You reap what you sow.

By Elizabeth May on 12 October 2010 - 5:03pm

It was reported on CBC this morning that in a last ditch effort to win over votes for a seat on the U.N. Security Council, Canadian diplomats were giving out maple-leaf shaped bottles of maple syrup.
Maybe our government’s grasp of the concerns of the world’s nations is a bit lacking in substance.  Maybe it would have won some votes if the Harper government had sent any member of federal cabinet to the emergency meeting on the food crisis in Rome in June 2008.  Instead, we let our Ambassador to Italy sit there without instructions, speaking volumes about Canada’s concern for the world’s poor and hungry.
Maybe it would have helped if we answered the call for peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  We were once the world’s number 1 contributor to peace-keeping.  Now we are 56th.  From over 3,000 soldiers deployed in the past to this year’s compliment – 57.
Maybe it would have helped if we had lived up to our commitments to fight poverty in Africa.  Or maybe it would have worked better than maple syrup if Prime Minister Harper had not ignored the special meeting on climate at the General Assembly, leaving for an event at Tim Horton’s instead of staying to deliver a speech.
I remember once, a long time ago, when I was at Sierra Club, speaking to a Conservative MP when Stephen Harper was Leader of the Opposition.  I won’t use his or her name.  I wouldn’t want her (or him) to feel the PM’s wrath.
I was pushing for any kind of commitment that, in power, the Conservatives would reduce Greenhouse gases.  The answer stayed with me.  Regardless of how achievable Kyoto would be, the MP saw no chance of the Conservatives being able to support action, because Stephen Harper would “always see Kyoto as one of those U.N. things.”
So, no matter how much we give out last minute bottles of maple syrup, and no matter how sincere the pitch for membership from the PM to the General Assembly seemed two months ago, actions speak louder than words.  The actions of the Harper government led to this outcome  --  not their words, nor the words of Michael Ignatieff in saying what everyone knew, that our reputation in the world was tarnished after four and a half years of Harper government policies.
You reap what you sow.  Let us hope that this is the nadir in Canada’s world reputation.  Let us commit to be the country we once were, with a Prime Minister and a House of Commons that understands what it takes to be a constructive member of the family of nations.

From http://greenparty.ca/blogs/7/2010-10-12/there-s-not-enough-maple-syrup-world

Milk is Hazardous to Your Health

News flash, BC community Health board declares Milk a hazardous material.

Not that thin highly processed stuff with all the rich cream and much of the taste and goodness removed that you buy in the store, but the stuff that comes from cows.

Now that may come as a shock to some city folk and indeed some lawmakers, not the bit about it being hazardous but the fact that milk actually comes from cows and actually contains rich cream and tastes wonderful. We here in Canada are in fact one of the few places in the world where we cannot buy Real Milk, pretty much all of Europe has it available, in the third world many get it direct from the cow as has mankind for thousands of years. Even the Queen of England drinks it! But our lawmakers have decided that not only must all milk sold to the public must be “processed” and pasteurized , thus giving a defacto monopoly of milk distribution to a few large “milk Processors”, but that we individuals are so uninformed that we must be “protected” from the very small risk of drinking “contaminated” real milk by a total ban the sale and distribution of same. Not only that but now it would seem those knowledgeable folks that choose to enter into a “cow share” in order to protect their right to choose what they consume and those that share the work of caring for said cows are now criminals distributing “hazardous substances”. Say What! Has The World Gone Mad?

If one was to use logic, not a talent one often finds in government, one would ask “given the numerous heath scares from contaminated meat products, after processing one might add, how is it the cow its self is not declared hazardous material,” or the beef cattle, pigs, sheep and other food products issuing from the gates of farms across Canada. Mind you the government is working on that one, the farmer that butchers his own cow and GIVES a roast or chop to his neighbor or relative is now also breaking the law (at least here in Ontario) and can be charged. Should he want to have his local abattoir do the work for him he had better get it done soon as the regulations put upon those massive operations, from whence all the contaminated meat comes, have also been put upon the little one or two man operations that have been producing uncontaminated meat for eons. Some of them for longer than some of the big boys have even existed. The result? All the small abattoirs are closing unable to absorb the costs of all the regulatory hurdles intended to keep the big boys in line, but are in fact further cementing the big corporations monopoly on our food supply.

