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HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1977-12-29, Page 4PAGE 4—CLINTON NEWS -RECORD, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 1977 What we think 111NUt11111111111111111111111II IIIIIIl11111111111UII111I1II1I1111III1111111I111III1I1111I111111 Separatism Two recent surveys regarding Quebec independence have revealed and confirmed some startling facts about attitudes, both Anglophone and Francophone, in this still legally un- divided country. One survey, con- ducted by the Toronto Star and Southam Press, indicates that support for separation from Canada by Quebec is waning. The other, by the Readers Didgest, is Tess convincing. Polls being what they are, do not always provide the definitive answer in questions that involve emotion and deeply held ideas, says the United Church. But what does emerge from these very detailed investigations and analysis of attitudes is that many Canadians have deeply developed prejudices and misconceptions about each other. Confusion and distrust are common denominators while morale, especially in English-speaking. Canada, is generally low. What disturbs is the depth of bigotry and the arrogant attitude of a majority of Anglophone. Canadians that Quebec should stay in Confederation but on English terms. The servey makes it clear, as well, that these same English Canadians are prepared to sacrifice very little to keep Quebec in Canada. Our country, which only a few years ago was billing itself a little piously as the Just Society is emerging as • a nation where people are condemned and put down for the color of their skins (Pakistanis) or for the language and culture they hold dear (Quebecois) The survey indicates that many Quebeckers are dissatisfied with their lot under the existing constitution, yet it points out so are many westerners who wish to see greater provincial autonomy. As the University of Toronto's leading literary critic, Prof. Northrop Frye, told a recent unity conference, "The flowering of regional cultures is to be welcomed rather than resisted." Surely we could all make the modest sacrifice necessary to allow our sisters and brothers in Quebec feel. that they are equal under the constitution but also equal in the eyes of all Canada as persons whose unique and vibrant culture has much to offer the whole country. Surely we could sacrifice a modicum of our materialism and apathy and get to work to force our political leaders to change our con- stitutibn to accommodate diversity. Highlycentralized federalism may not be the only form of government. But above all, we must sacrifice our prejudice. That is what we are being asked to give up, concludes the church. Sugar and Spice/By Bill Smiler The Mounties Canada is spll,t right down the middle these days; And I don't mean the Quebec thing. It's the Mounties. On the one hand, we have people screaming that the cops with the red coats are a bunch of scoundrels. On the other we have an equally vociferous group defending their every law-hreaking deed. I agree with both sides, for a change. I hate the thought of living in a country where my phone can be tapped, my mail opened, and my property broken into by a secret police, But I think people who believe that any police force, in any country, that can combat terrorists, kidnappers and high- jackers without breaking the red tape of the law occasionally, are extremely naive. Every so-called civilized nation in the world has its secret police, as any spy story reader can tell you. The only difference lies in their eptitude, and the degree of deviousness and ruthlessness employed. They run all the way from the bumbling British M.I. 5 through the slippery American C.I.A. and the sharp French Surete to the Rugged Russian K.G.B. and the brutal, simplistic sadists of some South American countries. Among the secret police of the world, I imagine. the RCMP are probably ranked about 48th, coming just after Iceland and New Zealand; They simply are not ept, devious or ruthless enough to stand any higher. Despite all the thundering fulminations of the hot air artists in Parliament, the idea of the Mounties as a secret lurking terror in this country, threatening the civil liberties of all of us, is almost hilarious, �. They haven't enough money, men or brains at the top to be anything more than an irritant. They are probably out- numbered by members of ti.e Opposition looking for publicity, dissident former Mounties who have quit the Force because they had to get their hair cut, and smart journalists who seem to have no trouble turning up the redcoats' latest caper whenever they feel like it. It's true they have been accused of all sorts of dreadful things, most of them illegal. They have tapped phones and planted bugs. As do industrial spies and the Mafia and probably a lot of other 'organizations we don't know about. They have opened private mail. I'd like to know how they go about this, unless they stand by a post-box and snatch the mail from your hand as you're about to drop it in. Otherwise, they could wait three weeks to get their hands on a likely letter, the way our postal servi'e works. They have committed arson, so they say. So have a lot of merchants, but the latter call it having a fire sale. Burglary. They stole dynamite, `go the charges. No pun intended. Not a bad idea, really, when the dynamite belongs to some bad guys who are known, with good reason, to be about to blow. up something they should not with it. They have withheld, deliberately, in- formation from the politicians who are supposed to be keeping an eye on them. So what? If they told the politicians everything they were going to