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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1966-02-24, Page 9mach 's Tax Mess Gigantic federal needs plus even more gigantic provincial and municipal needs require still more blood out of the tax- payer. His capacity to give blood, however, is nearing ex- haustion, The Financial Post comments. The idiocy of any further in- creases in income taxes, for in- stance, is demonstrated dramat- ically by a Canadian Tax Foun- dation calculation. The figures: If every cent of assessed income in excess of $15, 000 had been taxed away in 1963, which in itself could lead to a mass exo- des of Canada's best-trained and most-enterprising people, the federal government would have been richer by only $325 million. This sum is equal to only 2.5% of present federal spending. Medicare, by con- trast, carries a $680 million price tag. "Any really massive anti- poverty campaign," the Founda- tion concludes, "will have to be largely a boot-strap opera- tion with the barely affluent carrying a great part of the cost." That likelihood is borne out in fact by Ontario's recent budget, The Financial Post points out. The provincial of- ficials find they can pay for theirhuge 1966-67 spending pro- gram only by raising sales taxes . that catch poor and rich alike. THE PIPES AND DRUMS took over the Worrell, Brian McKague and Terry Sillick variety concert as Mac Armstrong, Robert stage for a time during the high school presented a number of Scottish tunes. —Advance-Times Photo. ancieffeinte Wingham, Ontario, Thursday, Feb. 24, 1966 SECOND SECTION barn There's nothing like an old- fashioned blizzard to put that cocky creature, man, in his place. We're right in the middle of a four-star dandy at the mo- ment. It's been snowing and blowing for 48 hours, with salu- tary results. The world has be- come a wild, white wilderness. And the people in it have be• come human beings. The creature man in his wis- dom believes he has tamed na- ture, :He will admit, under quiz- zing, that he still doesn't know much about himself. But he is confident that he has brought the natural world to heel, Normally, he thinks of nature as something subdued, some- thing to he used for recreation, or looking at and saying, "Nice, ain't it?" It takes a rousing belch from that old trollop, Mother Nature, whether it be in the form of a blizzard, a hurricane, an earth- quake or a fire, to set him right back on his primitive heels. And strangely enough, it is only when nature comes up with some kind o4' a spectacular that man seemr to shed his scale of materialism, get down to his basic virtues, and find out once again what makes the human race go round in ever-diminish- ing circles. Ordinarily, the Christian vir- tues are as easily spotted as the teeth in a hen who is drawing the old-age pension. But when nature gives a vast rumble of laughter at the little fellows, and collapses the facade of crea- ture comforts which are the modern-day fetishes, the old vir- tues brighten the darkest con nee Generosity, unselfishness, de- cency, do-unto-others — all the things to which we pay lip serv- ice — suddenly flower when people are getting a good kick in the teeth from old Mother. When a blizzard is raging, or- dinary, miserable, grouchy peo- ple regain some of those quall ties the pioneers are supposed to have had. People who wouldn't pick up the Queen of England, even if she displayed a sign reading, "Buckingham Pal- ace or bust," suddenly start picking up hitch-hikers. People who ordinarily wouldn't give you the time of day will stop and shove you out of a snowbank. People who wouldn't buy an apple from a Boy Scout will shovel out old ladies' driveways. And strangest of all, they V. Thompson, of Toronto, who with his wife had recently re- turned from a trip to Trinidad, showed his views taken on the trip. smile and grin and chortle while they're doing it. Not only do they revert to hu- manity. They return to a certain primitive pride in doing battle with the elements. People who will grumble for hours about a sprinkle of rain that spoils a picnic, turn into giants when the big snow comes, They hump through the drifts. They snort and stamp into work. half an hour late, as proud as though they'd just crossed the Sahara, single-handed, without water. They die in their hundreds, frozen grins on their !faces, clutching their snow-sho- vels.I I speak from experience. This morning, my neighbor, with whom I exchange a carefully amiable greeting about every six months, had managed to smash his truck through the three-foot drift in his drive. And there he was when he mushed out, grinning like a gargoyle, motor running, to give us a drive to work. And he wasn't practising one-up-manship, He was being a good neighbor, Got to work, and found that one chap had driven through the storm for four-and-a-half hours to make it on time. He was slit-eyed, unshaven, and something of a hero, for per- haps the first time in his life. I hate to suggest it, in case old Mother N, is listening, but perhaps we need a few more blizzards, earthquakes, holo- causts and hurricanes. They work a lot better than nationally advertised Brotherhood Weeks. DONNYBROOK Mrs, J. C. Robinson of Wingham spent a couple of days with Mr. and Mrs. Edward Robinson and family. Mr. and Mrs. Hilliard Jeffer- son spent a couple of days in Toronto last week. The senior girls of S. S. No. 3, West Wawanosh, sponsored another card party Wednesday evening with seven tables play- ing. High lady was Mrs. Eggle- ston; low, Mrs. Edward Robin- son; high man, Donald Murray; low, Jim Small. The ladies served lunch and all enjoyed a social time. Mr. and Mrs. Edward