The Goderich Signal-Star, 1982-07-07, Page 4PAGE 4 -:-GODERICH SIGNAL-STAR,11;l:DNESDAY, JULY ..7, 1982
DAVE
SYKES
,
1'
There is an impending and iguninent fear
that I am growing slimmer by the day.
The heat is not the culprit and I have
certainly managed to stuff sufficient food
• and reasonable facsililes in the vicinity of
my mouth to sustain a family of four.
However, that ample ingestion has not
resulted in any noticable protrusions about
my midsection.
Rather, I strongly suspect that fatherfiood
has relegated my body to the slender side of
the scale. For years I have peen slave to
romantic visiqns of growing portly or, to be
more precise putting on weight in proportion
to my advancement in age.
Just once in my life, I would relish the
opportunity to reply to an obnoxious remark
by an insensitive jerk, that, "I'm not fat, •
just big boned." .However, I will have to be
content with the=offering that I am "just
small boned." Both are simply polite terms
for the obvious.
1
Anyway, since my son, the little guy,
discovered that his chubby legs could propel
him about at restricted speeds, dad spends
much of his spare time son -chasing. The
related exercise, in tracking, down the
elilsive dynamo within a three-mile radius
of the house; •has rendered this correspon-
dent useless.
' And thus, he has severely constricted my
visions of an ample midsection. Harried
parents, who also frequently engage in son
or daughter chasing, will relate to the.
matter athand.
In retrospect, mother and father may Well.
be the perpetrators of their own misfortune..
Before the• little guy was a year old, mom
andr ould proudly encourage his
chubby les to churn out a few steps.
Night after night, on the living room floor,
the process continued until the legs grew
sturdier and two steps turned'into three and
four and finally he was on his own. And we
were in big double.
If only ' we could have been advised
beforehand, we may not have avidly en-
couraged him to seek mobility. The
crawling stage was great, and much less
demanding on this dutiful dad.
Now, however, the rnisstis" and I
frequently discover bits of cookies in the
underwear drawer, canned goods from the
lover cupboard strategically placed in the
living room, pots and pans strewn about the
kitchen and we must always be watchfublest
he makes a Mad- dash to stick his- handsrin
the toilet bowl.,
Walking has greatly enhanced his
michievous repertoire and put residents in
the household on red alert. But soon the
walking process became mundane and the
little guy took a fancy to hopping, running,.'
walking over everything in his path and
climbing.
' Now, if he _ would consent to simple
walking, it would make life` easier on the
nerves. His truculent style and insistence on
running all the time has led to some nasty
spills and falls but kids have an amazing
.resilient quality that hardly slows them
down. Just patch up the eye and he'll go
smack into something else with wreckless
abandon.
Either nfy son is adventurous or just plain
lazy: H"e'd just as soon walk over a toy or
climb over the couch than walk around it.
It's like living with a runaway bulldozer.
But, as parents, we should have suspected
that -the little guy would be a speedy terror..
Since he began the slow p t&ess.of, earning
to walk, his running shoe ave become his
most prized possession in lie and we fear he
offers them more affection than his parents.
_ To be honest, I never dreamed the kid
would get around that quick, considering 1 '-
inherited'his mother's legs.
•CNA
v
BLUE
RIBBON
AWARD
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Equity: needed
'4' The budget of Finance Minister Allen MacEachen has
raised some serious' concerns among,' Canadians. Cer-
tainly everyone must wonder if the wage restraints lin-
posed upon public servants is merely a stepping stone to
wage and price controls. • •
Last week the federal government introduced a six per
cent•limit op•wage, increases for its employees and em-
- ployees of.crown corporations. Subsequent to the release
of the budget, Prime. Minister Trudeau met with and
• . urged all premiers to impose similar measures.
Since then the labour sce ie.
Labour unions across the country have been adamantly
• .screaming that the imposition of controls„on wage in -
,.creases is unfairly isolating one sector. They also claim
the federal government's timing on the matter was
.perfect. Employees are on holidays and it is nearly im-
possible
-.
for major unions to project a unified voice of
displeasure.
