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•T he I FP • H al to n H ill s •T hu rs da y, M ay 2 3, 2 01 3 6 OPINION At the best of times, social media is written off as nothing more than a fad, a time-waster, a realm filled with cute cat photos. At worst, it can be a dangerous forum that provides a haven for bullies or predators. Most of the time, it falls somewhere in between: harmless, but insular. Over the past two weeks, as many first searched for, and then mourned, the loss of young husband and father Tim Bosma, we witnessed the power- ful potential of online networking. Within hours of leaving his Ancaster home on May 6 in his truck with two suspects who had contacted him to arrange a test drive through an online classified site, Bosma was determined missing; as police issued a press release through traditional media, a very organized campaign overtook Facebook and Twitter-- spearheaded by Acton resident Peter Lowe. A downloadable poster featuring Bosma's like- ness and a photo of his truck, along with con- tact numbers for the Hamilton Police Service and Crime Stoppers, was repeatedly posted and spread to thousands of Facebook users, who con- tinually re-posted it to their own timelines. These online flyers were soon adorning the windows and notice boards in area establishments. According to Hamilton police, who have made one arrest, more than 700 tips have been called in. In an investigation in which speed is of the essence, the logistics of spanning municipalities stretching from Brantford to Kleinburg and hit- ting several points in between, we imagine, can be a logistical nightmare. In the Bosma case, however, the momentum never wavered-- every- one had the same singular focus. Following the arrest of a suspect and the dis- covery of Bosma's remains last week, social me- dia again rose to the occasion providing not only solid information in the search for additional sus- pects (a second man was arrested yesterday), but also creating a space to send wishes to Bosma's widow, Sharlene, and their daughter. The tragedy that knocked on the door of the Bosma house this month came to us all-- but so did the realization that we have the power to strengthen our bonds to each other. The Independent & Free Press is published Tuesday and Thursday and is one of several Metroland Media Group Ltd. community newspapers. Edi- torial and advertising content of The Independent & Free Press is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. The Independent & Free Press Power of posting Steve Nease Letters to the editor Dear editor, On April 27, my husband and I headed to the Robert C. Austin Operations Centre for Halton Hills' 13th annual Earth Day event to drop off used motor oil, to pick up compost and wood chips, and to purchase a couple of shrubs for our yard. We want to send a very big 'shout out' to all of the staff and volunteers who made our day! The event was so well planned and organized, with lots of helpful folks directing traffic through and between the various drop-off and pick-up points. Every single per- son met us with a smile, happy to answer any and all questions. We really appreciated the advice of the master gardener when making our selection. And another round of thanks goes to those who provided our hot dog lunch (from which pro- ceeds were to go to the Georgetown Bread Basket) and the volunteers who manned the barbecue. Just another great example of the community spirit that makes us glad that we're residents of Halton Hills! Elaine Van Doorn, Norval Letters policy 905-873-0301 Publisher: Dana Robbins General manager: Steve Foreman (sforeman@theifp.ca) Retail advertising manager: Cindi Campbell (ccampbell@theifp.ca) Managing editor: John McGhie (jmcghie@theifp.ca) Distribution manager: Nancy Geissler (ngeissler@theifp.ca) Classifieds Kristie Pells (classified@theifp.ca) Accounting Rose Marie Gauthier Editorial Cynthia Gamble: News editor (cgamble@theifp.ca) Ted Brown: Photography (tbrown@theifp.ca) Lisa Tallyn: Staff writer (ltallyn@theifp.ca) Eamonn Maher: Staff writer/sports (emaher@theifp.ca) Many Dufferin County residents, citing priva- cy issues, are upset with a new bylaw forcing residents to use clear garbage bags. Would you oppose such a bylaw in Halton? • Yes (63%) • I don't care one way or another (21%) • No (16% ) WEB POLL RESULTS (Go to www.theifp.ca) Earth Day was well organized Outlets job fair isn't Synchro success Letters must include an address and daytime phone number. Anonymous letters will not be published. Letters should not exceed 150 words and may be edited for content and/or length. Publication is not guaranteed. Email: jmcghie@theifp.ca Mail or drop off: Independent & Free Press, 280 Guelph St., Unit 29, Georgetown, ON., L7G 4B1. Dear editor, The Halton Hills Synchro Club would like to say a huge thank you to the everyone who donated their empties and to the Beer Store employees for all their hard work sorting during our recent fundrais- ing bottle drive event. Despite the cold, wet weather the community really came through and the girls had a great time. Thanks again to the community for proving why Georgetown is such a great place to live. Andrea Houtby, registrar Halton Hills Synchro Club Dear editor, It doesn't seem "job fair"-- the recent announcement that the mayor and Town staff have agreed to support a job fair with the To- ronto Premium Outlets in Milton is surprising. The concerns were over conges- tion at Mold-Masters SportsPlex and space at the Gellert Centre. Surely more thought and plan- ning could have gone into this! Aren't we trying to keep our resi- dents in town on the weekends rather then giving them a reason to go elsewhere? Why could we not have multiple locations and stretch the fair over a two-day period to make it a weekend event? Mold-Masters would have been perfect-- it's in the center of town across from the mall, shopping and parking. Half the jobs could now go to our neighbours in Milton! Nick Bruce, Georgetown