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www.insideHALTON.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Friday, November 7, 2014 | 6 We will not forget Every Remembrance Day is special -- but perhaps this year's day of honour will carry even more signi cance in the wake of last month's tragedy on Parliament Hill -- a wound still fresh on the Canadian psyche. The senseless murder of Corporal Nathan Cirillo, a member of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders Regiment, stunned the nation in not only its callousness, but the fact the young man was slain while standing ceremonial guard at the National War Memorial in Ottawa -- the most revered spot in the country to honour our veterans. Lest we forget, too, the violent and tragic death of Warrant Of cer Patrice Vincent on Monday, Oct. 20 in Québec. The 28year veteran of the Canadian Forces was struck down in a targeted hit-andrun attack. In his tribute to Cpl. Cirillo, Prime Minister Stephen Harper spoke about the "gut-wrenching" irony that Cirillo was killed guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. "He knew what he was protecting and he knew what he was preserving," Harper said. "He died protecting and preserving." In the wake of Cirillo's murder and the ensuing shootout in the halls of Parliament Hill, the country came together in a stunning show of solidarity few can remember. Thousands of people lined the Highway of Heroes as Cpl. Cirillo made his nal journey home to Hamilton from Ottawa. Thousands more lined the funeral procession route days later. Flags were own. Salutes were given. Tears were shed. Thanks were said. In a homily, Rev. Canon Rob Fead called Cirillo "Canada's son" and said the tragedy of his death had helped bring the country together. "His bravery, his sacri ce, (were) not in vain," said Fead. While Canadians were paying tribute to Cirillo in particular last month, we were also honouring all members of our ghting and peacekeeping forces -- both past and present. The outpouring of respect for these brave men and women was heartening to see -- even though it was unfortunate such a tragedy was needed to reiterate how much we value their contributions. When you purchase a poppy over the coming days, or attend a Remembrance Day ceremony, take a moment to remember the sacri ces our military personnel have made -- and still do today -- to ensure our freedom. Nathan Cirillo did not die in vain, nor did any of those who fell before him on the battle eld. We owe all those who have chosen to serve a debt we can never repay. But we can -- and must -- show them our appreciation and offer them a heartfelt "thank you." Editorial B A L L O T L E S S O N S "Connected to your Community" To further a civics lesson on municipal politics, a Grade 5 French Immersion class at St. Matthew Elementary School ran a mock election just as students' parents were voting in Oakville's Oct. 27 municipal election. Students could vote for a mayoral candidate of their choice as the candidates were represented by students pretending to run for the of ce. Mariaelisa Velez assists Elliott Burwood cast his vote. | photo by Eric Riehl ­ Oakville Beaver (Follow on Twitter @halton_photog) 447 Speers Road, Oakville ON, L6K 3S4 General Inquiries: (905) 845-3824 Editorial Department: (905) 632-0588 Classi ed Advertising: (905) 632-4440 Circulation: 5300 Harvester Rd., Burlington (905) 631-6095 Volume 52 | Number 124 The Oakville Beaver is a division of Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. Vice ­President and Group Publisher of Metroland West Regional General Manager Halton Region Editor in Chief Advertising Director NEIL OLIVER DAVID HARVEY JILL DAVIS DANIEL BAIRD Managing Editor ANGELA BLACKBURN RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director Business Manager Director of Production It was both a pleasure -- and an honour -- to have participated as a mayoral candidate in the recent 2014 municipal election process, which is a sentiment presumably shared by all candidates who put forth not only their names, but their ideas and energies, for the betterment of Oakville. While there is undoubtedly some residual disappointment felt among candidates and their supporters who were not successful in their quest, I do believe in the adage "the electorate is never wrong." After having read the Oct. 27, 2014 headline in the Oakville Beaver -- Burton Claims Victory in Oakville's Mayor's Race -- I paused to consider whether the dispatch attributed to Mr. Burton in the latter part of that article regarding "our renewed and stronger mandate" is correct on a more latent level, or perhaps, is at odds with the election results when viewed in the context of what actually transpired. For example, Oakville Ward 1 residents voted for change, and new Town and Regional Councillor Sean O'Meara will be sworn into of ce at the inaugural meeting of council on Dec. 1, as will newly-elected Ward 3 Town Councillor Nick Hutchins. Further, the battle for Town and Regional councillor in Ward 5 between Ann Mulvale and incumbent Jeff Knoll was ultimately decided only when the last polling station reported -- by a razor thin margin of 3,846 to 3,706 votes (less than a two per cent difference). Were these particular results illustrative of the The electorate is never wrong: McLaughlin Letter to the Editor SANDY PARE MARK DILLS MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager Director of Distribution proverbial "canary in the coal mine," indicating voter displeasure, by proxy or otherwise, with council's record? Do they perhaps reveal an underlying quest for change going forward, rather than a "stronger mandate" as asserted by the mayor? Similarly, in the Ward 5 race for Town councillor, the challengers gleaned almost as many total votes as did the successful incumbent Marc Grant. Again, while I was pleased for Mr. Burton's success in being re-elected as mayor of Oakville, as I also indicated to the Oakville Beaver on election night, I was both humbled and thrilled to have received almost 10,000 votes (more than 24 per cent of the popular vote) that were cast for a `new' mayor of Oakville. Statistically, that represented a 380 per cent vote growth for my mayoral candidacy over the 2010 election results, while the mayor enjoyed only an 11 per cent vote growth over 2010. Undoubtedly, though, the larger story was not that one out of three voters did not endorse the incumbent mayor, but that almost 85,000 eligible voters didn't vote at all and, thus, didn't endorse anybody, depriving us of an opportunity to determine whether the mayor's dispatch of a "renewed and stronger mandate" is correct on a more latent level. Perhaps Internet voting should also be explored for Oakville as it was a huge success in Burlington. That is why we have elections... because "the electorate is never wrong." John McLaughlin Oakville mayoral candidate CHARLENE HALL KIM MOSSMAN Circulation Manager Proud Official Media Sponsor For: Canadian Circulations Audit Board Member Recognized for Excellence by Ontario Community Newspapers Association Canadian Community Newspapers Association Proud Official Media Sponsor For: The Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. In order to be published all letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to: The Editor, Oakville Beaver, 5040 Mainway, Burlington ON L7L 7G5 or via e-mail to; ablackburn@oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. Phone 416-340-1981. 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