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The Huron Expositor, 1995-02-08, Page 44-TNtt HURON RXPO$ITOR, /.Mwavy S, 1ti1$ ..•■••., . .•■• Huron sitor Your Community Newspaper Since 1860 TERRI-LYNN DALE • General Monoger & Advertising Manager MARY MELLOR - Sobs PAT ARMES - Office Manager DIANNE McGRATH - Subscriptions TIM CUMMING - Editor GREGOR CAMPBEtt - Reporter LINDA PULLMAN - Typesetter BARB STOREY - Distribution A Burgoyne Community Newspaper SUBSCRIPTION RATES: LOCAL - 28 00 a year, in odvonce, plus 1.96 G.S.T. SENIORS 25 00 a year, in advance, plus 1.75 G.S.T. Goderich, Stratford addresses: 28.00 a year, in advance, plus 7.28 postoge, plus 2.47 G.S.T Out -Of -Area addresses. 28.00 o yeor, in odvonce, plus 11.44 postoge, plus 2.76 G.S.T USA 8 Foreign: 28.00 o year in advance, plus 576.00 postage, G.S.T. exempt SUBSCRIPTION RATES Published weekly by Signal -Star Publishing of 100 Main Si., Seaforth. Publication moil registra- tion No 0696 held of Seoforth, Oniorio. Advertising is occepfed on condition thof in the event of a typographical error, the odvertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a rea- sonable ollowonce for signature, will not be charged, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rote. In the event of o typographical error, odvertising goods or services of o wrong price, goods or services moy not be sold- Advertising is merely on offer to sell and moy be withdrawn at any time. The Huron Expositor is not responsible for the loss or damage of unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other materiols-used for reproduction purposes. Chonges of address, orders for subscriptions and undeliverable copies ore to be sent to The Huron Expositor. Wednesday, February 8, 1995 Editorial and Business Offices - 100 Main Street, Seoforth Telephone (519) 527-0240 Fax (519) 527-2858 Mailing Address - P.O. Box 69, Seaforth, Ontario, NOK IWO Member of the Canadian Community Newspaper Association, Ontario Community Newspapers Association and the Ontario Press Council Broadbent has integrity Ed Broadbent was going be remembered as a politician with a great deal of integrity and intellect. That legacy is perhaps partly attributable to the former federal NDP leader's having been fortunate enough never to have been in power — however, it's also because he displayed both the aforementioned qualities. While he retired from the party's leadership prior to the last election, he recently demonstrated his ability to lead once again, by becoming the first high-profile politician to reject an opportunity to the widely -reviled practice of "double-dipping." Last month Broadbent was reappointed for another three- year term as head of the federally -funded International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development. He then announced he would forgo his parliamentary pension of about $60,000 per year, which he drew on top of his ICHRDD salary of over $100,000 per year. The move is a commendable one, which should be noted by every former politician now drawing a salary from the public purse. In the interest of perspective, it should be noted . that Broadbent, who was appointed to the commission by Brian Mulroney's Conservative government in 1990 has benefited from doable -dipping to the tune of some $200,000 since then. And, his recent attack of conscience comes at a time when the nation awaits Liberal Prime Minister Jean Chretien's move to make good on his promise to formally abolish the practice for good. We could dwell (as have some editorialists) on the apparent hypocracy of making such a gesture at this particular point in time, but why bother? If we're ever to get rid of double dipping, we'll have to take a better -late -than -never view of politicians who lead the way. —P.R. Letters to the Editor Ethanol supporters praise province, feds for efforts Dear Editor, The Govemments of Ontario and Canada are to be congratulated for decisions made in 1994 which will result in expanded Canadian pro- duction of fuel ethanol. This is needed to meet growing consumer demand for this environmentally superior automotive fuel. The environment benefits of fuel ethanol produced from grain and other biological feedstocks have been documented extensively in independent studies. These benefits include reduced tail -pipe emissions of carbon monoxide and toxic hydrocarbons, less dependence on imports of foreign light crude oil, and the opportunity to replace envi- ronmentally harmful additives such as MMT and benzene. Environment Canada calculations