Doug Smith accepts Order of Canada award Manitoulin Transport founder

presented with Canada's highest civilian honour at Rideau Hall ceremony

by Jim Moodie

OTTAWA-The leader of the Reform Party, the Great One's father, and David Letterman's sidekick were among the company kept by Gore Bay businessman Doug Smith on Friday as he stood inside Rideau Hall to receive the country's highest civilian honour.

"I was expecting it would all be strangers," said Mr. Smith of his fellow Order of Canada recipients. "But it's surprising the number of people I knew just from seeing them on TV."

Apart from Preston Manning, Walter Gretzky and Paul Shaffer, Mr. Smith also rubbed shoulders with former Bank of Canada governor David Dodge, erstwhile politician Deborah Grey, and playwright and director Paul Thompson. "He comes to Wiky," noted Mr. Smith of the latter, who has done work with Debajehmujig.

Forty-seven people in all were invested into the Order of Canada by Governor General Michaelle Jean on Friday. "Thirty-one of us received the CM, which stands for member," said Mr. Smith. "Fourteen were named officers of the Order of Canada, and two were companions, which is the highest honour." The companion laurels were conferred upon Mr. Manning and John C. Major, commissioner of the Air India inquiry.

The Manitoulin Transport owner had known for over a year that he would be welcomed into the prestigious club, as he was informed of the news in November of 2007, but had to wait for the investiture ceremony to be scheduled.

Not that Mr. Smith was especially chomping at the bit to collect the tribute. "We had a heck of a time convincing him to accept it," chuckled Harry VanderWeerden, a lifelong friend of Mr. Smith's. It was Mr. VanderWeerden, with help from Marg Hague and Mr. Smith's sons, who put together the nomination.

Mr. Smith had no idea a campaign was under way to get him named to the Order until the word came that he'd been accepted last year. Modest and private by nature, it caught him a bit off guard, and he wasn't initially sure he either welcomed, or was worthy of, such a highfalutin accolade.

"The whole (Smith) family is pretty down to earth," noted Mr. VanderWeerden. "I've been close to Doug for 40-odd years, and seen him go from a pickup truck to the business he runs now, which is quite an achievement. But he's stayed absolutely the same."

Still, Mr. VanderWeerden was glad his humble pal agreed to accept the honour, and was thrilled to be invited along as one of four guests (the maximum each honoree was allowed) for the occasion. Also joining the Order recipient were his wife Phyllis and sons Gord and Jeff, both active in the business, as president and vice-president, respectively.

"It was a very impressive service," said Mr. VanderWeerden, who joined the other guests in Rideau Hall as Mr. Smith and his fellow inductees were brought up individually to receive the insignia of the Order of Canada from the Governor General.

Mr. Smith said this was the most nerve-racking part of the experience, as each recipient was schooled beforehand in the protocol that should be observed. "You have to bow, and watch where you stand beside the Governor General, shake hands with her husband, shake her hand and bow again," recited Mr. Smith. "I'm a little paranoid, so it was kind of unnerving."

Fortunately, he didn't step on the toe of Canada's head of state or omit a bow, and was duly decorated with an insignia-a small medal in the shape of a snowflake, with a maple leaf embossed at its centre-that is meant to be worn on one's lapel.

Mr. Smith was urged by a staff member at Rideau Hall to wear the insignia proudly in the future, as well as use the initials CM hereafter when signing his name. "I tried to explain to her that this is Manitoulin Island, and we're all at the same level here," said Mr. Smith. "You keep your head down, your mouth shut, and you might survive," he joked. Or half-joked, anyway.

For all his humility, though, Mr. Smith has accomplished a great deal, as was evident in the remarks made during the investiture ceremony. As he stood to receive his insignia, a Rideau Hall staffer spoke of the "important and lasting contributions" that Mr. Smith has made "to economic and social development in Northern Ontario." As founder of Manitoulin Transport, he has "provided stable employment and created spin-off benefits for Manitoulin Island by maintaining his national trucking company's head office in this rural region," the statement continued.

The tribute also made reference to his many philanthropic efforts, noting that donations to health, sporting, cultural and charitable groups have ensured important programs and services are delivered to residents of the North.

Mr. Smith is proud of Manitoulin Transport's record as a corporate citizen. Of causes his company has championed, there have been "a whole host," he said, but he cited the CNIB as a group he's been particularly glad to assist, noting that both his parents had challenges with their vision.

The Eye Van, a mobile eye-care clinic operated by the CNIB, is a service that his company has supported in a variety of ways over the years. "Wherever they go across Ontario, we help with minor repairs, and we train their drivers free of charge," he said. "These girls are nurses and we make them into truck drivers."

