John Barlow, Editor

It appears some people are just not getting the joke.

As a fundraiser for the annual Priddis-Millarville Fair a local farmer donated a tractor to be raffled off.

There are literally dozens and dozens of raffles each year for dozens and dozens of service clubs, youth groups, charities and so on. Often mom, dad, grandparents and co-workers are the ones who end up buying those raffle tickets regardless of the prize.

Now, the demand for a 1950 Massey Harris tractor would be limited. I would never have bought a ticket, what in the world would I do with an antique tractor? It probably does not even cut grass. How many people really want a 60-year-old tractor parked in their yard?

Then Capt. Riel Erickson of the Canadian Air Force steps up with a novel idea.

The Millarville native announced she and her fellow F-18 Hornet pilots stationed in Cold Lake would be buying tickets in hopes of winning the tractor. They don’t want the tractor as a base mascot, but rather for target practice on the bombing range.

It was a brilliant idea. Almost immediately the “Save Milly” campaign was initiated. Residents started buying up raffle tickets at a record pace in order to keep ole Milly from being cannon fodder.

I am going to buy a ticket just be a part of the fun.

Erickson’s father Lloyd said the fair has a special place in his daughter’s heart and she is just doing her part her campaign to blow up Milly real good. Not only has Erickson’s well calculated stunt sparked ticket sales, the Save Milly campaign has garnered media attention from across Alberta.

All this fuss over Milly has shone a spotlight on the Priddis-Millarville Fair. The spike in raffle ticket sales help the fair financially but more importantly people may flock to this year’s event. However, the main attraction will not be the best saskatoon pie, the cutest guinea pig or the loudest crowing rooster — it will be the draw for Milly the Tractor.

The reaction to the address on the winning ticket will be priceless.

Regardless of who wins Milly, this “controversy” has been a boon to the fair. These outcries from people saying a heritage tractor deserves a better fate? Come on, have a sense of humour.

This entire episode has been a skillful tactic orchestrated by a talented Canadian pilot. Well done.

By leaving the fate of the new Sheep River Library in the hands of a plebiscite, Black Diamond town council is showing a lack of leadership.

The Town of Turner Valley has asked its counterparts in Black Diamond to contribute $250,000 to the construction of the new library in Turner Valley.

However, rather than making a decision Black Diamond council announced on Monday it was going to have a plebiscite as part of the municipal election in October on whether it will fund the project.

The plebiscite will include two questions: The first will ask residents if Black Diamond should contribute $250,000 to the building of a new library. The second will ask if the Town should contribute annual operating funds to the new library.

If the answer to question one is no, question two is probably moot.

Regardless, to have this issue decided through a plebiscite is the wrong answer.

First, council was elected to make these kinds of decisions.

A plebiscite is certainly part of the democratic process, but councillors are elected to make difficult decisions not ask voters to make those choices for them.

A $250,000 expenditure is significant for a town the size of Black Diamond, but the sum certainly does not warrant a plebiscite.

Earlier this year the Oilfields Sports Association announced plans to build two new baseball diamonds and a multi-purpose field at a cost of more than $350,000. When they approach the Town for funding assistance, will council go to a plebiscite to make a decision?

For whatever reason council has shown it is not willing to tackle the Sheep River library issue.

Open houses have been held on the library, but council has stated not enough people attended to get a fair gauge of the community’s view.

If no one attended, that should be a sign to council in of itself.

Either the public is apathetic and the library is not a major issue, or they expect council to make this decision on its own.

By taking this to a plebiscite Black Diamond council is setting this up to fail.

Will residents support paying for a facility being built in another municipality? Not likely. Especially for a facility that will mean an increase in their taxes.

Either way, council can and should make this decision even if it means going against the grain.

If the plebiscite comes back as a no to support the library is that really the right decision?

The existing Sheep River Library in Black Diamond is overcrowded and a new one is desperately needed. Location shouldn’t dictate support.

Remember, however, Black Diamond residents voted against amalgamation with Turner Valley in the last plebiscite three years ago whereas Turner Valley residents supported amalgamation.

Regardless, sharing has never been a strong suit among these neighbours and the plebiscite may become more about where the facility is being built rather than cost.

If the plebiscite results indeed show Black Diamond residents do not want to support the new Sheep River Library what will this mean for the project?

Turner Valley has stated it will build the $2.9 million facility alone if it has to, but will a new library in Turner Valley welcome Black Diamond residents?

