Letters

Jeff Green | Feb 09, 2006

Feature Article

Letters to the Editor

Re: Road complaints

I once heard a joke about a mother on the beach with her small child in her arms. A large wave came in unexpectedly and swept the child out to sea. The woman pleaded with God to give her back her child. She made promises and cried. God took pity upon her and in the next wave her child was returned to her. She looked at her child in her arms, then looked up to God in heaven and said, “He had a hat!”

What is my point? Well, it’s simple. Lately I have been reading letters of complaints about how our roads are maintained throughout the year, but especially winter. I would like to explain something that may have missed a lot of people who live here: This is Canada . “If you don’t like the weather, wait a minute” was a saying I heard often when I first moved to this area. And I have found that to be true. In 19 years I have seen winters where 27 inches of snow fell in one day in November; in other winters, the crocuses came up in February. Temperatures varied from minus 40 to plus 10! So expecting the township and the road superintendent to be able to know how much to budget each year is asking them to use a crystal ball. ....and we all know how reliable they are!! Maybe an almanac may help, yet one cannot rely upon them either.

People complain about the road being ploughed too wide; too narrow; not deep enough to the pavement; too close to the pavement that they carve up the roads; too much salt; too little salt; salting when it’s too cold; not salting when it’s freezing rain; too much sand; not enough sand; sanding only certain spots; sanding too many spots; hitting mail boxes; not plowing soon enough when it’s slushy; too many runs up and back; or the best one...”They go by just when I’ve just finished shoveling the end of my driveway”. Be grateful that our roads are being maintained. Be proud of our men and women who take their job seriously and go out in all kinds of weather so that you can drive on the roads.

I for one am very proud of our road superintendent and his crew. I thought it was time I let him know that.

- Sonja Alcock

Macdonald?/MacDonald?

Like many, I enjoy reading about local happenings when your paper arrives in my mailbox. When we are away, the electronic version helps to keep us informed. All of this makes me reluctant to complain about the difference between D and d, but I must.The paper regularly presents the surname of our first prime minister as MacDonald rather than Macdonald. More alarming, it would appear from the newspaper pictures that the mural will do the same.

- Roger Macdonald

Come and get your signs !

I would like to congratulate Geoff Turner on his 14,833 votes, 24.9% from his riding, for a political party infiltrated with corruption; that’s pretty impressive.

Back in the 2004 election, I acquired several conservative signs that, to my knowledge, I am held accountable for. Late evening or early morning on Election Day my neighbour’s conservative election sign disappeared, and stapled to my conservative sign was a smiley Geoff Turner Liberal sign. Now I know that you liberals are laughing at this; but by now it’s okay; I have to understand that your party does no matter what to win its game. I would not make this a public issue if this were a single event.We own property in another town of Scott ’s riding and two of our signs that were stapled on this heritage home, in the process of renovation, were also removed. It was apparent that all conservative signs on private property in this area were removed on Election Day. I am not a member of any political party. I follow and understand politics to a great degree, but for someone at this political time to put a liberal sign on my private property was insulting, to say the least.Mr. Geoff Turner: it appears you may be running again in the near future. You are welcome to reclaim your sign immediately. I do not want to be held legally responsible for your sign. Looking back, I recall 54% of a public survey portrayed liberals as victims. I guess you have been victimized again.

- Rita Staniforth