He's also glad he "kept the head office in Gore Bay instead of moving it to Toronto or someplace," as this has meant a great deal to his hometown and, indeed, Manitoulin as a whole. With over 160 people employed in Gore Bay alone, and another 10 or 11 in Little Current, Manitoulin Transport is the largest private-sector employer on the Island, and its fleet promotes the Manitoulin brand across the continent as these rigs bear the Island's name in bright red letters.

The company now counts 65 terminals in Canada, including one in Inuvik, and covers more of the nation with its trucks than any other LTL (less-than-truckload, or smaller freight) carrier, not to mention makes southerly runs to Toledo and Nashville.

Fifty years ago, the enterprise was decidedly more modest. It all began in 1957, when Mr. Smith bought a single truck to pick up fresh produce and supplies for his family's Gore Bay grocery business. In 1960, the young entrepreneur formed Manitoulin Transport, whose initial fleet consisted of three trucks and four tractor-trailers.

Since then Manitoulin Transport has grown leaps and bounds, acquiring a number of companies-a recent example would be the purchase of Northwest Transport in Edmonton-along the way and developing partnerships with others. Between itself and its contractor companies, over 2,000 people are employed, and some 2,500 vehicles are operated. Yet its headquarters and central dispatch have remained in tiny Gore Bay, which boasts all of 900 residents.

"When I grew up, the primary thing we did on Manitoulin was to export people all over the country," noted Mr. Smith. "I'm glad we have been able to provide employment in a rural area."

Mr. VanderWeerden said "you just have to go by that parking lot in the morning" to get a sense of the business's impact on the community. "Look at how many cars are there, and they come from all over the Island," he said.

His mission to get Mr. Smith named to the Order of Canada began "about two years ago," he noted, so it was gratifying to him to be present at the ceremony in Ottawa and finally see the medal pinned to his friend's lapel. "I figure that was the top right there," he said.

A reception and dinner were held for the Order recipients on Friday evening, at which the mood was quite relaxed and casual, despite the impressive CVs and celebrity status of many of those present. "I met a lot of really nice people," remarked Mr. Smith. "For a function like that, the people were really down to earth."

Mr. Shaffer, famous for his role as bandleader for the Late Show, broadcast from New York, but originally from Thunder Bay, tickled a few ivories during the dinner, said Mr. Smith, while Walter Gretzky, the most famous hockey parent in the nation, happily provided a few autographs, including four that Mr. Smith requested for "some youngsters I know."

The transportation tycoon found Mr. Gretzky to be gracious and accommodating, and was "quite impressed" by Mr. Schaeffer's musical ability. A clarinet player himself, Mr. Smith has been an entertainer in his own right over the years, going all the way back to the days of the Gore Bay Orchestra and the dance-hall era of the 1950s.

As for the Governor General, more famous of late for proroguing parliament, Mr. Smith said she "does a terrific job" in her role as Canada's representative of the Crown.

Now in his mid-70s, Mr. Smith continues to serve as CEO of Manitoulin Transport, but he remains uncomfortable with being singled out for his accomplishments.

"I feel all the people in our organization are a part of this really," he said, "because everyone has done a good job for Manitoulin Transport over the years. It's expanded, and been successful, but you don't attribute that to one guy. It's as much for the staff as for myself."

Mandigo acquitted of all charges in nursing home death

by Michael Erskine

GORE BAY-It took the jury barely 90 minutes, including the time to eat a delayed lunch, to return a verdict of not guilty in the criminal negligence trial of Ted Mandigo. Mr. Mandigo had been charged on January 31, 2007, in relation to the death of Myles Patterson, a 65-year-old resident of the Manitoulin Lodge long-term care facility in Gore Bay.

Mr. Patterson had been forgotten outside in temperatures which witnesses told the court dropped to -20 Celsius. Mr. Patterson, who was wheelchair-bound after a recent health setback, had gone outside to smoke. Mr. Mandigo, a personal support worker with 15 years' experience at the nursing home, had assisted Mr. Patterson and other residents outside, but then was expected to leave them alone while he attended other duties.

"It was a tragedy waiting to happen," said defence lawyer Berk Keaney. "The nursing home failed to provide any shelter; there was no automatic door opener; they didn't have any kind of buzzer or way for the people outside to let anyone know they wanted in."

Coupling those failures with an expectation that staff leave patients to their own devices while completing other complex tasks, such as bathing and cleaning other patients inside, provided an atmosphere where the occurrence of some kind of tragedy was only a matter of time, the defence argued.

The words spoken by another personal support worker at the home during an interview with investigating officers were particularly telling. "It probably could have happened to any one of us," Leo Orford had said. "Thank God it wasn't me." Under questioning on the stand by the Crown, Mr. Orford qualified those words by suggesting that he liked to believe he would not have forgotten Mr. Patterson under the same circumstances. "I would like to hope not," he said. "I like to think I would not forget, but everyone is human."

