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HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1983-03-23, Page 4PAGE 4-CLINTON NEWS -RECORD, WEDNESDAY MAR(If 73 i?i➢ltt rho Cddnman riows-®ea¢®rai im pw®ddofna® moa. 13/odeeooc9cny of P.O. & Dm 89. C9fienton. OnvorOm. Cenmdm. w81G9 111.8. 110/ pan .2443. Seebm rd®edmn Moto: Camodm '118.339 Sr. Cltinon '111-39 par yomr & ior¢ad1®n '891-913 per yomr on O. regdotorv® ao emmentl ¢iemsy nom13 by at., peon make ..redo,. 'Om p ,rwedt monratew 81111. 1690 e9omm-Moaord Onmorkpovvtod dw ovate eico rom.arw gomm-ao¢w®, icnerreQ dw'nn. ®o4 Me? Cddwtarn Moo. Oro. Sim mdod in 11833. llmfve pp r,.n m-1188. THE BIXT11 STANDARD J. HOWARD AITKEN - Publisher �+ ! '. MEMBER SHELLEV McPHEE - Editor % MEMBEk GARY HAI�T - Advertising Munnger MAQY ARAN WOLLENRECR - office PAcen©ger m'°�Imr a^ .arrleln® myon .ml kat, la o •aquae( Acta for Sm 4'o Cara! No IE oflocnlvo Oar 1 Compaign approaches Springtime in this part of Canada beside the reawakening of nature. means campaign time for the Canadian Cancer Society. Daffodil days and bike-a•thons and door-to-door canvasses ore as recognizable to generous volunteers and donors as the familiar red sword symbol of the society itself. However, this spring, unless householders and businesses are alert they could find themselves mailing donations to an organization that sounds and has a logo similar to that of the Canadian Cancer Society. but isn't. It is the Cancer Research Sor iety Inc a Quebec -based organization that has its headquarters in Montreal Literature pertaining to the Cancer Research Society Inc. is now turning up in the area The promotional materials are very similar and anyone glancing at the material would believe it to be from the Canadian Cancer Society The Cancer Research Society Inc. is generous in its use of red Ink which is also the trademark of the Canadian Cancer Society and its red sword symbol which includes a circled cancer sign could easily be taken for the society's red sword. As far as anyone can deter mine The Cancer Research Society Inc is an honorable organization However, donors should realize that most of the funds it collects stay in the province of Quebec. although the literature accompanying the appeal for funds also lists universities in British Columbia, Manitoba New- foundland and Ontario as recipients of grants and fellowships. We wouldn't for one minute suggest anyone should not give a donation to the Cancer Research Society Inc. However, at the same time, they should not confuse it with the Canadian Cancer Society which will be making its annual appeal for funds in the next few weeks. from The Goderich Signal Star. behin.-.! the scenes Divorce dilemma That Statistics Canada report on the growing divorce rate in Canada didn't tell us anything we didn't already know in that age group under 40 or 45 years of age. If you're in this age group and have a reasonable number of married friends, you'll believe nearly any statistic they want to throw at you about divorce these days. Ten years ago I thought there must be some slip up in the statistics taking when they said that about a third of all marriages, I think it was then, would end in divorce. Now I'm ready to believe the in- creased prediction that 40 per cent of all marriages end in divorce Just think about it: it means that of every five married couples you know, two are liable to get divorced. I know that if I meet an old acquaintance I haven't seen for a year or two, I hesitate and send out feelers before asking for the health of the spouse unless he or she is pre- sent. I just might end up bringing up the embarrassed response that the couple Is not living together anymore. Worse still, if the wounds are too recent. I might get to hear a replay of the whole messy breakup. i)ivorce seems to be the newest com- municable social disease of our society. A couple of decades ago divorce was something that was rare anywhere but in our neck of the woods was regarded as one of the evils of the city. Many people in rural Ontario didn't even know someone who was divorced. Today divorce seems as common in the country as in the city We've caught up with fashion at last. Why this epidemic of roan age breakdown" One expert pointed out that people don't seem willing to compromise personal goals and fulfillment 111 order to Keep d Did! 1 tdg'e eogeinei . lite new realities of careers for women obviously have some impact on the situation. In the old days the family had one goal in mind and both husband and wife were dedicated to it. Today the goals of the husband's career and the wife's career may conflict and cause added tension. Since in our "me" generation neither is willing to sacrifice for the other, the marriage is bound to be in trouble. Add children to the mix and there are that many more pro- blems. Then too there is the affluence factor. Women even a decade ago thought twice before either moving out or kicking the bum out because where would the money come from. Today the wife might be earn- ing more than the husband and it makes it easier to consider a breakup. And could it be that we've started a snowball; that the knowledge that many marriages do break up becomes a self fulfilling prophecy because at the first sign of trouble couples say, "Well, I guess this is it." One wonders how much people gain who are so wrapped up in personal fulfillment they refuse to compromise in marriage. Is the pain of compromise any worse than the pain divorce brings, than the uncertainty of going back to the single life again? Perhaps it is since statistics show that 75 per cent of divorced people remarry but the divorce rate in these marriages is even higher than the first time marriage rate. Obviously, these people have not learned a lesson about how to choose a compatible partner and hold a marriage together. The really frightening thing about the divorce epidenuc, however, is to look at the future. Statistics have long shown that children from broken homes have a greater marriage breakdown rate themselves. So where does this put us 20 years from now'' Farm ,Safety .Association is concerned d Machinery repair is vital I. arm ac(idents ()Het, result from malfunctioning equipment, say s I art v tiw Inn, publlr its 1 n ,,n111i,il,1? (111 Ill(' F at 1;111' 1\ \esu( lalln11 nt ( )r1Iar'in Swum says u1 the swine. rush. 11,i11\ tanners negle( l r,lutlfl ' in .1 h1(141 111.1 n tenon( e F.111111 e In keep ln.ic huiei\ 111 Cn4x1 repair an 1.411x4 srl� 111,wnt1111e 11111 iit peak 'e,is( 'n aril can .11•x• 1 .411se personal 1n)ur% When nrachnu', down fanners try 1,, rn,lkr op for 1•s1 tiilir .1'1.1 'a , ,.,,u .1 Ilttlt „tri 14'•.. ,.Illttg .1(a( Livery quit k1 all unsafe manner .. 10 today's tight ecnnonty pick entati r' nlalrltenarl( 1' Is espy( lall\ rrrtir'aI. Swine ..,%.s Mi,inx farrmers have postponed our( bases of new equipment. to operate older equipment safely, routine repair work or et complete 1,N.erhaul is needed -- Swiflfl lii'cns farmer's 11, 11111% ce'r-cice machinery and order replacement parts In +(m 1111'4' I{eplacernent pdrts 111 h( sl arce this year Man\ far ni nun hrner\ dealers are III!�lit lily t`rit,l I„ t lit l l :11 the same (111(1' parts are In brisk durnand because farmers are operating older equipment Swum says about 20 per cent of all farm accidents oc 1 ur during the hectic spring planting season Often these injuries are more serious than a1 ill 114`1* tunes of the year het ause they involve farm machinery More than 1.51) farm accidents occurred in spring 1982, he says Safe nperatlon of tractors And fain equipment takes time but not as much time .45 it takes to recover from injury or 1he financial loss of downtime during the grow- ing season ' Yesterday's splendor sugar., spice at can you do? With the Federal government facing a truly awesome deficit that makes ire wince for my children and grandchildren, and with the Taxman lurking just over the horizon, ,ready to rummage through my every pocket, I'm in just the right mood to be re -reading Thoreau', great essay, V "Civil Disobedience." Like most Canadians, I am ripe and ready for telling the state to go jump in the lake, stop meddling in affairs it invariably bungles, and get its thieving hand out of my hip pocket. One of Thoreau's mala themes is that governments are only an expedient for get- ting things done; things that the individual can't handle, such as national defence, postal service, and the like. But, as he points out, most governments are inexpe- dient. In other words, they meddle, they obstruct the natural flow of trade and com- merce, they involve the governed in all sorts of things the latter disapprove of, and their main purpose becomes self - perpetuation, rather than carrying