uxbridge school busses in strike position · season. also pictured, from left: jeremy cook as jack...

I HAVE THE DEED, INDEED - Rodney Stoutheart, left (Kyle Roberts), delivers shocking news while Marmaduke Mayhem, far right (Chad Richard) holds a pistol toDaphne Mumberley’s head (Rebekah Kennedy) - all part of the action and laughs that are The Mumberley Inheritance. The play is the first in OnStage Uxbridge’s 2017/18season. Also pictured, from left: Jeremy Cook as Jack Mumberley, Janet Gilliland as Dotty, and Jacqueline Lalonde as Polly Dumpling. Photo by Lisha Van Nieuwenhove

Uxbridge schoolbusses in strikeposition

by Roger Varley

A committee formed to spearhead fundraisingfor the new Uxbridge-Scugog animal shelterhas informed council it is dropping its plannedmajor campaign called Lend a Paw.

In a letter sent to the township last month,Ginger Jackson, president of the New AnimalShelter for Uxbridge-Scugog (NASUS), saidthe committee "is no longer comfortable com-mitting the organization to additional long-term fundraising." Ms. Jackson said thecommittee's action is based on the decision byUxbridge and Scugog councils to commenceconstruction of the new facility in 2018 andnot 2017 as NASUS wanted.

"In delaying construction, we believe costswill continue to increase, at the same time aswe find ourselves in an increasingly competitivefundraising environment and an economic cli-mate that may further erode support from localbusinesses," Ms. Jackson wrote. "Given thiscontext, the NASUS Board feels it would beneither prudent nor responsible to pursue theinterim funding approved by the Townships, orto undertake a major gifts campaign. It was ourbelief that starting construction in 2017 wouldsatisfy past donors that their contributions werebeing used as intended, while prospectivedonors could be assured their donations wouldbe deployed quickly and tangibly."

So far, NASUS has raised about $650,000

through its golf tournaments, gala nights andother activities. The Lend a Paw campaign wasanticipated to raise another $445,000 by offer-ing contributors the opportunity to name cer-tain features of the new shelter, such as thelobby or the cat adoption area.

Ms. Jackson has informed the township shewill be resigning from her position as presidentof NASUS effective December 31.

After hearing a report from township clerkDebbie Leroux on the status of the new shelter,Mayor Gerri Lynn O'Connor said she is con-vinced more contributions will come in oncethe construction is started in the early spring.

...continued on page 6

School bus drivers with First Student Ajaxand First Student Brooklin moved into alegal strike position on Sunday.

Durham Student Transportations Services(DSTS) announced last Friday that it wasnotified by First Student Canada that Unifor4268, the union representing school busdrivers in the divisions in Ajax and Brooklinwould be in a legal strike position on No-vember 12. First Student Canada providesbussing for both the Durham District SchoolBoard and the Durham Catholic DistrictSchool Boards. Negotiations are ongoing, and there is cur-

rently no indication of a plan to strike. How-ever, the union may call for a strike at anytime, and must provide the bus operator,DSTS, and both school boards with 72hours’ notice.

In a letter sent home to students regardingthe situation, DSTS CAO Kelly Mechoulansaid, “We respect and value the work of ourFirst Student bus drivers and sincerely hopnegotiations between First Student and itsemployees are concluded quickly.”

If there were to be a strike, there would beno school bus service for any routes servicedby First Student Ajax and Brooklin, leavingstudents without school bus service for theduration of any job action.

Durham Student Transportation Services,the Durham District School Board and theDurham Catholic District School Board en-courage parents to be aware of the situationand monitor local media, follow @Durham-STS on Twitter, or visit the DSTS website(www.dsts.on.ca) for further updates.

Goodwood Public School, Joseph GouldPublic School, Quaker Village Public School,Scott Central Public School, Uxbridge PublicSchool, Uxbridge Secondary School, Green-bank Public School, St. Joseph CatholicSchool and the Durham Alternate SecondaryEducation centre in Brock Township wouldall be affected by any strike action.

Fundraising committee no longer lending a paw to new shelter

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Volume 13 No. 45 YOUR UNIVERSE Thursday, November 16, 2017

Inside Your CosmosIf we build it, will they come? . . . . . . .page 3A sculpture in storage . . . . . . . . . . . . .page 7

There are many mistakes a communitycan make working on a local economicdevelopment strategy, but there aretwo things I consider to be the “deadlysins” of economic development. Youwon’t go to hell for committing thesesins, but you will certainly ensure yourattempts at economic developmentwill fail.Sin #1 – Be GenericThis sin focuses on doing what every-

one else does, which is a common paththat so many communities take, be-cause there is a lot of hard work in-volved in breaking new ground. First,such a community will hire an eco-nomic development officer. The nextstep is to push that often mildly qual-ified economic development officer tocreate an economic development strat-egy. There are some decent strategiesalready written that can be easilydownloaded from the Internet, andoften that is what happens. Those eco-nomic development strategies lookvery professional and say all the thingsthey are supposed to say. Zone and

service commercial land – check. Dothe same with industrial – check. Havea fair tax rate – check. And then thereis nothing left to do but wait for themto all show up - check. Except some-times they don’t, and sometimes theywon’t, because those types of plans aregeneric, and not about you.Generic economic development strate-gies are completely ineffective. A goodeconomic development strategyshould start with an assessment ofwhat, or rather who, your communityis. What are your strengths and weak-nesses? What makes you unique? Eco-nomic strategies should start with suchan honest assessment, and focus onwhat sets you apart from the rest. I canassure you that simply having com-mercial and industrial land ready to godoes not make you distinct. It makesyou look just like everyone else. Thatisn’t a strategy. That’s fitting in.Sin #2 – Ignore People

The second sin is committed whenan economic development plan saysnothing about people. If your commu-

nity’s economic development strategydoesn’t have people at its core—at-tracting them, training and educatingthem, addressing where they willlive—then you have missed the mostimportant part of economics: PEO-PLE. So many communities work onland, taxes, regulations, marketing, re-sources, supply chains and so on.Those are all very important, but ifyou don’t have people, nothing hap-pens.When I was working on a rural com-

munity development strategy I I de-cided to find out about which comesfirst, economic development or peo-ple? I found communities that wereworking hard on growing their econ-omy kept the taxes fair and regulationsminimal. They invested in servicingnew commercial and industrial space,and yet not much happened. The busi-nesses that were there seemed to do al-right, but there was no real growth. On the other hand, I also found a lot

of communities that had not investedin economic development strategies orplans, but seemed to attract a lot ofnew people. Some communities at-tracted people because of the value ofhousing, others for the quiet quality oflife, and others for the weather or thelandscape. The interesting thing wasthat the local businesses always seemedto be doing better, and new businesseswere always opening. An economic de-velopment strategy that doesn’t includepeople isn’t worth the paper it’s writtenon.Think of it this way: If you had a de-

serted tropical island and dropped aneconomic development strategy inthere, nothing would happen. If youput a bunch of people on the island,however, an economy would build anddevelop. If you want to ensure eco-nomic growth, start by making sureyour plan attracts people, and much ofthe rest will follow.

