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Orono Weekly Times, 27 Jun 2012, p. 2

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2 - Orono Weekly Times 1937 - 2012 · Celebrating 75 Years Subscriptions $42.86 + $2.14 GST = $45.00 per year. No Refunds. Publishing 48 issues annually at the office of publication. "We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Periodical Fund for our publishing activities." Wednesday, June 27th, 2012 ORONO WEEKLY TIMES - 5310 Main St., P.O. Box 209, Orono, ON L0B 1M0 E-mail: oronotimes@rogers.com or Phone/Fax: 905-983-5301 Publisher/Editor Margaret Zwart Production and Display Advertising - Roxanne Johnston Classified/Sports The Orono Weekly Times welcomes letters to the editor on subjects of interest to our readers. Opinions expressed to the editor and articles are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Orono Weekly times. Letters must be signed and contain the address and phone number of the writer. Any letter considered unsuitable will not be acknowledged or returned. We reserve the right to edit for length, libel and slander. If your retail or classified ad appears for the first time, please check carefully. Notice of an error must be given before the next issue goes to print. The Orono Weekly Times will not be responsible for the loss or damage of such items. An amazing nation With the approach of the July 1st public holiday, once known as Dominion Day and now celebrated with a 2-4 and fireworks, comes an opportunity to take a long hard look at what it means to be Canadian. The last few weeks have shown Canada to the rest of the world in an interesting light. First Toronto was in uproar over a mass shooting at the mall named for one of its most revered citizens, Timothy Eaton. Next Canadians watched in horror as Canada Post unwittingly and efficiently delivered body parts to the great and the shocked in two provinces, that had been mailed by a self-styled porn star who went on to spark an international manhunt, before being cornered and returned to Canada by the Germans. Then last week Stephen Harper was told to mind his own business after telling the Europeans how to run their economic affairs more efficiently. All of this less than stellar coverage is a far cry from this time last year when Canada was seen by the world playing host to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, as the first of the former British dominions to see the newly wed heir to the throne and his bride, fresh from their nuptials at Westminster Abbey. Even so, Canadians are supposedly thought of around the world as unerringly nice and polite and wasn't it Canadian Max Sidorov who set up the by now nearly million dollar fund for bullied American bus monitor and grandmother, Karen Klein? Yes it was, but here is what Max had to say about why he felt moved to take action:"I felt deeply sad for Karen, I had some issues with bullying myself when I was a young kid and had just come to Canada, so I know where she's coming from." Oops, it seems Canadians are not all completely nice then, so what does it mean to be Canadian? Right now it means living in freedom, and before anyone cites Bill C38, students in Quebec can still vent their ire at tuition fee hikes, the Official Opposition can still keep the Government from its PJ's and teddy bears when the need arises, and if Canadians want to get together with their neighbours over a beer and complain that the government sucks, the economy is in the toilet and the pot-bellied pig in the apartment upstairs seems to be running amok, no one will kick down their door in the middle of the night and drag them off to be the piñata at a kegger for the secret police. Canada is by any standard you can name a land of plenty. There is no denying there is poverty here, you only have to watch the appeals for food bank items and Christmas gifts that are a regular feature of Canadian newscasts to realize that not everyone is living in the lap of luxury. Charity shops and dollar stores are now the go to places for anyone who wants to make a Loonie stretch to the end of the week, and there has certainly been an uptick in the number of payday loan companies opening up. But the unemployment rate in Canada is 7.3% against Spain's eye watering 24.3% and while some may still fall through the cracks, most can get help if it is needed. Though the news reports of the last few weeks have shown Canada is certainly not crime free, it is still one of the safest places in the world to live. On July 1st, it would be an ungrateful and unreasonable Canadian who does not give thanks that they were fortunate enough to be born or welcomed into a country that gives its citizens a day off to celebrate all that is good about being Canadian. One hundred and forty-five years after Dominion Day was created and 30 years after it officially became the day to celebrate our home and native land as Canada Day, Canadians should take a good hard look at the rights and freedoms they enjoy, the peace that has been fought for, over many generations, by brave and loyal compatriots, the relative political and economic stability that has enabled Canada to maintain a social safety net, no matter how imperfect, for when those rainy days do come, and sit with a beverage or two with friends and family to talk about how to be part of keeping this amazing nation a place the rest of the world wants to live. Opinion by Louis Bertrand, Bowmanville Resident A few Canadians who fought peacefully With the recent attention to the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812, the annual DDay commemoration events and the mythology of our nation coming of age at Vimy Ridge, you'd think Canada is a warrior nation. Yet domestically, in our day to day affairs, we are generally civil, tolerant and eager to come to a peaceful understanding. It isn't hard to reconcile these two views if you realize that part of our history has been lost from memory. One of the undeniable traits of Canada is acceptance of diversity: ethnic, cultural, sexual and religious. Where else could you hear a classroom of immigrants in Winnipeg repeat after the language instructor, "It's cold, but it's a dry cold"? (yes, that was an actual CBC radio sound clip.) On this Canada Day, I would like to celebrate a few warriors for peace, diversity and human rights. Emily Murphy, Henrietta Muir Edwards, Irene Parlby, Louise McKinney and Nellie McClung, together known as the Famous Five, brought a case all the way to what was then Canada's top court, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council of Great Britain. At issue was whether or not women could be considered 'persons' and thus be eligible for appointment to the Senate. The Persons Case was decided in 1929 with the simple retort, "Why not?". I am confident that Senator Marjory LeBreton has thanked the Famous Five for the opportunity to serve her country in the capacity of Leader of the Government in the Senate. The start of 1916 was marked by fierce resistance by Franco-Ontarian pupils, their mothers and their grandmothers to Ontario Regulation 17 which severely restricted their right to schooling in French. During the Battle of the Hat Pins, Ottawa's Franco-Ontarian community occupied École Guigues, kept the police at bay with scissors and hat pins, and eventually forced the resignation of local school board officials. Opposition in French speaking parts of Ontario continued until Regulation 17 was shelved in 1927 (it was officially rescinded in 1944). Their struggle is in part why you can get French language education in Ontario from kindergarten to Ph.D. Louis Riel, was a passionate spokesman for his people, the Métis of Manitoba and Saskatchewan and, when negotiations with the Canadian government failed, he led the rebellion of 1885. Although found guilty of treason and hanged, he never personally raised arms against the Canadian government. He remains a controversial figure to this day but it is partly thanks to his efforts and leadership that First Nations and Métis have found their voice in Canadian public affairs and asserted their unique identity. John Diefenbaker and Pierre Elliott Trudeau share the last vignette. The pairing actually makes sense if you first consider that they both fell from grace (from great heights) because of their single minded -- many would say intransigeant and obstinate -pursuit of fairness for all. Despite their failings, their CANADIANS see page 3

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