The record, 4 juin 2007, lundi 4 juin 2007

*»?**- ***»•***?*•»¦*•***?— THEm RECDRD The voice of the Eastern Townships since 1897 Coll todays to subscribe! 75 CENTS + TAXES PM#0040007682 Monday, June 4, 2007 Each Devil’s Beret got a gold plaque Antique Roadshow discoveries By Christopher Doody Sherbrooke Close to 3,000 people came out to the Canadian Antiques Roadshow at Bishop’s University in Lennoxville on Saturday — carrying items big and small, strange and mundane, old and new, brought by young and old alike.University student Matthew Will-son arrived with a collection of Second World War items that belonged to his grandfather, including a small gold plaque.His grandfather had belonged to the first Green Berets, the US Army Special Forces division; they were called the Devil’s Berets.A plaque was given to each member, and is inscribed with the soldier’s name.Willson was told that the object was not exceptionally valuable, but “the appraiser said he had never seen anything like it before,” Willson said.“That was interesting to learn.“I see the show on television every Sunday.It’s good to get a chance to be a part of it.” Joan Thomson had brought in two ornaments made by Doulton, both from Vienna, Austria.The first was appraised for close to $500, and the second at close to $200 because of a broken handle.“I’m just happy to have them,” Thomson said.“I’m just happy to have them on my mantle.These pieces have come all the way from England.” Thomson also said the lines were moving remarkably fast given the number of people who showed up.When participants got to the front of the first line, they were sent to one of a variety of tables, where specialists focussed on porcelain, arms and militia, or the ever-popular miscellaneous.Once an article was examined, the appraiser might call over the show’s producer, and make a pitch to have the item filmed for the television program.Some participants were left in the dark about their possessions until they appeared before the television cameras, to ensure their reactions were genuine.Nancy Kerr brought a sword from the war of 1812, taken from an American soldier by her great-great-greatgrandfather.That was enough for the appraiser, and Nancy was told that she was going to be filmed.Please see Antiques on Page 4 Well Hello There! Bamm DAVID ANDERSON This young hippo swam right up to the glass to say hello to our photographer.The Granby Zoo opened for the summer season on the weekend, and announced that $29 million in federal and provincial government-funded renovations work begun in 2004 is now complete.The zoo attracts in 500,000 visitors annually.I page 2 Monday, June 4, 2007 ! —THE ¦ RECORD Sherbrooke’s new public market Staff * JT Sherbrooke A public market at Sherbrooke’s old train station, located next to the Lac des Nations, will be open to the public on Friday, June 29.The market will consist of up to 30 vendors, comprised of local farmers and companies.There will be six permanent stalls inside the Minto train station, and at least 22 stalls outside during the summer months.The small market, comprised of the indoor stalls, will sell locally grown food products, and include a butcher shop, a chocolate store, a cheese store, a bakery, and an ice cream parlour The six permanent vendors will be The Boutique Gourmet Québec Estrie, The Boucherie du Terroir, Avec Amour, the Fromagerie de la Gare, Savoroso Café Gelato, and William J.Walter Mère et fils.The indoor market will be open Saturday to Wednesday, from 9 , a.m.to 6 p.m., and Thursday and Friday from 9 a.m.to 9 p.m., all year round.The outdoor market will be open Friday and Saturday, from 9 a.m.to 6 p.m., for the summer months.Marché ss&vm prr BËfl Ppjagp?4'- ^ 1 ¦.* SiStW WmsSSmp - X./ Êê- W mîÊË’ ' Ck g|4 V '‘Sa «!¦ WsSF jfÿj Blip WM ( c ’ % \W ^-1 •• ^üyüi k BSjf M - WK-mSjHÉBlârv InfilfeidHHABilHBsl PERRY BEATON Above, the merchants of the new Marche' de la Gare; below, edible flowers that from Compton’s Au Coeur Des Saisons.Draw Results: 2007-06-02 1.0 i O QUÉBEC 04 05 23 32 46 48 |- 08 16 19 28 | 22 40 46 bonus(B) 6/6 WINNERS PRIZES 1 $32,000,000.00 6/6 WINNERS 0 PRIZES $1,000,000.00 5/6+B h $75,533.50 5/6+B 1 $50,000.00 5/6 396 $1,733.20 5/6 29 $500.00 4/6 20,467 $63.50 4/6 1,248 $50.00 3/6 341,623 $10.00 3/6 24,537 $5.00 2/6+B 241,240 $5.00 Total sales $740,359.00 Total sales $40,579,406 EUtra 3236663* $500,000 “decorrtDosable in both directions Next grand prize (approx ) $35,000,000 01 04 12 15 32 36 44 2477966 $500,000 Draw Results: 2007-06-01 WINNERS 0 3 79 5,941 125,196 114,115 3/7 1,049,652 Total sales PRIZES $10,000,000.00 $59,402.40 $2,255.80 $102.00 $10.00 $10.00 Free play $15,337,650 'decomposable in both directions Next grand prize (approx.) : $12,000,000 DRAWS OF 2 VEHICULES EACH PAY IN JUNE ! I In the event ot discrepancy between this list and the official winning list of Loto-Québec, the latter shall prevail i Weather Ben by Daniel Shelton Today: Periods of rain.Wind 30 km/h gusting to 50.High 20.Tuesday: Showers.Low 16.High 21.Wednesday: Showers.Low plus 5.High 12.Thursday: Mix of sun and cloud.Low plus 2.High 18.WOW, COX 6AMB1, mu, THIS ON-LINE (SAME'S REALLY FOR KIRS, RWY.IT'S IN aft.THIS "TWELVE ANP W X SEE?^ CAN l PLAY7 ¦tWopp •f Woo *V,ICA OWN, LETME TRYLNOBOPY'LL _ KNOW.