HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times-Advocate, 1977-01-13, Page 4ftiMMTWA
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Page 4 Times-Advocate, January 13, 1977
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Good opportunity Tell on yourself
In case you haven't noticed during the
hectic holiday season, the federal man-
power and immigration department has
been running a series of advertisements en-
titled "Canada Works".
It's a new job creation program that
the department hopes will provide jobs for
60,000 Canadians as well as an additional
20,000 students next summer.
The advertisements report that Canada
Works will accept applications from groups
and organizations including private
businesses who wish to develop, sponsor
and administer worthwhile community
projects.
With several area firms experiencing
layoffs in recent weeks, there is little ques-
tion but what the program could provide
employment for some of them, as well as
students who will be looking for work this
summer.
Certainly Exeter council appears to
have an obligation to consider some avenue
to find work for the two RAP employees
who have been permanently laid off if they
are sincere in their wish to have the, men
rejoin the staff when work is available in
the spring.
RAP had outlined several projects in
their application for a LIP grant and it is
conceivable that some of them could be
considered to create jobs in the communi-
ty. It would appear to be an avenue the
social services committee should fully in-
vestigate.
Area councils, service clubs, business
firms and Exeter's new Downtown
Restoration Board should seriously con-
sider making application (February 4 is the
deadline) to find work for some of these
people within our midst.
"Before Christmas, we were trying to keep up with the Joneses — now we're trying to
keep ahead of the creditors."
Some cold feet? Needs an even keel
Not all the news contained in an issue
of a newspaper is confined strictly to the
news columns. On occasions a considerable
amount of information can be gleaned from
the advertising columns.
Help wanted advertisements indicate
expanding business, retirements or firings.
The for sale columns contain a wealth of in-
formation ranging from the "never worn
wedding gown" to a dispersal of baby
equipment.
Not often, however, can one judge the
success of a community event through the
classified columns, although last week was
an exception.
The following appeared under the
found column: At Lions New Year's eve
dance — scarves, lady's shoes, man's
overshoes and one snowmobile boot."
Obviously a good time was enjoyed by
Discouraging picture
There may not be any cause for alarm,
but the economic picture in this area is far
from encouraging.
During the past year, one major
employer (J F Farm Machinery) has gone
out of business and another (North Star
Yachts) appears to be heading in the same
direction.
On top of that, several firms have been
forced to lay off several employees, the
most severe situations being at Bendix
Homes and Bell Aerospace.
In a large industrial area, these,
situations would not be cause for major
concern, but when they represent such a
large percentage of employment oppor-
tunities in South Huron,, they certainly
represent significant problems.
In most cases, the firms are experien-
cing problems due to weak market con-
ditions for their products. Unfortunately,
the layoff of Workers starts a snowball
effect that reaches out to create problems
for other firms and it's certainly going to
be a long winter for many area residents —
both literally and figuratively.
Hopefully, a complete turn-around will
be experienced come spring.
The human spirit
Could you write a pungent, tell-
ing essay on The Human Spirit in
the new year?
No? Well, that's what my
senior students tell me, too. But I
know they are wrong, and I think
you are wrong also. I'll bet you
could write a dandy, expecially if
you have lived a lot.
I gave my students instruc-
tions for an essay, and most of
them went into a state of mild
shock. They shouldn't have.
They are dealing with the human
spirit, their own and others,
every minute of their young
lives.
However, students, like most
of us, prefer things to be spelled
out. But how can you spell out
the human spirit?
You can't touch it, taste it
smell it, weigh or measure it.
You can't peer through
someone's navel and shout
"Tally-ho! There it is! Your
spirit!"
From the beginnings of
thought, our great writers and
thinkers have explored the
human creature in an effort to
pin down this elusive thing.
Some philosophers have
believed they had put their finger
on the slippery little devil only to
find that it has squirted away.
Clerics are more apt to call it
the soul. Psychologists pin nasty
names like id and ego and libido
on various aspects of it,
Writers give examples of it,
Times Established 1873
Artists try to depict its highest
aspirations.
