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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1986-04-23, Page 4PAGE 4. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 1986. 7 PIO ,COMD) 0 0 r A Iterna tives for peace There was once a great Canadian with a great dream for peace. Looking at the actions internationally in the last few weeks one could only wish his dream had come true. Lester B. Pearson won the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in getting a United Nations force to police the peace in the Suez Crisis in 1956, a force that became a model for later United Nations forces in the Congo and Cypress. But Pearson had a bigger dream. He wanted to see a permanent United Nations force put in place to act in the world the way a police force acts in our national life. The world needs some kind of international force to stop the kind of vigilante justice the United States has taken to try to impose its idea of justice. Imagine living in a town where some people, angered because some local youths were breaking the law and getting away with it, felt they had the right to take the law into their own hands and mete out punishment to the alleged culprits! If American reaction to Col. Khadafy were just the overreaction of President Ronald Reagan taking his old cowboy motion picture parts to heart, it would be frightening enough but Americans love their president for his "damn the torpedoes" approach. In a sampling of U.S. editorial opinion to the bombing of Tripoli only two newspapers in 14 were negative to the American action. Most of the editorials took the approach of the Wall Street Journal that indicated the United States must be the policeman of the world: "Making those kinds of decisions is part of an American president's job. When they are shirked, the world becomes more dangerous, not less." Listening to the American media, one would think the U.S. was the sole target of international terrorism. But as international columnist Gwynne Dyer documents, of the 928 people killed by terrorist acts in the world last year, only 23 were U.S. citizens. Not one of the 800 terrorists incidents took place on American soil. Americans are bit players in terrorism. Imagine if everyone affected took law into their own hands. Canada, for instance, in one incident, the bombing of the Air India flight, lost far more citizens than the U.S. did. Imagine if our government decided it must strike out militarily to bomb some centre of rebellion in the Punjab. Imagine if the Italians, Greeks, Turks, and all the other victims of terrorists acts, decided they had to take their own action and sent bombers and gunboats crisscrossing the world to mete out their own brand of justice. The tragedy of the situation is that by taking the law into their own hands, -by justifying the killing of innocent Libyans because innocent Americans have been killed, the Americans may feel proud of themselves but they have lowered their moral standing for the rest of the world. They have legitimized the terrorists claims that the U.S. knows no bounds but the limits of its own military might. But until we come up with some sort of international body to take on issues like terrorism, the major powers are going to exercise the right of might and try to do it themselves. Oh to have a Lester Pearson here today to put Canada in the forefront of trying to find a peaceful, international solution. Fairness for all Many a government has gotten itself into trouble over the issue of "fairness" and the Ontario Liberal government of David Pearson may be the next one. _ The government is trying to be fair to all people in the province by opposing the right of doctors to bill patients for more than the Ontario Health Insurance fee because it worries that there will be two systems of health care, one for the people who can't afford to pay extra and one for those who can pay doctors whatever they want. The dispute has brewed for months and is slowly erroding the confidence and goodwill people have in the government as they tire of the bickering. Agriculture Minister Jack Riddell is taking needed action to save farmland from being paved over near the big cities of the province but in the name of fairness the same rules will be imposed in Huron County where a ban on rural severences may see our rural population continue to drop, endangering the economic structure of our entire community. The ministry of the Environment has brought in strict regulations about the operation of waste disposal sites. Local councillors feel that with the small amounts of garbage to be disposed of locally, burning may be the way of disposal least harmful environmentally. But provincial laws must be applied equally across the province and the laws that apply in Mississauga or Windsor are also applied to Morris township or Blyth. Ontario is a huge province, full of diverse problems. Trying to