Times Advocate, 1992-05-13, Page 4Times -Advocate, may 13, 1992
PeWisher: am woken
Mews Editor: *Wien Nesta
eusliesess ttlw nagsr: Don Smntl
IIMApr: Deb Lord
aameuenreilltionsaiseetton Number old
(65 am.) adbeeeee
add sees• 410.00 ells $2.10 0.S.T.
044,1(1,40 ewes (651wm.) or anylNM►ansateraddress
WAD plea $17.50 aestage fMa144710) }lean 43.33 a.S.T.
*stews 0.n.d. $411.00
40
Patton
Education the key
e may have thought it.couldn't
happen here, but it did. Last
Monday everting a mob, esti-
mated at about 1,000 people, looted
stores on Yonge -Strleet. `While it is mi-
nor in comparison to the mob violence
last week in Los Angeles, it is still very
disturbing to see it happening in Cana-
da. We usually think of such incidents
happening only in other countries.
Protests about racism in law enforce-
ment is only a symptom of the disease.
The disease is frustration. People who
cannot find employment that will pro-
vide them the standard of living they
feel is their right will always remain
frustrated with their lot.
While it would be silly to assume that
visible minorities are not at a disadvan-
tage when it comes to finding a good
job, one must also remember that mi-
norities are not the only groups that be-
come frustrated with society. Anyone
who is not literate, or in possession of
marketable skills, will have problems
finding rewarding employment regard-
less of race, religion or sex. Managers
will seek to maximize the profit of a
firm. Maximizing the profit involves
hiring -employees who have the sldlls•to
efficiently. The magic word is
�pmduetivrity, 'cite magic.ingredient is ed-
ucation. If a person happens to be .a
member of.a minority and also lacks suf-
-ftcient education to obtain ievtranding
employment, then they are in a very,dif-
ficult position.
Bdiiion is :the _key to solving -these
.problems. Education 'to improve both
tolerance and marketable skills.
Education is -not a short-term solution;
it takes time. Tectmology and high la-
bour rates - relative to developing coun-
tries - have combined to eliminate a
great many of the unskilled or low skill
jobs that were available to past genera-
tions. A good education will not guaran-
tee a good job, but the lack of it will al-
most guarantee you will not find one.
We will not eliminate the crime and
frustrations that are associated with low.
incomes and high unemployment rates
until we convince all segments of the
population of the value of a sound edu-
cation.
fires like Femurs Fiona News Express
Farmers need our support
By Peter Heel Farmers should tell other Ca- tanto and the affluent ho>nemak-
Ws been a very long time since radians what exactly it is-theyl a has in Winnipeg or Regina what
I was a fanner. No. I wasn't born -dig: What it is like to get up at you do in your sone lime. time. Tell
cruised on a farm., and Inver ,the :track of dawn or before - tiler abs etheebioltens.and the
owned •one.“Ateeoltding .to .my .,ahmnuoer.md winter, seven days+iemetabie 3 iedeh, iaiwttilsek
definition, a fawner is a man or a °week. To have no paid holi-
woman who makes a living days, unless You're .an ciltiade
working in practical agricokure. 1°Yee• To wad( with ani -
One of the hardest ways of -mak- marls who need -as: much care :as
Mg a living. And that's what this People - or -more, .because they
catmints all about. I want :to sa- can't cue for themselves. To
lute farmers who :are .often _tarot- face dangers of faint wank
pletely misunderstood. Not only -may may AA -the Year -Orneis
by city slickers, .but even -by 'am -among the greatest acadent
people living in malt towns:and risks) .and to be exposed to
to do with farming. gear, and tecmrcal hazards .all
I think that fanners are getting their lives.
a rotten deal. I'm not talking I think fanners need better•
about gentleman (or lady) hobby public sebum. They tilhould
fainters who for romantic or fa- us, .much it costs 10
nancial reasons may be pastor- i.build a silo beep days. Or a ma -
mg a few head of beef cattle or dine. Tell us bow much
stabling a couple of saddle hors- you have invested in may,
es. And I'm not talking about the esjuipment and livestock, sod
super -industrialized fanning nor- how much you mend each year
porations that can't function
without their computer systems
and management -by -objectives. -
My salute commis the other
95 percent of farmers. Those
who still wear rubber boots and
still muck out their own ba.