During testimony by the Crown's witnesses, the court also learned that each witness had been previously interviewed by the nursing home's administration, and that representatives of the private operator of the home were present during police interviews with staff.

A large number of precautions and protocols have since been put in place by the nursing home to prevent any such incident from reoccurring. Those precautions included having a buzzer installed, but no automatic door opener has been put in place. Smoking is not permitted if the temperature drops below 5 Celsius and patients outside smoking are to be kept under observation (termed 'eyeballed').

The death of Mr. Patterson was contributed to by hypothermia resulting from being left outside in temperatures ranging between -16 and -20 Celsius on January 16, 2007. When rescued by nursing home worker Tanya James, Mr. Patterson was described as being drooped over with spittle frozen to his face. His jacket was partially zipped up and he was wearing no gloves or hat.

Nursing home staff confirmed that Mr. Patterson was his own man, and refused steadfastly to wear a hat or gloves when going outside.

Mr. Patterson was normally accompanied on his smoke period by another resident in a wheelchair. That resident had been given a whistle by his family so that he could signal when he wanted to go in. Mr. Patterson had no such whistle.

Mr. Keaney described the events that evening as a perfect storm. Had Mr. Patterson not forgotten his jacket, Mr. Mandigo would not have had to go back to get it for him. Mr. Patterson would likely have finished his cigarette before his companion with the whistle, and, as was his wont, Mr. Patterson would have come back in before all of the other smokers were inside. As there were no procedures in place to provide a check or safeguard the return of residents, Mr. Patterson was not noticed missing until the practical nurse was preparing to give him his medicine before bed.

Although he had made it to the door from the courtyard, Mr. Patterson had no way of signaling staff that he was still outside. He remained outside in the darkness, as the lights in the courtyard were switched off.

The court heard of the efforts made by the staff to raise Mr. Patterson's core temperature back up to 36.1 degrees Celsius after he was brought back inside. The person in charge of the nursing home at the time of the incident interviewed staff as to what had happened before calling the home's administrator, Karen Lehoux. She explained that she wanted to be able to answer her supervisor's questions when asked. Ms. Lehoux called a physician to attend Mr. Patterson after she was called.

Mr. Mandigo admitted that he had forgotten Mr. Patterson outside.

The description of events after Mr. Patterson was discovered also revealed some disturbing things about the nursing home environment.

Mr. Patterson was taken to the warmest room in the complex, a room described as being over the furnace room and one which, in the words of Mr. Orford, was actually over-warm. The thermostat of that room had no real control over the room's temperature.

Unable to immediately remove Mr. Patterson's clothing because of his grip on the wheelchair's arms, the staff held their hands over his ears and placed their hands on his hands. Efforts included a tepid bath to carefully restore his core temperature.

Mr. Patterson was described as being coherent and able to communicate when he was brought back in from the cold.

Despite the efforts of the staff and attending physician, Mr. Patterson, who had recently suffered a dramatic decline in health, passed away in hospital the day following the incident, January 17, 2007.

The defence counsel declined to call any witnesses, maintaining that the testimonies of the Crown's own witnesses were sufficient to prove that the Crown had not proven its case.

Mr. Keaney, in his charge to the jury, pointed out that the onus was on the Crown to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr. Mandigo's actions constituted a criminal act.

The Crown maintained that Mr. Mandigo had a duty to provide the necessities of life to Mr. Patterson, and that he had failed in his duty and did so over an extended period of time, and was therefore guilty of criminal negligence and failure to provide the necessities of life.

Mr. Keaney maintained that Mr. Mandigo's failure to check to see if Mr. Patterson had been brought back inside from the smoke period was simply a human mistake, with terrible consequences, that could have happened to anyone in the circumstances. It was not enough, he said, to look at the actions out of context-those actions had to be interpreted in the context of an overworked and understaffed regime, he said, an environment which lacked proper policies and safeguards to prevent such an accident from occurring.

The court heard testimony that it was very common at the time of the incident for different staff to assist residents back into the building after those residents had finished smoking.

Although the shift on which Mr. Patterson was forgotten outside was described by a number of witnesses as being "no busier than any other shift," an additional staff member was assigned to that shift by the home's for-profit operator following the incident.

In the end, after hearing all of the evidence over the course of three days of testimony, the jury returned their verdict of not guilty in less than an hour and a half.

In documents filed before the Superior Court by Little Current lawyer Joseph Chapman, a civil suit names the Manitoulin Lodge long-term care facility and its administrators, Jarlette Health Services.

The civil suit does not name Mr. Mandigo, who lost his job of 15 years at the Manitoulin Lodge following the incident.

Task Force studies Sudbury hospital's long-term care woes

by Jim Moodie

SUDBURY-Regional health administrators and Sudbury physicians are partnering on a new committee that will tackle the alternative level of care (ALC) crisis in the city.

