HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1978-03-16, Page 4Times-Advocate, March 16, 1978
BATT’N AROUND
Harmful to pocket book
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Time for cooler heads
It’s time for some cooler heads to
prevail in the strike at Fleck Manufac-’
turing before the situation results in a
tragedy.
The show of force displayed by
UAW members on Tuesday may have
caused them to consider their actions a
victory, but it was a dubious victory.
The UAW may have had some sym
pathetic supporters in view of the
police build-up during the first week of
the strike, but that sympathy was
quickly dispelled Tuesday. Ironically,
they resorted to intimidation (plus van
dalism) despite the fact they have been
most vocal in denouncing that as a tac
tic employed by the OPP.
Two wrongs never make a right!
The UAW action was not a spon
taneous reprisal! It was a deliberate
provocation and came after the police
had obviously toned down their ap
proach to the situation. Six
policewomen were brought in to staff
the picket line supervision, a plausible
attempt by the police to reduce their
show of force.
There is probably some cause for
complaint against the police in their in
volvement in the strike and even before
the strike started. However, perhaps
the national and district union leaders
should consider the fact that people in
this area are not as worldly as they. We
tend to take people more at face value
without looking for something insidious
in their actions. We welcome
policemen into our schools to advise
our youngsters of the rights and wrongs
under the law. It could be considered
intimidation, perhaps, but the thought
never crossed our minds.
Brand us naive if you wish, but
that’s the way life is in South Huron,
for its residents and its police. They’re
not always right, but words usually suf
fice to bring that to their attention.
Don’t misconstrue the message.
People in this area respect the position
taken by workers who appear to be un
derpaid by today’s standards, or who
may have legitimate complaints about
working conditions.
What is difficult to comprehend is
the use of blasphemy, vandalism,
violence and intimidation. It only
serves to make a bad situation worse.
Show your union solidarity...help
your fellow members achieve their
goals...but do it within the law and
without provoking violence and fear or
denying others their rights.
<Jhe<En®gy8awers
Other concerns too
table without some suffering on the
part of the steer from which it came?
Has the lobster really enjoyed being
tossed live into its boiling pot? Was
there no agony for the pig which kicked
out its life blood from a slit in its
throat?
An editorial in the Ridgetown
Dominion on this subject suggests the
protesters should balance their con
cern about the suffering inflicted on
animals with an attempt to do
something about the torture inflicted
with malice aforethought on prisoners
in many nations around the world, or to
do something about cruelty to battered
children.
The annual seal hunt is underway
in Canada, and with it is the annual in
flux of protesters from around the
world who object to the slaughter of
young seals.
There is no doubt that the seals are
subjected to some suffering as their
lives are snuffed out. But what form of
death can be accomplished without it?
As the protesters take time out
from their activities to fulfill their
bodily needs around the dinner table,
they should also reflect on the suffering
that has been encountered by the
various species of animals or fish
which form that repast.
Has that steak arrived at their
Better than a number
Plans to require a photograph on a
driver’s license are sure to raise the ire
of “civil rightists” but we’re in favor of
it.
Actually we’d rather be known by
our face than by a multi-digit number
that completely depersonalizes us.
Each time a new government move
is announced to catalogue, identify or
record the individual the usual protest
mounts based on invasions of privacy
and other trumped-up emotional objec
tions. Generally we object to any
further government intrusion, but be
ing identified is not something that
really holds great fear for the person
who hasn’t got anything to hide.
The loudest opponents *are often
those who prefer to remain
There’s been irrefutable evidence
for some time that smoking and drink
ing are harmful to one’s health, but the
Ontario budget presented last week by
Darcy McKeough now makes those two
vices even more dangerous — at least
to the pocketbook.
Following the example of many of
his predecessors, McKeough has once
again jumped on smokers and drinkers
to garner more funds for the
government’s lavish budget.
He claims he still hasn’t reached the
saturation point on liquor and tobacco
taxation and as he moves towards his
goal of a balanced budget for 1980-81, it
can be expected that he will attempt to
reach that saturation point.
