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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1994-05-25, Page 4Page 4 Times -Advocate, May 25, 1994 Publisher. Jim Beckett News Editor: Adrian Harte Business Manager: Don Smith Composition Manager. Deb Lord Advertising; Barb Consitt, Theresa Redmond News: Fred Groves, Catherine O'Brien, Ross Haugh Production; Alma Ballantyne, Mary McMurray, Barb Robertson Robert Nicol, Brenda Hem, Joyce Weber, Laurel Miner, Marg Flynn Transportation: Al Flynn, Al Hodgert front Office & Accounting; Norma Jones, Elaine Pinder, Ruthanne Negrijn, Anita McDonald CCN* 0 EI)I'R)RIAI. • • inion Qy BLUE RIBBON AWARD Publications Mail Registration Number 0386 5UBSCR1PT1ON RATES: CANADA Within 40 miles (65 km.) addressed to non letter carder addresses 830.00 plus 62.10 Q.S.T. Outskte 40 miles (65 km.) or any letter carder address 630.00 plus 630.00 (total 60.00) + 4.20 G.S.T. Outs1J.Canada 899.00 (Includes 888.40 postage) Published Each Wednesday Morning at 424 Main St., Exeter, Ontario, NOM 1S6 by J.W. Eedy Publications Ltd. Telephone 1-519-235-1331 O.S.T. 19105210631 Electricity, not rain forests Otario Hydro's cockeyed pro- posal to purchase a section of rain for- est in Costa Rica needs to scrapped be- fore any more funds are wasted on studying the idea. Why a power utility would be inter- ested in conducting research into rain forest absorption of "greenhouse" gases is beyond comprehension. Ratepayers in this province have long believed Ontario Hydro's mandate was to produce electrical power to the popu- lation at the best price. The debt -ridden provincial corporation seems to have completely forgotten that. Some of Ontario Hydro's programs could be forgiven, even if some found reason to criticize them. Incentive pro- grams to switch to natural gas annoyed quite a number of PUCs in the prov- ince. If gas is cheaper and more effi- cient, then maybe the government itself should have offered the incentives, not Hydro, they argued. When Ontario Hydro later started of- fering rebates on energy-efficient shower heads and gave away kitchen tap nozzles, only a few took the time to point out that not everyone has an elec- tric water heater. Still, energy conservation is a good thing, no matter who's sponsoring it, right? But where, pray tell, does the purchase of 12,500 hectares of Costa Rica fit into the grand scheme of things? It might only cost a tiny fraction of the annual budget of the giant corporation, but the bottom line is that it seems to have noth- ing to do with providing safe, clean elec- tricity to Ontario at a good price. Ontario Hydro's chairman Maurice Strong is said to have business connec- tions in Costa Rica, and whether or not that has anything to do with why he wants Hydro to buy the land is irrele- vant. If it doesn't generate electricity, it isn't something Hydro needs. If indeed this Costa Rica proposal has merit as means of finding ways to fight pollution, then perhaps an Ontario Uni- versity research department should take it on. Their findings could be passed on to Hydro, or anyone else interested. Thankfully, the NDP government isn't buying much of Strong's spiel about this "business proposal". What remains to be seen is how much time and money Hydro's "professionals" will spend on making this plan look like something it's not. A.D.H. ■ .i(11;); ,. •..;'•1 (arC Your Views Letters to the editor Councillors comments 'uneducated' I find it appalling to have public representatives making uneducat- ed comments.... Dear Editor: In response to the Times Advocate, May 18, 1994, "Zurich throws support behind emergency", I congratulate Zurich Council for taking this step. I dorilowever, take issue with three Councillors views concerning South Huron Hospital Emergency Department. 1) Mr. Semple's speculation on phas- ing out the hospital - only speculation and his opin- ion. 2) Mrs. Deichcrt Holmes' opinion on closing the E.R. hence a rest home - only speculation and her opinion. 3) Mrs. Jeffrey's comment "from past experiences, in general, you might as well go right to London" - her opinion, as many others use the services provided in the E.R. I find it appalling to have public representatives making uneducated comments at this time of crisis for South Huron Hospital. You or a member of your family may be in desperate need, (anaphlyactic reaction, cardiac ar- rest or many other life -death situations), to be admit- ted to the E.R. The Board of Management and the Board of Directors of South Humn Hospital have given (voluntarily) many hours to this crisis and Mr. Don Currcll, Adptinistrator, is to be commended for his timeless effort spent on this situation. I suggest, before you speak, you talk with one of the Board Members, then you would be able to cast an educat- ed opinion on this matter. Donna I. Thiel Zurich Guest Column By Erin Lobb Preaching to the converted The month of May has been recognized as Sexual Assault Prevention Month by the Onta- rio government. This of course lends itself to mass publicity by the media in order to raise awareness. A thick media kit from the -,4Ontario Women's Directorate I discovered on my desk, with a note attached instructing me to "do something" with it, got me thinking. I first envisioned a full page spread, highlighting all the cur- rent statistics, accompanied by a candid interview with a victim, and complemented with com- ments from the OPP and a local women's organization. My arti- cle would be a powerful, mov- ing piece that would stir the community...right? What would my article really do? I could fill it full of politically correct phrases and statistics. For example: -.51 percent of women aged 16 and over have been sexually as- saulted 083 percent of women with disabilities will be sexually as- saulted in their lifetime. •50 percent of women who do not report sexual assault believe that the police could do nothing. I could talk about the silence and fear that surrounds the vic- A View From Queen's Park If gimmicks were a sure way of winning