The human spirit exists in all
of us. It, along with the power to
reason, is what raises us above
the level of the beasts.
Its presence is allied to all that
is good and great in human kind:
loyalty, integrity, compassion,
honor, courage, dignity.
Its absence represents all that
is bad in the human race: greed,
cruelty, prejudice, indifference,
treachery.
Given the right fertilizer, the
human spirit reaches out to other
human spirits, and mankind
moves another inch toward the
stars.
Without proper nourishment,
the human spirit shrivels or
warps, turns in on itself, rots,
and spreads like a cancer.
In certain periods, the under-
nourished spirit produces the
great psychopaths like Attila the
Hun, Napoleon, Hitler, and we
are led into darkness.
But after each of these sombre
intervals, the resurgent human
spirit roars back, fanning the
embers into a blaze of glory, and
once more man is on the march.
This is all very inspiring, I'm
sure, but it's pretty abstract, and
I prefer the concrete. Let's see if
we can find some examples of
the human spirit in action.
When a two-year-old child, nor-
mally good and obedient, sticks
out his lip and flatly refuses to do
Advocate Established 1881
something reasonable, and
defies threats of spankings, he is
not just being stubborn. He is ex-
hibiting, to the world, his sense
of self, of independence. That is
the human spirit.
When an 80 year old man, or
woman, prefers to pig it alone in
poverty and discomfort, rather
than be shuttled off to a cosy
senior citizen's home, he or she
is doing the same.
When a man or woman has
enough guts to say "No!" at a
time when all about are saying
"Yes!" that's the human spirit
at work.
But let's get down to an exam-
ple we can all understand. When
a man gets up after his old lady
has knocked him down five
times, and advances on her,
arms outstretched, and says:
"Darling, let me explain just
once more," that is the human
spirit at its best.
Don't get this human spirit
thing all mixed up with sen-
timentality: the cooing of a
baby, which might just be a gas
pain, the radiant smile of a
bride, which might be just vani-
ty. Or gloating. No, let's keep it
on a high plain.
Here are the instructions I
gave my students. See how they
grab you.
"This essay is to be an ex-
amination of the human spirit
Amalgamated 1924
One of the major problem
areas of our modern times is in
the matter of recreation.
Nowhere is this more evident
than in this community, although
it is certainly not unique.
More than any other facet of
cur way of life, recreation fluc-
tuates drastically from year to
year. There appears to be little
reasoning behind the way it
moves from its low points to its
pinnacles, although generally it
follows a cyclical path that can
almost be predicted.
What appears to happen is that
after it falls top low point, it is
slowly built up until it reaches a
point where many people think
too much is being spent on
recreation and it is then chopped
drastically. Unfortunately, those
responsible for recreation can't
hit that "happy medium" and it
results in a situation of feast or
famine.
Ironically, two of those most
involved with council's decision
last week to dissolve RAP have
played a major role in moving
recreation from its high and low
points;
It was under Reeve Si Sims
mons' term as mayor that RAC
was formed to streamline the.ad-
ministration of Exeter's arena,
recreation and parks setup. It
• was a move that was used as a
model by many other com-
munities in this part of Ontario
to centralize their programs.
But we also recall that Mr.
Simmons became concerned
about the expenditures of the
operation and the community
was soon without the services of
a recreation director.
Along came Bruce Shaw and a
special committee some time
later with a recommendation
that RAP should again be
streamlined and with a
recommendation that the com-
munity needed a full-time
recreation director.
Both Messrs. Shaw and Sim-
mons were, of course, involved
in the decision to dissolve RAP
last week and it appears evident
that both are of the opinion that
the community does not need a
full-time recreation director.
* * * *
While it would appear that
council have burned some
bridges by their decision to dis-
solve RAP, it is nevertheless dif-
ficult to be critical of their move
to any great extent. Obviously,
they must be given an opportuni-
ty to follow through on their
plans to establish a suitable
replacement.
