Friday, January 30, 2009
Breaking News
Moores Mills couple charged with concealing body of newborn baby
John Gardner/Courier
John Gardner/Courier
John Gardner/Courier
The Moores Mills home of 19-year old Sarah Russell and 27-year old Rodney Miller.
ST. STEPHEN – Our reporter is at the St. Stephen provincial court now gathering details. The following is an RCMP news release.
Details to follow.
John Gardner/CourierRUSSELL
John Gardner/CourierMILLER
John Gardner/Courier
The Moores Mills home of 19-year old Sarah Russell and 27-year old Rodney Miller.
ST. STEPHEN – Our reporter is at the St. Stephen provincial court now gathering details. The following is an RCMP news release.
Details to follow.
A couple from Moores Mills, near St. Stephen, has been charged with concealing the body of a newborn baby. The sex of the deceased baby and exact age has not yet been confirmed. An exact date of the birth has not yet been determined.
19-year old Sarah Russell and 27-year old Rodney Miller were arrested by RCMP on January 29, 2009 and appeared in St. Stephen Provincial Court to face the charge today. They were remanded into custody and will appear in court in St. Stephen on February 3, 2009 for 3 p.m. to plea to the charge.
Acting on information received, the RCMP’s Major Crimes Unit South in conjunction with District 1 RCMP began their investigation yesterday. The investigation is being treated as a homicide. Further charges are anticipated as the police continue to gather evidence in the ongoing investigation.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Pride and Glory a suspenseful cop masterpiece
JEREMY TOWNES
This Week On DVD
**** out of 5
Few police dramas are anything more than cliché narratives and bullet-riddled, two-hour non-refundable tickets.
The Departed broke from the norm and set a standard for what a cop movie should be about in 2006, and Pride and Glory has followed suit in 2008. The movie reveals itself to viewers as a family of New York police officers tears itself apart from the inside dealing with loyalty, family, friendship, and career. Directed by Gavin O’Connor, this two-hour, 10-minute gritty film will have you cursing the villain, hoping for the good guy, and generally satisfied when it’s time to return it.
The cast is led by routinely excellent actor Edward Norton as Ray Tierney, an honest cop caught between father Francis Sr. (Jon Voight), a chief police detective who looks to run from truth rather than accept it, brother Francis Jr. (Noah Emmerich), whose life’s work hangs in the balance between a wife dying of cancer and a corrupt unit he can’t control led by brother-in-law Jimmy Egan (Colin Farrell) whose crooked actions deny all sense of morality and principle.
The plot pivots around the murder of four police officers during a botched drug bust. Francis Jr. was in command of a unit that included Jimmy. When the city is shaken by the tragedy and carnage of the deaths Francis Sr. pulls strings to have son Ray join a special task force to help find a cop killer. Ray, determined to find the murderer, is shaken to the core when a trail of clues and evidence confirm his suspicions that there’s more than meets the eye from this murder scene. He will have to confront his family in their darkest hour to solve this crime.
The movie isn’t without flaws and arguably gets off to a slow start, but as the family drama unfolds and each individual character shares bits and pieces of their lives subsequently explaining why they are headed down their respective paths, it becomes hard for anyone watching the film to not be captivated by what’s happening on the screen.
Easily deserving of four out of five stars, Pride and Glory offers a little bit of everything for viewers. Action, suspense, drama, and mystery. It will keep you on the edge of your seat while you watch four actors perfectly portray characters caught in a battle that may tear them apart.
Movies for This Week On DVD are provided by Movie Gallery, St. Stephen.
This Week On DVD
**** out of 5
Few police dramas are anything more than cliché narratives and bullet-riddled, two-hour non-refundable tickets.
The Departed broke from the norm and set a standard for what a cop movie should be about in 2006, and Pride and Glory has followed suit in 2008. The movie reveals itself to viewers as a family of New York police officers tears itself apart from the inside dealing with loyalty, family, friendship, and career. Directed by Gavin O’Connor, this two-hour, 10-minute gritty film will have you cursing the villain, hoping for the good guy, and generally satisfied when it’s time to return it.
The cast is led by routinely excellent actor Edward Norton as Ray Tierney, an honest cop caught between father Francis Sr. (Jon Voight), a chief police detective who looks to run from truth rather than accept it, brother Francis Jr. (Noah Emmerich), whose life’s work hangs in the balance between a wife dying of cancer and a corrupt unit he can’t control led by brother-in-law Jimmy Egan (Colin Farrell) whose crooked actions deny all sense of morality and principle.
The plot pivots around the murder of four police officers during a botched drug bust. Francis Jr. was in command of a unit that included Jimmy. When the city is shaken by the tragedy and carnage of the deaths Francis Sr. pulls strings to have son Ray join a special task force to help find a cop killer. Ray, determined to find the murderer, is shaken to the core when a trail of clues and evidence confirm his suspicions that there’s more than meets the eye from this murder scene. He will have to confront his family in their darkest hour to solve this crime.
The movie isn’t without flaws and arguably gets off to a slow start, but as the family drama unfolds and each individual character shares bits and pieces of their lives subsequently explaining why they are headed down their respective paths, it becomes hard for anyone watching the film to not be captivated by what’s happening on the screen.
Easily deserving of four out of five stars, Pride and Glory offers a little bit of everything for viewers. Action, suspense, drama, and mystery. It will keep you on the edge of your seat while you watch four actors perfectly portray characters caught in a battle that may tear them apart.
Movies for This Week On DVD are provided by Movie Gallery, St. Stephen.
Inspired by Oprah... 's setbacks
KRISTA CAMPBELL
At this time of year, many of us make resolutions to be healthy, and get into better physical shape. We make lists, set goals and vow to run in 5k races, walk 10,000 steps a day and drink protein shakes. The popularity of these plans is shown by the masses of people who turn up at gyms and fitness clubs on Jan. 1, towels and workout gear in hand. It used to drive a friend of mine crazy. She was one of those type A people who went to the gym religiously every morning at 6 a.m., and she would dread what she called the "January rush", when everyone showed up on the 1st ready to start the new year off right. Of course, they usually only held out for a month or so. When the fitness fad wore off and everyone reverted back to their old ways, my patient friend would get her gym back again.
Recently even the smugly perfect self-made millionairess Oprah Winfrey admitted she has fallen off the wagon and slid back into old, unhealthy habits. The first week of January her television program was entirely devoted to her new health regime, and to the team who would help her pull it all off.
By the way, I am aware that for someone who does not actually watch Oprah I still manage to feature her quite often in my columns. This is either a testament to how much she and her life have infiltrated mainstream news, or perhaps reveals that I need to look at more stories than just the ones with "Entertainment" in the headline…
Many people feel that Oprah’s lack of control and subsequent weight fluctuations represent a death-knell for the rest of us commoners. To them, self-discipline is somehow equal to money and power. They feel Oprah’s wealth should somehow exclude her from the problems the rest of us struggle with, and ask desperately, "If she can’t do it, how can the rest of us?" They are referring, of course, to the legions of staff Oprah has assisting her with everything from buying toilet paper to making her travel plans. If she has an army of people standing by to whip her into shape, why isn’t she whipped, already?