That may come in the fall, however, Dennis McDermott
has promised. •
So; the ten premiers of the country were clearly faced
with a dilemma when asked by Trudeau to exercise
similar 'restraint. The president of the Ontario Public
Service Employees'Union has already put Premier Davis
on the spot. "-
'Apparently, six months ago Davis promised labour that
he would not impose controls on the public sector, simply
-becau§e it would be unfair to single out one sector of
society.
Thepremier doesn't agree with the philosophy of wage
and price controls of any LULU'. nuwever, the economy has
changed in the' last year and Davis said he will have to
rethink the matter with cabinet. It means that Davis could
follow the lead of.the federal government and limit pay
raises to public servants in the next two years. •
Davis, MacEachen and most other premiers; at least
realize.. that wages and government deficits have a
profound impact on inflation. The same holds true for the
private sector and civil servants don't want to be the
scapegoat or the example setters in .the solution to
__bringing down inflation.
In many cases, the private sector has had to live with
modes_ t wage and salary increasesover, the past year: In
other cases, employees -have granted concessions. to.
employers to maintain and preserve jobs. •
With that -in mind it is difficult to comprehend the
tactics suggested Canadian Labour Congress head,
McDermott: He claimed there' could be•a general strike
this fall. °
.Ontario's civil •servants earning in -excess of $30,000
have already had a six per cent ceiling on wage increases
imposed on them. That type'of restraint may provide for a
more equitable system:
Limiting civil servant raises to six percent does nothing
to -alleviate the pay disparity between the $12,000 -wage
earned' and those earning in excess of $30,000. MecEachen
could have produced a more equitable formula that may
have appeased government employees... . _
But, with increases limited to six per cent this year and
five the following year, it could provide for a shaky time
on'the labour scene. D.S.
Little voice is heard
Area farmers' should be breathing a collective sign of.
relief this week in view of the decision by the Consolidated '
Hearings Board to veto a suggested hydro Iine'through
this district connecting the Bruce generating station with
London. •
That decision has only one major hurdle to clear and
that is from the Ontario cabinet, but that should be a mere
formality.
While they're heaving a sigh of relief over thefact they
will not have to face huge towers on their farmland and.
the .exhaustive negotiations with Ontario Hydro, they
should also be heaving some praise towards those..who
fought on their behalf to save some of this province's most
productive farmland. t.
• The Foodland-Hydro committee, with some Unexpected ,
assistance from the provincial ministry of agriculture,
obviously worked long and hard on their arguments that
' swayed the board into agreeing,that the route being touted
by Ontario Hydro through farms -in this district was not
the logical choice.
"It is one of the first times the farm community has had
such an ' impact, and that's because we did our
homework," commented Foodland-Hydro committee
chairman Tony McQuail. •
-
. That comment should be stored away for future -use by
all groups who attempt similar battles or engage in
arguments over proposed policies. 'loo often, they are
unprepared with the necessary facts to back up their
arguments aril often fail miserably because they can't
defend ,their opinions un -ler cross-examination however
deep-rooted they may be.
F'oodland-Hydro has proventhat having well -
(documented facts to back an argument can win and they
should be commended for staging a fight in which they
appeared of the outset to be odds-on underdogs.
Some of the high-priced experts they won against must
be slightly reeling.
Explicitly vague..
Recently the+Signal-Star carried a story and editorial
-cogcerning the pay raises for trustees on the Huron
County Board of Education.
• In February of this year, board members passed a'
motion raising salaries to $40b a month from $300 a month,
an increase in excess of 33 per cent.` Under terms of the
Education Act, trustees here can command a salary upto,
$400 a month,
• An editorial that questioned the wisdom of that increase
suggested board members conspired to grant themselves
a raise behind closed doors. Board chairman, Dorothy -
Wallace; says that was not the case:
• The motion to grant the pay increase originated at a, ,
committee meeting and the motion was subsequently.
voted on at the February meeting of the board" or --
education. Mrs. Wallace also sattt the matter of salaries
paid to trusted' -was questioned at the board's annual
budget meeting in March. ',�
In the board of• education minutes from February, the.