elec- tions, Progressive Conservative leader Mike Harris would have the coming Ontario vote sewn up. New Democrat Premier Bob Rae and Liberal leader Lyn McLeod might just as well stop put- ting together their platforms and policy manu- als and go home. Harris at this moment probably is on a bus plastered with his name, phone number and election slogan. The Common Sense Revolu- tion, shuttling between pancake breakfasts and fishing derbies. An election is unlikely for a year, but Hams announced his policies for one, in a document titled The Common Sense Revolution in early May. The Tory leader and his MPPs also have mentioned it in almost every question in the legislature since, while waving Harris's picture on front to get it on TV. This aggressive salesmanship is in character for Harris. He has long called himself The Tax fighter, which sums up much of what he stands By Eric Dowd fcr, although some may find it one-dimensional and a bit hokey, like Superman or Captain America. Hams cut his weight by 30 pounds and pro- moted a flood of stories about 'the new Mike Harris'. He read a list of obscure lakes and riv- ers interminably in the legislature to delay an NDP budget. To emphasize Rae is absent too often, Hams took a cellular phone into the legislature and tried to question the premier, hustling votes on open -line radio in Windsor. The Speaker re- fused, but Harris made his point. When the Skydome in Toronto opened and anything held there automatically ' ,as news, Hams staged a fund-raising reception on its baseball diamond. When the NDP introduced a budget and adjourned for a week to avoid de- bate, Harris had his MPPs on street corners crit- icizing it. Harris used no fewer than 137 adjectives to describe a tax raise, from common ones like vile and wretched to malefic and miasmal which convey roughly the same disapproval, tims of sexual abuse, how their lives become permanently al- tered with the scars left by these crimes of hate. I could list pre- vention tips, and all the advice available for women unsure of coming forth to report their ex- perience. In other words I could add to what has already become an almost cliche approach to the issue. We could call it "Stan- dard Issue Sexual Assault Sto- ry", and run it each year. Before you burn this paper and hunt me down, realize that 1 have attended my share of "Take Back the Night" rallies, argued and defended the rights of women, and supported all sorts of anti -violence organiza- tions through my writing. What's one more? I have to ask myself if I'm preaching to the converted. Who are the people that attend such ralliesand support this type of issue? The people who sym- pathize aren't part of the prob- lem. For instance, S.W.A.N. (Stop Women Abuse Now), an organi- zation set up to promote wom- en's issues, is sponsoring a play entitled Datelines. Who actual- ly attends these events? The people who care, people who really want to see a change, or the actual abusers and other ig- norant individuals who perpetu- ate these problems. It's the lat- ter we need to reach out to. I had to ask myself if another article, loaded with quotations from Women's Issues Minister, Marion Boyd, saying that $415,000 wili'be allocated for the Sexual Assault Prevention campaign, would make abusers stand up and take notice or get fed up and turn the page? Out of curiosity I called the Exeter OPP and inquired how many sexual assault incidents had been reported in the last six months. I was told that, "there was only seven". Only seven. Only. Is that to say that because there were sev- en that it wasn't as valid as if there had been 20 or 30? May- be 40? When do "only seven" still matter? Is apathy a symp- tom of a society tired of hearing the same old thing? Are we be- coming the exact thing we are protesting?• Unfortunately I offer no solu- tions to the problem. I believe that it has to begin with funda- mental attitude changes, above and beyond what can be accom- plished with recycling more im- personal numters and sad sto- ries. Don't rule out bungee -jumping proving he has a good thesaurus. About the only stunt Harris has not tried is bungee jump- ing, but no one should rule this out. All this is designed to attract attention to Har- ris and his policies which a third biggest party does not normally enjoy and it is having some effect. Harris has made the front pages, probably more for his tactics than for what he has said, although he is much more than a purveyor of gimmicks. He has proposed many specific poli- cies, while his Liberal rivals rarely commit themselves. Gimmicks have had their successes. A nota- ble one was when a Tory government in 1981 lumped together everything a government con- ceivably could do in a decade and called it its BILD (Board of Industrial Leadership and De- velopment) Program. The huge list sounded im- pressive and not enough people questioned how long it would take and it helped win an elec- tion. Gimmicks also can fail dismally. The Tories put out a so-called Charter for Ontario in her- aldic script and resembling a medieval parch- ment in 1977 in which Premier William Davis made pretentious statements like '1 dedicate - my party to the service of every man, woman and child of our province....' It was so ridiculed it cost the Tories a majority. Hams already has found gimmicks can back- fire. He organized a news conference for a woman who said she was quitting a $41,000 -a -- year job because she and her children would be paid almost as much on welfare and Hams was seen as endorsing her leaving a job for welfare. The problem with holding a reception in the Skydome to attract media was that when 700 supporters turned up it looked empty. When Harris read his list of rivers, some nonpartisan observers attacked him for delaying progress. Harris's Revolution also has lost some of its urgency after he was found to have used U.S. technicians to make a TV commercial promot- ing it although Canadians could have done the job. Harris has to be careful he does not get an image as mainly a huckster.