HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1976-03-04, Page 2Since 1860. Serving the Community First
Published at SEAFORTH, ONTARIO, every Thursday morning by McLEAN
ANDREW Y. McLEAN, Publisher
SUSAN WHITE, Editor
. DAVE ROBB, Advertising Manager
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Ontario Weekly Nespaper Association
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What do you think .
Capital punishment
David Kennedy, a native of Brussels, is
executive secreary'of the John Howard Society
in Hamilton. He's the son of Roy and Evelyn
Kennedy, and attended elementary school in
brussels and high school in ,wingham. 1-le has
a BA from Ottawa University and master's
degree in social work from the University of
Toronto.
David is married and has two sons, Michael
and Mark. He will be writing occasional
columns on justice and social issues for the
Brussels Post and the Huron Expositor. Some
of his upcoming articles will be on gun'control
legislation and bail.
David is hoping for reactions and comments
froM readers. He will be glad to answer any
questions about Canada's just ice and prison
systems. Write your questions and comments
to David Kennedy, care of this newspaper.
re-instated law, for the murder of his 'wife!
'Luxembourg abolished the death penalty as
far back as '1822. Britain as recently as 1970.
44 member nations of the United Nations have
abolished capital punishment with DO adverse
effects. Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin :no
death penalty) have the lowest murder rates in
the United States while Georgia, Alabama and
South CArolina (death penalty) have , the
highest murder rates.
But be careful of statistici. They seem to be
used With great authority but little honesty. In
a publiCation of the United Church of Canada,
"Capital Punishment" , 'April, 1975 it is
stated that nine policemen and two prison
guards have been murdered since 1967. In an
advertisement by the Ontario Provincial Police
Association, January 29, 1976 in The
Hamilton Spectator they claim that 33
policemen and 2 prison guards have been
slain since 1967. Who, do you believe - the
Church or' the Police? •
If statistics don't prove anything, let's turn
to reason. We want to deter people from
committing murder, be it a policerican• or
anyone else. Everyone seems to agree that all
murders are committed under a small number
of circumstance - a crime of passion - an act of
panic during the committing- of a lesser
offense - under the influence of drugs 'or
alcohol - an act of an insane' person - the
conscious and well planned murder.
Which murders would be prevented
because of a conscious weighing of
consequences ? Certainly not one committed
in a fit of rage or blind passion; certainly not
one cOmmitted by someone in a state of fear
and panic; certainly not one committed by
someone with his mind befuddled by booze or,
,dope; certainly not the one committed by the
individual-0hp has lost touch with reality;
-certainly net,,,the. one-committed, by, the cold,
Salculating insensitive person who is certain
he'll get away with it. Certainly , none of
them.
One last argument. Do we need. capital
puniShment to permanently protect ourselves
from those individuals who have proven
themselves capable of murdering someone
under the above noted conditions. After all, if
they simply receive a life sentence they'll be
out in a.few years on parole.
In fact, paroled murderers have the best
record of . all parolees. In Canada, between
1867 and 1974, only one person who had his
death sentence commuted has committed a
'second murder. Can we be that sure that an
•
• (8y .D a vid Kennedy) -
To kill or not to kill, that is the-question!
Our society n eeds to be protected from
murderers and rapists. Our homes should be
safe to sleep in. our streets safe 'to walk in and
killing will make it so!
Wait a minute Something's wrong with
that logic. How can you kill people and hope to
get across the message that it is wrong to kill?
Flow can you brutalize one human being in the
.. name of the state and hope to get across the
message that it is. wrong to brutalize human
beings? How can we protect ourselves by
putting to death those persons who have
already committed the most foul deed of
murder?
. Yon can't,' but so many of us still want to
try,. Our fear of violence and harm causes us to
strike out in a manner that is' violent. But if
capital punishment isn't the answer, then-.•
I don't think anOne has, "the answer" to
crime prvention biW.iiifitaktives" te'existing
eourt sanctiOns, including 'capital puniShtnent
do exist and will provide society with as much
'protection as it currently has Or has ever 'had
under capital punishment laws.
Let's look at a few facts. Several countries
(or individ,u,a1 states where it is a local matter).
abOlished capital pimishment and some
have re-instated it. None "of these changes
have produced convincing evidence that the
existence or absence of capital punishment
has any direct bearing on the incidence of
murder. ,
A Delaware policeman had fought hard and
loudly for the re-instatement of capital
punishment and finally saw it come abouh fTts\, innocent person won't be hanged?
--tO, • Wh at ttlo4olk, thinla 4Yt itS4k. e „.