Earlier this month, representatives of the Local Health Integration Network (LHIN) for the northeast region and the Sudbury Physician Task Force announced the creation of an ALC Community Steering Group. The group, helmed equally by representatives of the LHIN and the physicians, will include "a wide spectrum of community partners who will serve as a coordinating body to plan and implement programs and initiatives related to the ALC challenge in Sudbury," according to a press release.

Serving as co-chairs of the group are Dr. Peter Zalan, a member of the Sudbury medical staff, and Terry Tilleczek, director of planning, integration and community engagement for the LHIN, while members will include Richard Joly, executive director of the Community Care Access Centre (CCAC) for the northeast, and Catherine Matheson, community development manager for the City of Greater Sudbury.

"We identified the formation of a steering group of community partners as a necessary step in moving forward and determining the actions that will ultimately help us solve this issue," said Dr. Zalan in a release. "Physicians are part of this community of care and are eager to help resolve the ALC crisis."

Mr. Tilleczek noted that alleviating ALC pressures at Sudbury Regional Hospital will require a community approach, as the issue is a complex one. "The creation of this group is the tangible result of partners, from various parts of our community, who are willing to put forth their time and effort to achieve results within a short time frame," he said.

Sudbury Regional took the drastic step of closing its doors to regional referrals last month when the hospital's number of ALC patients-those no longer requiring acute care but unable to find a nursing-home bed or a homecare regimen-rose to such a high level that people requiring surgeries and emergency treatment were being neglected for lack of bed space.

The province agreed in late November to fast-track $2.5 million in ALC funding to Sudbury to open 24 transitional beds at the hospital, with the expectation that this added capacity should alleviate the bed crunch, but finding a more appropriate environment for these ALC patients, many of them elderly, represents an ongoing challenge.

Indeed, the ALC situation is a problem across the North, and within the northeast LHIN in particular, which counts the highest rate of ALC patients in the province. Spaces in long-term care facilities are at a premium right now, while homecare providers are having trouble meeting the demand for people requiring visits in their own residences.

In late November, homecare workers in Sault Ste. Marie confronted MPP David Orazietti to bemoan worsening conditions in their industry. They complain that they are not paid for time spent travelling and barely get compensated for mileage. And while they perform the same duties as personal support workers employed in nursing homes, they are usually, they contend, paid less.

Homecare workers in Sudbury have also raised these issues, arguing in a late-October demonstration that the wildly fluctuating price of gas and the unpaid time spent travelling has left many homecare workers wondering how long they can afford to continue helping their clients.

The Service Employees International Union (SEIU), which represents over 6,000 homecare workers in the province, has launched a campaign titled "Running On Empty" to draw attention to the challenges encountered by this group.

"In a period of erratic fuel prices, these front-line health-care workers have been pushed to the limit-they are running on empty," said Sharleen Stewart, president of SEIU Local 1 Canada, in a press release. "This makes it difficult for otherwise dedicated workers to remain in their chosen profession because they simply can't afford to go to work."

At a monthly meeting of the district LHIN board in Elliot Lake on November 28, a five-point action plan to help resolve ALC pressures in Sudbury, as well as all hospital communities across the northeast, was approved. The priorities include increasing transitional beds and housing options, and reducing the ratio of ALC patients in the hospital by improving patients' access to home and community supports.

Islander goes green on her blog Heather Pennie posts weekly updates on

environmentally friendly products, services

by Chris Kivinen-Newman

MANITOWANING-With the popularity of blogs-short for web logs-increasing across the World Wide Web, one Manitoulin resident hopes to capitalize on the trend to teach Island residents about eco-friendly options.

The blog, operated by Manitowaning resident Heather Pennie and called Green on the Rock, has been regularly updated over its two-week lifespan, and has already attracted 400 unique visitors and 700 page views.

"Its focus is on the Island and just basically about being green and eco-friendly and living here," said Ms. Pennie. "I just find that in larger centres everywhere they have better recycling and there's all kinds of organic stores. Here we're more remote and we don't have these types of things available to us."

Still, Ms. Pennie feels that Manitoulin residents, even without the wide range of environmentally-friendly options available to urban residents, have options to reduce their carbon footprints, and she hopes her blog can shed light on these options.

Ms. Pennie told the Expositor that while she has always been environmentally conscious, it was motherhood that inspired her to take a closer look at the types of products she was bringing into her home, since she was concerned with the effects that some of the potentially toxic chemicals in consumer products could have on her young children.

In a letter, Ms. Pennie said that while the world-and particularly Manitoulin Island-is a beautiful place, it won't stay that way "if we keep on the way we are going."