That my friends is what this is all about, it has little to do with health issues, but a lot to do with the mega corporations desire for a food monopoly, and the governments total lack of support for the small supplier and the family farm. It is a policy that may well come back and bite us as the corporations both domestic and international get more and more control over our food chain from farm to plate.

A Tip o the Hat to Bruce on the Bruce for this one!

Chatsworth Wards for 2010 Municipal Election.

Have just been told much to my surprise that I am in Chatsworth ward not Sullivan as I had thought, I requested a map of the ward boundaries for clarification. My thanks to Will Moore at the township office for his assistance with this.

Ward 1 (Chatsworth) consists of the village of Chatsworth PLUS all the surrounding areas south of Grey rd 16, east of Con6 and north of Side rd 5 in the former Sullivan township PLUS the area south of the Holland-Sydenham townline, west of Veterans rd N and north of 20 sideroad in the former Holland township.

Ward 2 (Holland) consists of all of the remaining township to the east of Hwy 6

Ward 3 (Sullivan) consists of all the remaining township west of Hwy 6.

The map is pictured below, I have added a few place names and road names to make it easier to tell where the boundaries are. Click image to enlarge.

For a list of those who are running for a position on council see my previous post or the Chatsworth Municipal web site.

Chatsworth mayor retires. (updated)

Its official, Mayor Howard Greig has announced that he will not be seeking reelection in October. Howard served at various times as councilor, deputy mayor and mayor for the former Township of Sullivan since 1982, he has served as mayor of the Township of Chatsworth since amalgamation in 2000.

Chatsworth. Council has, under the guidance of Howard been, so far as I am aware, a cooperative and non confrontational venture unlike the constant sniping and personal attacks that some other local municipalities have, and still are, experiencing. Both Howard and the current councillors must be thanked for their efforts on our behalf, I suspect that their work is all too often taken for granted .

There have been no marked increases in property taxes in recent years which considering the downloading and/or reduced funding of mandatory programs from upper levels of government is no small feat. I hope that the new council will continue this tradition of cooperation and fiscal responsibility.

Tom Kuglin has also announced he will not be seeking re-election and deputy-mayor Bob Pringle is seeking the mayor's position.

Unofficially, with a week to go before nominations close here is the list of those standing for positions on Chatsworth Council. The list is subject to change up until nominations close at 2:00 p.m. on September 10^th, 2010 at which time the official list will be published on the township web site where further information may be found (unfortunately in a PDF download).

(Final list updated Fri 10th 7pm)

Mayor (1 to be elected at Large)

BOB PRINGLE (current deputy Mayor)

Deputy Mayor (1 to be elected at Large)

TERRY MCKAY (current councilor ward 1)

RODNEY SAUNDERS

Councillors (3 to be elected, 1 from each Ward)

Ward 1 (Chatsworth Ward)

ROBERT MACKEY

BRUCE MENARY

Ward 2 (Holland Ward)

CORNELIUS VLIELANDER (incumbent)
PATRICK  FORGRAVE   

Ward 3 (Sullivan Ward)

BILL KUGLIN

TRINA SIMMONDS
 BRIAN GAMBLE
SHERRY KNAPP 

The Election will be by mail in ballot which residents should receive early in October. The Election will take place on Monday, October 25, 2010 . The township will not be publishing any personal information on the candidates and I therefor invite the candidates to provide me with their CV and/or their reasons for standing for council. I will then publish it here for the benefit of our citizens, an email link is provided in the side bar of this blog.

Quiet in the Klondike

With fall fast approaching out here in the Klondike Hills we seem to be in a time warp with the days all blending into one. I love the quiet and peaceful times but now I keep having to look at the time / date at the top corner of the computer screen to know what day it is! My daily emails to a fellow old fart up on the Wiarton cliffs doesn't help much as he is just as confused as I am, must be sometimers coming on.

The tomato's take all of 5min to pick and as they have no leaves left due to “leaf spot blight” its not hard to see from the chair on the porch if I even need to do that, I will have to get off my arse soon and dig the spuds but the beets and carrots are doing so poorly this year that I may be digging them in the snow! I would get a cow for the output to fertilize the garden but it seems that some input is necessary at the other end of the beast, wonder if a neighbor will rent me one?