> COME TO EER ALRE4CY/ W0IT/5OME KIP NAMEP'MTHANZaCi' SEAT MY HIGH SC0RB! JŒCORD: Monday, June 4, 2007 page 3 There will be two workers for every five retired people Bishop’s hopes to respond to the crunch By Rita Legault Sherbrooke Bishop’s University, which is facing a growing deficit, wants to address its budget problems by spending more money to increase enrollment by 50 per cent.The university, which already has an accumulated deficit of $5 million, is projecting a loss of around $2 million for the current year, Principal Robert Poupart said.“We are in the process of looking at the deficit and decided to look at it from the perspective of long-term strategic planning,” he said.“And when you are a university you have to look at the issues society is facing.” Poupart said the university’s long term strategic plan addresses the needs of future generations — that is, the prosperity and socioeconomic needs of society.He said the university wants to react not through budget cuts and accounting mechanisms, but rather “we want to address it by being responsive and responsible.“The greatest threat to society is the demographic crunch,” Poupart said.“Currently there are five workers for every retired person.” he said.“By the year 2020, there will be two workers for every five retired people." “And we don’t have much time to ensure those two workers are as productive as the current five.” Canada is facing a labour shortage.Just in this region, by the year 2010, some 19,000 people with jobs from technicians on up will be at retirement age, he said.To face the demographic crunch, immigration is imperative, he said.“We need to bring in more people, not just because we are a humane caring society, but because we need them and we need them badly.” At the same time, society is changing fast, Poupart said.“We are changing from an industrialized society to a knowledge based, information-age society,” he said.That means Canada must go from a society were 15 per cent of people have a university degree to one where 30 per cent of people have degrees, he said.“For that, we have to double the capacity of our universities,” he said, “and for me capacity includes quality.” Poupart said that in the future universities will have to deliver an education that would enable graduates to face a world where they will have three or four different careers over their lives and to become active members of a society where they must keep developing their knowledge.“It will become more than just an industrial economy and a services economy but a creative economy,” he predicted.To face the future, both growth and transformation of universities are needed at the same time.Right now there are fewer people between 17 and 23, Poupart said, adding people assume enrollment will go down.“But university enrollment is not driven by demography,” he said.“It is driven by participation.” “This is not theoretical,” he adds.“We are already seeing it.” “Participation is about the appetite for higher education,” he said, noting that people realize that if they have a degree they are not only richer, they have a richer life.“The appetite for higher education is not just because of the degree but for the knowledge and quality of life it affords,” he said.“People seek knowledge for more than just their jobs.They want it for a better quality of life.” Poupart gives the example of elder hostel classes where seniors take courses, not for career purposes, but for the pure enjoyment of learning about art, history, culture and other areas of personal interest.Knowledge needed Poupart said that in the future, the quest for higher learning will be more than just the search for knowledge tied to a specific job.He said it will be about flexibility in career choices and mobility.A good education allows graduates to move more easily across cultural, linguistic and international borders, he said.“In an industrial society, knowledge is needed to do a job,” he said.“In a knowledge based society, you need knowledge to prosper no matter your job.” “It’s about portable skills and universal knowledge,” he said.“That’s what you need to prosper in today’s society.” Poupart said he would like to see Bishop’s enrollment rise from 2,000 to 3,000 in the next decade.He also wants to double the number of foreign students.“We will do our best to attract and retain foreign students, because we need them,” he said.Currently about 55 per cent of Bishop’s students come from outside the province, and 10 per cent are foreign students.Please see Bishop’s on Page 4 Briefs Galt West construction Sherbrooke’s Galt Street West will be under construction today and Tuesday at the corner of Saint-Esprit.The work will begin at 11 a.m.and finish tomorrow around 5 p.m.Parking will be banned on Galt between Prunier and Leonard, allowing for traffic to go both ways.St-F-X-de-Brompton Transport Quebec is warning that a section of the chemin du 4ieme rang north-west, about 2.3 km from Route 249, in Saint-François-Xavier-de-Brompton, will be shut down starting today.One lane will be closed down over 760 metres.The paving work will go from 6 a.m.to 8 p.m., Monday to Friday.The work will end June 17.Bury roadwork Construction work on Route 214 at the intersection of routes 108 and 255 will shut down one lane of two starting today, Monday.The work will be done from 8 a.m.to 5 p.m.Transport Quebec is suggesting drivers take a detour via Rue Principale and Mclver.The work will finish June 