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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1983-09-07, Page 4r. rn • .DAVE SYKES No doubt most people have been provided with an opprtunity to ponder and scrutinize the workings and wisdom, if you will, of governments. Sometimes the sanity of rulers and governments is questioned, like when the annual tax increase on booze and cigarettes is enforced. When the gover- nment sticks its hand in our pocket, we tend to cry the longest and loudest. The provincial government poked its nose into this normally quiet corner of the world last fall and stirred the pot up to the point of irritation. People got mad, even angry and even ugly. More than 20 years ago the then Per- mier, -John Robarts, opened the Goderich Psychiatric Hospital. It was a brand new facility, one of a kind, and the residents of the area would not have been careless to suspect that the psychiatric facility would serve the needs of the region for many years, and also provide employtlllent. But in 1977 j the government closed the psychiatric hospital and created the Bluewater Centre for the Developmentally Handicapped. The centre became the respected home of hundreds of develop- mentally handicapped adults over the years and was revered as one of the finest facilities of its kind in the province. Last year the government suggested that developmentally handicapped adults should live in the community. Despite the millions of dollars spent to create a home for residents, despite the work of staff, despite the arduous efforts of volunteer organizations to provide for the recreational and other needs of the residents, the government suggested those needs could be adequately met in the community. There is no disagreement with that philosophy if the proper support services exist in the community. Many were of the belief that interests of the residents could hest be served at the Bluewater Centre. A campaign to thwart the government's five- year plan failed. In essence it is still alive, but it has failed. The loss of jobs was on everyone's mind but concern centred on the future welfare of residents and the government's ability to live up to its commitment. But the an- nounced closure did a lot more than create uncertainty for the families of the residents. It created uncertainty for every em- ployee at the Bluewater Centre. It created uncertainty in a lot of people's lives. This week, however, the government has asked us not to despair. The facility will be used a regional detention centre for young offenders. The Youth Offenders Act will be proclaimed April 1,11)64 and one year from that date, as many as 177 young offenders will be housed at the Bluewater Centre. Many people have left the employ of the Bluewater Centre and reluctantly settled elsewhere for the sake of a job. With the announcement by Gordon Walker, many people will be able to find employment at the new detention centre. Some who have left town may have been candidates for jobs, but they couldn't Wait around for a government decree. Others, still, not wanting to leave the area, will be left without jobs. New people will come into the area with the creation of the regional detention centre and some good residents will be forced to leave. But, one has to wonder if the government could have avoided some of the un- certainty and anxiety it inflicted upon people in the area. eNA BLUE RIBBON AWARD 1983 Second class. mail registration nurnbe 0716 SINCE 1848 THE NEWS PORT FOR GODERICH & DISTRICT Founded In lieu and published every Wednesday at Ooderlch, Ontario. Mentippr of the CCNA and OWN*. Adver. 9l sing rates on request. Subscriptions payable In advance' 1t,10 In Canada. •se.,00. to U.S.A., '30.00 to all other count - tries. single copies SOC. Display advertising rates available on request. Please ask for Rats Cord No.13 effective Oc- Second cass ll RegistrotIon Number 6. Advertising Is accepted the con that the ition n event of t9eYo o9r P ra hl al lerror.athe advertising space occupied upied by the oerroneous item, togetherdwith reosol able allowance for signature, will not be c:imrged for but that balance of the advertisement will be poles+; ort tirvlces ap- plicable rate. In the ovensol a typographical error advertising goods or services ala wrong price, y may not be sold. Advertising is merely an offer to sell, end may be withdrawn at any time. The Signal -Star Is not responsible for the loss or damage of unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other materials used for reproducing pur- poses. PUBLISHED BY: SIGNAL -STAR. PUBLISHING LIMITED ROBERT G. SHRIER•President and Publisher DONALD M. HUBICK-Advertising Manager DAVID SYKES-Editor P.O. BOX 220, HUCKINS ST. INDUSTRIAL PARK GODERICH N7A 466 FOR BUSINESS OR EDITORIAL OFFICES please phone (519) 524-8331 All things private The sudden resignation of federal cabinet minister Roger Simmons has done more than add to the public embarassments of the federal Liberals the 'Listowel Banner says. It has once again called into question the kind of privacy political figures have a right to expect. The 44 -year-old member of parliament for the Newfoundland riding of Burin -St. George's resigned as Minister of State for Mines just 10 days after being ap- pointed to the post by Prime Minister Trudeau. After telephoning the prime minister to inform him of the decision to resign, presumably after telling him the reason,. Simmons steadfastly refused to make the reason known to the electorate. His only statement was that he had resigned for "personal reasons." The Prime Minister, the deputy -prime minister the Honorable Allan MacEachen, and all the other cabinet ministers have been similarly closed -mouthed and tight- lipped on the topic. It just isn't good enough. It isn't that the public has a right to go poking into the private lives of politicians. The public has no such right. However, the 