Our world is changing fast. Old in-dustries die out, as new ones rise, andwe often feel left behind. When thathappens, we can desperately grasp atstraws, and often that straw is a genericeconomic development strategy thatholds a lot of promise, but no water. Ifyou really want to get results, you mustdo things differently from everyoneelse. That can be a daunting feeling,but don’t let it deter you. You can al-ways find a new path to success in theface of challenge.

Thursday, November 16, 20172The Uxbridge Cosmos

The two sins of economic development plans

by Roger Varley

is is the third “installment” in a se-ries of columns and articles inspired bythe book entitled “13 Ways To Kill YourCommunity.”

e Cosmos gave readers a rest fromits ongoing “13 Ways” series lastweek, and this week tackles an issuethat is at the fore of many conversa-tions occurring in and around thetownship.

In Chapter 2 (jarringly entitled“Don’t Attract Business”) of his book"13 Ways to Kill Your Community,"author Doug Griffiths outlines thatit’s just as important to retain existingbusinesses as it is to attract new ones.And, as noted in the column on page2, it’s just as important to cater to thepeople that will be catering to thosebusinesses. So how is Uxbridge doingon all these fronts? e answer wouldappear to be mixed.

In Monday's council meeting,Chief Administrative Officer IngridSvelnis offered a report on the 2018version of the township's Commu-nity Improvement Plan (CIP), de-signed to encourage business ownersto upgrade their facades and signagewith some funding provided by thetownship. e program has been ineffect for a couple of years now, butMs. Svelnis admitted that, so far, nobusiness owner has applied for suchfunding. Business owners often de-mand help from the township tomeet signage requirements and ex-pectations, yet appear to not be avail-ing themselves of financialopportunities that are available tothem.

Earlier this year, council expandedthe parking lot in Centennial Park inorder to address parking problemsfaced by the employees of Scarsin, ahi-tech company housed in the officebuilding at the corner of Main andBrock Streets. With a healthy growthin the number of company employ-ees, all on-street parking near theMain Street/Brock Street intersectionwas effectively taken up by Scarsin.More parking in behind the buildingwas to offset this problem.A couple of years ago, the Uxbridge

BIA ran a successful "Win isSpace" contest, aimed at attractingnew businesses into the downtown

area by offering the winner free rentfor a year in the available space oftheir choice. e winner, the SecondWedge Brewing Co., has since estab-lished itself as a popular and gener-ous business in the town.Both Scarsin and the Second Wedge

Brewing Co. are proof that Uxbridgecan be a desireable location to ownand operate a business, both on alocal and global scale. At the same

time, however, new retailers face hur-dles. e proprietor of MT Hangers,a resale store on Brock St., was or-dered by the bylaw department, in-correctly, to undergo a policebackground check before opening. It is, by now, well known that there

are restrictions on the type of signageowners can erect over their places ofbusiness. An example of the extent towhich these restrictions reach wasfound at Café XXVIII, a restaurantthat has since gone out of business.Its sign at 28 Toronto Street Southwas intended to be the calling card ofa possible chain. e sign showedbubbles streaming from a coffee cupon the left-hand side. e HeritageCommittee, which oversees store sig-nage in the downtown area, wantedthe cup placed in the centre of thesign instead, with the bubbles flow-ing in both directions. is, alongwith the committee's preference for

signs that feature Uxbridge's heritagecolours, that are lit by goose-necklamps and use various fonts, canthrow a spanner into the works of aretailer attempting to establish abrand image with his signage.

e long arm of council and com-mittees can extend far beyond sig-nage. Recently, when a developerunveiled his planned architecturaldesign for a new plaza in the com-

mercial area at the south end of townthis summer - a plaza which wouldinclude a Wendy's and a Starbucks -not a word was said by council aboutthe look of the proposed buildings(which, it was noted, did not in anyway portray or resemble a “heritage”look, but rather represented a moregeneric style of building). However,on Monday, in a report from chiefbuilding officer Brian Pigozzo, coun-cil was told a building permit appli-cation has been received from KFCto renovate the interior and exteriorof the old Country Style restaurantacross the road from the aforemen-tioned plaza. His report included thefollowing: "Council must approvethe colour, texture, construction de-tail and architectural design of thebuilding." at he recommendedcouncil approve the design submit-ted by KFC does not alter the factthat council can demand changes ina design which might have cost abusiness a lot of money.In the same chapter mentioned ear-

lier, Mr. Griffiths says local residentshave a major role to play in attractingnew business. "ey know whatbusinesses are available . . . and theyknow what is lacking," he writes.Residents have already told the Cos-

mos what type of businesses they

would like to see come into townthrough a survey that was performedlate last year, the results of whichwere published on March 23, 2017.To start with, 80 per cent of thosewho responded to the survey saidthey were in favour of the townshipoffering incentives to bring new busi-nesses to town. ere was an over-whelming call for a grocery store inthe downtown area, as well as forclothing stores for the whole family,boutiques and gift shops, an outdooractivities store, and even a call forsuch major outlets such as Old Navy,Winners and Toys R Us. And somewanted more restaurants. Since thesurvey came out, the downtown areahas seen the opening of Sushi Parkand Laura's Casual Kitchen, as wellas the health food store, Eat It For-ward, and the Divine Sisters Meta-physical shop. Yet at the same time,the town has seen Mad Millie's close,as well as Frankie's Ristorante and acouple of other retailers.

Shopping and stores are not theonly things that can keep a townalive, though. But when it comes togrowth in industry, the Township ofUxbridge is limited in what it can ac-commodate. Industrial enterprisesare restricted to the two industrialparks. e Green Belt Act and theOak Ridges Moraine Act prohibitthe construction of any industrial

plants anywhere else in the township.Uxbridge wants to be vibrant and

viable; it needs to examine whetherthe current system draws both poten-tial business owners and residentshere, or pushes them away.“13 Ways to Kill Your Community”

is available for purchase at the Cos-mos office at 38 Toronto St. N. for$27.50, tax incl. You can also pur-chase it at Blue Heron Books.


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why your group should be considered.Organizers of "uxperience," an annual variety show comprised of Uxbridgeand area performers, are seeking the next recipient(s) of proceeds from the

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“13 Ways” Installment #3 - Attracting and keeping business in Uxbridge


Thank you for your November 9 ar-ticle and insightful editorial on theheritage designation issue in general,and the fate of 50 First Avenue inparticular. I did want to acknowledgethat Councillor Bryan has also beenon our side since Day 1 (July 7thcouncil meeting). At that time, hevoted against Heritage Uxbridge’splan to pursue designation withoutour consent. He repeated his opposi-tion again at council’s November 6General Administration committeemeeting. He was joined by Council-lors Ballinger and Molloy who hadpreviously indicated their discomfortbut have now stated their full oppo-sition to enforced designation.