8.Remembering Alzeimer’s The Estrie Alzeimer Society raised some $20,000 during its first annual Marche de la mémoire.Some 200 walked 3.5 km around the Lac des Nations in Sherbrooke’s Parc Jacques-Cartier on May 27.Across the province, 19 walks raised $600,000.Gambling and depression a fatal mix — Coroner Staff A combination of depression and a gambling addiction were the prime motivations behind a Granby murder-suicide in March 2006, a coroner has said.On March 12, 2006 Patrick Adam, 36, went to his mother’s home and picked up his shotgun.He then went to his Langlois St.home, shooting his 35-year-old wife, Lise Legault, before calling 9-1-1.He then turned the shotgun on himself.In his report, coroner Claude Paquin said Adam had been depressed in the months leading up to the murder-suicide.Three weeks earlier he asked his wife to write a suicide note, and she contacted Prévention Suicide.At that time Adam’s shotgun was moved to his mother’s home as a precaution.Following the shooting, Adam's mother, who was at the house, got the couple’s young children out of bed and rushed them out of the house.Paquin found that Adam had suffered from depression for a number of years.More recently he had developed a gambling habit, becoming a regular player of video poker games and going to the Montreal Casino.That led to financial stress, with the couple in danger of losing their home.No giant tax break IBM plant more valuable than company thought Bromont’s IBM plant won’t be getting the break on its municipal tax bill it had been hoping for.Quebec’s administrative tribunal has ruled that the plant is not as seriously over-evaluated as the computer giant claimed.While the municipal evaluation for the plant and properties was set at a bit over $47 million, IBM contended it was worth just under $12 million.Considering that Bromont’s industrial tax rate is $2.97 per $100 of evaluation, the difference would have been major.IBM had been paying about $1.4 million in taxes, or about 10 per cent of Bromont’s revenues.By challenging the evaluation IBM was looking to get its tax bill cut to just over $350,000.In its ruling the Tribunal administratif du Québec lowered the evaluation, but only to $42 million.Bromont will have to issue a refund for the 2005 and 2006 taxation years, but will continue to garner plenty of income from IBM’s evaluation.Ut the readers know about your produets and service.i Jo-Ann ttovey Advertising Consultant Tel: 819.5*9.9525 Fox:819-821.3179 0 jhovey@sherbrookerecord.com RECORD >¦ page 4 Monday, June 4, 2007 RECORD SON' .Antiques: Cont’d from Page 1 Although Kerr had to wait a few hours more, she said the wait was well worth it.Once the television cameras started rolling, she discovered that the sword had belonged to an American naval officer, and that it was very rare.“I was very pleased,” she said.“I was told it was worth about $2,000, which is great, because I had looked online, and it said it was only worth $75.” Others, however, were not as impressed with the appraiser’s information.Edson Warner had brought in a .577 muzzle loader Enfield rifle.Warner explained that it was built in 1853 by Parker Fields & Sons of London — privately manufactured to government standards.The rifle was purchased by W.Cleobury, whose name is engraved on the gun, who would have bought the rifle to join as a volunteer in a rifle unit, with the intention of fighting iii the wars of the 1850s.Although the gun was never fired in those battles, it has been used extensively by Warner in a variety of competitions.Warner bought the gun at auction five years ago, and when he brought it the roadshow yesterday, he was invited to be filmed with it.Warner says he was not pleased with the estimate.“He appraised it at $1,000 to $1,200.1 said, ‘Try five times that amount.’” Warned said his gun is worth more because normally the barrels are rusted, and his isn’t.The Canadian Antiques Roadshow gathered enough footage yesterday for four episodes of the show.Although the PERRY BEATON Host Valerie Pringle chatted with Townshippers all day.airing dates for the episodes are not yet known, they will be posted to the website soon, at www.canadianan-tiquesroadshow.com.PERRY BEATON People came from near and far to find out about their treasures.Bishop’s: Cont’d from Page 1 Poupart said the double cohort of Ontario students - from 2002-’03 when the province cancelled Grade 13 — means increased enrollment at Bishop’s will end this year.“It will take three or four years to get back the numbers we had at the peak of the double cohort, then we have to keep going up until we increase enrollment by 50 per cent 10 years down the line,” Poupart said.Some programs could handle a large increase in students without too many growing pains.But such growth would require more classrooms, improved sports facilities, and more students residences.Even if it is spread over 10 years, Poupart admits the growth will have an impact on the borough of Lennoxville.He said the university is already working with city urban planners.“We want Lennoxville to develop into the quaint university town that it is and could become in the future,” he said, noting in the future Sherbrooke will see itself as a city with two downtowns — the current one and one in Lennoxville.He said that linking more with neighbours to the south will offer opportunities and greater mobility to Bishop’s students.Poupart said Bishop’s strategic growth plan would require new investments of about $100 million.He adds not all of that would come from government sources.