Loewen Blvd Improvements Delayed

A major upgrade of Loewen Boulevard, east of Steinbach, will not start until next year. Roger Bouvier, Chief Administrative Officer for the RM of La Broquerie, says it's a joint project with the RM of Ste. Anne and the Manitoba Government. He says they had hoped to start this fall but it's getting too late in the year. The plan is now to start after spring thaw.

Bouvier explains they will rebuild the three miles of road from Hirschfeld Road to Kokomo Road. He notes previous upgrades have not held up.

"There's been some work done on the road but not to any standard where we could look at long term solutions. So what we are doing now is to have it ready for future development such as sealcoat or asphalt. It'll be to our standards so it will be ready for a long term finish on this road."

Bouvier says the upgrades will cost about a quarter of a million dollars per mile. Phase one next year involves the mile from Kokomo Road to Borland Road. The other two miles will be done in future years.

"By finishing this road properly, I would think it would take a lot of traffic off of Highway #52 because a lot of people would use this road if it was in better condition. It's also very costly for us to maintain. We have to grade it a minimum of once a week, in the summer - twice a week, so it's very time-consuming, very costly for us to maintain it. A long term solution is what we need on this road."

MCC Offers Another Way To Mark Remembrance Day

Peace Buttons offered by MCC

The Mennonite Central Committee is offering a peace packet to teachers and churches that offers another way to commemorate Remembrance Day. Steve Plenert is the Peace Program Coordinator for MCC Manitoba. He says it includes things like suggestions for an assembly, basic information about the First World War and information about alternatives to war.

"To look at Remembrance Day as a time of peace building, looking not only on the violent sacrifices that soldiers made but acknowledging the tremendous toll that that violence takes on nations, on civilians and indeed, on soldiers and exploring alternatives, based in Scripture, that people can opt for."

Plenert says history has proven that war has not been successful in ending war and he feels it's time that people give peace a chance.

"The ongoing attempts to, for instance, bomb radicals into submission have not worked. The situations in Afghanistan and in Iraq and in Lybia all point to how the military responses have not provided durable solutions."

He notes, people can't be naive in thinking a basket full of flowers would be an adequate response to the current challenge of the Islamic State. But he suggests these people in the Islamic State have become radicalized because they have been attacked so violently by foreign powers. And, Plenert says that cycle of violence, back and forth, seems unending. He believes it's time to try another way, noting a commitment to non-violence and peace has not been adequately tried.

He says the peace packet takes another look at World War I.

"It's 100 years since that war, sometimes called the Great War, sometimes called the War To End All Wars. Some have said, 'Oh, that war was inevitable' or that the assassination of the Archduke Ferdinand precipitated all the events of the war. Well, people were preparing for war instead of preparing for peace. There were choices made at every step along the way that led towards that conflict. And, sure, some of those choices were hard to step back from but there are always, always other choices that could be made. War is not inevitable. We're not fatalistic in our understanding of how the world works. People can make their choices and we can choose to be people of peace."

HSD Students Embrace Halloween

A pair of students ready to save the world.

Students from across Hanover School Division dressed for school in costumes on Halloween, making school a spooky place to be on Friday.

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Is Your Car Ready For Winter?

Darren Krentz checking-off the inspection list while Tim Fast gets it all done.

The dropping temperatures means your vehicle may need a little extra TLC.

Service Adviser from Fairway Ford in Steinbach Darren Krentz says it's good to be prepared for the winter season by having a full inspection preformed on your vehicle. Krentz explains a full inspection includes a lube, oil and filter change, check battery strength, make sure the block heater works, check the anti-freeze level, thorough brake inspection, measure brake components, check steering components and top up all o f the fluids.

“Make sure that you're vehicle is prepared for winter by making sure your anti-freeze level is good, your block heater cord works, your battery has proper strength. Those are probably the most important things.”

Krentz notes other than being careful in deep snow, a set of winter tires are a good idea to stay safe on the winter roads. He adds there is a new program through MPI to help finance the cost of winter tires.

And don't forget to plug in your vehicle, Krentz says when your vehicle sits outside, especially overnight or during the day while at work to plug it in. He adds letting the vehicle run before putting it into gear is a great idea.

“It's always best anytime your car is cold to actually give it the proper time to warm up. Let it warm up, five to ten minutes would be preferred, but five minutes definitely for sure would be a great idea if you could let your vehicle run. Especially if it's been parked outside overnight all night and it's ice cold.”

Krentz adds most new vehicles are fuel-injected and don't require gas-line anti-freeze anymore as there's not as big of a problem with gas freezing or gelling in the lines. He notes diesel fuel has a component added to the fuel so it doesn't gel in the lines and it's called 'winter diesel'.

Welcome To Movember

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The month of November is looking kinda hairy as men grow moustaches in support of men's health research, also known as Movember.

