HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1979-08-15, Page 2Tools of the trade
Behind the scenes
by Keith Roulston
History's lessons
INIMMILSONO
Brussels Post
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 15, 1979
WIWI& 1.$
ONTAII 10
Serving Brussels and the surrounding community.
Published each Wednesday afternoon at Brussels, Ontario
By McLean Bros. Publishers Limited
Evelyn Kennedy - Editor Pat Langlois - Advertising
Member Canadian Community Newspaper AssociatiOn and
Ontario Weekly Newspaper Association
Subscriptions (in advance) Canada $10.00 a Year.
Others $20.00 a Year. Single Copies 25 cents each. BLUE
RIBBON
AWARD
A pat on the back
Brussels has done it. With the help of the Brussels Lions Club and
many other organizations and individuals the debt on the Brussels,
Morris and Grey Community Centre has been paid for.
Of course money will still be needed for the operating expenses of
the arena but what a feeling of accomplishment for the people of
Brussels to know the debt has been paid.
The arena has been a source of pride for the people of Brussels,
Morris and Grey ever since its opening in November, 1977. And the
arena has been a big success with the many meetings, sports activities,
banquets and wedding receptions held there.
An arena is something everyone can use--from the oldest to the
youngest member in the community. Also more and more people
outside the Brussels area seem to be making use of the large facilities
the arena provides. During the recent federal election campaigns for
both the Liberals and Conservatives rallies; were held there.
The people of Brussels, Morris and Grey deserve a pat on the back
for their fine achievement of getting the arena built and for managing
to pay off the arena debt in just two years.
Short Shots
by Evelyn Kennedy
'(Continued from Page 1)
communities, that concern for others in
distress and the spirit of "neighbour help
neighbour" is very much alive in Canadian
ommunities.
******
It will soon be Fall Fair time again in
Brussels. September 18th and 19th are the
dates to remember. In preparation for that
:went a "Cleanup Day" will be held at the
Fair grounds on September 10t.h.
**•**
Hurrah!! At the time of writing at least
onie of our streets were being resurfaced
Ind given time they all will get that
attention. It will be a relief to drive a car
vithout bouncing over bumps, and through
'toles. We still encounter "Street Closed"
;igns and a "Detour" sign or two but now,
vith resurfacing started, we can look
brward to the end of the inconvenience
vhich is part of the cost of obtaining the
,enifits of a sewer system. * * * * * *
Are you remembering not to throw away
tour non-winning Wintario tickets? Turn
hem into our local librarian, Mrs. Della
Wintario tickets dated April 12 -
ieptember 12, 1979 can be used by the
ibrary to purchase any eligible Canadian
ecordings. Each ticket has a value of 50c
oward the purchase of each record up to a
naximum of four tickets or $2.00. This is an
ticentive to try Canadian recordings. Not
my the more popular ones but lesser known
wns in pop, classical and children's fields.
ake your Wintario tickets to the library
IOW for all tickets will be collected early in
eptember.
******
Maggie Trudeau is at it again! Not content
nth her personal revelations in her book.
Beyond ReaSon" she has had published in
Playgirl" more of the same trash. What
tdy, (but then is she a lady in the finest
Anse of the word) would want to broadcast
) the world at large her early girlhood
discretions, *inking them an abortidn in her
aiversity years, Is she still in her "Plower
MEd" stage , Of living? She continues to
name men of prominence as intimate
friends. Perhaps they are that only in her
imagination or desire. Some of these men
have denied her implications. What mot-
ivates a woman of intelligence (if she is that)
to do such things? She had in her grasp most
everything a decent, lady could want, a
husband of distinction; first lady of, the
country; three little boys; a beautiful home;
unlimited opportunity to travel; a unique
chance to become an honorable lady of
stature; • a respected representative of
Canada, beloved by the people of her
country. She threw it all away to go her own
way. Now she should show some decency
and keep quiet.
How Pierre Trudeau has kept his cool and
refrained from comments on her behaviour
is remarkable.
J.P.P. coverage
(Continued from Page 1)
In other business, council passed a motion
to continue banking with the Imperial Bank
of Commerce.
Council will consider ways to raise money
to construct men's and women's washrooms
in the library. The council hopes to be able to
add to the funds. Reeve Krauter had met
with the local Senior Friendship Club
regarding the need for facilities in the
building.
