Deciding what's outrageous a matter of viewpoint

Letter to the Editor from Winston Magee Cape Breton Post
Fri., Dec. 1, 2006

Sydney Tar Ponds Agency spokesman Parker Donham's comments pertaining to the storage tank at the former coke oven site are not called for (Sludge Contained in Storage Tank on Coke Oven Site Destroyed, Nov. 29).

I have to assume Mr. Donham has never heard of the saying: "Better to err on the side of caution."

He claims that we have allowed people to make "outrageous overstatements about Sydney's environmental problems." Does this insinuate that we should place a gag on comments from the community?

He further states that the contractor doing the work found the job to be an "ordeal." The contractor should have been well aware of the problems it might encounter, or it did not do its research properly.

Mr. Donham, being a spokesperson for the agency overseeing the cleanup, needs to be reminded that he is speaking for the government and thus for the people of this community. He should choose his comments a little more wisely lest he be judged outrageous.

Winston Magee
Louisbourg