Three other councillors (Mr.Highet, Mr. Barton and Ms. Beach)have been holding their cards close totheir chest on the issue. We believethere are at least six strong reasons tooppose designation without consent,including the “rights of the individ-ual over the rights of the state,” toprecis Councillor Bryan. We hopethat when decision time finally ar-rives, at least one of the three coun-cillors who have not stated theirpositions will vote against enforceddesignation and the motion will bedefeated. As your headline said, “heritage des-ignations (are) becoming a hot-but-ton issue.” Heritage Uxbridge’senthusiasm for adding more proper-ties to the list for potential designa-tion seems to be increasing. Hencewe can imagine that the issue ofproperty rights in Uxbridge will onlyget hotter as next November’s munic-ipal elections approach. Robert Bishop & Jennifer Durkin

Uxbridge

I have been quietly rooting forRobert Bishop and Jennifer Durkinin the controversy over whether ornot their home for the last 30 yearsshould be designated a heritage site.

However, since reading the report inlast week’s paper, I’m too heartenedto keep my thoughts to myself anylonger.

I cannot begin to express how re-lieved and grateful I am to read thatour mayor “stands very firmly on theheritage side” of the debate. Now Ican rest assured that when Councilmoves to sell our little historic LionsHall in Goodwood next year (alreadydesignated a heritage site), our mayorwill come to bat for us and use herconsiderable clout to either preventthe sale, or at least make sure that ourheritage building will not be demol-ished or substantially altered in anyway.And, getting back to the controversy

over the Bishop/Durkin residence, Ihave a possible solution to offer. I be-lieve that it is usually the birthplaceof famous people that is singled outfor recognition. Sam Sharpe wasborn in Zephyr, I believe, so hishome there could be designated aheritage site instead. As MayorO’Connor says, we have to decide –“either heritage counts or it doesn’t.”

Eleanor Todd Goodwood

I've been following your articles onhow to make our town great and tofill those vacant storefronts instead ofletting it fade away.

Our town needs an identity. Whatare we known for? Uxbridge couldbecome lots of things but we needsomeone to lead us with a vision andconvince the others to follow. Atpresent, it looks like keeping the sta-tus quo is the plan and it's not work-ing. One vision is to transform Uxbridge

into a world-class trail system and at-tack visitors/tourists like KingdomTrails in Vermont. We have a greatbase trail system and the slogan "TrailCapital of Canada." We have unde-veloped Ontario government parcels

of land that could be developed intomore trails. We have the Rouge Na-tional Park that will be one day con-nected to Uxbridge by trails. TheGreat Trail, Oak Ridges MoraineTrail, Green Belt Trail all go throughUxbridge.

A lot of people come to use ourtrails, but go elsewhere afterwards tofurther enjoy some food or beverage.Most of this money isn't spent inUxbridge. We lack the commercialinfrastructure to support the trail sys-tem near the trailhead, i.e., food, abar, outdoor shop, rentals (bikes,snowshoes, skis). We need businesseswith a vision to draw people todowntown Uxbridge. Second Wedgeis a great example of a business thatsupports many user groups and pullstrail users to Uxbridge. If we get peo-ple to spend their money inUxbridge, a motel will open, theshops will fill up. We also need apaved cycling lane or a paved shoul-der on Conc. 7 from Durham Forestto town, and more trails connectingUxbridge to the trails aroundDurham Forest. A great pump trackat Durham Forest would be a naturalextension of the trails system.

We have a great opportunity but itwould require hard work, coopera-tion, enthusiasm, and commitment. Check out Kingdomtrails.org It's agreat example of what Uxbridgecould become.

John Fisher Uxbridge

Thank you to all the brave visitorswho came out to Uxbridge HistoricalCentre’s 5th annual 'Fright at theMuseum' Halloween Haunted Vil-lage and Scavenger Hunt. Over 600enthusiastic visitors came out to ex-perience thrills and chills at the mu-seum site. We couldn’t have done itwithout the help of many individualsand groups.

...continued on page 6

Letters to the Editor

Santa Claus is all set to roll into Uxbridge for the 57th time this Saturday.We were rather surprised to learn that it was only the 57th - we figured thata Christmastime parade would have been an annual tradition long before1960 here in Uxbridge. But 57 years is still a pretty good run!

The traditional pastime of parades fills a lot of us with excitement and asense of nostalgia. People stand curbside and cheer as the procession of localpoliticians, bands, and floats often filled with friends and neighbours passesby. For just that hour or so, everyone is a kid.

The Toronto parade is on Sunday, and, like the Uxbridge parade, we lovethat, while it is sponsored by businesses, it isn’t a giant advertising fest. TheMacy’s Day Parade, which began in 1924, started the tradition of using a pa-rade for advertising. Their first parade featured animals from the Central ParkZoo, and was considered a huge success by its organizers, becoming a yearlytradition. Now, companies pay thousands of dollars to display their brandon floats and cartoon character balloons in the Macy’s Day Parade. And al-though Tim Hortons and Mattel, etc., may have the bucks to kit out a reallyfabulous float for the Toronto parade, they are generally pretty subdued aboutovertly displaying their wares. Same goes for the Uxbridge parade - one ofthe parade rules, as indicated on the website, is: “The Parade is for the benefitof the community and should not be viewed as primarily a marketing op-portunity.” We’re bombarded by enough advertising from other places, it’sgood to keep the parade clean and fun.

Some may be interested to know that parades weren’t originally marketingploys dreamed up by big department stores. Parades have their roots in themilitary and in politics. Generations of rulers have projected their powerthrough displays of strength, going back to humanity’s first civilizations. Re-ligious authorities and organizations used parades in much the same way -the parade offered a large platform for them to connect with the communityand foster power. The public enjoyed the parades because they got a chanceto be close to the powerful members of society who passed by.According to one website, historyofthings.com, parades eventually came to

be associated with fairs and festivals. People came together to socialize andlearn about recent news. Citizens could look forward to having some funtimes in the middle of the misery that surely pervaded in medieval times asthe circus parades and brightly painted carreros (carts) brightened people’slives. The public anticipated such events, and the parades developed a flashyand exotic mood. The fleeting moments likely provided great pleasure andan escape from everyday life.

Here’s hoping that the weather cooperates and we can look forward to alittle escape this Saturday morning (starting at 11 at the Uxbridge Arena).The theme for the 2018 Uxbridge Santa Claus parade is "150 years of Christ-mas in Canada," which should provide more than a few fun glances at Christ-mas through the decades. Silver trees are all the thing again, so we’ll likelysee a few flashbacks to the 60s... The Cosmos has decided it won’t put a floatin this year - we want to take the opportunity to sit back and enjoy the showfor a change. After all, everybody loves a parade.

