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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1997-04-23, Page 4f'u,'t' 4 Times -Advocate, April 23, 1997 Publisher & Editor: Jim Beckon Business Manager: Don Smith Production Manager Deb Lord Advertisino: Barb Consitt, Chad Eedy News; Heather Mir, Chris Skalkos, Ross Haugh, Brenda Burke. Production; Alma Ballantyne, Mary McMurray, Barb Robertson Brenda Hern, Joyce Weber, Laurel Miner Transportation: Al Flynn. Al Hodgert Front Office & Accounting; Elaine Pinder, Sue Rollings, Ruth Slaght. Ruthanne Negrijn, Anita McDonald, Cassie Dalrymple The Exeter Times -Advocate is a member of a family of community newspapers „ ,0,AM COM c �� providing news, advertising and information leadership • Puhlications Mail Registration Number 0386 $UBSCRIPTiON RATES; Qne year rate tor Ontario subscribers - $31100 + QST Two year rate for Ontario subscribers - $83.00 + OST CANADIAN ADDRESSES OUTSIDE ONTARIO One year subscription - S83.00 + GST Two year subscription - S119.00 + GST OTHER RATBS Outside Canada - $102.00 Published Each Wednesday Morning at 424 Main St.. Exeter, Ontario, NOM 1S8 by J.W. Eedy Publications Ltd. Telephone 1-519-235-1331 • Fax: 519-235-0768 small address: times.advocatWeedy.com O.S.T. 00105210835 EDITORIAL Time to take a stand Crime of the Week press re- lease has offered a cash reward for the conviction of a different kind of crimi- nal. .. .. This guy doesn't rob banks or kidnap children: He hasn't,hijacked a truck filled with television sets and he won't steal your car. But make no mistake,, he is a real danger to every'person in this community. The target of the most recent Crime Stoppers campaign is the individual who is guilty of dumping garbage ille- gally. ••' This criminal comes in 'many shapes, , and sizes. He's the guy who.pockets the fee for disposal'of old tires and dumps a load of them on some farmer's field. He is also the manufacturer -who pay - cut rate prices to have someone haul - away a tank full of toxic wa'ste know- ing full well iI'is going to fie poured . down the sewer at,night rather than properly disposed.of. And he is the , friend or neighbor who saves himself a couple of dollars by,tossing a couple of bags of garbage into a ditch instead of paying a small fee to have it taken to' the municipal landfill. Every time the•government,,be it mu- nicipal, pro uncial or .federal, increases the cost of getting rid,of waste, the in stances of illegal dumping increase, It , may appear to be a "victimless" creme, but like other so-called victimless ' crimes. innocent people do sufferthe consequences. ' Someone has to pad to get that illegal- • ly dumped pile of'tire hauled outof the fish pond. It mighq be the property owner:. it might be.the municipality, and thus every.taxpayer in the munici- pality. But someone pays. The illegal dumper figures that as [Ong as i,4 isn't him. everything is fine. But the game has changed. The next person who gets rid of a,pile of old shingles by taking a midnight cruise into the country may be in for a nasty - shock, thanks to Crime Stoppers. There are hefty fines for putting garbage where it doesn't belong. And there are hefty re- wards for the already annoyed farmer. ' who jots down a license 'lumber.. The . less populated the area, the more likely it is that a strange truck or car will'be noticed. . That load of ,shingles could, end up, be- , ing very expensive'indeed. • Meanwhile, we can be sure mat at least once this summer, area beaches will, be closed because of a toxic industrial spill. At least .once thissummer, people with ' breathing problems;will be advised to ' remainindoors because of poor air qual- ity. And we hear the Canadian taxpayer is footing the bill for cleaning up a lot of toile waste abandoned at closed Ameri- can :air bases on Canadian soil. There is little likelihood people will face criminal charges'for any'of this , . contamination. Many industries produce huge amounts of waste, and quite a' bit of it covers our land, fills bur waterways and clouds our skies. There is a price to be paid for living in a modern, industrial society. Unfortunately,, itis a price we all must . pay. Or must we? We have a choice to make. We can , look the other way when a couple of gal- lons of chemical waste goes into: a local stream, ,figuring it's snaalt scalecam- pared to themount of similat chemicals,, going'into the Detroit River. Or we can ' jot down a! license number and call Crime Stoppers. This might be the right place to'draw- the line and take a stand against the trashing of,our environment. If enough of us refuse •(no pun intended) to tolerate illegal dumping, the ripples will spread . in ever growing -circles. Enoughis enough. . - Saugeen City iVews What's on your mind? The Times -Advocate continues to welcome letters to the editor as a forum for open discussion of local issues, concerns, complaints and kudos. The Times Advocate reserves the right to edit letters for brevity. Please send your letters to P.O. Box 850 Exeter, Ontario,NOM 1S6. Sign your letter with both name and address. Anonymous letters wily not be published. A View From Queen's Park By Eric Dowd TORONTO -- A rat was seen recently scut- tling across the floor of an MPP's office at the Ontario legislature. . . This was the four -legged kind, not the politi- cal variety of ratpackers epitomized best by such unruly legislators as Sheila Copps and Brian Tobin before they climbed to heights re- quiring dignity. The rat got in through a crumbling ventilator shaft, and an exterminator was called and killed it.. - • The 104 -year-old sandstone legislature build- ing known as Queen's Park is falling apart. It contains the ornate chamber where MPPs de- bate and laws are passed and an elegant lieuten- ant -governor's suite where dignitaries are wel- comed, including the Queen several times. Its corridors display paintings rivalling mu- seums. The government's own