While recreation may suffer to
some extent if that planning does
not bear fruit quickly, their
move to dissolve RAP leaves
Ten many alternatives that
would perhaps not be available
otherwise.
In effect they have given
themselves a free hand to form
any type of organization that
(soul, self) as it acts and reacts
under stress, in inter-play with
other human spirits, in conflict
with society.
"The essay should reveal
something of what the student
has learned this year from ex-
posure to the ideas of first-class
writers concerning the human
spirit.
"Ideas expressed should not be
merely emotional clap-trap or
mystic foofawraw. Nor should
they be a mere recording of ex-
amples of the human spirit in ac-
tion, taken from the books read,
They should rather represent the
student's own human spirit reac-
ting to the stimulus of what has
been read and pondered.
" Any reasonable — and even
some unreasonable — ap-
proaches to the topic Will be en-
couraged.
"Students may choose one of
the followibg exhortations from
their glorious leader:
"Good Luck."
or
"Eat Your Heart Out."
Aren't you glad you don't take
English from me?
appears suitable and there will
be no concern for having to dove-
tail that new organization into
any existing operation.
However, it is imperative that
council attempt to establish —
once and for all — that happy
medium that is required to keep
recreation on an even keel in this
community. The ups and downs
of the past have been marked
with unpleasant confrontations
and controversies and hopefully
they can be avoided in the future.
It is also an opportune time for
Exeter and its three neighboring
municipalities to establish an
organization that can administer
the recreation needs of all those
involved.
At the present time there is an
overlapping of recreation ser-
vices in the four municipalities,
while in other areas there is no
service provided at all by any of
them.
A quick glance at the registra-
tion for recreation programs in
the various communities will
show that there are participants
from throughout the area. While
most of that movement comes
towards Exeter, there are ex-
amples of Exeter boys playing in
the Crediton ball program and
Exeter teams entered in the
Usborne girls' softball league.
Two of the area's most
successful sports organizations
thrOugh the years have operated
on an area basis for some time.
They are the Exeter Minor
Hockey Association and the Ex-
eter Figure Sakting Club.
It is worthy of note to point out
that both groups operate in-
dependently of the Exeter RAP
committee, and their success
was seldom affected by RAP's
ups and downs.
* * * *
One of the problems with RAP
in recent years has been the fact
that while the committee was
charged with the responsibility
for parks, the arena and recrea-
tion, most people looked at their
total budget and immediately put
only a "recreation" label on it.
65 Years Ago
The directors of Molsons Bank
have decided to withdraw their
bank branch from Dashwood.
It was announced by Hon, W. T.
White, minister of finance, that
the government had decided to
grant the request of the Farmers
Bank victims for a thorough
investigation of the affairs of the
bank.
Mr. T. G. Creech and his men
are busy harvesting ice from the
pond.
Mrs. George Millson, Whalen,
is laid up with blood-poisoning
caused from a chilblain on her
heel.
County councillors W. J.
Heaman, reeve of Exeter, Fred
Hunkin, reeve of Usborne, Henry
Willer t, reeve, and William
Yearley, deputy-reeve of
Stephen, left Tuesday to attend
county council in Goderich.
30 Years Ago
Mr. W. W. McBride has sold his
coal business in Exeter to Mr.
Harry Bierling.
The old Board of Education has
now been dissolved and the new
Exeter High School District
Board will take over the duties.
Miss Jean Snell last week
received her degree as a
Registered Nurse.
Messrs. Howard Pym and
Emerson Penhale of Elimville
returned home after spending
four months in Alberta,
Arnold Cann, Donald Kernick,
Edwin Miller and Ronald Elford
attended the three day short
course for Junior Farmers at
University of Western Ontario,
London,
So the cost of cutting the grass at
Riverview Park or painting the
grandstand became a recreation
expense although it should ob-
viously not have been given that
definition.
To this writer, it becomes
clear that recreation should be
divorced entirely from the
operation of the new recreation
centre in the same manner that
parks has now been separated.