I'm also talking about women
and children =tut _ the -laden.-and
farmhands. Without them agri-
culture would be impossible in
this country.
The average nut -fa mer And how much time does the t . We need them, .and
doesn't know the .diti'eroice be- average fattener spend at -wok? they razed our support.
tween a plough and a manure 37 1R hours a week,.like • oaost Thank you, Canadian farmers,
spreader. In fact, I wouldn't be of chs? Not ihioedy Milady. Do Ifor-oa!aYibing.yUU arae (oing:for
surprised if the average Canadi- women . lamas or fanners' 'this is untr •and for the wood!
an didn't know what manure is, wives find •,®uch , tisae to ,sit, in :Every mak-puking day of the
where it comes from and where Oaks or make their:ch n for -year; Some of us are. and some
it goes. a walk? Tell the yuppies In To- of us appreciate you.
:calving orlambing, Amour -the sac -
mart books and the lastndry.
I :salute you all, mat, .women
and .children, who are plotting
and harrowing, planting and
weeding, fertilizing and mow-
ing, combining and -raking, bal-
ing -and '-stacking, :feeding and
milking, -fig and zepairin{g,
calculating and worrying - so
in the country who have noting • fumes, gases, chemicals, .alder- that you can keep the farm end
your livelihood, and so that my
family and I get our breakfast
cereal, our bread, our cookies,
our it k, butter and cheese, our
eggs, our meat, our mayonnaise
and • vile o11, :and all the
other staples and fanciful foods
we consume day after day with-
out ever giving them a thought.
And tell than what it means to
you to be working the land. That
our farmland and our farming
communities are a vital mance
and a national treasure. You, the
farmers, are the custodians of
this wealth.
Our fanners look after us.well.
We're :among the best -fed people
unearth Our agriculture exports
ooseilaute to our eoommy and
keep us. prosperous as- a nation.
For God's sake.aet us look after
for the vet, or for fatiliz+er.
Everyone who owns a passen-
ger oar knows not only how
much the movably gas bills ,are,
but how -much it .costs to have
their vehicle properly .serviced,
maintained and repaird. Form-
ers have dog of pieces of
equipment, some more,sophisti-
cated than tsars, that need Atm -
Mon.
An opportunity to say thank you
Dear Editor:
Everyone knows a very unique
person - a person who works in a
very unique profession. Everyone
knows a nurse. Their's is the pro-
cession which provides round the
clock, one to one care. This is the
profession that is asked to make
decisions on a day to day basis
that may well alter the future of an
entire. !wilily. Nurses are expected
t:) maintain and update their
knowledge base generally on their
own tinic and at ,their own ex-
pense. Whether it be in the com-
munity, in the hospitals, or in a
liaising home or home for the
aged, the staff nurse has made the
commitment to provide the highest
level of quality care for the client.
Yet - which profession has been
most affeued by the changes that
have occurred
within the
Health Care sys-
tem? The nursing
profession is being
pressu ed by lay-
ufts .and the threat
of more cutbacks. The staff nurses
are working at maximum levels due
to budget restraints; the staff nurses
are frustrated in their ability to re-
ceive recognition of their skills and
expertise and of their ability to
share in the redirection of Health
4
Care in Ontario.
May 11-17, 1992 is Nurses'
Week. It is an opportunity to say
Thank You to the staff nurse. It is a
chance for anyone who has seen a
nurse in action, who knows a nurse
to stand up and say thank you.
Thank you - for continuing to
share their skills and expertise.
Thank you - for continuing in
their role - of not wanting to walk
away.
Thank you - for being there.
