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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times-Advocate, 1976-08-26, Page 4VI01,001•1111001001...Mw 5yr.v.WeePAINIv+ .7.:4:TAVANWV1-0,,XSNCISIVAW Exeter council's lack of decisiveness in the location of the new South Huron Recreation Centre is creating considerable consternation. A month ago, council passed a motion setting forth their decision, but last week they gave indications that the decision could still be altered. It is easy to sympathize with their posi- tion. Regardless of the outcome, it appears certain that some group will end up being unhappy. However, delaying that unhap- piness will in no way eradicate it. The delay merely magnifies and extends the debate. Holding out hope for one group, holds out disappointment for another. Obviously, a decision must be made and council members as a whole and as in- dividuals must abide by that decision. To make a decision one night and then con- tinue looking for alternatives is poor leadership. Those alternatives should have been explored before the decision was made. To search for alternative centre sites outside the community park is ridiculous, because it reduces the usefulness of the facility drastically. The proximity to the schools is a must if the centre is to pay the dividends for which it is being planned, both for present use and even more so, future use. To lose sight of that fact would be dis- astrous. The only consideration then is whether the half-mile track, should be saved, and if so, how that can be done. To date the hosemen have not presented a case that is strong enough to justify the costs that would be involved in keeping the track at its present size. They allude to a strong, young membership that would promote the track and turn it into a highly profitable venture, but there has been no concrete evidence to support that claim. If they are serious in their intent, then they are obligated to make known their plans and furnish some proof that the community can seriously consider. To point to the success of other tracks at Goderich, Elmira or Dresden is not enough. The Exeter track was available for development at the same time as the others, and to suggest it has a great future only now that it is in danger of being cut in size, rings very hollow. There is obviously a limit to the number of small town raceways that can exist in Western Ontario and the newly formed turf club must quickly give some indication of how they hope to accomplish , their goal, Expectations alone are not enough. Plans must be presented on how those expectations are to be reached. Taxpayers should be informed It's difficult to comprehend the reason- ing used by the Huron County development committee in barring the press — and therefore the public — from their meetings related to area recreation councils. Why shouldn't the public be given details of the proposals and an opportunity to submit their opinions? Recreation is paid from the public purse and the people have a right to know what is being con- sidered on their behalf. Chairman Frank Cook indicates the public won't get any information until it reaches county council, A decision will probably be made and then the people back home will start arguing about it. If the proposals of the committee are worthwhile they shouldn't be afraid to make them public. It may give them more input and an opportunity to better judge the feeling of the people served by proposals. It's called participatory democracy: something which county council seldom practices. Be prepared for risks There is a resurgence in the popularity 0 SKATEBOARDS and the Canada Safety Council reiterates its policy with regard to their use. Skateboards are capable of attaining speeds of up to 35 miles per hour. At this speed the risks are clear. Even at lower speeds, loss of control frequently results in painful and severe injury. Novice riders have little control over their direction, and at times their speed, and cannot come to a quick stop when necessary. The device is not fastened to the user and can become a runaway and dangerous to anyone in its path. The Council advises against the use of skateboards in all public locations such as sidewalks, roadways, paved shoulders and on steep grades. The newer models are considerably more sophisticated than their predecessors of the 60's. They are constructed of flexible high impact molded plastics or glass fibre. The urethane wheels afford a better grip on the road and allow the expert rider to slalom, spin and do balancing acts. Although the new boards are safer, in some respects, serious injuries continue to occur. The Canada Safety Council regards the skateboard as an unstable device to be used only by those who are prepared to risk bodily harm. Now that the Games are over, and all the tears have been shed, it's time to look ahead to the 1980 Olympics. What the International Olym- pic Committee needs like a hole in the head is new ideas, but I'll give them one anyway. It's simple; give everybody a second chance. I'm sure people like Debby Brill and Bruce Simpson and Yankovich Strmzlwvzlski will agree with me. Most of us get a second chance in life, whether it's falling down ori the job, impaired driving, or being married. Why not the Olympic athletes? I got a second chance once upon a time, and I was ecstatically grateful for it. It was a long time ago, and the Olympics had been cancelled for The Duration, but there were some pretty serious games in progress, just the same. It is one of the great ironies, and my students simply can't un- derstand it when I try to explain, but yours truly, and a lot of others, were involved in a bitter competition. We were trying to become fighter pilots, so we could be killed. Isn't that silly? But it was so. No Olympic athlete suffered any more tension, anxiety, or