out the will of the people. Think about it. Did you insist that the government go on spending and borrowing wildly until our national deficit is heading for $200 billion, and the interest on it alone is more than the entire budget of a decade or so ago? Did you demand that the government impose the metric system on Canada without a yea or a nay from the people? Was it you, or any of your friends. who insisted that the government set itself up in the oil and gas business, without adding one single gallon of nr-o'lleti n" Perhaps; it w:rs y‘,u and people lik:' you, by Shelley McPhee dispensed by bill smiley who forced the federal and provincial governments to rely so heavily for revenues on their taxes on poison: booze and cigarettes. Or maybe it was you who whispered in a ministerial earhole that taxes should be in- creased for the poor and the middle-class, but held steady for the rich, because to in- crease theirs would "destroy initiative," Does the government really carry out your wiShes about capital punishment, foreign aid, urban sprawl in choice farmland? No! No!, I hear, in great volume. Then why don't you do something about it? But what can I do, you say. All I can do is vote, you say, and it's usually picking one turkey over another. Agreed, but there is a solution, accor- ding to Thoreau. It's simple in theory, dif- ficult in practice. Just don't pay your tax- es. Get up on your hind legs, and say it: nI won't pay taxes to buy oil companies, to support criminals in jail, to advertise the glories of the government in publica- tions..." and whatever else turns your crank. But, you'll say, I'd never get away with it. They'd seize my bank account, cash my bonds, grab my property, put me in jail. Of course they would. I told you it wasn't easy. All you have to do is persuade another 9,999 honest men of conscience to do the same, and the revolution would be over. Would the government throw in jail 10,000 otherwise honest, upright citizens? No fear. It would lose the next election, aside from not having enough jail space to put them. Of course, finding the rest of the 10.000 might be a mite dicey. Finding 10 honest men these days, men of conscience and in- tegrity, who are willing to stand up and defy is about as easy as being appointed Jaieid OSCope The new trees you may have seed on Clinton's downtown streets were planted last week by the Business improvement Area IBIAI group. Along Ontario Street by the F3ank of Montreal, and beside the fire station, the dwarf global maples were planted as part of the BiA's continuing beautification scheme for downtown Clinton here's hoping they survive this sudden blast of Mother Nature 1 1 1 '['Inc old weatherman Jim Fitzgerald was in the other day to tell us that he had forecasted this winter blizzard 111 truth ,firm took his advice from a woolly cater- pillar This year the caterpillar had a small black ring at the beginning, lots of light brown in the middle and a tip of black at the end of his body '[he black rings represent winter at its wildest and the light patches are said to represent mild weather c'ondit ions Too had the caterpillar didn't pass nn the information to his companions in nature I felt so had for the poor little crocuses Only a week ago they were brilliant and beautiful, hut inch by inch they were soar, smothered in snow And 1 hear that 501114' people already have their gardens in. nr at (east the onions Well it .seems that we ran never count nn Mother Nature. not even on the first day of spring This new coating of white stuff has me all mixed-up ton Suddenly i'n1 finding myself singing White Christmas and that coact: of the Toronto Maple Leafs and told to go out and bring home the Stanley Cup. Thoreau himself refused to pay his poll tax and was put in jail, which he found highly amusing. Imagine the government thinking they could lock up his mind, along with his body. But the big trouble is that governments are so sneaky these days. They wouldn't dare throw 10,000 solid citizens in jail. But they could garnishee their wages, seize their assets, haul them into the courts and generally harass them to death. It was simpler in other times. They crucified Christ, excommunicated Luther and Copernicus, pronounced Washington a rebel, and dealt in similar summary fashion with other great reformers, patriots and saints. I know what you're saying: I ain't no