1 esignation of Roger Simmons cannot be put in the private life' category -at least not according to the little that is known about it. Whatever Mr. Simmons "personal reasons" are, they are apparently of such a nature as to prohibiti him from accepting cabinet responsibilities, but not from remaining a member of parliament in the House of Commons. The implication is that those "personal reasons" then must be in some way linked with his cabinet post. If such is the case, then the public has a right to know what the reasons are for the resignation. People also have a right to know if Mr. Simmons' "personal reaons" existed prior to his cabinet ap- pointment, or occured within the ten days between the appointment and his resignation. If they existed prior to the cabinet shuffle, then surely Mr. Simmons ought not to have accepted the cabinet appointment. In general it can be stated that anything which prohibits a politician from carrying out his responsibilities as an elected politician, or in this case an elected politician appointed to a cabinet post, is in the public domain. On the other hand, what a politician does in his private life -as long as it doesn't affect his work as a politician -is the business of the politician as a private individual and must be guarded as the rights of any individual. Will that be cash? A few years back, many commercial enterprises were begging us to accept and use credit cards. You could have a pocketful of plastic money without even asking. Most business people were the recipients of cards from gasoline companies, railways, airlines, hotel chains and car rental firms, to mention only a few. Credit cards became a convenience to those who wanted to travel abroad without carrying large amounts of cash, but to others they were a curse. The wherewithal to make purchases anywhere at any time was a temptation to the unwary. Many found that easy baying g was followed by the more difficult necessity to provide bank credit at the end of the month. Now the scene has changed. Many offe companies which issued their credit cards so lib ally are now demanding a small fee each time the card is used, or an annual rate which is designed to cover all transactions by the credit card holders. As a consequence, many people have chosen to turn in ost of the cards carried for many years, keeping only the necessary few (perhaps only one) which can be used in case of emergency. Behind this change of heart on the part of the once - generous corporations lies the fact that too many people who used credit cards were careful to pay all the monthly charges within the specified period allowed after the monthly account arrived in the mail. Thus, the credit issuers failed to receive the expected amount of interest on overdue accounts which financed their credit card operations. Well, that's all right as far as many are concerned. People can live without credit cards. But for the issuers, it could mean a loss of business on a fairly large scale. Class clops 470 int DEAR READERS SHIRLEY .liELLER You may have learned by now that I keep a pretty close eye on the writings of ,one John Slykhuis, a columnist for TOPIC Newsmagazine in York Region. Recently John turned his con- siderable writing talents to the subject "Rejoice sheep! Democracy is dead!" In that column, John denounced the cowardice of Canadians. A trait, he says, that is national in scope and has brought about the death of democracy here. John listed things like Crime Stoppers, a program in which the police pay cash for tips leading to the arrest and conviction of criminals, as proof positive that democracy is dead. Other things mentioned were boards of education using surveillance cameras to cut down on vandalism; a sex harassment handbook; the Human Rights d;ommession; the Ontario Press Council: breathalizer testing and compulsory blood sampling to curb drinking and driving; Bill C-157 which establishes a security force to move in where regular policing fails. John admits he too has a "yellow streak" and he lumps himself in with the majority of Canadians who don't care that their freedoms are being lost little by little. But it doesn't make him feel any better about tie whole situation ... Canadians like sheep being protected by the shepherd we call "Big Brother". This frustrated young man reminds me of another young Canadian who recently arrived back in Canada from the United States where seat belt laws are more lax than here in The Great White North. Viewing the buckle -up legislation as an infringement of his right to choose for himself, this returned citizen ignores the growing evidence that society has reached a deplorable condition now where we must be protected from ourselves. Actually, John Slykhuis' observation that we are like sheep is very astute. Sheep are rather mindless animals without a sense of respon- sibility. They are followers, not leaders. When they wander from the flock, they are often lost and seldom are able to choose the path to safety. But in defence of sheep — the distinction perhaps that separates the sheep from the human race is that sheep are gentle creations. Peaceful and serene, they don't prey on other species or against one another the way people do. As one reviews John's list of democracy - killers, there is a thread of sameness about each one. The programs were developed to assist people to be more responsible for themselves as well as for others. We're a society, bent on self-destruction, it seems. Whether through booze and inactivity, or greed and hatred, or waste and mismanagment, we're determined to shut off the very lifeblood of freedom promised in a democracy. Consult your dictionary for a definition of a democracy. You will likely find that in addition to government controlled by the people who live under it, a democratic society is one where people treat others as equals, where citizens have equal rights and