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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2018-04-05, Page 4PAGE 4. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018. Editorials Opinions President: Keith Roulston • Publisher: Deb Sholdice Editor: Shawn Loughlin • Reporter: Denny Scott Advertising Sales: Brenda Nyveld • Heather Fraser 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 $38.00/year ($36.19 + $1.81 G.S.T.) in Canada; $160.00/year in U.S.A. and $205/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: Mon. 2 p.m. - Brussels; Mon. 4 p.m. - Blyth. PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT NO. 40050141 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO CIRCULATION DEPT. PO BOX 152 BRUSSELS ON NOG 1H0 email: info@northhuron.on.ca Working together for Brussels Some of the proudest moments of residents of most Huron County communities, including Brussels, have happened in their community's arenas. As Brussels area residents meet April 16 to discuss a proposal to update and expand the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre, they'll be considering another project that will stretch the community, but make it proud, too. That's what the building of the facility 40 years ago did for Brussels and area. Like Blyth and Teeswater and other nearby towns, the changes in the building code that forced the closure of the old Brussels arena in 1977 turned a crisis into a chance to build its community. And boy did Brussels grab hold of that opportunity, constructing a community centre to be proud of and working together for years to raise the money in a way that left its mark permanently on the community. Arenas are centres of community pride, not only for the accomplishments of the athletes who play within their walls, but for the community's self-esteem for building the facility. That sort of spirit was evident in Lucan on Saturday when the whole community mobilized to win the national Kraft Hockeyville competition, despite the community's small size. They'll use the $250,000 prize to make the same sort of improvements that are proposed for Brussels. The challenges that Brussels will take on if it decides to go ahead with the $750,000 expansion program are huge and need to be considered carefully. The rewards, should the project proceed, may provide something that's just as important as the arena improvements — a renewed community spirit. — KR How does he do it? The next time Prime Minister Justin Trudeau picks up the telephone to call U.S. President Donald Trump to talk about the latest potholes on the road to a new North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), he may want to ask his counterpart a further question — how does he do it? A recent poll shows the President's approval rating at 42 per cent, his highest since he took office, despite all the chaos, the lies and boasting, and accusations of adultery. Meanwhile, polls in Canada show Trudeau's popularity dropping. A mid-March Angus Reid poll showed that while Trudeau still ranks higher than Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer on the question of who would make the best Prime Minister (26 per cent to 22 per cent), when Canadians are asked which party is best to form government his Liberals trail the Conservatives by nine points. Similarly an Ipso poll showed 56 per cent of the 1,003 Canadians surveyed said the Liberals have fallen short of expectations, with 60 per cent saying it's time to change the government. Equally surprising, more women said they'd vote for the Conservatives over our self-proclaimed feminist Prime Minister. While there are plenty of reasons for the shine to be off the Prime Minister after two years in office — from the silly costumes he donned on a trip to India to, more worryingly, continued large budgetary deficits — voters' disillusionment seems extreme compared to his government's record. Even opponents, for instance, credit the Liberals for masterfully handing the NAFTA negotiations despite the difficulty of dealing with the unpredictable Trump. From the viewpoint of those south of the border who oppose Trump Canadians must seem bewildering. Rev. Jesse Jackson, for instance, interviewed on the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King's assassination, hailed Trudeau as an example of enlightened leadership. Given that the Prime Minister's approval rating is hardly better than the U.S. President's, perhaps people don't want enlightenment.— KR Pick on somebody your size In two recent instances of remarkable youth -led activism, the very people who suffered, and the same people who showed courage in speaking out, became the target of abuse themselves. On the weekend, Malala Yousafzai returned to Pakistan for the first time since Taliban gunmen shot her in 2012 to silence her from speaking out in support of education for girls. Despite winning the Nobel Peace Prize, she has been a target of attacks. Last May, for instance, a Pakistani minister claimed the assault on Malala was staged. Meanwhile the abuse from U.S. right wingers in the media and elsewhere has been vicious and ongoing against the survivers of the February mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School who had the temerity to lead a mammoth march on Washington of young people calling for gun control. In some cases there has been a price to be paid. Fox News host