Skip to content

We live in an era fueled by “fake news,” misinformation, bitter opinion, and bullying on social media

No one can discount the need for a new fire hall.
9450596_web1_171123-CVA-Bruce-Paterson_1

To the Editor,

Further to my last letter, I was both amazed and pleased by the amount of positive response and it prompted me to suggest a few points of view I may have neglected to mention last time. I want to be clear that this not an exercise in egoism or the like –I certainly have no personal agenda. But we live in an era fueled by “fake news,” misinformation, bitter opinion, and bullying on social media, which allows anyone to say anything about anything they like. Not to mention the prevailing world role models and politicians who promote self-aggrandizement and the right to say and do, as they like. This is not an “age of reason”, as Jean Paul Sartre liked to call his, –it is anything but. It is an era where we have turned our backs on scientific evidence and hard fact (global warming?) and allowed a select few to promote quick personal gain at any cost.

No one can discount the need for a new fire hall. No one can discount the need for a proper facility: properly equipped, properly manned and with proper training. It’s not something you can nickel and dime –patch together -it requires proper information and proper planning. Despite what some groups maintain around town, there has been a lot of study done over the past ten years or so and I am satisfied and impressed by their findings.

No one, and I mean no one, has all the answers. But I would rather put my trust in a group that has done their homework and taken their time to pursue the best options for our town rather than those who would seek ways to marginalize and find fault with their findings. Proper fire protection and safety ranks right up there with policing and ambulance services.

Existence is a privilege we should be using to help each other.

Yours respectfully,

Bruce Paterson