Unfortunately, smokers have little
basis on which to object to the in
creases in taxation. It’s a taxation of
. -‘choice” and loud complaints on their
behalf.would only be answered by com
ments that all they have to do is quit
”......................-......................-
the increase.
However, it appears time that non-
smokers were given the recognition
they deserve for keeping the Ontario
economy as buoyant as it is. A pack-a-
day smoker now will contribute $80.30
per year ($80.52 during leap year) to
the treasury, and the benefits of that
money will no doubt be shared equally
by smokers and non-smokers alike.
This leads to the conclusion that
smokers should no longer be subjected
to the disdain and castigation which
they have incurred in recent years. In
fact, they should be given more credit
for their contribution.
For instance, the non-smokers
around Exeter’s council table are be
ing extremely short-sighted in their
attempts to curtail the puffs that other
members wish to take, while at the
same 1 time seeking additional funds
from the province.
Those funds, after all, are being
supplied in large part by the smokers
and council members are in fact reduc
ing their chances at extra funds by
denying the provincial treasurer the
extra tax revenue from those smokers.
In effect, they’re cutting their own
throats by cutting off the smokers. A
roomful of stale, stinking, second-hand
smoke doesn’t appear to be too great a
price to pay for those benefits.
Puff away, Clarence, we need
money!
★
the
to get up in the neighbourhood of $50,-
000 to $60,000 per year.
Many taxpayers receive some of the
same benefits from their employers, of
course, although few match them en
tirely.
Who says we’re not a socialist state?
* * *
Councillor Ken Ottewell didn’t get
much support for his concern last week
about the economic advisability for the
member municipalities in the Exeter
fire board to set aside $4,000 each year
for the anticipated purchase of a new
fire truck.
His suggestion was that the
municipalities would be better advised
to pay off existing debenture debts with
by Richard Charles
Little goes a long way
Most people will agree that cars take a large slice of our
incomes, but are not so ready to admit that many of us
pick the wrong cars and often use them wastefully. Mean
while, everything from rising prices to dwindling fuel
supplies, from congested roads and parking areas to traffic
accidents and air pollution is plainly telling us to ease up.
Which means to drive less often, less fast and less fancily.
To a society brought up on the legend of the Stutz
Bearcat and the Open Road, the notion that motoring
today is no longer so free and easy comes as a slap in the
face. It’s a bit like the knight of 500 years ago discovering
that the glory of putting on armour and galloping to the
rescue of fair damsels had suddenly lost its appeal now that
he ran the risk of being blown off his horse by the new
fangled cannon.
We have no choice, it seems, but to learn some tricks
that can help us to travel in fair comfort while being aware
of the needle on the world’s gas gauge, which unfortunately
is creeping toward “Empty”. The first trick is to pick the
right car.
Two kinds of energy go into a new car the energy used
in producing the steel and other materials, and making the
parts and putting them together, and then the energy to
make it run. That’s not counting the energy needed for
maintenance, new tires and repairs, and for providing roads
and traffic control systems, and finally for towing the old
heap to the dump.
When you set out to buy a new car, you look for the
deal that suits you best, of course. But remember, a good
deal goes beyond finding “a honey of a car”, bargaining
hard for it, doing well with your trade-in and paying on the
easiest terms available. It also means asking: What kind of
car do I need? What will it cost to run? How long will it last
me? If you can get the answers right, you will save yourself
a lot of money in the long run and (may heaven bless you)
you will be helping to beat the energy shortage.
If you are in the market for a new car. a good way to
begin is with a list of current models that shows their fuel
consumption. The Office of Energy Conservation, De
partment of Energy, Mines and- Resources in conjunction
with Transport Canada publishes such a list with over 250
makes and models ranging from a low consumption of 53
miles per gallon (85 kpg) to a high of 14 mpg (22 kpg).
These are divided into three classes: 51 good fuel savers
giving better than 33 mpg (53 kpg), 74 reasonable savers at
24 (38 kpg) to 32 mpg (51 kpg), and 127 that make the
fuel problem worse by giving less than 24 mpg (38 kpg).