saint. True. But then neither are you a slave, to be bought and sold depending on the whims of the majority: big business, big government, big labor. There's many a man - and woman - walking the streets these days, who thought he or she was an individual, a per- son of character and conscience and loyal- ty, tossed out like an old broom by the system, which is not exactly based on the New Testament. But surely we can dig to our heels a bit. l'ell yuu what. We'll work like a chain let- ter. You find nine other honest men or women. i'll do the same. On the 29th of April, the 10,000 of us will send a telegram to 'I'rudeau, saying, "We ain't gonna pay our taxes." It might take us a while, 30 years or so. Honest men are getting as scarce as virgins. But one of these years. We'll issue our clarion blast, and the walls will come turn hlirig down F'ullUcians. take note. Better buy some ear -plugs. just in case. other trine, Let 11. snow, lest it snow, let it snow." This, i have to remind myself, is not the first snow fall of winter, but hopefully the last. The urge to put up the Christmas tree and lights will soon pass I hope. 1- 4 if you would like a bright spot of spring In your home, don't forget that the Clinton Sorority members will be selling daffodils on March 24, 25 and 213. The flowers, 15,000 in all, are sold each year in conjunction with (cancer Society's fund raising cam- paign. The flowers sell fast so it's a good idea to place your order immediately with a Sorority member. The flowers are selling 10for $3. The annual Daffodil Tea will be held on March 29 in Clinton. i + 4 •1nd don't forget the grand opening of the Blyth Bank of (commerce on Saturday afternoon. Starting about 2 p m the of f11 lal opening will include a ribbon cutting ceremony and open house 4 4 4 (In Friday, March 25 the Clinton i.ibrary will he sponsoring a special March Break ,ifternobn At 2 p m Mr Magic will be performing his mysterious, marvellous ti 1( ks The performance is free and is Iteing sponsored by Outreach Ontario 'next Wednesday, March 29 George •lniahrle, will be reading selections of his poelry at the Clinton Library \lr Amahile is an Associate Professor of English and (creative Writing at the University of Manitboa. His work has appeared in 6.5 periodicals and magazines and a dozen anthologies. Ile has given readings of his work throughout North America. on the CBC and public television. Ile is said to be a gifted performer whose resonant voice presents his poetry very effectively in a public reading. Admission is free and the evening will get ;rnderway at 7:30 p.m. The League of Canadian Poets and the Canada Council is sponsoring the program George (cutler of Clinton found some interesting reading material the other day. (;gorge, an avid furniture refinisher, was taking apart an old mirror, and as stuffing between the glass and backing, was an old (;Icbe and Marl newspaper from 1903. Tone \. an /,nn of the Clinton Lions Club called in to say that the Faster Seal fund raising campaign will he running until April ;l The Irons Club has organized the local drive in Clinton and Brucefield for many years and this year they hope to raise $1.7(0 Tony asks that you make use of the money envelopes that were delivered or mailed to Your house i 147114' amiss a neat little item in the March 10. 1932 'sews -{record, telling of a new eyesight aid, the contact lens it read. Bev F:ric Anderson, the highly regarded pastor of the Blyth United (?lurch, has been suffering from failing eyesight He has found relief through a new German invention by which a small lens is placed nn the eyeball W. is prop .: 1. e re swers to 11 i tions Dear Editor : On Sunday I took my gas barbecue tank in a service station at the south end of Clinton on Highway 4 to get filled. I was there forthree minutes. It took two minutes or the man to come out, hook up thetankandfillitandtotakemy$8forthe fill up. I asked him to meter the amount that went into my tank. It took 12 litres. Now 12 Litres is not a lot oL: propane. I couldn't figure out how he arrived at $8. I ask+ how much propane is a litre and he told me it was 27 cents. I am not a matheatical whiz so I paid the $8 as re- quested, got a receipt and drove home. I got out the calculator and found out that the propane was worth $3.24. Now I ask you, how do they get away with charging a flat fee of $8. I was