PelhamToday readers overwhelmingly support removing the American flag from above the ice at the Meridian Community Centre.
This according to results from a poll on the issue started last Wednesday, March 5. Some 261 respondents voted, with just over half saying that the U.S. flag should be removed immediately, 14 percent saying that it should be removed if the threat of tariffs wasn’t dropped by the end of last week, 5 percent were undecided, and 27 percent, or just over a quarter, saying that the flag should remain in place.
Last week, CAO David Cribbs and Mayor Marvin Junkin both said that there were no plans to remove the flag, although Junkin added that he had received three emails suggesting that the Town do so. By Monday, however, Junkin told PelhamToday that sentiment had shifted.
On Monday Premier Doug Ford announced a 25 percent surcharge on Ontario electricity sent to the U.S., and left the door open to higher charges depending on the U.S. response. Ontario estimates that the surcharge will generate $300,000 to $400,000 in revenue for the province each day.
Ongoing uncertainty over the U.S. President’s on-again, off-again tariffs continued to roil stock markets, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 500 points at midday Monday.