4
0
b
motion voted on by trustees read:
That the allowance paid to members of the board be in
accordance with the provisions of'lhe.Education Act. The
motion' further stipula'd that the allowance paid to the
chairman be in accordance with the provisions "of the
Education Act.
While the- motion was presented as part of the 'com-
mittee's report in open session at•the February meeting, it
is extremely vague. Untlef the Education Act, board.
members were aware that maximum salary available
was $400 per month. With that knowledge they knew.,full
well what was spelled out in the motion.
However, as the motion stands, it could mean that board
members had raised salaries to $310 or $325 or $350. All
those figures are in accordance with provisions of the act:
• If the board is going to grant itself a pay raise, why not
put the numbers in the motion instead of passing vaguely -
_Forded motions that only they, unders and. It's an easy
way to avoid any type of confrontatf&and get a raise at
the same time.D.S. .•
o- al .
A,
Like father...
Rv Dave -Sykes
DEAR HEA
ERS
SHIRLEY. KELLER
A' tiny baby is a wondrous thing. -So innocent,
•-so helpless; so.soft, so adorable. There's nothing
-so beautiful as mother and child together. Right?
In ,normal circumstances, all that is true. But
there are times when one questions the wisdom •
of placing a newborn infant in the arms of his.
mother. There are times when one suspects a
babe -in -arms would be much better protected
elsewhere - in a different environment totally
• apart from his natural or birth parents.
Despite the modern tendancy to educate young
people concerning human sexuality, and, despite
the ,host of safe and dependable contraceptives
on the market, there still seems to tie a
remarkably high number of. pregnancies among
unmarried minors.
. The current trend is for more and more of
these- child -mothers (fathers don't often get
involved I to keep their babies, and toattempt to.
:_raise, them on_their_own, quite often without any
support from the natural fathers ori eves the'
families of father or mother. • -
At. the outset it seems)ike a noble gesture the
young mother is. making, and. one wants to ap-
plaud her for accepting, such a great respon-
sibility at -a time in her life when she should still
be -living at home, nurtured by her own mom and
dad.
But the sad facts are that it usually doesn't last
all that long. Statistics show, that a very high
percentage of under -aged mothers become
disenchanted'with the whole deal, usually within
18 months. When the •magnitude of her un-
dertaking gets too great to bear, she opts out by _
turning.the baby over to' an agency or to some .
other member of the family wilo may or may not
want it. The• experiment is over - and mother
goes,back to being a kid.
And whathappens to the baby?
Statistics show 'that in the majority of cases,
the child has suffered severe ,and irreparable
damage, Often the infant has been neglected,
physically abused, under -nourished, improperly
clothed. Sometimes babies are mentally stunted
through lackof stirnulntiien and the vital human
•
"Can they detect danger signals: excessive
crying, sores, high fever, sleeplessness, constant
hunger, diarrhea, vomiting? '
"Can they- stop when danger approaches -
holding back from hitting out when frustrated;
not walking out when uptight or feeling corrt-
pletely hemmed in, or wanting to go out on a
date? Do they know what's -involved in living,24
hours a day with an infant?
"Do they know what's involved in weaning,
toilet training, learning to walk, learning to talk?_
And' lastly, do they,,have good eye sight - ability
to look into that distance, to make a workable
sound plan for long range? • •
"If all these are okayed, she's licensed," says
Marshall. "If not, perhaps she wants to go to the
equivalent of driving school - a parent training
class set-up by schools, by FACS, by Red Cross,
by public health." ,
Marshall is blunt about it all - but maybe it's
time to be blunt.
He says,"You only need live sperm, ovulation
and contact to "produce a' baby. It's amazingly
simple."
'On the other hand, he points out society doesn't
say to young drivers, "Go ahead and drive. All
you need is a car with gas and a phallic key to
impregnate the ignition system. But if we catch
you hitting other cars, running over people,
endangering life and limb we will take the car
.away." ,
"'No sir! Weiprevent. The responsibility is on
the prospective driver to prove he's capable," .
says Marstihall. •
"Let's stop this. Let's no longer wait until
neglect, child abuse, malnutrition, stunted in-
tellect or desertion cause us to 'take the car
away'. Let's prevent. Let's require licensing for
all minors who wish to be unmarried parents,"
asserts Marshall.