Sincerely,
Barbara Conlon Reg. N.
ONA Board of Directors
- Region Two
RR N2. Zurich
"Men are never so likely
to settle a question rightly
as when they discuss it
freely.”
... Thomas Macauley
*MISibed ISO WeratraSsylliostleig et 424 Main St.,
trMi1eI, s'WM ISO Talsfas l 11411 MMeatloM Ltd.
11,2311-13112
..4.7. 0016421111104
Campaigning for Canada
When my younger sister skied
if rd attend the Canada 125 mu-
sic concert to see her perform,
my initial reaction was, "rve al-
ready sat through a couple of
two-hour concerts this year. I
think I'll pass." But my,second
thought was of my own private
campaign over the past year to
become a better informed and
patriotic citizen of my country.
This far I'd made dons to
not cross-border shop, buy more
Canadian artist CD's, read Cana-
dian written books and rd .also
recently hand sewn a Canadian
flag on the back of my ikr.apssek
to express my patronage for na-
tional unity. (What more could
I possibly do?) I figured the
concert, containing only Canadi-
an composed choral and concert
band music, could be my next
ptattintic endeavor to become a
I rthesssed casually (metalling,
of a11'things, pawed jeans) fig-
uritlg on a normal South Huron
music night. My .first notion
that this wasn't, . however, a nor-
mal evening came when I saun-
tered into the gymnasium and
encomteted everyone -from the
-mayor of Teeter to my : former
public school principal and ;they
weren't, to say the least, dressed
as casually as I had so ignorant-
ly chosen to.
The gymnasium even sang a
different tune as it untamed pa-
triotism .from every comer. It
was decorated with .tricolored
balloons in the Canada 125 snm-
paign colors, the replica Vagfor
the campaign and a gigantic Ca-
nadian flag that *domed the
back wall of the stage. I later
fund out that two SH students
had laboured over an old bed -
sheet to transform it into the 125
replica flag in time for the eve-
ning. The audience filled chairs
right to the back wall including
Adding
Thought
Sense
by
Michelle
Ellison
the back bleachers .and once
again they made me feel, shall
we say, rmderdre seed. Impres-
sive Canada!
The evening progressed with
choirs and bands performing the
Canadian music I'd come to
hear. While snapping photos,
however, my enthusiasm look
over and my next campaign
_promise was bon. My aim for
the evening would .be to take the
best picture to repesent a ".true"
Canadian. Initially, I snapped at
a cute girl-inthe front row of the
EPS;primary choir. +As she con-
centrated on the words of 'lids
Land is Your Lard" I hoped to
get a shot of her smiling bright-
ly, so I could say something
thoughtful in the outline like,
"The anile on this little girl's
face, as . she sang with the BPS
primary choir at last week's Can-
ada 125 music concert, remind-
' ed everyone in the audience that
drew young people could some-
day be the leaders of .the true
1north strong and free."
But, as the festival continued I
realized my perfect pica=
setter to Edito•
wasn't going to be of an individ-
ual musician. It couldn't be a
small group or a soloist being
featured by their ensemble. It
would have to include a whole
choir or an entire concert band.
After all, isn't that the purpose
of Canada 125; uniting Canada
as one community despite our
sense of lost identity and our
discontent, distinct societies?
This.purpose wasn't a new re-
alization to me by any means,
but somehow the entire evening
with a room full of Canadians of
all ages and different ethnic and
socioeconomic backgrounds
joining to celebrate a common
interest, had put my campaign to
become a "better" Canadian into
perspective. I could do as much
individual . campaigning as I
wanted but in reality it had to be
a group effort in the end.
I could have left at this point
after seeing my sister perform,
hearing some Canadian music
and having felt my sense of uni-
ty in the huge auditorium, but
the final set in the program,
which simply read "Closing: 0
Canada. arr. Godfrey Rid -
out", suddenly meant a lot to nie
and I couldn't go. So, even
though I noticed that many peo-
ple around me weren't harmon-
izing away or even humming, I
sang the national anthem of
Canada even louder than usual,
hoping they might catch on.