If the Town of Black Diamond did not pay its share to build the library, do Black Diamond residents deserve access to the library?

Will the Sheep River Library charge Black Diamond residents a higher membership fee?

One cannot deny anyone access to a public library, but “The Little Red Hen” certainly comes to mind.

Perhaps Black Diamond will decide to start its own library, but the cost of that would be substantially more than had it partnered with Turner Valley.

Council needs to discuss the potential ramifications of having this be decided in this manner.

In addition, the plebiscite will tie the hands of the council to be elected in October.

It will be bound by a decision they had no control over and it will be left to clean up what could be a costly mess — financially and culturally.

The construction of a new library should be cause for community celebration and perhaps someday it will be. One can only hope.

For now, unfortunately, the Sheep River Library project continues to be dogged by endless controversy.

Black Diamond’s cop-out on funding the library is the latest misstep.

Everyone involved can share the blame for the fiasco that has become the library’s public relations campaign.

If this plebiscite proceeds in October that may be the only thing these two municipalities will share when it comes to the Sheep River Library.

Dear Editor,

Re: Letter to the Editor “Bombing tractor would send wrong message to youth”.

I can attest to the fact that Capt. Riel Erickson was not a perfect child and that at a young age she may have smashed a few toys to see the pieces fly.

I have also attended Maple Flag in Cold Lake (international air force exercise) and can attest to the fact that she is in the business of blowing things up.

When Riel called me from Cold Lake and said she was planning to attend the Priddis-Millarville Fair (Aug. 21) the conversation went something like this:

Me: I am glad you can get down here, they are raffling Millie, I will get you some tickets to sell.

Riel: Millie – what’s a Millie?

Me: A rusty old bucket of bolts tractor. Try and promote ticket sales. See if you can get your fellow pilots to buy them. It’s for your community after all.

The bomb Millie idea was born.

Riel was supplied all the necessary information (right?).

I am sure a few more people are aware of the raffle now.

I do know Riel has pride in her community and a big soft spot for the fair.

A soft spot that momentarily overshadowed her dislike for media attention.

Not the reporter’s fault, I am sure the nine months in front of the camera during the filming of a TV program about her training to become a fighter pilot gets the blame.

To the people who bought tickets to save Millie, thank you.

To the people that bought tickets in Riel’s name, perhaps I should ask you to quit doing that.

On second thought, maybe if she wins we can get her assigned to latrine duty at the fair (even her classmate that donated the tractor may buy her a ticket to see that).

For or against the bomb, get your tickets.

It’s for a good cause. Millie can be viewed at the Millarville Racetrack.

Tickets are sold at the Millarville Farmer’s Market.  Riel’s mom often sells tickets at the market.

She is the one holding the “Save Millie” picket sign.

Even Riel will offer you a ticket to save Millie. She hates cleaning bathrooms.

If Riel sees the letters to the editor, I am sure she will say, “thanks dad”.

Lloyd Erickson

Millarville

Dear Editor,

The recent discussions on water usage, water management or water licenses are needed and relevant. Discussions on policy and “what should be” are great, but what about examples?

I put one 55 gallon barrel under one of the four downspouts that my house has two weeks ago. After a recent small rainfall, that barrel was almost full. I hope to have barrels under the remaining three downspouts by the end of the weekend. During a moderate rain event this seems to get me 220 gallons or 850 litres of water.

If I was able to plumb my household with this water to reuse, I would get over 100 toilet flushes. Wow!

If the Canadian Plumbing Code would allow for this, would getting Okotoks another water license be needed?

Now that is a good sustainable development discussion.

Eric Knudtson

Okotoks

Dear Editor,

The Air Force pilot’s plan to “honour” a vintage tractor by bombing it is a crass, idiotic publicity stunt.

This rare tractor is part of Canada’s heritage and should be preserved. All the military promoting this sham should resign and join the like-minded groupies of Wrestlemania, Ben Mulroney and Jerry Springer.

William LeBaron

MD of Foothills

John Barlow, Editor

In the face of tragedy once again the Okotoks community shows why it is so special.

When I came into the office on Sunday morning and checked my email I was flabbergasted to see there was a fatal shooting in our community.

I was even further stunned to learn the victim of the shooting was Corey Lewis, the husband of Okotoks councillor Naydene Lewis.

I was bracing myself for a flood of emails and phone calls from residents demanding the family be held responsible for putting the

neighbourhood in danger.

