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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1999-03-17, Page 10l0 Esoter Opinior.&Forum Wednesday, March 17, 1999 Remember when... On June 30 to July 1, 2000. South Huron District High School will celebrate its 50th Anniversary. The Exeter Times Advocate would like to join in the celebrations by sharing articles or pictures which have appeared over the years. YEARS 1947 TO 1950 - HI HIGHLIGHTS Gleaned from Exeter District High School History was being made with the official opening of the new Exeter District High School on Wednesday afternoon. The large "gymtorium" and gallery were filled to overcrowding and many were • unable to gain admittance for the opening cere- monies in which the Hon. Leslie M. Frost, Premier of Ontario, was the principal speaker. "I wonder what the pioneers of this community would think if they could see this beautiful building which is being officially opened and dedicated today," said Mr. Frost in his opening remarks. Those pioneers came to this country with little of this world's goods...little of the comforts that we enjoy. They carne to Canada as a land of opportu- nity. They came with a great spirit, with religious convictions and with a great moral background. The wealth of today would count for little without the foundations of christian principles implanted by them. These today are still our greatest assets. They brought with them the ideas of municipal and parliamentary government and they brought with them high ideals of education. The speaker won- dered what Egerton Ryerson, the founder of our educational system, would say if he could see what is taking place today. He believed that the people of Ontario had been true to the ideals to which they have been heirs. Mr. Frost stated that today we are leading America in the way of education. He spoke of the tremendous increase in expenditures that are being made now for education in comparison with that of even a few years ago. But of greater importance are the human values. The government is interest- ed in bringing the best education to all classes, to give everyone an equality of opportunity. This is important because the youth today will be the law- makers and guide the destinies of this grand coun- try tomorrow. In conclusion Mr. Frost brought a great uproar from at least a part of the audience when he pro- claimed a holiday for the students and teachers, both high and public, on Friday. Dr. H. H. Cowen, chairman of the Board of Education, presided and paid tribute to all who had in any way assisted in making the new school pos- sible - to the architects, Page & Steele; to the con- tractors, McKay & Cocker; to Jack Smith, foreman during the construction; to the Board for the har- mony and co-operation, especially to the Property committee, Charles S. MacNaughton, Laird Mickle, Kenneth Johns and Harold Walper; to the principal, H. L. Sturgis, and staff, and the secretary, E. D. Howey. Acknowledgement was made of pictures donated in memory of the late Miss Kate McFaul, for many years secretary of the board, and of the donation of a piano by the Student Council. The Glee Club, under the direction of Mr. C. Wilson, sang three numbers. The presentation of a school bible on behalf of the Ontario Trustees' and Ratepayers' Association was made by Rev. H. J. Snell. Mr. E. L. Mickle spoke briefly of the early work of the board in securing plans, and introduced the architect Mr. Harland Steele. Mr. Thomas Pryde, M.L.A., introduced the prime minister to what he termed the best audience, in the 'best county of the Province of Ontario. Other speakers were high school Inspector Gray, and Cecil Johnston, Warden of Huron. 11. N. Creech presented to the school the trowel that had been presented to him at the laying of the corner -stone. The building was dedicated in an impressive manner by Rev. Mr. Getz, of Dashwood. The concluding speaker was the principal, H. L. Sturgis, who stated that the new school was a great challenge to both teachers and students and hoped they would be able to justify the thought and .the expense that had gone into the new building. Among those present were John Hanna, M.L.A., of Huron -Bruce; Thomas Patrick, M.L.A. for North Middlesex; Country Clerk N. Miller and Country Treasurer Harvey Erskine. For more information about the SHDHS "All -Years Reunion" contact Kendra Arthur 235-4006 (H) or 235-4587 (W) or Pat Rowe 236-7167 LETTERS TO TH.E EDITOR • LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Keep our emergency g Y room open Dear Editor: So here we go again, EMERGENCY CLOSED. I'm sur- prised people don't seem to be worried about it until they need the facility. But then again, I'm not really surprised at the apathy demonstrated. People should be campaigning for more responsibility being given to nurse practitioners, although I suspect that there might be some petty protectionism on the part of the doctors. They probably seo the RNPs as a threat to their own livelihood. Since we have no oper- ating rooms, doctors in our Emergency, operate a clearing station. Patients beyond their capability, requiring surgery or specialized equipment, are shipped off to other hospitals. Nurse practitioners are probably capable of performing these same functions and should be given wider authority. The notice outside the hospital should read Emergency Open -No Doctors On Duty and patients could decide for themselves whether to go elsewhere or not. If I was having a heart attack, I would be only too pleased to have an RNP stabilize my condition before shipping me off to London for example. This would be infinitely better than driving myself to Clinton (a smaller town), London or Stratford, which I probably wouldn't make anyway. When there was a possibility of closing the whole hospital, it was pointed out that in the summer, thou- sands more people will be in the area. What priced Emergency then? We've been told that a high proportion of Emergency visitors are not genuine emergencies and could have waited for a normal family doctor visit. RNPs could have handled these without the intervention of a doc- tor. So I say, especially in these times of doctor shortage, give the Registered Nurse Practitioners more authority and responsibility commensurate with their expertise. DON'T CLOSE EMERGENCY - EVER. Yours, JOHN SANDERSON. Impaired Driving: The Number - One Preventable Crime This letter was sent to Dick Harris, MP, Official