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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2003 THE NEW TANNER GRAPEVIN UP IN SMOKE? No word if an alleged sign invit- ing Acton Legion members to ignore the Town's smoking bylaw and light up was burned -- no one will 'fess up, at least on the record, to seeing the sign, let alone allow- ing smoking illegally. When asked if he'd seen a sign or any illegal smoking, Acton Councillor and Legion member Dobbie Frizzell first said "not re- ally, no," but then said he hadn't, adding he would not tell a veteran to butt out, even if it was before 9 p.m., and not in the Legion's club room. "Will you walk in there and tell a veteran he can't have a cigarette? I will not do it," Frizzell said, say- ing bylaws don't apply to people who fought for their country. 'HOT POTATO' In the midst of a municipal elec- tion campaign, Acton candidate and St. Alban's Anglican Church official Michael Roy has a "hot potato" on his hands. Roy, a deputy-warden at St. Alban's who is challenging for one of two Acton seats on Town Coun- cil, said there is nothing political about a "get together with the mayor," on October 25 at the church. "Tt was never meant to be a po- litical issue," Roy said recently. "We don't want (Mayor) Kathy (Gastle) to talk about her political statements. We want her to basi- cally come in and talk about the community...and business. pro- grams and new growth," Roy said, adding the timing of get together, part of a church open house that includes a silent auction and dance, is "pretty poor," but the date was set several months ago as a com- munity outreach program. GOOD LOOKIN' DOCS ONLY Acton needs good-looking doc- tors according to incumbent Acton Councillor Dobbie Frizzell whose election campaign brochure says he supports "new incentives to at- tractive (sic) doctors for the urgent needs in the Acton area." "George, (Gastle) the mayor's husband pointed it (the error) out to me last week. It's just one of those things that happen," Frizzell said on Tuesday, adding his daugh- ter produced the campaign brochure for him. The one-term councillor said he would correct the error on the "cou- ple of thousand" brochures he has yet to deliver to voters. WONDER WOOL You can look and feel good in one of the European wool sweat- ers on sale at Headwater Wool, Acton's newest fibre store. Owned by husband and wife, Igor Pustylnick and Larisa Vilensky of Hillsburgh, the store, which opened last Wednesday, of- fers 100 per cent European-spun yarns for those who love to knit with a quality product, and finished sweaters in both pure wool and a wool/cotton blend. Pustylnick said they promote natural fibres as much as possible --like hard wool because it's "very good for 'musele pain -- it's like a natural warmer and is biodegrad- 7 * able," he said, adding they do carry acrylic yarn for babies and those who can't wear wool. Pustylnick and his wife both worked in the software industry and lived in Georgetown before opening their first retail business at 11 Main St., South. He said they chose Acton be- cause of its location, and because it is a growing community with shoppers who want quality goods. FLU FIGHTER Halton will give free "flu shots" to Acton area residents on Wednes- day, (Oct. 22) in the community hall at Acton arena. Influenza can be serious for some people and an annual vacci- nation is between 70 and 90 per cent effective in preventing flu in adults. Flu shots are available to those at least six months old, and are es- pecially important for people with medical conditions, chronic ill- nesses, heath care and emergency - services workers and those over 65. -The Acton clinic runs from | to 7 p.m., and no appointment is nec- essary. CANINE CAPERS Kudos to Pet Valu owner Rhonda Fox who not only agreed to accept membership fees for HH-DOG (Halton Hills Dog Owners Asso- ciation) in support of the new leash-free dog exercise zone, but has also donated $100 to the new facility in Prospect Park. é Dog owners are flocking to the fenced area between the tennis courts and Black Creek to let their pets romp with wild abandon. Thanks to the Town and HH-DOG, there are containers of bags to stoop and scoop, a water bow! for panting pooches and a picnic table for socializing owners. BRUNCH TIME Just a reminder the monthly Kinette Club of Acton brunch takes place October 26 at Acton arena from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The St. Joseph school council will share proceeds from the all- you-can-eat $5 brunch in exchange for cooking, serving and cleaning at the brunch. The brunches began as a mix and mingle, good fresh food event de- signed to foster community spirit and have evolved into a popular fundraiser and tasty feast, includ- ing homemade desserts. HISTORICAL WALK 'Costumed guides will reveal some of Acton's rich heritage on four guided historical walks, scheduled for this Sunday, (Octo- ber 19) as a fundraiser for Halton Hills Community Support and In- formation, (HHCSI) and the United Way of Halton Hills. There are 46 places of historical interest on the Acton walking tours that begin at the HHCSI office at 47 Main Street at 12 p.m., and will continue on the hour until 3 p.m. " People are asked to pre-register and pick up pledge sheets at 47 Main Street, or by calling the United Way at 905-873-6502.1 The tour is $10 per person, $20 per family, with proceeds benefitting community support and youth programs. Memory Lane -- Historical Walk | _ Sunday October 1° Deon 2 a. HERITAGE WALKS: Halton Hills Community Support and Information (HHCSI) worker Joanne McKee gets into the period mood for historical walks in Acton and Georgetown on Sun- day. The walking tours are fundraisers for HHCSI and the United Way of Halton Hills. --Submitted