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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Times Advocate, 2007-11-28, Page 66 Times -Advocate Wednesday, November 28, 2007 Opinion Forum News We must act decisively Suddenly, it is a bit more difficult for me to be a proud Canadian following the death of the Polish man at the Vancouver airport. From time to time, Canadians forget what pansies we have become and as a nation, we have made an impact on the international scene such as in the defense of democracy during the First and Second World Wars, the Korean War and now in the Middle East. Canada has unfor- tunately drawn international attention because the death of this man was caught on video for "the world" to see. We have no choice but to act in a decisive manner following the investigations that have begun into the matter. I would trust that such people as the airport manager, the security manager and the individuals who dealt with this man are held accountable and not just the four RCMP members who are bearing the brunt of the criticism. I do not condone what they did; I simply am stating that others were involved to escalate the situation to the point where an innocent man lost his life. If charges of manslaughter are found to be warranted, every person involved should face that charge and answer to it in court. I think we owe this level of action to the man who died, to his mother and to the world audience. After all, Vancouver is hosting the Olympics in 2010 and you can be assured there is an expectation from the international community that an acceptable conclusion be seen from this death at Vancouver airport. Letters E1 - d the ltor Jow" NOAKEs, Kamloops, B.C. (former Hensall resident and SHDHS student) Nursery school fundraiser — "Christmas at Our Home," the Hensall Home Tour was last weekend, featuring four homes and the Carmel Presbyterian Church Tinker Tot Nursery.Above, Christina and Rob Taylor stand in front of their fireplace. Below, Dana Phillips, who owns her home with her husband Jason, showcases her Christmas tree.The money raised from the tour supports the Tinker Tots Co-operative Nursery School in Hensall. (photos/Nina Van Lieshout) Remembrance Day literary and poster contest winners EXETER — The Youth Education Program of the 167 R. E. Pooley Branch of The Royal Canadian Legion held their Remembrance Day Literary and Poster contests. Six schools participated with a total of 147 entries. A small increase from last year. Following is the list of winners: Literary (essay) Category 1 - Senior -Grades 10, 11, 12: 1st Helena Kenney - South Huron District High School, 2nd Jen Donovan - South Huron District High School Literary (essay) Category 3 - Junior -Grades 4, 5, 6: 1st Nicole Hamather - Exeter Public School, 2nd Nicole Chuan Willis - Exeter Public School Literary (poetry) Category 2 - Intermediate -Grades 7, 8, 9: 1st Cole L. Vincent - Stephen Central Public School, 2nd Adam Windsor - Stephen Central Public School, 3rd Jana Henry - Stephen Central Public School Literary (poetry) Category 3 - Junior Grades 4, 5, 6: 1st Alyssa Stephens -Exeter Public School, 2nd Chelsea Vincent -Stephen Central Public School, 3rd Alyssa Keller -Exeter Public School Poster (colour) Category 1 - Senior -Grades 10, 11, 12: 1st Meghan Collins - South District High School Poster (colour) Category 2 - Intermediate -Grades 7, 8, 9 1st Braden Pryce - South Huron District High School, 2nd Jaemi Douglas - South Huron District High School, 3rd Tonya Wilson - South Huron District High School Poster (colour) Category 3 - Junior - Grades 4, 5, 6: 1st Chelsea Vincent - Stephen Central Public School, 2nd Emily Hayter - Usborne Central Public School, 3rd Jessica Foran -Costain - Stephen Central Public School Poster (colour) Category 4 - Primary - Grades 1, 2, 3: 1st Jackson Relouw - Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic School, 2nd Austin Glavin -Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic School, 3rd Tristen Relouw - Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic School Poster (black and white) Category 1 - Senior - Grades 10,.11, 12: 1st Levon Evan Cross - South District High School, 2nd Magan Hodgson - South Huron District High School Poster (black and white) Category 2 - Intermediate - Grades 7, 8, 9: 1st Greg O'Brien - South Huron District High School, 2nd Ben Case - South Huron District High School, 3rd, Todd Lightfoot - South Huron District High School Poster (black and white) Category 3 - Junior - Grades 4, 5, 6: 1st Rachel Bosley - Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic School, 2nd Sara Dietrich - Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic School, 3rd Mackenzie Crawford - Stephen Central Public School Let's hope South Huron has a good reputation SOUTH HURON — It was brought to my attention last week that a municipality was charged because of a building failure. From the story I heard, the builder constructed the building with used roof trusses. The municipal employee in charge wanted an engineer's stamp claiming the trusses met the Building Code and after a discussion with the builder, the municipal employee allowed the building to be built without the engineer's stamp of approval. If the trusses met the code for one building, why wouldn't they meet the code for another building if they were in good condition? Wrong — the Building Code specifies the minimum standards for each type of building. This building collapsed due to the roof trusses' failure. The Building Code is a provincial law. The municipality must appoint an enforcer of the Building Code or a CBO (Chief Building Officer) to make sure all Ken Oke buildings are built according to the code of the province. If the CBO doesn't enforce the Building Code, he/she is breaking the law and he/she is transferring some of the liability from the contractor to the municipality. You have to understand them to do and I am proud they are a part of our South Huron team. that if the code is followed, there should be very little liability, but breaking the code creates a lot of liability. Breaking the Building Code intentionally or through the ignorance of the Building Code still puts the municipality at risk. One of the complaints I often hear is that South Huron is the only munici- pality that enforces "this and that" building law. My only question is: are these laws covered by the Building Code? If they are a part of the code, I am sorry, I cannot instruct my staff to break the law. I want to live in a munici- pality where if anyone is buying a building, they can at least have the confi- dence that the building was built properly according to the building laws as outlined in the Provincial Building Code. However, after saying all of this, if you feel that some of the laws in the Building Code are not in the best interests of all concerned, do not expect our staff to break the law by changing them. Please go through proper channels and have the law changed. I think our staff is doing a great job. I feel they are doing the job we hired