frustration than we did when it came to the big day, the final event, our wings test. Long before that, of course, were the eliminat'ons. First one was the physical eAamination. It was tough. Many a youth with dreams of dicing through the clouds in a dogfight was shot down in the M.O.s office because he had flat feet or was color blind. Next came the preliminary heats. These were known as Elementary Flying Training. If you came through about 60 hours of flying training without being terribly air sick, without boun- cing more than 40 feet on lan- dings, and without running into another aircraft and killing yourself, you made the semi- finals. We lived in constant fear, Oh, not of killing ourselves. Nobody was concerned in the least about that. The dread phrase was "washed out," That meant that you weren't going to be that dashing figure — a fighter pilot — but that you were going to be retrained as a mere navigator, wireless op or tail gunner. In other words, sent to the minors. If you survived the heats, off you went to finishing school, known as Advanced Flying. This was like making the Olympic team, but knowing you'd probably finish in 31st place. I was sent, with a lot of other Times Established 1873 Advocate Established 1881 Amalgamated 1924 toreferZimes-Ainsorate SERVING CANADA'S BEST FARMLAND C.W.N.A., 0.W.N.A. CLASS 'A' and ABC Published by J. W. Eedy Publications Limited LORNE EEDY, PUBLISHER Editor.— Bill Batten Assistant Editor — Ross Haugh Advertising Manager — Jim Beckett Plant Manager — Jim Scott Composition Manager -- Harry DeVries Business Manager — Dick Jongkind Phone 235-1331 'SUBSCRIPTION RATES: +CNA CCNA 81111 RIBBON AWARD 1974 Published Each Thursday Morning at Exeter, Ontario Second Class Mail_ _ Registration Number 0386 Paid in Advance Circulation September 30, 1975 5,420 Canada $9.00 Per Year; USA $11.00 ' , Give athletes second chance a410,iskir fall) Lc, K.. Cutting costs in the cities Page 4 Times-Advocate, August 26, 1976 • • "".• '44444107714:4444,,, Receive graciously Horsemen must prove value And done it will be! I _Nit ammo \ 4 L You can excuse members of the Exeter and District Heritage Foundation for having trouble these days in getting their feet to hit the ground periodically. They've been flying high since the announcement last week that the town hall restoration project would receive a grant of $47,100 from the Ontario Heritage Foundation. That's more than had been young idiots dying to be killed, to Camp Borden. It was quite an august group, including one Jake Gaudaur, the large, jovial gentleman who is now the com- missar of the Canadian Football League. Hi, Jake, Despite the augustness of the group, we trained in mid-winter, We flew in snow, we landed on snow, we crashed into snow, and occasionally an intrepid student, usually an Australian, proved once again that an aircraft fall- ing 6,000 feet will not penetrate the ice of Georgian Bay. The whole deal was not unlike Napoleon's retreat from Moscow. And all the time, leering over our shoulders, was the ugly face of that thing called Washed Out. It seems incredible, looking back, that we were in such terror of that creature. If all the young fellows in the world had manag- ed to have themselves washed out, there wouldn't have been anyone to fly and kill and die. But we suffered all the palpitations of Olympic con- testants as we edged closer and closer to that triumph of sado- masochism, the Wings Test. This consisted of about one hour of psychological torture in which the student flew the air- craft through a number of un- comfortable and .alarming exer- cises while an instructor, sitting in the font seat, snarled im- precations. Came my big day. Everything was great. I was shaking like a wino. It wasn't quite snowing, but it wasn't quite not snowing. And the intercom wasn't work- ing, Normally, this isn't- a big deal. The intercom was just a little sort of telephone into which the instructor shouted obscenities and the student ground his teeth. But on a Wings Test, it can be something more than a minor nuisance. My' instructor would shout at me to do a steep turn to the left. I would guess at the muffled instructions and do a loop. He would yell at me to do a loop, and I'd do a sloppy slow roll. After half an hour of this blind man's buff, he indicated with a ferocious gesture of his thumb that he was taking over and we were going to land. We did. He climbed out, speechless. I climb- ed out with my tail well between my legs. He just looked at me, and shook his head. I just looked at him, and wagged my tail. We both knew that I was Washed Out. He walked away. I looked around for some immediate means of committing suicide. The only thing I could see was a whirling propeller and that was a bit too messy. There must, of course, be a, climax to this fascinating narrative. And there is. Next morning I was moping about, feeling as though I'd just learned my mother was a prostitute and my father a quack abortionist. A voice: "Smiley, get your gear on!" Another instructor, widely known as a Mean Bastard, We took off. I hate to brag, but with the careless abandon of a man who knows he is off to the galleys anyway, I flang that air- craft around the sky in a dream Wing Test. Two days later, I not only had my wings, but had suddenly become an Officer and a Gentleman, So, gveryone deserves a Se- cond Chance. And that is my con- tribution to the XXIst, Olympics, I'll let the committee figure out the details expected, in fact could have been expected, because it represents about six and a half percent of the total Ontario budget. That's obviously getting more than your fair share and indicates quite clearly the prominence placed on the local restoration project. Perhaps members of the local group aren't quite as crazy as many people had suggested when they undertook to save the town hall. Many