The Grand Slam Of Curling stops in Yorkton this week and this may be the only time our community gets to see elite curlers of this ilk in person. Jennifer Jones, Rachel Homan, and Brad Jacobs are some of the teams on display and tickets are a mere $15 a draw and $30 for the finals on Sunday. This is not an expensive night out. To see an NHL game in Winnipeg, you will be hit with a, minimum, charge of $100 and with all due respect to the Jets, you are not watching the best of the best. What we will be witnessing this week is akin to an NHL All-Star Game, only all week and in curling. I, strongly, suggest if you are, even, a casual curling fan to try and make it to, at least, one draw. A large number of volunteers have worked tirelessly to make it happen and how we respond with bums in the seats will be a reflection for future marquee events.
I spent $15 on a ticket to see the Yorkton Regional High School drama students perform the popular musical ‘Hairspray’ on Saturday night. I would have spent double that. I was blown away at the talent on stage and when you think about it, it’s hard to believe kids that live in our city are capable of such a production. It was on par with some of the shows I’ve seen in Regina with professionals. Mark Zawerucha deserves big time props, along with the others involved in making this a success. The kids did five shows from Thursday night to Sunday afternoon, so it’s a gruelling run to be sure.
On Friday, police arrested a fifteen year old boy after a reported gun incident at a Regina high school. On Sunday, it was revealed to be nothing more than a prank as the weapon in question was a bb air gun. My take on this is that the type of gun doesn’t matter. It could have been a water pistol for all I care. In this day and age, those types of threats need to be treated very seriously and this immature teenager should be dealt with harshly to teach him, and anyone else who may have bright ideas, a lesson.
Some faith in humanity was restored this week when I saw the outpouring of support for the tenants who lost everything in the fire that destroyed the old Yorkton hospital. It sounds like everyone has since found new living arrangements and the donations of clothing, personal items, and furniture have been overwhelming. If you are one of the folks who stepped up, give yourself a pat on the back.
In the wake of this fire, is there anyone out there who still wants a volunteer fire department? Not me. When something of that magnitude breaks, I want the pros.
I was appalled at the news mid week where it was revealed an army veteran who lost both of his legs while serving for our country was being denied financial benefits. Further investigation indicates the military Major wasn’t telling the full story. On a social media site, another retired veteran stated the Major was, likely, pulling in a salary of, at least, $84-thousand a year while the money he was claiming to be out was a different stipend where government gives lump sum payments as opposed to periodic ones. This is a tough call. I feel all military personnel should be looked after comfortably. Some of us will say $84-thousand a year is comfortable, but would you be willing to lose both your legs for it?
Corrections Canada is on the hot seat following a Globe And Mail report that focused on the death of Edward Snowshoe, who committed suicide while in solitary confinement. Snowshoe, who went to jail for armed robbery and then got sent to solitary for attacking a guard, was deemed to be mentally ill and, therefore, putting him in solitary amounts to torture. There have been other documented cases of prisoners ending their life while in solitary confinement and, I believe, we are on our way to a prison system where solitary confinement will become a thing of the past. In fact, I have stated before and will again that we may be closer than we think to seeing actual jails becoming extinct and those that commit crime will be admitted to a hospital so they can be rehabilitated. After all, people aren’t bad. They just commit bad acts because of circumstances that are out of their control. Somewhere, there has to be a lawyer laying the groundwork to get Paul Bernardo out of jail. Surely, he’s sick and not at all evil. If the focus is on rehab rather than punishment, how are we to deal with those that commit vigilante crimes? It’s a slippery slope we are headed down. I’ve always thought solitary confinement is such a terrible place to be that the mere threat of going there would prevent you from attacking a guard. There is no denying some have mental illness. There is also no denying some will use it as a smokescreen. Weeding through what’s legit and what’s not isn’t a task I’d want to be responsible for.
Nice person mentions this week to: Shawn Markwart, Ashley Wilson, Jessica Hull, Doug Arnett, and Darcy McLean.