This list of cars and other information on buying, driving
and maintaining them is in The car mileage book. Just write
to Box 3500, Station C, Ottawa, Ontario, K1Y 4G1 for
anonymous. i
Not long ago we heard of operators...the foul deed if they don’t want to pay
of a public place who were charged for
having underaged people on their
premises. It didn’t matter that those
underaged people had identification
that wasn’t their own.
A photograph on a driver’s licence
will better prevent its illegal use, will
make identification in the case of acci
dent more positive, will identify quick
ly those who may‘seem underage but
actually are not and will be a far better
step to personalizing an individual than
any line up of numbers.
We’re in favor of the action the
province is introducing, but we don’t
expect it to get everyone’s support.
Milton Champion
* *
Of course, the hardest pill to swallow
in Darcy’s budget is the whopping in
crease in OHIP premiums. They go up
by 37.5 percent on May 1.
That will be a direct cost to many
Ontario taxpayers, but will hit the mid
dle income group extremely hard. the money and then include the cost of
They’ll be helping to pay for the
premium subsidy offered to lower in
come singles and families and the free
health coverage extended to thousands
of others.
In addition, their property taxes will
also show some increases in cases
where public servants receive the
benefit of total or partial payment of
OHIP premiums.
. In Exeter, for instance, the increases
will be borne entirely by the taxpayers
as all members of the muncipal staff
have their OHIP premiums paid in
total by the town.
That’s a total of over 20 people at a
rate of $12 per month, adding $2,880 per
year to the town’s general account, for
a grand total of $10,560.
OHIP premiums are only one of the
benefits enjoyed by the municipal
employees, and when their con
tributions for Mutual Life, OMERS
pension, Canada pension, unemploy
ment insurance and workmen’s com
pensation are added in, the bill starts
a new fire truck in their budgets when
the need arises for that vehicle. As he
correctly pointed out, it is unfair for
current taxpayers to help pay for a
vehicle which they may never see due
to change of residence, death, etc.
The fact is, that interest one receives
on an investment (or reserve fund) is
not as great as the interest which one
pays for current debts. That’s the basic
principle that keeps the nation’s
chartered banks economically viable
— very viable indeed.
That’s why financial experts advise
people not to build up huge low-interest
mortgage loans. Better to use the
money to pay the debt and escape the
interest burden.
We agree that there is some merit in
setting aside a reserve fund in that it
lessens the burden on taxpayers when
the purchase becomes necessary.
However, budgets and priorities can be
set to overcome that burden, which
may still be lower in actual cost than a
reserve fund.
your copy.
A useful rule of thumb to apply is, of course, that little
cars usually go farther on a gallon of gas than bigger ones,
but size is not the whole story, especially as the smallest
cars don’t meet every need. A car’s fuel consumption also
depends on the weight, size and efficiency of its engine, the
efficiency of its transmission and drive train, its shape
(streamlining), its stability on the road, and the extra
equipment on it (such as power windows and air con
ditioners).
Fuel consumption will vary too with your driving habits,
how well you maintain your car, and the. weather and other
driving conditions. So your miles-per-gallon (or kilometers-
per-gallon) may not quite match the published figures, but
the more economical performers will continue to serve you
Let’s have some facts
Despite the fact that the current
strike-lockout in Huron secondary
schools is now entering its fourth week,
the majority of people in the county
(including, we suspect, some teachers
and board members) still don’t know
the real reasons for the stalemate.
It is clear that the real issue cen
tres around something known as P.P.C.
(pupil period contacts) but it is far
from clear why that is an issue.
The teachers say the clause about
P.P.C. will guarantee a fair balance in
class size and teaching load across the
county and in the end, result in a
“better deal” for the students.
The board, on the other hand,
suggests the P.P.C. clause will add
teachers to the staff at a time of declin
ing enrolment and would in effect
remove the role of administration from
the board and its paid administrators.
The teachers have prepared a
colorful brochure to outline their posi
tion, but nowhere have they outlined
any facts to back their position. Of the
four questions they suggest ratepayers
should pose to the board, only one deals v
with the P.P.C. issue. They suggest we '
ask why the school board is insisting
that guidelines be removed from the
contract.