Our two centsEverybody loves a parade

9,500 copies of The Cosmos are published each Thursday in the Township ofUxbridge: 8,700 delivered by mail, 800 available in stores and boxes.

Publisher/Editor Lisha Van Nieuwenhove 905.852.1900Advertising/Sales 905.852.1900

38 Toronto Street North, Unit One, Uxbridge Ontario L9P 1E6e-mail: [email protected] web site: www.thecosmos.ca

Office Hours: Monday - Friday 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.

EDITORIAL POLICY: Opinions expressed by columnists, contributors and in letters to the editor are not necessarilythose of The Cosmos. Letters must be signed and the telephone number provided (number will not be pub-lished). Requests that a name be withheld will be honoured only if there is a compelling reason. Errors broughtto our attention will be corrected. The Cosmos reserves the right to edit and/or refuse to publish unsolicitedmaterial. ADVERTISING POLICY: Ad deadline is 12 noon Tuesday the week of publication. The Cosmos reservesthe right to refuse any advertisement. The Cosmos is not liable for slight changes or typographical errors inadvertisements or any other errors or omissions in advertisements. All material herein, including advertisingdesign, is copyrighted, and may not be reproduced in any form without permission.


It must be confusing, living in Quebec thesedays. The powers that be, from the provin-cial legislature to local municipal councils,seem intent on being the clothing police, or-daining what is appropriate at any giventime and at any given location.

Yet, perhaps we can't blame them, sincetheir cousins in France appear to be similarlypreoccupied with appropriate dress and,while they're at it, out of step with their Eu-ropean neighbours. France not only bannedthe wearing of the so-called body-coveringBurkini, even on public beaches, in some ofthat country's swimming pools you're noteven allowed to wear baggy swim trunks.Many of you will be aware that the Quebec

government is seeking to ban the wearing ofall types of face covering, ostensibly to en-sure that the government is seen to be secu-lar. The ban is supposed to prevent the overtdisplay of all religious symbols when availingoneself of public services, but in reality isaimed squarely at Muslim women who wearthe niqab, a head covering that concealsmost of the face. The message being: don'tcover up!Meanwhile, in Brossard, a community near

Montreal, the city council has passed a lawbanning nudity in the changing rooms atmunicipal swimming pools or municipalsports facilities. Brossard council said in itslatest monthly newsletter it wouldn't allowmen or women to walk around naked intheir respective locker rooms and showers.The message being: cover up! The folks inFrance and Brossard would have been hor-rified if they had visited the World ScoutJamboree in Holland a number of years ago.There, all the washroom facilities were co-ed, even the shower stalls.When I was a boy, I spent a lot of time with

my friends at the local swimming pool. Thepool itself was ringed with individual cubi-cles: there was no public change room. Per-haps the idea was to preserve modesty, butmodesty was compromised as pool atten-dants regularly patrolled the cubicles, push-ing the doors open to make sure there wasnothing untoward going on inside. As forwhat was worn in the pool, males who did-n't have a swimming suit, or forgot to bringit, could rent, for a penny, a covering thatconsisted of two triangular pieces of cloth

held together with string ties. It was truly acase of one size does not fit all. In subsequentyears, I visited other swimming pools wherethere were no individual cubicles. Indeed, atmy grammar school, we were required totake a mandatory shower after gym classesand that meant standing naked in a long,communal shower room. To my knowledge,none of those using such facilities sufferedany life-long traumas as a result of seeing anaked body.The last time I went swimming at Uxpool,

I don't recall any individual changingrooms. Men had their facility, women theirs,and there is also a family change room avail-able.

The councillors in Brossard would surelylook on Uxbridge with disgust: we allow"nakedness" in the change area. Throughsome twisted logic, they seem to believe aswimming pool is not an appropriate placeto catch a glimpse of a naked body. Theyclaim that when a father takes his youngdaughter or a mother takes her young soninto a change room with them, the childrenshould not see naked adults. When my sisterwas only about five years old, I took her withme to the local pool. She sat in the publicgallery overlooking the pool while I enjoyedmyself swimming and playing. But watchingher sitting there all alone, I decided to let herjoin me. I took her into the change cubicle,stripped her down to her knickers and shehad a wonderful time in the water. Neitherof us thought anything about it.

Now, the likelihood that I will ever findmyself in a swimming pool in Brossard isnegligible and their idiotic law will never af-fect me personally. But it is this type ofthinking, this type of council busybodyness,that we Canadians put up with all the time.Councils are there to make sure our roadsare in good shape, our sewers and watermains are working properly and the serviceswe require are made available. They are notput into office to chaperone us through ourdaily lives.It seems to me the council that stays out of

our personal lives the most is the councilthat is doing the best job.Tell me, am I wrong?

Last Sunday morning I watched a seasonedjournalist get uncharacteristically emotional.Previously a foreign correspondent, a reporterwho’d covered hostilities in the Middle Eastand a long-time current affairs radio host,Carol Off ’s eyes welled up. She recalled, in2002, convincing Asad Aryubwal, an Afghanfather of five, to go on-camera to expose thewarlords the U.S. military was courting to over-throw the Taliban.“Asad’s courage in speaking out was rewarded

only with the calamity when, in response to(my) documentary,” Off told Zoomer magazine,“Afghanistan’s most powerful warlord sent adeath squad to kill him.”Carol Off, for the past dozen years the host of

CBC Radio’s “As It Happens,” was my guest atBlue Heron Book’s most recent Books andBrunch event. I’d asked her why she decided tobreak the code of journalism not to get in-volved with one’s sources. She explained, in thiscase, that she could not maintain a journalist’sdistance. She couldn’t be disinterested in thelife of her source.

“I was the one who had got (the Aryubwalfamily) into this trouble,” she said, “and I de-cided that it was my job to get them out of it.”Then began an eight-year journey battling bu-reaucracies, overcoming barriers by politicians,diplomats and civil servants, and the inertia ofxenophobia that blocked Off ’s attempts tobring an upstanding Afghan citizen and hisfamily out of the ruins of his homeland to anew life in Canada. And as I sat watching ajournalist who sensed a greater commitment tohumanity than higher ratings, I realized howsome of the decisions we make in the media in-fluence and sometimes change people’s lives.Often that reality – the fact that the stories wechoose and the way we choose to publish them– is overlooked, or at least cast aside, in lieu ofgetting a better piece of video on the screen, amore dramatic headline atop a front page, or amore tearful conversation on our soundtrack. I have a vivid memory of one such media de-

cision I made that had unexpected conse-quences. Do you remember the story of Rev.Jim Jones? He was the American preacher whobrainwashed almost a thousand followers,mostly young people, and led them from Cal-ifornia to a settlement in the jungles of Guyanain South America. His so-called People’s Tem-ple preyed on the wealth of his followers to fi-nance the enterprise and demanded totalcommitment to Jones. Then, in 1978, whenU.S. Congressional investigators closed in onhim, Rev. Jones convinced more than 900 ofhis faithful to “save themselves” by drinkingcyanide-laced fruit drink; they died within five

