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  • Nov 07, 2012 - 5:51 PM
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We will never forget

Found in this week’s newspaper, you will discover a special section that has come to mean a great deal to our communities, and to us.
Remembrance Day 2012: A Tribute to Those Who Served Our Country is a tribute this newspaper does on an annual basis to salute and remember the men and women who served our country in our times of need.
This year’s edition goes beyond the usual war stories often found in periodicals, although there are indeed articles about people who witnessed history’s tragedies unfolding.
But there are also stories about the impact of war on the friends and loved ones of those in battle, and on the communities many of the soldiers called home. This year we also present stories about the courage and resiliency of those impacted by war, even those who may not have seen direct action.
These are tales of daughters who reconnect with fathers over years of absence; people who are driven to make lasting monuments to those who made the ultimate sacrifice, along with those who were there firsthand to celebrate the end of the war to end all wars.
We would be hard-pressed to find someone who hasn’t had a loved one touched by the unforgiving hand of war, whether in Europe, Korea or Afghanistan. The tales that you will read in this section will resonate with many.
While this special section is something that our newspaper publishes on a regular basis, it is not a stretch of the imagination to say that everyone involved throughout our organization has a sincere and heartfelt connection to the project.
You cannot help but feel a twinge of sadness as you read about young men coming home from war, forever changed by the experience, or the impact their loved ones felt.
Nor can you ignore the immense pride and gratitude felt by the people who have committed themselves to paying tribute to those who have fallen, either through the pages in a book, or a monument. They stand tall for those who are no longer here to stand for themselves.
Here we bring you those stories to be preserved and shared in perpetuity from generation to generation.
It is our hope that you enjoy Remembrance Day 2012: A Tribute to Those Who Served Our Country and that you take pleasure in the articles as much as we did in bringing them to you.
We will always remember ... we will never forget.



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Editorial

Taxing ganja

Police from five different units of the OPP busted a couple of middle-aged people with possession of 24 grams of weed and a pipe in Foots Bay last week. The street value of the pot was estimated to be about $240. We’re guessing that it cost a lot more than a couple of hundred bucks for officers from the Bracebridge detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police, the OPP West Parry Sound Crime Unit, the OPP Community Drug Action Team, the OPP Organized Crime Enforcement Bureau Drug Enforcement Unit and the OPP K-9 to execute the search warrant. It’s likely the search warrant alone cost more to apply for and obtain. There are levels of bureaucracy to go through, and we all know that bureaucracy is costly at every level. We don’t blame the police for wasting our money, it’s not their fault. They don’t choose which laws they’re going to enforce – that’s a job for the people making the laws. And it’s time for them to give their heads a shake. Prohibition doesn’t work; never has, never will. Sixty-five per cent of Canadians want marijuana laws changed. The earliest remains of human settlement show evidence of recreational drugs. Gorillas and apes have a taste for hallucinogens and stimulants. Primates want to get high and no government is going to stop them. Certainly there are social problems that go along with the abuse of any drug, whether it’s vodka or marijuana. Criminalizing the huge numbers of Canadians who want to smoke some herb doesn’t help solve those problems. Making headway with drug abuse will only happen when it’s treated as a health issue, rather than a legal one. We recognize that not everyone will agree with us; we expect some people to disagree vehemently. But social policy aside, this is a financial issue. It’s not just a moral issue, it’s a matter of dollars and cents. Or is that common sense? As Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare tells us, it’s a fairy tale to imagine that we will have the same level of health care services at our hospitals with an aging population; as the numbers of people requiring help from our food banks rapidly increase; as our municipality struggles to make due with significantly less funds from the province; and as our police services are straining at the seams, in part because they are dealing with more and more people with mental health issues. Something’s got to give.