Times Advocate, 1999-09-29, Page 6�ai.itttiiel�Advocats
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Editorial
T1MEsADvOCATE
PUBUCATIONS MAIL REGISTRATION NUMBER 07511
Jim Beckett
Publisher and Editor
Don Smith
Deb Lord
General Manager Production Manager
Published by J.W. Eedy Publications Limited
424 Main Street South, P.O. Box 850
Exeter, Ontario NOM 1S6 • (519) 235-1331
EDITORIAL
Plowing
match shows
Huron's pride
Residents and friends of Huron County rose to
the challenge last week by hosting a very suc-
cessful International Plowing Match and
Farm Machinery Show near Dashwood.
An event of this magnitude doesn't hap-
pen overnight, or with a haphazard. effort. It
takes the dedication and hard work of
many people to pull it off. Plans started
more than three years ago when the match
was awarded to Huron County and the
Becker farms.
IPM '99 chairperson Graeme Craig got
things rolling and set the bar high when he
told his committee, "We don't expect per-
fection but we do demand excellence."
The 36 committees with an estimated
1,000 volunteers responded with an effort
that met Craig's high expectations.
From the smooth flow of traffic at .the
entrances to the masterpiece mosaic of
Huron County produce and professional
exhibits to the top-notch entertainment,
visitors were treated to a first-class event.
Committee members were willing to push
the envelope and try some new initiatives
which made it an IPM to remember.
But the volunteers didn't put on last
week's IPM on their own. Community -
minded businesses jumped on board to
Sponsor goods and services, giving organiz-
ers the funds to put on a high quality event.
The local committee boldly predicted not
only people; but the sun would shine last
week when they adopted the slogan "Huron
Shines in '99." They were right. Five days
of sunshine is unheard of at an IPM.
The community benefits of the IPM will
continue. People have received a taste of
Huron hospitality and will return for more.
The '99 IPM will go down as a very impor-
tant event in the lives of everyone involved
and a milestone for Huron County.
Well done everyone! •
YAROSNMAZIMOMMOAXICORVASON
anadian
an embarrassment
It's a difficult thing to admit, but the Canadian gov-
ernment and Canadians are going to have to come to
the realization that they're going to have to spend
more money on the military.
Last week it took a Canadian Forces C-131 Hercules
plane four tries to leave for Australia so it could deliver
aid to East Timor. This is just more evidence
that Canada's military is becoming an embar-
rassment to the country. The government,
which has cut military spending over the past
ten years by about 25 per cent, should be
ashamed of what it has done to this country's
once proud military.
What we're talking about here is a country
that once staved off American invasion in the
War of 1812, served proudly in both World
Wars and the Korean War and became a
respected peacekeeping nation. Now our planes
can't even get off the ground.
It's obvious there's no way Canada should be
spending anywhere near the amount of money the U.S.
does on its military. Canada doesn't need to be a mili-
tary force because we're generally well -liked around
the world and we're not a war -like nation.
But it would be nice if our planes could get off the
ground. What if a war breaks out requiring Canada's
participation? Will our troops hop on the next Air
Canada flight to fight a war? Will they be able to fit
everything in the overhead compartments? Will the in-
flight movie be Platoon?
So, while we shouldn't be sacrificing health care or
education (see below) to spend money on planes, guns
and ammo, we should at least have an army that can
defend this country. And let's do it before it's too late.
A simple solution
Readers of the T -A and . parents of students in local
schools are no doubt aware thasdirector of education
for the Avon Maitland District School Board has said
there will be school closures.
Remember last school year when it seemed
every issue of the T -A was full of stories about
how certain schools in the Exeter area and
beyond may be closed? Schools avoided clo-
sure last year but it now seems inevitable,
according to director of education Lorne
Rachlis, that some schools will close.
Here's a suggestion. Why . stop at merely
SCOTT
NIXON
AND ANOTHER
THING
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closing some of the schools? Why not close all.
of them and force kids to learn on their own?
"And while we're at it, let's close hospitals and
let the sick take care of themselves. Of course,
soon after that, we could stop maintaining
roads in the winter and stop helping the poor or disad-
vantaged. That way, the government won't have to
spend any money on the public.
But of course taxes would still go up.
***********
Of course this news of substandard planes and
inevitable school closures comes during the same week
of the federal government's announcement of a $2.9
billion surplus, which it will spend on thefederal debt.
Isn't it a little perverse to allow our military to crumble
and our schools to close when it's clear the govern-
ment can afford to fix these problems?
The Times -Advocate Team
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