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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 1987-05-06, Page 5Meagre pensions part of government To the Editor: Perhaps the following will incite a few readers to make a move. ABOUT YOUR GOLDEN YEARS What could we really expect today from a population whose main force is inertia? We read about schemes feathering the pockets of paper entrepreneurs, about legal thefts appropriating working mens' pensions, about charitable organizations keeping 85 cents out of every dollar col- lected, about politicians recanting today on what they proposed yesterday, about religious manna and sordid affairs turning to burlesque and then we say, in pity, that these shameless gougings will pass, that honesty will prevail, that things will be better, tomorrow or another day. And that's about all we do. We hope and for- mulate cowardly thoughts about at- mosphere -and predicaments we helped to create by trusting flim-flam artists of the political and evangelical fields. Sure, we'll voice our rancor with some neighbors but we immediately switch to cleaner topics such as hockey and baseball scores: it's cleaner. I enjoy both sports. I am also interested by politics. I wish that the young person of today should seriously think about the days when they are going to cheer their sons or grand- sons playing the games: days soon to come when they would wish they should have been more careful, more selective with the rules and limitations of pension plans they had left the burden to others to implement. Days soon to come when, as elders, they are going to grumble about . the little amount of taxable surplus pension they receive compared to some people they know. I agree: In the village, we don't really feel the impact of the cost of living. Chances are that many of us are homeowners by the departure of dear parents. For simple souls, there is the joy LUCKNOW UNITED CHURCH SUNDAY, MAY 10th Sunday School 10:00 a.m. Worship Service 11:00 a.m. Rev. Gerald McFarlane Nursery and junior congregation provided. EVERYONE WELCOME LUCKNOW CHRISTIAN REFORMED CHURCH Invites You To Worship With Them On Sunday, May 10th 10 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. Nursery downstairs morning & evening EVERYONE WELCOME Penny Saver Lucknow 528-2628 Prices in effect till noon May 12/87. STILL MEADOW BREADED Chicken Nuggets 1 x 5 Ib. McLAREN SWEET GREEN Relish 2 x 4 Lt. HIGHLINER 6 - 3 Ib. Captain Burger SUPREME Rib Eye Steak 30 x 125 g. 25 x 175 g. $2035 $1150 $2100 $41:5 $471° Prices in effect till May E.D. SMITH 6 x 100 oz. Ketchup HEINZ 6 x 100 oz. Ketchup MCLAREN 1 x 4 L. Dill Pickles BREAD & BUTTER 1 x 4 L. Pick les ASS'T. FLAVOURS, 24 x 6 Freshie 27/87. $2568 $3535 $615 $815 • $2 1 55 of gardening, perhaps the pleasure of go- ing fishing though it's a bit far, isn't it. As for hunting.. Ah, well, "we don't eat much", simple souls say. Sad to say, in my book, simple souls are on the way out. Things change, Mac. Even here, housing is going up. Ever stop to look at the price of sheds offered for sale in the village? Are your wages, are pensions spiraling up that fast? • Some who never had much will tell you that they can manage on meagre pension, that a $2 monthly increase in their cheque will buy to six loaves of reduced for quick sale bread. If they are satisfied that way, they are right. But I'll say that 0.22 percent hike yearly, in pensions when the cost of living goes up six percent is no increase at all. We can no longer listen to people who couldn't purchase a pair of shoes today with the wages they made 60 years ago. When enlightened seniors teamed up awhile ago to prevent the government to steal openly from them, politician tenors alarmed by this voting force quickly made a volte-face and promised pension indexa- tion. Today, as more and more honest peo- ple leave this corrupt government while some stay in, annoyingly, just for the money, we, seniors, are listening to a soothing lullaby from the provincial government: "One -two -three. It is possi- ble that we will consider indexation but we'll consider this after the elections..." A tenor, who promised the moon to seniors, recently gave a plum job to a stooge who never understood actuary's forecasts to form a committee to study any way of NOT indexing pensions. No, I do not expect feisty supporters of hockey and baseball to seize their riding representative by the collar. I do not even expect a letter of protest against educated liars pretending to have the interests of retired workers at heart. What I do expect Lucknow Sentinel, Wednesday, May 6, 1987—Page 5 flim-flam:. reader is base envy against a handful of skilled workers of this village who had been sensi- ble enough to protect their retirement days SOON ENOUGH with solid conditions either entrenched into private plans or couched in legal terms by their local union. Summarizing, you future pensioner wishing for a retirment a cut above average pensioners, you better think to do something today about it. See your representative. Write the Premier. Always keep in mind that a 25 year-old politician at Queen's Park can retire at age 40 with a full and copiously indexed pension. To serve and protect. Politicians too have that motto. However, and con - TO • trary to the police force, Tfiey don t have the public in mind. For once, as not to pass in your retire- ment age for a Scrooge or a miser in the eyes of your grandchildren, ask yourself, now, if you are as responsible as you think you are. $25 can restore eyesight To the Editor: "A Mother's love is special for we have only one Mother". , As Mother's Day is. celebrated on May 10th I have the privilege of asking you to share with me a way of honoring and remembering our Mothers. As a youngster and on into my own mother and grandmotherhood I wore the customary red carnation signifying my mother was still alive. Now that she is gone I still like to remember her in a prac- tical way ... by restoring someone to sight who is blind. Do you realize what a chain reaction is set off when sight is restored? There is a truism which says: Give man a fish and he can eat for a day, but teach him how to fish and he can feed his family. In a similar fashion a $25 gift can restore • eyesight to a cataract blind person, enabl- ing that person to work and thus be able to feed and supporta family. There are many people in the Developing countries who are curably blind. Can we in Canada com- Yours truly, A. Joe Legrand Lucknow, Ont. prehend 40 million blind people, almost twice our population, half of which are curable if funds were available. It's hard to imagine that many blind people but we can do something about it. For a $25 (tax deductible) donation to the Canadian Charity Operation Eyesight Universal, will pay for sight restoring cataract surgery, drugs, hospitalization, special glasses and follow-up care for the patient. A patient identification card signed by the attending surgeon will be sent to you, or if you choose to your mother, giving the name, sex, age and town or village of the one restored to sight. Why don't you plan on honoring your mother or her memory in this way? Send to Operation Eyesight Universal, Box 123, Stn. "M", Calgary, Alberta. T2P 2H6 • In care and concern. Gertrude Roberts, 48 Canyon Dr: N.W., Calgary, Alberta T2L OR3 In Person One Night On COME SEE CLINTON SPRING FAIR "TRADEFEST, CLINTON ARENA JUNE 5th, 6th