apply one set of rules to everybody can cause a government real headaches. rHhe world view ' from Mabel's Grill There are people who will tell you that the important decisions in town are made down at the town hall. People in the know, however know that the real debates, the real wisdom reside down at Mabel's Grill where the greatest minds in the town (if not in the country) gather for morning coffee break, otherwise known as the Round Table Debating and Filibustering Society. Since not just everyone can partake of these deliberations we will report the activities from time to time. MONDAY: With the Stanley Cup playoffs on television these days, hockey manages to keep popping up in the topic of discussion at Mabel's. People weren't discuss- ing the Maple Leafs too much though. They were too numb with surprise. Julia Flint was disgusted with a hockey fight she saw the other night while she was flipping channels trying to bring in Falcon Crest or one of those educational shows like that. "It's a funny thing that if people did that kind of thing out on the street, we'd arrest them, but when they do it in a hockey arena we pay them hundreds of thousands of dollars and televise it coast to coast, she said. "I think they should apply the same laws on the ice that they do in real life." "Great by me," Tim O'Grady said. "We lawyers can use all the business we can get. There are so many young lawyers looking for work, we can use all the rich hockey players for clients." "Yeh," said Ward Black, "and just think what it will do for lawyers if they arrest baseball players for stealing bases." TUESDAY: Billie Bean said he knew just how Ronald Reagan felt when he ordered that bombing raid St. John's Church welcomes minister Rev. Patricia Nunn welcomed everyone to her first service in Brussels on Sunday. The Board of Management and Wardens went forward and Rev. Nunn committeed and dedicated them. Rev. Nunn chose "Christ as the Good Sepherd" as the thought for her sermon. After the service all were invited to the basement for sandwiches, cake and coffee. on Libya. "There usedtobethis sneaky little pipsqueak who sat behind me in school who was always hitting me on the back of the neck with a ruler or putting tacks on my chair. Whenever I'd turn around to belt him he'd make a commotion and the teacher would turn around and catch me. "Anyway, one day I caught the little sneak in the corner of the school yard where nobody could Letter to the editor step in to help him and I let him have it. Boy did it make me feel good to see him go flat on his back. "Still, I hope Reagan knows what he's doing." "Why?" Julia Flint wondered. "Because when the little squirt got up off the ground and I was kind of smiling, thinking I'd finally showed the little sneak, he kicked me right in the ..." he stopped when he saw Julia started to turn red. In defence of Workman THE EDITOR: I would like to reply to the letter in the Citizen last week. First the (Brussels, Morris and Grey) arena was not built on a hope and a prayer but by the hard work of Jim Prior and his arena committee. They spent hours, weeks and months planning it. Also they got off their butts and collected from everyone, something the Pool committee has not done. You cannot sit with a sharp pencil and have things plan out as the pool committee has found out. The pool has gone up 512,000 and will likely go higher. Also last year's council aproved the operation cost of the pool not the building of it. Sure the Lions Club will pay it back I am sure of that but they are getting the glory and the town, not recreation, is getting the bills. About the jobs it will create, I hear none are from Brussels. I know it is a joint venture under Recreation Committee but who pays the biggest shot. Also Maria, if you thought that Mr. Workman should resign why did you not say it to his face. You were at the meeting. You can be very popular as a council member or recreation if you say yes to everything people want but just question anyone's project and oh boy are you a son of a gun. Mr. Workman and Mr. Lowe before him spent a lot of time on Recreation, so I would like to thank them and the council members who are trying to get money coming into the town instead of paying out all the time. Keep up the good work and we will be sure to go ahead. A CONCERNED CITIZEN WHO WILL SIGN HER NAME D. WHEELER P.S. Farmers get 60 percent of their taxes back. [640523Ontario Inc.) Serving Brussels, Blyth, Auburn, Belgrave, Ethel, Londesborough, Walton and surrounding townships. Published weekly in Brussels, Ontario P.O. Box 152, Brussels, Ont. NOG 1H0 887-9114 P.O. Box 429, Blyth, Ont. NOM 11-10 523-4792 Subscription price: $15.00; $35.00 foreign. Advertising and news deadline: Monday 4 p.m. Editor and Publisher: Keith Roulston Advertising Manager: Beverley A. Brown Production and Office Manager: Jill Roulston Second Class Mail Registration No. 6968