opportunities, where the majority rules. Look for an explanation of freedom. My dic- tionary states it is the state or condition of being free from another's control. It emphasizes the Quite rightly, small town weeklies are not the sources to which the readers turn for in- formation when the news concerns major in- ternational situations and important foreign events. Much has been said and written elsewhere about the South Korean Boeing 747 which is said to have been shot down recently over Soviet territory. It is a personal disaster' for the families who lost their loved ones, but the knowledge is also a terrible tragedy on other minds. So it is not information to which I could add or explanations that i could offer. I am addressing myself to a reaction which bothers me personally and in which I do not think I am.alone. As . peripheral by-standers we found ourselves subjected to a sudden and ex- traordinary explosion of very seriously venomous rhetoric, particularly from the United States. At the beginning, high of- ficials and others resembled a vigilante mob in ugly mood,'ready to act on quick conclu- sions, without bothering about a fair trial after all the pertinent facts become available, 'subject to a cool weighing of all the evidence. Even on the CBC the real questions started to come in much later and rather slowly, long after the journalists had first trustingly jumped on the bandwagon of the mainly American hysteria. It must have been quite clear to any thinking person who followed the airliner situation from the beginning that some very important ques- tions did not and still do not have answers. Whatever the occasion, I have no taste for the sound or sight of public hysteria, usually deliberately fanned in one direction, in order to hide something else. It frightens me considerably when good and solid reasoning is blown out of the window. I am not a friend of the Soviet system; if I were,.1 would not be living here. Americans are our neighbors and friends, but one does not always have to agree with all aspects of the friends' lifestyle. Rightly or wrongly. I feel that we owe it to ourselves to become fully acquainted with the available facts on what really''happened. I think that. it is our Government's duty to investigate in- dependently and fully the true cir- cumstances and to tell us the facts. Thus I am glad to see that whilst the American President, in words dripping of longstanding hatred, is preparing a list of sanctions against the Soviet Union, our Prime Minister insists that until the Govern- ment has more explanations and facts and can make a judgment based on these facts, "it is premature to say what we are going to do about it." I support the Prime Minister's stand and I am sure there are many of us who do so and have let him know. I hope to learn what exactly was the role of the American Central Intelligence Agen- cy in the tragic situation. Does it share the responsibility? It is this question that must bother us most. For two hours the Korean plane was deep insideSoviet territory, over their most guarded military secrets on Kamchatka Peninsula and Sakhalin Island. The CIA claims that it monitored the whole situation, has transcripts of Soviet military conversations and all kinds of other details. On the radar the plane was not where it claimed to be in its message' to ground con- trol. If the plane was accidentally off course (the technical experts say that with the sophisticated equipment and backup mechanisms this is practically impossible), then why did neither the Americans nor the Japanese notify the plane bf the danger and bring it back on a safe course? The Americans admit belatedly that they had a spy plane in the vicinity at the time of the ill- fated flight of the 747. The big and important events unfold ac- cordingly to their intricate rules and only the echo of their fury reaches us here. But in that distant rumble is a direct and thoughtful message for the individual responsibility on our private levels. It is an invitation to ask for facts when enticed by rumours — to wait for evidence when excite- ment tempts with blind judgment — to resort to reasoning before leaping to conclu- sions. This applies to neighborhood rumours as much as it is valid in international situa- tions. It is important to do one's homework. power to impose one's own restraints, to control one's own life .:. but it isn't pure liberty, as some would imagine, to do as- one pleases; without restraint. For instance, my dictionary points out, freedom of speech does not mean liberty to gossip or to tell lies. thus, treeaom ani aemocracy implies sell control, not self indulgence. It suggests order and responsibility with the rights and privileges of others as top priority. Crime Stoppers may not be the ideal answer to crime prevention and control. But when people refuse to accept the responsibility for another's safety and well-being - as long as we continue to sta quietly by and watch another person be ki ed and stomped, maimed and maybe even murdered, whether by thugs or by police, we have already made a mockery of the true meaning of democracy and freedom. The people of Canada are to blame for the shambles in our country, but it isn't just that we are too meek to speak up when our freedom- is threatened. If democracy dies in Canada - if the minority overrules the majority - it will be because adult Canadians have viewed democracy as a licence to disregard the feelings and the needs of others while selfishly pursuing their own ends at whatever cost to society. I don't believe democracy is dead. I trust the majority of Canadians still comprehend the fragile balance that must be maintained, and that they value it enough to live within any necessary guidelines to stay on that sometimes rocky road that leads to freedom for all to live, work, play and die unafraid in relative peace and prosperity. ELSA HAYDON A I 1..