Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1980-06-25, Page 4f Second class mail registration number -0716 i TAR, WW1 ' i JTJNE 25,1980 SINCE 1848 THE NEWS PORT FOR GODERICH & DISTRICT Founded In lidd and pubilphad,.v.ry WtdAtt.tdey qt Goderich, Ontgriw Member of the CCf1A and CiWtiA. Adver- tising rates on request. di bacrip UQn$ pgyabIq- n odvance'lege In Canada, '3S.11q to. USA,. 15.00 to all other coup. tries. singq.le,copies 39'. Display advertising muse available oql, request. Please ask for Roto Cord No. le effective Sept. 1. MR. Secend class moll Rogistratigp Member 071S. Advertising lq accepted on the condition that In the ovont of typgprpphicq t error, the advertising space occupied by the erroneous Hem, together with reasonable allowance fer signature, will not bo charged for but the belonce of the advertisement will bo paid for at the applicable rate. In the event of a typographical error advertising goods or services at o wrong price. goods or service may not be sold. Advertising Is merely an offer to sell, and moy be withdrawn at any time- The Signoi-star Is net responsible . for the low or dornase of unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other.materials used for reproducing purposes. PUBLISHED -BY: SIGNAL -STAR PUBLISHING LIMITED ROBERT G. SHRIER - President and Publisher SHIRLEY J. KELLER - Editor DONALD M. HUBICK - Advertising Manager DAVID SYKES - Assistant Editor .O. BOX 220, 6116 ��)� HUCKINS ST. a INDUSTRIAL PARK 1� GODERICHN7A486 FOR BUSINESS OR EDITORIAL OFFICES please phone (519) 524-8331 IesspIasticfor Canada Some Canadians will be heartened to know that citizens in this great land are not "hooked on plastic" like the folks who live in the country just south of the border. But many more Canadians will be distressed to learn that major credit card firms are contemplating the sale of credit cards or some kind of an annual enrolment fee to finance their business. The problem seems to be that too few customers are letting their accounts run into arrears.,They are paying up on a monthly basis, and the credit card establishment is not getting the interest money 21 percent on overdue accounts - it expected to tally up by loaning convenient cash to impetuous spend- thrifts. In effect, the majority of credit card users are benefitting from interest-free money for one month or longer - and the credit card companies are taking it on the chin. But that's only the credit card company's side of the story. There is the side on which the small businessman resides. Firms accepting credit cards pay a -percentage of each transaction to the institution that issues the card. In Canada, • for example, the bank -backed Visa and Master Charge promoters charge businesses two percent to six percent for the ser- vice. As always, it is the -smaller firms which pay the highest percentages. They have the lower -volumes, and cannot take advantage of the lower service - rate. Small Canadian businesses -forced to pay card promoters $6 on a $100 purchase, are in a bind. They feel obliged to offer the same convenience as larger retailers do, even if they have to pay the money out of their own pockets. In the United States, where plastic money is like a fever, many smaller businesses have already stopped accepting credit cards. And what's more, bigger retailers and hospitality related businesses, are joining the trend. High interest rates in the USA are doing them in. According to some economists, it is only a matter of time until Canadi"ans follow suit. Little rioticed in all of this, is the fact that mer- chandise prices must be generally higher to maintain the level of profitability in businesses where credit cards are accepted - or so the argument goes. When a customer pays cash, there is no kickback to the credit card company. But when. a credit card is presented and accepted, the business loses from two to six percent on the transaction. As one Canadian cash carrier put it, "We're subsidizing the army of credit card users," Maybe Canadian businessmen will take a second look at the so-called "cashless society", but you can be sure credit card users won't be happy. This handy system of doing business is much ap- preciated by card-carrying customers who find it much superior to toting bills and coinage everywhere everyday. And though it might be cheaper in the long run for Canadians, there is every reason to believe that much of the impulse shopping and some of the "must" shopping would be drastically reduced without this cashless convenience. Surely business can come up with some sensible solutions that will keep consumers cheerfully spending -and' the economy merrily moving • for- ward. -SJK 'taxpayers pay pretenders The report is dated January 1980. It is from the Ontario Status. of Women Council and is entitled Work Incentives for Sole -Support Mothers. - It points out, quite correctly, that Family Benefits Assistance (FBA) recipients, most of whom are sole -support mothers, often meet in- surmountable barriers -,when they attempt to enter the work force. The great majority of FBA mothers qualify for low paying insecure jobs and find that when work- related expenses such as transportation and child care are considered, they earn less in the work force than on family benefits. The Ministry of Community and Social Services, says the report, rewards initiative and offers assistance for a transition period of up to two years. The program includes a graduated monthly cash benefit of from $95 to $150 which is intended to help defray the cost of work-related expenses, medical and dental care and an increased security provision for participants to re-establish their claims for full benefits if they lose or leave their jobs. The Status -of Women Council is concerned, however, that the program doeswnot address the critical issue of •childcare, nor does it include provisions for job counselling and job training. Says the council, "We believe that failure to deal with FBA recipients' needs in these important areas will mean that few will be able to benefit from thew rk.