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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1993-03-24, Page 4Pape 4 Times -Advocate, March 24,1993 Pubiishei: Jim Beckett News Edit: Adrian Harte Business Manger. Don Smith Composition Manager Deb Lord ' Publications Mail Registration Number 0188 WILSCRIPTIDisi RATES_ Midge 40 wi•s(U .)..rmer.d to wen letter wirier addreaeai 5.6J1Dililris4.2.0 GS.T. Outside 40 miles (80 ion.) or any tetter canner address 630.00 pies 630.00 (total 80.00) + 4.1e O.S.T. OetaMs Canada 688.00 • • pznion "Men are never so likely to settle a question rightly` as when they discuss it freely." ... Thomas Macauley FLIV to/tlatli Wedoseday Ma leeNa,iaaisie, NOM its by LW. T•Mpboas 1ii1231 at 424 Main St., Publioations Ltd. •.s.T. eaxosnsas Paying isn't without costs lie -words "user -pay" appear more and more frequently in reference to new initiatives from various levels of government. It sounds good in theory: only those who use government servic- es have to pay for them. Exeter's garbage bag tag system, if it Is ever approved, is just the latest scheme doing the rounds. The prov- ince :has its tdll roads in the works, and -the county planning department wants to bill the Imunieipalities for processing paperwork. • Exeter council, and several other councils are more than .a little :upset about the last one, because they argue they are paying for something sof which they aren't even ;making full ase. At the heart :af the ;question 'though is the issue of whether or not,user-pay programs are really.a benefit to govern- ment .and ove n- ment.and society. }It would have to be argued' in some -situations they are not. A user fee for a service offered by .a government .or municipality is essen- tially . a idisincentive to use that service. Exeter .doesn't want people to put out more .garbage at the curb than they have to; • hence the $2 tag -proposal. Some provincial .leaders want to see people ;discouraged from making too In> ch ; free , i :... alpyatenl; add ;wstCt'.afee . . : • 4 fora wish :mtheidoctour. But some , things ;have to remain . a community Wart. What ,would :happen to local recreation programs if the par- ticipants had to pay the full, ,unsubsi- dized cost of the facilities they .were us- ing? What if you had to pay for parking at the recreation centre? Libraries aren't a free service, they are paid for out of taxation dollars, but it would go against many of the ideals of our society if there were a "user -pay" fee for borrowing a book. Grand Bend council also came to un- derstand that user -pay programs have their limits. Considering making the builder pay for building inspections, they .quickly realized that much con- struction would go uninspected if people were trying to.avoid the fees. • How many home renovations or addi- tions aren't properly built to code be- cause the property owner wanted to avoid the cost of a building permit? This :may mot be as great a problem in villages and towns, -but it certainly takes place in cities. User -pay programs aren't necessarily efficient either. In the past year .or so, the Ainericans have come to greater re- alization that their hospitals spend .a great •deal of money on .administration, accounting for every penny to be billed to the patients. In Canada, that money helps pay for free medical care. This all ties in to the economy because the big three automakers realize it now :costs less to build a car in Canada 'becaese health -benefits are much cheaper, even including the employee health tax. t.Isor-pay is "-trendy Tight now. .1111agy 'ilovernments > seei g+attas ,asiellet to The massive restructuring :and downsiz- ing they :need. But this can be .a delu- sion. Revenues :don't always offset the cost of charging for service, and when people are discouraged from taking .ad - .vantage of ,a public service because of cost, that can sometimes have unfortu- nate consequences. ADR. Udders and other frustrations When I was a first-year stu- dent in Agricultural School, my practical training included hands-on experience in many aspects of fanning. But milking cows was consid- ered women's work. There were no girls in my class, of course. Women didn't study agriculture, they married into it. That - plus my picture at the top of this col- umn - shows you how far back I go. The closest we boys were ever meant to come to an udder was a textbook and a large, col- ourful anatomical poster in the classroom. It wasn't close enough for me. So I voluntarily enrolled in a 5 -day milking course. (This was before milking machines were in common use.) I was the only male participant. The first two days of the course were held in a classroom. Everybody had to milk a black rubber udder filled with water. It was constructed in such a way that if the proper milking technifte wasn't used, no water would come