“We are not asking (the government) for any favours,” he said.“We aren’t saying they have to change the funding framework or formulas.” Poupart said the university wants to work with its many stake holders — that is government, capital campaign sponsors, students (through tuition increases) and parents (through greater financial support of their children’s education).“We have to ensure that everyone invests to ensure society maintains its long-term prosperity.” U m -u • Announcing the new HOW Wltn delivery www.sherbrookerecord.com '¦THE-' - to your dining room.RECORD a \ 'v^ /X asp*»** Monday, June 4, 2007 page 5 Johnville death Racing cars?34-year-old man died in a car accident on Jordan Hill Road near Route 251 in Johnville early Sat-arday morning.He was declared dead at the scene, according to Montreal police.But police refused to give out the victim’s name, claiming the law prohibits them from doing so.The Montreal squad is dealing with the investigation because a Sûreté du Québec police car may have been involved.The SQfirst arrived on Jordan Hill Hill when a call came in around 11:30 Friday night complaining about drag racing.By the time police arrived, only one car was there.An hour later, another call from a resident came in saying the speedsters were back—and officers returned to the scene.There, said the Montreal police spokeswoman, they found a car that had lost control and crashed.“There was no chase,” said the Montreal police spokeswoman.Speed was a factor in the death, she said, but there was no alcohol involved.She said the destroyed car had been modified to make it faster, and that the investigation is continuing.Toddler dies A toddler died in St-Alphonse-de-Granby after being run over by a vehicle in his own yard on Saturday afternoon.A family member got into a pick-up truck and backed up around 4:40 p.m.At that exact moment, the child came out of the house — and was run over.“There was no malice,” said a Sûreté du Québec spokesman.“It was an accident.Our thoughts are with the family.” Dead is Samuel Larrivée, who was 20 months old.1+1 Travaux publics ef Services gouvernementaux Canada Pubftc Works and Government Services Canada “Request for Information” Project or File No.527683 „ REQUEST FOR INFORMATION AS TO THE AVAILABILITY OF OFFICE SPACE FOR LEASE Public Works and Government Services Canada wishes to obtain information by June 14th, 2007 with respect to space available for lease in existing buildings in the City of Thetford Mines, with lease commencement date on September 1st, 2008.To respond to this Request For Information and to view the full and complete text of the Request, please log on to www.merx.com under Services: Leasing or Rental of Facilities or call Annie Filteau-Gingras at 514-496-3866.RECORD For Some, Not Others , PERRY BEATON Some employees of Orford's Auberge Estrimont are out of jobs because of the recent blaze that took out the restaurant and lobby, but can't get Employment Insurance because the eligibility rules are different depending on where they live.Those living in Sherbrooke, where the job market is hotter, must work more weeks before thay can qualify for El than those who live elsewhere in the Townships.The rules were denounced by hotel union president Geneviève Ruel, Bloc Québécois MP Serge Cardin, and CSN union president Jean Lacharité.U of S lockout delayed Now threatened for Thursday Staff Sherbrooke TJie union representing most professors at the University of Sherbrooke has been given another five days to come to an agreement over contract disputes.The University of Sherbrooke announced on Friday that it will lock out between 400 and 450 of its professors starting this Thursday.The professors who would be locked out belong to the Syndicat des professeures et professeurs de l’Université de Sherbrooke (SPPUS), and have been in negotiations with the university over their new contract for the past 16 months.Unless the union can come to an agreement before midnight on Wednesday, they will be locked out.These professors will no longer be paid, or have access to the campus for teaching or research activities.The union represents about 45 per cent of the university’s teaching staff.A university official has said a summer lockout might prevent a possible strike in the fall, to ensure that the least amount of students will be affected.This lock out would be the university’s first.Pediatrician pedophile in prison Former Drummondville pediatrician Jocelyn Lussier, convicted of sexually assaulting three of his patients two years ago, is now in jail after turning himself over to police Thursday morning.The convicted pedophile, who was sentenced to three years in jail in May 2005, was free pending an appeal.Last Monday, three Quebec Court of Appeal judges confirmed the earlier ruling by Quebec Court Judge Conrad Chapdeleine.In January 2005, Lussier was found guilty of drugging and assaulting three teenage boys under his care over a two-year period between January 2000 and December 2002 at Saint-Croix Hospital in Drummondville.The pediatrician had argued sedatives were needed to calm the hyperactive boys and that his methods of examining his patients were mistaken for