0
hi the rears ' iie
BROS. PUBLISHERS LTD.
C1-111$101
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MARCH 10, 1816-
The concert and readings given in the Presbyterian Church
in this.town on Wednesday evening last were in every respect
eminently successful. Excellent readings were given by Mr.
S.G. McCaughey, E. 1V1cPaul, Mrs, Coulter, Miss Anderson 0
and Miss M. Logan.
The complimentary supper given in Williams' Hall, .
Kinbu n in honour of Mr. Robert Thompson, who has been
merch t and postmaster at this place for 19 years was most
succes ul. 200 sat down to a most magnificent repast which
had bee provided by Mr. John Williams.
A goo animal - Mr. Robert Winters shipped a load of cattle
from Seaforth station comprising 20 head. One of the animals,
a three year old bull, weighed 1960 pounds.
The sale of village lots, which took place on Mr. Swan's
property of Brucefield, last week, was tolerably successful.
Eighteen lots were sold, and averaged in price from •$60. -
$90.
Since the roads have broken up again, the market has been
very dull.
One day last week, Mr. George Pleus, cif Tuckersmith
caught a large bald eagle in a trap. The eagle was given to
Mr, Geo. Whitely of Seaforth, who has it in a cage and
intends keeping it for a pet.
Council meeting - Pursuant to adjournment the Council met
at, Hannah's Hotel, on March 4, all the members being
present.
A correspondent, who yecently visited the farm of Mr.
John McIver, of the township of Hibbert, speaks in the
highest terms of the excellent qualities of that gentleman's
sheep. •
e fxpositzpit
A
SEAFORTH, ONTARIO; MARCH 4, 1976
Was' all that
spending necessary ?
Ottawa, 1976
Is all the money that is spent on
political campaigns really necessary?
We have to ask that after seeing the
fallderal and whoop de doo that went
on at the recent Progressive
Conservative convention in Ottawa.
The Fifth Estate looked behind the
scenes at the convention, and
spending on it, last week and
revealed a lot of slickness, a lot of
throwing ' money around. Manjr tv
viewers were bored by the'
convention, except tile few speeches
that got down to policy basics,.
The conspicuous consumption of
one candidate, Brian Mulroney; was
thought to have hurt him and cost.
delegate support. The winner, neW-
PC leader Joe Clark, was not among
the high spenders of the whole
leadership campaign.
Altogether the leadership
candidates spent millions travelli ng
the country, talking to convention
• delegates and bombarding them with
propaganda' for months before the
convention started.
We submit that most of what was
spent before the convention (and a lot
spent al it) was utterly wasted. MOre
than half the deleg'ates were still
uncommitted when they' arrived in
Ottawa.
What then was the point of
spending hundreds of thousands
'trying to elist delegates last fall? The
expensive messages apparently were
ignored. The leadership candidates
might just have well Met 'all the
delegates for"the first time at a tea
party or other convention opener.
Perhaps a couple of nation wide tv
shows could hav,e1- featured all
contenders and given the public and
delegates an advance look at them.
They could save mohey, we could
save energy if caMpaigns were kept
shorter and cheaper. People can't be
convinced by the money you throw
around that's one of the lessons of
the penny pinchihg seventies.
Amen
by Karl Schuessler
A Winter Tale
This seems. to be one of those winters
that simply must be "got -through!', like a
serious' illness, or a bad marriage.
Now, as a Canadian of a couple of score-
years and then some, I know there's no use
whining. We h ave to pay a price for living
jiii the' finest country in the world, and
winter is the price.
But there is, surely, a limit to the
inflation of that price.This time around,'it's
getting a bit ridicuTous. Whoever is in
charge of the weather up there •has got to
the point where he's just showing off,
trying to. dazzle us with the virtuosity of his
(or her) performance.
One day you. are running around
mopping up water because the pipes. have,
frozen and burst.The next day the
temperature, has soared 40 degrees and
you are down in the basement mopping up
the melted snow that has run in. ,
A-third day you start walking to work in
sunshine, are caught in'a blizzard howling
down from • the Pole, get hopelessly lost,
and wind up in a supermarket or funeral,
parlor instead of your place of work'. '
W,edtm't have any in our town, but I'm
told that in the city", some guys have been
so badly lost in some of our storms that
they have wandered inadvertently into one
of them there massage parlors:
I write this, at school, we have just
sent the kids h ome early on the buses
because the roads were blocking in quickly,
As soon as the buses left, out came the
sun, down dropped the wind, it's a perfect
winter day, and we're sitting here with egg
on our face, and no students.