Unfortunately, the teachers
haven’t given any reasons as to why
they think the guidelines should be in
cluded, other than some rather general
statements about equitable workload.
If the key issue is class size and
teacher workload, they would enhance
their position if they took time to tell
the taxpayers why existing conditions
are unbearable. What teachers and
students in the system work with
classes that are too large? Where are
the present inequities?
At the present time, the public
knows only that there are between 16.8
to 17.2 students for each teacher in the
Huron system. That appears
reasonable, on average. So what is the
problem? Tell the people! Tell them
using facts and not general statements.
Sugar and Spice
Dispensed by Smiley
It was crazy to volunteer
Times Established 1873 Advocate Established 1 881
imes -Advocate
SouthHuron,North Mlddkw
Editor — Bill Batten
Assistant Editor — Ross Haugh
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SUBSC.........
55 Years Ago
The members of the Live
Wire class of Main Street
Sunday School of which Miss
E. Follick is the teacher,
conducted the services of the
school on Sunday afternoon
last. Mr. Lyle Statham acted
as superintendent. The
review of the lessons of the
quarter was taken by
Edward Aldsworth, Benson
Tuckey, Tom Pryde and
Howard Dignan. Maurice
Ford presided at the piano
while Edgar Rundle acted as
secretary and Russell
Brintnell as postmaster.
Mr. Cliff Davis has
resigned his position at
Heaman’s Hardware and is
leaving for Windsor.
The Exeter Lawn Bowling
Association held its annual
meeting Thursday evening
of last week with about 20
members present. The
election of officers resulted
as follows: honorary
presidents J. J. Merner, H.
Elber, Wm. Black and
Andrew Hicks; jpresident,
G. E. Anderson; vice-
president, H. Spackman;
secretary R. N. Creech;
treasurer, T. S. Woods.
Messrs. Young and Clark
have enlarged and
remodelled their ice-cream
parlor at the Commercial
Hotel at Hensall.
30 Years Ago
Caven Prsbyterian Church
has extended a call to Rev.
Donald Sinclair of Allendale
to become minister to suc
ceed the late Rev. Kenneth
MacLean.
Mr, Stanley Love, Kippen,
held a successful auction
sale on Thursday.
A combined meeting of the
four Farm Forums met for
the last meeting of the
season in Thames Road
Sunday School rooms. Four
reels of educational films
were shown.
Mr. Harold Murray, who
has been in charge of the
Canada Packers plant in
Exeter, left this week for
Berwick, N.S. to take over
the management of a milk
plant.
The canvass in Hensall for
the funds for the erection of a
new recreational centre is
off to a good start.
20 Years Ago
Rev. N. D. Knox of Trivitt
Memorial Church, Exeter,
announced • to his
congregation Sunday
morning that he had ac
cepted a call to Trinity
Church, Lambeth.
Paula Boulianne of
Crediton was awarded third
prize in a province wide
lyrical verse-speaking
competition at Toronto
Monday afternoon.
A carload of western
saddle horses were received
by CNR freight by Dalton
Finkbeiner, Exeter. These
horses aren’t for the farm,
but to fill a demand for
riding horses.
Bill Pollen, academic
award winner, track
champion, team athlete and
student official, has been
chosen as the outstanding
boy at SHDHS this year.
15 Years Ago
John Hall, RR 2, Ailsa
Craig, won the anndal
McIntosh public speaking
contest at the University of
Western Ontario this week.
He is a law student and
SHDHS graduate.
Emmanuel Baptist
Church, Exeter, was of
ficially recognized as a
Baptist Church by the
delegates from the South
Western Association of
Fellowship Baptist Churches
this week.
J. A. Traquair, who this
week celebrates 50 years in
the hardware industry
received the Estwing Gold
Hammer award from
William King, district
representative of Cochrane-
Dunlop which distributes
Estwing hammers in this
area.
Exeter Figure Skating
Club presented their annual
carnival, “Artistry on Ice”
to more than 500 people at
the arena Saturday night.