Council will also consider replacing the
fire truck tank, as the one in use at present is
leaking.
The next council meeting will be held
Sept. 4 at 7 Pith,
vm a rare bird-
a blood donor.
People who believe that the human race
is progressing toward a better life would
like to think that we are always going
forward. The frustrating part of it all is that
so often we seem to have to back up to get
ahead.
We seem to spend a good deal of our
time forgetting the lessons of the past
generations and being forced to go back and
learn them all over again.
The thought came to mind the other
morning when I was sitting on the picnic
table doing one of those endless strings
Of menial jobs that have to be done this
time of the year. It had been a cool night
and the air still had a chill reminding me
that autumn was coming fast. But I was
sitting in the sun and the strength of the
sun soon had me sweating. It reminded de
of those surprising days in late winter
when we rediscover the heat of the sun
even though everything around us is still in
the deep freeze.
The heat of the sun is one of those things
we're slowly rediscovering now that the
cost of "conventional" fuels is escalating
our cost of living. (Strange isn't it that we
now refer to oil and gas as conventional
when only a few short years ago they were
revolutionary new fuels.) At first it was just
afew ecology freaks who promoted using
the sun for heating. To those of us who had
long been brainwashed by the mass media
and the Canadian propensity to hate winter
into thinking that the sun spent all winter
in Florida or some other tourist resort just
like most other Canadians, the proposal
seemed preposterous.
I must admit to being a doubting
Thomas. The proponents of the so-called
alternate energy sources had a little too
much religious zeal about them. Then too
we were all brought up to know that you
don't get something for nothing.
Now of course the value of making use of
solar energy is recognized by nearly
everyone. Many people of course still don't
believe the solar power is the answer to all
our problems like the real solar power
advocates often seem to but the uses of the
power from the sun are being recognized
more and more. We have, solar-heated
houses and solar heaters for swimming
pools and solar heaters for hot water needs
of large institutions and even solar-heated
corn dryers.
But the strange thing is that it's not'
new. Oh some of the applications of solar,
power are new: some of the technology for
getting the most out of the sun is new; but
people have for centuries been making use/
f the sun to provide heat for various/
needs.
It's much the same with wind power.
More and more.people are taking a look at
winds as..Apossible source of reasonably
priced power. Yet wind power is one of the
oldest tools of mankind. People once used
it for powering sailing ships. Every child
who grew up on a farm in Ontario knew the
use of wind power well through the familiar
windmill used to pump water. hi European
countries wind was used to grind grain and
provide power for other industrial needs.
We've never quite gotten away from
forgetting the power of water in Canada. In
the initial settlement of eastern. Canada
nothing played as large a hand in deciding
where towns, cities and villages would be
built at the availability of water power. One
of the prize possessions for early entre-
preneurs was the right to damn up a river
to provide power to run mills for making
grist, flour, sawing lumber, running
carding and woolen mills. Later in the early
days of electricity towns used these dams
to generate the first power available.
Today huge dams still provide the builk of
the power needs of our province. I wonder
how long it will be, however, before people
begin to remember the potential of all the
old mill ponds in the southern part of the
province and begin to install small
generators to make power from the
ever-flowing waters.
One of the ironies of the history of
mankind is that we never learn lessons
from the past. We always feel that our
generation is the one that will break new
ground and escape the restrictions' of the
past. When it comes to technology we're
often a little like the man who has been
married happily to a beautiful woman for
ten years. Suddenly an equally beautiful,
but younger woman moves in next door
and excites his interest to the point he
forgets all the good times he's had and can
only see greener pastures. He soon finds
out that his romance with the new woman
is only a hollow, fleeting thing and he
realizes that he's been a fool and is happy
to get back to hiS real, true love.
We threw away so many things in our
rush to greet the new technology of the
20th century. We were so sure we knew
better than our fathers. We could put a
man on the moon. We could make
computers. We could have an endless
string of luxuries.:
We could also have air so polluted we
couldn't breathe it safely. We could turn
the very rain that is supposed to bring life
into a killing thing. We could trap
ourselves into a way of life so wasteful, so
based on cheap energy resources that the
most powerful nations on earth could
suddenly be powerless because others
realized that oil to us was like a fix to a
heroin addict. Like breaking many habits
this one will likely be painful.
I wonder how many other lessons we'll
have to learn from the past we've forgotten
before We can really progress.
friend' fOir life
il*Canieksii As Cobii