have shown a 40 per cent reduction in net carbon dioxide emissions when fuel ethanol replaces gasoline. This includes "whole -life -cycle" emissions. A more recent analysis by Natural Resources Canada shows reductions of about 100 per cent. More modest benefits have been found in European analyses, a con- sequence of the much more inten- sive nature of production technol- ogy used to grow corn - a renew- able feedstock from which ethanol is made in west European countries compared to Canada. A 1993 report from the Paris -basad OECD indi- cated that ethanol made from corn could mean reductions of up to 70 per cent in net greenhouse gas emissions, or -increases, depending upon differences in production technology. A major report done by Cemcorp for the Ontario Ministry of Environ- ment and Energy shows that fuel ethanol contains over twice the amount of energy used in its pro- duction (sunshine energy not included). This includes the produc- tion of biological feedstocks and inputs used in their production. Opponents of fuel ethanol have criticized the contingent guarantee provided recently by the Govern- ment of Canada in the event that a federal excise tax is reimposed on fuel ethanol before 2005. The excise tax was eliminated in 1992 on ethanol used in gasoline blends. No excise tax has ever existed for propane, compressed natural gas, and other alternative fuels. The contingent guarantee announced in 1994 actually means a reduction of about $17.5 million in federal expenditures in the current and future fiscal years. Tax exemptions in future years will be largely off- set by associated savings in federal expenditure on agriculture. This is in marked contrast to the over $2 billion per year, on average, which the federal government has pro- vided in support for fossil fuel development since 1978, accordirtg to a 1993 analysis done by Ernst and Young Consultants. Sincerely Jim Johnson President, Cartels Association Opinion Murray good fit for his new team If you took all the talented hockey players who have come out of Seaforth's minor and junior systems over the years you would have quite a team. The ones who are still playing now would be hard to beat. I would love to manage them. Rumours were recently circulating that Boyd Devereaux might be picked as high as Numero #1 in next summer's OHL draft. He leads the Midwestern Junior B Hockey League in scoring after a five -point game on the weekend. Danny Wildfong set a single season scoring record for the St. Marys Lincolns last week. Teammate Steve Papple is right up there in the stats too. Paul McLlwain was a recent MVP in the WOAA senior all-star game. Then there are Mike Watt and Rem Murray at Michigan State University, Dave McLlwain of the Ottawa Senators, and you'd be foolish not to leave a card open for his father Jack, who can still show the whippersnappers a thing or two. Scott Driscoll, Brent vanden Akker, the list goes on...and on...and on. But everybody has favorites, and one of the Seaforth-nurtured players I've most enjoyed watching since the mid-1980s is Greg Murray of the famed Murray clan around Dublin. When Greg turns it on he can do things with a puck that make your head spin. He can show you why, when well -played, this is the most exciting game on the face of this earth. Greg has always been a bit of a free spirit, marching to his own drum, which on occasion has been putting it mildly, but we won't get into that. How many people know he's four credits away from a degree in economics? He's been around and seen a lot of hockey rinks. Last season he played for the Exeter Mohawks. Before then it was three seasons and totals of 45 goals and 41 assists in 51 games with Courtland State College, Division II finalists in 1992-93 when Greg was named to the NCAA all -tournament team. Before then it was the Seaforth Seahawks, after Junior B in St. Marys and Niagara Falls, and before that the Seaforth Centenaires. No longer a "spring chicken", but this lad has still got the touch, as he showed in spades recently when he scored 18 points on a three -game weekend for the Brussels Crusaders. • Since then he's gone south and is now playing for the Columbus Chill of the East Coast Hockey League. F/adiacl This war -time photo includes Nora Sills. Seaforth celebrates its Homecoming on August 3-6, 1995. - Greg, now 27, and playing Icft wing, scored two goals in eight seconds for the Chill recently, and so far has scored five goals and three assists, and is +8 in the all- important plus-minus category, since joining the team 