informed that propane was charged by weight. Whether the tank is half full, quarter empty or any measure itis$8. There is only one way to buy gasoline and that is by the litre at approximately 46c. As far as I know there is•,not another way of charging if you use the gas for a lawnmower or a chain saw. So, why then are we being penalized for having a gas barbecue? There is $4.76 extra charge and I don't think it is for labour. When the police department fills up their cruiser with propane I'm sure they get charged by the litre. Why then are we be- ing ripped off? Is it the oil companies or so- meone else? It doesn't add up and I would like some answers now. I'm sure I speak for everyone who uses gas barbecues. What is the answer? M. Russo, Clinton. Sparling's reply Dear Editor: Regarding the letter written by Mr. Russo of Clinton, I hope to reply as com- pletely and as concisely as possible. The concern expressed by Mr. Russo was two-folld: why propane cylinders are filled by weight rather than volume and why the cost off cylinder fuel is greater than motor fuel (small versus larger quan- tities). Why ;i, ust cylinders be fl; led by weight? The National Standard of Canada ('AA'N 1- B149.2-Ms'nI Code Book in Section 12.4 covers the Filling of (Propane) Cylinders: Subsection 12.4.1 states: A cylinder shall: Part (c) "...not be filled by the use of a cylinder float gauge or a dispensing meter." Therefore, as a member of the Propane Gas Association of Canada, and acting as res. nisible members of the Propane In- dustry, we acknowledge and respect this regulation as law. And we are not alone. Every propane Company and their dealers across Canada abide by the same set of rules. This regulation was established in 1958 to ensure the safe and proper filling of pro- ne cylinders. When scales are used, the s a, tion operator can first determine the amount of propane remaining in the con- tainer, and "(i en set the scales in accor- dance to the tare weight, etc. If a meter was to be used, the result would inevitably be overfilling every time. This is not a safe practice. With a meter there is too much guess -work involved: is the teak empty?/how many litres do I put in?/and, when do I stop? Price It doesn't matter whether you're in the market for shoes, oranges, or diesel fuel, the more you purchase, the more favorable the price. Volume buying has touched all commodities and in marry ways. The propane cylinder refill in question cost $8. On a cents per litre basis you feel this is too high when the retail per litre price of motor fuel is considered. Yet if you check in the area, I'm sure you'll find this to be a competitive price. We must constantly remember costs, Mr. Russo. I won't take the space and your time to list them all, but they include everything from picking up the propane at the Refinery in Sarnia to when it comes through the hose at the dealer. Once all these costs have been accounted for it makes little difference in terms of labour, whether Mr. King pumps 1 litre or 101. It takes our dealers, or anyone else's, about the same amount of time to fill a barbecue tank ( maximum of 20 pounds) or a vehicle ( up to 400 litres and more) once the equip- ment is in operation. With this in mind. do you not think the man or woman who operates a propane -powered vehicle deserves a price break? Near the end of your letter you make mention of oil companies. Neither the oil companies nor the Arabs have a whole lot to do with the price of barbecue tanks. They do though, provide us with an exam- ple of volume buying power that we all overlook. For a one litre can of 10W30 motor oil, the retail pace is approximately $2.24. Yet if we were to buy a 45 gallon drum (or 200 litres) that price rdrops to $1.50 per litre. We thank you for the opportunity in res- pond to Mr. Busso'.s questions. and sincerely hope this rather lengthy letter has answered them satisfactorily Yours truly. G B Steven Spading Sparling's i'ropane Cu Ltd on behalf of Harold's Shell Service. ( lint on P S i can't help but marvel at the speed with which you were served when you had your cylinder refilled Ynu pulled in. had someone come out and open the station. hook up the fill hose, fill the ( Minder. disconnect the fill hose. load container into car; pay man; get receipt and drive away And all this happened in three minutes"' Now that's what i ('all service'