"The truth is Manitoulin is often not eco-friendly in the way much of our garbage is disposed of, some our business practices, and even the products available for sale," she added. "We may live on a rock, but we aren't living under a rock, and we know just as well as everyone else that change is up to us."

Ms. Pennie said that another inspiration for starting her blog occurred while in a local grocery store, when she saw an elderly gentleman of about 90 years old who had a reusable grocery bag with him, while five other younger patrons in line used plastic bags.

She said that she found it amazing that the older man was able to embrace an eco-friendly lifestyle, while the others were seemingly oblivious to the more green choice.

"Rather than griping about it, I decided to do something about it," said Ms. Pennie.

And while the Manitowaning resident only actually learned about blogging a few weeks ago, she has already managed to transform her small space on the web into a go-to place for environmentally concerned people on the Island.

Ms. Pennie has already sent a lot of emails to local businesses and other companies and she's gotten a lot of response, particularly from off-Island with Internet-based companies, who have given her free products for giveaways.

These donations of free products have allowed the blogger to institute what she calls "Giveaway Wednesdays," where visitors to her blog who post comments to her articles can win these donated eco-friendly products.

She added that she has had some response from Island businesses, though not as much as from off-Island, but singled out Debbie Turner as being particularly receptive to her green cause.

Ms. Pennie, a teacher at Assiginack Public School who is currently on maternity leave, said that she now understands why blogging has become so popular, describing it as "simple, fast, and kind of addicting."

"I'm hoping that I can keep it going and when I get back to work next year I think it's a good way to bring kids on board," she said. "They could do a lot of work on it and it's a way for them to get published. So I see a lot of educational value here."

Ms. Pennie's Green on the Rock blog can be accessed at www.greenontherock.blogspot.com.

EDITORIAL

Doug Smith's honour gives focus to Manitoulin's possibilities

We are nearing the end of a year that has proven surprisingly interesting in the diverse twists and turns that have defined the economy on national, continental and international levels, not to mention the drama that Canadians were witness to in parliament two weeks ago.

This year has also witnessed the Detroit Three (formerly known as the "Big Three") automakers begging for life support from the government.

Clearly, 2008 will be remembered not simply as a year of change, but as a pivotal year after which many of our institutions will never again be the same as they were before.

In such a tumultuous year, it is agreeable to be able to recognize some things that have not changed-that carry on in spite of upheavals in the economy, the government and the auto sector.

These are the people who contribute to this newspaper and help to ground it firmly in the community.

People on Manitoulin generate the news that we carry on these pages and on which we comment in this space, and if there is a "newsmaker of the year" on Manitoulin this year, then it must be considered to be Doug Smith, founder of Manitoulin Transport, who last Friday was awarded Canada's highest civilian honour, the Order of Canada.

It is interesting that Mr. Smith, as the second Manitoulin-born recipient of the Order of Canada (Daphne Odjig of Wiky was conferred the honour in 1986), has bookended this year's news. The announcement that he was to be an Order of Canada honouree was the lead story in the first paper in January, and this week, in the second-to-last issue of the year, the coverage of the presentation of the Order of Canada last Friday also figures prominently on the front page, just as this editorial commentary mirrors the congratulations offered by this paper to Mr. Smith last January.

Much has happened in the world in the intervening months, as has been already noted, but this coverage of Mr. Smith's honour as we both entered and prepare to exit 2008 is very representative of what this paper strives to do in the face of external forces: it is where Manitoulin's history is recorded week by week.

For Manitoulin citizens, the nice symmetry of Mr. Smith's public honouring somehow bracketing the national and international political and economic chaos characterizing 2008 should be, at least on a symbolic level, reassuring.

Doug Smith and his wife Phyllis are first and foremost people of Manitoulin Island: Mr. Smith's values are those of his Gore Bay upbringing and he has managed his ever-expanding business from his hometown.

For ordinary citizens and the small, owner-operated businesses that define Manitoulin Island's retail and service sectors, this is a place that is, as much as any region can be, recession-proof-if we work together.

Manitoulin Island, by its very geography, is a micro-market, in which most basic-and some more sophisticated-needs can be met.

And while shopping locally will not cure an ailing investment affected by the loss in value of a commodity impacted by a global slowdown, neither will shopping farther away.

A buy-local philosophy will, however, help enormously to stabilize the local economy by keeping local people working.

This has very much been Doug Smith's and Manitoulin Transport's philosophy in the company's revolution to a national institution from purely local beginnings over a half-century ago, and it translates nicely into helping sustain Manitoulin Island's economy in times of stress. In fact, when Mr. Smith was honoured with the Order of Canada last Friday, the award was made in no small measure because of the contribution to the Manitoulin economy and to that of Northeastern Ontario by Mr. Smith and the company he founded.

