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Home My WebLink AboutThe Citizen, 1987-08-05, Page 6PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 1987. Letter from the editor Continued from Page 4 day in New York (printed in last week’s Maclean’s magazine) that the similarity in the two incidents struck me. Bruning talked about how those Mexicans were following the American Dream as they tried to sneak into a country that wouldn't allow them to come in legally. One man, the subject of his column, wanted towork in the U.S. long enough to earn $6,500, enough for new tires for his car and materials tobuildahouse. “Oneday’slabour in a Tex-Mex restaurant or orange orchard may bring more wages than a week of work - if there is work - back home." There’s a sadness in Bruning's column, vet a sense of inevitability. The American Dream, wealth and freedom, has been so plastered around the world through Ameri can TV and movies that people everywhere seek it at great cost. When one nation with immense wealth lives beside another where people live in squatters camps with homes made of cardboard boxes, scraps of lumber and anything else that can be found, then it is inevitable that people will risk their lives for a piece of that good life. The death of those people in the box car was just the latest tragedy in an ongoing story that sees thousandsofpeoplecaught and turned back at the U.S.-Mexican border each year, only to try again. While many Americans are proba bly angry about this, they also accept it as proof again that everybody who isn’t American wants to be one. We’re angry in this country that these people claimed to be refu- Meeting between HFA, county brings little controversy Little controversy was raised at the third annual meeting between the directors of the Huron Federa tion of Agriculture and representa tives of county council held in Clinton on July 20, but most of those present said they felt that the joint meetings were ‘‘very help ful" in fostering a mutual under standing between the two bodies. About 15 HFA directors were present, along with county War den Brian McBurney, Weed Com missioner Joe Gibson, Roads Commissioner Russell Kernighan and Property Committee chairman Bob Bell. During a general discussion on the possibility of highway upgrad ing and industrial development within the county, several farmers made it clear that since Huron County is one of the last places in Ontario where agriculture is the dominant industry, farming must be protected in a vigorous manner. Warden McBurney said that county council has recently been subjected to a certain amount of frustration as the county’s five mayors press for industrial de velopment while most township reeves continue to plead for protection for agriculture, but noted that the two priorities are not necessarily incompatible. He said that as long as one of Huron County’s major export remained its young people in their search for work, all factions must TKJnvestments BEST RATES FINANCIAL CENTRE Goderich 519-S24-2>73 l 1-800-265-5503 geesfleeing terror when apparent ly they just wanted a piece of Canadian life for economic rea sons. They don’t seem as poor as the Mexicans because they could payfortheship. Yet, the ordeal they underwent to come to Canada was arduous as that of many of the "wetbacks" sneaking into the U.S. They were kept in the hold of a ship withonelightbulband no bedsand one large pot for cooking food. Obviously they were willing to risk their very lives not to mention human dignity, to grab a piece of the good life in Canada. They could only get toCanada because they had some money. The really poor people can't get near Canada. Yet we in Canada don't see this as a compliment to our way of life, don't see it as a reaffirmation of all that we have achieved in this country, as the Americans do. Instead we see it as an insult, as a sneak attack on our Canadian hospitality. But as iong as we continue to live like kings while most of the world lives in poverty we’d better be ready for more people to try to find ways into Canada. The richer we get, the poorer the rest of the world gets, the greater the urge for people to try to get into the country. Even if we could raise an army big enough to stand soldier shoulder to shoulder around our entire coast line with orders to shoot to kill any ‘‘refugees’’,pe op lewillstillbe desperate enough to enter Canada that they’ll take the risks. As long as we want to live in such affluence, we’ll have to accept the flip-side of the ‘‘Canadian dream’’: that poor, desperate people in the rest of the world will want a piece of the dream. be made aware of ways to reverse this trend if the county is to remain viable. He said that while a major industry in the county would most certainly be detrimental to agricul- ture, it is possible that the attraction of several light indu stries would be of benefitto all, and must be considered as they present themselves. ‘‘One of the major problems faced by County Council is that the reeves (who represent their muni cipalities on council) seldom vote the same way as the mayors would, and this is always going to cause trouble under the present sy stem,” Mr. McBurney said. Farm Credit interest increases Agriculture Minister John Wise has announced an increase in the interest rates charged by Farm Credit Corporation (FCC) on new loans approved after July 20. The rate increase is in keeping with the farm-lending agency’s practice of tracking the rates offered by other agricultural lend ers. "For the past two months, FCC rates have been well below the market rate, "explained Mr. Wise. “We waited to see where interest rates would stabilize before adjust ing the corporation’s rates.” Young Matthew Schneider, foreground, was one of more than 250 people who braved the storm last Sunday morning to attend the annual Brussels Firemen’s Breakfast at the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre. 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