assaults.Lussier’s license to practice medicine in Quebec has been suspended by Quebec’s College of Physicians and Surgeons.Bonnardel gets commission gig Shefford MNA François Bonnardel is racking up more responsibilities at the National Assembly, now taking a seat on the cultural commission.The 11-member commission handles cultural issues, communications, cultural communities, immigration and citizens relations.It studies bills, suggesting changes or modifications before they become law, as well as budgetary credits related to cultural matters.Bonnardel was seen as a long shot when he entered the election campaign in Shefford for the Action Démocratique du Québec.He handily defeated incumbent Liberal Bernard Brodeur in the March 26 provincial poll.Shortly afterwards, Bonnardel Was named whip of the official opposition, being responsible for enforcing party discipline and ensuring fellow MNAs are on hand for important votes.He was also named the ADQ critic for housing.Picky crook?Sherbrooke police are looking for a suspect in a break-and-enter at 4460 Ouimet who appears to have found the pickings not so interesting, as nothing was stolen.On May 12 around 11:25 p.m., a white man (pictured) broke into Les installations électriques Sylvain Durand.He circled around, then left without taking anything.He was wearing a sweater with a kangaroo logo.Call Det.Richard Paquin at 819-821-5555.Briefs page 6 Monday, June 4, 2007 .RECORD: Community Forum An odd definition of cheating Where's the report on the Yes side’s dirty tricks?After 17 months and $2 million worth of hearings and deliberations, retired Quebec Justice Bernard Grenier found that Canadian loyalists spent a half million and change “illegally” back in 1995 de fending their country.Hmmm! It hardly calls for repeating here that Mr.Justice Grenier didn’t see it within his mandate to reflect upon untold millions spent by the Yes side (the Parti Québécois) in the ’95 referendum promoting the break-up of the country.Nor did he concern himself with rejected ballots in ridings known to be federalist, for these apparently innocent capers have been more than adequately described by journalists who do this sort of thing for a living.What most critics have paid scant at- VlEWPOINT Don Healy tention to, however, are the votes denied to people entitled to cast their ballots from outside the province.At the time, Quebecers out- - side the province, such as vacationers and students, were supposed to be free to say Yes or No provided they met well-defined conditions.But were they?Maybe there weren’t enough of these to be worth creating a fuss over, but I can name one — my son — who was not granted his vote.He applied according to the rules, only to be informed, three days before ballot day, that he had failed on some detail in his application.He hadn’t committed the crime quoted, in fact, but there just wasn't time to appeal, so, in truth, he was denied his vote.It is hard to believe that an English name and an Ontario student address didn’t contribute to the error.It is worth noting here as well that it wasn’t only the PQthat didn’t want certain Quebecers to be heard, at least in the lead-up to the referendum.The Yes MINISTER \ *_ .— - I cagleceLTtoons.oom « RECORD P.0.Box 1200 Sherbrooke J1H 5L6 or 1195 Galt E.Sherbrooke JIG 1Y7 Fax: 819-569-3945 e-mail: newsroom@sherbrookerecord.com Website: www.sherbrookerecord.com Randy Kinnear Publisher .(819) 569-9511 Eleanor Brown Editor .(819) 569-6345 Richard Lessard Prod.Mcr.(819) 569-9931 Serge Gagnon Chief Pressman .(819) 569-9931 Francine Thibault Prod.Superv.(819) 569-4856 DEPARTMENTS Accounting .(819)569-9511 Advertising .(819) 5699525 Circulation.(819) 5699528 Newsroom .(819)5696345 Knowlton office 88-A Lakeside, Knowlton, Quebec, JOE 1V0 Tel: (450) 242-1188 Fax: (450) 243-5155 MAIL SUBSCRIPTIONS GST PST TOTAL Canada: 1 year 120.00 7.20 9.54 $136.74 6 MONTHS 63.00 3.78 5.01 $71.79 3 MONTHS 32.00 1.92 2.54 $36.46 Out of Quebec residents do not include PST.Rates for other services available on request.The Record is published daily Monday to Friday.Back copies of The Record are available.The Record was founded on February 7,1897, and acquired the Sherbrooke Examiner (est.1879) in 1905 and the Sherbrooke Gazette (est.1837) in 1908.The Record is published by Alta Newspaper Group Limited Partnership.PM#0040007682 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to The Record, 1195 Galt East, Sherbrooke, QC JIG 1Y7 Member ABC, CARD, CNA, QCNA and No camps were in no uncertain terms anything but open to views expressed by anyone other than the PQand Lib-—— eral parties.The Equality Party — founded originally in reaction to the Bourassa Liberal government’s use of the notwithstanding clause (of the Canadian Constitution) to maintain the PQ’s ban on languages other than French on commercial signs, and by Bourassa’s boast about denying Quebecers fundamental freedoms — was forced into silence by the referendum’s No committee.The Liberals — and plenty of media types, too — saw to that, probably because the Equality Party didn’t subscribe to the Liberals’ position that only Quebecers are entitled to a voice in deciding Quebec’s constitutional status.About the only friends the Equality Party had at the time were the Supreme Court of Canada judges.A small audience, but good company! Remember former separatist premier