do, the latter would either try to grab some votes by stopping it; or try to grab some votes by taking credit for the act, if it worked. This is some crazy country, when, it comes to secret service work. Remember that poor Russian spy who tried to turn himself over, with a load of documents, to Mackenzie King, hack in the cold war days? He was told to go peddle his wares elsewhere, and the poor guy walked the streets in winter, looking for someone to defect to. Somebody finally took him off the streets, and he uncovered a huge Russian sp;, ring in Canada. Then we had the massive overkill when a two-bit outfit in Quebec, the FLQ, pulled a couple of kidnappings.'What a shemozzle! Hundreds of ordinary citizens were arrested with nary a habeas or a corpus, the army was called in, and the kidnappers made monkeys of the mounties and the Montreal gendarmes'. After strangling one of the victims and turning the other loose, the hoods were escorted by police to Montreal airport and flown, free, to Cuba. And thus Canada's police forces, with incredible ineptitude, announced to the whole world that the way to deal with terrorists is to buy them off. It's been going on ever since. Sorry, but I can't get all worked up about the RCMP, and its alleged trespasses. It's great stuff for the Opposition, but it's more like Gilbert and Sullivan than the Gestapo. That doesn't mean I'm not aware of the potential gravity of the situation. Sometimes I hear a soft click just after I've picked up the phone. Maybe it's the Mounties. But most likely it's my wife, on the upstairs telephone, trying to catch me making a poker date when she's going to be out to sewing class. (I usually let the other guy talk, put down the receiver carefully, race upstairs and catch her in the act.) And when I took my grandboys to see Santa Claus at the big department store, I warned them, "Don't say a' word to that guy in the red coat with the beard, even if he asks what you want for Christmas." He probably has a dossier on me. When I was 17 I wanted to go and fight in the civil war in Spain. Years later, 20 years before anyone else in this country, I urged editorially that Canada recognize Red China. I once inadvertently voted NDP. And you know what those add up to. "He's a RED!" as they'd have said 30 years ago. Today the Mounties probably have me down as a "potentially delinquent liberal with leftist tendencies," in a file marked TOP SECRET. Tho Clinton Nows-Rocord Is published each Thursday at P.O. Box 39, Clinton, Ontario. Canada, NOM 11.0. Member, Ontario Weekly Newspaper Association U Is registered as second class mall by the post office under the permit number 0117. The News -Record Incorporated In 1024 the Huron Nows.Record, founded !milli, and The Clinton Now Era, founded In 1163. Total press run 3,300. Clinton NewsRecord A Member Canadian Community Newspaper Association Display advertising rates available on request. Ask for Rate Card No. 1 aNactivo Oct. 1, 1477. General Manager • J. Howard Aitken Editor • James E. Fitzgerald Advertising Director. Gary L. Hoist News editor • Shelley McPhee Office Manager . Margaret Gibb Circulation • Freda McLeod Accounting • Marian Willson Subscription Rafe:' Canada •'11 per year U.S.A. •'17.00 Other . '20.00 0,10 O . "The thought of another postal strike was too much for Norton." Odds 'n' ends. by Elaine Townshend The things l won't do Recently on a TV quiz show, three contestants were asked whether they felt they learned more from their successes or, their failures. The unanimous reply was their failures. I think most people would agree. In the thrill of success, we might be too excited to learn much. Besides, who wants to bother with the serious business of learning, when we can revel in the glorious success which passes all too quickly? On the other hand, failure tends to dampen our spirits. We have a lot of time to think, before the sting of failure wanes. No matter how hard we try to forget, reminders are all around us. We don't want to suffer through that em- barrassment again, and the only alternative is to learn from our Mistakes. I don't have too many successes from which to draw personal comparisons, unless you count brushing my teeth; it seems to be my,hidden talent. At every six-month check up, my dentist com- pliments me on the excellent job I do with my toothbrush. In fact, he says I have the cleanest mouth in Huron County. My sister says he doesn't know me very well. Or, you might consider my ability to get stuck at a service station. If a person has to get stuck, what better place to pick than a garage where there are lots of men around? Or, you might count my ability to pick the hockey team that will win the Stanley Cup. Ten years ago, I predicted Toronto would Win it and they did. I have made the same prediction for the past nine years and have been wrong, but that doesn't count. I will keep repeating it until I'm right again. 