The Brussels Post, 1972-11-15, Page 2ISTAO‘IIMED
i$7.2
russels OS
' WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 1972
MUSSELS
ONTARIO
Serving Brussels and, the surrounding community
published each Wednesday afternoon at Brussels, Ontario
by McLean Bros. Publishers,' Limited.
Evelyn Kennedy - Editor ToM Haley - Advertising
Member Canadian. Community Newspaper Association and
Ontario Weekly Newspaper Assoc,ation.
Subscriptions (in advance) Canada $4.00 a year, Others
$5.00 a year, Single CopieS 10 cents each.
Second, class mail. Registration No. 0562.
Telephone 887-6641.
Little interest
It became obvious at the Rate-
payers Meeting called for Wednesday
night of last week, that the resi-
dents of Brussels do not have much
interest in their Municipal affairs.
The only ones who made an effort
to attend were Reeve McCutcheon,
Councillors, Ten Pas, McTaggart,
Campbell and Kennedy; Clerk Wm. H.
King and. Wilfred Shortreed, repre-
senting Huron County School Board
and Cal Krauter, the P.U.C.
Plenty of criticism is levelled
,at municipal officials and a great
deal of talk regarding what should
be done and what should not be done
is heard throughout the year on the
streets and elsewhere. When the
opportunity is provided for residents
to attend a public meeting where
they could discuss village affairs
and express their views, the loudest
voices heard privately are conspic-
iously silent. Why? Why do resi-
dent's not come forward when they
have the chance to talk over business
and problems which concern them as
tax payers? Do they lack the cour-
age and good sense to face their
village officials and express their
opinions openly?
With the new procedures for nom-
inations instituted this year, one
would have expected that at least
any persons interested in seeking
municipal office would have displayed
enough real interest in their local
government to be present at such a
meeting.
This kind of apathy is what is
going to force us into Regional
Government. When that takes place
we will doubtless have little to .
say in our own municipal affairs.
Is this what Brussels residents
want? It looked that way Wednesday
night.
To the Editor
Enjoy reading the Post
Box 591,
Uxbridge, Ont.
Dear Sir:
Nov. 2, 19'72
Thank you very much for
sending your newspaper and our
photo, taken a t Brusseis Fair.
• we were pleased to get them,
please thank young lady who took
our picture and tell her, the wea-
ther was so bad, I even gave
herwrong spelling of our name,
what a wet day it was? Never
mind,we look forward to return-
ing again next year. Thanks
again from both of us.
Orval and Beth Roach
Signs of winter
•
Sugar and Spice
by Bill Smiley
-e•--••••...........,...•••,••••••+M•••••••a••••••
Provost, Alta,
Nov. 7/72.
Sirs;
I am enclosing a P.O. money
order for a year's subscription
for the "Post".
I received the Centennial
Edition and my sisters Annie,
Mar4citet and I have enjoyed it,
much. It is brought back a
loiofmelmales,
.„as pleased to find the
picture of the Brussels boys,
taken by the bridge and see my
brother John in it.
In the picture of the old school
I found a picture of my youngest
sister,Marion and myself in the
group on the sidewalk.
I'll be looking forward to re-:
ceiVing the "post".
Yours truly,
Mrs. F. J.Schurnacher,
Provost, Alta.
Now that we've all settled down after
that abortion of an election, we can get
back to the important things of life:
what's for dinner; our bursitis; raking
the last of the blasted leaves; dusting
off the curling boots; and worrying about
our kids.
Just before we bury the whole un-
pleasant mess, however, may I promise
that , I will make no more election pre-
dictions? Oh, I was right. I warned
that the Canadian people are among the
most volatile in the world when it comes'
to politics. They proved it.
And I prophesied that the Tories and
NDP would gain, and that it would be the
Liberals again with a minority govern-
ment. But they didn't have to take me
so seriously. I didn't mean that size of
a minority. From now on, I shall'desist
from making forecasts, as it seems to
put the hex on things.
However, I take back none of what
I said. M. Trudeau never did have the
common touch, the politician's instinct.
Mr. Stanfield still sounds as though he'd
got both feet into one leg of his long-
johns. And - Mr. Lewis was never more
smarmy than when the returns were
coming in.
Despite my disenchantment, at the
last moment I decided to vote Liberal,
chiefly because of fear that what did
happen might happen. A ship of state
with no rudder, two wheelsmen fighting
for the wheel, and the winds of change
blowing up into a typhoon.
Some riding results were of par-
ticular interest to me. I was glad to
see that my old friend, Ross Whicher,
with whom I shared a couple of campaigns
when we were mere boys, was one of the
Lucky Liberals to squeak in.
I was sorry to see another old friend,
%Perry Ryan, who represented Toronto
Spading for years, get the axe. He made
the political mistake of standing by his
principles, and quit the Liberals for the
Tories when he couldn't agree with policy.
A pity.
I was also sorry to see Paul Hellyer
elected. He is a politician whose ego
seems equalled only by his ambition.
The record: Rah for Liberal leadership.
Beaten. Liberal cabinet minister. Quit.
Founded. Action Canada - a flop. Joined
the Conservatives. He may have great
abilities, but I'll never forgive him for
unifying the armed forces.
You see how little our vote depends
on reason. I mentioned those three to
suggest what a fickle creature the aver-
age Canadian voter is. I'd have voted
for Whieher, Liberal, for old times' sake.
For Ryan, Conservative, because he's a
good man. And against Hellyer, Conser-
vative, because of his many-coloured
coat.
There's an old-fashioned idea that
Canadians are a reserved, conservative
people, because we live in a stern and
rigourous climate, and aren't given much
to either dancing or rioting in the streets.
The idea is completely unfounded. True,
we don't do much of anything in the streets
for six months a year except scuttle along,
cursing, noses dripping.
But behind those steady, grey facades
that others see live the real Canadians;
pulling, passionate; not grey but purple.
In fact, sometimes that purple peeps
through, usually in those same noses.
Perhaps the most obvious example to
illustrate the wild, emotional, inner
Canadian is the Canada-Russia hockey
series of recent fame.
When our team was getting clobbered,
most of us went around in a surly,
cynical, almost vicious mood, snarling
at wives and children, scoffing at our
players, denigrating that vast, philan-
thropic institution, the NHL. You see,
we were suffering. Our pride was hurt
in the way that the pride of no mere
Latin could be hurt.,
But when our team began to win,
we showed' our true selves,, exuberant,
friendly, joyous, actually cheering out
loud, throwing our arms' around com-
plete strangers.
Oh, it did the heart good, I can tell
you, to see the Canadian character as it
really is. None of this" "good losers"
nonsense of other northern races. Our
hearts were in every cross-check, and
every one of us was there, at least in
spirit, as our boys, at the winning goal,
kissed each other and hugged each other
and slobbered over each other.
Show me another nation that can boo
its "boys" in defeat and cheer them in
victory, as we did, and I'll show you
another nation with real heart.
And that's what We're like in elec-
tions. All heart. No brains. Give us
a brilliant, 'colourful prime minister and
we cheer him to the rafters. i As long
as he's winning. we're a funny lot.