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The Goderich Signal-Star, 2009-09-30, Page 7• • on Taste of Huron looks to second installment Goderich Signal -Star, Wednesday, September 30, 2009 - Page 7 To the Editor: The 2009 Taste of Huron celebra- tions, a week-long festival of flavours and feasts wrapped on August 30 with a savoury brunch and presentation. The Huron County Heritage and Cul- ture Partnership (HCP) extends sincere appreciation and thanks to individuals and organizations for their hard work and support. The Heritage and Culture Partner- ship along with staff from the County of Huron Planning and Development Department lent their assistance and support to the Taste of Huron Com- mittee and its members to conceive the events and activities and make commu- nity connections to assure success for this first Taste of Huron celebratioh. Each committee member contributed ideas and energy supporting the dining celebrations held in locations through- out the county during the last week of August. The Taste of Huron funding came from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs through the Ontario Market Investment Fund, a four-year, $12 million provincial economic de- velopment initiative, part of the Pick Ontario Freshness marketing strategy. Each representative, sponsor, .local Letters opinion supplier and particularly, every chef who took part deserve our sincerest thanks for their time and effort. With the support of the Huron Tourism As- sociation and Huron County's Heritage and Culture Partnership, we look for- ward to continuing this special initia- tive and send our special thanks to our hardworking associates who created an important and successful celebration of the bountiful talent and harvests in Huron County. With thanks, Karen Stewart, President, Huron Tourism Association Laurel Armstrong, Chair Huron County's Heritage and Culture Partnership Has our MP become victim of stolen identity? To the Editor; I'm writing because it seems some- one has stolen our local Member of Parliament's identity. Just recently I received a mail out supposedly from "him" talking about "Identity Theft". But I know this can't be from him. Before the 2008 election the conserva- tives blanketed this riding with over 1 single -page, mail -outs that were sim- ply political pre-election, propaganda paid for with taxpayers money. During the election he said he would never do such a thing. That he thought this type of mail -out should be banned. He didn't say this only once - he said it every time the issue was raised at all candi- dates meetings. What worries me is that since he dis- appeared to Ottawa less than a year ago I have received at least eight of these mailings in my mailbox. They follow the same format. A big headline about what the government is suppos- edly doing and then a mail back por- tion on which to check which party leader is doing the best job. The prob- lem with them is that they are simply Conservative political propaganda and supporter identification. They don't provide local citizens with any useful information. Just a headline and para- graph or two praising the government. They then try to identify party leader support. This may be very useful to the Conservative Party when they go looking for money and workers in the next election, but is hardly a non-parti- san activity that should be funded by the tax payers. Since he said he wouldn't do it, do you think we should ask the RCMP to investigate and see which back room conservative party hacks have stolen our MP's identity? It would be so disappointing to discover that he lied with a straight face at every all -candi- dates meeting in 2008 and then turned around did precisely what he said he would never do. A concerned and potentially disillu- sioned citizen in Huron -Bruce, Tony McQuail, Lucknow A public relations primer for the Olympics Four months away from the February 2010 Winter Games in British Columbia, the town of Whistler has produced a kind of cheerleaders' booklet for the Olympic volunteers. Whistler will host all events involving snow which in an El Nino year is far from guaranteed. Urging those working the Olympic events to ring their cowbells and smile a lot, the intent of the brochure is to ramp up the Canadian spirit of sport and put a smiley face on the town of Whistler itself. Employees of the mountain resort town are being instruct- ed on everything from the frequency of washing their hands to saying "bon- jour" to French-speaking tourists. Be sure to sing along to "0 Canada" when a Canadian athlete wins a gold medal, says the town's tip sheet. This may prove a bigger challenge than it appears to be on paper. Canadians are just not good at manu- facturing enthusiasm. We're a polite, fairly laid-back people who only get excited when the price of gas goes over $1.40 a liter or the cost of a bottle of beer drops below a buck. We wave the flag on Canada Day. The rest of the time we're quietly confident of the greatness of our country. Canadian pride is kept safe in our hearts, not dangling off our sleeves where it could get bruised. And I've yet to see a professional Canadian hockey player, standing at attention while our national anthem is played more than 80 times a season, actually sing along to the words of "0 Canada." The Whistler booklet is called The Spark, The Fuel, The Flame which would be an excellent title for a manual for guys who like to drink while barbecuing — The Spark, The Fuel, The Flame, You're Cleared For Take -Off Bobby! Among the booklet's tips that went out to 450 staffers: • Wear red -and -white clothes under your uniform. • Keep your Christmas lights on after the holidays and make sure they're red - and -white. • Decorate your car with a Canadian flag. These directives are quite different than those issued during the Beijing 2008 Olympics. Then, Chinese citi- zens were told to bathe regularly, stop spitting and avoid weird haircuts. More suggestions from The Spark, The Fuel, The Flame: • Decorate your home with Olympic rings and Canadian flags. • Wear Canadian pins and hand them out to guests. • When a Canadian athlete is receiv- ing a medal, make some noise. • Learn a few words in French. Hello All the World's A Circus.,. • and bathroom directions are a good place to start. • Be friendly — it's what we're known for! Much of these helpful hints are unnecessary. Telling Canadians to be friendly is like encouraging Aussies to drink too much and swagger. Consider a few words in French? Has everyone for- gotten we're a nation with two official languages? Decorate your car? Yeah, like you're going to have an opportu- nity to get it out of the garage while the Olympics are in town? I think they missed a few crucial sug- gestions such as .... • If Canada doesn't win gold at hock- ey, remind people that lacrosse is our national sport. • If you suspect suspicious terrorist behavior call in the women's biathlon team. • Have black coffee ready for American Bode Miller who likes to ski drunk. • To save long explanations have but- tons made up that read: "Yes, our prime minister's hair is real." • If you must wear a nose ring remem- ber to hang a Canadian flag on it. • No need to mention Whistler's town logo has replaced the Canadian Maple Leaf with a sprig of marijuana. • Save the beaver jokes until after everybody's gone home. • If you say "This Olympics could no more run a deficit than a man could have a baby," say it in French. • Learn a few words in French. Start with voulez-vous coucher avec moi? And Avalanche! Avalanche! • If someone questions the gender of one of our athletes remind them of our "don't ask/don't look" policy. • "Brian Mulroney?" "No, we get that question a lot but he was actually the prime minister of Greenland." • If someone asks why the Canadian men's hockey team trashed their hotel rooms, tell them "Ikea Busting" is a demonstration sport in the 2014 Olympics. • When someone asks where the action is resist the urge to direct them to the hookers on Hastings Street. • When Canada fails to medal in an event remind people that it ain't over until the winners pee in a bottle. • If you encounter belligerent or vio- lent behavior in the athletes' village, ask the police to remove Tanya Harding immediately. • Do not leave Canadian pins on sta- dium seats unless a Canadian athlete is receiving a medal and you want to make some noise. • And finally, be polite. Root for our athletes to win the bronze. It's what we're known for.