photo Last weekend had to be one of the warmest in recent memory. Like many, | took the opportunity to drive up north and close our trailer for the season. The unusu- ally warm weather gave me an opportunity to do some mainte- nance that I had put off during the summer. The colours this year are out- standing. On Saturday I was up on the roof; the lake was still as glass and the scenery literally took your breath away. I took some pictures but just knew that, no matter how good they turn out, mere photos can't do justice to nature at her finest. This year's leaves, although I thought there were less vibrant reds than years past, are God's paintbrush at work. If you haven't taken a drive through the country I encourage you to do so. Try to forget, for a moment, what nature's bounty promises us for the next six months. B-r-r-r-r-. RRKKK Historic Minaki Lodge, just outside Kenora, burned to the ground last Sunday morning. You may remember that this "white elephant of the north' was owned by Ontario taxpayers some years ago. During the time we owned it the government sunk tens of millions of dollars, in both up- grades and operating losses, into the resort. Finally, they sold the property, at a huge loss of course, and it's struggled along until meeting its fiery end last week- end. The event is worth noting for two reasons. Firstly, the whole experience shows how foolhardy "it is for government to get in- volved in commercial enterprises for political motives. Sometimes businesses should just be allowed to fail. I mention this because we have just elected what I think will be an interventionist government in Ontario. We'll have to be on guard so the public purse doesn't end up with another "jewel of the north". We can't afford more bau- bles if the money promised for heath and education is going to be available. Secondly, the circumstances surrounding the fire are some- what suspicious. The lodge had been closed on Sept. 01, five weeks earlier than planned, and iad obviously been losing From Paradise to Hades The Way 1 See It money. Angry employees trashed rooms and generally vandalized other parts of the building. The owner also has a curious at- titude. Phil Archer is described as a "real estate magnate." But, ac- "cording to Archer, there was no insurance on the building. He's quoted as saying "There was no- body telling me to get it insured, so I didn't." Although I've never been described as a "magnate" of anything, it seems pretty basic to me that you would insure an asset that has a replacement value of ap- proximately 23 million loonies. Especially a public facility mostly made of wood. Still, it's hard to see what benefit the fire would be for the owner. The police and fire officials have deemed the cause of the conflagra- tion.to be suspicious. Investigators are on site. This could be-a very interesting story as it unfolds. Stay tuned. KKK You'd think the United Nations would have enough on its plate these days. Afghanistan, Serbia, Iraq, Israel, Somalia, Nigeria. The list of immense problems goes on and on. So why are they comment- ing on hows Canada treats her children? Last week the U.N. waded into the spanking -- no spanking of chil- dren debate that is ongoing here. No matter your stance on that par- ticular subject, don't you find it odd that the U.N. has the time and resources to concern itself with this issue! This week we got another broad- side from the U.N. regarding our treatment of adopted children. Spe- cifically, the concerned world citizens at Disneyland-on-the- Hudson tell us to make finding birth parents easier for adoptees. The reasoning is that adopted chil- dren have the right to know their genetic background for medical reasons. Nota bad point, but is this really something the U.N. should be addressing? here in Canada? = Last I heard, tens of thousands of children were being sold into slavery in parts of Africa. Two years ago Saudi-Arabian school- girls were forced by "religious police" to stay in a burning schoolhouse where they died. Why? Because they didn't have the proper headgear to cover their faces. The brothels in Thailand are filled with children forced into prostitution. How about female genital mutilation (circumcisions) still being performed -- sometimes I could probably, from memory, fill this paper with out- rages against children that occur every day around the world. So why does the U.N. choose spank- ing and adoption records in Canada to put the spotlight on? Then I remembered that Lib- ya's whacky Khaddaffi is chairing the U.N.'s Human Rights Commission. That's fair, since Libya is such a children's paradise. Or could it be that Asian/A frican countries are look- ing to humiliate the west, in order to keep any investigation of real abuses in their homelands to a minimum? Khaddaffi doesn't dare to pick on the States for fear of another visit from F-16's to his tent. Canada is an easy second choice. Especially since our fed- eral government regards the U.N. as the sole world moral author- ity. This is not to say that there are not significant problems with how far too many Canadian chil- dren are treated, Why, for instance, didn't the U.N. demand our federal government immedi- ately act on outlawing child pornography instead of dragging their feet? Issues like this make me even more thankful to live in this coun- try. For all our faults, it's a wonderful place to live and raise a family. Canadians are con- cerned about how our children are treated. We are working on the real problems and discussing solutions. That's one of the rea- sons the world beats a path to our door and not to the Libya's of this world. I say we tell the U.N. to go to Hell. It's easy to find. Many of those who presume to criticize us keep their children there. FD.