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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1983-07-20, Page 4Page 4 Times -Advocate, July 20, 1983 imesi♦ dvocte Serving South Huron, North Middlesex & North Lambton Since 1873 Published by J.W. Eedy Publications limited Times Established 1873 Advocate Established 1881 Amalgamated 1924 LORNE EEDY Publisher JIM BECKETT Advertising Manager I ,4 BILL BATTEN Editor 'HARRY DEVRIES Composition Manager ROSS HAUGH Assistant Editor DICK JONGKIND Business Manager Published Each Wednesday Morning at Exeter, Ontario Second Class Mail Registration Number 0386. Phone 235-1331 SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Canada $21.00 Per year; U.S.A. $56.00 C.W.N.A., O.C.N.A. CLASS 'A' and 'ABC' Should be boiling While the weather has kept people warmer than usual over the past week or so, some of the recent news related to the loss of public money should make them even hotter under the collar. A special inquiry into the actions of three Ontario trust firms has indicated that three financiers and their officials knowingly broke provincial regulations for personal gain. Indications are that the personal gain enjoyed by those involved will be at the expense of the taxpayers. Taxpayers have also watched several million dollars go down the drain through the financial predicament of Maislin Transport Ltd., a firm which the federal government attempted to rescue. In London court, a woman was jailed for three months for defauding the provincial coffers of more than $10,000. The County Judge who handed out that latter sentence blasted the social aid officials involv- ed for the "sloppy, inefficient way" they hand out tax- payers' money, which he said, prompted people to cheat the taxpayers because it's so easy to do. The inquiry into the trust company fiasco also criticized the government's regulatory process and took issue with the cabinet's decision to approve rapid and massive increases in the authorized capital of the three firms and allowed them to participate in other activities which,, in turn, threatened their stability. Opposition spokesmen have indicated the tax- payers will lose hundreds of millions of dollars in the deal and have called for an immediate, independent inquiry due to the involvement of several prominent PCs with the trust companies. It's time that taxpayers started putting some heat on those who waste their money. Some major housecleaning is obviously in order! Can't be retroactive The Spanish River may appear to be a long way off the beaten track for area residents, but no doubt several have had occasion to drown a few worms in that waterway through the years and will join those who have been shocked by the news that a 30 -mile stretch has been killed by a chemical spill from the E.B. Eddy plant near Espanola. The Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters (OFAH) have conducted counts on the river since the spill and estimates that 50,000 to 100,000 fish have been completely wiped out. Cause of the spill has not been detailed as yet, but the situation will cause some major headaches for On- tario's newly appointed environment minister, Andy Brandt. Shortly after assuming his new role, Brandt made the remark that there must be a trade-off between en- vironmental concerns and jobs. He obviously wasn't talking about such a major calamity, but it does in- dicate some concern over the manner in which he may handle the situation. The OFAH, the largest provincial conservation organization, insists that charges be laid under the Fisheries Act of Canada and any other appropriate legislation; that the company pay all costs of complete- ly rehabilitating the river as quickly as humanly and technologically possible; and that measures be under- taken at and near the plant so that future spills are not possible. The latter, unfortunately, cannot be made retroac- tive and a large stretch of yet another Ontario water- way has been added to the growing list which have been killed or seriously threatened by careless or thoughtless acts, the effects of which in many cases, can never be reversed. Won't go away through taxation Health Minister Monique Begin has come up with a novel suggestion to cur- tail the smoking habit of Canadians. She wants to impose a further 30 percent tax hike, figuring that the cost increase would act as a deterrent for those who threaten to shorten their lives by use of the weed. It's not a unique method. In fact, the governments of this nation have been try- ing the same approach for years as they now reap over $2 billion annually from tobacco taxes. Each budget brings about an increase from this bottomless pit of revenue. It is, however, a gutless approach to the problem she wants to correct. If the health minister really wanted to curtail one of the more serious health pro- blems in this country, she should prohibit the sale of tobacco products. The evidence required to consider such a ban is overwhelming. Products which produce fewer