Or even some fiery comments from people wanting the RCMP officer who pulled the trigger to be arrested and charged.

There were no such calls, there were no such emails.

I did receive several emails, but each and every one of them were voicing their concern for the family.

Was everyone alright? Did they need anything? How could this happen?

Instead of demanding those involved be escorted out of town, residents showed their compassion and their genuine concern for Naydene and her children.

The response even caught Naydene off guard.

She admitted on Monday she contemplated leaving the community, but the support she has received from her friends and neighbours has convinced her she is welcome in Okotoks.

“We have had incredible support from our neighbours,” she said on Monday. “I have no desire to leave a community that has been so supportive of me and my family.”

What occurred on the weekend was certainly a tragedy and it appeared the outcome was inevitable regardless of the actions of the RCMP.

Naydene said Corey was a good husband, but it appears something horrible was weighing on his mind and he could no longer take the strain.

Unfortunately, his suffering ended in tragedy, but thankfully the outcome was not any worse.

Naydene said she does not want any donations of flowers, but people are invited to make a donation to an education fund for her children. There is a drop box at the Western Wheel office.

Paul Rockley, Publisher

Not very often we have a situation like the shooting in Okotoks on the weekend.

I am sure most of us were stunned/shocked when the news began to filter through the normally quiet town on Sunday morning.

It is so sad that family violence has become such a common occurrence in this era we live in. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Lewis family at this time as they try to cope with the reality of what has happened. It will never be the same again.

We also express our concern to the officer who, in self defense, pulled the trigger that night. His life will also be in a tough state at this time.

Please remember when events like this happen in our community The Western Wheel is always first to have a complete story on our website at westernwheel.com

Check us out at www.westernwheel.com

• • • • •

I could have cried at the final results of the Rangeland Derby.

All week I watched and cheered for Jason Glass to finally win the $100,000. He ran all week penalty free and was second in the aggregate. He made the final four on Saturday and then the racing gods abandoned him and he drew the number four barrel for the finals. It’s just not fair. Out of the five times he has made the final four, four of those times he has drawn the four barrel for the final dash for cash. Kelly Sutherland, of course, drew the one barrel and won again for the 11th time!

Really ticks me off. No one is more deserving than Jason. Oh well there is always next year……

• • • • •

I was up north on Monday and the amount of water laying in the ditches between Lacombe and Ponoka is incredible. I thought we had a lot of rain until I saw that. Even though we do have a beautiful green countryside due to the moisture the mosquitoes may carry me away one of these days. I am afraid I am going to poison myself with the amount of spray I need to use just to cut the lawn. If I don’t use it I will need a pint or two of blood to top up my system from the extraction that the mosquitoes have done.

• • • • •

A big treat this weekend will be Marv’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Classic at in Black Diamond on Sunday.

• • • • •

Also just a reminder the Kinsmen Farmers Market every Friday from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. just south of town at Country Living.

It was a troubling story for the Okotoks community to wake up on Sunday morning to hear a man had been shot by RCMP after an armed stand off.

The details that have since emerged are even more shocking.

Police first arrived at a home on Alcock Street at about 7:30 p.m. on Saturday responding to a report of a domestic disturbance and were confronted by a man holding a shotgun, a stand off ensued.

At 2 a.m. on Sunday Corey Lewis, husband of town councillor Naydene Lewis, emerged from his home carrying what police believed to be a weapon and was shot six times by a member of the RCMP Emergency Response Team.

On Monday, investigators revealed when Corey Lewis stepped out of the house he was carrying an umbrella and proceeded to kneel down, raised it to his cheek and point it at police. They also found notes believed to have been written by Corey Lewis leading them to consider the possibility of suicide.

A family is in mourning and a community is left stunned and bewildered.

The Okotoks RCMP officers who first responded to the scene deserve praise for how they reacted to being confronted with a man carrying a shotgun who refused to put the weapon down.

Police reacted appropriately making sure the family was safely out of the house and ensuring the safety of neighbours. They backed away and spent upwards of six hours trying to negotiate a peaceful outcome.

Based on what is known at this time, when Lewis stepped into the dark yard the actions of police officers appears to be warranted.

They had few options. When confronted by someone holding a long object in a firing position in the dark of night — the same person who had earlier been brandishing a shotgun — police had a difficult choice and they didn’t have the luxury of time.

The only question is whether six shots were warranted.

It does seem excessive, but the devil is in the details and the actions of the officer who pulled the trigger must be justified.