1 agree with the contestants on the quiz show; I, too, have learned more from my failures than from my successes. As another New Year rolls around, I have decided not to make any resolu$ ions. Instead, here is a list of things I resbrve not to do again, I will not use hot water to make up orange flavour crystals. The powder sure dissolves fast, but the drink takes a long time to cool. I will not mention the words lemon and car in the same sentence within earshot of my brother-in-law. He has been having car problems lately and I sympathize wan him. But, at least, he doesn't make fun of my car anymore. I will not try to back into his driveway. I don't think I could ever live in a city suburb; the driveways are too narrow. When I pull up to my sister's house in the winter, I'm afraid of sliding into their lamppost on one side of the drive or their neighbour's fence on the other side. In the spring and fall when the ground is soft, I'm afraid of driving on their grass. My brother-in-law blames me for the poor grass growth beside his driveway. I say he 'uses the wrong kind of fertilizer. I will not take a short cut when I'm going to a strange place, even if I'm late. One muddy .road under construction cured me of that, I don't have enough space to list all the lessons I learned in the past year, but those are the first ones that come to my mind. Being an optimist, I'm certain I won't make the same mistakes twice. On the other hand, I bet I have a long list of new failures to report by the end of next year. I'm not a pessimist; I just know me and a year in my life would not be normal without a few bloopers. Would it be normal in yours? From our early files . • • • • • • 5 YEARS AGO December 28, 1972 Dogs running at large continue to be a problem at Vanastra. Vince Fowlie • of Vanastra, councillor -elect, informed members of Tuckersmith Township Council last week at the last session of the year. "When dogs start to run in packs of ten, you have a problem," he said. Mr. Fowlie said that a number of persons had suffered dog bites, the latest only that evening when the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ron Lockwood was bitten. J. E. Harlton, Huron Park, Veterinary Services Branch, Ministry of Agriculture and Food said that a pound, to be granted money must be located on municipal property or on land leased by the municipality or on contract basis with an animal control officer in a building provided by him. The famous Passe Muraille Theatre Group of Toronto came to Clinton last Saturday for two special performances of the play "Puss 'N' Boots." The group presented an ex- cellent play, but because of the 'season, they weren't as well attended as expected. Children as well as adults enjoyed the play. There were a few anxious moments Tuesday night when the wheel of a gasoline tanker overheated forcing "it to stop on Albert Street in Clinton in•front of the Town Square. The wheel became overheated when a bearing broke. The truck was loaded with 4,000 gallons of gasoline and 7,000 gallons of diesel fuel. The Hotel Clinton changed ownership this month and Des and Helen Cassidy will be the new hosts of the well-established business. The Cassidys are originally from Regina and have lived in Toronto and more recently in London. They have four children, Mrs. Barry (Maureen) Prudhomme of Toronto; Grant, 21; Jan, 17 and Erin 4. The Cassidys said that their welcome to Clinton has been enjoyable and they are looking forward to a long and happy relationship with Clinton and area residents. Cable Television service moved one step closer to reality this week as workmen with the Bluewater Cable Television started putting up the reception towers near Holmesville. The Cable Television nerve centre will be , located in the old Holmesville school, which the company recently purchased from Goderich Township. The school is presently undergoing remodelling as part of the TV project and will house the company offices and equipment as well as the studio for the local channel. 10 YEARS AGO December 28, 1967 Clinton Public Utilities Com- mission has installed a $15,000 standby generator to supply emergency power for water pumping equipment. The Commission has been working on this for about ten years. At that time a great amount of checking, studying and pricing was done to ascertain the proper type and size of unit needed to operate the water pumping equipment. The prices received at the time were from $25,000 to $27,000. Elmer Hunter, president of the Huron County Federation of Agriculture said that lack of land use planning outside the county is forcing the price up of Huron farm land. To protect farm acreage, he said, regional planning of land use may be necessary. 25 YEARS AGO January 1, 1953 At the annual meeting of the Huron Central Agricultural Society held on Saturday, December 27 in the Agricultural Board Rooms, Clinton, W. R. Lobb was re-elected president for the coming year. Elmer Webster retires this yeah from active municipal service after 15 years with Stanley Township council. He has never missed a meeting of council while he has been a member. The big Christmas tree on the post , office corner certainly looked pretty this year, too. Perhaps we shouldn't remind any of Clinton's citizens of the 1951 tree and then again, probably it wouldn't do any harm either. We recall quite vividly that it leaned at a ridiculous angle for days before Christmas and got its lights only scant hours before time for Santa Claus' midnight ride. When we're planning for this new 1953 tree in the office we will do good to remember our own mistakes of the past and profit by them. While passing the property belonging to Thomas M. and Gordon Westlake on Monday evening about seven o'clock, Mr, Gingerich saw flames and noticing no lights in the building. he crossed the road to Gladwin Westlake's home and turned in a fire alarm which was promptly answered by the Bayfield Fire Department. On the evening of Boxing Day, Mel Webster took a party of young people nearly forty, in hit truck, to the rink in Clinton. This gesture of Mr. Webster's was very much appreciated by all. If the cold weather continutes, the rink at Varna will soon be put in good shape. The Orangemen•here intend to supervise this work as a service to the community, 50 YEARS AGO December 29, 1927 The following item from last week's Zurich Herald caused a fond hope to spring for a second that the wild turkey was retur- ning. "Three of our local