It's a model that readily translates into all of us doing our bits to keep Manitoulin viable; the jobs that Mr. Smith has created on Manitoulin-especially in Gore Bay-are analogous to the ones we can help maintain in our own communities through positive spending practices.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

Doug Smith and his visionary accomplishments are very much an important part of this history, just as was last week's report of the election of Craig Abotossaway as the new chief of Aundeck Omni Kaning First Nation when he became the fifth generation of Abotossaways to hold this office.

That is the stuff that our news is made of and it is a privilege to be entrusted with the important role of writing the history of Manitoulin Island.

While the editorial staff of The Manitoulin Expositor and Manitoulin West Recorder are those people whose bylines you see on the front pages and throughout the paper every week, these people are helped in telling the story of Manitoulin Island by a veritable army of volunteers who contribute to these pages in so very many different ways.

Rose Diebolt, for example, gives us ongoing and usually seasonally appropriate ideas for new treatments of familiar food. (And, if we follow Rose's lead, we'll also be eating a more healthy, as well as tasty, diet.)

Columnist Marc Bedard also has our good health-both physical and mental-in mind when he directs us to Manitoulin resources in his observations in Community Wellness Corner.

Manitoulin ag rep Brian Bell keeps farmers informed through his weekly feature Farm Facts and Furrows and this interesting piece is a constant reminder that, historically, farming is Manitoulin Island's charter industry.

Not much in sports gets by Andre Leblanc, and his column Ice Chips and Canoe Quips certainly reflects this. Sooner or later virtually every young Island athlete shows up in Andre's writings, thus providing content for parental and grandparental scrapbooks!

We are fortunate to have diligent student writers contributing to these pages every week. Keisha Bell, for example, took over the job of researching and writing the Player Profile wherein a member of one or another of Manitoulin Secondary School's Mustang teams comes to us in print. News from MSS comes to us through the Kids in the Halls column penned by Cassie Bedard and Cassandra McColman, and this duo lets the Island know about all of the good things going on at their school. Similarly, in her column, Writings on the Walls, Sierra Jocko keeps us posted on the activities at Wikwemikong's Wasse-Abin High School.

Newspapers are all about writing and two of the sorority of Manitoulin librarians bring us regular news about the works authors have penned that can be found in their respective collections. A big Times Roman Bold "Thanks!" goes out to Debbie Robinson, Assiginack librarian in Manitowaning, and to Claire Cline, Central Manitoulin librarian in Mindemoya and Providence Bay.

Petra Wall takes time out from her professional life as a dietician to do in-depth monthly features that profile ordinary members of Manitoulin's senior community. Through them, we get a glimpse of life in the Gore Bay or Wikwemikong or Barrrie Island or Birch Island of 60 and 70 years ago. Her column is titled Now and Then and an installment will appear in next week's issue.

Talented photographer John Savage brought us an interesting series of bird photos last year, and this year, his detailed photos highlighted a Wildflower of the Week. It's great to be able to put a name to a flower we've seen all of our lives.

Mr. Savage also contributes other photos taken from the natural world, and we thank him for these contributions and congratulate him on his talent.

Every paper should have some talented freelance reporters and photographers. We are fortunate to have Mike Erskine in Little Current, Margo Little from Gore Bay, Jan McQuay from Mindemoya, Brian Peltier,Karen Pheasant and Melissa Cooper from Wikwemikong as regular contributors. Thank you all.

And our social news correspondents: these are the inheritors of a tradition that goes back 130 years to the earliest issues of the Expositor.

They give us the news of the communities in which they live and we would like to thank and acknowledge them: Erma McAllister (Spring Bay Rural Route), Pat Hall (Tehkummah Talk and Times), Lillian Sullivan (Providence Bay), Marilyn Sparham (The Slash), Jean Cannard (Sheguiandah) and Ruth Dunlop (Little Current Place News).

Constable Al Boyd, community services officer with the OPP, and his colleagues at the UCCM Anishinabe Police Force and the Wikwemikong Tribal Police provide the paper with timely press releases of the activities of the police forces that serve us, and we would like to thank them here.

The paper gets to virtually every reader via Canada Post and we do not take for granted the hard-working and dedicated postmasters in our Island post offices, their staffs and the rural route contractors. We rely on you all and you never let us down.

Finally, there are you folks, gentle readers, who choose to make this small-town newspaper a part of your lives week after week. Thank you for bringing us into your home.

And may these homes be happy ones this Christmas season as we all gather as we can with these nearest and dearest to us.

To all of you, a Merry Christmas season.

With sincere best wishes from:

Rick and Julia McCutcheon

Kerrene Tilson

Al Ryan and Susan Hart

Marilyn Harasym

Jim Moodie

Lindsay Kelly

Chris Kivinen-Newman

Greg Lloyd

Alicia McCutcheon

Jack MacLean

Julia Winder

Rosemary Debassige

Roy Bowerman

Steven Richards

And from

the Gore Bay office:

Tom Sasvari

Jeananne Thibault

Heather Nevin

Letters to the Editor

Ministry of Natural Resources' deer hunt survey too invasive

Province should focus on one project at a time

To The Expositor:

Re: "Hunters encouraged to complete, send in economic-impact surveys," December 10.