The wood is all split and finally after several years of building the pile we may even have some left over next spring, just as well for these old bones are finding it less fun to find, cut and haul those trees that need to be removed from our “managed forest” as each year passes. (Note to self – take a gentle stroll around the trails soon and mark trees for “harvesting” and see if its going to be an “easy to get to” or a “need a longer winch cable” sort of fall)

I'm ahead of the game on my winter woodworking projects as well, no need to bring the mill in this year, lots of pine, maple and cherry boards drying in various locations. Even ran a few through the planer yesterday so when the ambition strikes to get building I can get at it right away. The order is in for a center island storage / work area for my daughter kitchen so no problem with deciding what to make come those winter days, meanwhile these sunny days must not be wasted with work. Look at the gardens (look at the weeds!), plan in great detail the jobs to be done, make lists, sip on a beverage and enjoy the last of the summer whilst we can.

Even the political scene is relatively quiet, the Greens have decided to all pull in the same direction, Igniff is quietly raising his cholesterol on the BBQ circuit, Harper will unfortunately come in from the cold after his arctic “I love me” tour, and Jack.....Jack who? These quiet days of relative calm will all come to an end come September, the kids back to school, the other kids back to Ottawa, even our Humming Birds will be heading back to Mexico, so make the best of what remains of summer whilst you may.

Thats how it looks in these here hills with September almost upon us, and the need to write a few words on this blog comes upon me before my few readers think I have become lost in the forest or perhaps lost in my thoughts.

Ladies Night in Owen Sound.

The Grey Bruce Owen Sound Greens nomination meeting was most definitely a time for the ladies to shine with candidates Lynn Morgan and Emma Hogbin as well as Green party leader Elizabeth May and deputy leader Adrian Carr front and center. Approximately 100 green party supporters filled the room to hear the candidates speak and answer questions from the floor prior to voting taking place.

Lynn spoke about the demise of our democracy under the Harper regime and how the arrest of innocent protesters and bystanders at the G20 was comparable with the actions of several totalitarian regimes overseas. She said we are heading for more of a Lord and Serf relationship with our government than a representative democracy unless things change.

Emma spoke of her dream for the future, of a participatory democracy with citizens involved and excited about the possibilities, of using the modern tools available on the Internet and phone systems to include everyone in the process. The best quote of the night came at the mid point of her lively speech when remarking upon the choices to be made she asked whether if you find yourself to be riding a dead horse is it not best to get off!

Elizabeth May who spoke to the crowd whilst the votes were being counted later picked up upon that repeating Emma's assertion that the Greens CAN be elected to the HoC and that GBOS has a real good chance of being the first to do so, just before herself, given that the polls close here long before they do on the west coast.

Having just come from a meeting with some representatives of the local agricultural community she said that those in this area should be particularly concerned with Harpers assertion when referring to the closure of the prison farms that “learning how to farm was not a useful skill”. She said that Canadian values are clearly different from American values as evidenced by our social safety net, our sharing and caring about all out citizens and how the Green party's values reflect those values.

CEO Randy Dryburgh who MC'ed the meeting asked Elizabeth to announce the successful candidate and she read the name Emma Jane Hogbin to loud and sustained applause from the supporters. Elizabeth had earlier said that she rarely had the opportunity to say “may the best woman win” and it is no disrespect to Lynn that Emma's enthusiastic and bubbly personality, and ability to get folks to want to get involved that won the day.

Congratulation Emma, I am sure we will be hearing much more from and about you in the next few months.

Also see Greens pick Hogbin - Owen Sound Sun Times - Ontario, CA

UPDATE Emma has posted a copy of her speech on her blog here and there is a video of her “shortest ever” acceptance speech at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxGCyDnm5Yo (1min 13sec)

A Reminder

.The GBOS Greens nomination meeting will take place tomorrow, Tues August 17^th at 7pm at the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre  in Owen Sound when both Green Party leader Elizabeth May and Deputy Leader Adriane Carr will attend and speak The public is welcome but only members of the Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound Green Party of Canada will be permitted to vote.
Stay tuned for a full report on the proceedings here at The Rural Canadian  later in the week.

More information on both candidates can be found in my previous post and at the GBOS Greens web site