Spitting into the wind’
Dear Editor:
I have known Ed O’Shaughnessy for a number of years. I believe him to be a man of integrity and high ethics. He is not usually confrontational, which means that the St. David Street bike lane issue strikes a very serious chord with him.
Unfortunately, Ed, your main opposition, in my opinion, do not enjoy the same level of character as you. In saying so, you are taking a knife to a gunfight.
As with many politicians, an often used strategy with detractors is to ignore those who do not agree with them. Ignored long enough, the protests will die down, the issue will proceed as originally planned and the detractors will be silenced. I have already seen this to be the case, personally.
I think that your campaign will be proven to be accurate and it will take a fatality or a serious accident in the future to verify that. Of course, by then it will be too late.
As you pointed out, this is already a fait accompli. The usual clique of four versus three in this council will have their way despite the wishes of their constituents. Five versus two to reconsider the decision will be a non-starter.
Valiant effort, Ed, but you’re spitting into the wind.
Terry McKenna,
Elora
‘A disaster’
Dear Editor:
The platform of the PPC states first and foremost (in bold letters) that their party stands for “Freedom” and that has made me wonder what that word means in the context of Canadian politics.
I know where they stand in terms of COVID-19 but what does it mean for the reproductive rights of women – does it mean free choice, or maybe not? What does it mean for people in this country who are not white and not Christian – can the PPC explain what they mean by “Canadian values”?
And what about immigration – sounds like the PPC doesn’t like the sound of that word very much.
I don’t know that much about this party, but I resent them using the word “people’s” in their name, as if their party was inclusive and represented all the people of Canada, which it does not.
I am discouraged to see so many of their signs around – their slogan might have a seductive ring to it, but it wouldn’t lead to a better future. Their solution for ending the pandemic alone would be a disaster, and that is just the beginning.
Barbara Cooper,
East Garafraxa
Pet problems
Dear Editor:
Unfortunately both the PC and NDP parties wants to villainize people with dog allergies.
Why do they want to make poaching profitable again? While I understand many people don’t understand alternative pets to cats and dogs, not everyone has this luxury. Not everyone has the room or schedules to keep a cat or dog.
A total ban on exotic animals means all these people can no longer have pets as their family members. It means for the past 20 years all the ground that we have made driving poachers out of business with captive breeding of harmless animals in Canada in the U.S. will quickly be undone.
It means all the small businesses that breed these animals, or sell their food, toys and equipment to care for them properly will all be put out of business.
I can understand regulations to allow only captive-bred animals – this makes sense for animal welfare and the protection of the Canadian public, wildlife and livestock. We already require CITES paperwork for most exotic animals to prove their origins. Smuggled-in animals will never go through any health checks and will make any contact tracing origins next to impossible to do, so why would we suddenly want to make this the only option for these pets in Canada?
People with pet birds, hamsters, or frogs should not be made criminals.
Lance Henderson,
Centre Wellington
Cops and ‘zombies’
Dear Editor:
RE: Please slow down, Sept. 16.
This letter highlights a continuing unfortunate trend. The advent of driverless cars is already upon us. Most drivers are mere “zombies” trying to get to the scene of their next accident as soon as possible. I watch them go by, always speeding and the radio booming away. Most of them must be half deaf if not so already.
Many have absolutely no respect for the environment that they are passing through. Speeding creates more emissions and approximately one in ten vehicles has had the approved exhaust system modified, to make more noise. They think it will make their vehicle run better, but it rarely does. Most motorcycles seem incredibly noisy.
People go on about protecting the mental health of citizens, but they seem oblivious to what is right under their noses; there is no “peace and quiet”. There are many laws already existing that prohibit all the above, but nothing is being done. Why not, you may ask? The problem is simply that there are not enough police officers to deal with it all.
Organized crime is consuming so many man hours that there are not enough police officers to cope with it all. Try standing at the top of any hill in Elora or Fergus and listen to the racket coming from some of these zombie-driven vehicles as they scream up the hills. A police officer stationed there would wear himself out writing tickets, I am sure, but where is he?
Meanwhile, our township council is keeping itself quite busy erecting strange monuments and installing flowerpots blocking accessible parking spots and stopping people getting to their homes.
Malcolm McCulloch,
Fergus
Doubts passports
Dear Editor:
I question the effectiveness of the proposed vaccine certificates and passports.
It seems odd that businesses are going to be put in the position of policing something the government can’t and at greater cost to the business owner with no benefit financially.
It appears that our current government has no trust in the general public to act in a safe and controlled manner. It is already apparent the conflict that has risen with the name calling and finger pointing that has shown up in social media and local newspapers.
It may appear to be a reasonable decision but I question if it is a wise one in the long run. We will see.
Michael Thorp,
Mount Forest
‘Developer greed’
Dear Editor:
More than the issues of restricting community access to seeing and walking the Gorge or ignoring the local height, density and usage bylaws mentioned in several of the August issues of the Advertiser (5th, 12th, 19th), Pearle’s development of the Elora Mill and Mill South river banks, is emblematic of developer greed, unsustainability, utter disrespect of Canada’s Indigenous peoples and of local settler communities.
Since April 2021, the Haudenosaunee Confederacy of Six Nations has, under legally supported treaty rights at federal and provincial levels, put a moratorium on development of the banks of the Grand River.