minutes in the largest single loss of Americanlife (before 9/11).At the time, as the producer of a morning cur-

rent affairs radio program, I came across thestory of a woman who practised reverse-brain-washing in San Francisco. When American par-ents began losing their children to thesereligious cults, some of them hired profession-als to kidnap their children back, bring themto safe houses and have their religious fanati-cism reversed by a professional psychiatrist. Imanaged to track down this woman’s phonenumber and called.“Who is this?” I heard on the other end of the

line. “This is the San Francisco Police Depart-ment. Identify yourself.”The SFPD had tapped her phone and was in-

tercepting all calls to the safe house. I explainedwho I was, that I wanted to interview the re-verse-brainwashing specialist, and agreed tomaintain her anonymity if and when we gotthe interview. Several days later, the safe housecalled back. I had been cleared by the police. Isubmitted my questions and we conducted apre-recorded interview.

“Why did I have to go through the police toget this interview?” I asked.

“Because we receive death threats from thesecults all the time,” she said.I don’t think I ever considered my every ques-

tion in an interview as thoroughly or as care-fully as I did in that hour-long conversation.But she answered every question, exposed theperversity of the cults and gave us extraordinaryaudio tape for our broadcast. I edited it and putit on air the next day. The interview and thestory provoked perhaps the greatest listener re-sponse I’d ever known. I was stunned by its im-pact. But that couldn’t compare with theaftermath. A week later, we learned that thewoman had been shot and killed in San Fran-cisco in a contract killing. I was nearly physi-cally sick at the news and contacted the safehouse again with condolences.

“She fully expected this to happen,” the safehouse people told me. “But she decided it wasa calculated risk.”

This all came back to me as I watched CarolOff overcome by the emotion of her decisionnot to keep her distance and to help AsadAryubwal’s family get out of Afghanistan. Andas I weighed my own experience, I put anythought of criticism aside. Carol’s decision toplace human life above journalistic codesproved more difficult, but more appropriate. Itwas the right thing to do.

For more Barris Beat columns, go to www.tedbarris.com

The Barris Beatcolumn by Ted Barris

Ethics versus life

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Am I Wrong?column by Roger Varley

Cover up, don’t cover up


The Rotary Club of Uxbridge would like to express our sincere thanks to those who contributed to the success of our sold out 2017 Uxbridge Rotary Christmas Home Tour!

First, thank you to our gracious homeowners for opening their lovely homes in support of this event.

To our corporate sponsors: BDO, Canadian Tire Uxbridge, Jones Pools, Lawson Home Improvements, Ron Noble Insurance, Rutledge Jewelers and Williamson Chrysler.

To our realtor sponsors: Kelsey Geer, Stacy Kearley, Ian Morrison, Marie Persaud, Fran Taylor, Graham Wilson and Cindy Wood.

Gundy), The Gorgons, The Roxy Theatre, Townline Storage, Uxbridge Family Dentistry, Wilson Associates, Dr Vi Tu Banh.

To our talented interior designers & decorators: Belle Maison Staging, Linda Desmarais, Design Your Space, Serendipitous Surroundings, Keith’s Flowers, Refresh!, Nadine Lauder and the Uxbridge Historical Society.

To the staff at Canadian Tire Uxbridge, Blue Heron Books & Presents, Presents for your help in selling our 1,000 tickets.

To all of the musicians, volunteers, Keith’s Flowers, Branching Out, John’s Garden, Uxbridge Historical Society, Wooden Sticks, and the many local businesses who advertised in our passport ticket.

Lastly, thank you to our home tour guests for their continued support. We truly hope you enjoyed our 2017 tour, which featured eight incredible Uxbridge homes, including the Uxbridge Historical Centre. We look forward to seeing you next year at our 2018 Uxbridge Rotary Christmas Home Tour.

Happy Holidays!

Note: If you’re interested in more information on how your home can be on one of our upcoming tours please contact [email protected]

Thank YouAnimal shelter, from page 1

Construction is expected to be com-pleted in 2018.

The township has committed$240,000 to the shelter, with another$300,000 in bridge financing tocover the construction. Scugog's con-tribution is the same. The Lend aPaw campaign was intended to raisethe money to cover the bridge financ-ing. The shelter is expected to costbetween $1.4 million and $1.7 mil-lion.

Ms. Leroux said the new shelter,when built, might not be built to themodel that had been proposed but itwill meet the townships' needs.

"Right now, it's all speculationabout what we'll have," she said.

Councillor Pat Molloy noted that“we have to build what we can af-ford." Ms. Leroux's report said "the future

status of NASUS is not known at thispoint in time."

Letters, from page 4

A huge thank you goes out to our wonderful vol-unteers who helped create the spooky buildings andgrounds and brought the scary scenes to life. FirstDurham Medvents generously came out over thetwo nights to make sure everyone stayed safe.Healthy Kids Community Challenge providedhealthy snacks for everyone.

We greatly appreciate the assistance of our localbusiness sponsors: Canadian Tire, Tim Hortons,

Walmart, and Zehrs, for donations of decorations,refreshments and treats. We also thank the Cosmosfor the great coverage you gave our event! Also,thank you to our event partner, Uxbridge Public Li-brary.

All our events help support local history and her-itage education programming. Thank you for sup-porting your community history museum!

Nancy Marr, CuratorRebecca Stoddart, Assistant Curator

Uxbridge Historical Centre

by Roger Varley

Mayor O'Connor said on Monday that a re-cent conversation with Pickering UxbridgeLiberal MP Jennifer O'Connell brought up thesubject of a bas relief of Col. Sam Sharpe thatis supposedly destined to be installed in theHouse Of Commons. e sculpture was com-pleted two years ago by Port Perry artist TylerBriley, but has been placed in storage since. eCentre Block on Parliament Hill is scheduledto be closed next summer for 10 years of reno-vations, leading to fears the bas relief could bestored away and perhaps forgotten.

Mayor O'Connor suggested the townshipshould write a letter to newly appointed Veter-ans Affairs Minister Seamus O'Regan urginghim to make a decision on where the sculpturewill be placed.

"It's become a political thing," she said, not-ing the project was initiated by Erin O'Toole,former VA minister in the Conservative gov-ernment of Stephen Harper. "We should letthem know how disappointed we are that Col.Sharpe is in a closet."

e sculptor agrees. During an interview onCBC’s “As It Happens” last Friday evening,Tyler Briley told host Carol Off that he too be-lieves his sculpture is being used.

