, but she was gone. When we were able, Dad and I carried her away from the road. It was the worst night of my life. One of the thoughts that haunted me after was the idea of how much worse it might have been if the driver hadn't come in to tell us - if she'd been missing all night and we found her in the morning. Which is why six years later I parked on the gravel shoulder a couple hundred metres past someone else's dog. Christa wanted to be with me when I went looking for the owner. I didn't want her to. Not because I didn't think she could take it, but because I didn't think I could if she came. She knows me well enough to see the part of me I'd be trying to shut off. Then I wouldn't be able to shut it off and do what I was about to. I pulled surgical gloves from my first aid kit and handed Christa a magazine I'd bought in town so she'd have something to read if the dog was still there when we came back. I walked up the nearest driveway, steeling myself against however the owner might react. Needlessly. The woman I spoke to wasn't the owner. Didn't even know the dog, though she knew it was there. "Two girls came to the house earlier," she said, explaining that they'd gone to most of the houses on both sides of the road looking for the owners. They hadn't found them. When I got back to the dog, I pulled on the gloves and checked for tags. I found none. There were two places the girls hadn't checked. A house down the road and a private campground about a kilometre down a side road. We didn't find the owners at either place. Leaving the dog there didn't sit well with either of us, but we didn't know what else to do. It wasn't like the countless groundhogs, rac- coons, squirrels and other wild animals that speckle Ontario roads. A dead dog isn't road kill. A lot of the time, it's part of someone's family. And you don't leave someone's family on the side of the road. See WHAT, Page 6 SUBS.CRIPT14NAAIES: LOCAL - 36.18 a year, in advance. plus G.S.T. SENIORS; - 34.17 a year, in advance, plus G.S.T. Foreign: 36.18 a year in advance. plus $181.48 postage. G.S.T. exempt USA... 36.18 a year in advance. plus $92.56 postage. G.S.T. exempt Published weekly by Sun Media at 11 Main St.. Seaforth. Advertising is accepted on condition that in the event of a typographical error. the advertising space occu- pied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged. but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. In the event of a typographical error, advertising goods or services at a wrong price, goods or services may not be sold. Advertising is merely an offer to sell and may be withdrawn at any time. The Huron Expositor is not responsible for the loss or damage of unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other matenals used for reproduction purposes. PUBLICATION MAIL AGREEMENT 40064683 PAP REGISTRATION NO. 7605 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO Circulation Department P.O. 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