HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1980-05-21, Page 2MemberCanadian Community Newspaper Association and
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The little guy can fight
The little guy has learned to fight back. No one knows yet what the
outcome of the Walton and Londesboro people's fight to keep their
Seaforth and Clinton telephones will be, but it's obvious they're not
going to let Bell Canada's decision go by without a fight.
Of course, there are those who assume that little guys have little or
no control over biu 'corporate decisions, and that those who fight are
wasting their time.
Unfortunately, if everyone took this apathetic attitude then all
decisions could, be made by government and corporations without a
thought, to how their moves would affect either people or an area.
And to give the government and corporations credit, they are
listening to what 'people have. to say. Froth all reports, it sounds like
the Canadian Radio Television Communications Commission (CRTC)
was impressed with the presentations from the pe6Ple of Walton and
LondesborO etrut their needs for Seaforth and Clinton 'telephone
-service. The, people of Walton even brought along a• book of old
telephone meetings to show what Bell Canada had promised at the
time they made their offer to purchase the McKillop Telephone
system. Unfortunately, Londesboro couldn't do the same, as their
telephone systems's early records were burned in a fire.
Even if Bell Canada should go ahead with its proposal of putting all
Walton people strictly in the . Brussels Exchange and all Londesboro
people strictly in the Blyth Exchange, at least those people can give
themselves credit for having stayed and fought, instead of letting
another bureaucratic decision go by without a murmur.
Sugar and spice
By Bill Smiley
What are you going to do if the voters. of Anglo majority,
WEDNESDAY, MAY 21, 1980
Serving BrUssels and the surrounding community.. •
Published each Wednesday- fternoon at Brussels, Ontario
By McLean Bros. Publishers Limited
Evelyn Kennedy - Editor Pat Langlois - Advertising
Quehee say, "Wee-Wee-wee-wee" all the-
way home?
Are you going to pack everything into a
covered wagon and head west, ,the only
refuge any more for Anglo-phones?
Are you going to grow a beard, obtain
some false papers, and slip across the
Quebec border some dark night, to fight it
the tmderground?
Or are you going to sit on your duff, go
right on trying to take care of Your own life,
and let the politicians sort out the whole
sordid scene?
I would venture' that 93 per cent of
English-speaking Canadians will choose the
third of the above alternatives.
Certainly I , will: I have no intention of
fleeing into the right-wing, arms of Alberta
or the moderately left-wing arms" of?
Saskatchewan, or the materialistic arms,,ef
B.C. or Ontario, or the salty, slow embrace
, of the Maritimes.' Or even they hearty
beir-hug of the Yukon.
I'm gonna stay home and cultivate my own
garden. It may be all weeds, but that doesn't
give me the right to point in scorn 'to the
wrecked cars and dirty gravel that make up
my neighbour's yard. "
You may have noticed that I have not
addressed myself to the topic of Quebec
separation in the past couple of years, except
for my opening salvo, which said, more or
less "Let them go... no big deal."
I cited historical parallels: Britain backing
gracefully out of India, Ceylon, Burma, and
a dozen others; the French being badly
burned in 'Indo-China and North Africa,
I, know Why they. want out, or many of
them do- They have managed to retain their
Pride of race under two hundred Years of,
subservience and seeend-class citizenship.
Why did the trish want out, of the British
Empire? Why did the IndO-Cbinese want out
from under, the benevolent rule of France?
Why .did, the Phillip,ines, and now, the
Canal Zone,, want to kick out the Yanks?
Yep, Many, many French-Canadians
volunteered and served loyally and gallantly
in World War II. Know what they were
called, almost invariably? Frettchyl With
,condescension.
I was at a "bilingual" newspaper
convention a couple of decadei ago, in
Quebec. The announcements were. made, -
first in English. Then, when "they were
repeated in French, the mainly EngliSh-
speaking editors were all babbling away,
drowning out the French. This is the/sort of
thing that creates fury among proud People.
Quebec is one of the most vibrant and
lively societies in' the western world. Its
residents have kicked out the iron
paternalism of the Church, -exposed and
scorned its corrupt politicians. It • has
produced more in art and music and writing,
proportionately, than all the rest of Canada,
in the past decades.
It has also sent wise men, and a few fools,
to Ottawa. Rene Levesque is no Idl Amin, a
buffoon leading clowns. The province has.
vast national resources. Its leaders are no .
jumped.:up parochial politicians, but intel-
' ligent, far-seeing, opportunistic maybe, but
tough, practical men and women: You can't
when they tried to hold on by force; the toss all that, aside with a few sentimental
-Americans trying to fight ideas with, napalm platitudes about one-country.,
and bombs in an ill-conceiVed and ill-fated On the other hand, many, many
war in Viet Nam. Quebecois don't want to leave the family.
And I still feel the same way. If a majority I'm more worried about Quebec being torn
of the, people of Quebec think they would be in two than about Canada breaking asunder.
happy if they kissed the rest of the family . Two years ago, on a bus tour, in France, a
good-bye, then let's return the kiss, throw in lady. from Montreal who spoke little English,' , •
a hug, and let them go. No names. No told me vehemently, "1 ,no Pequiste. Rene
recriminations. Just a gentle severing of the Levesque win, I go Ottawa. Take my .
ties, which, after all, are only, a little over a business."
hundred years old, a mere fly-meck in the Again, it's like a family. We've all been
history books. ' brought up, including the people of Quebec,,
There's been a great deal of bewilderment to the idea that we are one, that we stretch
and ,belated sentimentality over the from sea to sea that we are "different"
possibility, among English-speaking Cana- .from the .Yanks ;and the Brits, and the
dians. There's been a lot of sloppy soul,- ',French.