health risks are frequent- ly withdrawn with little more evidence than they are harmful to rats. Surely a product which has been proven to lead to fatal consequences for humans should get no less than the same treatment. The problem is that the government is as hooked on the tax revenue as smokers are on the nicotine. In fact, Begin has probably been quite careful in her approach to the 30 percent tax hike. She claims the huge jump in cigarette prices would reduce smoking by 10 percent. Of course, the end result is that the tax revenue would remain vir- tually unchanged, or would even increase. That makes the plan palatable for the government in every respect, as it pro- tects the valuable source of revenue while • at the same time making a half-hearted stab at curtailing smoking. If she is really sincere in her desire to end this health hazard, then she should display the courage of her convictions and take the big step. She won't, of course, and so Canadians BATT'N AROUND with the editor will continue to puff their way into an ear- ly grave with the blessing of a govern- ment that bans products which kill rats and fills its coffers from products which kill humans. • • • • • Many people may have been shocked by a recent court decision when Simpsons - Sears Ltd. received a fine of $1 million for misleading advertising related to dia- mond rings which were inadequately appraised. The decision indicates beyond any doubt that there are teeth, and sharp ones indeed, in consumer protection legislation. The stricter controls and stiff fines for those who fail to abide by them, have pro- mpted most firms to tone down the claims for their products. However, one firm has side-stepped the problem very nicely by a grammatical twist. It uses a double negative in its claim to indicate that you "don't have to give up nothing". Just goes to show that where there's a will, there's a way! If the politicians who made the rules for truth in advertising will just follow them in their campaign speeches, that would be progress. • • • Speaking of campaigns, there's one underway out in Nova Scotia where Pro- gressive Conservative party leader Brian Mulroney is attempting to win a seat and garner a spot in the House of Commons. Despite the recommendation of Liberal campaign chairman Keith Davey, the Liberals will be contesting the vote in Cen- tral Nova, where Tory Elmer MacKay stepped aside to allow Mulroney an oppor- tunity to run. Davey's suggestion that his party sit this one out was no doubt based on his belief that the new PC leader would win. Senator Davey would have preferred it to be a "no contest" so that Mulroney would still be saddled with the distinction of never having won an election battle. While the Liberals in Central Nova are attempting to brand Mulroney as a parachute candidate, it is a good bet that the majority of voters will support him and get whatever prestige there may be in having a prime minister come from their riding. The PCs still lead the popularity polls by a wide margin and that possibility could become a reality. Evidence would indicate that having a prime minister or premier elected in a particular riding pays dividends. The can- didate makes up for his lack of time in the riding by sending home a few extra grants and other associated benefits that the peo- ple of Central Nova would be foolish to turn down. Going to be Looking forward to a fishing trip with a few old fighter pilots. It'll be the first time I've been really fishing for years. I used to work the trout streams fairly regularly, but bet- ween acid rain and pesticides flowing into them, they've become almost barren. My wife was all in favor of the trip at first. You need to get away. Do' something different. See some old friends. That sort of thing. I was sur- prised and delighted. But it didn't take her long to start worrying. "Your fishing tackle is all rusty. What about your ar- thritis? You haven't anything to wear. I sup- pose you'll all just sit around and drink and tell stories. What'll I do while you're away." I think what really gets her is that I'll be out of touch with the lousy old world for a few days - no telephone, radio, mailman. It's a fly -in lake and she can't get at me to tell me the latest terrible news about the family. That's the only kind of real holiday that does a man any good. Get good and filthy, don't shave. catch some fish, eat hear- ty, play some poker, have a little snort without anyone sniffing in disgust, and sleep like a baby. What she really distrusts are old fighter pilots. Every time I get together with them, I age about 10 years for a few weeks. But surely she has nothing to worry about this time. The whole trip has been organized by Jack Ryan, lawyer, good churchman, father of five. Surely old Jack wouldn't get a chap in trouble. And yet ...I do have memories. It's amazing how some friendships are formed in such a short time, and last for decades. Jack and I �ys 5 o. out of touch Singh Thandi, our Sikh friend, was sent