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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2000-10-04, Page 4PAGE 4, THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2000 Editorials & Opinions A dream too big for the country In the face of the incredible outpouring of love and respect from the people of Canada following the death of Pierre Trudeau on Thursday, some journalists, former rivals and enemies tried to provide an antidote to the sentimentality by pointing out some of the former prime minister’s failures. Yes, there are failures in the Trudeau legacy, but in many ways they were ours more than his. Trudeau's grand vision for Canada proved just too much for mere mortals and, like King Arthur’s Camelot, our inability to move beyond human frailty doomed the dream. As a man who had travelled widely in Canada, he had a vision of the whole country from sea to sea that many people, who stayed closer to home, couldn’t grasp. One of the greatest criticisms, for instance, was that he failed to heal the rift between nationalists in Quebec and the rest of the country. But Trudeau’s goal for Quebecois was so much broader than that of the nationalists. Having seen the Rockies and the grandeur of the North, he dreamed of others from his province partaking in the whole country and his ideas of bilingualism were to encourage French-speaking people to feel at home in the entire land. But nationalists didn't want that. They wanted a smaller dream, a country of their own where they could set the rules and impose the same hardships on English-speaking people that had been imposed on French- speaking people over the years. On the other hand, many people in the rest of Canada resented bilingualism. They felt if was “shoving French down their throats”, not building a great nation. Similarly, while some of the most heart-felt tributes to Trudeau have come from immigrants, many Canada opposed his multi-cultural policies. That resentment is still fueling our political process today. Trudeau was a hero to people in many Third World countries for his vision of sharing and generosity toward the world’s poor by the wealthier nations but that was a vision that wasn’t accepted even by many Canadians who resented seeing their tax dollars go to foreign aid. It’s a sentiment that’s'still driving the political agenda today. Though Trudeau’s experience in Quebec made him distrust nationalism, he also recognized a country must have the ability to shape its own society and thus tried to wrestle some of the levers of the economy back into Canadian hands through the Foreign Investment Review Agency and the National Energy Program. In the light of today’s move to globalization these moves can be seen as a last grasp of national sovereignty that didn’t work. The goal, however, was to be able to shape Canadian policies to meet the needs of Canadians, not foreign shareholders. Today we see that the demands of foreign investors are pressuring politicians into changing policies that Canadians hold dear. Ironically, though he is regarded as a pseudo-Communist by many on the right, Trudeau believed in the rights of the individual over the state. But he also believed in a personal generosity of spirit that meant the individual was always concerned for others. Too often our individualism, to some extent promoted by his Charter of Rights and Freedoms, has become a “me-first” attitude. Yet despite these “failures”, despite our inability to live up to the ambitious dreams he had for Canada, we still live in a country that is the envy of most people in the world. Despite individual acts of intolerance and racism, we set the standard for harmony among a diverse ethnic mixture of peoples. Canada is still together, to some extent due to the personal magnetism of Pierre Trudeau. At the height of one of the Quebec referenda on separatism Trudeau said “it would be a crime against humanity for Canada to fail” because Canada was a beacon of what a country could be. We may be far from a perfect country but few countries offer more. It’s quite a legacy.— AT? Letters to the Editor THE EDITOR, I am writing to express my utmost support for Senator Colin Kenny’s Bill S-20, the Tobacco Youth Protection Act. Intended to raise funds to combat tobacco addiction, this bill would apply a $1.50 manufacturing levy on every carton of cigarettes sold. The time has come for the tobacco industry to start paying for the health problems it creates. It is a national disaster that we are losing 45,000 Canadians a year to tobacco-related diseases. Even more concerning is that tobacco use among young people is growing - an alarming 30 per cent of Canadians aged 15 to 19 years now smoke. Bill S-20 would raise $360 million annually - none of it tax money - in order to support community-based health education and cessation programs for youth. In California, they spent $4 per capita fighting tobacco and have a youth smoking rate of 11 per cent. In Canada, we spend 33 cents per capita and have a youth smoking rate of almost 30 per cent. What is wrong with the Canadian picture? Please join the team of caring and knowledgeable Canadians who want to give our kids a chance against tobacco addiction. I urge everyone to support this bill by writing to or visiting your local MP. Together, we must work to create a country where the choice not to smoke is an easy choice for youth to make. Sincerely, Dr. Beth Henning, MD, MPH, FACPM Acting Medical Officer of Health. Publisher, Keith Roulston Editor, Bonnie Gropp Advertising Manager, Jeannette McNeil The Citizen is published 50 times a year in Brussels, Ontario by North