Lucien Bouchard’s assertion that “Canada is not a real country”?Well folks, as I see it, he may have been right after all.In a real country, no sane judge would get away with finding Canadians loyal to their country guilty of any “illegality” in their defence of that country — especially by means that were entirely free of any form of violence.Until Canada is prepared to make it abundantly clear to anyone who threatens Canada’s sovereignty and territorial integrity that the Government of Canada will not be bound or limited in its defence of the country against any enemy, from either within or outside its borders, it will be impossible to prove Lucien Bouchard wrong.Letter to the Editor On hospital parking fees This is a copy of a letter sent to the Brome-Missisquoi Perkins Hospital in Cowansville.Dear Sir or Madam, I would like to congratulate BMP’s management on their unbelievably caring sensitivity.It must be a source of inordinate management pride to have introduced a way of making your visitors feel so welcome and reassured when leaving your establishment.It must be unquestionably comforting for those leaving, after a lengthy stay watching the suffering or demise of a loved one — perhaps a beloved parent or child - to be faced with a parking fee whose size seems relative to one’s length of stay.No doubt this sensitive measure has been welcomed with rapturous enthusiasm by those within the community who are obliged to live at subsistence level.How sensitive, how empathetic, especially when enacted by a profession allegedly devoted to caring for the sick and disconcerted.Another example of management’s delicate concern for the feelings of distressed visitors is that the device employed to extract the penalty demanded at the Main entrance will not accept credit cards of any kind.Not everyone uses ABMs or carries cash, but then people’s feelings and habits do not seem to have been part of the calculation.On Monday this week, the bandit at the Main entrance was not working and a poster asked the already exasperated, and in this case quite elderly, visitors to see the Security Guard but, like the machine, he did not seem to be working either.After several minutes of unpro- ductive waiting, several of us then trailed down to the cafeteria to surrender our hard earned money to the bandit installed there.Then we all walked back to the front of the hospital to locate our cars.People might understand the new measure, and even agree with it, if it were explained to them that the funds thus extorted from anguished relatives will be used to reduce the suffering of those who contract some gratuitous bacterial infection while under your care?One hopes that this latest move is not a foretaste of some new management philosophy.Shall we see patients paying for their meals next, for their tests or the drugs they are prescribed?Perhaps management’s real intent is to reduce the number of visitors — the parking area seems less full than before — or to harass its own employees and make volunteers, who give of their time freely, feel more welcome now that they must pay for the privilege of helping.This new coercive arrangement doubtless improves local traffic flows at shift changes and at the end of visiting hours.A line of cars polluting the atmosphere as they wait their turn to exit will no doubt delight local environmentalists.Before informing me that most other hospitals charge visitors to park when visiting their suffering friends and relatives, let me state that I had always thought the BMP Hospital, along with its eleemosynary foundation which enjoys widespread local support, including my own, showed exceptional consideration for its patients, visitors, volunteers and staff by not acting in that particularly avaricious and petty manner.How sad it is to be mistaken.Ralph C.Maddocks Cowansville .—THE ¦ i RECORD Monday, Jüne 4, 2007 page 7 Chess, pool, poker?They’re not sports : mi: m $$ .^.v r' ¦ 1.1 .Î.K «Pi m p 9* ¦ ¦ In defence of the English language This is how it began.My wife congratulated a friend out walking who replied: “This is my sport.” “Well,” said I later, “she can call it a sport if she wishes, but a sport it is not.” I am generally not contentious, and my wife and I are not much into quarreling.However on this one we bordered on civil war before peace was negotiated.Now I’m a most forgiving man, the sort who never would, ever could take a position and staunchly never budge.Yes, a most forgiving man but.on this issue we are long past the time to draw a line in the sand.Time to say no! Society should never have tolerated the boring bunch of poker players slumped in chairs on the sports channel.The same holds for the pool shooters.And chess.Certainly they have every right to engage in such activities, but not on a sports channel.Will walkers be next?One hopes not, but look how far curling has come.I’m afraid the sports channels will be cluttered and finally monopolized by elderly strollers, out of shape shoppers, needle threaders, watch repairmen, and the hair dressing fraternity all seeking and claiming recognition for athletic prowess.In truth “sport” has a legitimate meaning that most people agree upon.I concede willingly the need for flexibility in language definitions, and the acceptance of gray areas when determining signification of words.But at this moment the greater need is discipline and clarity about the word sport.That is my goal, and I like to think that in time strangers and beautiful women will stop me on the street to shake hands and offer congratulations.