The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutThe Citizen, 1988-04-27, Page 4PAGE 4. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27, 1988. Opinion On the street it's called extortion Jeffrey Schott, former United States Treasurer official, last week told it like it was when he published an analysis of the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement for the Institute for International Economics, U.S. research institute. Canada, he said, doesn ’t have a choice but to sign the deal because to refuse would mean U.S. retaliation in the form of new trade actions. Or in the words of the Godfather: “I'm going to offer you a deal you can’t refuse. ’’ It’s not a deal we can’t refuse because it’ssogood, but a deal we can’t refuse because if we do we’ll be sorry. Theyhaveawordforthatin the street gangs where merchants are offered “protection" which, if they don’t take, will see their shops broken up by the same people who offered the “protection”. That word is called extortion. The most positive thing that supporters of Free Trade have said is that it continues to give Canada access to the American market. It doesn’t even role back any of the trade barriers the Americans have already thrown up against Canadian pork or softwood lumber. It doesn’t give protection to Canada from the provisions of the new omnibus trade bill making its way through the U.S. Congress. In exchange for this “continued access” Canada has given up control of its own energy resources, opened up areas like control of our financial institutions and tied the hands of future governments that might think it is more important for the government to get involved in encouraging growth in new directions than the current government does. The Americans have really given us a “heads we win, tails you lose” deal. The amazing thing is that so many Canadians seem delighted to have it even under those terms. Two different worlds in one province Some of the biggest headaches the provincial government faced in coming out with its budget last week dealt with the needs of onespecificareaoftheprovince: theToronto region. It shows that more and more there are really two provinces in one: Toronto and the rest of Ontario. Torontocontinues toboom meaning the province must worry about how to get more money for new schools, how to get enough money for hospital beds for the huge population and most of all how to get housing that ordinary people can afford. The problem effects not only government. There is, for instance, the distinct possibility that construction on projects like the Skydome in Toronto (and other unionized-labour projects across the province) could grind to a halt next week with a construction trades strike. Workers from Thunder Bay to Ottawa all belong to the same union and negotiate together. The construction companies offered an increase of $1.25 per hour or about five per cent on the normal $25 per hour construction wage. But Toronto workers will have no part of that. One trade has called for a $12 per hour increase over two years and another for $8. With the construction frenzy in Toronto they see it as their chance to get a good settlement. They also realize that it costs a lot more to live in Toronto than in Thunder Bay. The situation shows the problem of any contract that is set province wide, or even where trades and professions use Toronto wagds and salaries as basis for their own demands. While the Toronto construction workers demands may seem ridiculous there’s no doubt living in Toronto is much more expensive than the rest of the province. A recent survey by Helen Connell in the London Free Press shows that virtually the same “executive” two-storey house that in London would cost $160,000, costs $485,000in Don Mills. You’d need a 25 per cent downpayment in Toronto to even consider the house, or about $121,250. Even if you could come up with a 25 per cent downpayment in both cases your monthly payment would be $3,380inTorontocomparedto $1,115 in London. Over the term of the 25-year mortgage the Toronto house would end up costing $1,135,500 compared to $374,500 in London. Criticizing the Liberal government’s budget during Question Period last week, one NDP critic pointed out that just to qualify for a mortgage to buy an average Toronto house (at over $200,000) a family would need an income of $62,000. The situation is so bad that some people are refusing promotions if it means being transferred to Toronto. It is unfair to people in Toronto and to people elsewhere when salaries are compared. Someone earning $40,000 in Toronto can barely get by but someone in the same profession in Huron county can live like a king. Toronto and the rest of Ontario are two different worlds yet in so many ways they must still live together. The only people to benefit are the lucky people who can get Toronto salaries without having to live there. Being funny is serious business 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 al Mabel's Grill where the greatest minds in the town [if not in the country’] gat her for morning coffee break, otherwise known as the Round Table Debating and Fili bustering Society. Since not just everyone can partake of these deliberations we will report the activities from time to time. MONDAY: Julia Flint showed a little item in the paper to Hank Stokes and asked him if he was going to let his pigs play soccer. Seems a farmer in Sweden had bought several hundred hard plastic balls for the.pigs to push around in their pens. It supposedly keeps the pigs happierand that should keep them healthier and make the meat taste better. Heck, said Tim O’Grady, you mightevenbeabletoorganize a league with all the pigs Hank has in his barn. Yeh, said Ward Black,, butyou’dhaveto have a referee because if there was any rough play between pigs, the animal rights people would be down on you like a swarm of bees, Billie Bean said that if the pigs really got good you might be able to take two pig soccer teams around to fairs and such. Listen, Hank wondered, do you think ABC television would be willing to shell out a few million, like they did for the Olympics, for the rights to televise pig soccer. It might be the one way to make some money out of farming these days. TUESDAY: Julia was chuckling over the whole incident down in the States where Larry Speakes, the former press secretary to Presi dent Reagan, admitted he made up quotations which the president was supposed to have sai’d. “Sounds like he took his name a little too literally,’’ Ward observed as he chewed on the end of his pipe. Tim said he didn’t now what all the fuss was about. After all Mr. Reagan had been doing the same things for years, telling Bryan Mulroney what to say. Julia said that Speakes spoke tooloud. If he’d just shut up, Reagan would never have remembered what he said himself so nobody would ever know. WEDNESDAY: Hank Stokes was enjoying himself when he read in the paper this morning that the Canadian Consumers Association is in financial trouble and had to get Continued on page 41 [Published by North Huron Publishing Company Inc.] Serving Brussels, Blyth, Auburn, Belgrave, Ethel, Londesborough, Walton and surrounding townships Published weekly in Brussels, Ontario P.O.Box152, P.O.Box429, Brussels, Ont. Blyth, Ont. N0G1H0 N0M1H0 887-9114 523-4792 Subscription price: $17.00; $38.00foreign. Advertising and news deadline: Monday2p.m. in Brussels; 4p.m. in Blyth Editor and Publisher: Keith Roulston Advertising Manager: Dave Williams Production and Office Manager: Jill Roulston Second Class Mail Registration No. 6968