thought it either shouldn't be done, couldn't be done, or wouldn't be done. But done, it will obviously be, eliminating all but the group of first negative thinkers outlined above. No doubt the termination of the project will even eliminate them! One of the real advantages to the sizeable grant is the fact it will eliminate the need for the group to compete so strongly for local funds with the recreation centre and both projects should be able to co-exist with little difficulty. Our commendation to the Heritage Foundation for their determination. Many people would have surrendered in view of some of the adversities they faced, but their dedication to the goal was obviously well worth the fight. -Community spirit is obviously not as buried in this community as some detractors would have us believe. + + ,+ The troubles in Northern Ireland have been going on for so long that some of the atrocities being committed fail to generate much notice by many people. Killing appears to have become an accepted way of life. However, Mrs. George Anderson claims that this is not the case as she found it during her recent visit to the part of Ireland where people live, work and play amid the bomb blasts and gun battles. First of all, she reported that the courage displayed by the people under such trying cir- cumstances was almost un- believable. Daily life carries on the same as usual, although hardly a day passes without a tragic experience. On her return, Mrs. Anderson brought in a newspaper column, which she said appeared to reflect fairly well the attitude of the majority of people in Nor- thern Ireland with whom she spoke. The article explained that civilized society is fighting a battle for its very existence and 5 Years Ago After a lengthy hassle which resulted in teacher resignations board member resignations, pink listing, black listing and fears that the county secondary schools would not open on time, a two- year agreement has been ratified by secondary school teachers employed by the Huron board of education, A historic plaque com- memorating Lucan's Centennial was unveiled after the ecumenical church service Sunday afternoon. Mr. & Mrs. Reg Finkbeiner and Michael Crediton, toured Penn- sylvania Dutch country, visiting places associated historically with the EUB church, the Moravians and the Mennonites, 15 Years Ago The price of hair cuts goes up next week. Beginning Tuesday men will pay $1.00 for an ordinary cut and brush cuts will be $1,10, The HeliSall ObSeIrver bat been sold to the Zurich Citizens News, Publisher Herb Turkheim is now the owner of both papers. The new 3 percent Ontario sales tax comes into effect September I. . , Elit,104413 St14111419‘1. at the moment the fight is going against those who want an or- dered, lawful and decent society. It was suggested that the people responsible for the many killings are basically terrorists who want to over-throw democracy and replace it with a ruthless authoritarian socialist regime on the Cuban model. Part of the blame falls on the shoulders of those in power who fail to protect society with the power at their disposal. So we have demonstrators of extreme organizations allowed to parade through cities shouting provocative slogans and disrupting traffic. Governments hesitate to take firm action to combat aircraft hijackings, and other terrorist acts. "Words are empty unless backed up by action, and the very least the British and Eire governments can do is move swiftly to crush once and for all the terrorism which has afflicted this land for seven long and dreadful years," the article concludes. "but after all the procrastination and empty promis—es, does anyone really hold out much hope of this hap- pening?" + + + Continuing on in a rather in- ternational flavor, we wonder how many area farmers will be able to record corn yields of 232 bushels per acre this year. Well, that's the record established by the Cameron Brothers of Poverty Bay, New Zealand, although corn is known as maize in that country. The item about the corn contest was passed along to us by Andy Dixon, who had more than a passing interest in the results. He had been in the corn field of the winning brothers on several occasions, because they were associated with the research programs conducted by Stewart Seeds of Ailsa Craig. The maize harvest result was 4.8 bushels above last year's winner, despite one of the worst growing seasons on record. Area farmers no doubt will be hoping that the poor growing season here will result in similar records. Andy explained to yours truly that the Poverty Bay section of Nevaealandls blessed with ideal soil and, of course, the growing season is much longer than here in Canada. 20 Years Ago Jim Hayter, Jr. who won a pony in Dashwood Men's Club draw last year, picked his grandmother's ticket out of the barrel Saturday night in another draw for a pony. With one pony in the family, the winner, Mrs. Fred Frizley of Goderich, decided to auction it off, James Hodgert, who recently broke a bone in his ankle, un- derwent an operation in St. Joseph's Hospital when a bone was taken from his leg and placed in the ankle, 30 Years Ago F.W. Gladman and daughter, Mrs. Warren Sanders, have returned home after an enjoyable trip to Winnipeg and Victoria. Beach where they visited with the former's son, Don and his wife. Mr. Norman Walper who is employed with Graham Arthur at the Red Indian Service Station has purchased the residence of Mrs, MaWhintiey, William Street. Miss Jean Grieve and girl friend, Miss Millie Lisse, of Los Angeles, spent three weeks at Grand Bend and visited with Mr, & Mrs. Thomas Coates and other friends. Most of us enjoy being on the giving end Of things, We feel im- portant and good when we can help someone through a difficul- ty by counselling, listening, visiting, baking a pie or by assisting in some other