“I think it’s become political football or po-litical hot potato. It seems that it just comesdown to different philosophies I believe withthe different governments. And unfortunatelyit's a reality of the way things are. I thought itwas all cut and dried, and that it was alreadybeen approved and discussed by the three par-

ties and that it was going up.”Mr. Briley also said that he feels the sculpture

should be out in the open to shed some lighton post-traumatic stress.“I think it needs to be out in the open to shed

some light on post-traumatic stress. I knowthat we've been talking about it a lot lately butI think one of the most significant places inCanada you can have a piece of artwork is inthe Parliament Buildings. I think it wouldmean a lot to those afflicted by post-traumaticstress.

Council supported Mayor O’Connor’s sug-gestion and agreed to ask for supporting lettersfrom the Region of Durham and the other mu-nicipalities in the region.


Sam Sharpe stuck in storage

Port Perry sculptor Tyler Briley stands with a bas relief hecreated of Col. Sam Sharpe, which is scheduled to be placedin the House of Commons, but is instead in storage.

Photo by Ted Barris


THIS WEEKENDThurs., Nov. 16: Lunch & Learn. St.Paul’s Anglican Church, 12 noon to 2p.m. Do you know if you have diabetes?Rosemary Johnson & Shabnam Jabrani ofthe Uxbridge Diabetic Clinic will answeryour questions. Program begins with apay-what-you-can lunch prepared byTake-a-Break and Anglican ChurchWomen. All proceeds used for commu-nity outreach projects. Call 905-852-7016 to reserve a seat.Thurs., Nov. 16: Turkey Dinner atGoodwood Community Centre.Hosted by Goodwood United Church.4:30 p.m. on. Tickets at the door - $20.For further information, call 905-640-3347.Sat., Nov.18: Oak Ridges Trail As-sociation Hike, 7 a.m. Al Shaw. 1 hr.,5+ km moderate pace hike; Join us forbreakfast after the hike. Meet at the road-side parking on the west side of Conc. 6,

1.5 km south of Durham Rd. 21. Contact:Joan Taylor 905 477 2161Sat., Nov. 18: Uxbridge CurlingClub’s 8th Annual Pancake Break-fast. 8 - 11 a.m. Enjoy a pancake break-fast before you head out to the SantaClaus parade! Adults $7, children $5.Sat., Nov. 18: Baking & CraftSale, Zephyr United Church. 9 a.m. - 1p.m. Lots of home baking, preserves,crafts, knitting, decorative items, thingsfor your home. Also a White Elephanttable. Coffee and muffins will be avail-able.Sat., Nov. 18: Christmas CraftShow & Sale, Trinity United Church, 9a.m. - 3 p.m. Join us for our 10th AnnualSale. Over 30 new and returningfavourite vendors. Delicious baked goodstable, tea room, while elephant room,door prizes. Free admission. This is achurch fundraiser. [email protected]., Nov. 18: Annual After the

Santa Claus Parade Luncheon, St.Paul’s Anglican Church, 11:30 a.m. - 3p.m. Luncheon, bake sale, silent auction& raffle. Warm up, enjoy a homemadehot lunch in the lower hall. Soups, chili,hot dogs, muffins & desserts. Everyonewelcome. Sponsored by St. Paul's ladies'Take-A-Break Group. Phone 905-852-7016. www.stpauls-uxbridge.ca and onFacebook

NEXT WEEKTues., Nov. 21: Annual TurkeyChristmas Luncheon and GeneralMeeting, Uxbridge Seniors' Centre,noon. Monday Morning Singers will per-form. Tickets $15/members, $20/non-members, on sale at the Seniors’ CentreThursdays & Fridays from 9 - 11 a.m.Wed., Nov. 22: Oak Ridges TrailAssociation Hike, 9:30 a.m. WalkerWoods East. This is a moderate to fast, 4hr, 16+ km, figure of 8 hike with hills.Meet at parking lot on west side ofUxbridge Conc. 7, 2 km south of DurhamRd. 21. Contact: Bob Comfort 905 4732669Wed., Nov. 22: Bethesda-ReachWomen's Institute meeting. EpsomUnited Church, 7:30 p.m. Meeting themeis HEALTH with guest speaker AnneWright, from North Durham Hospice. Allladies welcome.Thurs., Nov. 23: The Climate Crisisand Its Solutions. Jenny Collings, AlGore Trainee. 7 p.m. Scugog Memorial

Library, 231 Water Street, Port Perry.Many of us saw former American vicepresident Al Gore's film “The Inconven-ient Truth.” The “Inconvenient Sequel-Truth and Power” is out, with new datasupporting the warnings and explainingthe accomplishments at reducing green-house gases. Must we change? Can wechange? Will we change? Jenny Collingssays yes in this talk and discussion.Sat., Nov. 25: Oak Ridges TrailAssociation Hike, 7 a.m. Al Shaw. 1hr., 4 km moderate pace hike. No dogsplease. Join us for breakfast afterwards.Meet at road side parking on the westside of Conc. 6, 1.5 km south of DurhamRd. 21. Contact: Russ Burton 905 8302862Sat., Nov. 25: Christmas BirdCount 4 Kids. Jay Thibert , Friends ofNonquon. 9:30 a.m. - noon. 1710 Scu-gog Line 10, Greenbank, David CarrollClassroom, Nonquon Centre. Bringbinoculars. For more information pleasecontact Jay Thibert by e-mail at [email protected]., Nov. 25: Christmas BakeSale and Luncheon. Sacred HeartParish Hall, 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. Delicioushome made baked goods, 50/50 Draw.Hot lunch - Soup or chili - starts at 11a.m.Sun., Nov. 26: A Classic ChristmasOratorio by J.S. Bach. St. Paul’s An-glican Church, 7 p.m. Comparable toHandel's Messiah, the whole story fromJesus' Birth to the Adoration of Magi.Three hour show, in English. Directed byStuart Beaudoin. Tickets $20, online fromstarticketing.com; at Sugar FX; or phone866-808-2006.Sun. Nov. 26: Oak Ridges TrailAssociation Hike, 2 p.m. Walker

Woods East. A slow to moderate 2 hr.hike with some hills. Kids and leasheddogs welcome. Meet at parking lot onwest side of Uxbridge Conc. 7, 2 kmsouth of Durham Rd. 21. Contact: BruceCohen 905 649 8596

UPCOMINGSun., Dec. 3: A reading of CharlesDickens’ A Christmas Carol, pre-sented by North House & Church of theAscension, featuring readers Ted Barris,Dan Pollard, Rev Ted McCollum and IanRowan. 3 p.m., Church of the Ascension,266 North St., Port Perry. Tickets $20,available at North House, 289-640-1929; Church of the Ascension, 905-985-7278; Presents Presents, Uxbridge,or call Anne Wells at 905-852-3051.Tues., Dec. 5: Pine Grove PioneerChurch Christmas Carol Service. 7p.m. Featuring Jennifer Neveu and BellaNove. Collection will go to the SalvationArmy & the Port Perry Hospital.