It’s particularly painful for us regular folk to ponder as we struggle not only with weight and health issues but also with all the other tedious stuff Oprah doesn’t have to dirty her manicured hands with-stuff like laundry, meals, and generally living the hum-drum-life of a non-millionaire.
Her inability to keep her weight in check can be seen as a sort of universal failure, but I don’t see it that way. It’s at times like this that I actually like Oprah again. Instead of being a perfect, rich automaton whose life in unobtainable, she is like the rest of us. She cheats, she gains weight, she regrets it, and she struggles to lose it…just like we do! No matter how well things are going in her life, there are some things she just can’t control.
Though many people feel that with an army of health experts Oprah should be able to stay healthy and fit, it seems to me money and a lavish lifestyle would make it all the more difficult to keep on track. A poor New Brunswick gal like me can’t even imagine the culinary delicacies and tasty treats she is offered every day, and in every faction of her life. However, I’m pretty sure they’re more exotic than the day-old doughnuts and left-over birthday cake usually available at my workplace, and you should see me scarf those down!
No matter how many people Oprah has telling her what to do, and how to eat, she is the boss of herself, as we all are. We must be the ones who decide our fate, whether it’s making that first million, or trudging out for a walk on a frigid January day.
Oprah’s struggles are inspiring, because she is willing to put herself front and centre and tell it all. I recently embarked upon a fitness regime of my own, and for the first time in years purchased a scale to track my success. I wasn’t happy with the number that appeared on the screen the first time I stepped on and I’m certainly not going to be shouting it from the rooftops, or in the pages of the Saint Croix Courier. Oprah admitted she weighs 200 pounds, and that takes guts.
For any of us, the biggest challenge is not making the plans, but sticking to them. Oprah keeps trying, and so must the rest of us.
Uh, thanks Steve but you shouldn't have
EDITORIAL: We can't spend our way out of a recession...
If the Harper budget feels an awful lot like that rather expensive, but rather hideous, gift you got for Christmas – the one that made you force a smile and a thank you even as you thought about whether to bury it in your closet, re-gift it or Goodwill it – there’s good reason.
It’s expensive all right. This budget will plunge Canada into the red for the first time in 11 years. To the tune of $64 billion. Our long-silent debt clock is ticking again. Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Finance Minister Jim Flaherty have gone on a real bender with this one, throwing cash at our economic funk like a drunken sailor buying rounds he can’t afford.
The old Harper ideals – conservative budgets, no debt, no deficit, cut some taxes – have given way to a spend, spend, spend mentality. Temporary insanity maybe?
And, like with that gift sitting at the bottom of your closet, a lot of the spending is well meaning. The Prime Minister and his chief cheque writer are breaking their spendthrift ways in hopes of stimulating the economy by borrowing billions for everything from roads to sewers to bridges (and maybe even a Charlotte County Civic Centre?).
The gobs of cash being talked about should provide plenty of grunt work around the country but it offers little in terms of retraining for the unemployed (or as we’re so often reminded, the soon-to-be jobless). It offers only the Scroogeliest of tax cuts to the average worker.
And what the heck is with this renovation tax credit? Want to add on a deck, redo the kitchen, maybe put in some new cabinets? Or maybe the old tub isn’t doing it for you and you need something with a little more leg room and some massage jets?
For the next year – the offer is on the table until Jan. 31, 2010 - homeowners can claim a tax credit for 15 per cent of renovation expenses between $1,000 and $10,000. That means a $9,000 renovation project will yield a $1,350 tax credit. The government is estimating about 4.6 million families will benefit to the tune of $3 billion. Who are these beneficiaries? Well, it isn’t going to be the unemployed or anyone working in an industry in which the axe could fall any old time now. And it isn’t seniors or single parents or students.
Nope. This benefit is going to help that sector that always gets the most help when governments start throwing out tax benefits or tax cuts – people who don’t really need it.
Flaherty says the benefit will help industries that traditionally hurt during recessions – home builders, contractors, wood product manufacturers.
We doubt it’s going to have much of an impact on the Kent’s and Keith’s of Southern New Brunswick. Times are tight. If a homeowner can’t afford to do $5,000 in renovations now, they won’t be able to afford it because they’re getting a little tax break.
If you’ve already planned some renovations, additions, finishing a basement, perhaps, then the tax break might spur you to get cracking (the work has to be finished by Feb. 1, 2010).
On the other hand, the credit could end up hurting a segment of our economy – the one that involves cash-only transactions, no receipts, tax free. Now homeowners will want to get their tax break and that under-the-table work will dry up.
Harper’s attempt to spend his way out of our financial hole is interesting and out of character, to say the least. With his minority government in the balance, he obviously had to take a gamble and throw away some of his principles at the same time. If his roll of the dice comes up snake eyes, we’ll all be paying for it for a long, long time.
If the Harper budget feels an awful lot like that rather expensive, but rather hideous, gift you got for Christmas – the one that made you force a smile and a thank you even as you thought about whether to bury it in your closet, re-gift it or Goodwill it – there’s good reason.
It’s expensive all right. This budget will plunge Canada into the red for the first time in 11 years. To the tune of $64 billion. Our long-silent debt clock is ticking again. Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Finance Minister Jim Flaherty have gone on a real bender with this one, throwing cash at our economic funk like a drunken sailor buying rounds he can’t afford.
The old Harper ideals – conservative budgets, no debt, no deficit, cut some taxes – have given way to a spend, spend, spend mentality. Temporary insanity maybe?
And, like with that gift sitting at the bottom of your closet, a lot of the spending is well meaning. The Prime Minister and his chief cheque writer are breaking their spendthrift ways in hopes of stimulating the economy by borrowing billions for everything from roads to sewers to bridges (and maybe even a Charlotte County Civic Centre?).
The gobs of cash being talked about should provide plenty of grunt work around the country but it offers little in terms of retraining for the unemployed (or as we’re so often reminded, the soon-to-be jobless). It offers only the Scroogeliest of tax cuts to the average worker.
And what the heck is with this renovation tax credit? Want to add on a deck, redo the kitchen, maybe put in some new cabinets? Or maybe the old tub isn’t doing it for you and you need something with a little more leg room and some massage jets?
For the next year – the offer is on the table until Jan. 31, 2010 - homeowners can claim a tax credit for 15 per cent of renovation expenses between $1,000 and $10,000. That means a $9,000 renovation project will yield a $1,350 tax credit. The government is estimating about 4.6 million families will benefit to the tune of $3 billion. Who are these beneficiaries? Well, it isn’t going to be the unemployed or anyone working in an industry in which the axe could fall any old time now. And it isn’t seniors or single parents or students.
Nope. This benefit is going to help that sector that always gets the most help when governments start throwing out tax benefits or tax cuts – people who don’t really need it.
Flaherty says the benefit will help industries that traditionally hurt during recessions – home builders, contractors, wood product manufacturers.
We doubt it’s going to have much of an impact on the Kent’s and Keith’s of Southern New Brunswick. Times are tight. If a homeowner can’t afford to do $5,000 in renovations now, they won’t be able to afford it because they’re getting a little tax break.
If you’ve already planned some renovations, additions, finishing a basement, perhaps, then the tax break might spur you to get cracking (the work has to be finished by Feb. 1, 2010).
On the other hand, the credit could end up hurting a segment of our economy – the one that involves cash-only transactions, no receipts, tax free. Now homeowners will want to get their tax break and that under-the-table work will dry up.
Harper’s attempt to spend his way out of our financial hole is interesting and out of character, to say the least. With his minority government in the balance, he obviously had to take a gamble and throw away some of his principles at the same time. If his roll of the dice comes up snake eyes, we’ll all be paying for it for a long, long time.
In the Courier Weekend, Friday, Jan. 30
BARB RAYNER/COURIER Candace Dussault tackles the heavy snow at the end of her driveway on Main Street in St. George Thursday morning. An overnight storm dumped a mix of snow and freezing rain on the region.
UP FRONT
Mayors applaud Harper's big spending
Budget great for NB, says Thompson
Border mayor eyes stimulus funds
Pool's safe, but gross
Sailor faces child porn charge
Man charged with incest
Teen charged in cottage break-ins
Pampering begins as Tatamagouche women hit resort
Gourmet UNICEF fundraiser returns to St. Andrews
Police done commenting on school bus crash
SPORTS
A league of their own - SSHS's only two female wrestlers have stranglehold on sport
Great skates - speed skaters earn hardware
OPINION
Budget: Uh, thanks Steve but you shouldn't have
Letters: Quarry won't impact water safety; Fish Farmers aren't good neighbours
Oprah’s failures provide inspiration
NEW PRESS POLL
AT WWW.STCROIXCOURIER.CA
Are students and teachers getting too many days off because of winter weather?
Are students and teachers getting too many days off because of winter weather?
Calais LNG donates to the St. Stephen Seahawks
ST. STEPHEN, NEW BRUNSWICK -- Calais LNG recently gave a $750 donation to
the St. Stephen Seawhawks, one of several hockey teams in the Canadian
Southern League. The Seahawks are based in St. Stephen.
Calais LNG Development Manager Ian Emery said he was pleased to make the
donation to the team.
"From the time we first announced our project, we have been consistently
saying that our endeavor will benefit people who live and work on both sides
of the St. Croix River," Emery said. "The Seahawks have many fans on both
sides of the international border, and we want our neighbors in Canada to
know that our project will bring prosperity to the entire region, not just
the city of Calais."
Calais LNG made previous donations to the Calais/Baileyville Silverado's
football team and to the Calais High School girls' and boys' basketball
teams; as well as sponsoring a youth baseball team in Washington County.
"It's an honor to be able to help support programs that so many people
enjoy," Emery said. "Hockey is a big part of life here, and Calais LNG is
pleased to be one their proud sponsors."
the St. Stephen Seawhawks, one of several hockey teams in the Canadian
Southern League. The Seahawks are based in St. Stephen.
Calais LNG Development Manager Ian Emery said he was pleased to make the
donation to the team.
"From the time we first announced our project, we have been consistently
saying that our endeavor will benefit people who live and work on both sides
of the St. Croix River," Emery said. "The Seahawks have many fans on both
sides of the international border, and we want our neighbors in Canada to
know that our project will bring prosperity to the entire region, not just
the city of Calais."
Calais LNG made previous donations to the Calais/Baileyville Silverado's
football team and to the Calais High School girls' and boys' basketball
teams; as well as sponsoring a youth baseball team in Washington County.
"It's an honor to be able to help support programs that so many people
enjoy," Emery said. "Hockey is a big part of life here, and Calais LNG is
pleased to be one their proud sponsors."
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
DON'T FORGET TO VOTE
PRESS POLL
www.stcroixcourier.ca
Is Obama's decision to close the detention centre at Guantanamo Bay a mistake?
Voting ends Thursday.
Courier headlines
Kathy Bockus/Courier
Cathy Sears hugs her two sons, Ryan, 10, left, and Brandon, 8, right. The two boys escaped injury when a tractor trailer slammed into the school bus they had just boarded Friday morning, Jan. 23.
In the Saint Croix Courier, Tuesday, Jan. 27
NEWS
* They’re lucky to be alive - A mother’s nightmare becomes a miracle - Veteran bus driver earns praise - Charges likely in bus crash, says Mountie
* Quarry opponent meets with minister
* Fundy High makes CD of ‘Broken Chair’ concerts
* Aquaculture projects get $1 million
* RCMP investigate disturbance on Grand Manan
* Little change in island tax rate
* Community helps feed hundreds
SPORTS
* Spartans bring A game to Courier Invitational
* Local gymnasts shine in Charlottetown
* Blades speed past competition
COMMENT
* Wake up call
* Health nuts causing a real racquet
* Charlotte County Cosmo: Eight dating tips every man should know
* Capitalism commits mass suicide in bout of cabin fever
* Liberals want to move DOT out of St. Stephen
LETTERS
* Rural Plan for Bayside vs. Jamer proposal for a "permanent" quarry
* Called to be peacemakers
Monday, January 26, 2009
NHL Legends to shine in St. Stephen
Chuck Brown/Courier
Promoter Steve Walton is bringing some of the NHL’s biggest stars of the 1970s and 1980s to the Border Arena in St. Stephen on March 11. Butch Goring, Billy Smith and Bryan Trottier of the New York Islanders dynasty from the 1980s, Terry O’Reilly and Rick Middleton, of the Boston Bruins, six-time Stanley Cup winner Glenn Anderson and Toronto Maple Leafs sniper Gary Leeman are expected to be in the lineup.
By CHUCK BROWN
editor@stcroixcourier.ca
ST. STEPHEN – What has 21 Stanley Cup rings, thousands of NHL points, handfuls of NHL All-Star game appearances and all kinds of international appearances, game winning goals, legions of loyal fans and even a few Hockey Hall of Fame plaques?
The NHL Legends who are confirmed to be in the line-up for a March 11 game at the Border Arena in St. Stephen. The puck drops at 7 p.m.
“You really notice right away, in the first couple of shifts, that there is something special going on on the ice,” said event organizer Steve Walton, of Saint John.
He’s bringing NHL legends such as Bryan Trottier, Billy Smith and Butch Goring from the New York Islanders dynasty of the 1980s to St. Stephen along with Boston Bruins heroes Terry O’Reilly and Rick Middleton. They’ll be joined by six-time Cup winner Glenn Anderson, who was just inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame and had his number 9 retired by the Edmonton Oilers, and Gary Leeman, who sniped 51 goals for the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1989-90.
Walton is bringing his NHL Legends Maritime Tour to St. Stephen for the first time. And it’s the first time in years an event like this has come to the Border Town.
Walton has developed the tour from a friendship he struck up with Trottier, a seven-time Stanley Cup winner – four with the Islanders, two with the Pittsburgh Penguins and one as an assistant coach with the Colorado Avalanche.
“I’ve been working with various NHL alumni for four years,” Walton said.
He brought Trottier to Saint John for autograph signings, motivational talks and even to take a spin with Walton’s Southern Hockey League team, the Saint John Blackhawks. Walton said he brought Trottier in to meet some of the players in the city gentlemen’s league and they were stunned.
“I thought it was a room full of 10-year-old kids,” he said. “They were mesmerized.”
The legends are certainly a little more grey, a little more bald, a little less mean and lean than they were in their playing days but they’ve still got game.
“These guys have the edge when they want to show it,” Walton said. “They could turn this into a Globetrotters thing real fast.”
