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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1985-06-19, Page 4Pogo 4 Times -Advocate, June 19, 1985 Times Established 1873 Advocate Established 1881 Amalgamated 1924 • Ames Published Each Wednesday Morning at Exeter, Ontario, NOM ISO Second Class Mail Registration Number 0386. Phone 519-235-1331 QSJA cern LORNE EEOY Publisher JIM BECKETT Advertising Manager I BILL BATTEN Editor HARRY DEVRIES Composition Manager ROSS HAUGH Assistant Editor DICK IONCKIND Business Manager SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Canada: $23.00 Per year; U.S.A. $60.00 C.W.N.A., O.C.N.A. CLASS 'A' Need your generosity There, but for the grace of God, go That's a phrase all area residents can thankfully recite as they continue to hear of the devastation caused by the tornadoes which struck areas to the north-east a couple of weeks ago. Several local and former residents were touched directly by the storm, bringing the loss closer to home. With the provincial government pro- mising to add $3 for every $1 con- tributed by private citizens to a disaster relief fund, local residents no doubt Will show their normal caring and sharing as they dig into their pockets to aid those whose lives have been literally pulled apart by nature's wrath. Check the ingredients Finance minister Michael, .Wilson and Prime Minister Brian Mulroney can be excused if they're found heading out to stores this week check- ing on the current ingredients found in Geritol. They have every right to assume that some new elixir has been added to the formula as the nation's senior citizens have stepped from their nor- mal passive shell to mount an un- characteristic attack on the PC government's budget plan to de -index old age pensions. The partial de -indexing is ex- pected to cost older Canadians $1.6 billion by the year 1990-91 and that means that seniors will be con- tributing over $500 each by that time to help reduce the federal budget. Given the fact many, of those same seniors are already living below the poverty line, they have every right to be critical of Wilson and Mulroney. The seniors are clearly being asked to bear more than their fair share of the load. Backed by the campaigns being mounted on their behalf by the opposi- tion parties, Canada's seniors are be- ing vocal in the denunciation of the budget move and obviously should be successful in hang the government review the proposal. While reducing the deficit is an agreed goal of every Canadian, it should not be the responsibility of those in greatest need. Why the delay? When a truck carrying an electrical transformer spilled deadly PCBs along a strip of the Trans -Canada Highway in Northwestern Ontario several weeks ago such a fuss and commotion erupted that one would think immediate government action would be taken. Not so. Sincethat time there has been another spill in Northern Ontario and more recently the same substance was spilled on one of the international bridges from a cargo on its way into Canada from the United States. The federal minister responsible for ap- propriate action to stop these accidents Great One of the first nights in Manildra, we saw a brilliant display of stars. It was the most stars either of us had ever seen. There seemed to be millions, and in North America we have never seen stars so close to the ground. Every possible expanse of sky was covered. In Australia, the Southern Cross, their counterpart of our Big Dipper is used to find due south in directions. We had problems distinguishing directions in the daytime. Ilere the sun moves from the east in the morning to the west in the evening, but takes a somewhat southerly arc to get there. Down under, it's thtexact op- posite. The sun still rises in the east, but takes a somewhat nor- therly path to get there. This took some getting used to in deciding on which direction was which. One of the first things we did when we got to our hotel in Sydney was to see which way the water went down the sink. tiere it runs in a counter -clock wise direction while in the coun- tries on the other side of the equator it disappears in a clockwise direction. Before we left on the trip, I told someone about that and he didn't believe it. His reply was. "I could sell you a bridge, too." now says that legislation will be in place - "by fall". What, we wonder, makes it necessary to expose the public to such horrid danger for another five or six months? Surely there is no need to debate prompt and effective measures. These poisonous containers could be left where they are until arrangements for final and safe disposal are completed. As matters stand at present the owners will be rushing to get the stuff off their hands before there is firm legislation to prevent their transportation over our public roads. Wingham Advance -Times. for star gazing ' The weather was unusually warm for their autumn season. April there compares t() our Oc- tober. One day in Manildra the thermometer hit 30 degrees -Celcius. It did cool •down con- siderably at night. Incidentally both countries we visited are completely on the metric system. It was also very hot on one of by Ross Haugh our day trips out of Manildra to the Duhbo Zoo. The annimals ap- peared lazy andirontent to rest in any shade they could find. The only koala bear we saw in the zoo was sound asleep in a tree. When we left on April 4 sun- down here was after eight o'clock and it was difficult to get ac- customed to darkness shortly after five. In addition to stops at the two schools in Manildra which were mentioned earlier, we had a tour of the Manildra flour mill where Jeff is second in command. This mill operates 24 hours per day and produces Gem of the West flour and numerous kinds of animal feeds and concentrates. We also saw a large surplus of wheat which was dumped on a pile in a field just outside of town and covered with tarpaulins. The hospitality of Manildra was fantastic and we should men- tion Pat and John Leatham at the Royal Hotel. Pat sent sweat shirts of their Royal Rhinos team home for our grandchildren. There is quite a contrast in buildings to here. Barns are hard to find. About the only farm structures you see are sheep shearing sheds. With mild temperatures year round other buildings are not.necessary. Most houses are of one -storey Construction without basements or central heating. Most houses have an electric heater available and their