out, or back, to India and reported killed flying against the Japanese in Burma. The only other one I've seen since, aside from Jack, was Jacques Van der Perren, a Belgian. Our paths crossed for five Sugar and Spice Dispensed By Smiley x eA: met for the first time at some god -forsaken little English railway station, miles from nowhere, both headed for operational training on Spitfires. We spent only about three months together, but formed a close friendship that has lasted more than 40 years, although we've seen each other only occa- sionally since the war. We became part of a gallant little band that in- cluded a Sikh. a Norwegian, a Belgian, a Pole, some Free French. various New Zealanders and Australians, and the usual scattering of Scots. Irish and Brits. We trained together, hit the pubs together, pursued girls together, sang together, during a bleak English winter, then went our various ways, most to be killed. Jack Ryan was posted to a Spitfire squadron. 1, to my disgust, was transfer- red to training for the new Typhoon fighter-bomber. minutes in Brussels in 1944. I went missing not long after, and he was killed. Old Ryan was all Irish. genial„ witty, out -going, and the second best snooker player in the mess. I was the best. Ile was certainly the best pilot in the training unit, as most of us were rookies with a couple of hundred hours, while -he'd spent about a year in England as a flying instructor. We used to go up in pairs. to practise dog- fighting. I dreaded being paired with .Jack Ryan. We'd break off, 1'd look wildly around the sky, see nothing, and suddenly hear a voice on the R.T. .Brrrup-brrrup! Bail out. Smiler. you've just been shot down." The one I really enjoyed dog -fighting with was a tiny Hindu called Beri. He was the most terrified fighter pilot I ever met. Ile should never have been forced c pride? family , tradition? t into attemp- ting to be one. He was the only one of the lot of us who was scared out of his wits and had enough sense to admit it. We'd go up to practise close formation flying. If you were young and stupid, you did it as tight as possible - your wing tucked right under the other guy's. As soon as I got within 50 yards of Beri, he'd squeal, "Smiley, you crazy; don't get so close," and would veer off until there was a good 500 yards between us. We were all going hell - for -leather to become Spit pilots, however. and to this day I don't know why. If you graduated, your chances of survivial were very slim. If you didn't, you had been killed in a training accident, or were relegated to some flying job where you could do the least harm to the fewest people, including yourself. And yet we were all dead keen to make the grade. Don't ask me what it was. Male ego? Wanting to be part of a special group? Trying to prove something to ourselves? It was something about as bright as a gang of senior citizens taking part in wheelchair races, with no rules. And now we're senior citizens, those few left, and we don't seem to have increased in the brains department. I hope that Ryan remembers enough navigation to get us into the right lake, where the muskies and bass are as numerous as minnows. Easier to say than do At one time I was a Iib tle skeptical about how bad allergies could actual- ly be, placing them on the scale of a mild summer cold, which one could con- trol with pills and by stay- ing out of pollen areas. Surely they couldn't be that bad. Recently though I got a chance to witness a young lad with a truly violent allergic reaction and I've developed a much more sympathetic attitude toward the problem. This boy is allergic to peanut butter, a problem that he is usually able to cope with. Should be easy, somebody might say. Just don't eat the stuff. Easy to say, but not always so easy to follow. It's amazing the number of cookies. cakes. or those have to he watched for in restaurants. All right. you say. hill Perspectives By Syd Fletcher chocolate bars that sneak a few peanuts in, or drop in a bit of peanut oil. Not only that, but his parents have found out that the peanut itself is in a certain family of plants that the lentil is also in, and sometimes lentils are placed in green salads, so what if he eat a couple •if peanuts. A little rash, a few sneezes. Surely it can't be that bad. Believe me, it can be a lot worse than you might ever think was possible. One night the cubs hap- pened to he at the school when 1 was there. They Wert• plastering pine cones with peanut Butter and suet for bird feeders. This young fellow had not even touched the peanut butter. but had merely walked in- to the classroom where they were making them. Five minutes later he was out in the hall, his arms. stomach and back a mass of red welts that looked as nasty as a direct hit with a stone would inflict. As well, he was having some trouble breathing. If any of you folks out there have allergies, my heart goes out to You. Meanwhile, stay out oi the dust, the smoke, the peanut Nutter, the cat hair, the grass, the pollen...