Anderson and Leeman have stayed in great shape since retiring, Walton said. They aren’t that far out of playing condition.
The competition will be provided by players from around Charlotte County. Most of them will come from the ranks of the Blacks Harbour-based Fundy Industrial Hockey League, which also has teams in St. Stephen and St. Andrews. More details on the lineup will be announced but they will be well-known names from the Charlotte County hockey community.
And in a unique twist, the team isn’t hand-picked or a bunch of players who lucked into a spot. In fact, there are still a few spots open on the roster for any Charlotte County hockey player who can skate and is willing to promote the event and sell some tickets. Walton said it’s a small price for a chance to skate with some of the biggest stars of the past few decades.
“It’s one of those memories that will last a lifetime,” Walton said.
Fans will have access to the NHL players, Walton said. He’s figuring out the logistics of setting up tables for autographs during intermissions. There will also be giveaways during the game and a reception following at a yet-to-be named restaurant or pub.
He’s also working with community groups such as the Boys and Girls Club and minor hockey to help promote the event and pack the rink. Walton has dreams of filling the Border Arena and if that happens, he said, you can bet the Legends tour will be back.
This year he’s doing three games – March 10 in Sussex, March 11 in St. Stephen and March 12 in Saint John. He’d like to expand the tour to six to 10 games next year, he said.
He was in St. Stephen on Wednesday distributing posters and tickets. Admission is $20 in advance, $25 at the door, and $15 for youth 12 and under. They’re available at Stuart’s in St. Stephen, Hooper’s Convenience in Blacks Harbour and Paul’s Wharf in St. George.
For more information about playing in the Legends game, call (506) 721-7423 or e-mail legends.hockey@gmail.com
CONFIRMED LINEUP FOR CHARLOTTE COUNTY/FIHL SO FAR...
G - Chuck Brown
Matty Walsh
Mike England
Jeremy Mahar
Jason McGratton
Mark Taylor
Joe Stevens
Greg Justason
Ryan Weatherby
Justin Sweeney
Mark Hatt
Jason McFarlane
Friday, January 23, 2009
BUS CRASH UPDATE
Carl Carson, director of finance, administration and human resources for School District 10, was at the scene of the accident Friday morning.
Later on in the morning, Carson stated that School Bus #24 driven by Winston Johnson had stopped to pick up two students on Route 127 in Waweig at approximately 7:26 a.m. when it was struck from behind by a transport truck heading south toward Highway 170.
He said no one on the bus was seriously injured in the accident, but the two students on board, as well as the school bus driver and truck driver were taken to the Charlotte County Hospital.
Carson confirmed both students on the bus were elementary school students.
He also said that to the best of his knowledge, the flashing red warning lights on the bus were operating at the time of the accident.
- Kathy Bockus
Later on in the morning, Carson stated that School Bus #24 driven by Winston Johnson had stopped to pick up two students on Route 127 in Waweig at approximately 7:26 a.m. when it was struck from behind by a transport truck heading south toward Highway 170.
He said no one on the bus was seriously injured in the accident, but the two students on board, as well as the school bus driver and truck driver were taken to the Charlotte County Hospital.
Carson confirmed both students on the bus were elementary school students.
He also said that to the best of his knowledge, the flashing red warning lights on the bus were operating at the time of the accident.
- Kathy Bockus
BREAKING NEWS -- SCHOOL BUS CRASH, STUDENTS NOT SERIOUSLY HURT
Details are still coming in about a Friday morning crash involving a school bus and a transport truck in Waweig. Reports indicate no students were hurt but crews are still working to free the driver of the transport from his vehicle.
Reporter Kathy Bockus is at the scene. Early reports show there were two students on the bus at the time of the crash.
The bus was stopped at the time of the crash. The back of the bus is caved in.
School officials are on the scene. They have been warning drivers over the past few months to watch for stopped school buses. Police have also indicated they are seeing too many cases of drivers passing stopped buses.
For full details on this incident, see the Saint Croix Courier on Tuesday, Jan. 27.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Canadians Turn to Newspapers in Times of Crisis
A new Ipsos-Reid poll finds a significant portion of Canadians rely on
newspapers for trustworthy information during good times and bad.
Forty percent of those surveyed said they relied more on newspapers during
the recent political crisis in Ottawa, while almost a third (30 per cent)
said they turned more often to newspapers for analysis of the recent
economic downturn.
Only 15 per cent of respondents said they don't read newspapers (print or
online) at all.
The findings are based on over 1,000 online interviews conducted in early
December for the Canadian Newspaper Association.
The poll is considered accurate ± 3.1 per cent of the time, 19 times out
of 20.
"Clearly, newspapers remain the trusted medium of communication during
periods of change, such as we are experiencing today," said John Hinds,
president and CEO of the Canadian Newspaper Association.
The survey also asked Canadians how they respond to advertising during
economic crises. Over a quarter of respondents (26 per cent) said they
find themselves looking at newspapers and inserts for "discounts, bargains
and sales" more often during hard economic times.
Ipsos-Reid also found that almost a third of Canadians (27 per cent) –
including a plurality of better-educated and wealthier respondents – are
more likely to read newspapers when making decisions about personal
finances.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
That's All Folks
Bugs will no doubt find other work... but we're not so sure if there's much of a market out there for mentally unstable waterfowl. Warner Bros. cuts nearly 800 jobs | Money | Toronto Sun
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
IN TUESDAY'S SAINT CROIX COURIER
Mr. Big Shot
Jeremy Townes/Courier
St. Stephen High School Spartans forward Jeff Brown drives a 142 km/h slapshot in the Hardest Shot competition during first intermission at Saturday’s Southern Conference High School Hockey Showcase game hosted at the Border Arena. Five St. Stephen players, including Brown, made the cut for the Showcase.
THE FRONT
CANADA'S ANSWER ON LNG IS STILL NO
Quarry hosts open houses this week
Tax bills dip, water rates rise in St. Stephen
No tax rate increase in St. George
MPBN fans get a break
St. Andrews chef joins national competition
OPINION
EDITORIAL: Bad boys, and girls, watcha gonna do?
BROWN: 2009 will be a record year for iPod murders
TAYLOR: Everyday is alright for fightin’
McEACHERN: Economic crossroads? It’s more like a burning bridge
SPORTS
Spartan earns hardest slapshot title at high school Showcase
Monday, January 12, 2009
Roadside Attraction
A proposed design for signs enticing travellers to visit St. Stephen will be discussed at the Town Council meeting Jan. 19.
Fighting death hits home
By JEREMY TOWNES
sports@stcroixcourier.ca
COURIER WEEKEND
Friday, Jan. 9, 2009
ST. STEPHEN – The Whitby Dunlops, a Senior AAA team in the Ontario Hockey Association, may not be a familiar name to hockey fans and players in Charlotte County, but for those who follow the sport, the name Don Sanderson will remain imprinted in everyone’s minds for a long time.
Sanderson, a 21-year old defenseman with the Dunlops, competed at the highest level of senior amateur hockey in the country. His name has become famous because Sanderson will be remembered as the first player in the sports history to die as a result of fighting.
In a game between the Dunlops and the Brantford Blast on Dec. 21, Sanderson and Blast defenseman Corey Fulton got into a tussle. During the fight Sanderson lost his helmet. Both players fell and Sanderson cracked his head on the ice. He was rushed to a local hospital where he remained in a coma until Friday Jan. 2 when he died as a result of his head trauma.