The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team is now looking into the shooting and an RCMP constable is being investigated. He is a member of the emergency response team and is not a member of the Okotoks detachment

There needs to be a clear, open and transparent investigation into the incident to ensure the Lewis family and the Okotoks community know the right decision was made.

Dean Leask, Columnist

I have to admit growing up and living in southern Alberta we may have a limited exposure and understanding to the goings on in the large metropolitan areas in this country. The case in point is the recent media frenzy over these honour killings that seem to be becoming more and more prevalent.

You see since 2002 it is estimated that 12 to 15 times daughters have been killed for “dishonouring” their respective families. Mostly this comes down to daughters not following the traditional ethnic way of life and becoming more Canadian or western as it is often referred to. Of course to be Canadian and perfectly politically correct it has been kept somewhat quiet as these murders all have taken place within certain communities. The media does not want to be culturally insensitive, I for one don’t like to be politically correct, and here is where I am at a real fork in the road when it comes to the issues.

From the beginning we all know Canada was built on immigration, and we are a product of European colonization. That itself was a major undertaking and should never be dismissed, but our forefathers sat down and worked it out. I also know this great country we live in was based on Christianity. Somewhere along the way, we elected this guy named Trudeau and he figured we needed to be more multi-cultural. That sounds very nice and I don’t think we have problems with that, where I have problems is where we start to change the fundamental principles, laws and norms this country was built on.

Now we have to be always on the defense of our own traditions and laws, we remember the RCMP turban question, and the kirpan knife issue (that still surfaces from time to time). As a nation we have been wrestling with the challenges that come from the idea we allow Shariah law in this country. Honour killings are along the same vein as these other issues, only when it involves the murders of a dozen or more young women in the last eight years we have to stand up and say no way.

Sorry, I may seem a little culturally insensitive, however, I like what we have here in Canada, I don’t really care what goes on abroad — we have our own laws in place. As emigrants and tourists we don’t have the right to travel the world and make our own rules and laws within these other countries, so why do we permit it here? I always find it interesting we attract all these different cultures and ethnicities to Canada because, simply put, we are a world class country, actually the cream of the crop if you ask me, and at the same time they try to drag their laws and customs into our society.

We may not be perfect, but we all know there are obvious problems in many parts of the world that Canada does not have.

Rona Ambrose, the Minister for the Status of Women, is on the right track when she identifies and addresses this problem. However, I will caution her it is the wrong idea to make a special mention of honour killings in the criminal code.

Murder is murder let’s not sugar coat it or give the Supreme Court the chance to rewrite laws on this one. I want this to be highly publicized when it happens, I want a first degree murder charge, and finally, I want these criminals prosecuted to the full extent of the criminal code.

Like I said earlier this is a free country, and if you don’t like our laws and freedoms you are free to leave.

Dear Editor,

I agree with the responsible management of the growth of our town. However, I have to disagree with how “responsible management” is interpreted by Mr. Sawatzky.

To solve a water licensing problem by a faint hope based on the fact that we were able to put a man on the moon, just may not be enough to convince me that we will find the right solution. If we hadn’t had a water licence donated to us just recently, our hopes would have been still with NASA. And we haven’t even reached the original sustainability target yet.

There will certainly be pressure from the growth within the MD and I believe that responsible management lays right there. We don’t have to grow to accommodate their growth, or to limit their growth and try to suck in the potential taxpayers who could build their acreages or become part of new subdivisions. They will surround us one way or another. Therefore, we should have responsible management in place to be part of the planning process and retain the ability to negotiate agreements benefiting both parties by being neighbours. I believe the recent agreement with the MD and the Town of Okotoks concerning the Sandstone Springs is a good example of this. The Town will treat Sandstone’s water and collect a fee for the service. What else could become a revenue generator for us by retaining control over our growth and the growth around us?

Before we go any further, we have to learn how to cope with the 30,000 cap first. Once we reach it, we should take a deep breath and evaluate where we are and if we can responsibly manage our beautiful town for a while. We could spend our time enjoying, cherishing and manicuring what we will have created (the anxious developers may not like it, but the people might) and start developing a very strong plan for the future of our community. A plan, where, as an example, we will not have to worry about our water delivery. That plan, as far as I know, does not exist. Do we want to stay in control of our water supply or do we really want to surrender it to Calgary and become dependent on their good will? Do we want to become a unique, desirable community or just follow the crowd?

Karel Hofman

Okotoks