Editor,
In a recent letter I suggested that the Independent is a happy-clappy publication and an apologist for the behaviour of Meaford Council and Municipal staff. Recent editions of the newspaper indicate that the suggestion is not warranted.
There was no reluctance in the August 29 edition to publishing letters critical of the Municipality’s road conditions. One writer identified faulty grading of rural roads; a second writer cited potholes and substandard paving of sewer covers on Meaford’s more heavily travelled urban streets. A third writer identified the many flaws associated with the pumped storage proposal, including Council’s conditional support thereof.
Included also was an editorial on the need for a public vote on the pumped storage proposal; observations on the taciturn behaviour of councillors in response to other concerns raised by taxpayers at Council meetings; and an editorial rant (The 3Rs…Rants, Raves & Rumours, August 29, 2024 print edition) on the need for Council to cast a more critical eye when it comes to new development proposals.
The subsequent edition of the Independent on September 5 continued this trend. The editorial noted the arrival of an opioid crisis in Grey-Bruce with county increases in opioid poisonings, drug deaths and municipal costs. The Letters to the Editor contained a critique of the response by the Ford government to the growth of addictions, including closing safe addiction sites, promotion of online gambling and making alcohol more readily available in convenience stores and gas bars. A second letter identified policies being implemented by Meaford’s new CAO to limit public input at Council and Committee meetings. In retrospect, the appointment of a new CAO provided an opportunity for Mayor Ross Kentner to bloviate as follows: “Maintaining public trust and upholding our commitment to transparency is paramount to Council,” (Meaford Independent, July 4/24, pg. 11). How does limiting public input uphold transparency?
Obviously, the integrity of the Meaford Independent has been affirmed in publishing some non-happy-clappy information.
Tell it like it is.
Jim Molineux, Meaford