Robin- son, Jim, Bill, Judy and Janice attended a birthday party Satur- day evening in honor of her mother, Mrs. Gershom Johnson of Whitechurch. In this modern age men who die with their boots on usually have one of them on the accel- erator. See Your Doctor...and.... Control High ), Blood Pressure 41, Eat Less Saturated Fat Keep 0, Normal Weight Exercise Regularly H Brings id The Bes# 4 • I 41 A 4 Announcement by the Ontario govern- merit at the week-end that the Ontario Medical Services Plan had passed into law, was received with mixed feelings through- out the province, Actually there has been so much talk and argument about the merits and draw- backs of the many social service schemes before the Canadian public that the av- erage man in the street finds it difficult to sort them out, much less properly assess their relative values. We do not profess to know all the de- tails of the plan as yet and therefore hesitate to express opinion about it. But in the broad sense it does appear to be the sort of permissive legislation which is in the best interests of the entire popu- lation. It does not compel anyone to take part; it simply offers a form of medical For the past two or three years we have been hearing and reading about Cen- tennial projects of a hundred and one kinds, ranging all the way from bird baths to municipal buildings. Some of the plans are good and some of them are utterly nonsensical, as might have been antici- pated when the government announced its free handout to encourage such schemes. Among the very best plans we have en- countered, however, is the one which is being carried out by the Boy Scouts of the Saugeen District. Under the leadership of an active planning committee and in- terested leaders, the boys will leave Walk- erton on June 30th, 1967, for Ottawa, where they will spend Dominion Day, go on to the World's Fair in Montreal, travel to Rimouski, Quebec, and so through New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. On their re- turn they will travel through Prince Ed- ward Island and back through Quebec. The underlying purpose of the tour, other than giving more than 200 boys a wonderful outing, is to let them see with their own eyes the greatness and the During the years since the formation of the Mid Western Ontario Development Association that organization has enjoyed or suffered under extremes of both en- thusiastic support and utter rejection. Though the purposes for which it was set up were commendable, the actual ac- complishment of its tasks to the complete satisfaction of all communities in its scope has been impossible. Last week its board of directors came up with an ambitious scheme to lift MODA out of the realms of mediocrity and into the fast-paced world of big business. The proposal was made that a new set of fees be established for the participating municipalities and that the association launch a high-pressure campaign of adver- tising to draw attention to the opportuni- ties available to business and industry as well as tourists in the Western Ontario area. Insurance which will be extremely help- ful, particularly to the heads of growing families, where medical costs can be very frightening if illnesses pile up too fast. Another feature we like is that which provides graded premiums to allow for the fact that not all of those who need medical care have the settee income. The fees for coverage are reduced to corres- pond with taxable incomes. Those who cannot pay et all are covered by the government. This, to our way of thinking, is social service as it should be. Valuable assist- ance is extended by the government to a public which Is expected to be intelligent enough to participate without compulsion, unlike the Canada Pension Plan which herds all the sheep through the dip whether they -halve ticks or not. promise of their native land. Unless one has travelled far enough to grasp the immensity of this nation there is little concept of its possibilities. Tomorrow's citizen must be a man of broad vision and imagination. It is hoped that the tour will produce not one, but many such lead- ers of the future. Right now the big problem is to find sufficient young men and adults who are willing to take three weeks of the summer of 1967 to accompany the boys, Plans call for one leader for every four boys, so that something over 50 leaders will be needed. in addition, these leaders will be asked to put up the same fee as the boys, $125 for the trip, Since the boys' fees have been held right down to the very lowest figure, every person who goes along has to pay his way. The trip is strictly in the interests of building better Canadians. No experience in Scouting is necessary. Any man over 18 years of age may vol- unteer by dropping a note to Lloyd Ack- ert, tour director, at Holyrood, Ontario. We offer no judgment as to the merits of the plan, except the general observation that it certainly would appear to be worth a try. The budget allowed for publicity and advertising has been so tiny in the past that it could not have been expected to accomplish much. Perhaps it is time to "shoot the works" and see what will happen. The new assessments which are pro- posed are still not desperately steep. For example Wingham would be asked for about $342.00; Turnberry $131.00; How- ick $200. Each municipality can afford to risk this sort of money for three years to give the expanded program a chance to work. Certainly we never will see this section of the province develop if we are not pre- pared to invest in its growth in some way or other. MODA still appears to be the best vehicle for this sort of effort. regarded as being too rich, What is im- portant is that