THUNDER BAY – Some Thunder Bay residents seem to be permanent pessimists. You know the kind of people I mean. The kind of people who, if they won the Lotto 649 would complain about having to go out of their way to pick up the cheque. Some might go so far as to complain that they were asked to smile when presented with their millions.
Thunder Bay is a community with a future only as bright as the citizens want to make it. When you really think about it, our future is in our hands. It is our optimism, or negativity, which will set the course for our future.
Some people think it is the cheery politicians who define Thunder Bay. I think it is those people in our community who make a real difference. It is the residents who takes extra care, and pride in maintaining their yards.
It is the residents who care enough to come out to public meetings and make their voices heard.
Some of the people are those unsung heroes in the shops, businesses and other facilities who make a real difference, sharing their positive outlook on life with the world.
However some of the permanent pessimists seem to have decided, facts not withstanding, that our fate is one of gloom and doom. Negative energy is one of the most powerful forces on earth. Negativity has the ability to latch on to people and drag them down, and drag down all of those around them.
Can you image Donald Trump sitting atop the Trump Tower mired in depressing thoughts? Not likely. Can you imagine “The Donald” hiring a negative apprentice? He would never consider it.
Now, I am not suggesting people in Thunder Bay all start being cock-eyed optimists. We don’t need to embrace failures, and try to put a positive spin on them. We need to maintain a positive outlook, and seek our future.
As a community, we have seen how the collective power of positive energy directed toward a cause can work. Thunder Bay came together on the Bombardier contract to build subway cars for the city of Toronto. It wasn’t just the politicians, it was the workers, the people and the power of working together that made the real difference.
Can you imagine what could happen if we could harness that kind of energy for all things Thunder Bay?
What kinds of issues, in Thunder Bay need the same kind of positive energy the Bombardier contract generated?
Here is a short list of ideas, and www.netnewsledger.com welcomes your emails with your comments and ideas.
- VIA Rail Service improvements for Northwestern Ontario.
- Fair Prices for gasoline and fuel in Thunder Bay.
- A Thunder Bay Annual Clean-a-thon – funds could help the United Way.
- A Hydrail planning conference to bring new technology and manufacturing to Thunder Bay
- ??
This short list awaits your input comments and ideas.
Together, with a spirit of optimism and realism we can work toward building a positive future for our region and our city.
My assertion is that people in our community are not negative. Some have become jaded over the past decades when they observe politicians and others spinning the facts. Some are just apparently tired of waiting for the future to be brighter than the past.
The facts are that there is more good than bad in our Thunder Bay. We simply must start either finding it, and sharing it, or making it happen where it needs to happen.
Interested?
James Murray