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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1986-10-15, Page 4Page 4 Times -Advocate, October 15, 198. Times Established 1873 Advocate Established 1881 Amalgams ed 1924 ElUt fil�ifiUN AWARD 1985 c.' imes - dvocate Serving South Huron, North Middlesex & North Lambton Since 1873 Published by I,W. Eedy Publications limited Published Each Wednesday Morning at Exeter, Ontario, NOM 1S0 Second pass Mail Registration Number 0386. Phone 519-235-1331 LORNE EEDY Publisher JIM BECKETT Advertising Manager eNA BILL BATTEN Editor HARRY DEVRIES Composition Manager ROSS HAUGH Assistant Editor DICK JONGKIND Business Manager SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Canada: $25.00 Per year, U.S.A. $65.00 C.W.N.A., O.C.N.A. CLASS 'A' Some comic relief There's little doubt that most people could use a bit of comic relief in these troubled times and while that may be a questionable'designation for a couple of situations that have come to light recent- ly, there appears no alternative but to grin and bear it. The first, of course, is the settlement reached this week by the provincial government and former clerk of the Legislature, Roderick Lewis. After weeks of bitter wrangling, Lewis has been granted a settlement worth about $408,000 this year and almost $115,000 a year for life thereafter. There were several other benefits tossed in and it has been estimated that over the next 10 years the Ontario taxpayers will be paying in the order of $2 million for the deal. It's a bizarre story from the beginn- ing and one that most people will have trouble understanding. Lewis, it seems, "inherited" the job from his father after the latter held the post for 29 years. How one goes about "inheriting" a job in public life will probably remain a mystery, as will the fact that Lewis was apparently appointed to the position for life. The position, by the way, was cur- rently paying about $85,000 a year. Among the few others who manage to land those life -time appointments are this nation's senators and that is the sub- ject of the other story over which tax- payers will virtually be splitting their sides in laughter. The attendance report was handed out recently and showed that one member of that august body in Ottawa had attended only 14 of the 74 days the senate was in session and had still taken home his normal pay cheque of $72,460 in salary and expenses. That revelation is hilarious enough, but so is the rule that senators can be docked $120 a day if they miss more than 21 days a session. In the case in point, that would be a loss of only $4,680; hard- ly a figure to prompt members to be mote concerned with their attendance records. It is likely that many people will be able to muster a smile over knowing that even those members who attend each day are on the job for an average of a day and a half a week throughout the year. The comic relief the two situations .present ranks right up there with death, crop disasters, grain handlers' strikes, child beating and politicians' promises that they will represent taxpayers' interests. Not all celebrate There have been few times in the history of this area when Thanksgiving has been observed with so much agricultural produce still in the fields and no doubt that tempered the celebration for many, especially those who know they will not get those crops off because they are beyond salvaging. Perhaps at no other time in history has that been less of a concern for the majority of Canadians, because it did not relate directly to the bounty that was on their Thanksgiving dining table. The world's agricultural production is at a level where sporadic crop disasters do not cause hardships for those who are not directly associated with the food chain and have the necessary funds to pay a bit highter price for alternate food sources that may not be available in their vicinity. Wholesalers are quick to fill any voids and therefore the devastation that may be experienced in the rural areas is of no great consternation to those in ma- jor urban centres. This week's Food Day will be the same as any other day for most people. A few may stop to consider how much more fortunate they are than starving people in some far off lands, but the message about this nation's agricultural woes will not be of any great concern. There are probably many in this area who will give little more than a passing thought to the fact that many of their food producing neighbors are fac- ing stressful times. The reality is that sooner or later the message will get home that agriculture must be returned to a viable position in this country if Canadians are going to en- joy the standard of living to which they have become accustomed. That's a message that is drawing precariously close for those in rural areas who derive their livelihood either directly or indirectly from the land and it will spread quickly to the urban cen- tres as well. Yes, there is an abundance of food on this continent but those who produce it are not sharing in the benefits to the ex- tent that they must to continue that supply. The weather problems have highlighted that; certainly, and while it may be the straw that breaks some backs, it took a large number of straws to be heaped on before that point was reached. It is necessary to look beyond the •weather problems for many cir- cumstances which will lead to the prime producers being among the few who will not cheerfully mark World Food Day. Running off steam poor little Gordon having had a heart attack from his forced exertion. I dashed out of the school, coat tails flying, not taking time to put on n1y overshoes. Across the yard I flew through the snow and slush. When I got to Gordon he look- ed up and said "Oh, just resting sir,and got up quickly to finish his laps. I suggested that he would be much better off if he walked the rest of the way. He grinned and cheerfully went off to complete his task but at a reasonable rate. If I remember rightly though, those shoes of mine never did dry out properly. As a beginning teacher you sometimes do some stupid things. Well-meaning, mind you, but stupid nonetheless. Usually the problems simply result from in- sufficient experience in handling discipline situations, lack of com- mon sense you might say. In my second year of teaching I decided that as aype of punish- ment that 1 would occasionally send a child out to run laps around the field. Il seemed logical. The child would run off a bit of steam and would come back into the classroom ready to work. Anyway, this lad by the name of Gordon was not co-operating the way 1 felt he should be, so at recess this fine sunny winter's 4 day I sent him out to run around the playground. I happened to lookputthe win- aow. There was no yard duty • By the Way by Syd Fletcher teacher in sight but there was Gordon lying out in the middle of the playground flat on his back. Right then 1 knew why laps were not a good idea. 1 had visions of 1 WHEN 1 HEARD RAACAN WAS NOMINATED FOR THE NOSE, L PEACE PRIZE! . .. Male ego deflated Ever notice how some of the simplest