But just the other day, we kept the kids '
in school for the full day, even though it
was storming, and wound up with two
busloads of sfudents on. our hands for
overnight.
We got them all bedded down in the
homes of teachers and parents.
I was hatching it, had lots of room at
home, and offered to take five girls for a
pyjama party, or five boys for a poker
party. They turned me down. The
administration, not the kids. .
This week, some of our history stadents
are going to bc involved in a live-in at Fort
St. Marie, a replica of a 17th century Jesuit
settlement. Theoretically, they will
experience the actual winter living
conditons of those times. No modern aids
to beat the cold. such as oil furnaces,
pecket heaters or borme. Just lots of
clothes, lots of proxiniity (it's a mixed
group), and open tires.
Good luck to them. They should have
taken a dog team, They'll probably bring
out the frozen bodies in the spring.
•On the other hand, knowing students
and the precocity of youth, I'll venture to
say it will be one big party, and an
experience to be savored for, life.But I'm
glad I'm not chaperoning.
From son Hugh, in the desert-like Chaco
TO the Editor:
The committee in charge of this year's
Ontario March of Dimes canvass wish to
thank The Huron Expositor. the many
canva,ssers arid the public for the
, winderful yesponss 14,,49itai amOunt
coire cted ,wa Se. $ I ;27'7, 00, s gflitY'abbve f a st
year's amount, •
The canvaSsers had a difficult task this
year due to the huge snowbanks, stormy
weather and icy conditions. They have
country of•Paraguay,•comeS a cry from. the
ther end 'of the stick. "Oh, for one, just
one, white, cold Canadian winter day! The
temperature here rangeS from aboij 100 to
.130 and just to keep yourself cleaned of
'sWeat and dust requires almost all the
energy youhcan summon." I wish' I could
trade him one of thus for one of his.
In the midst of this wild winter, my
second grandson chose to Make his
appearance at the usual hour, 3:30 ,a.m. He
'was a healthy cight-ounder and resembles
quite a bit, so the ladies say, his big
brother,Pokcy. I cant telly tell at that age.
To me, they all 'look like tiny orang-
out angs.
I hope, for my own sake, that he has a
little leSs energy than , his older brother.
The Poke.burns up more steam in a day
than Ali Muhammad does in a 15-round
title fight. And 'when I try to keep up with
him for an hour, I come out feeling like Joe
Fraiier,
The kid is a week old, and they don't
even have a name for hinhyet. Maybe it's
just as well, Maybe this time reas
prevail.
.; Last time, my- daughter was reading
Dostoievski, a Russian novelist, and` my
son-in-law was dabbling in I Ching, a
Chinese pseuclophilosphy. Poor little 'kid
was named Nikov Chen. That's why I call
'him Pokey.
This time, my, daug liter is studying
music and my son-in-laW 'architectnre.
Don't be surprised if I announce, one of
these days. that the latest addition to the
family has been named Ludwig Johann
Sebastian Arthar Lloyd Wright Sieber.
Poor little fellow.
Or Sibelius Kaarinnen Sieber. That
would put the finnishing touch to his
future. Imagine going through life being
ealled Sibby Sieber.
If they commitany sujiu'botnination,-Pri.,
reVengd myself -in 'tile' usual way.
Remember that silly old song-dance,
"Doing the Cokey-Okey"?
nickname this one Okey. And,,. he and
his brother and I will join hands, dance
around in a ring, and sing to his disgusted
parents, "We're doing the Pokey-Okey,
and that's what it's all aboue. That'll fix
them.
Aside from all the rigors of the weather,
January and February are going to be
expensive months in the future. Two
grandsons' birthdays in January, wife and
daughter's birthdays in February. All that
on top of the fuel bills.
However, However. Let it snow, let it
blow.What nicer midwinter„ gift could a
fellow get than a fine, healthy grandson?
Maybe a granddaughter? ' Nothing less.
done ati excellent job.
Special thanks also go to the seven
captains: Melinda Beuerman, Dinah Sills,
Lois Hodgert, Diane Muir, Mona Craham,
Irene Smith and Jean Lunn.
Vgiidttly ineAeri of die' com—m'PitTein
charge: Shirley O'Shea, general chairman;
Helen Reeves, Treasurer; May Flahkirk,
Spitillibplileliet sy. Chairman; Lillian Grummett,
MARCH 1, 1901
Huron Notes: Four boys were fined $1.00 each and costs,
the ot her day by a Wingharn magistrate for truancy,
Hensall: Mr. Charles McAllister led the service of song in
Carmel Church on Sabbath last.