out. You couldn't just pull or jerk or squeeze. You had to do it right. It was frustrating, and it took hours before everybody had more or, less acquired the knack. Next we moved into an hon- est -to -goodness bam with live cows. I was assigned a young and fidgety Holstein named Anastasia II. Step one was to take a cloth, wipe the uddcr clean and to rub some grease on the teats. Anas- tasia, who until this point had been quietly chewing her cud, turned her head around to see who was causing the commo- tion. She didn't like what she Peter's Point • Peter Hesse] saw and refused to be touched down there. She lifted her Left hind leg and swished her tail. I asked the instructor for ad- vice, and she said: "Go to it, show her who is the boss!" To the left and to the right of me, the girl participants were al- ready seated, and I could hear the first jets of milk hitting the bottom of their pails. Zzit -- zzit-zzit, as if there were noth- ing to it. I managed to prepare the ud- der. Then I took my milking stool in one hand, my pail in the other, and sat down at a safe dis- tance. "You have to move in closer than that," the instructor said. "Put your head right against the cow's belly. Don't be afraid of her!" • I started to put into practice what I had learned on the rubber udder, and to my great surprise, Anastasia actually produced some milk - about a cup full. Then she decided that she wouldn't let me be the boss after all. She did two things simultane- ously. She plunked her left hind foot into the pail, and she swat- ted me with her tail as if I were a fly ready for extermination. I was hurt. Physically, because ,the tail had lashed my face. And emotionally becautte I was the only one with a problem. The lit- tle bit of milk I had extracted from Anastasia was now de- stroyed, and I couldn't get her foot out of the pail. But by the end of that week, I Teamed to milk Anastasia II and a couple of more willing cows whose names I have forgotten. I was issued a certificate stat- ing that I had passed the milking course and was now qualified to be let loose in a cow bam. I still have the paper. I never perfected my new skill because I didn't get very much practice after 1 took the course. Other things always interfered. But 1 learned enough to have a healthy respect for everybody in the dairy industry, especially the people at the "front line." Maybe you're the kind of per- son who doesn't know that it takes skill and hard work to milk cows - even with machines. I suggest that you visit a dairy fann in your vicinity and watch how it's done. You'll enjoy your milk and y6ur ice cream even more. SPEEDY NEWS AS IT HAPPENS. WHEN IT HAPPENS . W IT HAPPENS EVEN IF IT DIDN'T HAPPEN. TAY'S TOP STORY KIM CAMPBELL NAD IUNfN THIS AFTERNOON FOLLOWING A LIGHT BREAKFAST EARLIER IN THE MORNING!.. 4 Letter to Editor Hensaff.fiockey coverage?? Dear Editor; Best Sports News Sitting down reading your news- amongst Class _.Pape,[ this week, I was very disap- 4 newspapers pointed with the lack of coverage in Ontario, (none) the Hensall Juvenile hock- doesn't know (-ey received. what is going on Perhaps you were not aware of six miles down the 1 their success. But I find that hard road. ',cur believe. Last year you had no Well at least this year you don't. trouble finding information to put Maybe you need to talk to that con - in your February 26 and March 6 termed parent who phoned last editions. Now it's my tum to year. You can print all the allege- . scratch my head and wonder. tions you want, but hockey still What's wrong with this picture? goes on in Hensall. A newspaper that for two con- The Hensall Mustangs who have secutive years finished first for for many years provided their fans with excellent hockey, now ad - Letter to Editor vance to the OMHA 'B' level fuutls I want to say congratulations to these talented hockey players, who represent Hensall. You have worked hard and deserve to be where you are! Ebbe Groot Editor's Note: A!1 itwi er hockey coverage in the Times Advocate begins with the coach or other team representative providing game information on a regular ba- sis. We wish you well in your quest for a championship. Changes to Ul at vulnerable time Dear Mr. Harte: We are writing to express our displeasure regarding some of the proposed changes to the Unem- ployment Insurance Act. We arc a double income family with four children and are very proud to live in a country with a social system of safeguards which ranks Canada high in the world as a preferred place to live. We understand that social, pro- grams cost money and are very willing to pay our share of taxes to ensure that these safeguards re- main in place fortikhose, for what- ever reason, are unable to provide for themselves. It is the humane thing to do. However, this government seems to be of the opinion that the Unemployment