OPINIONS editionap.ca Helping homeless cats
“Project TNR - helping homeless cats”and “Friends of Feral Cats” need your help and your support as we continue on a daily ba- sis to feed, provide winterized shelter and spay and neuter the abandoned and home- less cats in Hawkesbury in an ongoing ef- fort to control and maintain a healthy num- ber of sterilized abandoned and homeless cats in our community. We would like to ask the citizens of Hawkesbury and the current town adminis- tration to please show us some respect and support for trying to make a bad situation better, not worse. We’re not only helping the cats, but we are helping the people and the entire community and communities of Prescott-Russell and SD&G by eliminating nuisance behaviours such as late-night cat fights, males spraying to mark their terri- tory. We are preventing unwanted kittens from being born and raised outdoors as fe- ral cats as well as preventing the spread of disease onto owned pets. Please help us save the abandoned and homeless cats by donating canned and dry cat food to the “Friends of Feral Cats” in Hawkesbury by contacting friendsofferal- catshawkesbury@yahoo.ca. Many of the now sterilized abandoned, homeless and barn cats have now been ad- opted into forever homes and can no lon- ger contribute to the overpopulation. I read that the council of the United Counties of Prescott Russell has passed a bylaw in regards to signage on county roads. ( Tribune-Express , Feb. 7, “New rules for roadside signs planned for Prescott- Russell.”) Does this mean that every farmer with an OFA sign has to apply for a permit? Has our bureaucracy gone mad, or is this a bylaw passed solely because the signage objecting to the asphalt plant is embarrassing our politicians? How does this bylaw affect elections, or because it involves politicians, will they be exempt? Who is protecting our freedom of expression on our own land? It is mine, isn’t it? I mean, I paid for it, I contribute taxes yearly to claim it and yet eight mayors decide when and where I can express my objection to their silliness. They didn’t even By Linda Cléroux Program Manager, Vaccine Preventable Diseases Eastern Ontario Health Unit As fall settles in and the weather cools down, flu season is about to start. Getting the flu shot is important to protect yourself and others, especially if you live or work with groups of people who are at higher risk of complications from the flu, such as children under age 5, people aged 65 and older, and individuals with chronic medi- cal conditions. While the flu vaccine is safe, some people still hesitate to get it as there are various myths surrounding its safety and effectiveness. Let’s take a look at them. Myth # 1: The Flu is nothing more than a stronger version of the common cold. While cold and flu symptoms are often similar, the flu can be much worse than a cold. It is an acute respiratory illness that
Since February 2013, “Project TNR – helping homeless cats” has sterilized over 173 cats and continues its mission to pro- mote sterilization of cats and dogs. We all have one goal in common and that’s to help those who cannot speak up or help themselves. These cats didn’t deserve to be abandoned and treated so cruelly by society, but they had no choice. They got dumped far enough away from home and are now forced to fight for survival. Peo- ple blame the cats for everything when the blame should be on the “people” who abandon them. The cats are innocent and must be protected and cared for with love and compassion, not hatred and cruelty. Your donations of food can help give them a chance to survive. If anyone can offer a solution to helping us out with a temporary holding facility and/or a vehicle to transport the cats to and from the vet clinic please contact me immediately be- cause now is the time that the unsterilized abandoned and homeless female cats will be giving birth and if we can trap them and hold them until we can get them to a vet then the unborn kittens can and will be aborted and the females sterilized. Pat Bracelin Project TNR, Helping Homeless Cats Hawkesbury email: project.tnr@hotmail.com have the nerve to have each municipality pass what is a controversial bylaw under the guise of safety. Where is the proof of even one near-miss caused by road signs? I don’t need laws to understand common sense, so stop making stupid ones, and if you want the signs down, succumb to the will of the people and they will take them down. Focus on making this a less restrictive community where people can grow and flourish. If the United Counties of Prescott Russell pass bylaws, why are there no elections for a regional municipality? My mayor shrugs his shoulders and says he’s only one of eight; it is hard to convince the others. We can change him, but not the seven others? How is this democracy? Ian Cirwa, Alfred can lead to pneumonia and respiratory fail- ure, thus becoming life-threatening. It can also worsen a chronic condition. Myth # 2: The flu vaccine causes the flu. The flu vaccine contains dead flu viruses, so you cannot get the flu from the shot. Myth # 3: People who get the flu vaccine still get sick with the flu. When there is a good match between the inactive types of flu viruses in the vaccine and the flu viruses circulating in the com- munity, the shot can prevent the flu in 70 to 90 % of healthy children and adults. People who get the shot can still get the flu, but it is usually milder. For more information about the flu vac- cine or to find out where you can get im- munized, contact the Eastern Ontario Health Unit at 613-933-1375 or 1 800 267- 7120 and ask for Health Line. You can also visit our website at www.eohu.ca.