beds hooked up with electric blankets. A lot of the houses have red tile roofs. They look like a half of a clay tile. On a drive through the country outside of Manildra to two sheep shearing operations. we were in- trigued by the very large mail boxes. Some are at least four Please turn to page 5 Serving South Huron, North Middlesex & North Lambton Since 1873 Published by j.W. Eedy Publications limited Federal Services JOB APPLICATIONS MILLER $E VKES "Now for your all-important qualifications — are you a crony, • or a relative, of a minister?" Now By the time this appears in print, I'll be - hold it now; don't faint; don't have a heart attack; it's not a suicide note; it's worse than than - I'll be a Senior Citizen! What a moment. On the second ofJune, in the year of Our Lord 1985. in the reign of our sovereign. Elizabeth 11, under the domain of a jumped-up Irishman, I shall he 65, and enter the golden years. Oh, yes. I'll be rich. The old age pension and the Canadian Pen- sion Plan will come flowing in, and at the end of a year, 111 pro- bably owe only $3,(00 income tax on them. But. I'll be able to go to the movies at half -rate every second Tuesday. 111 be able to shop for groceries at five percent off every third Thursday. as long as 1 have my birth certificate. passport. and driver's license handy. 111 be able to get on a bus. if there are no other passengers, at half-price. I've been wailing enviously for this. Many of my friends are senior citizens. and have joshed me jocularly about being so young. "Why don't you become a senior citizen" it's great. Free medical care.. Half price on shrouds. The hatred of the Pup- pies, who have to pay taxes to keep us going." ()ne friend of mine has a pass that enables him to ride the transit system of his home city all day. free. Ile hasn't done if yet. hul it's pretty intrigu- ing, it you have nothing better to do than ride buses. Mind you. 1 don't mind all these perks pouring in. but there's a graver side. Rather a stiff pro- position. as they say around the cemetery. You've used up most of your three score and ten. However. I have no regrets, ex- cept a tew hundred. it's been a good life. and I'm ready to face my maker. or even the President senior citizen of the Senior Citizens Club, with a terrified face. I had a remarkably happy childhood, thanks to a kind, rather inarticulate father, who slapped my ear only once, and for very good reasons. I had a wonderful. warm mother, who only beat me with a yardstick or fly -swatter when she was going out of her mind with my antics. Sugar & Spice Dispensed by Smiley My siblings were about as good as you come across, in the average lifetime. I loved sports and books. And Girls. Played a fair game of foot- ball and baseball, lousy hockey. Read everything in the town library by the time I was four- teen. Fell in love, deeply at least eighteen times. Wish I had a few of those old loves right now, to comfort me, like King David. and help out with their old age pensions. Wherever they are. I hope they're kissing their grandchildren. in- stead of me. I was a poor student in high school. Took seven years to get through. Not stupid. Just uninterested, like most other kids. And I had a summer job. which began in April, which, didn't help. That summer job was one of the most gruelling. and happy. times of my life. Worked my way up from night porter ( cleaning lavatories and polishing brass) to day porter. doing same. to linen - man, controlling all the linen on board; towels, sheets, napkins, etc. A position of great power, possibly next to the captain and chief engineer. Went to college, thanks to my principal, who discerned some light amid the murky depths. Almost failed my first year, thanks to Sylvia, a beautiful Brazilian from Rio. Went to war, thanks to the RCAF. Wasn't killed. as obvious. But was shot down and spent the rest of the war behind barbed wire. It wasn't bad, in retrospect. Ilungry but not hopeless. Back to college, fairly scep- tical. if not cynical. Met my true love, married her, and spent a year in the sanatorium, with suspected tuberculosis. while my wife had a bun in the oven, as we crude and licentious soldiery us- ed to say. Graduated, somehow. in honour English. Fell into the weekly newspaper business by accident (death of a brother-in- law I. Spent eleven years there, learning the fascination of wed- ding and funeral reports. Switched into high school teaching, learning the fascination of twelve jaws out of twenty, chewing gum, ruminating like cows. Retired at 63, to the great glee of my English staff, who (a) thought I was senile; (h ) thought I wasn't tough enough with the people they didn't like; (c ) thought there should be a firm hand at the tiller. Well, that's about it. By the way, this is not an obituary. That will be much grander. It's already written. It's just a brief history of an or- dinary Canadian who stumbled from one pit -hole to another; work. war. marriage: bringing up two kids during the drug days. and trying to keep his head on straight. Still cheap machine All of you people who have been worried about the number of X- rays that your doctos have ordered for you over the years can rest a little easier with the knowledge that a new device call- ed the NMR is on its way. This outfit will not only tell us more about our internal problems but is safer than X-rays. The new machine consists of the huge magnet with a couch for the patient that slides inside the magnet so that either the head or the whole body can he viewed. The pictures that this machine takes. unlike the X-ray machine which shows the hones and not much else. outline all the tissues of the brain with differences in colour for Mood vessels, brain tissue. hone marrow. even spinal By the Way by Syd Fletcher fluid. It is able to even see tiny cancer scars at a very early stage. It can also be safely used in prenatal diagnosis to detect ab- normalities in an unborn child. Sports medicine is an area which will benefit greatly from this machine. So far there are only ten NMR's in the world though there is one in London. Ontario. You can understand why when you realize they cost over a million dollars each and as yet are only in the prototype stage for the next year or so. 11 would seem though that they would be considered cheap at twice the price if you or I happen- ed to he the person who was suc- cessfully diagnosed early enough to avoid a life-threatening cancer.