Has Pearle Development, the Ciancone family and their network of real estate investors like RISE, presented their development plans for Elora, Fergus and the banks of the Grand River to the Haudenosaunee Development Institute as legally required? I suspect not. Are local settler communities (and voters) allied with Six Nations against dense development of luxury condominiums sold to outside investors and beyond the reach of locals? I suspect “yes”.
To quote poet Alice Walker; “What we love can be saved.” Most of us moved here because we love the power, beauty and natural surroundings of the Grand River. Already private guardhouses and railings block access to the Gorge. One strains to see the Tooth of Time blocked by the Elora Mill spa and soon to be blocked even further by a private glass bridge for condo owners to cross the River to reach it!
While local pressure this summer had Pearle recently withdraw the application to amend local zoning laws, this is temporary, especially with Mayor Kelly Linton so supportive of Pearle’s takeover of Elora and its total disregard of Six Nations rights.
Please consider what is at stake here … the waters that support life, our local towns and villages, our future with Indigenous allies going forward in this time and the very quality of our community lives together.
Eimear O’Neill,
Elora
‘Gentleman’ definition
Dear Editor:
RE: Local piper addresses noise complaints with sign campaign, Sept. 9.
A long time ago (I can’t remember exactly when or where) I came upon this definition of a gentleman: someone who can play bagpipes but doesn’t.
I thought it apt back then, and many years later still do.
Richard Giles,
Alma
Immune to complaints?
Dear Editor:
RE: Local piper addresses noise complaints with sign campaign, Sept. 9.
I recall from decades ago when I was a piper in the Fergus Pipe Band that it was commonly understood that there was a unique bylaw in Fergus stating that the sound of the Great Highland Bagpipes were immune to noise complaints.
The accuracy of that assumption was never challenged or put to the test over the years to my understanding. The strong Scottish affiliation in the community conferred on the pipes a certain reverence, whether deserved or not.
Good for Peter in upholding this honourable tradition, as well as his honest attempt to placate the neighbour.
Stan Litch,
Elora
Local cannabis shops
Dear Editor:
Fergus has once again fallen behind in the development of business, such as marijuana sales. This simple fact is marijuana sales is a government-approved business, with strict guidelines and safety measures in place, to assure the distribution of marijuana is safe for consumers.
In comparison, off-the-street products may contain numerous harmful chemicals, such as pesticides and fentanyl, just to name a few.
I would also like to state that I am very concerned that in our growing community of Fergus that we are still putting our residents who choose to buy marijuana on the street corners, at risk, when a simple vote by council can change that.
Cal Simmons,
Centre Wellington
Supply and demand
Dear Editor:
Supply and demand form the most basic concepts of economics. With housing for example, when the demand for houses exceeds the supply, prices go up. Restrict the supply, then you get higher prices as demand exceeds supply. When there is more supply than what the demands are, then prices fall.
Up to recently, housing prices increased but were within the range of affordability for many. There was always a healthy flow of land approved for development. Prices were going up and up but a house was attainable for example, by getting a higher paying job or perhaps having a few jobs. It may have been a stretch, but it was not impossible. Although owning is a different part of it all, the costs of ownership – mortgage payments, taxes, utilities, insurances, also have to be factored in.
The key point here is Canada has an abundance of land. Unfortunate and more so, disturbing – this housing crisis was entirely preventable. Ensure an adequate and continuous supply of land to support Canada’s growth demands.
So until we get back to managing the economy like we used to, restrictive development policies along with municipal approval paralysis will continue to strangle Canadians’ hopes and rights for a reasonable opportunity to own a home.
Larry Vettor,
Guelph,
Home Children
Dear Editor:
Was there a difference in how John Macdonald or Queen Victoria treated the Indigenous people compared to how the white Home Children they brought to Canada from Britain were treated at the same time?
Between 1869 and 1948, over 100,000 white Home Children were imported to Canada as part of a program that lasted into the 1970s. These children ranged in age from toddler to 14. Britain hoped [falsely] that Canadians would adopt these children.
In 1875 the Dominion of Canada (federal) government paid a $2/head grant for the Home Children; would this not be considered slavery? These children were “owned” and remained in their farm placements until they were 18 years old unless they were required to enlist in one of Canada’s World Wars. Many of the Home Children who enlisted in both World Wars believed they had discovered a way to return to Britain and escape their abusive situations in Canada.
Many of these children were abducted from their families in Britain, brought to Canada and forced to labour on Canadian farms, believing that their parents were dead or didn’t want them. Their agricultural endeavours aided in the establishment of this country. Unfortunately, many children were stigmatized, victimized and assaulted, and died due to their placements. Some children committed suicide or vanished.
In Ontario, the remains of 76 children were discovered in two unmarked communal graves. It is unknown how many other unmarked grave sites with white Home Children exist across Canada’s provinces. Isn’t this, then, genocide?
Why are the exploits of the Home Children not taught in Canadian history? Why haven’t these Children been acknowledged? I haven’t heard anything else about this heinous conduct since. Did the lives of these white Home Children not matter?
It astounds me how many Canadians believe the Home Children are a myth or that they never existed, or that no white would ever enslave another white!
Perhaps it is past time for the Home Children to be remembered and honoured for their contributions and what they contributed to Canada – literally their lives. They are an intricate part of this country’s history, especially those buried in unmarked graves.
My grandfather was a Home Child; he laid in an unmarked grave for nearly 85 years before I located him this spring.
Tasha Heart,
Elora