“We just want to thank you for your amazing work in defence of the English language.” Naturally 1 will sign autographs and accept invitations to dinner.What then is sport?It involves physical activity and competition.It requires some combination of skill, coordination, strength, and often speed.Mental toughness is also a part of it.We like to see integrity and honesty but this takes us into gray areas.Nevertheless, when it occurs we applaud, or wipe away a tear.Boxers whack and whale on each other round after round and then shake hands and embrace.Hockey players battle, slash, hit, fight, and shake hands once it’s all over.Great moments in sports.“Congrats.See you next season.” “Hope so.And here’s a couple of your teeth.” “Thanks.Tell your wife I don’t need the slippers.Left ’em under your bed, I think.” Sport is more than stories about tough guys and gals in football, hockey and boxing.Linebackers will always be found eating their meals with no hands, but - there are also the graceful articulate gentlemen and women.In the American Open James Blake, after a classic battle with Andre Agassi, said he’d have been cheering Agassi if he were in the stands.Blake and Agassi are both classy competitors, and the Tom list goes on.Jean Beliveau.Cavanagh Patrick Rafter.Steve Nash.Roger Clemons.Maurice Richard.Bobby Orr.In a recent close tennis match the Spaniard Juan Ferrero called his opponent’s shot in and refused the point after the linesman had called it out.Class acts all.Which are sports and which are not?1 believe they can be separated into three main categories.1 ) The genuine article.Football.Baseball.Basketball.Soccer.Tennis.Boxing.Squash.Lacrosse.Fencing.Wrestling (not WWF).Table tennis.Rugby.Cycling.Skiing.Cricket.Swimming.Gymnastics.Racing.Volleyball.2) The gray area.Golf.Requires coordination, strength, mental toughness, and it must be fun walking about in the perfectly groomed countryside.But it’s so slow and can be done while smoking, with only occasional brief moments of focused concentration.Curling.Some of my best friends are curlers.Apart from that, no comment.Bowling.Entails some features from the definition above, but not enough.Horse racing.A sport for horses?I really don’t know, so I’ll just mention a story about the always-packed boxes at the Kentucky Derby.A man, crowded in his own box, asks if he can borrow an empty chair from the elderly woman sitting alone in the box in front.She politely answers yes and adds that the chair had belonged to her late husband.“Gee,” the man said, “why didn’t you invite one of your friends to sit with you?” She answered demurely, “Oh, they’re all at his funeral.” 3) Fughedaboutit.Card games.Jogging.Walking.Climbing.Hunting.Fishing.Pool.Chess.WWF wrestling.Weight lifting.Auto racing.Shooting.Ornamental swimming, and for that matter any activities accompanied with music.My listing is idiosyncratic but fair.I do not criticize groups 2 and 3.I have played cards, bowled, jogged, hunted, walked.Even tried fishing when my kids were young but was squeamish about putting hooks into worms.(Poor worms.) My wife came to the rescue.’ Sports are important and deserve attention.They matter.It’s never “just a game.” We learn from them who we are, what we are, and what we value.I don’t do fiction, but I have a story: A young man calls off his marriage, after a long drawn out and exhausting game of tennis between his fiance and her best friend.On the last point his fiance calls a ball out that was clearly in.No doubt about it.I would call off the relationship, too.Gardens And Parking PERRY BEATON Sherbrooke blue collar workers were out on the weekend weeding green spaces such as Howard’s Park.Meanwhile, in a press release, a group of employees stated they’d attend Monday night’s city council meeting to denounce the purchase of automated parking payment systems, for the downtown saying two full-time jobs will be eliminated with the move.The jobs, according to Syndicat Canadien de la Fonction Publique spokeswoman Lizette Dubé, were given to those who’d suffered accidents and were as yet unable to resume regular duties. mtsstmh' «-TV** v- i .V.\ ¦ • INSIDE Anna May Kinney makes like an insect .on this page page 8 Monday, June 4, 2007 Newsroom@sherbrookerecord.com Tel: 819-569-6345; Fax: 819-569-3945 Buzzing around like bees ' * -+-J& :2L"32r%.pS v4- iwi fflj « *ai4i ANNA MAY KINNEY This is our columnist’s "best apple tree.’a AU mam Han d-to-blossom pollination If you had driven down our old dirt road this weekend, you might have caught a glimpse of two adults carrying extra long paintbrushes and small buckets of blossoms while climbing a ladder to reach one apple tree after another.After three years of having extremely poor apple pollination, I decided to see what we could do to improve our odds.It seems that hand pollination is not impossible nor rare these days.Quite a few apple and other fruit producers around the world have already resorted to using this method to increase their yields, and there is a lot of talk on message boards that with the decrease in the bee population, orchards might have to hire people to help with the hand-to-blossom pollination.There are quite