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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1990-10-03, Page 4HHBSSSES^S^ PAGE 4. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 3, 1990, Opinion Something's wrong As Ontario celebrates Agri-food Week this week, it’s ironic that the province’s farmers face a bleak year in what has been a bleak decade. Since the high interest rates of the early 1980’s brought an end to one of the most prosperous farming eras in recent memory, farmers have faced the fact that behind every dark cloud seems to be another dark cloud. First high interest, then low prices, then an international trade war between the big treasuries of the United States and the European Economic Community and at various times either drought or floods. Now, in the first year of the 1990’s, there is barely a commodity in farming that’s in good shape. Western farmers after two years of drought finally have a bumper crop this year but the world wheat surplus is so large, the Canadian Wheat Board can’t even find buyers. With elevators and farm storage filled, huge piles of grain will sit in the field until it can find a better place, or spoil. In a world where people still starve it seems a crime against humanity to see wheat go to waste. There is so much talk about the need for efficiency today that it’s easy sometimes to forget that our Canadian farmers, our neighbours in a place like Huron County, are suffering because they’re just too efficient. Farm population has been dropping for a half-century but the comparative handful of farmers left, is still producing such an oversupply of food that farmers can ’ t recover their cost of production. The average Ontario farmer produces enough food to feed 120 other people. A big reason for the material prosperity of urban residents is that we spend less of our income on food than just about any other country. The money we save in the basics of life we can then spend on the luxuries, like TV’s, VCR’s and video cameras, on entertainment like expensive restaurants or enough tickets to Blue Jays games to set an all-time Major League attendance record. And ironically, we have enough spare cash that when a farmer goes broke, the best price he’s likely to get for his farm is from some urbanite who can afford more to keep a farm as a weekend escape than a neighbouring farmer can afford to try to make the farm earn its keep. There ’ s something wrong here and it goes a lot farther than just the call for reduced subsidies to farmers. It’s a world where millions of people still starve to death each year while our farmers go broke because they produce too much. It’s a world where urban people worry on one hand about those starving people and on the other complain that, (a) they’re paying too much for food and (b), they’re tired of subsidizing farmers. The problem is bigger than farmers can handle by themselves. It’s a problem for the whole of society to try to find a way to reward efficiency not penalize it, to make a surplus of food a good thing for starving millions instead of a millstone to drag even more farmers into bankruptcy. Leadership please If ever a country cried out for leadership it is Canada in the 1980’s and so far no one seems prepared to give it. The 15 per cent popularity rating of the government of Brian Mulroney shows what Canadians think of his leadership. Canadians have come to despair for the future of their country after the bungling of Meech Lake, the huge job drain to the U.S. under free trade and conflicting economic policies that seem ready to not only bankrupt the country but many of the businesses in it. The 39 per cent rating of the Liberals shows people still have more confidence in the party and its leader Jean Chretien than in the government but the rating is dropping steadily. Somehow the ability of Mr. Chretien to make Canadians feel good about themselves has vanished. Instead of being positive, he has begun to fall into the trap of opposition politicians: being negative about the government in power. Whether it’s his own instinct or the advice of his advisors he has been letting his ability to inspire Canadians that made him so popular, lapse into petty politics. The big gainer among all this has been NDP leader Audrey McLaughlin who has seen her party’s popularity soar to all time highs. But there seems to be little reason for this except the “anything but” syndrome. She has managed to articulate very little of the hopes and dreams of Canadians or give a vision of Canada under the leadership. The country is waiting for a leader, areal leader, to give us hope we can pull out of this mess. Will someone please speak up? Down by the stream 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 So­ ciety. Since not just everyone can partake of these deliberations we will report the activities from time to time. MONDAY: Tim O’Grady was won­ dering why, if life in private business is so much better than in government as big business lea­ ders are always telling us, busi­ nessmen seem to be lining up to get jobs as Senators as the Prime Minister stacks the Senate. “May­ be we should feel privileged. I mean if Trevor Eyton can take time off being a director for Labatt’s and Coca-Cola and General Motors you’ve got to figure he’s not in it for the money.” Billie Bean says we should be grateful. Giving businessmen a job in the Senate might be the one incentive to keep them from mov­ ing to Georgia now that Free Trade is here. TUESDAY: Julia Flint said there have been two more instances lately that money can’t buy happiness. First of all there was the news mat tne nignest suicide rate in Toronto last year was among the Yuppie age group in its 30’s. Then there was the case of the former bag lady who doesn’t want to accept a $1 million inheritance because she’s afraid it might destroy the happiness she’s found living with her poor husband in a public housing project. “Well,” Billie said, “if she wants to give it to me I’ll take a chance on it ruining my life.” WEDNESDAY: Hank Stokes said he sees where Toronto police haven’t made as much fuss as the RCMP over getting their first Sihk officer who will wear a turban. “I just want to know one thing,” he said. “Does the turban make him an undercover officer?” THURSDAY: Julia says she isn’t planning to watch the big weekend showdown between the Blue Jays and the Red Sox. “The way the Jays have been playing lately they look like they’re trying to match Brian Mulroney’s batting average: 15 per cent.” Capturing family moments The West Wawanosh History book committee is still hard at work delving into old records and talking to so many residents about old and recent history notes of interest. During the past summer mem­ bers noted that so few people take family shots which would be a welcome touch for the upcoming West Wawanosh history book. During the next year when families gather for such holidays as Thanks­ giving, Christmas or large birthday parties, consider the history book and get the camera out. Taking group shots can be one of the most fascinating or the most boring jobs. To help you here are some valuable points to consider. The first principle is to arrange the group and place the camera so that the faces are as large as possible and the group fills the entire negative. Secondly, arrange them in a symmetrical fashion and employ an interesting angle that would eliminate awkward hands, uninteresting clothing details or other distractions. Thirdly always walk around the group at least once to find the most striking camera position. Experiment and observe carefully and you may find a fresh view point. Keep things informal is the fourth principle. Shots of the family chatting around the picnic table is more interesting than all of them staring uncomfortably at the Continued on page 24 The Citizen. P.O. Box 429, BLYTH, Ont. NOM 1H0 Phone 523-4792 P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, Ont. NOG 1H0 The Citizen is published weekly in Brussels, Ontario by North Huron Publishing Company Inc. Subscriptions are payable in advance at a rate of $19.00/yr. [$40.00 Foreign]. Advertising is accepted on the condition that in the event of a typographical error, only that portion of the advertisment will be credited. Advertising Deadlines: Monday, 2 p.m. - Brussels; Monday, 4 p.m. - Blyth We are not responsible for unsolicited newscripts or photographs. Contents of The Citizen are © Copyright. Serving Brussels, Blyth, Auburn, Belgrave, Ethel, Londesborough, Walton and surrounding townships. (♦cKia BLUE RIBBON AWARD 1990 Phone 887-9114 Editor & Publisher, Keith Roulston Advertising Manager, Dave WilHams Production Manager, Jill Roulston Second Class Mail Registration No. 6968