I agree. Every Canadian infant has a right to a
positive, health -providing, growth -producing
family in which to live.'Society can secure that
right for the children. Why do we hang back' •
m
inter -action between mother and child or they
are scarred, crippled or 'perhaps diseased for
lack of adequate hygiene. ,
The final blow - desertion - can leave wounds in
that baby`' that may never be 'Healed.
Psychiatrists now are discovering that the
mental problems of adults can often to traced to
miserable childhood memories which never
seem to fadeentirely. away.
A few years ago, Karl A.Marshall, ad-
ministrator,of the. Family and Children's Ser-
vices in Halifax, Nova Scotia, resented a, '
symposium' entitled 'The Single •Parent (un-
married sub -species)'. . •
In that syMposium,Marshall contended
ht
.lrmarrie mofher are morhtld
....._
require licensing to keep their children:
Marshall pointed out that, society issues
licenses to drive a'car, buy and sell liquor,
operate a nursing home or day-care centre, sell
.:.food. in.,_a_restaurant,_, solicit door-to-door,get _-
married, practice medicine, law etc.
He asks why it doesn't make sense to issue a
license to a minor who wants to keep her baby. .
"Npbody gets a license%`drive a car before he
_is 16 years old," Mafrshall reasons. "He must
passu theory test and a practical field test. He
must know the roles of the road. He must be able
to start the car and keep it running. He must be
able to understand the danger signals.,He must
be able to handle the car - back up, go forward,
park. He must be 'able to stop when danger ap-
proaches: He must have good eye sight - natural f
or with corrective lens - to see into the distance.
• Then he is licensed. All this is for his best.in-
terests?. No way. It's for -the protection of
others."
"So let's do the same thing for producers of
kids," he suggested. "No license to those under
16. Require both theory and practical
examination.
"Do they know the rules of the road - how
children develop, how much sleep is needed,
what formula is, how to held, diaper, bathe a
child, what the word 'nurture' means? Can.they
keen the child ening - alive and developing?
lass in swimmingpool leaves children angry
The following letter Is a
result of the children's swim -
Ening lessons being cancell-
ed. They were very upset,
that anyone would want to
-hurt them by throwing
broken 'glass in the pool. We
returned to school and they
composed a letter to express
their feelings..
N. Park
Gr. 3
St. Mary's, Goderich
Dear Editor'
We feel very -disappointed
rand angry with thoughtless
people. They don't care
TTJ
about anything but
themselves. They mess
everything up, and make vs
feel that we should not be
proud of • Goderich. But we
should be able to be proud.
They're always throwing.
beer bottles all over the
place. We think that parents
should supervise • their
children more. On June 24,
1982 the• pool was full of
glass; The Gr. 3's of St.
Mary's school have been tak-
ing swimming lessons. To-
day they could pot go swim-
ming because of the broken
glass. There has to be a stop
to this.
Yours truly,
The Gr. 3's of
St. Mary's school
Post card
Dear Sir,
Re ,the postcard view
which appeared in the edi-
tion of Wednesday, .Tune 23.
It was printed and
distributed in the early
1900's (1900-1910) by an
unknown printing firm-, in
Germany' and also by the`'
Valentine .and Sons'
Publishing Company of
Great Britain. The Valentine
Company was one of the
largest producers of early
postcards in that era.
Itis interesting to note that
the same view appears in the
`Memories of Goderich"
'book in the chapter about the
Nrul ll of- Reubetf-R:-llowg,
an early Goderich
photographer. It is quite
possible that Mr. Sallows__
took the original photograph.
He, in turn, could have sold
the negative to one of the
early posteArd mandfactur-
ing companies: Many of the
early photographers in the
smaller communities often
did that in order to supple
ment their income. Thank
you.
Yours truly,
Glen D. Gardiner.
y