The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutThe Times Advocate, 2006-05-03, Page 44 Exeter Times—Advocate Wednesday, May 3, 2006 =CNA Editorial Opinion n = MISIM TIMES ADVOCATE PUBLICATIONS MAIL REGISTRATION NUMBER 07511 We acknowledge the Financial support of the Government of Canada, through the Publications Assistance Program (PAP), toward our mailing costs. Jim Beckett — Publisher Deb Lord — Production Manager Scott Nixon — Editor tirt Published by iroland Printing, Publishing Distributing& Ltd. 424 Main Street South, P.O. Box 850 Metroland Exeter, Ontario NOM 1S6 • (519) 235-1331 EDITORIAL Costs not fair The people of Crediton and Centralia have spoken. The question is, will their con- cerns be met with anything other than yawns from the provincial and federal govern- ments. Residents showed up in record numbers at South Huron council's Monday night meeting, filling the gallery and spilling out into the hallway. The reason for the big crowd was the fact South Huron had been denied funding again for a proposed $5.8 million Crediton/Centralia sewer project. The grant would have paid two thirds of the project. Without the grant, the residents get to pick up the tab, at an average cost of $17,285 per property. On top of that, property own- ers have to pay an additional charge to have their homes hooked up to the sewer line at the curbside. Without a grant, these costs are simply unfair. Many residents admitted Monday night the villages need a sewer system, but they can't afford the $17,285 per property. Can anybody blame them? Who has $20,000 extra cash laying around? The municipality will give residents the option of pay- ing for the project over a 20 or 40 year period, with interest, of course. They can also pay the full amount up front should they be so inclined. And while the municipality has said it wouldn't force the project on residents unless they wanted it, the municipality doesn't really have that choice — the Ministry of the Environment and the Huron County Health Unit will insist the project go ahead and they admitted so Monday night. The MOE and the Health Unit gave the municipality until the end of 2007 to complete the project before they take action, such as forcing the project to get done and, in worst case sce- narios, forcing people out of their homes if their sewage problems aren't fixed. What happens now? South Huron clearly doesn't think it will ever get grant money from the province or the feds for this project. Sewer and water projects are routinely user pay projects, which puts the onus back on Crediton and Centralia residents, who either can't or don't want to pay for the project. It doesn't look they will have a choice. But what residents need to do is make sure their con- cerns are heard by Huron -Bruce MP Paul Steckle and MPP Carol Mitchell. Let them know you're upset. Let them know about the unrealistically high costs proper- ty owners will have to pay if this project goes ahead. And let them know that once again Queen's Park and Ottawa have ignored the problems of South Huron. DEVOLUTION of A LEADER /1/46,it Distributed by Canadian Artists Syndicate Inc. The painfu! life of a fan They're a funny thing, professional sports. In the grand scheme of things, almost everything that hap- pens in professional sports is meaningless, but some- how they manage to capture our emotions and dreams, placing us fans on a roller coaster ride of vic- tory and defeat. Many Canadians are experiencing these feel- ings now, as the NHL playoffs will soon head into the second round. Things for me started off on a great note, with my beloved Montreal Canadiens winning the first two games of their series against the heavily -favoured Carolina Hurricanes. Things turned ugly quickly in game three, however, with a careless high stick to Habs' captain Saku Koivu's eye, knocking him out of the series and changing the momentum of the series. The mystery of the play is how four so-called professional officials on the ice didn't see the high stick from the Carolina player, which happened right in the middle of play in front of the net. Koivu went down immediately, then got to his feet with blood oozing out of his eye and streaming down his face. I wonder how that happened? At the minimum, there should have been a four minute penalty. The referees, though, did nothing, except call a series of penalties on Montreal for the rest of the game. They later claimed they didn't see the high stick, although 22,000 people in the Bell Centre saw it, along with everyone watching at home. I'm not making excuses, though, or suggesting there's a conspiracy afoot. Well, maybe I am. As of the writing of this column, Carolina had a three games to two lead over Montreal. Depending on the outcome of last night's game my Habs could be elimi- nated and hitting the golf course and I could be in a very ugly mood. But that's the life of a sports fan. What is it about watching sports that makes many of us lose our minds when we're watching it? Ask my wife how her normally rational, laid back husband can sud- denly turn into a raving, profane lunatic when his team starts losing. It's not a pretty site. But besides my team's struggles, the playoffs have mostly been good this year. Most impor- tantly, the Leafs weren't invited to the dance. Plus, we have already managed to get rid of annoying teams such as the New York Rangers and the Tampa Bay Lightning and Monday night the Edmonton Oilers eliminated the first place Detroit Red Wings in a stunning upset. Could this finally be the year a Canadian team wins the Stanley Cup? Better yet, will we get an all -Canadian final? An Ottawa -Calgary final would be great, not only because it would ensure a Canadian team would win the Cup, but because it would be an absolute ratings disaster for the U.S. networks — nobody south of the border would watch that series and that's fine by me. Americans can hardly bring themselves to watch U.S.-based teams; there's no way they're going to watch anything involving a Canadian team. And that's a good thing. When the NHL gives up on its desperate and ultimately fruitless efforts to make the league a success in the U.S., then maybe it will start treating this country, its teams and its fans with a little respect. SCOTT NIXON AND ANOTHER THING About the Times -Advocate Address & Office Hours Times -Advocate, 424 Main Street South, P.O. Box 850, Exeter, Ontario NOM 1S6. Our office is open Monday to Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm. Closed on Holidays. Contact Us By Phone or Fax Classified ad & subscription sales (519) 235-1331 24-hour automated attendant (519) 235-1336 Fax number for all departments (519) 235-0766 Subscription Rates One year rate for addresses in Canada: $40+GST Two year rate for addresses in Canada: $72+GST One year rate for addresses outside Canada: $140 Call (519) 235-1331 to order a subscription. Classified Rates Word ads: $11 for 20 words, 20(t for each additional word+ GST. Notices (births, deaths, announcements, coming events, memoriams, cards of thanks): $15 + GST for up to 50 words, All ads must be pre -paid. The classified ad deadline is Monday at 10 a.m. Display Advertising To place a display ad, (519) 235-1331 weekdays 8:30 to 4:30 p.m. or evenings (519) 235-1336 (leave mes- sage) or toll-free at 1-888-270-1602. Deadline: Fri. 2 p m. E-mail Us Web site: www.southhuron.com TA e-mail addresses consist of the person's first initial and last name followed by @southhuron.com. For example, Jim Beckett's e-mail address is <jbeck- ett@southhuron.com> Our general e-mail address is ads@southhuron.com. The Times -Advocate Team Publisher Jim Beckett ext. 109 ADVERTISING Deborah Schillemore ext. 112 EDITOR Scott Nixon ext. 105 REPORTERS Pat Bolen ext. 113 Nina Van Lieshout ext. 107 CUSTOMER SERVICE Sue Rollings ext. 101 Kim Hern ext. 102 COMPOSITION DEPARTMENT Manager Deb Lord ext. 103/114 Heather Bilcke ext. 103 Kelly Gackstetter ext. 103 ACCOUNTING STAFF Anita McDonald ext. 104 Ruth Slaght ext. 106 Christina Scott ext. 108 MargPertschy ext. 111 Heather Clarke