Don't Fall For This "Prize Pitch" Scam Police Warn Public

From a Peterborough Lakefield Community Police Service Media Release today...

Fraud Alert:

Police are warning the public of a "prize pitch" scam circulating in the Peterborough area. Several residents have been mailed cheques accompanied with an information package from ChemLogist in Vancouver B.C. The cheques are drawn on the account of W.G Hughs Services LTD. The information advises the recipient that they have won a prize as a result of using their credit card, debit card or other banking card while shopping at Wal-Mart, J.C. Penny, Sears, Target, Home Depot, Lowes, Marshall and several other stores are listed. The information package directs the recipient to call a certain person at a listed telephone number so he can assist them in the process of claiming their winnings. Investigation has revealed that these cheques are counterfeit and you will be asked to send money to the operators of the scam in order to pay for delivery, processing, taxes, duties or some other fee. Fraudulent cheques are used in a variety of scams such as advance fee letter fraud, overpayment and prize pitch to name a few. Recipients that become involved in these counterfeit cashier's cheques, personal cheques, or corporate cheques scams will be financially responsible when the deposited counterfeit cheque is subsequently returned as counterfeit and charged back to their account.

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Charlotte Street Will Be An Ice Rink For 4 Days At Festival Of Trees

[chextvDOTcom]

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New Entrance Poll Conducted Locally Reveals Voter Preferences, Reasoning & Behaviour

Heading into the 2011 Provincial election tomorrow, my local polling company Preferences conducted an entrance poll ending October 1, 2011, selecting at random more than 200 respondents (margin of error 6.92%, 19 times out of 20) to not only understand local voter preferences, but also the reasons why people are not voting, why they are undecided, and why they are choosing a specific local candidate.

There have been a number of polls conducted by local media and political associations that have provided percentages on the potential outcome of the 2011 Provincial election, but this poll was conducted by interviewers via telephone as well as through an online survey as opposed to automated systems. We facilitated the collection of open-ended responses which, in our opinion, provides a deeper understanding of voter behaviour.

Several respondents openly stated their exhaustion with elections, but also mentioned that this election differs from the recent Federal election because the Provincial term expired, as opposed to a vote of non-confidence. This may explain why there are almost half the amount of "undecided" respondents compared to the 2011 Federal election entrance poll conducted by Preferences.

As for non-voters, the primary reasons for these respondents to not cast their ballot revolved around their perception of "mud-slinging" and "schoolyard bullying."

Aside from which local candidate is leading, our statistics demonstrate that Jeff Leal is more popular than Liberals/McGuinty (+4.3%); Conservatives/Hudak is more popular than Alan Wilson (+6%), especially among 45-year-old to 55-year-olds; and Dave Nickle is slightly more popular than his leader NDP/Horwath (+2.2%).

Greens maintained the same support for their leader as the local candidate Gary Beamish. The most revealing statistic is demonstrated by Conservative Party/Hudak supporters, who claimed they will be voting for Leal locally (3.9%).

Undecided voters for local candidates (13.5%) expressed that local platforms were "unclear" and "too vague" (even on mail-outs), and that they actually have to perform their own research. Another point of interest demonstrates that some undecided voters know clearly who they do not support as a local candidate, but are unsure of who they would like to support.

As for the reasons why respondents are supporting particular local candidates: Alan Wilson supporters expressed their dissatisfaction with McGuinty’s policies and Hudak's charismatic approach; Nickle supporters mentioned his "experience" in the community "as a teacher" and his recognizable name; and Jeff Leal supporters expressed he has "experience," is "dedicated" and claimed to "know of" or have met him personally.

Paul Teleki is owner of Preferences, a locally-based polling, research and strategic planning company. You can contact him at paul@preferences.ca.

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Boston Pizza Hosting Special Event Tonight For Greater Peterborough Health Services

Support your Family Health Teams by visiting Boston Pizza South today (October 5th) between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m., where the Greater Peterborough Health Services Foundation is hosting a Celebrity Server Night to raise funds and awareness for the Family Health Teams in the City and County of Peterborough.

Local personalities such as former Peterborough Petes Captain and Canada’s World Junior Team Captain Brent Tully will be among the celebrity servers for this special occasion.

Ten percent of sales from the night go to ensuring that your family health care clinics are in a place to respond effectively to our community’s health care needs.

Reservations are recommended. Call Allen at Boston Pizza at 705.740.2775.

[Greater Peterborough Health Services Foundation]

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Cool Captain Climate Appears At Queen Elizabeth For International Walk To School Day

Encouraging students—and parents—to move towards more sustainable modes of transportation isn’t easy, but this Wednesday (October 5th) at 8:30 a.m., many will be inspired to change their commuting habits as part of International Walk to School Day.

Students from Queen Elizabeth Public School will arrive at school using sustainable modes of transportation, such as by bus, walking, biking, rollerblading or skateboarding.

They will be greeted by Cool Captain Climate, who will be providing musical entertainment for those in attendance. Later, the students will take part in a celebratory march around the school.

"We hope that International Walk to School Day will inspire students to get to school in more eco-friendly means like biking or walking," says Johanna Hart, of Peterborough Green-Up in a release. "Not only will our environment benefit by having less pollution added to our air, but the students themselves benefit by moving around and being active on their daily commute to school."

[International Walk to School Day; Peterborough Green-Up]

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PtboPic: Sign That It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

Yes, Egg Nog is already being sold down at Kawartha Dairy.

[Photo by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]

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The Owners Of A Cat That Was Shot & Killed By Someone With A BB Gun Speak Out

Anyone with information is asked to call Police or Crime Stoppers.

[chextvDOTcom]

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$161,000 Raised At Local CIBC Run For The Cure Yesterday

920 participants and 42 teams locally raised more than $161,000 for this year's run.

[chextvDOTcom]

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Mayor Bennett Asks City Council To Review KPR Decision To Close PCVS

In a media release that went out this afternoon after KPR's decision to approve the closure of PCVS, Mayor Daryl Bennett say he will seek City Council's approval to consider three actions:

• First, a review by City staff of the land use regulations affecting the PCVS site with a view to limiting its use to educational and community-based uses, and a review of its role in the implementation of the Central Area Master Plan.

• Second, an exploration of the merits of City support of an appeal to the Ontario Minister of Education of the Board decision by the Peterborough Collegiate Foundation, including the adequacy of the decision-making process.

• Third, consultation with MPP Jeff Leal to determine the provincial interest in the closure and its potential impact on the liveability of the downtown.

"The community has expressed substantial concern over the Board decision and the role of the City in protecting City-wide interests," says Bennett. "I would have recommended these actions had any of the four schools been proposed for closure."

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Here's Videos Of PCVS Student Reaction Immediately After KPR Decision Last Night

[MyKawartha]

[chextvDOTcom]

And reaction today from students at PCVS...

[chextvDOTcom]

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