Huron Expositor, 2007-08-15, Page 4Opinion
Proprietor and Publisher, Bowes Publishers Limited, 11 Main St., Seaforth, ON, NOK 1010
might as well .face it,
I'm addicted
tostories
Once they get through cata-
loguing all the more serious
addictions out there - like the
Internet and The Apprentice -
I'm sure they'll get around to
the one that wreaks havoc on
my life.
I'm talking about my predilic-
tion for stories.
It doesn't matter if the story is fiction or
non-fiction, in text or on film. Once I start
one, I need to finish it. Once I finish it, I need
another.
This is the case even if I don't particularly
enjoy whatever story has me in its grip. My
high school girlfriend and I rented The
Bridges of Madison County - don't give me
that look; it was her turn to pick - and fell
asleep half way through.
I never saw the rest and while I'm glad of
.that, nearly a decade later a part of me is still
annoyed that I didn't see how it ended.
Simply knowing isn't good enough, I need to
read or see the resolution myself to be satis-
fied.
Usually I'm aware enough of my -own tastes
to only start stories I'll be able to stick
through to the end, though there was the fias-
co of Once Upon a Time in Mexico where I
nearly demanded my money back from the
highschool kid who sold me my ticket. I didn't
because I was with friends who seemed to
enjoy it and didn't want to spoil their night.
My particular brand of narrative addiction
1
Page 4 August 15, 2007 • The Huron Expositor
Is it time to scrap
the penny?
A nickel for your thoughts? Ottawa is thinking of
scrapping the penny. After commissioning an
expansive and expensive study, the Royal
Canadian Mint has begun to review the usefulness
of our lowest denomination of currency, with the
copper coin's fate hanging in the balance.
There have been calls in. Parliament to follow
other nations who have done away with their one -
cent coins, and a private member's bill is in the
works to hasten the descent of the cent..
A recent article in Sunday's London Free Press
suggests the penny costs Canada's government and
economy $130 million annually. That's a lot of cop-
per, especially considering most of it is sitting in
mason jars or ashtrays.
What it doesn't say is how they calculate that
amount, whether in production costs, lost or
unused coinage or all of the above. One thing is cer-
tain: it's unlikely that the loss is due to railroad
tracks and wishing wells.
What would the ramifications be for the change
purse of the penniless country? Everything round-
ed up in fives seems like a pretty easy and conve-
nient way of setting prices, but where do the extra
cents go?
Things rarely, if ever, round down in the world of
finance, so just what would happen to the disap-
- pearingnnies?
That $1.39 coffee you buy every morning is now
$1.40 and somewhere, somehow, someone is gain-
ing a penny not necessarily earned.
Consider the changes to taxes as well. Goods and
services would have to be priced so that the tax
would make them round to the nearest five. It
seems simple enough, but how much money is lost
in hours just making adjustments?
It is extremely doubtful that the mint is taking
this lightly, as they are staying tight-lipped on the
contents of the study conducted by Altitude
Marketing Research, waiting until the review is
complete before releasing any information.
However, the fact that scrapping the one cent
coin is even an option shows that economic growth
and inflation have had significant impact on not
only the value of our currency, but the existence of
the currency itself.
We Canadians love our icons - the beaver, the
caribou and even Tim Hortons. But the penny? It
doesn't exactly descry "national identity."
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Aaron Jacklin
means that episodic fiction dri-
ves me crazy. I can't stand
being left on tenterhooks until
r the next episode advances the
plot.
Heroes and 24, while excruci-
ating in their weekly cliffhang-
ers, are worth it. But I gave up
on Lost years ago. When the
segries ends, I'll rent it all on DVD and proba-
ly finish it off in a week or two. But I can't
watch it every week knowing that there's no
resolution in the near future.
Recently, my biggest annoyance in the
unfinished stories department was Six Feet
Under. I was instantly hooked when my good
friend and then -roommate Brian rented the
first season on DVD four summers ago.
My family had run the funeral home in my
hometown for a couple generations, so this
HBO series about a family that runs a funer-
al home found a special place in my heart
right away.
We watched the first three seasons before
Brian moved to Toronto that September. I
was always too busy to watch the final sea-
sons. Knowing that I eventually wanted to, I
actively avoided all references to the show,
leaving rooms when people discussed plot
points and generally suffered four years with
this unfinished story itching at the back of
my mind like a scratchy shirt tag - sometimes
See MY, Page 5
Ron & Dave
/When I grow up I'm
gonna do whatever I
want! Nobody will
be able to tell me
what to do!
You "/ You'll hafts get
must be a job, and your
kidding! boss will tell you
what to do...
Then when you get
home after a hard
day at the office,
your wife will
boss you around....
Then when you retire,
you'll work as a night
watchman, and the bad
guys will boss you
around!
by David Lacey
Well
that
sucks!
...and taxul
Dont get me
started about
the government!
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