Well Mr. Moodie, I have lived on Manitoulin all my life, and have hunted for 50 years-plus. Do you think we need more regulations? The MNR has so many now, it is hard to hunt without breaking some of the laws. Now you want to know how much income we have, and our spending habits. What the hell does that have to do with regulating our deer hunt? I think if you look after your own property and your own income, I bet we can look after ours. I see you are looking forward to another project.

Please one at a time.

Doug McMurray

Tehkummah

Carol Hughes addresses criticisms about coalition, campaign office

Coalition will deliver on NDP campaign promises

To the Expositor:

The following is an open letter to the citizens of Manitoulin Island.

This letter is being submitted in response to letters to the editor submitted by constituents to your newspaper.

To assist in better understanding the position taken with respect to a coalition government, I would like to provide you with the following:

Mr. Harper broke his own law with respect to fixed election dates to attempt to get a majority government since he was unsuccessful in getting non-confidence motions passed during the 39th parliament.

As the economic crisis emerged and deepened over the period of the election, it became clear that addressing this crisis would have to be the first and key issue on the agenda of parliament and the new government.

On October 14, Mr. Harper returned with another minority government mandate, with 62 percent of Canadians saying they wanted him to work with other parties. He had a duty to consult with opposition parties and an opportunity to bring forward an economic statement that would first and foremost have an economic stimulus package that would be in the best interest of Canada and garner the support of the other parties. Quite simply, he failed to do so. Instead he focused his attention on attacking women, children, workers and democracy as a whole.

Even Bill Casey, MP for Cumberland-Colchester Nova Scotia, the longest serving Conservative member of the House of Commons, who sits now as an independent, stated: "Stephen Harper is the architect of the crisis."

Since Mr. Harper was not interested in dealing with the economic crisis we are facing, the NDP, Liberals and the Bloc came to a consensus that they would be prepared to put their differences aside for the time being and focus on common goals which would help to stimulate the economy and help to provide some type of cushion for Canadians to weather the crisis. The $30 billion fiscal stimulus package being proposed is sound, includes many aspects of the platform that I campaigned on, and would assist in preventing our economy from shrinking next year. 

In Canada, coalition governments are not unheard of. In our parliamentary system and in a minority parliament, should the government be defeated early in the life of a parliament, it is entirely possible and appropriate for the Governor General to test the ability of the opposition to form a government. This is not anti-democratic.

One needs to look at the history of Canada. The First World War, indeed a time of crisis, was also the time of a coalition government in Canada. Members of parliament have put aside their partisan differences in order to govern effectively and move the cause of victory forward. Coalition governments in Canada have also existed at the provincial levels. They have existed and also currently exist in other countries, including (since 1959) in Switzerland. It's incumbent upon those who have been elected to ensure that prudent and responsible steps be taken to meet the challenges we face at this time. The primary and singular purpose of the coalition is to deliver a government of national economic unity to achieve the results that you and your family expect and deserve.

Now to address Joe Chapman's concerns, I would like to provide him with some facts that may assist to clear up some misconceptions. One should recognize that setting up an office is no different than setting up a business and that there are processes that need to be followed.

Since Election Day, I have been sharing a constituency office in Kapuskasing with MPP Gilles Bisson and, as of last week, have a temporary office set up in Elliot Lake until the permanent space is renovated. Further, my Ottawa phone number and my email address was on the first flyer that was sent out, as well as some of my weekly columns that I have submitted to local newspapers. The 2009 calendar that was delivered recently not only has the previous info, but a toll-free number which was advertised as soon as we could get the House of Commons staff to provide us with access. A request has been made to have phones installed in the constituency offices and we continue to wait for same, as is the case with our office furniture. A schedule is currently being worked on for constituency clinics. In the interim, the difficulties I have encountered awaiting for processes to be dealt with have not prevented me from meeting with constituents or dealing with a variety of cases received via telephone or emails.

Now to address concerns about my performance: I would encourage Mr. Chapman to visit the government of Canada website and look up my performance in the House of Commons through the Hansard; in the few short weeks that the House was sitting I rose on issues at least nine times, one of which was a 10-minute response to the throne speech. I have addressed the need for an economic stimulus package and a solution to price gouging at the gas pumps, increasing seniors' pensions, addressing the loss of forestry jobs in the North, addressing Aboriginal issues and women's rights, as well as the need for an action plan for climate change.

I trust this information is of interest to the readers and hope that I have been able provided some clarification to their concerns.

