Mr. Helmut Mayer, of the town of Meaford has, in these pages and town meetings, made comments which need response.

He has lamented the losses Meaford has suffered, in terms of businesses and employers, and voiced his concerns about mounting municipal deficits, and repeatedly denounced the cost to Meaford of Owen Sound Library privileges to residents of Sydenham.

Please stop to think, Mr. Mayer, of our (Sydenham's) losses and gains. We have lost our identity.

We have gained a financial taxation headache, and a 30-minute drive to seek answers and to pay our taxes (quite equal to your 30-minute drive to your "lost" Canadian Tire).

You have gained, thanks to our not insignificant tax base, a lovely, expensive town hall. You could not have done it without us.

Historically, our daily lives have been focused in Owen Sound, where most of us (who live in Sydenham) work, play, shop and support, emotionally and financially and with volunteer hours, our community assets - our hospital, "Y", Little Theatre, Bayshore Arena and Library, to name a few.

Some of these, namely the Owen Sound Little Theatre and historic Leith Church, exist solely because of dedicated volunteer fundraising and donated work hours - not burdening the local tax base. Our connection with Meaford (town) has for the most part been passage on the way to somewhere else.

We did not ask for this amalgamation, or, especially, for the misrepresenting name of "our" new municipality, but since it's unlikely that this flawed union can easily be dissolved, perhaps we can agree to a (free?) trade-off  - your town hall for our Owen Sound Library rights. O.K.?

P.S. I agree, by the way, that all libraries should be accessible to all - a separate issue.