The massive outpouring of support and condolences for his family have spread everywhere from small communities to the NHL where a Saturday night game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators saw players tapping their sticks on the ice as an image of Sanderson was shown on the video screen.
In the wake of Sanderson’s passing, the debate rages between supporters and non-supporters of hockey fighting. It’s impact on a game can at times be as crucial as scoring a goal, electrifying a crowd and providing a spark for players on both teams. A fight will also send a habitual hacker packing when the opposing team’s enforcer steps between him and his would-be target. But fighting has a dark side. Suspensions, fines, injuries, and now death.
Reacting locally, general managers, coaches, and players shared their insight on fighting’s place in the game.
“Originally I would have been the first guy to say fighting’s a part of the game, but I guess the older I get the more I wonder how necessary it really needs to be when you get people dying,” said St. Stephen Spartan Head Coach and former Major Junior player Joe Bouvier.
“It was only a matter of time, I guess, before something like that happened.
“For hockey not to have fighting, the culture of hockey would have to change in the sense that the fighting is there to control the dirtiness and until hockey players are willing to play without that dirty edge you almost need it.”
Bouvier’s sentiments about the necessity of fighting to control what can sometimes be out-of-control behaviour by players was echoed by St. Stephen Seahawks enforcer Scott Goullette.
“It’s part of the game, it’s a way of keeping guys from taking liberties at your really good players and getting your team motivated,” said Goullette.
However both Bouvier and Goullette acknowledged that repercussions should be in place for the removal of a helmet during a fight, and that in some cases certain leagues have done away with fighting altogether.
“There’s leagues in the world that don’t have fighting, like the NCAA, and they do quite well, so maybe it’s just something as simple as banning it, or making full face masks mandatory again,” said Bouvier.
Blacks Harbour Silverkings Coach Meryl Stewart stands on the bench of undoubtedly the roughest team in the Southern Hockey League and questions the excitement and longevity of a league free from flying fists.
“If you take a league and you’re playing 75 games going up and down the ice with nothing happening, no checking, no fighting, you’re going to see that it isn’t going to work,” said Stewart.
“There was no fighting in the World Juniors, but that was such a hyped up tournament with so few games, fighting wasn’t needed to keep people’s interest.”
Interest aside, hockey players accept a lot of risk when they engage in a fight. For players in the SHL who have day jobs, the threat of an injury is something to be considered before the gloves are dropped.
“In our league, we have jobs to go to, so you’re always worried about that,” said Goullette.
“It’s not our main source of income, so you fight, but you always hope that no one gets hurt and you don’t get hurt.”
“It’s part of the game, we know there’s risk involved when we play at this level,” said Stewart.
One of Stewart’s defenseman and occasional scrapper, Eric Jean, agreed.
“It’s unfortunate what happened, but whether it’s UFC, hockey, or baseball, you accept a certain amount of risk,” said Jean.
“When you’re playing a competitive sport, you can’t always predict what’s going to happen, and sometimes things just don’t end well.”
sports@stcroixcourier.ca
COURIER WEEKEND
Friday, Jan. 9, 2009
ST. STEPHEN – The Whitby Dunlops, a Senior AAA team in the Ontario Hockey Association, may not be a familiar name to hockey fans and players in Charlotte County, but for those who follow the sport, the name Don Sanderson will remain imprinted in everyone’s minds for a long time.
Sanderson, a 21-year old defenseman with the Dunlops, competed at the highest level of senior amateur hockey in the country. His name has become famous because Sanderson will be remembered as the first player in the sports history to die as a result of fighting.
In a game between the Dunlops and the Brantford Blast on Dec. 21, Sanderson and Blast defenseman Corey Fulton got into a tussle. During the fight Sanderson lost his helmet. Both players fell and Sanderson cracked his head on the ice. He was rushed to a local hospital where he remained in a coma until Friday Jan. 2 when he died as a result of his head trauma.
The massive outpouring of support and condolences for his family have spread everywhere from small communities to the NHL where a Saturday night game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators saw players tapping their sticks on the ice as an image of Sanderson was shown on the video screen.
In the wake of Sanderson’s passing, the debate rages between supporters and non-supporters of hockey fighting. It’s impact on a game can at times be as crucial as scoring a goal, electrifying a crowd and providing a spark for players on both teams. A fight will also send a habitual hacker packing when the opposing team’s enforcer steps between him and his would-be target. But fighting has a dark side. Suspensions, fines, injuries, and now death.
Reacting locally, general managers, coaches, and players shared their insight on fighting’s place in the game.
“Originally I would have been the first guy to say fighting’s a part of the game, but I guess the older I get the more I wonder how necessary it really needs to be when you get people dying,” said St. Stephen Spartan Head Coach and former Major Junior player Joe Bouvier.
“It was only a matter of time, I guess, before something like that happened.
“For hockey not to have fighting, the culture of hockey would have to change in the sense that the fighting is there to control the dirtiness and until hockey players are willing to play without that dirty edge you almost need it.”
Bouvier’s sentiments about the necessity of fighting to control what can sometimes be out-of-control behaviour by players was echoed by St. Stephen Seahawks enforcer Scott Goullette.
“It’s part of the game, it’s a way of keeping guys from taking liberties at your really good players and getting your team motivated,” said Goullette.
However both Bouvier and Goullette acknowledged that repercussions should be in place for the removal of a helmet during a fight, and that in some cases certain leagues have done away with fighting altogether.
“There’s leagues in the world that don’t have fighting, like the NCAA, and they do quite well, so maybe it’s just something as simple as banning it, or making full face masks mandatory again,” said Bouvier.
Blacks Harbour Silverkings Coach Meryl Stewart stands on the bench of undoubtedly the roughest team in the Southern Hockey League and questions the excitement and longevity of a league free from flying fists.
“If you take a league and you’re playing 75 games going up and down the ice with nothing happening, no checking, no fighting, you’re going to see that it isn’t going to work,” said Stewart.
“There was no fighting in the World Juniors, but that was such a hyped up tournament with so few games, fighting wasn’t needed to keep people’s interest.”
Interest aside, hockey players accept a lot of risk when they engage in a fight. For players in the SHL who have day jobs, the threat of an injury is something to be considered before the gloves are dropped.
“In our league, we have jobs to go to, so you’re always worried about that,” said Goullette.
“It’s not our main source of income, so you fight, but you always hope that no one gets hurt and you don’t get hurt.”
“It’s part of the game, we know there’s risk involved when we play at this level,” said Stewart.
One of Stewart’s defenseman and occasional scrapper, Eric Jean, agreed.
“It’s unfortunate what happened, but whether it’s UFC, hockey, or baseball, you accept a certain amount of risk,” said Jean.
“When you’re playing a competitive sport, you can’t always predict what’s going to happen, and sometimes things just don’t end well.”
Put the 'fun' in foot fungus!