way. By the same token, many of us find it hard to be on the receiving end, Somehow it's much easier to give graciously than to receive graciously especially if the help comes from one we may feel is not quite as smart, or as spiritual or as good as we are. It goes against the grain to take assistance from somebody who is weaker than we are, or from a person we may not even like very well, It can even be difficult to accept help from those we con- sider our equals and contem- poraries because for., some reason or other we feel we are admitting weakness when we accept from someone else. And that's too bad. Because more and more I'm becoming convinced it's just as important, maybe more so, to be gracious receiver as it is to be a gracious giver. When we refuse to receive, or receive belligerently from others, we not only miss a blessing for ourselves but we also rob healing and encourage- ment from the giver. In his book Followers of Jesus, Jean Vanier says this, "Giving can be a treacherous thing, because by giving we dominate. Those who give must learnalso to receive in humility and love and thanksgiving," He goes on to say that it is im- portant not to stifle people with gifts but to give them a chance to love and enter the world of shar- ing. "It is terrible," Vanier says, "to be always on the receiving end. The role of a disciple of Jesus is to give life, and to give life is precisely to call others forth to give. We must learn how to receive the slightest gift with joy and thanks and wonderment, precisely because it is a gift of love. Thus we learn to give with KENNETH \ienoNA1.1) Every government likes to spend. None wants the blame for raising taxes But there's only one tax- payer. Look in the mirror. • • • The more remote the government, the more it spends. So when Ottawa. which set the pace for the present inflationary spend- ing, tries to economize. it must cut down on its cost-sharing with the pro- vinces. At their level, the provinces must do the same. The pressure is then on the municipalities, where the taxes start. • • • Forced to economize. Canadian municipalities may be interested in methods adopted by some of their counterparts south of the border. A • • Phoenix, Ariz., uses general building inspectors in plaCe of the conven- tional mix of inspectors specializing in each trade. Savings in the first five years: $4.5 million. The same city cut garbage collection costs sharply by introducing special trucks, with power lifts, to reduce crew sizes from three to one. 0 • • Several communities have combined their own police and fire depart- ments into one public safety department, with fire and police personnel trained to perform both functions, In Brown Deer, Wis.. all newly employed police officers are trained AS auxiliary firefighters, love, with humility, and without seeking credit. How often we crush when we give, desiring recognition. How often we think we do something great. . . . To give should not be regarded as a luxury for us; it is our first and fundamental duty. It is something so obvious that we shouldn't even speak of of it." He tells about one of his girl assistants whom he says has a high capacity of wonderment. When she is testing one of the men at L'Arche, the home that Vanier runs for the mentally handicapped, she has the capaci- ty of calling forth the best in those fellows. She is a non- smoker, but if the boy offers her a cigarette, she'll take it and smoke it with evident pleasure, and afterwards she'll turn and say, "Thank you, it was so good, your cigarette." This makes the fellow happy. As Vanier says this capacity of giving life through compassion, through understan- ding, through thanking is a wonderful thing, It is a great lesson to learn to give with humility. It may be a greater lesson to learn to receive with love from the great as well as the small, from the intelligent and the handicapped, from the strong and from the weak alike, for each has something valuable to share with us. Jesus moved gently through the throngs, never foisting himself or his miracles on anyone, and always receiving with understanding as He was entertained by the scalawags, administered to by the prostitute, or received a drink of cold water from the woman at the well, So let us not inflate our per- sonalities by giving, but rather let us share what we have with others, and share what they have to offer us with thanksgiving and love so that we are all blessed by the knowledge that as in- struments of Christ we are neither giving nor receiving anything except that which belongs to Him in the first place. Police cars are equipped with fire-fighting appa- ratus so that officers responding to fire calls can take preliminary action. • • • Scottsdale, Ariz., uses some city employees as auxiliary firefighters. Fully trained in fire fighting, they carry radios so they can be alerted in an emer- gency. They're paid only for time actually spent on duty. Average cost: $149 per month extra, com- pared to $1,000 per month for full-time firemen. • • 0 In Canada's free lunch department, the regional municipality of Durham. Ont.. made an interesting discovery. Last April, welfare cheques for all employable recipients were held for personal collection at their nearest office instead of being mailed. At the end of the first day, 72 cheques re- mained. Five days later, 52 were still there. None of the 52 recipients had called in or complained. Si. After two months of the Durham experiment, be- tween 15 and 20 cases are being closed each pay day, at a saving of $1,500 — $2,000 every two weeks. .• • • To the Canadian Fede- ration of Independent Business, the growing burden of taxation at the municipal level is just one example of how federal and provincial policy effects local communities. Big governments get the bucks and little govern- ments get the bills! llItIlIlniii