Carol Hughes, MP

Algoma-Manitoulin-Kapuskasing

Eyeing separatists with suspicion is not some redneck attitude

Population, power and money will shift to the West

To the Expositor:

Scurrilous allegations that Prime Minister Harper and the Conservative Party of Canada are responsible for fomenting a national unity crisis cannot go unchallenged.

The coalition parties-The Liberals, the NDP and the Bloc-have been trying to sell Canadians a false bill of goods, accusing the Harper Conservatives of deliberately stirring up the divisive forces inherent in our federation as part of their desperate attempt to cling to power. The real danger is that there might be people out there gullible enough to believe this.

Nonsense of this nature is to be expected from the traditional "jackal bins" of the left-liberal movement-The CBC and the Toronto Star. However, even the mainstream media in central Canada seems to have fallen for this bunk hook, line and sinker.

An editorial in the December 4 issue of the Globe and Mail ("Fanning Anger Toward Quebec") accused the Conservatives of "overwrought rhetoric" that might produce "real potential for damage to the fabric of Canadian unity."

Here's the rub: This is the 21st century now. If you are going to start talking about a "national unity crisis" you are going to have to update and redefine the term. It is critical that Western Canada be considered a key player in any examination of the national unity issue. Central Canada ignores the West at its peril. Up until now, the term "national unity crisis" has been nothing more than a euphemism for saying that Quebec is making rumblings about separating, or that something has transpired that "offends" Quebec. Most people in central Canada still consider the national unity issue to be no more than that.

Think again. My favourite country lawyer of all time, Abraham Lincoln, famously mused during his unsuccessful run for the US Senate in 1858 that "a house divided against itself cannot stand." Canadians take heed. The most important historical development that will take place in Canada over the next 50 years will be the movement of money, power, and population to Western Canada. How central Canada adjusts to that evolution will be the determining factor in both the future health, and the future duration, of the Canadian federation. It will no longer be something that happens either to Quebec, or in Quebec. Political power will gradually slip away from central Canada in general, and from Quebec in particular.

We must get used to it. That is the reason why the present political crisis does not bode well for Canada's future. The West will interpret the dance moves of the coalition parties as yet another example of central Canada's determination to hold on to power at all costs. Ironically, it even seems to confirm what the disciples of Marxism hold to be a self-evident truth-that no ruling class voluntarily gives up power without a fight. They have to be shot out of that position. Predictably, while a lot of ink has been spilled in the media in central Canada about how Quebec "feels," or is reacting to the current political crisis, little is said about Western Canada's understandable outrage at having a government that they were so instrumental in helping to elect turfed from office by quasi-constitutional means. And don't forget: The Harper government gives the West a much better voice, while at the same time far better reflecting their political culture, than anything to be found on this side of the Lakehead.

Doug Hawkins writes from Calgary: "If the coalition comes to pass, I will become an active Western separatist. We'll see how the have-not provinces of Quebec and Ontario get along." Most of the sound and fury in the current national unity debate was triggered by the Conservatives' rather vocal attacks against a coalition controlled by "separatists," which in turn left Quebec nursing its wounded pride. Consider this, however: Why should Quebec be so offended about the full and frank discussions now occurring, as they relate to the issue of the Bloc holding the balance of power in any federal government, which that party has no real commitment to in the first place? If Quebecers choose to exercise their option of electing 50 separatists from their total allotment of 75 seats in the federal parliament, then that is their right. But is it not reasonable for Quebecers to expect that, by doing so, they might draw the ire of the bulk of Canadians living elsewhere?

This is not rocket science. Eyeing the separatists with a healthy dose of suspicion is not some redneck attitude to be found only in the beer-soaked bars of the nation that have a distinctly blue-collar clientele. Nor can criticism of the proposed coalition by the Conservatives be dismissed by others as just more cheap "Quebec bashing." Noted Canadian historian Michael Bliss-among my favourite professors from my University of Toronto days-does not mince words. He reminds us that the proposed coalition government would amount to "an alliance of the Liberals, NDP, and a Quebec-based political party explicitly and historically dedicated to the destruction of Canada."

In short, the separatists might not be ghouls or terrorists, but they aren't just out there collecting for the Red Cross either. While the Bloc might not be able to use its newfound political power to catapult Quebec out of Canada, their fall-back position will be to maximize the interests of Quebec to the detriment of the rest of the country as a whole. This new leverage will immediately take the form of insisting that the valves on the money pipeline running from Ottawa to "la belle province" be cranked wide open or else. Canada can then resume playing its favourite national sport-placating Quebec. To sum up: The three coalition parties were the sparkplugs in getting this whole mess started to begin with. If accusations are now being thrown around about who caused a national unity crisis- real or imagined-I cannot think of a more classic case of the pot calling the kettle black.

Brad Middleton

Evansville