By MARGARET LAKING
Our New Year is starting off on the right foot .... or for me, feet, literally! Although not planned, I saw a foot professional for my toenails. What I thought was just one of those "age" things turned out to be a fungus! Two toenails were turning yellow and thickening. Another toenail I thought I must've stubbed badly on something but couldn't remember any incidents. It was turning black and I was sure it was going to fall off. Angie, the foot care management person, cut the nails extremely short - almost non-existent and the doctor has given a prescription for cream to be applied faithfully. Now, the culprit could very well have been the fact that my feet, except for the shower or bath are constantly "socked" - my feet are always cold. And, that confined, warm, moist environment is perfect for fungi to thrive. Infection with nail fungus occurs more in toenails than in fingernails for that very reason.
Okay, I know this isn't the most pleasant of subjects but it is an important one. Our feet are important and that includes our toes and nails. I want to point out that this same problem can happen as a result of walking barefoot, in swimming pools, shower floors or through sweaty shoes. Microscopic organisms can invade your skin through tiny invisible cuts or through a small separation between your nail and nail bed. I also want to point out that this nail fungus is not the same as athlete's foot which affects the skin of the feet not the nail.
It looks like a cyclone hit the inside of our house. We are on a clean-up, reorganize, rearrange, toss out or fix-up campaign. Things from the living room and hall are in the kitchen, items from the small bedroom are in the basement and furniture from the living room is in the second bedroom. Yes, we will get there an hopefully soon but in the meantime our house, particularly our living room is in shambles. Then after that, I'll tackle the closets, dressers, etc. I think James was shocked when I started moving a few things around - he says we're spring cleaning - a little early but so be it! Changing furniture and such is not something I do often although there was a time I seemed to do it on a monthly basis. Searching, I guess, although I didn't know for what. Since we moved into this house, I've never been truly happy with our living room arrangement. A friend recently told me the first thing I need to do is forget convention or traditional furniture arrangements. I am looking for that room I can walk into and it will calm my mind, soothe my soul and lift my spirit.
Yes, I know - now we could get into that age old dilemma about the meaning of the soul and the spirit. Are they one and the same? Probably the best definition I've read comes from Steve Marshall who says "soul is part of truth. Spirit is the messenger of truth. Spirit is love. Love connects soul to soul, and truth to truth. Love comes from God, and spirit is God sending love out to all souls. The spirit is in all things, permeating through all things, souls included. This spirit embraces all souls, and dwells in and out of God.
While I seem to be talking off-the-wall type of stuff this time around, I must tell you that my golden retriever, Koda, received his Reiki Practitioner Certificate earlier this week. Attunements are given to animals who have a healing effect on their humans, themselves and each other in recognition that Reiki Healing Energy can be channelled through them in much the same manner as it flows through human Reiki Practitioners. Animals have a healing ability and a desire to help their caregivers even at the expense of their own health. The Attunement allows them to continue the service without the possible draining of their own health and energy resources Many places in our neighbouring country, the United States have programs where the dogs (and cats) are trained and registered as HealthCare givers, then taken to visit patients in hospital to assist in their recuperation and healing. It also helps them in their own healing, the same way as Reiki helps us humans to heal on body, mind and spirit levels. Reiki (pronounced Ray Key) is an ancient laying-on of hands healing technique that uses the life force energy to heal. It addresses physical, emotional, mental and spiritual imbalances. And, as most of us know, animals are among the best healers. I'm not sure just where this will lead us or if it'll lead us anywhere but it is rather neat and unique.
Billy Graham once said: "I think God will have prepared everything for our perfect happiness. If it takes my dog being there (in heaven), I believe he'll be there."
Our New Year is starting off on the right foot .... or for me, feet, literally! Although not planned, I saw a foot professional for my toenails. What I thought was just one of those "age" things turned out to be a fungus! Two toenails were turning yellow and thickening. Another toenail I thought I must've stubbed badly on something but couldn't remember any incidents. It was turning black and I was sure it was going to fall off. Angie, the foot care management person, cut the nails extremely short - almost non-existent and the doctor has given a prescription for cream to be applied faithfully. Now, the culprit could very well have been the fact that my feet, except for the shower or bath are constantly "socked" - my feet are always cold. And, that confined, warm, moist environment is perfect for fungi to thrive. Infection with nail fungus occurs more in toenails than in fingernails for that very reason.
Okay, I know this isn't the most pleasant of subjects but it is an important one. Our feet are important and that includes our toes and nails. I want to point out that this same problem can happen as a result of walking barefoot, in swimming pools, shower floors or through sweaty shoes. Microscopic organisms can invade your skin through tiny invisible cuts or through a small separation between your nail and nail bed. I also want to point out that this nail fungus is not the same as athlete's foot which affects the skin of the feet not the nail.
It looks like a cyclone hit the inside of our house. We are on a clean-up, reorganize, rearrange, toss out or fix-up campaign. Things from the living room and hall are in the kitchen, items from the small bedroom are in the basement and furniture from the living room is in the second bedroom. Yes, we will get there an hopefully soon but in the meantime our house, particularly our living room is in shambles. Then after that, I'll tackle the closets, dressers, etc. I think James was shocked when I started moving a few things around - he says we're spring cleaning - a little early but so be it! Changing furniture and such is not something I do often although there was a time I seemed to do it on a monthly basis. Searching, I guess, although I didn't know for what. Since we moved into this house, I've never been truly happy with our living room arrangement. A friend recently told me the first thing I need to do is forget convention or traditional furniture arrangements. I am looking for that room I can walk into and it will calm my mind, soothe my soul and lift my spirit.
Yes, I know - now we could get into that age old dilemma about the meaning of the soul and the spirit. Are they one and the same? Probably the best definition I've read comes from Steve Marshall who says "soul is part of truth. Spirit is the messenger of truth. Spirit is love. Love connects soul to soul, and truth to truth. Love comes from God, and spirit is God sending love out to all souls. The spirit is in all things, permeating through all things, souls included. This spirit embraces all souls, and dwells in and out of God.
While I seem to be talking off-the-wall type of stuff this time around, I must tell you that my golden retriever, Koda, received his Reiki Practitioner Certificate earlier this week. Attunements are given to animals who have a healing effect on their humans, themselves and each other in recognition that Reiki Healing Energy can be channelled through them in much the same manner as it flows through human Reiki Practitioners. Animals have a healing ability and a desire to help their caregivers even at the expense of their own health. The Attunement allows them to continue the service without the possible draining of their own health and energy resources Many places in our neighbouring country, the United States have programs where the dogs (and cats) are trained and registered as HealthCare givers, then taken to visit patients in hospital to assist in their recuperation and healing. It also helps them in their own healing, the same way as Reiki helps us humans to heal on body, mind and spirit levels. Reiki (pronounced Ray Key) is an ancient laying-on of hands healing technique that uses the life force energy to heal. It addresses physical, emotional, mental and spiritual imbalances. And, as most of us know, animals are among the best healers. I'm not sure just where this will lead us or if it'll lead us anywhere but it is rather neat and unique.
Billy Graham once said: "I think God will have prepared everything for our perfect happiness. If it takes my dog being there (in heaven), I believe he'll be there."
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Pineapple Express takes action to a higher level
PINEAPPLE EXPRESS
Rated R
Four stars out of five
Pineapple Express earned a pretty bad wrap from movie critics for its theatrical release. Brought to you by the guys who made Superbad and Forgetting Sarah Marshall, this purple haze inducing stoner-action-comedy may have been too hot for box offices. Get it? Good. Although the R rated flick may not be for everyone, due to an overabundance of gore and drug related hilarity, it’s a safe bet that if you split your sides laughing during movies like 40-Year-Old-Virgin, and Knocked Up, you’ll be howling from Seth Rogan and James Franco’s portrayal of a pothead and his dealer marked for dead and caught in the middle of a drug war between crime lords.