Laura Ingraham, who attacked one of the march leaders, saw eight of the sponsors of her program pull their advertising, and she ended up taking a week off to let the controversy cool. Hopefully, these remarkable young leaders will have the last laugh. Maybe this time the bullies picked on the wrong people. — KR The rKathleen Wynnefrey wit o Election Show Canada We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada. The Citizen P.O. Box 429, P.O. Box 152, BLYTH, Ont. BRUSSELS, Ont. NOM 1H0 NOG 1 HO Ph. 519-523-4792 Phone Fax 519-523-9140 519-887-9114 E-mail info@northhuron.on.ca Website www.northhuron.on.ca �ocna tom• CCNA Member of the Ontario Press Council CMCA AUDITED We are not responsible for unsolicited newsscripts or photographs. Contents of The Citizen are © Copyright ABILLIOAV \‘'; G �YpU1 IthioN, "I. s 2 /gob Yl ect 5lu*ni3 \IVHO'S PAYING FOR y ALL,TH16 Looking Back Through the Years April 2, 1958 First place in both the Junior Farmer and the Junior Institute Huron County Drama Festival went to players from North Huron and their presentation of the mystery production entitled Fright. Jim Bowman of Brussels, a member of the North Huron club, received the award reserved for the competition's best actor, while Marie Hastie of the Howick club was named the best actress. The North Huron club was now set to travel to Guelph to represent the county in the provincial finals on April 8. Ed Henderson of Brussels reported having his car stolen in London while at a Bingo game. April 5, 1978 On June 2-3, Memorial Hall in Blyth would play host to the first Huron Olde Tyme Festival that would showcase fiddling, step dancing and square dancing. Competitors in the festival were expected to travel to Blyth from all over the province, with a total of $1,000 in prize money up for grabs. Organizers hoped that the festival would soon become an annual event. A fire that had been thought to be under control at Snell Elevators near Westfield was still raging by the time The Blyth Standard went to press. The elevator fire at the feed and supply store was first noticed 10 days earlier and was putting area firefighters to the test, as it continued to rage in the days following. Grade 2 and 3 students at East Wawanosh Public School were able to get some hands-on experience tapping maple trees. The classes visited the sugar bush owned by the Maitland Valley Conservation Authority just south of Molesworth and were able to do some of the tapping work themselves. April 10, 1991 Mike Harris, the leader of the Ontario Progressive Conservative party, was set to be the guest speaker at the local association's annual dinner and meeting, scheduled for April 10 at the Blyth and District Community Centre. Harris had previously been through the riding during the last election, but this would be the first time he would be in Huron County for non -election purposes. Local party member Steven Sparling said that Harris coming to Blyth was "pretty significant" and something the association was greatly anticipating. Brussels Village auditor Nancy McDonald Exel brought council both good and bad news as a result of the village's finances for the previous year. She told councillors that the village had spent less money than anticipated in 1990, but that the village still ended the year with a deficit just over $26,000. The previous year's budget, she explained, proposed a bank loan to help fund the industrial park and Huronview street building projects, which was included in the budget as revenue when it shouldn't have been. That meant that council had budgeted $50,000 less than it should have from taxation. The village's revenue was also hurt by lagging sales of industrial lots. Council had anticipated selling four of the lots, but only two sales were finalized, meaning $34,000 in revenue instead of $68,000. April 10, 2008 Heavy rains throughout Huron County were creating localized flooding, which resulted in flooded basements and road closures throughout the community. Many area public works departments found themselves scrambling to keep up, because the rain came so fast. Morris-Turnberry Council voted to take enough money out of the township's reserves for the year to prevent a tax rate increase for the coming year. The new budget, approved by council at its April 1 meeting, would include over $5.5 million in spending, but no tax rate increase. When taking into account money that would be transferred to both Huron County and the local school boards through taxation, spending in the Morris-Turnberry budget would be just under $8 million. Eight-year-old Daniel Fritz was scheduled to be the guest speaker at the annual Brussels Optimist Club spring dinner and auction. Fritz, who suffered from cystic fibrosis, took a trip to Walt Disney World thanks to the Make a Wish Foundation. He was referred to the program by his uncle Mark Pennington. The Fritz family was picked up from their home in a limousine and taken to Detroit where they caught a flight to Florida so the dream vacation could begin. Jenna Rinn of Blyth had reached the end of her eligibility as far as youth broomball was concerned, but she did so in style, winning back-to- back national championships as a member of the Ottawa Seaway Valley Devils. Rinn had been playing broomball for the previous 10 years, but had only been picked up by the Ottawa team from her local Seaforth team for the last three.