the law of the province and the country should have been obeyed whether or not Oshawa again got a daily newspaper. None of the provincial politicians has come out of the affair with any credit. Mr. Roberts and every other politician in- volved in the Oshawa affair were trying desperately to let some other politician solve the problem. The Ontario section of the Canadian Bar Association was correct in calling on the government to enforce the law. Funda- mentally an injunction is an order of the court that a person or persons to whom the injunction is addressed must obey the law. It is difficult for anyone outside the legal profession to see that no pro- cedure is possible that does not give the courts the right and duty to order the stopping of lawbreaking. The alternative is chaos. REMINISCING PEBRUARY 1917 A meeting of the High School Literary '3oeiety was bele on Feb. in, The first /weber was a piano duet by Miss Bernice Smith and Miss Heloise Kenneciy Tab was kg-- leered by a debate. The af- firmative was taken by Chesley McLean and Miss Annie Wilson and negative by Weir Elliott and Miss Olive aintoel. The de- bate was followed by a solo by Harald Robinson and a piano solo by George Allen which was much appreciated. The prop- het's address by Mary Connell and the Journal by Howard Gray abounded with humor and satire at the expense of the students. mr. W. F. Vanstone and two daughters spent a few days in Toronto. Miss Norma has accepted a position as steno- grapher in the Parliament Build- ings. Mr. A. M. Crawford has opened up an up-to-date show room in the corner of the old National building. He will dis- play his Fords in this store 'which he has recently fitted up for that purpose. FEBRUARY 1931 The girls' hockey team of the Wingham High School jour- neyed to Kincardine on Friday of last week and engaged the Kincardine High School girls in a friendly game. The Wingham girls were victorious by the score of 2-1. The Wingham line-up: Goal, Helen Beattie, defense, Mary King and Betty Walker; centre, Margaret Cur- rie; wings, Ella Rae and Hazel Wilson; alternates, Vera Fry, Agnes Louttit and Dell Walker. R. N. Armstrong reports an- other sale through the National Farm Agency, of Mr. Elmer Fowler's farm, 3rd line Morris, to Mr. Gordon 0. Walker, Turnberry. Mrs. T. Fells arid Mrs. T. Kew were delegates to the On- tario Horticultural Convention which was held at the King Ed- ward Hotel in Toronto, last week. Mr. Jas. Currie, son of Mr. and Mrs. John T. Currie, has been appointed by the East Waw- anosh countii to succeed Mr. Finlay Anderson as Treasurer. FEBRUARY 1941 There were two enlistments from here in the Elgin Regi- ment, C. A. S.F. , last week, Carl Hart and Harold Ridley. Royal McArthur has been ac- cepted for general duty by the R.C.A.F. and expects to have a call to duty in about two weeks' time. Norman Wel- wood has also been accepted for air crew by the R.C.A.F. and will report to London on March 15th. Miss Patricia Parker of Vic- toria College, Toronto Univer- sity, spent the week-end with her parents. Miss Irene Ellacott had her shoulder injured while skiing. As she was going down a bill one of her poles caught in some underbrush and badly wrenched her shoulder. FEBRUARY 1952 An elderly Whitechurch man, William Peddle, 67, was struck by a car, driven by Glen Jar- dine, early Saturday evening. He was taken to Wingham Gen- eral Hospital where hospital authorities report his present condition as satisfactory. R. E. McKinney was pre- sented with a Gruen pocket watch recently by the Super- test Petroleum Corporation in appreciation of his 25 years with that company. The Wingham United Church parsonage was the scene of a pleasant occasion on Wed- nesday afternoon and evening, when Dr. and Mrs. Beecroft were at home to members of the congregation. They were also pleased to welcome many friends from the other congre- gations of the town. Mr. and Mrs. Alex Reid en- tertained some neighbors and friends last Saturday evening, including Rev. and Mrs. W. A. Beecroft, Mr. and Mrs. Bill Cruikshank, Miss Caroline Well- Wood, Miss Marion Simpson, Mrs. Larry Hiseler and Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd Hutton. Mr. Gordon Fred Jones, of the American News- paper Guild has intimated, or threatened, that he would have gone to jail in defiance of the court order or injunction in the Oshawa newspaper strike, comments the News-Letter. Mr. Jones, an experienced 0 Toronto newspaper writer, before he be- came a union executive, should know that jails are intended to lock up and hold people convicted of breaking the law. It should be obvious to Mr. Charles Millard, Mr. George Burt and all the others prom- inent in labor positions that to defy the $ court order is to break the law, and law- breakers must be punished or civilization is destroyed. There are still people who think that the Oshawa strike was of interest main- ly to the strikers and their erstwhile employer, The Oshawa Times. The issue • expanded until it was very great indeed. Claims of the union against the news- paper do not matter. It is inconsequential that Lord Thomson of Fleet is generally Makes Good Sense Best Yet "MODA Means Business" Laws Must Be Obeyed THE WINGHAM ADVANCE - TIMES Published at Wingham, Ontario, by Wenger Bros. Limited. W, Barry Wenger, President - Robert 0. Wenger, Secretary-Treasurer Member AddIt Bureau of Circulation Member Canadian Weekly Newspapers Association. Authorized by the Post Office Department as Second Class Mail and for payment of postage in cash. Subscription Rate: 1 year, $5.00; 6 months, $2.75 in advance; U.S.A., $7.00 per yr.; Foreign rate, $7.00 per yr. Advertising Rates on application.