sportsmen were out hunting one afternoon recently and managed to shoot threewild turkeys. This seems something out of the ordinary, but a little more explanation and you will learn they were domesticated turkeys that had become somewhat frightened of man and the hunters were called in to shoot them down." • Mrs. M. A. Brown, 116 Edgewood 'Ave., Toronto an- nounces the engagement of her daughter (Betty), to Murray Alexander Fingland, son of Mr. and Mrs. John Ffngland, Lon- desboro. • Recently the Women's" Missionary Society,. of Brucefield United Church, celebrated .the Golden Jubilee of their organization. A large number of members and some former members were present to par- ticipate in what proved to be a most interesting and proytable meeting. On Saturday last, at his home in Hamilton, the death occurred of the Rev. William L. Rutledge, D.D., a former pastor of the Wesley -Willis church, Clinton in his seventy-seventh year. Insurance buying tips. How to buy life, home, disability and car insurance is the subject of a new con- sumer information pamphlet published by the Ontario ministry of consumer and commercialations. Titled "Insurance: A basic guide for consumers" the booklet offers a general guide on buying insurance, describes the different types of coverage available, tells how to evaulate policies in terms of your needs, and gives tips on what, to watch for. "Many consumers suffer financial hardship because they haven't planned for unexpected events," said consumer minister Larry Grossman. "We hope that this booklet will help them to avoid such situations," "Particularly in today's marketplace, with recent inflation in replacement .costs, people should take steps to protect their property," Mr. Grossman said. The pamphlet provides a starting point for those considering insurance for the first time and may provide some helpful tips for those re- evaluating their present coverage. For a copy of the booklet, write: Ministry of Consumer and Commercial Relations, 555 Yonge Street, Toronto, Ontario, M7A 2146 , Smile .A friend cf mine says he never wants to see Las Vegas again. His luck was so bad, he lost his shirt in a coin laun- dry. What you think IIIIIIIIIIII11111111111111111IIIIII111111I111II111IIIIIIlttlttll111 Santa Centre Dear Editor: This year's Santa Centre was the most successful ever, thanks to the combined ef- forts of many people. We would appreciate it if, through you, we could ex- press a small measure of our thanks. To the Mayor Harold Lobb for generously giving up the use of his office ' and the Council Committee room for the whole month of December. To Mrs. Nancy Stubbs and her marketing students of Central Huron Secondary School for the tremendous and tasteful efforts that made the Centre such an attractive setting for Santa's visits. To Santa's Elves: Sharon Ducharme, Sue McLay, Sandy Skinner and Mary Wise. To the staff of the Clinton News -Record with special appreciation to Peggy Gibb, To Helen Bartliff, our secretary, Rosamund Garrett our treasurer, Cleta Holland and Bob Campbell, for time and effort spent above and beyond the call of duty. To Ozzie Kuenzig of the I.G.A., Tim St. Louis. of the Raintree and Noah Zeeman of Clinton Home Hardware, not only for their time, but for their special concessions to us. To the Clinton Town Council, Huron Fish and Game, Kinsmen Club, John Lachivitch of J & J Phar- macy, Lion's Club, and the Royal Canadian Legion for their generous cash donations towards the expenses of maintaining the centre. Before Santa Claus left Clinton late last Saturday afternoon, he asked me to pass on this message. He was delighted to have been able tot spend as much time as he did in Clinton and hewished to express his thanks to all the children who came to see him and wrote him letters. He tried to answer all those he received, and hoped that no one was forgotten. Last of all he said that already he was looking forward to seeing all his friends again next year. • Yours sincerely, Helen R. Tench for the Clinton Business Association. Global Dear Editor: Recent news reports in- dicate that the problems of nations . have become global in nature. Expanding population, growing in- dustrialization and modern technology have put an ever growing demand on earth's material resources. Air and water poll'ution crosses many boundaries. Nuclear warfare by intercontinental missiles can affect every country. In ,this regard, scientist Isaac Asimov (quoted from in Thursday's "The National") recently declared: "Global problems can only have global solutions. Such problems cannot possibly yield to piecemeal treatment here and there. They cannot yield even to worldwide treatment if each nation works on its own." For mankind's survival, he said: "There must be - in con- nection with global problems - global decisions, global laws and global enforcement. All this is a way of saying that if we are to continue into the 21st century with civilization intact, we can do so only under the aegis (auspices or sponsorship) of world government." But such co-operation among nations is nowhere to be seen.,Only God's kingdom, the one government (Isaiah 9: 6,7) for all the earth which the resurrected, glorified Jesus Christ will head and for which Christians have prayed (Matthew 6: 9,10), will provide the "global decisions, global laws and global en- forcement" to bring about the uniting of.all mankind. This is why Jesus pointed out that when there was "upon the earth distress of nations" men's hearts failing them for fear of what they see coming. "This good news of the kingdom" would be preached in all the earth. (Matthew 24: 14 - Luke 21: 25, 26). Sincerely yours, C. F. Barney Clinton wr • • 0 4