requests can often result in situations that are totally unexpected? Last week, the family matriarch asked dutiful son if he could updertake a simple errand. No trouble! After all, what could be easier than heading out to the local variety to purchase a package of disposable diapers and taking them one short block to the United Church where they could be deposited in a box being pack- ed by the ladies for use at Huron's Friendship House in Goderich. Well, as it turns out, a lot of things could be easier. First off, the store didn't have a suitable bag in which to place the purchase. That didn't really appear any problem and I head- ed out to my destination with the box under arm. Well, you've probably guessed what happened. During the short journey through the office and along that short block, I met up with anyone I had ever known in my life. Some were content to merely pass along one of those raised eyebrow glances, accompanied by an all-knowing smile. Others were not as content. There were questions related to my recent activities. That wasn't too bad, but others provided their own answers in audible terms that everyone on the block could enjoy. When I reached the safety of the church, I was at least able to muse about the embarrassment that other donors may have en- countered as they too took their diapers for the home that pro - vides a refuge for the county's battered women and their children. To my surprise, the box being packed was full of clothes, toys, canned goods... and then one box of disposable diapers. That's all right, mother, your Batt'n Around ...with The Editor sense of humor is still ap- preciated... although because of males who are less tolerant, they have established Friendship House. * « * •« « The writer's male ego was also slightly deflated in another re- cent situation although I may end up having the last laugh. Along with other editors in the area, I received a press release from Women Today regarding their upcoming conference on employment issues in Huron County. The accompanying letter in- dicated that a staff member would be permitted to attend the sessions to carry some of the highlights in the newspaper. However, the stipulation was that the newspapers assign a female reporter to the event although there was no indication _ of why the sex of the jouralist was important. It's never been a consideration in handing out assignments on this newspaper before and it would be a serious retrograde step if Women Today think that such discrimination should be practiced. `" The upbeat side is that the con- ference is being staged on a Saturday and it is expected that the males in all the newsrooms would heartily agree that their distaff cohorts should get all those weekend assignments to prove they've eclipsed the equal opportunity mark. That's an employment issue that males will be only too happy to resolve in favor of the ladies. We'll even concede them Sun- days, holidays and nights if they want them too! * « * « * * On a more serious note, there is little doubt that such con- ferences are worthwhile, although we mere males do wonder at times what some of the fuss is all about. Many of the topics up for discussion appear to be of equal interest to males and at times there is a suspicion that a few women's groups foster some discrimination by not directing their appeals to a more general audience and end up appearing to be in an adversarial role with men. The truly enlightened among the distaff side appear to consider themselves as equals and have moved on to tackle the issues that confront both sexes in a team effort. If there are deficiencies, sure- ly the best way to tackle them is to sit down with those of the op- posite sex in an effort to correct them. Name kitten contest I don't know how we get into this kind of trouble all the time. You'd think that with three young children, a house that's too big for us, a lawn that takes six hours to cut, two cars that are falling apart, and a half a dozen un- finished projects on my desk we have enough to do. So why are we getting a kitten? I'll tell you why. Because Dun- can wanted a dog. After long, careful consideration, Elizabeth and I decided to postpone the ac- quisition of a dog for a while. Poor Duncan is old enough to love and cuddle a dog, but not old enough to care for one. And the adults are not ready to take on the extra responsibility. So a compromise was reached. We are getting a kitten. Alex- ander and Stephanie can hardly wait till their kitten is weaned which will be shortly. Duncan is quite disinterested. Ile doesn't think cats are pets. He wants a dog. Nevertheless we picked our kit- ten from a litter of five. It is a black and white boy kitten that will enter our household very soon. We've tried to find a name for him, but we can't agree. Stephanie insists that the kitten should be named Julie, Jeannie, Janie or Jennifer. The fact that he is a tomkitten doesn't bother her in the least. But Alexander thinks that it would be "stupid" to give a girl's name to a boy. Which in turn moves Stephanie to tears. Duncan doesn't care. He says we could call the cat "Mouse Cat- cher", as far as he is concerned: He thinks of a cat as a utilitarian device like a vacuum cleaner or a lawn mower. He just likes dogs. Elizabeth suggested some very elegant names like Felix, Sep- timus and Julius. Nobody else lik- ed them, although 1 would not ob- ject too strongly to Julius. This was beginning to be a major problem. My own solution - to name the kitten Tricks because we would have it in the house for Hallowe'en - was greeted with about as much enthusiasm as a call for bedtime. Clearly, we have reached a stalemate. What we need is a long list of tried and proven, honest -to - goodness cat names from which we can make an intelligent, systematic selection. If we had about a hundred names to choose from, we could each pick ten names we felt comfortable with and see how many of them overlap. We could then narrow the choice down very quickly. It is for this reason that - once again - i come to my readers for help. When I asked for zucchini recipes, our mail lady had to work overtime. In November I will write more on that subject. So with the zucchini campaign behind me - an unqualified suc- cess - I sincerely hope to hear from many of you. I promise that one name suggested by a reader will be adopted for our new kit- ten. The person submitting the winning name will receive an autographed photo of pussy and a letter of thanks. The runners-up will be acknowledged in a form yet to be determined. To make it easy for you, I ask you to clip the bottom part of this column and mail it to The Editor of this paper who will for- ward it to me. Of course, you may send as many names as you wish, the more the merrier. And you may use extra ,paper if the "coupon" isn't big enough. Don't let us. wait too long, though. This kitten needs a name right away. Before Duncan gets his way, and the poor animal is called Mouse Catcher. Clip here I suggest the following name(sl for Peter's new family kitten: My name and address • Comments and/or other suggestions: