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The Rural Voice, 1988-05, Page 14POLYETHYLENE ICALF HUTCH $219.00 • Long lasting, durable polyethylene • Non-toxic, environmentally safe • Lightweight, easily transported • Stackable, efficient storage & freight • Well ventilated design • Resistant to all types of weather • Easily cleaned, no rust or rot • 3 -year warranty OVERALL DIMENSIONS Including 3' flange - W I D T H: 54 Inches LENGTH: 74 Inches HEIGHT:49 1/2 inches ENTRANCE: 28' x 41' approximate routing CLARKHILL FEEDERS LTD. R.R. 5, Goderich, Ont. N7A 3Y2 Phil Clark 519-524-4367 1-1 DEM of -1 ION DURHAM ONT. LIMITED USED BUILDING MATERIALS • Wood & steel beams • Steel pipe • Windows & doors • Boilers & furnaces • Electric transformers • Fluorescent lights Large stock of New Thermal Casement Windows For Information and Demolition Quotes Call 1-800-265-3062 519-369-3203 Warehouse and Sales Yard Located 5 Km South of Durham on Hwy. 6 12 THE RURAL VOICE `JOHNNY WHO?' AND `CHEQUEBOOK CHARLIE' Along with the sweet smells of this spring of 1988 comes the rather sickly odor of hustings fever. Yes, Prime Minister Mulroney has hinted at an election, as has Joe Clark, the miracle boy of Conservative poli- tics who has risen above the embar- rassing days of "Joe Who?" When Joe was floundering in the pre -Mulroney hatchet days, a rising star of 1979 was John Wise, an Elgin County boy. And when Mulroney took over, it looked for a while as if Wise's star would shine even brighter. But in his four years at the helm of Agriculture Canada, you might say the star of the Good 01' Boy from Elgin has lost much of its lustre. He could even take on the old Joe moniker — and be referred to as "John Who?" A long time ago, Johnny decided he wanted to handle political animals rather than dairy cattle. He ran and succeeding locally, then decided he wanted to play politics with the big boys. That meant Ottawa. Through- out the 1970s he paid his dues, and he was finally bestowed with his mantle of power as Minister of Agriculture by Smilin' Brian. But that mantle has slowly drop- ped in the ongoing farm crisis, and Johnny just may have been duped. Recently, "Chequebook Charlie" Mayer was granted broader powers than just Minister of State for the Canadian Wheat Board. He's been given the new moniker, Minister of State for Grains and Oilseeds. The export -dependent grain and oilseed business of Western Canada is certainly important, and Charlie, being a pseudo -Westerner from Manitoba, has been the boy to give out the billion -dollar bailout cheques to the boys on the range. So Mayer's expanded power base seems logical. What is forgotten, of course, is that besides a healthy wheat industry, corn and soybeans are kings in Ontario, this richest of agricultural provinces. So the reality is that what "Chequebook Charlie" gained, "Johnny Who?" lost. No longer can John rub shoulders with the cash -crop boys of southwest- ern Ontario, unless of course it invol- ves those who are being phased out by John's Farm Debt Review Boards. While John still sips Ontario wine — or maybe it's Californian now — with marketing -board boys and beef and pork farmers, he's got more to lose than gain. His debt review boards are losing credibility and nationally the bankrupt Farm Credit Corporation is a mess. The Grits, who of course aren't blameless in the farm depression of the 1980s, initiated the idea of giving balance to the agriculture portfolio by giving Easterners (Ontarians in parti- cular) their federal agriculture minis- ter, and Westerners an agriculture minister by another name, Minister of State for the Canadian Wheat Board. I don't think this new mix of min- istries will wash in Ontario, although in the West it's ideal. "Chequebook Charlie" can hand out subsidies across Canada, and "John Who?" can move farmers off their land across the land. Knowing little about that exclusive club of federal cabinet boys and how it works from within, my observation from without would be that Elgin 01' Boy John Wise has been suckered. He takes the rap for farm failures while old "Chequebook" hands out the dole. So it is that before the next federal election, I say their ministerial moni- kers should be cleansed so the voter will better understand their roles. Here's what I suggest: The Hon. Charles Mayer, Minister of State for Grains, Oilseeds, and Bailout Bonus- es; The Hon. John Wise, Minister of Agriculture for Marketing Boards, Beef, Pork, and Bankruptcies.0 Gord Wainman has been an urban - based agriculture reporter for 12 years.