Huron Publishing Company Inc. Subscriptions are payable in advance at a rate of $27.00/year ($25.24 + $ 1.76 G.S.T.) in Canada, $62.00/year in U.S.A and $100/year in other foreign countries. Advertising is accepted on the condition that in the event of a typographical error, only that portion of the advertisement will be credited. Advertising Deadlines: Monday, 2 p.m. - Brussels; Monday, 4 p.m. - Blyth. We are not responsible for unsolicited newsscripts or photographs. Contents of The Citizen are © Copyright We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Publicotions-Assistance Program (PAP) toward our moiling costs. Publications Mail Reg. No. 09244 Canadian Publication Mail Agreement No. 1374990 P.O. Box 429, BLYTH, Ont. N0M 1H0 Phone 523-4792 FAX 523-9140 E-mail norhuron@scsinternet.com jpcna <*cna Member of the Ontario Press Council Hangers-on Photo by Janice Becker Looking Back Through the Years Oct. 6, 1960 The weather turned against the Brussels Fall Fair with a day of chill winds following a stretch of warm and sunny days. Attendance was estimated at 4,000. Mrs. Lewis Stonehouse, Belgrave took top prizes for baking, while Mrs. Vera Hastings won first in flowers. The 4-H grain club placings for grain sample were John Baan, Joe Steffler, Charley Bray, Donald Bray, Donald Perrie, John Pennington, David Hemingway, David Wheeler, Clark Pope, Bill Uhler, Wallace Black. The 4-H calf club results were: Holstein, Barbara Brav, John DeVries, Wayne Baker, Joyce Procter, Bill Uhler, John Baan, Keith Ward, Robbie Smith, Myra McNair, Fred Uhler. A total of 18 schools were represented in the parade. Two 15-oz. tins of Franco American Macaroni cost 37 cents at Willis’s. Movie lovers could see But Not For Me and A Touch of Larceny at the Llashmar Drive-in Theatre in Listowel, while Cast A Long Shadow was on the playbill at Brownie’s Drive-in in Clinton. Carruther’s Orchestra was playing for a dance at the Wroxeter Community Hall. Admission was 75 cents. Oct. 8, 1975 By the time Blyth firemen arrived at a fire three miles east of Walton, the barn was nearly burned to the ground. Another Blyth business had re­ opened after undergoing expansion. Blyth Meat Market owned by Don and Lenore Scrimgeour now included the old meat market and the former Doreen's Beauty Shop. Ontario Housing officials hoped to begin construction of the seniors apartment project in Blyth before winter. The grand opening was celebrated for the new Co-op in Belgrave. Mrs. Beth Lansing was honoured at the 25th anniversary celebration of the Auburn Horticultural Soc­ iety for her long service with the group. Oct. 3,1990 An Auburn-area girl, Tanya Boonstoppel, was crowned Dairy Princess for Huron County. Donna White was officially named the new clerk treasurer for Brussels with the passing of a bylaw. Don Carter was named charter president of the new Blyth and District Optimist Club. Kevin Deitner, president of the sponsoring Brussels club and George Langlois, Lt. Governor or Zone 2 were among those taking part in the installation. The rest of the executive was Trudy Passchier, secretary-treasurer; Pat Brigham, vice-president; Cathy Nethery, director; Herb Van Amersfoort, director; Laurie Sparling, director; Brenda Young, vice-president, Alan Young, director; Jeff Peters, director; Murray Siertsema, director. When the Ontario Youth Choir embarked on its fall tour through northern Ontario an Auburn-area teen was with it. Kevin Webster, son of Karen and Allan Webster was encouraged by his Goderich District Collegiate Institute music teacher to take lessons, so he began receiving instruction from Renee Stalenhoef, an opera singer form Holland, who resided in Auburn. He auditioned successfully for the youth choir then attended summer camp at the University of Western Ontario to prepare. John Hesselwood was re-elected as president of the Blyth Swinging Seniors club. Auburn Horticultural Society had five charter members at its 40th The Citizen P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, Ont. NOG 1 HO Phone 887-9114 FAX 887-9021 anniversary celebration: Marjorie Sturdy, Dorothy Grange, Bernie Anderson, Marion Haggitt and Amelia Straughan. Past presidents attending were Mrs. Grange, Erma Cartwright, Maureen Bean and Donald Haines. The keys for the $1.2 million addition to Memorial Hall were turned over to the village in a ceremony attend by the contractor, Don Grant, architect Chris Borgal, building chairman, Don McCaffrey and the reeve of Blyth, Albert Wasson. Acclaimed pianist/com- poser/performer Hagood Hardy appeared at Blyth Memorial Hall. Oct 4,1995 Brussels councillors were worried that ongoing vandalism might lead to the reduction of services at the Brussels conservation area. A letter from the Maitland Valley Conservation Authority said it would be difficult to replace a privy at the conservation area, that was burned to the ground for the second time in less than three years. The estimated cost of replacing it was $4,000. The new Brussels Optimist executive was Duane Gibson, director; George Langlois, secretary­ treasurer; Bruce Amortising, director; Gerry Wheeler, second vice; Brian Deitner, director; Dan Pearson, director; Murray Cardiff, director; Mike Thomas, past president; Steve Knight, president; Ross Mitchell, second vice. October marked the 10th anniversary of The Citizen. The Hullett Squirt Girls ended the year with the B title. Team members were: Assistant Coach Denise Gross, Jessica Elder, Lisa Isaac, Tiffany Reinhardt, Becky Martin, Coach Anj McCool, Uneetta Biesinger, Mandy Dunbar, Melanie Hiuser, Jody Godfrey, Michelle Klaasen, Melissa Snell, Mary Huizinga.