Obviously any recreation
group would have to work closely
with the board administering the
rec centre or parks (if the latter
is to include the ball diamonds,
etc.) but each should be charged
with the responsibility of main-
taining its own budgets and
method of operation.
Some joint representation by
members from one group to the
other may be necessary to
provide the continuity that is
required and the definition of
duties that may be 'needed for
employees involved in all facets
of the entire •recreation, rec cen-
tre and parks program, but each
group should be independent so
each can operate in a more ef-
ficient and clear manner so the
expenditures made in each area
are clearly defined.
It is also imperative that the
respective bodies have represen-
tation of elected officials to en-
sure there is trust between the
groups and the councils
represented. One of the down-
falls of RAP was the fact that the
council appointees didn't always
do a good job in providing the
necessary liaison between coun-
cil and RAP and quite often they
were wishy-washy in presenting
RAP's position to council and in
backing the decisions made by
RAP of which they were.
members.
It is unfortunate that elected
officials have this sense of mis-
trust of groups which they have
appointed, and even sit on, but it
is a fact of life that they can't
20 Years Ago
Redecoration of Zion United
Church, Usborne, was completed
last week and the congregation
held its first service in the church
in six months. While the
renovations were going on,
church services were held in a
near-by school.
Larry Snider, Exeter, was
elected chairman of South Huron
District High School Board
Tuesday night.
New officers for James St.
Choir are: president, Maxine
Reeder, vice president, Bill
Batten; secretary, Jean Taylor;
treasurer, Barbara Brintnell.
Exeter Dram; "lub is planning
another presentation this season.
The farce, "Father's Been to
Mars" will be produced in
March.
15 Years Ago
Exeter's reeve, William
McKenzie, passed away in
Victoria Hospital, Tuesday
morning. Mr. McKenzie had been
active in town and county
governments for the past decade.
Kongskilde Ltd., established in
the former North Land building
on No, 83 highway has purchased
the Salsbury building beside it.
Exeter's Mr. Poppy, Fred
Wells, died after suffering a heart
attack and a fall near his home.
A. "Jake" Switzer, who has
been chairman'of the Exeter Boy
Scout Group Committee for the
past to years retired from that
position this week.
Jo Anne Miners, Elimville and
Iris Becker, Dashwood, were
awarded county honor pins by
Mrs, H. Strang, district W.I,
president at Achievement Day in
Seaforth.
How do you size up other
people? Or perhaps, more im-
portantly, how are you sized up
by others?
Are you judged by how much
money you have? By what you
wear? Flow clever or good
looking you are?
Yes, I guess we all observe
those things to some degree when
we look another person over, But
when someone is really sizing you
up he looks much more deeply
than just at the external elements
of our makeup.
When we are being appraised
by someone, he asks himself,
"Can I trust him or do I detect
something dishonest about him?"
"Is she sincere or is she
shallow?" "Are the vibes I get
from him genuninely friendly or
is he only feigning interest in
me?"
I recall conversing with a man
a few years ago when a certain
woman's name came into the
conversation. "I think she must
have ice in her veins," he com-
mented.
Now, why would he make a
remark like that? The lady in
question is pretty and charming,
almost like a fine china figurine.
She can carry on an intelligent
conversation and I'm told she is
an exacting hostess, her table
seem to let go of the authority
which they have invested in
others.
Basically, our suggestion is a
return to the system which
operated prior to RAP's forma-
tion, and while it may appear to
be a backward step, it must be
admitted by all that RAP has not
proven consistently successful
and the entire program ad-
ministered by it has suffered
from time to time.
However, this time it is to be
hoped that the new bodies form-
ed to administer the functions
will be formed on an area basis
to take full advantage of the
potential available to provide
better recreation and communi-
ty facilities for everyone.
Our prediction is that people
will be pleasantly surprised to
find that recreation is not really
an expensive matter and in fact
most programs are self-
sustaining.
It is also our opinion that under
the proper leadership, promotion
and management, the operation
of the new rec centre will not be
as much of a burden on tax-
payers as some have predicted.