Thefts, visions
Once again we have been reminded that thieves will try to steal anything, even if it is bolted down, and affixed to a vehicle. Our region is the latest to be targeted by catalytic converter thieves, crooks who see the devices as an easy and valuable source of precious metals. Around the world, such crimes have spiked as metal prices have risen. The catalytic converter, as we all know, is a cylinder that is an important component of a vehicle’s exhaust system. A converter cleanses fumes before they are released into the atmosphere. The parts are also coveted by crooks because they contain platinum, palladium and rhodium. Crooks can get about $200 on the black market for the devices. Sport utility vehicle owners are advised to be especially vigilant. Thieves like to hit this type of vehicle because SUVs are higher than other vehicles, offering the criminals easier access to their quarry. What is a person to do?Well, some nervous motorists have gone the extra kilometre, so to speak, in crime prevention – they spot-weld the catalytic converter to the rest of the exhaust system. What? Another vision? Once again we have been reminded that the Ottawa River is a wonderful asset, with great economic potential. This is indeed a familiar topic, one that floats around every few years at municipal coun- cil meetings. The latest confirmation of the waterfront’s riches is contained in a new report commis- sioned by the united counties of Prescott-Russell. The goal is to transform PR into a tourism destination, with the river being the anchor for new facilities that would serve as hubs for all sorts of attractions. Lefaivre, Chute-à-Blondeau, Hawkesbury, L’Orignal, Wendover and Clarence Point would be among the focal points. The prospective benefits are big; so is the price tag for the completion of this ten-year vision – about $21.6 million. More details are to be fleshed out when potential private and government partner are solicited. Good luck with that. While the counties are flush, municipalities are struggling to pay the bills for basic services. Hawkesbury is a financial basket case. Ratepayers are getting hit with a rare double whammy – taxes are rising while services are being cur- tailed. As the town reduces operations at the sports complex, it surely cannot justify put- ting any money towards another grand economic development idea. Mayor René Berthiaume is a huge fan of water sports and is constantly touting the divi- dends that can be derived from the waterfront. If there are profits to be made, businesses will support the river dream. Hope may float, but money talks. This new riverfront idea could be rapidly scuttled if private enterprise cannot be convinced to financially back the concept. Much water has flowed under bridges since the first reams were written about the fabulous opportunities offered by the Ottawa. In fact, five studies were conducted between 1995 and 2001 on the potential development of Hawkesbury’s waterfront. Locals know that the river, one of the largest in the world, is an asset. For generations, the river has been a source of drinking water, energy and recreation. Big and beautiful, the Ottawa is a great place to dip a line, take a dip or drop an anchor. Now we are being reminded one of the keys to long-term success for the region, appar- ently, is to tell the rest of the world just how wonderful the river is. Municipalities have been moving along that long and winding road that may lead to a coherent economic development strategy. Like many other good things in life, economic growth requires time. Often, development advances like a barge, not a speed boat.
“County sign bureaucracy has gone mad”
36 700 copies
Breaking down flu vaccine myths
Bertrand Castonguay , President, bertrand@eap.on.ca Roger Duplantie , D.G. / G.M., roger@eap.on.ca François Bélair , Sales & Development, fbelair@eap.on.ca François Legault , Directeur de l’information/News Editor, francois.legault@eap.on.ca Yvan Joly , Sales director (Hawkesbury), yvan@eap.on.ca François Leblanc , Directeur (Lachute), francois.leblanc@eap.on.ca Gilles Normand , Production & Distribution Mgr., gilles.normand@eap.on.ca Julien Boisvenue , Layout & Prepress Mgr., julien.boisvenue@eap.on.ca
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