The movie is thick with smoke throughout as no doubt Rogen and Franco fully submersed themselves into character. Either that or they are incredibly convincing potheads. Not to be mistaken, this movie isn’t just about drugs and laughs, albeit there is plenty of both, this is an action movie taken to a new level. Long gone are the days of jacked up Stallones and Schwarzeneggers (yeah I spelled that right first try) Pineapple Express introduces a beady-eyed, perma-smiling Franco and a curly-haired, portly Rogen as machine gun-toting vigilantes out to take down the crime lord who put out a hit on them.
After a hilarious military marijuana testing scene set in the 1930s explaining the reason for pot being illegal comes to a close we’re introduced to Rogen as Dale, a summons server, who between puffs adds a unique flair to delivering subpoena’s while carrying on a wildly inappropriate relationship with a high school girl desperately trying to get him to meet her parents, which for obvious reasons he tries to avoid. Fueled by his taste for toking, Dale is forced into becoming friends with his dry-eyed, space-case drug dealer Saul, played by Franco. Saul who spends his days creating the ultimate reefers, watching the 1980s comedy 227, and complaining about lingering buyers in his apartment grows attached to his BFFF (best effing friends forever) Dale, and has a hard time letting go when Dale insistently tries not to linger any longer than it takes to get his stash and leave.
When Dale mentally prepares himself to deliver another subpoena by sparking up a joint outside his target home he witnesses a female cop (Rosie Perez) and drug lord Ted (Gary Cole) filling an Asian rival full of lead inside Ted’s home. As Dale attempts to make a hasty get away, his motor skills aren’t quite up to speed and he continually runs into the police cruiser parked behind him and the car in front of him. After being pursued down the street, Ted noticed the roach left behind by Dale and immediately recognizes it as his own supply of Pineapple Express. The hit is out and the fun begins for everyone involved.
While this movie takes several things to the extreme, certain elements have their foundation in reality -- a reluctant friendship between client and dealer, a 30-something-year-old man realizing his shortcomings and immaturity while crying for his high school girlfriend to take him back, and two people with aspirations of becoming something more than what marijuana has lethargically led them to be.
All told, I give this movie four out of five stars for its insanely funny, action packed plot and hilariously, perfectly-played main roles by Rogen and Franco. A definite must see if you’re up for a lot of drug-related laughs, random acts of violence, and more explosions than you can shake a stick at.
FRIDAY'S COURIER WEEKEND HEADLINES
Barb Rayner/Courier
Paul Lambert stands on the back deck at his home in Deer Island which is only about seven metres from one of the five island beaches the province are proposing for aquaculture use.
THE FRONT
U.S. Coast Guard OKs LNG route
Drug case adjourned over evidence issues
Men plead guilty to break-ins
Town staff in line for raises
Beaches tagged for aquaculture, opposition grows
Horse deal sours
Impaired driver apologetic to St. George residents
OPINION
Editorial - Something's fishy at the Gulch
Letters - Town council a waste of time
SPORTS
Fighting death hits home
St. Stephen-Blacks Harbour clash in weekend home-and-home
Spartans on track
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
TUESDAY'S COURIER HEADLINES
THE FRONT
* New Year's party turns violent
* Bayside Port official weighs in against LNG
* St. Stephen Catholics want to unite
* Border Town is going loopy
* Spot checks helped keep drunks off road over holidays
* Wrestlers avoid injury in crash
* Van strikes moose
SPORTS
* Five Spartans join Showcase roster
* Seahawks-Silverkings renew rivalry this weekend
OPINION
* EDITORIAL: Another good reason to be a quitter
* MARK TAYLOR: Shotgun Piñatas, Winnipeg Suicide Bombers, and Hurricane Jack Daniels, what next???
* GERALD McEACHERN: Our place in a unifying theory of the Universe
* CHUCK BROWN: New year, new focus, new shape
* New Year's party turns violent
* Bayside Port official weighs in against LNG
* St. Stephen Catholics want to unite
* Border Town is going loopy
* Spot checks helped keep drunks off road over holidays
* Wrestlers avoid injury in crash
* Van strikes moose
SPORTS
* Five Spartans join Showcase roster
* Seahawks-Silverkings renew rivalry this weekend
OPINION
* EDITORIAL: Another good reason to be a quitter
* MARK TAYLOR: Shotgun Piñatas, Winnipeg Suicide Bombers, and Hurricane Jack Daniels, what next???
* GERALD McEACHERN: Our place in a unifying theory of the Universe
* CHUCK BROWN: New year, new focus, new shape
Friday, January 2, 2009
Charlotte County's News Story of the Year 2008
It’s the stupid economy
EDITORIAL
Want to know what kind of year 2008 was? If we were smart, we could have seen it coming almost a full year ago, back in January, when CEOs from New Brunswick’s own forestry industry toured the province lobbying for help.
Kelly Shotbolt, from Flakeboard, joined Fraser Papers’ Peter Gordon and James Irving from JDI to meet with community leaders all over the province to explain their plight.
The three CEOs represent three-quarters of what’s left of the province’s forest products industry and they said they needed help. Who know then that “bailout” would become the buzz word of 2008. But they weren’t asking for the type of help that has become so popular in the last quarter of 2008. They weren’t asking for cash to keep them afloat like the auto makers and the housing markets have asked for – and received. They asked for fair energy rates and a steady supply of raw materials. They wanted government and the public to realize they were under pressure.
We certainly know now. And that’s why our choice for news story of the year in 2008 is The Economy.
The collapse in American markets has had a huge impact here in Charlotte County. Manufacturers of wood products, such as Flakeboard and SWP Industries have felt the sting as new home starts have withered and foreclosures have boomed. With no one building new homes, the orders for melamine furniture aren’t piling up. There have been layoffs and shutdowns but so far Flakeboard has managed to keep the St. Stephen mill open.
The economy is also affecting another major industry in Charlotte County – the lobster fishery. Prices have hit a 30-year low and lobster fishermen have to seriously think about whether it’s even worth their while to head out on the water. As 2009 dawns, Fisheries Minister Rick Doucet is on a mission to find new markets, reducing our dependence on American seafood lovers who currently account for 85 per cent of New Brunswick seafood sales.
The Economy could well be our story of the year in 2009 as well as economists predict we have not yet seen the worst.
Here, in no particular order, are some of 2008’s other headline grabbers – some of which will continue to play out across the front pages over the next year and beyond…
LNG FAILURES
While Passamaquoddy Bay has not been abandoned by American liquefied natural gas developers, a handful of proposed projects have had the legs kicked out from under them. The American Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has dismissed Quoddy Bay LNG’s permit applications to import LNG into a proposed terminal on the Maine shore of Passamaquoddy Bay while Downeast LNG remains active but has withdrawn its state permit application. Calais LNG continues to work through the process to win approval to bring the LNG industry to Washington County.
