Loading...
Huron Expositor, 2014-12-03, Page 44 Huron Expositor • Wednesday, December 3,2014 Ilion Expositor PUBLISHED WEEKLY — EST. 1860 RO. Box 69, 8 Main Street Seaforth Ontario NOK phone: 519-527-0240 fax: 519-527-2858 www.seaforthhuronexpositor SUN MEDIA A Quebecor Media Company NEIL CLIFFORD Publisher neil.clifford@sunmedia.ca MAXWELL BICKFORD Advertising Rep. max.bickford@sunmedia.ca DIANNE MCGRATH Front Office seatorth.classifieds@sunmedia.ca WHITNEY SOUTH Multimedia Journalist seaforth.news@sunmedia.ca MARIE DAVID Sun Media Group Publisher Grey Bruce Huron Division 519-364-2001 or 519-372-4301 SUBSCRIPTION RATES 1 YEAR $50.00 (47.62+2.38 GST) 2 YEAR $95.00 (90.48+4.52 GST) SENIORS 60 WEEKS $50.00 (47.62+2.38 GST) 120 WEEKS $95.00 (90.48+4.52 GST) Publications Mail Agreement No. 40064683 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT RO. Box 69 Seaforth ON NOK 1 WO For any non -deliveries or delivery concerns: phone: 519-527-0240 Advertising is accepted on condition that in the event of a typographical error, the advertising space occupied 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 Advertising is merely an offer to sell and may be withdrawn at any time.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 materials used for reproduction purposes. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canadian Periodical Fund (CPF) for our publishing activities. Canada' editorial Quinn belongs in Hall of Fame If cigars exist in the afterlife, you can bet Pat Quinn is gnawing on one of his favourite stogies right now. In 2002, doctors told Quinn he needed to stop smoking cigars, thereby stripping him of one of the true joys of his life. Fortunately, he always had his other love - hockey - to lean on. And lean on it he did, dedicating his life to the sport until the time of his passing on Sunday night in Vancouver. That's why it says here that, sooner than later, Pat Quinn should be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. While Quinn's critics will point to the fact he never won a Stanley Cup in his two dec- ades of coaching in the NHL, that's a flawed argument. Indeed, if hockey is an integral part of the cultural fabric of Can- ada, as many of us believe, then the contri- butions Pat Quinn made to the sport in this country are unparalleled, Cup or no Cup. In his 20 -year stint behind an NHL bench, three of the five teams he coached were based in Canada - the Canucics, Maple Leafs and Oilers. With the Canucks, he led them to the final in 1994, one of only three times the franchise has been that far. With the Leafs, he twice coached them to the NH1's Final Four - the furthest the Original Six team has managed to get since 1967. In the process, there were two Jack Adams Trophies as NHL coach of the year, and 684 wins, fifth all-time among coaches. On the international front, Quinn coached Team Canada to gold medals at the 2008 IIHF World Championships and the 2009 World Junior Championships along with World Cup title in 2004. And then there was the coup de grace - the 2002 Winter Games. With Quinn as head coach, Canada won its first Olympic title in 50 years, a milestone moment in Canadian sports history. If those contributions aren't worthy of a spot in the hallowed Hall, we don't know what is. At the time of his passing, Pat Quinn was chairman of the Hall of Fame. Now it's time he goes in as a builder. Enjoy that stogie, Pat, wherever you are. And rest in peace. www.seaforthhuronexpositor.com Taking a walk in their shoes Atopic I've tried to stay away from over the previous month has been the accusations of assault on CBC darling Jian Ghomeshi. With the media circus surrounding the behind the scenes antics of Can- ada's golden voiced interviewer, I saw no reason to add my two cents, espe- cially considering so many journalists had already jumped at the chance to let their opinions be known. That is, until now. Last week Ghomeshi was arrested and charged with four counts of sex- ual assault and suddenly the land- scape of the story has changed. What started off as a pity party for a poor, misunderstood Canadian celeb- rity has turned into a case with enough merit for police to become involved. And in my opinion, it's about darn time. So really, what changed? After weeks of speculation and rumours, several women came forward unafraid of letting their names and sto- ries be known, putting a face to the crimes so many found hard to believe. Many, including members of several media outlets, had previously expressed the idea the alleged victims were trying to make a name for them- selves. That these women had some- how asked for this type of treatment, misunderstood their date's obvious intentions or put themselves in these situations. It's called victim shaming, and I heard it all. "Seems suspicious they didn't come forward until now." "They probably did something they regretted and now they're trying to make this poor guy pay for ie "But, I grew up listening to him on the radio, there's no way he could have done this:' With all the backlash against these women - mostly stemming from Ghomeshi's original claim of inno- cence via Facebook, not to mention his $55 -million joke of a lawsuit - how on earth could anyone work up the courage to make a stand? How could they not feel helpless? Unable to conceive a scenario where they wouldn't be ridiculed or accused themselves? This is a feeling I know all too well. Column Whitne Huron E y South xpositor Truth is, it's been almost 10 years since I found myself in a simi- larly less than ideal sit- uation. It's a story I've rarely told, but hearing so many people play the victim 'blame game,' I'm inspired to tell it now. Heading into my second year of University, I travelled to Belleville to visit a classmate during the annual Waterfront Festival, a weekend of fun capped off with two nights of live bands and a lot of partying.Even though such big and loud events were never really my thing, we headed down to the concert at sun- set with a group of her friends for what I hoped would be a fun night. As the music blared and the beer flowed, I unknowingly attracted the attention of a guy my friend had known for years. While I stuck to my bottle of water, everyone else continued to drink and after a while this seemingly harmless guy started to get a little loud and a lit- tle aggressive. I tried to some dis- tance between us, but my friend kept assuring me he was harmless and we turned our attention back to the show. At the end of the night, we started to head home but after being over- whelmed by the masses of people leaving the concert, my friend and I got separated. And so, I found myself alone in a strange town, with Mr. Pushy. That's when things went from bad to worse. What started out what as what he probably saw as harmless flirting, turned into a physical altercation. My mind racing, I went with my first instinct; I ran. Fear pumping through my body, I booked it down the street, cabs and pedestrians passing by despite my cries for help, my attacker hot on my heels. As I reached the downtown core, I turned a corner and ran face first into a police officer's chest. Looking up at him, emotion over- whelmed me and that's when the tears came hard and fast. Up until that point I had held myself together, too busy thinking and even busier running. CONTINUED > PAGE 6