ONGOINGCommunity Soup Lunch at St. An-drew's Chalmers Presbyterian ChurchHall. Every Wednesday, 12 - 1 p.m. Paywhat you can to support Loaves andFishes Food Bank. Delicious soups &desserts supplied by various churches &service groups. For information contact905-852-4753

COMING UP is a FREE community bul-letin board. If you have a communityevent for a charity or non-profit organiza-tion that you’d like us to mention (ASSPACE PERMITS), please contact us [email protected] or 905-852-1900. The deadline for our next issue is12 noon Tuesday.

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Hot on the ice!Cheer the Bruins onthis Friday night!

Friday, November 17against the Georgina Ice

Uxbridge Arena7:45 p.m.

For completeseason and player

informationvisit

uxbridgebruins.com

by Roger Varley

Goalie Ryan McConkey regis-tered his fourth shut-out of theseason on Sunday as theUxbridge Bruins defeated thePort Perry MoJacks 3-0 at theScugog arena, taking a 3-1 lead inthe Battle of North Durham andbringing the MoJacks' eight-game win streak to an end. Indoing so, McConkey turnedaside 41 shots, while the Bruinsmanaged only 25 shots on goal.

McConkey now is the leadinggoaltender in the PJHL's Orr Di-vision, with a stingy 1.80 goals-allowed average in 12 games,racking up 10 wins and twolosses. His save percentage is animpressive .949.

Combined with Friday night's3-2 win over the Clarington Ea-gles, the Bruins now hold solepossession of second place in theseven-team division, two pointsbehind the Lakefield Chiefs.

In Sunday's game, MoJacksgoalie Shawn Mabley was barelytested in the first half of the score-less first period as his team pep-pered McConkey with 18 shots.In the second period, the Bruins

turned the tables, dominating theMoJacks, even though Port Perrycontinued to out-shoot them.

Carson Bell opened the scoringearly in the period, assisted byTyler Hutchinson. Four minuteslater, another Bruins score wasdisallowed. As the period wounddown, Cristian Giorgio made it2-0, assisted by Matthew Hunter,while the Bruins enjoyed a two-man advantage for almost a fulltwo minutes.Hunter closed out the scoring in

the third period, with an unas-sisted short-handed marker.At the arena on Friday, Michael

Rennie gave the Bruins the leadmidway through the first periodfollowing a good series of passeswith Adam Bartholomew andAiden Reilly. e home squadcame close to scoring again as theperiod drew to a close, when asloppy line change by the Eaglesleft them with only two men onthe ice to face a five-man rush.e Eagles came out hard in the

second period, putting the Bruinson the defensive for the first fiveminutes. Clarington tied thescore at the 10-minutes markwith a power-play goal as omasSheedy and Kyle Spataro both satin the penalty box.Robert Freckelton re-established

the lead early in the second withan unassisted goal while the Ea-gles were two men short. Kieran

Beaudoin teamed with Reilly toscore what proved to be the win-ning goal at the midway point al-though Clarington scoredanother power-play goal in thedying minutes. e Bruins heldon for the win as the Eaglespulled their goalie for the lastminute-and-a-half.

e officiating at Friday's gamewas of dubious quality. As an ex-ample, Simon Feig slapped anEagles player on the elbow withthe flat of his blade. He was givena five-minute penalty for slashing,a game misconduct and was sus-pended for one game. In total,the referees called 30 penalties fora total of 83 minutes.e Bruins are back in action at

the arena tomorrow at 7:45 p.m.against the Georgina Ice and thenhave a week off before hosting theChiefs on November 24.

Bear Pause: e date has not yetbeen announced, but fans shouldremember the Bruins' annualChristmas Teddy Bear toss will becoming up soon. Now would be agood time to prepare by buying anew teddy bear, wrapped, to toss onthe ice at the appropriate moment.All the bears are donated to needykids.


Across1. Large amount4. Defeat9. Shade of blonde12. Galley tool13. Came to14. Figure out15. For some purpose16. Kind of ink17. ___ start with your per

formance.....18. Strike back20. "I ___ return"22. KFC piece24. Legume25. Best-loved29. Quarry33. Mellows34. Pops35. Knight's apprentice36. Post-it37. Architectural _____39. "Tinker, tailor,soldier,

___" movie41. Disinform42. Utah, for one45. Mind-numbers49. Omega or flaxseed50. Sentient54. Luck or roast55. It's ___ over56. Pink color57. "___ moment, please!"58. Truck starter59. Hostile force60. Opposite of used

Down1. Whiskey ___2. Relaxation3. Carpet layer's calcula

tion4. Restaurant employee5. Control6. Scepter of authority7. Go on a run?8. Coquette9. Three oceans touch it10. Wall Street order11. Hades19. Most dear21. More joyous23. Lightheaded24. Piano part25. Cool26. Green light27. Check for accuracy28. Road cover30. Escaped31. Lay an __ (mess up)32. You betcha!38. To a great degree40. ___ and quiet42. Saturate43. Scrabble piece44. Team up (with)46. Fairy tale's second

word47. Departed48. Dish cooked in a pot51. Came in first52. "You __ my sunshine"53. Computer memory

Fourth shut-out for McConkey

10The Uxbridge Cosmos Thursday, November 16, 2017

SERVICESGOODWOOD HOME IMPROVEMENTS:We have over 45 years of general carpentry &renovation experience. We remodel & updatekitchens & bathrooms. We also finish basements& install hardwood flooring, crown molding, trimetc. We can renovate your cottage during the offseason. Check us out on Facebook, email us [email protected] orcall 416 526 3469 for quality work at a fairprice. 12/14UNLIMITED INTERNET: 25FTTN $44.95/m,50FTTN $49.95/m. No Contract. FREE ModemRental. $30 Installation. Call or text 647-518-0498 www.altimatel.com 12/14HANDYMAN. 27 years experience. No job toosmall or too big. Free estimates. All work isguaranteed. 416-705-9993. 12/7OVERWHELMED WITH HOLIDAYPREPARATIONS? I can help with home,personal or business services. Errands, includingshopping, cleaning, decorating, baking and partypreparations. References. Susan, 905-649-9239.11/16CLEANING LADY with some openings.Excellent references available. Please call 905-806-4203 or 705-357-2482. 11/16OL’ HANDYMAN. Big or small, we do it all -from the front door to back, basement to roof.44 years experience. Book now! Please callbefore winter. 905-473-5197 or 647-225-3311(cell). 11/30EAVESTROUGH CLEANING: Book now, the

