Monthly Archives: August 2009

08.12.09
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Reinventing the rural economy

An economic alliance is growing in the sandy areas of Southwestern Ontario where tobacco once reigned.

“We’re trying to reinvent the rural economy,” Aylmer Mayor Bob Habkirk said yesterday, just before Middlesex County council endorsed turning the Southern Central Ontario Region (SCOR) into an incorporated not-for-profit body.

The intent is to make sure about one million hectares of agricultural land regains its spot as one of the most fertile economic drivers in the region.

The partnership that has approved the group’s new strategic plan includes Middlesex, Norfolk, Elgin and Brant counties, with Oxford’s official endorsement expected today. All five partners have been working towards SCOR’s incorporation for a little more than a year.
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08.08.09
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So, you want to be a municipal politician — don’t miss this one

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Good news for those contemplating a run for office in the 2010 municipal election.
A training seminar entitled C. P. O. will be offered on Tuesday, Sept. 8 beginning at 7 p.m. in the Carnegie Room at St. Thomas Public Library.
Lecturing at the event is city historian Ray Galloway, although the info sheet contained in Monday’s city council agenda includes no credentials pertaining to his relevant political background.
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08.05.09
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Suzanne van Bommel will not seek Liberal nod in Elgin-Middlesex-London

VAN BOMMEL Susan
BELMONT – The next federal election ballot will not feature the name Suzanne van Bommel on it.
The past federal Liberal candidate, van Bommel has made it known that she will not be seeking the nomination for the riding of Elgin-Middlesex-London for an election that could be held as soon as this fall. The long-time Liberal insider in both provincial and federal politics has accepted an extended contract with her current employer, GreenField Ethanol, that will keep her from committing as much time and energy as required to seek public office.
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08.03.09
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Recession over? Come visit St. Thomas

By HANK DANISZEWSKI, SUN MEDIA
Maybe Mark Carney should take a stroll along South Edgeware Road in St. Thomas before he declares this recession over.

Last week the governor of the Bank of Canada predicted our economy would start to grow again this summer after three consecutive quarters of shrinkage.

But head out to the small cities and towns surrounding London and that prediction elicits a lot of head-shaking and rueful laughter from people who doubt that good times will quickly return to this area.
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08.03.09
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Don’t back down on wind turbines

For renewable energy to have a future in Ontario, public support and confidence in wind farms is essential. The province should lead the way by ensuring that Ontarians have access to the most up-to-date research on the impact of wind turbines on public health.

In April, the government said it would fund a university-based research initiative “to examine potential public health effects of renewable energy projects.” But the initiative has not yet been launched. The province ought to make it a priority, with a special focus on wind turbines. That would ensure that Ontario’s regulations governing wind turbines are based on the best possible evidence.

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08.01.09
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Saint John, NB realtor, property owner aiming to collect 6,300 signatures in bid to force election

Posted by Ian:
Frustrated by the lack of responsibility to voters exhibited by any of our elected municipal representatives? Tired of broken campaign promises and poor fiscal judgment? Are personal agendas and ego the order of the day instead of good governance? You don’t have to wait until the next municipal election to dump the deadheads as exasperated voters in Saint John, New Brunswick flex their electoral muscles in a non-election year. And their frustration rings a familiar bell in St. Thomas.

SAINT JOHN – A real estate salesman and property owner has launched a petition to remove Mayor Ivan Court from office.

Real estate businessman Gerry Webster holds a petition he is circulating in a bid to remove Mayor Ivan Court from office. He wants to present the petition to the common clerk by July 17.

“He’s the mayor, that’s where the buck stops,” Gerry Webster said. “He’s had a year and he’s not listened to the public.”

Webster, who has already expressed his frustration with the mayor and common council, wants to present the petition to the common clerk by July 15.

The petition says, in part, “We the undersigned petition the common clerk of the City of Saint John to recall the below listed mayor” and that “an election be held as soon as possible.”

The reason for the petition to recall the mayor, the document states, is “the failure to address the serious financial situation of the city and the proposed further expenditures on capital projects.”

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08.01.09
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Falling through the cracks — the innocent victims of futility

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Elizabeth Dye is a strong-willed woman — whose sense of pride and work ethic prompted her to write this corner to urge the time has come to stop judging and start helping others.
She speaks not of herself, in spite of the fact she has had to “downgrade everything,” but instead for those she notes, “who don’t fit into the neat little categories society sets out as the norm.”
Those neither sick enough to be hospitalized nor healthy enough to function effectively in our society.
“They are cast aside and fall through the cracks,” she advises. “In short their family, friends and advocates just fade away when they realize the futility of the fight.”
The RPN, off work for two years dealing with her own emotional issues, wishes to draw attention to the pitiful sum handed out monthly via the Ontario Disability Support Program.
Especially in light of the fact, whether physically or psychologically unable to work, no one sets out to be in this position.
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