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6 THE NEW TANNER THURSDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2012 GENEROUS GIVERS: Customers and staff at Leathertown Lumber are doing all they can to ensure there is something under the tree for needy Actonarea kids this Christmas. New donated toys, including those held by staffers David Lindsay and April Mitchell, will be distributed by the Salvation Army. Donations will be gratefully accepted until December 17. ­ Frances Learment photo EDITORIAL with Frances Learment Cruel vandalism deserves harsh punishment While gently persuaded in recent years that restorative justice is a better way to deal with many crimes, stories of recent vandalism at Acton's Fairview Cemetery beg for a tough, nomercy approach to law enforcement and justice. The cruel, wanton cemetery vandalism is causing a lot of pain and anguish among victims, many who tenderly care for gravesites of their loved ones. In recent weeks, seven monuments have been toppled, and decorative hardware was snapped off of the granite columbaria, which holds created remains. In the summer, there were six similar incidents, but with increased police surveillance, the vandalism stopped until the recent incidents, which prompted the Town to urge residents to report any information they may have. A "disgusted" Mayor Rick Bonnette said the total lack of respect for monuments in memory of those who have died will not be tolerated. Sad when mourners must be on the lookout for idiot/ignorant vandals. Anyone with information on the cemetery vandalism should call the Town at 905-0873-2601, ex: 2274, or Crime Stoppers at 905-825-8477, or on-line at www.haltoncrimestoppers.com Careful and courteous It isn't great being a pedestrian crossing a road way in Toronto lately. You may have seen it on television or read that nine pedestrians were hit by traffic just on this past Monday. Last week, three pedestrians were hit while walking on a sidewalk. As glorious as Toronto can be, it is still a big city and has its moments of scariness. Not being able to walk on a sidewalk without being hit by a car is scary for me. Toronto Police responded to pedestrians flying off hoods of cars and being run down by suggesting that if you're walking you should wear bright coloured clothes. They of course weren't blaming pedestrians, merely offering a piece of advice. Sometimes it is more powerful to say nothing than to say something. Police saying this just made them look silly in my opinion, as if not taking the problem seriously enough. However, while pondering this, I started thinking about our own little town. The population of Toronto is around 2.5- million people. That is a lot of people. Our town if you include all the dogs and cats might amount to 10,000. It is not hard to imagine that when traveling along Highway 401 through the city that a clump of those enormous apartBy Angela Tyler ment buildings probably has the equivalent of our entire population in a few towers. Toronto is full of people/pedestrians and traffic and when they come together there will always be problems. This problem is not just an issue for a large city; it is also a problem for our town. Thankfully, so far, I can't recall any bad pedestrian/ vehicular incidences with the exception of seeing a bicycle last spring after it had come in contact with a car near the railway tracks. I do not know if there were any injuries or who was at fault. Have you driven downtown between 4 and 6 p.m. during the week? It doesn't matter what direction you go ­ north, south, east or west ­ the traffic is lined up for blocks. For recent residents, that might not sound like a big deal, but for us longterm residents it is pretty hard to fathom. If you're traveling west (into the downtown core from the Sobeys Plaza end), it is not unexpected to wait for 10 or even 20 minutes to make for your turn at the main intersection. Cars squish into the one Looking Back Ten Years Ago · Six years after former Acton resident Wayne Greavette was killed by a pipe bomb mailed to his Moffat home through the Acton post office, his family launched a web site ­ www.unsolvedmurders.ca ­ to try to generate clues. · Halton approved funding for three new ambulance stations in Halton, including one on Churchill Road South in Acton, beside the fire station which EMS crews had shared for two years. Five Years Ago · Sounds of the holidays filled the air at local elementary schools as the Acton High School's Jazz and Concert bands toured three schools, playing seasonal favourites. · Acton's Joanne Cooper earned her third consecutive shutout as the Lightning blanked the Cougars 3-0 in Acton Ladies Hockey action at Acton arena. in front of them. They block intersections. They get frustrated and zoom around to one of the side streets. The water main construction doesn't help the situation. Drivers are anxious and distracted and this is a recipe for disaster. Throughout the summer on Thursday afternoons when the kids, my mom and I would go to the Farmers' Market use the crosswalk downtown properly ­ waiting for the light and for traffic to stop ­ almost every week frustrated or anxious drivers, or just ones not paying attention, would zoom through the crosswalk. I've also seen it many times at the crosswalk by School Lane (Robert Little Public School) where cars and trucks would rapidly go through a red light while pedestrians try to cross a roadway. Is wearing light coloured clothes really the solution? I personally don't think so. It might help sometimes, but it won't solve anything. The one thing that we as drivers can do is be more aware. We all need to execute more patience when driving; practicing what we learned years ago such as not to block intersections and most importantly to be alert to pedestrians and it sure wouldn't hurt if we were more courteous to one another. Publisher Ted Tyler Editor Frances Learment Angela Tyler Distributed to every home in Acton and area, as well as adjoining communities. Every effort will be made to see advertising copy, neatly presented, is correctly printed. The publisher assumes no financial responsibility for typographical errors or omissions in advertising, but will gladly reprint without charge that part of an advertisement in which an error may occur provided a claim is made within five days of publication. All articles, advertisements and graphic artwork appearing in The New Tanner is copyrighted. Any usage, reproduction or publication of these items, in whole or in part, without the express written consent of the publisher of The New Tanner is a copyright infringement and subject to legal action. Editorial Contributors email: thenewtanner@on.aibn.com 373 Queen Street East, Unit 1 Acton, Ontario L7J 2N2 Advertising and Circulation Marie Shadbolt (519) 853-0051 Fax: (519) 853-0052 Composing Traci Gardner, Iain Brennan Typesetting Melissa Paul