As I -packed away my camera
now filled with reflective photos
and .left the gymnasium to go
.home .and listen to my Cowboy
3uukies CD, I can definitely say
I was proud of that Canadian
flag hand sewn on the back of
my knapsack!
Annexation "dictatoraf"
Dear Editor;
All residents of Ontario take
-heed! On March 30, 1992, in Mid-
dlesex County, a travesty of de-
mocracy and a betrayal of rural
=occurred when London
roan, John Brant, provin-
cially appointed arbitrator, ten -
de cd his Greater London Area
Report to Municipal Affairs Min-
ister, David Cooke. The provincial
government appointed Brant to
settle, under stringent guidelines, a
long-standing dispute between the
City of London and its surround-
ing rural municipalities over Lon-
don's bid to annex land represent-
ing a substantial portion of the
County's assessment base. Sixty
days were allotted for this arbitra-
tion process.
Brant conducted twelve hear-
ings, often with standing room
only, where be heard. overwhelm-
ing oppositrlon to annexation from
rural and city residents. Thy op-
not
on grounds that Weldonhas not dem �lnatrated the need for
annexation And had mismanaged
their 1961 auuiexation that had
doubled London's territory. The
importance of our rich agricultural
lands as a limited resotuce, the ef-
fect on the environment of another
urban area now to be 80 percent
the size of Tomato, the impor-
tance of the vitality of the rural
coinnunuty and our right to self-
determination were all argtunents
put forth repeatedly.
In his report, Brant disregarded
the valid opin-
ions of the rural
unity
what the provincial
government, the de-
velopers and some
London municipal offi-
cials wanted. This included enough
land (26.000 hectares) to triple the
size of London; establishing a three
kilometre 'Buffer Zone' around
London in County land where ao
development without full urban ser-
vices and City approval can occur;
and dissolving London's elected
PUC and the Town of Westmin-
ster's elected council without no-
tice. Because of very opposi-
tion to an amalgams school
board and because be had no solu-
tion, told the Boards of Education
for Middlesex County and London
to solve their own problems within
two years or face a solution un-
posed by ' ' ' vine.
David • ' endorses this Arbi-
tration ' . for grbiU io n
and hopes to it in other disputes
in Ontario. prig that be had to
step in to wine the dispute, be chas-
tised the County for not giving into
Loa!dort's demands. He also wrong-
ly presumed that the rural commu-
nity would not fight this blatant,
dictatorial niove.
Not only does this report directly
contradict the goverment's own
policy on land use cad the environ-
ment as stated in the Sewell Com-
mission Report, the whole prooess
was a sham and a blight on dorm.
racy. The Greater London Area
Report was tabled knowing that the
Sewell Commission Report was
due. The Sewell Report condemns
massive land grabs such as Brant
recommended and strongly states
that prime agriculture land (less
than 1% of all Ontario land) must
be protected. Much of the pro-
posed annexed area is prime agri-
cultural land, Cooke argues that
the Sewell Report has no bearing
on the Brant Report. According to
Cooke's interpretation, rural Onta
no is open to all development.
Remnant rural Ontario will be
come a deprived region if commer-
cially and industrially tax rich ur-
ban centres are allowed to sprawl
and confiscate repeal asseSSment.
Our meagre tax dollars will not be
able to support our schools, our
recreational facilities, our senior
citizens' homes.atid our roads.
In a democracy, the will of the
people must prevail. The undeino-
cratic process'pod above
could happen in y e9q runty.
Write your local P. David
Cooke Minister of Municipatl Af-
fairs, and Premier gob Rae. Let
them know that the rural communi-
ty, agcidiltare, and food produc-
tion are vital components of Onta-
rio's ap iety and economy.
Sincerely
Carol A. Small
RR I Penfield
Middlesex County Women for
the Support of Agriculture