10 games ago, a span in which the Chill, an affiliate of the Chicago Black Hawks, has gone 7-3. The Chill is no ordinary hockey team, but certainly one of the strangest and most innovative outfits in North America when it comes to marketing. "They do some wacky stuff," he said in a phone interview Monday, "but it's lots of fun." Such as puuing mothers and their children on toboggans between periods, and shoving them up the ice to knock down bowling pins for prizes. The team also spaces prizes out between the bluelincs, such as microwaves and whatnot, and has blindfolded contestants crawl around until they touch one of them, which they get to take home. The Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders were there recently, as were the Power Rangers. On one Valentine's day a couple was presented with their final divorce papers at centre ice. The most famous Chill promotion was "The Fat Lady Sings" contest. The team held auditions complete with weigh -ins on the ice and the fans voted for the winner, who was originally a guy dressed as a woman called Large Marge, who weighed 300 pounds but was later disqualified after being found in the women's washroom. Management decided it didn't have a winner here, so the second -place finisher is now the official "Fat Lady". In her day job she is an opera singer, but now on some nights in this Ohio city she dresses in Viking garb complete with breast plate, horned helmet and sword and gets up a belts out God Bless America at that point late in some games when it's "in the bag", the identical point when basketball's Red Auerbach used to break out his famous victory cigar. All this is a breath of fresh air in the often stodgy world of sports marketing, certainly more exciting than the standard shoot-the-puck-at- holes-in-a-board-in-front-of-the-nct- between-periods-and-win-a-pizza routine of many teams, and the fans just eat it up. The Chill sold out its 5,700 seat Coliseum 75 -straight games, said to be record for minor- league professional hockey. I can't help but thinking Greg and these guys are a great match. I wish him well. This week's quiz question: What well-known Seaforth hockey player at one time played for the same team made famous in the Paul Newman movie Slapshot ? *** In a future column I will tell you the tale and true facts of how Zurich's Hockey Hall of Famer got cut from a talented Seaforth seven. • Gregor Campbell is a reporter with The Huron Expositor. He is also General Manager of Seaforth's Junior "D"evelopment hockey team. Letters to the Editor Klopp says opportunity exists for volunteer groups Dear Editor, In Ontario provincial elections, the elected MPP provides a list of people to be selected for enumerators, deputy returning offi?ers and other paid election positions. This list is sent to the Chief Returning Officer before the election. In keeping with my com- mitment to a more open govern- ment, I am giving this opportunity to volunteer organizations, service clubs and churches in the riding. Any service club, volunteer organization or church group inter- ested in a unique fundraiser are welcome to apply for these posi- tions. Although members would be hired as individuals this project will give them an opportunity to raise money for their organization and will allow more people from the community to have a part in the election. Individuals must be mature (this is not a suitable fundraiser for children) with good skills for meet- ing people. They must be physically capable of canvassing on a door to door basis; in most cases a vehicle will also be needed. Individuals must also be available on short notice. I would stress that these are not political jobs. Individuals would be working for the Chief Election Officer for the Province of Ontario, under the supervision of the Chief Returning Officer for Huron. Any organizations interested in this fundraiser should contact me at my office (482-3132 or 1-800-668- 9320) as soon as possible. I look forward to hearing from inany of the service clubs, volunteer organizations, and churches in Huron County. Sincerely Yours, Paul Klopp, MPP Huron Public should speak out over OPP Dear Editor, At a recent special meeting Seaforth Town Council again dis- cussed the issue of switching to OPP policing. While noting some minor advantages such as being able to shed the uncomfortable task of dealing with personnel issues, and the debatable question of qual- ity of service, two glaring disadvan- tages remained. Annual expenditure for the next five years would increase by $79,000 