' searching that resembles nothing so much as In a family, some are williqg to see one go.
a rotten mother whining, after her kids turn "He's a bum, a drunk. She's a trollop, a.
rotten, "What have I done? I always meant tramp." But at the least sign of reform or a
the best for them." change of heart or habits, the outsider is
"What do they want? Why do they want welcomed back, smothered with kisses. So
out?" are the pitiful cries of the complacent may it be this time.
Behind the scenes
by Keith Roulston
Ontario Hydro has taken the offensive in
the war of information on the future needs in
energy.
For years now Ontario Hydro and other
big utility companies around the world have
been the target of anti-nuclear power
campaigns. There have been marches and
occupations of nuclear power sites. While
things have been reasonably peaceful here,
there has been violence in some countries
around the world.
In Canada it has been more of a war of
words. Anti-nuclear fighters have battered
away with facts and figures at hearings and
through the media. Nuclear power pro-
ponents have battled figure with figure. The
winner in this battle has been obscure.
Nuclear power plants are still being built but
there is a public distrust that has utility
companies concerned. ' The loser is the
bewildered public, fated with a mountain of
facts, told on one side that the public must
be vigilant and on the other that the situation
is too complicated for the public to
understand.
• Well if you are confused now get ready to
be more confused. Ontario Hydro, (and I
expect utilities elsewhere that believe in the
need to continue building nuclear power
plants) isn't just sitting back, taking the
criticism any mote. It's fighting back, hitting
hard to discredit the "alternate" energy
sources cited by those who see a different
solution to energy problems of the country.
In the months to come you will hear more
statements uch as the fact that solar power
is actually more dangerous to health than
atomic power. The statement first emerged
from a study done a year or so ago and hard
to believe though it seems Hydro can give
you the figures to prove'it.
The health hazard of solar power comes
from going back to square one and
calculating the risk to. health all along the
way. For instance, there is a lot of steel in
the solar collectors used in some solar
heating system. Workers making steel run
certain dangers from industrial accidents to
respiratory problems to hearing damage.
Multiply these by, the number of solar
collectois that would be needed to supply a
significant part of Canada's energy needs
and you have a major health problem. I
suppose you could also include the dangers
of the pollution from the smoke stacks of the
steel works and probably the dangers of
falling off the ladder while installing those
solar panels on the roof on your house (I'll
betRydro has included those).
The study has made solar energy pro-
ponents blister much in the same way
Ontario Hydro officials have been upset with
the criticisins of their industry in the past.,
They claim that every possible danger was
included on the side of the equation_ which
made alternate power sources look danger=
ous while large dangers were ignored on the
atomic power side. Without taking six
months to put a computer to , work to test all '
this out, the rest of us are left in the dark.
One thing you can ,be sure of, the battle
against solar pouter and alternate sources of
energy is just beginning.
I recently heard a weekly radio show on a
local station prepared by Hydro. The
program purported to be a show on energy in
general but turned out in the two episodes I
heard to be sheer propaganda for nuclear
power. One of the shows spent a good deal of
time talking about the study I just mention-
ed.
I recently learned that Hydro sent out
material to local municipal electrical utilities
urging them to hire people to inform the
public about the dangers of alternate energy
Sources and the safety of nuclear power.
Most of us may ,never know the truth
about energy. Both sides realize that if you
say something often enough it becomes a
fact 'even if it isn't one. One can't really
blame Hydro for wanting to stop being on
the defensive for a change. 6
But it seems, to this muddled head
anyway, that we're going to need all the
nergy sources we can get if we're going to
survive. Hydro and the oil companies have
even said this in the past. Today however the
tactic 'Seems to be to completely destroy the
credibility of all sources except those we
already depend on.
I dislike conspiracy theories but I have this
gut fear that solar power and 'wind 'power
and all these other alternate energy sources
will be discredited until, the day when the
technology is created to control them by the
big oil companies and utilities, Solar power
will, for instance, become, great When it isn't
little backyard heating systems that capture
it, but large satellites that beam it back to I
earth or other such expensive schemes that •
will be controlled by big business.'
I have this 'feeling that the big organi-
zations are bothered by -the idea that people
may produce their own' heat through
independent solar heating plants, may
generate their own power through energy
cells powered by the sun,. may becoine more
independent of oil' companies by producing
alcohol from Surpltis wheat, corn or
potatoes. Think of the changes• it would
mean in our society if people were no longer
dependent on Imperial Oil or Ontario Hydro?
No doubt the big energy companies
already have had those thoughts and didn't
like what they saw.
Mlijestic . WI meets
The Majestic Women's
Institute met for their May
meeting Wednesday, May
14. Dorothy Steffler,
President welcomed all and
Sad an interesting poem.
A Historical Society
meeting will be held June 4 Cancer Campaign, and said
in the Gerrie Town Hall. although all of the receipts '
A June Tea will be held haven't been turned in,
June 4 at Huronview. Brussels' has already
Donations for the bake table collected a larger amount
would be welcome& Peggy than last year with a total of ,
Cadets= reported on the (Coatiolasd as Par. 12)1
Advertising Is accepted on the condition that' in the, event of typographical error the advertising *Pete
occupied by the erroneous item, tikpithee with reasonable ellowanq for ilynature, will not be charged for but
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While every slfert will be Mill to insure they are handted with are; the publishers bo hhoonsiblo for •
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