literature calls it an architectural gem and "the seat of democra- cy" in the province. Highway signs urge visi- tors to drop in and 250,000 a year do so. Simple ' Cruelti'es Brenda Burke When the shoe doesn't fit .Shopping fbr new clothes takes Lots of time. an abundant s, Iy of funds -and Toads Of pance. - , - Ever wander around endlessly with something so specific in mind. there' -s no hope Just where do you find emhrotdered shoes ora scarf made of beetle- shells'? eetleshells? -• - But even when you're searching fora good old pair of jeans or an outtit to wear to a special function. it often takes more effort than you realize: The size has to be right - a challenge in itself. especially for people whose weight tends to fluctuate. You can never go by those 'standard sizes' anyway. One manufacturer'~ size' 12 will be 'another's size three and a half. And steer clear of 'one size fits all' lies. ' The colors.have to he right. - ' It's not good to admire models clad in deep purple and :• contrasting orange when those - colors 'wash you out' 'or make • you look like a walking zoo. • The price has to he right. too. Paying a million buck, for something you'll -wear once is -hazardous Jo the financial - health. , - - - Overtil, it's a hot. tntistrating task trying on clothes_ in a tiny booth without hooks ur mirrors.. • forcing you to walk out in full 4 - view of-wltoever tends to he • him'-.iiig ni Ilia store. 1 always feel lig. ('ve ,Zoe •t Anse limit In than:•.: rt:onis. if there's an - .invisible eye gawking through .t - speck -.m the wall. urs:ing.".1ust lutrru up.and buy Shoes are another Mori'. You :- Can rare.I' decide to IFV on shoes • just because you feel like it all - of a sudden: especially atter walking Around th utg-.uther shopping all day. long. You slip off vour.old, comfortable. dejected '.hoes auto realize -your socks are. either dirt> . sinelly or have a harvest of holes in them. And. if our feet swell !'roti a load Or shopping around. trying. . un shoes 14 fust a 'guessing game'.' Do they really tit'' Will they tit :it this time tomorrow" l aze .it all the nifty:. . high -to -the -sky shoes that tri° popular_these days and..1 think of pain..They look neat but often the soles ;ire hard .ts pavemegi anti the !leek snake you teeter ' t f the edge or the world. . But '.hopping, for pants has got • to he the ultimate challenge. 1 get Inst in a dizzying array or • pleats.' tucks. waistbands:and hems. �tv husband gets really upset..' • when 1 iron out those creases that go down the pant legs: lie clailns they give the -garment shape. . sinteresting, the difference • between' the way wotnen and men atop tor clothes. Typically. •• women love shopping and fall over with glee every bine a new Season hits -thein with all. the splashiest -styles and -colors. \len maybe don't get so thrilled. it could be hecause they - tend tri .hop only'once or't\tce a year And usually they have the wotnen in their lives pick out surf for them. . 1 guess when you're - . committed to wearing a favorite faded old sweatshirt with grass. stains. ripped cuffs and little - ttizzies all over it. why even consider something new'' • But the stone is eroding and plaster cracking and electrical wiring runs across many of its walls. A lot of money is needed to repair and restore it and the Progressive Conservative gov- ernment of Premier Mike Harris, whose moti- vating force is saving money, is reluctant to provide it. The Tories have now come up with a surpris- ing solution -- pass the hat around among the public. • The Tories have obtained the legislature's ap- proval in principle of a -private member's bill to set up a foundation to solicit donations for the building, and it needs only an extra tip from Harris to become law. Gary Leadston, the Tory backbencher who introduced the bill, suggested that individuals and companies will want to donate to maintain a building that is important to them. They would be rewarded by tax deductions and major donors also by having their names on a "tasteful plaque," Leadston said, but there Queen's Park due for repair would be no undignified advertising like nam- ing the legislative library after a fast food chain. - The MPP said some U.S. states now success- fully solicit private funds to repair and restore their legislatures. Ontario's Tories get many of their ideas from the U.S.A. Several Liberal speakers had no objection to seeking private donations and the onlyopposi- tion came from the New,Democrats. Asking for donations to finance public build- ings has become almost the norm in Ontario these days. The Tories earlier passed a law that allows hospitals, libraries. the Royal Ontario Museum, Art. Gallery of Ontario and similar or- ganizations also to set up Crown foundations to seekdonations. Universities already have Crown foundations. , • Donations to Crown foundations in Some cir cumstances provide bigger tax deductions than those to regular charities. The second shoe has already dropped as the Harris government cut its subsidies to. most of these bodies. Most hospitals in Toronto seem to have fund-raising drives and lotteries nob -stop. Sala- ries of public servants revealed by the province under new disclosure policies show the highest paid officials in hospitals often are fund-raisers, without whom some hospitals would be almost cut off life support. One hospital is offering 12,600.prizes includ- ing 16 homes. one with five bedrooms and five bathrooms and two cars in the driveway. and another him $7.2 million in prizes. This begging for money to fund public insti- tutions.seems to be becoming accepted. At least .there has been no great rush to the barricades to defend against it, which may be because many public institutions traditionally have been part- ly funded by donations. But there may be more concern about passing the hat -around to give a paint job to the legisla- ture: the seat of democracy. Some may. find it demeaning.