over our 1994 budget and 523,000 over the 1995 budget (which assumes we would spend J Letters $52,000/year for five years on capital improvements). As well, we would lose all control over cost increases after the five year contract expires. The result would be a dra- matic increase in taxes. It seems strange that most councillors ignored the cost issue and voted to continue with the contracting pro- cess when this exercise was started Seaforth signalman decorated for service to explore ways of reducing polic- ing costs. Only a handful of public sub- missions had been received by councillors and almost all of these were strongly against the change, the lone exception being the opin- ion of the Police Association mem- bers. They generally expressed the feeling that quality of service would deteriorate. Yet after being read into the record, they seemed to carry no weight. Council also rec- ognized an overwhelming Lack of interest by the public and attributed to a general impression that this is a "done deal", yet no discussion was had on methods to reverse this impression and stimulate input. This issue is of critical import- ance to the future of Scaforth and it deserves the attention of every taxpayer, pro or con. The time has come for anyone having an opinion on taxation levels or policing issucs to make these known by writing to or phoning any councillor. If this is too inconvenient, include a note with your tax payment. This deal isn't "done" until the contract is signed, but if nobody speaks up against it, it might as well be. Dan Pearce FROM THE PAGES OF THE HURON EXPOSITOR, FEBRUARY 15, 189S The winter of 1895 will long be remembered for its severity. The mildness of the earlier part of the season has been more than compen- sated for by the extreme severity of the weather since New Year's. Mr. Cornelius Cook, son of Mr. Henry Cook, of the Hensall Flour Mills, met with a very painful and serious accident on Wednesday last, while engaged in loading flour on a railway car. The accident was caused through the breaking of the platform connecting the tramway with the car, while pulling in the truck loaded with 1,000 poinids flour. The full weight of truck and flour fell on the young man's leg, breaking it at the ankle as well as seriously bruising it. FEBRUARY 13, 1920 Geo. Bennewics, McKillop, had a Wsuccessful ednes las wood cutting bee on y In the Years Agone More than 150 men and boys attended the Father and Son ban- quet given by the Sunday School of First Presbyterian Church. The programme included short after- dinner speeches by Mr. Jas. Cowan, Superintendent of the Sunday School, Mr. C. Aberhart, Mr. R. E. Coates, Mr. J. M. Wilson, Mr. James Watson and Mr. J. C. Laing; pleasing solos by Mr. George Israel, Mr, R. E. Bright and Mr. Dot Reid; violin solo by Mr. Gerald Stewart and violin and piano selection by Messrs. W. Laing, Smith and Kerr. FEBRUARY 16, 1945 Word has been received in Seaforth that Signalman Andrew J. Caller has received a decoration for eighteen years' service in the cana- dian Militia and Active Service Army. Spin. Calder has been overseas for over two years, and is now serving in Italy. A recent active service picture of him has been received by PUC Chairman E. L. Box, and shows him to be pretty much the same old Andy, with the exception of the addition of a large size moustache. FEBRUARY 12, 1970 While everybody was agreed in principle that something must be done to curtail snowmobiles travelling Scaforth streets during the early hours of the morning, council- lors became bogged down Monday night in attempting to decide how much offenders should be fined and ended up taking no action. A Dublin -area girl, Marilyn Ryan, won first place in a public speaking contest in Dublin on Monday after- • noon. The daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Maurice Ryan of RR 2 Dublin and a student at St. Patrick's Separate School, she chose as her topic, 'Robert Kennedy.' **« Joan Nobel was Seaforth finalist in the Separate School public speaking contest. Cathy Murray, of St. Columban, also participated in the Huron divisional. SDHS's female Gordie Howes have been practising hard and proved their skill on Saturday when they downed Blyth with a score of 7-4. Sheila Dietz was responsible for five goals and Gail Nolan for two of the seven goals. Bruce Coleman, RR 4 Seaforth, was re-elected for his fourth term as president of the Tuckersmith Feder- ation of Agriculture at the annual banquet and meeting in Egmondville United Church • on Wednesday night.