Opposition, Prince George-Bulkley Valley from the offi- cial opposition press office. The crime occurred more than three years ago on Highway 16 in my hometown of Prince George, British Columbia: broken glass, twisted metal, the thick smell of oil and gas, and the flashing lights and whirring sirens of emergency vehicles. Another three innocent victims had been killed due to the senseless actions of a drunk dri- ver. Being witness to that tragedy which destroyed a young family and the subsequent realization that the driver of the killing vehicle had previous offences for the crime of impaired driving, convinced me that changes had to be made to strengthen our impaired driving laws. The laws have not been changed in more than a decade and they do not sufficiently deter people from drinking and dri- ving. For the last several years, I have done everything with- in my power as an MP to change the Criminal Code pro- visions relating to impaired driving. I want to send a strong message to those who choose to drink and drive that there will be a zero tolerance attitude toward their criminal acts. I first put forward a Private Members' Bill (C-201) to amend the Criminal Code to provide for a seven-year minimum sentence for those convicted of impaired dri- ving causing death. At present, there is no minimum jail term, and only a 14 -year maximum sentence. This bill, which was supported by organizations with millions of supporters, including Mothers Against Drunk Driving, was narrowly defeated by a margin of 31 votes. Subsequently I introduced a Private Members' Motion, M-78, calling on the government to strengthen all impaired driving sections of the Criminal Code to enhance deterrence and ensure that the sentences reflect the seriousness of the crime. This motion received support from all sides of the House and was unanimously adopted in February 1997. Despite this, the Liberals failed to take any action, to introduce legislation or review Criminal Code sanctions for the tragic and preventable crime of impaired driving. Finally, on October 30, 1997, I re -introduced M-78 as an Opposition Supply Day Motion. A full day of debate in the House of Commons saw the motion, again, receive the unanimous consent of the House, this time with an instruction that the Justice Committee carry out a review and report to the House with legislation by May 15, 1998. Of course, though, Liberals like to delay, and ali'iough Principal's Note Problems are the natural off- spring of change, so we're all going to see plenty of them in our years to come. Schools need students and staff who can take care of problems, not merely point them out. Too many people get this confused. They seem to think complaining is a con- structive act. They're keen on identifying all the problems but contribute little toward improving things. Their attitude might sound something like "Student council or the school principal is supposed to take care of this or, fix this or that. It's their responsibility. Let's just watch them and see what they do." Not just in schools but in our entire society we've gotten unbelievably good at the blame game. We're expert at dodging personal responsi- bility. We use our energy to criticize and complain instead. This carries a terrific cost. So long as we always look at the other guy for all the solutions we make ourselves into vic- tims. And we are capable of so much more than that. Perhaps we've come to expect too much of our school or our student council or our church or government and too little of our- selves as individuals. In the long haul, it sim- ply doesn't work. The school's values grow out of the individ- ual's values. The unwritten code of what's acceptable grows out of the individual's code of yvhat's acceptable. The school's results are really just an accumulation of individual's results. So, instead of being a finger -pointer, and rather than trying to single out somebody to blame, each of us should assume owner- ship. Let the solutions start with the individ- ual. Each day we get up in the morning, we should believe in ourselves as individuals and our power to make a difference. Lets' all be fixers not victims and pretty soon there won't be anybody left to point the finger at. DH MOTH PRINCIPAL'S NOTE a year overdue, the Justice Committee has now carried out hearings on the issue of impaired driving and we are now discussing a draft report which will then lead to legislation to be introduced in the House of Commons by May 15, 1999. I am confident this deadline will be met. Impaired driving is the number one cause of criminal death and injury in this country. Statistically, people who make the conscious choice to drink and then drive kill 4.5 Canadians and injure over 300 Canadians every day. Impaired drivers caused over half of Canada's 3,300 road fatalities in 1995. Impaired driving is the most frequent offence dealt with by our already overburdened courts. I believe we must get away from the mindset that impaired driving is a social ill. In fact, it is a serious crime and must be treated as such. Specifically, I would like to see the allowable Blood Alcohol Content lowered from the current .08 (80 -mg of alcohol in 100 ml of blood) to .05 -the standard in ten other countries. I believe that police officers must be given all the tools they need to catch impaired drivers, including the use of new "Passive Alcohol Sensors," a device that detects minute traces of alcohol by taking a reading close to the driver's mouth. As well, the court process must be made straightfor- ward and efficient and must allow certificate evidence to be accepted at a much higher level. I also believe that since impaired driving crashes are not accidents, the penalties for those convicted must be significantly strengthened and minimum sentences are needed for impaired drivers who kill. Finally, since the trend of hard-core drinkers to stop driving after drinking has not been. decreasing, I would like to see mandatory treat- ment for habitual impaired drivers. It has been a long, hard fight to get the issue of impaired driving reviewed and I urge you to call, fax or write to your Member of Parliament and the Minister of Justice t8 indicate your support for criminal code amendments that will truly provide measures of deter- rence and increased penalties to ensure that the punish- ment addresses the severity of the crime of impaired driving. The families and friends of victims of impaired drivers deserve no less.