The Citizen, 1995-12-13, Page 4Snowed in
Photo by Bonnie Gropp
Letters
THE EDITOR,
On Oct. 30, We Almost Lost
Canada!
Today we can choose to do
nothing, and run the risk of losing
our Canada, sometime in the future
by default, or we can choose to
embark on a people crusade, to
make Canada work for all
Canadians.
"The 20th Century Belongs to
Canada" was a popular dream
shared by Canadians 100 years ago.
Today the United Nations declares
Canada the number one country in
the world — and on Oct. 30, our
Canada was preserved by a mere
50,000 votes, or approximately one
per cent of Quebec voters.
We are grandparents, a nurse and
a farmer and former sales rep, and
we live on a gravel road in Morris
Township, Huron County, Ontario,
Canada. We have a family of five,
and they and their spouses have
blessed us with eight
grandchildren.
Two days before the vote,
thousands of everyday Canadians
from across this land, joined with
everyday citizens of Quebec in a
last minute effort to save our
Canada. Who knows for sure, but
that "everyday people rally", may
have saved Canada. Everyday
people, meeting, talking, singing
and cheering everyday people, we
believe can make Canada work for
all Canadians. Will Rogers is
quoted as saying "He never met a
man he didn't like — I've never met
a person that I got to know, that I
didn't appreciate.
What if service clubs, towns,
cities, churches, businesses,
farmers, individuals, etc., organized
exchanges of their members with
similar groups in Quebec, with
translators to facilitate
communication at combined events
like meetings, picnics, barbecues,
etc.
During my sales career, and
today with our farm customers —
we have people who at times are
not satisfied with our products and
services, or in plain words, have
complaints. To resolve complaints,
the first rule is to "Listen
Carefully" while the problem is
clearly stated and ask the
dissatisfied party.
Any organization that I belong to
- Canadian Shorthorn Association,
my church, etc., allows a SO per
cent plus one vote to decide
operating decisions, but to alter the
major direction of the group
requires a majority usually of
about 66 per cent.
On Oct. 30 the Quebec
Referendum was conducted
virtually in isolation to Canada,
with no agreed upon rules - no one
knew in the event of Quebec
leaving Canada, what Canada's
position was on many crucial
matters - eg. what per cent of
national debt would be assumed by
the country of Quebec, what about
passports, Canadian currency,
federal property in Quebec,
geography and support or
abandonment of our aboriginal
citizens, if they choose to separate
from Quebec. Without many of
these issues being resolved before
another vote is held, how can
voters make an informed decision?
The Separatists are reported to be
saying that the ball is in the
Federalists court and are waiting
for them to respond. Surely since
Canada is at stake, Canadians must
give top priority to the rules of the
game should Quebec or any other
Province or Territory decide to
secede.
According to polls taken since
the Referendum Vote, up to 70 per
cent of Yes voters want to negotiate
a deal that would keep them in
Canada. With a combination of
"Get-to-Know Exchanges", a
positive resolution of "complaints",
and an honest effort to establish
rules of secession for all Canadians,
we everyday Canadians can help
ourselves and our elected leaders
enter the 21st Century full of
Continued on page 6
PAGE 4. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 13, 1995.
C 1i
The The North Huron
BLUE
RIBBON
AWARD
1995
P.O. Box 429, P.O. Box 152, Publisher, Keith Roulston
BLYTH, Ont. BRUSSELS, Ont. Editor, Bonnie Gropp NOM 1H0 NOG 1H0
Phone 523-4792 Phone 887-9114 Advertising Manager,
FAX 523-9140 FAX 887.9021 Jeannette McNeil
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A tax is still a tax
Now that the provincial government, through its budget cutbacks,
has saddled municipalities with a whole range of extra costs it is
proposing to give municipalities a whole new range of income options.
Whether it is charging a
membership at libraries,
charging for each bag of ditorial garbage or levying a tax on
every resident of the
municipalities, there are no
opportunities for municipalities to make money from sources other than
property tax. Given that the province will now provide less assistance
for everything from roads to libraries municipalities must have more
flexibility or they'll have to reduce services drastically.
But many of the cutbacks the provincial government made were in
the name of being able to make a 30 per cent cut in provincial income
taxes. People, they said, were paying too much in tax. Let's not kid
ourselves: these new levies the municipalities are going to make are
still taxes. If people get money back from a provincial government cut,
but have to pay it in extra taxes to municipalities, little is accomplished
but making Mike Harris seem like a good guy.
Certainly having more services delivered by municipalities, free
from the weight of the provincial bureaucracy is a good move.
Municipalities in general have proved much more flexible than the
provincial or federal governments. A sterling example was the eastern
Ontario administrator who made huge savings for his municipality by
rewarding employees for finding new ways to do jobs for less money.
This brings real savings for taxpayers without causing major disruption
for residents.
If Provincial Treasurer Ernie Eves and Mike Harris want to make a
real difference, perhaps they should borrow this ingenious
administrator and put his system to work at the provincial level, rather
than just shifting the tax burden from the provincial to the municipal
level . — KR
Feel better now?
Well, now we know! Bob White, Buzz Hargrove, God is definitely
on your side. When you decided to show the muscle of the labour
movement by shutting down London, nature, in sympathy, decided to
do an even better job of shutting down all of western Ontario.
Still, despite all the huffing and puffing of labour leaders, little was
accomplished with Monday's protest in London but to hurt employers
and union members themselves. When one is faced with a problem, it
always feels better to do something, anything, but one can hardly
imagine Premier Mike Harris is quaking in his boots after labour's
attempt at a general strike. Labour wants to demonstrate it still has
muscle but, while the protest generated reams of publicity, it is unlikely
to persuade the Harris government to change its policies.
If anything, labour's actions may strengthen those who were starting
to waver in their support of the Progressive Conservative government
in Queen's Park. Many people are starting to wonder if the government
has gone too far, but faced with labour strikes, they're apt to think that
the government must be onto something good. Union unrest brings
memories of the bad old days. People are sick of the kind of dogmatic,
left-wing propaganda that union leaders have been screaming for years.
It's one of the reasons Harris got so much support in the last election.
The repeal of the legislation to prevent companies using replacement
workers in case of a strike is one of the main grievances the unions
have against the government. But during the debate on the proposal the
unions had some unlikely allies among the auto industry. The big auto
companies told the government they didn't want the legislation
replaced. So when the unions staged their protest Monday who were the
biggest losers? The unions shut down the Cami plant at Ingersoll, the
GM Diesel plant in London and the Ford plant at St. Thomas costing
these companies millions of dollars. It's a reaction that's like a man who
is mad at his boss so comes home and beats his wife.
Let's hope the union movement has got this protest business off its
chest. Nobody gained much by the protest. At a time when the
economy is struggling to not fall back intro recession, the last thing we
need is the disruption of strikes. Like it or not, the Harris government is
here to stay. Protests aren't going to change much. — KR