' John Goodison and his sisters of Cromarty gave a dancing
party which was a decided success. About 75 of their friends
were present and spent a very enjoyable evening dancing to
the excellent music furnished by Mr. James Park, Mr.Frank
Harburn, Mr. John Brown and Mr. Angus McKaig.
Fred Beattie of the Bank of Commerce staff, Goderich,
spent Sunday with his parents here.' •
Mr. George Beattie, is re-arranging and enlarging the
interior of his restaurant.
Londesboro: Miss Myrtle Mountain spent a few days this
week with her aunt, Mrs. Whitely.
Winthrop: Members of the Cavan Church choir visited the
residence of Mr. and Mrs. R. Common to spend a social
evening. Miss Common was the recipierii of a silver butter
dish in appreciation of her valued services in connection with
church work generally and the choir particularly.
Tuckersmitht Miss Jean Carnochan is visiting at Mr.
Sydney Johns'.
Walton: Mrs. Orran McTaggart has gone to Belleville to
visit her aged mother and other relatives and will be gone
about two months.,
Leadbury: Messrs. J. E. Irvine and Herb Bell had a bee
cutting wood for Mr: J. F. Hackwell on Thursday last.
MARCH 12, 1926
Mr. J. L. Looby has dispe,sed of his new house in the
village of Dublin, to Mr, John tvreagher, at a good figure.
The final hockey game to decide 'the champions of the
Cyclone League and the holders of the McDonnell Cup,. was
played on the local rink last Wednesday evening between
Hensall and Zurich before a large crowd.
A real estate deal of more than usual importance was put
through here on Tuesday, whereby, Mr. Alex Voison, of the
Goshen line south, will take over the hotel in Zurich known as .
the Wolper House.
Mr. Alex McKenzie, of our village, while working with
some harness, slashed his finger almost to the bone, and was
required to seek medical attendance.
A delightful social evening was spent at Mr. and Mrs. '
Thomas Workmen's, of the London Road, recently when they
entertained a goodly number of their friends.
The people of St. Andrews United Church are indebted to
Mr. and Mrs. Wm. Ivison, for the handsome Hymnal board
placed in the church. r,
MARCH 9, 1951
Livestock, implements and chattels on the farm of Harold
Wilson, Dublin, brought $38,400 in one of the largest clearing
auction sales ever held in Dublin district.
Last Saturday morning a cow belonging to John Flannery,
Egmondville, gave birth to twin calves.
Congratulations are extended to Mr. and Mrs. Edgar Allan
on the occassion of their 50th anniversary on Tuesday March
6.
Plans are completed for the fourth annual Huron County
Seed Fair which is to be held in the Clinton Collegiate
Institute in Clinton on March 9 and 10.
The members of the C.G.I.T. entertainedtheir Mothers and
friends at their regular meeting on Wednesday night in First
Presbyterian Schoolroom.
Work on the new hydro sub-station at the corner of
Gouinlock and Chalk Streets, was started this week by the
Seaforth Public Utilities Commission.
Jphn Kellar, Lineman for the McKillop Telephone System,
suffered a broken arm recently while attempting to recover a.
saw which had slipped from his grasp while pruning a tree.
Nearly 7,600 people have registered attendance at the
Seaforth District Memorial Centre during the week from
Monday February' 26 until Tuesday, March 6.
Mr. and Mrs. F. Kling were hosts to the Fireside
Fellowship group of First Presbyterian Church on Monday
evening when there was a good attendance.
To the editor
(Water bill too high
Box 203,
Seaforth, Ont.
FEb.26, • 6
Dear Madam:
My protest may be a little late, and no doubt to no avail, but
when I received my February billing for water, my memory
was refreshed and my ire rekindled,
If Seaforth residents feel that $7.50 a month is high (and
the escalation to that figure from $2.50 was rapid!), imagine
hoW I feel about paying $15.00 a month. A Figure of $180.00
a year is somewhat steep! It does seem that the method of
billing employed at the P.U.C., of automatically doubling the
entire charge for out-of-town users, is hardly logical. Carrying
the doubling of rates to a greater .degree, would the
Commission bill non-residents $100.00 if by any chance the
rate of town consumption went to $50.00 This comparison
should indicate how unreasonable it is to charge a flat double
rate for non-residents, It would seem more reasonable to me
if there were some basic charge for non-residents, not
tu re increases, on top -h4jiyAi-ichttava ter wolf Id -be', •
charged at the same rite as town residents. Why should the -
entire charge be doubled every time an increase occurs in
water rates?
Yours very truly,
Mrs. K.E.Bassett.
To the editor
March of Dimes says thanks