a few different techniques to try, from importing bees, which is especially costly as the price of colonies has gone up so dramatically, to spraying fruit trees with a solution of sugar water to attract those bees who are around.In other orchards they actually spray pollen onto open blossoms.But according to the experts, hand pollination is a much more effective way of doing things.You can’t do this kind of a job if you are afraid of bees, cause it’s not that there are no bees at all.Way up on the ladder you’ll find an assortment of wild bees from the size of a bumble to a variety half the size of the domestic honeybees.Sorry, I do not know their names.By the amount of air traffic activity you’d think these wild bees were enough to do the job, and that is exactly what we thought last year.Short window of opportunity Apple trees are not self-pollinating, which means that they need another apple tree in the vicinity that can offer pollen for its female blooms.That is why you often see different varieties of apples grafted onto the same tree.This does make the job a bit easier for bees, but I wonder if it would be more confusing if we all had to resort to hand pollination.The way things are here, I know that each individual tree is different and all the blossoms on each are the same, so it’s relatively easy to select a bunch of blossoms and take them over to another tree to use for pollination.When telling this technique to a friend, they envisioned my going with a paint brush, getting pollen on the tip and running to the next apple tree to daub those waiting blossoms.There is a much better way to do this, without having to climb up and down every five minutes.I take my two best apple trees, which have way too many blooms, and remove some of the extras.Placing the first set of blossoms in a small pail, it’s set in the shade, then do the same with the second tree.You must remove the blossoms before you pollinate them or their pollen would wind up being polluted by the tree you want to pollinate them with.To the apple tree this process is not about supplying us humans with healthy fruit, it’s about reproduction and creating as many baby apple trees 3.s possible, so most trees put out more blossoms than needed in order to guarantee reproduction.The process of removing as many extra blossoms as one can serves two purposes.If all the blossoms are pollinated it drains the strength of the tree and many of the apples will wind up being extremely tiny; some will abort when the mother tree rejects them and you will find itsy-bitsy fruit on the ground at the base of the tree.By taking off a few blossoms in as many clusters as you can, you will have a healthier tree in the long run producing larger, tastier apples.If you are not taking the extra flowers for pollination, then about six weeks after the buds have bloomed you can gently remove some or all of the extra apples in each cluster, leaving only the lasgest, or choose a smaller one that looks more perfect.Once thinned the apples should be about 8 to 10 inches apart on the branches.(Other fruits such as apricots, plums, and pear also require hand thinning at times, but these fruits can be a bit closer at 6 to 8 inches apart.) Things to remember Remember that a bee is an extremely tiny creature and his feet are even tinier.Tire amount of pollen he gets on his feet could pollinate many blossoms, so the amount you need on the end of your paintbrush is extremely small and a fe\y of the blossoms you removed will pollinate many of another tree’s flowers.Now that we are fully aware of the decline of both wild and domestic pollina-tor populations, pollination management is becoming an increasingly important part of horticulture.To increase profits many crops that have traditionally depended entirely on chance pollination by wild insects now need pollination management — we’re talking about crops such as almonds, pears, plum and cherry varieties, blueberries, cranberries, cucumbers, cantaloupe, watermelon, alfalfa seeds, onion seeds.This will not only affect the commercial farmer or our fruit trees; we may be out there hand pollinating our garden vegetables as well in the near future.If you see a lot of bees and want to leave it up to Mother Nature, do make note this fall of how many apples you have from each tree.This will give you an idea if it’s the lack of bees that is causing one tree not to be pollinated or maybe her location.That one tree might be the one to focus on next spring, but we must remember the blossoms are not open for a long time, rainy or windy days can reduce chances of natural pollination and the window of opportunity is small.A person has to be like a bee and buzz to it to get the job done on time.Your emergency medical information on call 24/7 BOqflfgi WEEK, WERE, SOI Mû TO TAKE.YOU 6ACK6TAGÊ AT ARLÛ AfJD UAKl/i).' The Born Loser -s, YOU WERE 5L6EP-/b WALKING AGAIN! AREN'T YOU GOING TO TRY TO STOP 7 For Better or For Worse i iHouôht you werenv ÔONNA SO FOR A MENT APARTMENT • ne with dtettt'anS' snoppws ^ gui« g» wnowa IS THIS THE PRESS?) it's SO WE CAN ALL wter.I WAS IN A RUSH.IT WAS AVAILABLE, RENTS OR, ITS "0 WORK AND i FURNISHED yeAH.RksHT WEARING THE low andoen is ôeeeN.| ç^Me peges, and mo .A VERITABLE PASTEL RAINBOW?ONE WILL ICNOW WE "T WERE BRIDESMAIDS.Grizwells l/PoK oHE/ am dLAP TUAT -fliMMEfe.\5 F\HAU-Y UFR.T.WN6 A^UTElV H