snow is coming! Jason’s Property Maintenance.905-862-2644. 11/16CROSSFIT SCUGOG: Try us for one week,FREE in November or December. Call 905-433-7284 to book today! 99 North Port Rd., PortPerry, visit crossfitscugog.com or find us onFacebook at CrossFit Scugog. DON’T “FALL” INTO BAD HABITS: I canupdate your accounting records includingbusiness, investments, payroll, income tax,trusts/estates, HST and everything else. CertifiedQuickBooks ProAdvisor. Over 30 yearsexperience. Call Eric [email protected] 11/16ALEXANDER COMPUTER SERVICES:Quality repair and sales from a local,experienced professional. Call 416-629-6626(ask for Kevin) or visit www.alexandercs.com TUTOR: I provide private tutoring in my home;elementary, high school, college and university.I also work within the business community. 905-852-1145. 2/1EXPERIENCE THE COMFORT OF A GREATBRA. The Girls Bra Boutique, 6316 Main St.,Stouffville. 905-642-3339. An upliftingexperience! 11/30HOME-WATCH HOUSE/PET SITTINGSERVICES: Voted #1 for protecting your homeand caring for your pets.Home owners havetrusted Heather Stewart for 14 years for herreliability and detailed professionalism. Property& Snowbird Services / Dog Walking / CatSitting/Doggie Sleep-Overs! www.home-watch.ca

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WANTEDMUSICIAN: (Mature) drummer to join quartet,Light jazz and standards at Shobrook Gardens,Uxbridge. 905-862-3709. 11/30

HELP WANTED: Fall garden help & firewoodpreparation. Call 905-717-5161. 11/16

GENERAL FARM LABOURERS WANTED for2018. Seasonal, permanent full-time hours,March to November 2018. Minimum wage of$11.60/hr. To plant, cultivate, water and harvestflowers and field vegetables at Jan Hing Farm,11450, Conc. 3, Zephyr, Ontario. Must be ableto work in a fast-paced environment, experiencean asset. Email resumé [email protected] 11/23

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EVENTSCHRISTMAS COLLECTIVE AT ARTSPACE236: Fri., Dec. 1 - Sun., Dec. 3. 10 a.m. to 5p.m. 236 Sandford Rd. Featuring 10 artists:Gretel Boose Sculptures; handbags & purses byNancy Newman Textiles; prints and porcelains byTim Laurin; Lynn Bishop’s mixed media works;silversmith pieces by Amanda Brittin; glass worksby Gayle Temple; multi-media works by TomLoach; quilt textiles by Judith Tinkl; Heather SmitCeramics, and paintings by Linda Edwards.Unique & original gift ideas. Join us for cookies,conversation and art! 11/30

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the pavement sizzles, tornadoestouch down three or four at a time,it is madness. While it is a chance forthe computer artists to cut loose withtheir artistry, we see very quickly theeffects are not very good, no betterthan those being done on networktelevision.

And where to start with the per-formances? ere is not a single char-acter that we can invest in, they areall portraying cardboard cut outs.And poorly at that.

Gerard Butler seems still stuck in300 (2007), where he roared everyline as though all those around weredeaf. It is a wildly out of control per-formance, a performance where thedirector should have stepped in andsaid, "Less man, for God’s sake, less."

Portraying his brother, Jim Sturgessdisplays none of the charisma that hedisplayed singing the songs of eBeatles in Across the Universe (2007).None, he looks bored, he looks outof his element in every way.

Not even the great character actorEd Harris can bring anything re-

motely real to the film, and frankly,he looks humiliated to be taking apay cheque.For three years they have worked on

this film, going back for reshoot, fir-ing actors, replacing them with oth-ers, and still they have a mess.


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2018Township of Uxbridge Spring and Summer

Community GuideFor advertising options, sizes and prices call 905.852.1900 or email [email protected]

Guide to be distributed February 22, 2018

Well-readthroughoutthe Township

What's inside:

Spring & Summerprograms and lessons

The popular SummerCamps Guide insert

Community eventsand information

Community groups,halls and organizations

And more!

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The Uxbridge Cottage Hospital Foundation

has had to make a difficult decision to cancel this year’s Festivalof Lights due to an on-going project at the front of the hospital. The hospital is making necessary improvements to the parking

lot and underground infrastructure. This work requires the park-ing lot to be under construction for a number of weeks and assuch there is no suitable location at the hospital for the Festivalof Lights. The Festival of Lights is an amazing annual event, and we look

forward to hosting this event again in December 2018. TheFoundation is very grateful for the ongoing support of our spon-sors, donors, community and patients. The lights on the trees in front of the hospital will still be in-

stalled for patients, their families and community members toenjoy over the holiday season. Thank you for your continued support and we look forward to

seeing you at Festival of Lights 2018.On behalf of the Uxbridge Cottage Hospital Foundation, we

wish you and your family a safe and joyous holiday season.

Bomb! Big visual effects-driven films like

this once filled the screen with aweand wonder, but now with computergenerated effects so common, it justis not a big deal anymore to see theworld smashed to pieces by nature orother forces. Certainly the super herofilms from DC and Marvel havetaken care of a large chunk of effects-laden movies, but someone is alwayslurking out there with a script aboutthe world brought to the brink of ex-tinction by powerful forces that getout of hand.

In 2004 we had e Day After To-morrow, a deep freeze film that sawnorthern North America frozen rocksolid, declaring another ice age. Inmany ways that film resembles thisfilm, as each is almost entirely de-pendent on its effects for the narra-tive, the cast is a group of veteransand mid-level movies stars we may ormay not recognize, and the plot(what there is of it) deals with theend of civilization. In Geostorm we get a taste of every-

thing - multiple tornadoes touchingdown all at once, massive tsunamisand tidal waves crashing into citiesalong the ocean coasts, extraordinaryheat that sees food frying on the side-walk and wildly intense shifts in the

weather that mankind simply cannothandle. And it is all very silly. Meantto be a disaster movie in the vein of70s films such as e Poseidon Adven-ture (1972), Earthquake (1974) orThe Towering Inferno (1974), thefilm has some of the attributes ofthose films but lacks others. Remem-ber the sense of awe we felt when thetidal wave turned the Poseidon up-side down? Or the sheer carnagewhen the quake decimated LA inEarthquake? We feel none of that,nothing of the kind. ere is no all-star cast in Geostorm;

it’s more a collection of B-movie ac-tors, or those on their way down.

Set in 2019, we learn that majorcities have already been wiped out bycrazy weather systems, but a scientisthas invented a satellite that will warnwhen potentially dangerous systemsare imminent. e system thenworks to shut down the system be-fore all hell breaks loose on Earth. Ofcourse, it goes wrong. e inventorof the satellite is fired, by his brotherno less, but then asked to go intospace to fix his creation when it fal-ters. As he strives to fix the thing, hell is

indeed unfolding on earth as flashfreezes happen in the tropics, hail thesize of boulders crashes to the earth,

Film with Footecolumn by John Foote

Geostorm

12The Uxbridge Cosmos Thursday, November 16, 2017

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uxbridge school busses in strike position · season. also pictured, from left: jeremy cook as jack...

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