Editorial

Last week a media outlet in India unveiled its first full-time artificial intelligence (AI) news anchor. German public broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW) reported that the bot, named Sana, appears as human as the news anchors to which we are accustomed, and presents news updates on the India Today Group's Aaj Tak news channel several times each day. "She is bright, gorgeous,...

It is not uncommon for me to hear from frustrated residents, often unfamiliar with council procedure, who are angered that council would consider a proposal for which the resident, or a group of residents, is wildly opposed. 'How dare council consider this proposal that I/we don't like?' I have heard folks say. 'Why in the world would council entertain such...

Recent news articles about some Florida parents who were offended by Michelangelo's famous statue of David, so offended that the Tallahassee Classical School fired their principal, has gotten me thinking about, and talking to folks about why some are so easily offended these days. The Florida story seemed crazy to me. A sixth grade art-history class was shown a photo...

The season of spring officially arrived two weeks ago, but even just a week ago we were hit with a snowstorm that made the roads slick, and reminded us that winter wasn't done with us yet. This week however we have seen lots of bright sunshine along with warmer air, and I think we might finally be free of...

Sesquicentennial, not exactly a word we use regularly, but it is a word that Meafordites will be hearing much in the months to come, as the former Town of Meaford approaches its 150th birthday. During Monday's council meeting, Councillor Harley Greenfield introduced a motion that will jump-start the organization of celebrations for the big anniversary, and that motion as you...

Reduce, reuse, recycle. We have heard it for decades now, and for most of us, it has become our standard approach to managing waste, but in the years to come, the focus will change. Our three Rs will expand to Prevent, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Recover, and Dispose, as municipalities everywhere continue to grapple with waste management. The 'prevent' aspect of the...

Many in this community were saddened upon hearing the news back in November that the Scarecrow Invasion & Family Festival was put on pause for this year due to a lack of members on the event's executive board. On Monday afternoon we learned that the 2023 edition of the event has been saved, and we will indeed have an...

We are just 11 days from the end of winter and the beginning of spring. Not that we'll necessarily notice a difference, as this strange winter has felt much like a harsh spring for much of the time, but spring is indeed nearly here. As spring arrived a year ago I was thankful that nearly all of the restrictions we...

Monday's council meeting was expected to be heavily attended, and it was. In anticipation of much larger than normal attendance, municipal staff moved the meeting from the cramped council chamber on the 7th Line to the spacious opera house at Meaford Hall, which allowed some 200 residents to attend the meeting in which the Deputy Mayor brought forward a...

The coming wave of development in this municipality has been a hot topic over the past couple of years. In the past we have been teased with the potential for a development boom, but it never seemed to actually happen, but brace yourselves, residents of the Municipality of Meaford, as new development is indeed in our future, and it...