Insurance system is in some way akin to social assis- tance. Nothing could be further from the truth. It is an insurance plan that has been purchased by its members to provide some finan- cial guarantee should hard times arise. Up until 1990 it was a plan that enjoyed the benefits of a healthy surplus, due to the pur- chases by its members and their employers. Not due to any govern- ment handout. It also managed to earn interest, something that this country's current deficit is incapa- ble of doing. But now it has a defi- cit. It is not hard to imagine why. The recession has been felt world- wide, and has lasted a long time for many reasons. It is appalling that this govern- ment has picked such a vulnerable time for most Canadians, and fumed it into a witchhunt for "Cheaters" of the system. We firmly believe that the majority of people on unemployment insu- rance want to work. There is a very strong work ethic in this country. People are not lazy. My husband is employed in the construction industry. An industry that relies heavily on the unem- ployment insurance plan to hold workers over winter layoff, as does the fishing industry, agricul- tural industry etc. He quit his job in August of 1992 where he was being paid 58.50 an hour as a heavy con- struction work- er. The next day he . went to work for a larger1111 construction com- pany for $11.50 per hour. The move helped us out enormously financially, and gave him confidence in his work. He had no choice but to take this new job as it offered our family so much more. However, under the proposed changes to the Unemployment In- surance Act this move would have not been possible. Under the new plan all his work with his previous employer would have been ineligi- ble for benefits, as he quit his job. The reason for leaving was ect- ly legitimate, however not recog- nized under the new proposal. When his winter layoff came in No- vember of 1992 our family would have been completely without un- employment insurance benefits. My job would have provided some se- curity, but not near enough to pro- vide for our basic needs. Why should our family be penalized for trying to aim for something better? Why should any family? There are good reasons for quitung jobs. To attain a job with higher wages, ben- efits and therefore a higher tax bracket are all good reasons. This government's auitudc when looked upon in this light will actu- ally deter people from trying to find better jobs, especially to the con- struction work force where winter layoff is an established practice. It is also a deterrent in uncertain fi- nancial times to switch jobs in the manufacturing or business sector as shutdowns/ layoffs are still a part of everyday life. As stated before it's not the layoff that would cause the problem, but the fact that you had quit your pprreevious job. We untlorstand why the govern- ment is trying to upgrade the Un- employment Insurance Act. It does need revision. Any one who. has collected it will tell you that. Cheat- ers should be flushed out of the sys- tem they give everyone who is col - 1 lecting it a bad name. The majority of individuals on UI are people who want to work. They are also people rightfully entitled to collect it. Bernard Valcourt should be ashamed for even considering an Unemployment Insurance Hotline. There is nothing stopping individu- als today from calling the local UI office to discuss information. This whole hotline idea was nothing more than a political snowjob. Does he have any idea whatsoever about the mechanisms in place now? There are far more cheaters regarding income tax matters than unemployment. Perhaps a report- ing hot line should be set up for this as well. It should also be anon- ymous, so that anyone who thinks their neighbour is cheating on in- come tax can report them with a clear conscience. If the proper reforms to this sys- tem are to work then ideas to do it should also come from those who have had to use the benefits. For the most part this govern- ment seems far more interested in making the Unemployment Insu- rance changes an election platform rather than trying to look at it with the objectivity it should be. This government has failed sev- eral times during this tenure. Its biggest failure to date being to make Canadians feel like ignorant s bigots, who were not interested in their own country for voting against supporting the proposed constitution. The thought of voting in favour of something without all the details worked out, and leaving it to the political forum to decide was unacceptable. To make it an issue at such a fuuuicial vulnerable time was unforgivable. Approving of these proposed changes to the Unemployment In- surance Act at this time may very well end up sending many fami- lies in this country to even harder econom ic times. Yours truly Paul and Mary Ellen Greb Huron Pa'k