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PORT PERRY STAR - Wednesday, September 8, 1999 - 7 The Poot Povey Stay Question of the Week... What did you think of the annual Labour Day Port Perry Fair? Do you have a suggestion that you think would make a good question of the week? Call us at 905-985-7383. Whitney Cohoon We love the Port Perry Fair and the crowds that come out to see it. It's a great way to promote the farming community and teach people what they do for everyone. I've really enjoyed it so far; this is my second day and we bought three-day passes. It's a great value and the kids love it, espe- cially seeing the animals. It's been an absolutely wonderful fall fair. The exhibits are better this year than in the past; it's been a great fair as usual. Lynn Voissard Is great to see the com- munity come together and continue to put on a great fair year after year. It's a good way for fami- lies to come out and enjoy some time together. Sam Gibson-Kirby It's been pretty good this year... it wasn't so good last year. There's more rides and other stuff to do this year. It's pretty good all-around. LETTERS Bureaucracy rules over sense again To the Editor: Regarding the OMB hearing on the Township Official Plan and Councillor Gadsden's com- ment (Port Perry Star Aug. 31) "don't want sig- nificant development in the rural areas." That comment echos exactly the concern of the rural taxpayers and in fact has been addressed in the Scugog Plan by limiting development to 26 units per year in rural Scugog. The problem is, that while allowing those units, the plan provides no means to accomplish the goal; there is no actual "planning" for rural residential development. The township planner has told council there 1s no planned development in the rural areas and according to the provincial policy statement, official plans require "at least a 10-year supply of land designated and available for new resi- dential development," the Scugog Official Plan does not comply with provincial policy. While it is true Scugog initially drafted a plan to accomplish Scugog's goals, the plan was debased to comply with the out of date Durham Official Plan. It seems bureaucracy - read the region - rules over common sense. Colin Kemp, Nestleton Operation Scugog presents the eighth Annual Sale of Children's Fall/Winter Clothing and Accessories on Saturday, Sept. 25 from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Scugog Centre Community Hall (Arena), 1655 Reach Street, Port Perry. Sizes infant to 16 and maternity clothes, children's accessories, boots, skates, sleds, Operation Scugog clothing sale coming up toys, books, games, etc. Infant furniture, (except cribs), etc. Thank you to IGA, Mr. Sub, Reid's Independent Grocer, Square Boy Pizza, Tim Horton's and Trader Sam's for providing refreshments for volunteers who work the sale. Operation Scugog Bomombers Vhen? fire in May 1967. - ¥ 4 CORR PHOTO COURTESY SCUGOG SHORES MUSEUM Since it's a busy time for fall fairs in and around Scugog Township this time of the year, we thought you might enjoy a look at the old fair photo. The picture shows the grandstand at the Ontario Central Fair (Port Perry) circa 1900. The main building at the Central Fair ground was destroyed by fire in November 1904 and the grandstand was completely destroyed by Editor's ~ Notepad by Jeff Mitchell JUST WHEN YOU THOUGHT YOU KNEW Just when you think you're starting to get a handle on things, to a degree at least, along comes a week like last week. A week during which everything you thought to be true turned out not to be, and that which you thought impossible was proven not only possible, but, quite soon, commonplace. Well... maybe that's an exaggeration. But some bits of infor- mation that came my way did give me pause. Check it out: Q Head transplants, once the domain of coarse jokes, low- budget horror films and unimaginably bad television movies, are a possibility, according te an American doctor. He contends that, although it sounds incredibly goofy, we may one day soon be able to lop off the heads of folks who can afford it, and reattach those same heads to new host bodies. This would work for wise and/or wealthy old farts whose minds remain functional, even after their bodies give out. Like Mike Wallace, say, or Dick Clark. Problem is, the required severing of the spinal cord would leave the body paralyzed. But you can't have everything. And one does have to wonder where the donor bodies might come from. But it hardly matters. You can live for- ever. Eventually. Q Those cars blasting by you on the 401 aren't actually getting anywhere faster than you are. According to some geniuses who issued a report last week, it's just an optical illusion that makes you believe the guy who just screamed past at 175 is actually progressing along the freeway more quickly than you are. So you might as well just relax, and stay in the lane behind that garbage truck. Speed kills anyway. 0 Computer geeks have extended our on-line shopping capabilities to include groceries. So you no longer need to go to the market to get this week's supply of grub; no sir: Just call up the old web site, or whatever the hell it is, and type in the list. The food will soon appear and you'll be saved the aggravation of leaving the house, driving through a beautiful late summer day, parking in the lot, and going into the store. Gone will be the inconvenience of walking along aisles, looking for items. No more pushing wobbly shopping carts and waiting at check-out counters which burn up the time you could be spending hunched over, peering deep into a computer screen. Answer me this: How is that a good thing? How does the creation of ways in which to avoid exertion, travel and human interaction help to advance our development as a species? What the hell is the point here? There is a thread among these items, as disconnected as they may seem. They are all examples of our presence here and now on the threshold of a surreal and somewhat preposter- ous future, in which anything is possible, even if it is utterly meaningless. Medical advances for the rich and vain. Studies that mean nothing. Computer gimmicks that are nothing more than that. Hokum. = a