Small Town Controversy

Anyone who reads our local weekly paper, the Sioux Lookout Bulletin, and everyone in town does every Wednesday, will have no doubt seen the article and ads condeming a printing company from Alberta, Sabre Publications Ltd, who printed up a bunch of TV guides or something like that for distribution in local hotel rooms in the last week's issue. If you perchance missed it check out the 'TV Guide and Business Directory Offends Local Readers' article at the link.

The controversy arose because there was supposed to be a bit of Sioux Lookout information printed on the back that was a little inflamatory. Well apparently this information was lifted from a Sioux Lookout Wikipedia page that was revised on January 27, 2007 and just plopped on the page layout without being read first. You can read the page for yourself here but if I had to guess the offending bit is this exerpt:

"The name of Sioux Lookout comes from a nearby mountain. Its full of drunks and a dirty little town. If you live in it move."

This is a fairly important example of the dangers of sloppy cut and paste action, wouldn't you say?

This offending bit of Sioux Lookout trivia was edited out in the next Wiki revison on January 29, 2007 . . . even if there are a number of people who agree, even partially, with those statements. With Wikipedia almost anyone can update or revise an article, and I guess that's what makes Wiki great and horrible all at once. Kinda like Galactus . . . but different.

If you're looking for a pro-Sioux Lookout website, check out the local Chamber of Commerce's . . . I'm sure they've got some nice things to say about the town and the Legend of Sioux Lookout interesting, check it out.

If you haven't been before the panoramic picture at the bottom of the page is one I took at the local beach, situated almost downtown (the one at the top definitely not Sioux Lookout). . . although I'd be saying if the whole of the town looked that good all the time, but it can't be that bad . . . I'm still here after all, eh?