My involvement with the RCAF
Association brings back a lot of
memories, some a bit grim, some pret
ty hilarious.
As the old mind’s eye wandered
back, something hit me like a cold
douche. Not that I’ve ever taken a cold
douche.
Why were we so keen to get killed? In
this age of dropouts, draft dodgers and
deserters, it seems incredible that
thousands of young Canadian males,
back in the Forties, were almost fran
tic to get into the air force, into air
crew, and into a squadron, where the
chances were excellent they’d be dead
within a couple of months.
From the point of view of common
sense, reason, logic, it was not any
brighter than the Children’s Crusade of
the Middle Ages.
Why? Certainly we had no death
wish. We had no deep urge to immate
ourselves in the breath of the war
dragon. We weren’t even running to the
battlements to protect our homes, our
wives and children. Most of us were in
school, or just recently out, and didn’t
have none of them there things.
Oh, we knew we had to “Stop thet
bawstawd Hitlah!” as Churchill once
told us on an airfield in Normandy. We
knew rather vaguely that we were
defending democracy and unemploy
ment against the monsters of
totalitarianism and full employment,
although it was a bit puzzling that
totalitarian Russia was on our side.
We knew joining up was the thing to
do, that most of our friends were doing
it, that a fellow looked pretty fine in a
uniform, that the girls were impressed
and the hitch-hiking easier.
But why the air* force? And why air
crew, where the dice were loaded so
heavily?
Did we avoid the army because we
didn’t want to be exposed to the rude
and licentious soldiery and get all dirty
and grimy in action? Or the navy
because we preferred a fiery grave to a
watery.
I just don’t know but most of my
friends, and most of their friends,
chose the air force, and were dead keen
on getting into air crew.
Within a bare few years, most of
them were a lot less keen, and many
were a lot more dead.
As I recall, it was a real downer for
those who failed the tough medical test
for air crew. Once chosen, you were
filled with despair if you were going for
pilot and ha'd to settle for bomb-aimer,
just because you were a little cross
eyed.
Once in training, it was a shattering
experience to be “washed out” of air
crew merely because you had badly
bent up one of His Majesty’s aircraft
by trying to land at 40 feet up, or had
wound up 300 miles off course on a
cross-country training flight. It was
devastating if you wanted to be a
fighter pilot and were shipped off to
lumbering old bombers.
I have friends who still bear a deep
Scar on the psyche, because they were
made flying instructors and spent the
rest of the war in Canada. This despite
the fact they were chosen as instruc
tors because they were far better pilots
than the rest of us.
This despite the fact that many of the
pilots they traihed Were dead, dead, in
no time. None of this was any consola
tion, They still feel they missed
something irrecoverable.
Well I know what they missed. They
missed the stupidity of senior officers
who didn’t know whether they were
punched or bored. They missed long,
deadly dull periods of training, and
short, intense moments of sheer
terror.
They missed being shot at, physical
ly, by perfect strangers, and shot
down, verbally, by people on their own
side.
They missed the utter blind confu
sion of the amateurs in charge of the
war. Migawd, those idiots lost an en
tire wing of Typhoons for a full week.
Nobody, least of all Intelligence, had
a clue where it was. I air-hitched all
over southern England and northern
France before I found the blasted
thing, all on my own.
Let’s see, have I left anything out?
Well maybe I have. First I’ll take that
back about stupid senior officers.
There were plenty of those in Canada,
too, so you didn’t miss that.
Perhaps you missed the joy of clim
bing out of your aircraft after an opera
tion, lighting a cigarette, and talking a
wind blue streak of relief and let-down.
I guess you missed the glory of
heading off for a week’s leave in a
strange country, loaded with lust, a
month’s pay in your pocket, and the
secret sweetness in your head of know
ing that nobody would be shooting at
you for seven days.
And you did, I must admit, miss the
girls. Not all of those fumblings in the
blackout were frustrating.
But I still say we were all crazy to
volunteer, and even vie to be killed.
Must write a paper on that same day.
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September 30,1975 5,409
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