Across the bay in Canada, opposition to the developments remains firm. That opposition extends from seaside communities such as St. Andrews all the way to Sussex Drive in Ottawa. The developments of the past year are encouraging to LNG’s opponents – and there are many – but this story is far from over.
JAMER EXPANSION
Late in 2008 the granite quarrying company Jamer Materials dropped a bomb. It has applied to expand from the Bayside Port area across Highway 127.
The announcement wasn’t a complete surprise. People who live in the area and in the nearby town of St. Andrews knew full well that the company owns the land and that there are indeed rocks in them there hills. Still, when word came down that the application process was officially in motion, quarry opponents were dismayed.
The quarry’s operators insist they can excavate granite from the area without destroying it for other uses. Those uses include drinking water as the Town of St. Andrews gets its water from Chamcook Lake. Mayor John Craig insists quarry expansion will destroy the water supply and harm the town irrevocably.
Opponents lined up against the quarry expansion also include Veterans Affairs Minister Greg Thompson, who lives on Chamcook Lake, and a group of residents and outdoor enthusiasts who enjoy hiking the hills.
This is another big newsmaker of 2008 that will continue to be a major story in 2009.
UNEXPLAINABLE
The vicious beating of war veteran Herbert Matthews shocked and saddened us. This story captured widespread attention for its senselessness and its impact. A young man was sent to prison for kicking and punching Matthews to the ground, causing injuries that have changed his life.
Matthews, who was waiting at the L’Etete ferry dock as he so often did, was in the wrong place at the wrong time when he encountered a drunk young man who harassed him then beat him down.
THE WAR HITS HOME
Just this month the St. Stephen community felt first-hand what so many other Canadian communities and families have felt as the wars in Afghanistan and in Iraq continue.
Regardless of where you stand on the war, you had to feel for the Deering family when they learned their boy, Pte. Chris Deering, had been involved in a bombing while patrolling outside Kandahar.
It was a tense few days as Deering was being treated in Germany. The other three soldiers in the vehicle he was riding in died in the blast and his survival was uncertain. He has since rebounded and is recovering at home.
TRANSPORTATION
It’s been good news all around in terms of transportation infrastructure in Charlotte County.
Islanders are happy over the prospect of a new ferry coming online for Grand Manan, likely by 2010.
A new section of four-land highway has opened between St. Stephen and Waweig, giving motorists a taste of what’s to come as the highway twinning continues on through places like Pennfield all the way to Saint John.
Highway twinning and the opening of the new international border crossing will continue to be a newsmaker in 2009 as life in the St. Stephen area is about to change forever.
EDITORIAL
Want to know what kind of year 2008 was? If we were smart, we could have seen it coming almost a full year ago, back in January, when CEOs from New Brunswick’s own forestry industry toured the province lobbying for help.
Kelly Shotbolt, from Flakeboard, joined Fraser Papers’ Peter Gordon and James Irving from JDI to meet with community leaders all over the province to explain their plight.
The three CEOs represent three-quarters of what’s left of the province’s forest products industry and they said they needed help. Who know then that “bailout” would become the buzz word of 2008. But they weren’t asking for the type of help that has become so popular in the last quarter of 2008. They weren’t asking for cash to keep them afloat like the auto makers and the housing markets have asked for – and received. They asked for fair energy rates and a steady supply of raw materials. They wanted government and the public to realize they were under pressure.
We certainly know now. And that’s why our choice for news story of the year in 2008 is The Economy.
The collapse in American markets has had a huge impact here in Charlotte County. Manufacturers of wood products, such as Flakeboard and SWP Industries have felt the sting as new home starts have withered and foreclosures have boomed. With no one building new homes, the orders for melamine furniture aren’t piling up. There have been layoffs and shutdowns but so far Flakeboard has managed to keep the St. Stephen mill open.
The economy is also affecting another major industry in Charlotte County – the lobster fishery. Prices have hit a 30-year low and lobster fishermen have to seriously think about whether it’s even worth their while to head out on the water. As 2009 dawns, Fisheries Minister Rick Doucet is on a mission to find new markets, reducing our dependence on American seafood lovers who currently account for 85 per cent of New Brunswick seafood sales.
The Economy could well be our story of the year in 2009 as well as economists predict we have not yet seen the worst.
Here, in no particular order, are some of 2008’s other headline grabbers – some of which will continue to play out across the front pages over the next year and beyond…
LNG FAILURES
While Passamaquoddy Bay has not been abandoned by American liquefied natural gas developers, a handful of proposed projects have had the legs kicked out from under them. The American Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has dismissed Quoddy Bay LNG’s permit applications to import LNG into a proposed terminal on the Maine shore of Passamaquoddy Bay while Downeast LNG remains active but has withdrawn its state permit application. Calais LNG continues to work through the process to win approval to bring the LNG industry to Washington County.
Across the bay in Canada, opposition to the developments remains firm. That opposition extends from seaside communities such as St. Andrews all the way to Sussex Drive in Ottawa. The developments of the past year are encouraging to LNG’s opponents – and there are many – but this story is far from over.
JAMER EXPANSION
Late in 2008 the granite quarrying company Jamer Materials dropped a bomb. It has applied to expand from the Bayside Port area across Highway 127.
The announcement wasn’t a complete surprise. People who live in the area and in the nearby town of St. Andrews knew full well that the company owns the land and that there are indeed rocks in them there hills. Still, when word came down that the application process was officially in motion, quarry opponents were dismayed.
The quarry’s operators insist they can excavate granite from the area without destroying it for other uses. Those uses include drinking water as the Town of St. Andrews gets its water from Chamcook Lake. Mayor John Craig insists quarry expansion will destroy the water supply and harm the town irrevocably.
Opponents lined up against the quarry expansion also include Veterans Affairs Minister Greg Thompson, who lives on Chamcook Lake, and a group of residents and outdoor enthusiasts who enjoy hiking the hills.
This is another big newsmaker of 2008 that will continue to be a major story in 2009.
UNEXPLAINABLE
The vicious beating of war veteran Herbert Matthews shocked and saddened us. This story captured widespread attention for its senselessness and its impact. A young man was sent to prison for kicking and punching Matthews to the ground, causing injuries that have changed his life.
Matthews, who was waiting at the L’Etete ferry dock as he so often did, was in the wrong place at the wrong time when he encountered a drunk young man who harassed him then beat him down.
THE WAR HITS HOME
Just this month the St. Stephen community felt first-hand what so many other Canadian communities and families have felt as the wars in Afghanistan and in Iraq continue.
Regardless of where you stand on the war, you had to feel for the Deering family when they learned their boy, Pte. Chris Deering, had been involved in a bombing while patrolling outside Kandahar.
It was a tense few days as Deering was being treated in Germany. The other three soldiers in the vehicle he was riding in died in the blast and his survival was uncertain. He has since rebounded and is recovering at home.
TRANSPORTATION
It’s been good news all around in terms of transportation infrastructure in Charlotte County.
Islanders are happy over the prospect of a new ferry coming online for Grand Manan, likely by 2010.
A new section of four-land highway has opened between St. Stephen and Waweig, giving motorists a taste of what’s to come as the highway twinning continues on through places like Pennfield all the way to Saint John.
Highway twinning and the opening of the new international border crossing will continue to be a newsmaker in 2009 as life in the St. Stephen area is about to change forever.
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