The LumberZone boys after Oct. 31st shave and Nicole Dubois from Vivid Hair The LumberZone President Joel Hartung feels it's important for men to talk and know about men's physical and mental health issues. Hartung says during October sports players wear pink in support of women's health and growing a moustache is a way men can do that for men's health in November.

“Many guys are brought up not having learned how to show their emotions or talk about anything, we're just supposed to be tough guys and I think this is really cool that guys are being taught to share when they're struggling and to get through issues that maybe their life has provided. Use the help of your friends and your buddies or doctors to get through it and move on with life.”

Greg Reimer from Steinbach's Flooring Canada says growing a moustache is a great way to support men's physical and mental health by both growing a moustache and giving Steinbach's Flooring boys at the end of Movember last year. financially. For Reimer Movember is a little more personal as he watched a close family member experience prostate cancer and says it's emotional and will definitely affect you.

“It's an emotional part of seeing your family member going through something like this. Being able to relate to it, being able to want to give to it and seeing how it does affect people. If you spend a day in a cancer ward in the hospital you're pretty quickly going to see what goes on in people's lives and what people are struggling with. The reality is there more-so and the feeling to want to give towards (men's health research) becoming a bigger factor in your life.”

Reimer's family member is currently in remission.

Reimer and Hartung explain there are also ways to donate to men's health research at movember.com.

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Cavity Prevention During Halloween

Halloween Treats

During Halloween children are collecting candy, but what does that mean for their dental health?

Steinbach Toddlers to Teens Paediatric Dentist Dr. Mel McManus says he feels it's impractical to not let children eat any candy, however to keep 'everything in moderation' in mind. Dr. McManus notes to have fun at Halloween but remember cavity prevention and make sure those practices are still being applied.

“Just make sure after the treats are done that night and each subsequent night, good brushing and flossing is happening. Some of the treats are very sticky and have the ability to stick around for very long periods of time which the bacteria or 'bugs' in your mouth love. So you got to get rid of that food source for the bacteria. So, good flossing, good brushing and then you have very little to worry about with Halloween.”

Dr. Mel McManus Dr. McManus explains children under the age of four are not able to brush their teeth properly by themselves and require an parent. Then between the ages of four and seven the child can brush their own teeth, but parents should still be touching-up spots afterwards and helping to floss.

There are different kinds of candies and Dr. McManus says some are less harmful to your teeth than others due to the duration at which they are consumed. Dr. McManus explains candies like chocolate melt quickly and are easily washed off teeth by the saliva however toffy and caramels can stick to the teeth for long periods of time and hard candies can get crushed into the grooves of molars or in between the teeth.

Dr. McManus notes just like it's better to drink a sugary drink in one sitting instead of sipping it throughout the day, it's also better to eat candy at one time versus eating smaller pieces at different times throughout the day.

“If you're constantly grabbing at a candy, constantly throughout the day the acidity of your mouth is very low, you have a very acidic mouth. Therefore, you're going to get more cavities because the acids dissolve away teeth (which forms cavities). So if you do have candy, maybe once a day so that your mouth isn't constantly in an acidic environment.”

Dr. McManus reinforces brushing and flossing to remove sugar from all tooth surfaces and prevent cavities from developing adding an individual can be excellent at brushing but if they're not flossing the spaces in between the teeth there are areas being missed. He says children and adults alike should visit their dentist every six months for a check-up because if cavities do develop they're easier to restore when caught in the early stages.

Government In-fighting Casts Doubt On Fall Sitting Of Legislature

Brian Pallister

In-fighting among the governing N-D-P threatens to wipe out the fall sitting of the Manitoba legislature.

Five government cabinet ministers said earlier this week that Premier Greg Selinger should consider resigning in the wake of weak opinion polls for the N-D-P government. The situation has cast some uncertainty as to whether M-L-As will be recalled.

Government house leader Andrew Swan was asked repeatedly whether the government will hold a fall sitting, which normally starts in mid-November. Swan was non-committal on the issue.

Manitoba Tory leader Brian Pallister says the Selinger government has lost its focus and has become dysfunctional.

"The N-D-P are debating all the wrong things," said Pallister. "They're fighting about a poll. They're fighting about their best chances of hanging on to their jobs, but they're not debating the issues that matter most to Manitobans, like taxes that are excessively high, and paying the most and getting the least for the services they value. This is what Manitobans want us to debate."

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Jennifer Howard says she and the other ministers are not resigning and will meet with the premier again to discuss their concerns.

Justice Minister Andrew Swan and Jobs Minister Theresa Oswald echoed that sentiment, and say their group has agreed not to publicly discuss the matter until they meet with Selinger.

Pallister says all the infighting within the N-D-P is taking up the valuable time and energy of the government which could be better spent debating some very important issues in the legislature.

"We have the worst education results in Canada and we have the longest waits for health care in Canada and we've got a government that put up bill boards for $500,000 telling Manitobans that we've got steady growth and good jobs, when we're ninth," said Pallister. "I mean come on, let's get to work and let's get back respecting the people of our province."