By KENNETH McDONALD
Parti Quebecois proposals
for a common tariff, or cus-
toms union, between Canada
and a separate Quebec leave
many questions unanswered.
• • •
Of all the provinces, Que-
bec is the most dependent on
tariff protection. In those Ca-
nadian industries which are
protected by tariffs higher
than 20 per cent, more than
60 per cent of the employees
are in Quebec. In addition,
37 per cent of manufacturing
employment in Quebec is tied
to sales in other provinces.
• • •
If Quebec were to separ-
ate, Canada's centre of gra-
vity would move westward.
The four Western provinces
would make up 37 per cent
of the total population, com-
pared to 27 per cent now.
Their main source of trade
is in primary products (grain
and minerals). Their historic
complaint is that freight rates
are rigged to suit manufac-
turers and processors in On-
tario and Quebec.
• • •
Their products move east
at a low rate which encour-
ages processing in Eastern
Canada. But in reverse they
pay a higher rate On manu-
factured goods shipped west.
• • •
The West has swallowed
this inequity for the sake
of strengthening Canada's
manufacturing base within
the context of Confedera-
tion, Would it continue to
do so if the third of that base
represented by Quebec were
always beautifully appointed and
her house decorated with ex-
pensive good taste.
What, then, made my friend
say she had ice water running
through her veins?
Simply because when you meet
her on the street or at some
gathering or other, although she
puts on all the outward ap-
pearances of being friendly,
you're sixth sense tells you she
really couldn't care less if you
dropped dead at her feet, She
pretends interest but it just
doesn't come off; the Smile on her
lovely face isn't real, it's put
there for one reason.„to impress,
It doesn't take long to size her up
as being shallow and brittle.
Well, most of us are guilty of
trying to fool people sometimes
and perhaps we can for awhile
but we can't get away with it
forever. Abe Lincoln said, "You
can fool some of the people all of
the time. You can fool all of the
people some of the time, but you
can't fool all of the people all of
the tithe."
Proverbs of the Bible says a
man "is what he thinks" and
what we think shows up in
everything we do. This little
poem says it all.
You tell on yourself by the friends
you seek,
By the very manner in which you
speak,
By the way you employ your
leisure time,
By the use you make of dollar and
dime.
You tell what you are by the
things you wear,
By the spirit in which your
burdens bear,
By the kind of things at which you
laugh,
By the records you play on your
phonograph.
You tell what you are by the way
you walk,
By the things of which you delight
to talk,
By the manner in which you bear
defeat,
By so simple a thing as how you
eat.
By the books you choose from
well-filled shelf;v
In these ways and more, you tell,
on yourself;
So there's really no particle of
sense
In an effort to keep up false
pretense.
in another country? More
likely is a demand to end
freight rate discrimination
and Set up processing in the
West. •
0 • 0
The Western provinces'
interests would be better
served by low tariffs. This
would reduce the cost of im-
ported goods. Again, within.
Confederation The Western
provinces accept the need to
protect Eastern Canada's
industry.
0 • 0
But the greater part of the
protection is for Quebec's
benefit. If Quebec were to
separate, is it likely that the
Western provinces, or the At-
lantic provinces, would allow
themselves to be penalized
with a high tariff to protect
industries in a foreign coun-
try? What would happen to
the 37 per cent of Quebec
manufacturing, which is now
sold in other parts of Canada,
if tariffs were lowered?
tio • •
In April 1975, the results
of a nationwide poll of Cana-
dian Federation of Indepen-
dent Business members on
the issue of free trade with
the United States was — 44
per cent in favour and SO per
cent against. Without Que-
bec, there is little doubt that
small business sentiment
would swing in favour of free
trade,
4111 • •
The concept of a separate
Quebec in a customs union
with Canada is wishful think-
ing. Separation would be
complete. Quebec would be
on its own.
+CNA
all!
OxeierZimesalmocafe
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September 30, 1975 5,409
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awn memory lane,
Implications of Quebec separation