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Before you chow down on your next doughnut, take a good hard look. That's
Ontario's economy you're eating. Look at the middle. What do you see? Nothing, right? That's where the middle class used to be.
Those jobs - nearly 300,000 in Ontario alone - disappeared in the Great Recession. Gone like the bits from the middle of your doughnut.
Now look at the glaze on top. That's the one per cent. They've done OK. Better than OK. Theirs is the only income that has actually gone up.
I understand , from Mr. Walker's impassioned speech at one of the all candidate meetings, that he feels very strongly that the College of Trades was completely out of line for raising the Licensing fees for trades from $60 every three years to $120 per year. Granted, there was no apparent warning before this hike and that must have been a shock.
However, let's put this in perspective.
An auto mechanic/plumber/drywaller/carpenter makes about $65 to $120 per hour. Therefore, they have to work 1.5 to 2 hours to pay their new yearly license fees.
Dental assistants/hygienists make $20 per hour and their fees are $135 per year, so they have to work 6.2 hours to pay their fees.
Editor;
Congratulations on producing such a much-needed local news facility.
On first review, I find the style and features of the website very pleasing, and I look forward to following stories that are important to me as an Owen Sound resident.
I have only one suggestion, and that is to ask that a date-time be added to the header are of all stories. As your database grows, I think that this could be a useful feature.
I wish you all success with the Hub.
Alan Brand,
Owen Sound
Editor:
I wonder how many people are aware of the cruel repercussions of a spring black bear hunt? I'm writing to say that I find the Ministry of Natural Resource's decision to reopen the hunt sorely lacking, both in compassion and sound judgment.
Anyone familiar with the history of spring bear hunts knows that, following every hunting season, many bear cubs were found orphaned. Those cubs fortunate enough to be captured were doomed to spend the rest of their lives confined in some zoo or other. However, even rescued cubs were sometimes destroyed when zoos couldn't accommodate them all. But cubs not rescued certainly died of starvation which, sadly, is the likely fate of most orphaned bears. As Minister of Natural Resources, David Orazietti had a responsibility to know the consequences of a spring hunt before sanctioning yet another one.
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