+ncentives program- It's a prickly problem to be sure, There is much wisdom and compassion among those who concur with, The •Status of Women Council that a sole support mother with one pre-school child will, after babysitting is paid, end up earning less money in the ministry's incentive program than she will on family benefits. What's more, without job coun- selling and training, there's not much hope that she will ever advance beyond her present tow paying, dead end job. Certainly if a person can "get off" the provincial assistance roles and into the self-support column, the.investment is well worth it to all taxpayers. Unfortunately, taxpayers become quickly disenchanted with swell•:lwtettded government' assistance,•,progra.ms that are abused by un- motivated individuals who are milking the system dry. There is far too much insincerity by too many moochers. It makes" the cost of assistance to the genuine applicant astronomical. It causes tax- payers to grow resentful and bitter. The Ontario Status of Women Council should give careful consideration to the fact that for every sole su,pport mother who would seriously attempt to upgrade herself and become financially in- dependent ►n a year or two, there is another who, for a variety of reasons, would just not ever make the grade. The Ontario Status of Women Council has made a blanket proposal which has mere*- as far as it goes. But surely, the -Council as all other crusaders' and law makers must understand that while society wants to be generous' with all needy assistance recipients, it insists that the programs be ad - Ministered to suech-a way that the pretenders are identified earlier. There must be some assurances that the total cost of the programs won't be ridiculously high in relation to the individual success rate. - SJK Sparkling shoreline Parade route Dear Editor: In response to a query from a citizen as to why all parades held in Goderich travel onto The Square from South Street and off at West Street, .I told her that this was the traditional route. Although-. some parades have done this in the past on occasion. On Sunday, June 29th, for the . Founder's Day Parade at 2 p,in., we shall break tradition. The parade will • come up South Street, circle the entire Squabe once and reave off West Street. There will be no barricading of the two `blocks between West and_ South Street. We are hoping for a large crowd in Goderich that day so the added couple of hundred metres will. enable more people to view the parade without crowding themselves. We start off at 2 p.m. from the Arena, to Britannia, to South, around the Square completely, down West, down Waterloo, Britannia and MacDonald to disperse at the arena. " Yours truly Pat King Co-ordinator, Founder's Day Parade Blood transfusions Dear Editor, C. F. Barrre� states that doctors. ...._1aye— -changed position i,n the use of blood transfusions. Jehovah's Witnesses themselves are not certain what Acts 15: by Cath Wooden DEAR EDITOR means when it states to obstain from blood as the following quotations will prove. In the Golden Age :magazine February 1931 p. 291-294 (a J.W. magazine) they state "Vaccination is a direct violation of the everlasting covenant that God made with Noah after the flood (p. 293). Later Jehovah's Witnesses changed -their stand and . said that vaccinations were per- missable. If Jehovah's Witnesses take their stand on blood so seriously why do they eat unbled fish? In my days as a Jehovah's Witness before being converted to Christ I saw many Jehovah's Wit- nesses eat wiencers and other meat products which are known . to contain some blood. Why do Jehovah's Witnesses buy meat at a butcher shop for they can never be certain that it has been properly bled? To be absolutely certain, Jehovah's Witnesses should slaughter their own animals. Why do Jehovah's Witnesses not abstain from meat completely, as that would be the safest way of abstaining from blood. No doubt Mr. Barney has eaten much blood in his lifetime. It has been proven that the* Jehovah's Witnesses taught against vac- cinations on the same grounds thatthey argue against blood tran- sfusions. Today they preach against blood tran- sfusions for the same reasons. Can Jehovah's Witnesses affort to trust the Watchtower in this life and death matter? Ronald Gardiner Staffa Farm market pricey vary {This is an installment prices. in a series on farm Basically though,a financing prepared by potential buyer will want The Royal Bance of. -to—tailor his bid to the Canada's agricultural future net income stream services department). available from the land - The market prices of a figure which he thinks his productivity and farm land in many parts efficiency can achieve,. of Canada have increased If, you are a buyer, how rapidly and substantially do you estimate what in recent years. And that land is worth to you? brings up a problem for the buyer of land: how to With some firm in - relate the sale price to dications of future longer run productive product prices. and values. production levels ` and As' with stocks, bonds costs, then you can or any tradeable asset, determine value from a farm land is worth productivity pointof view whatever price a willing by using the buyer . and seller can capitalization approach. agree upon. The buyer, If you divide the expected however, will want to interest rate on capital make an offer that is into the expected net closely tied to his ex- returns from the land, pectations of future you will have the earnings as determined estimated productive by such factors as value of the land. product prices, First, estimate gross production costs, returns as determined by borrowing charges, expected price and 'predi e-tivity increases, rotrluvf--prodtt-ctron: marketing opportunities Then, by de'tiu•cting all and desired labor return. costs of production ex-. i .lso.to he considered is cept the interest costs on the impact of general the money invested in the inflation on future land land, you will have the expected 1 net returns figure you need to use in the capitalization ^for: mule `outlined above. To complete the calculation, you divide this return figure by the interest rate you must pay on borrowed funds. (You should• use an interest rate figure, even if you -- are buying the land with your own cash; because your • money has an in- terest-earning power of its own.) The final estimate of value will tell you how much you can afford to pay 'or the land and still realize the required return on capital after paying all other ,costs, including a charge , for your labour. As an example: you may estimate that a parcel of land will yield an average annual gross return of $150 per acre. If your projected costs, including a charge for your tabour, work out to $114 per acre, then the expected net return from the. land. would be found by subtraeting $114 from $150 'for a return of $36. ( - Assume your borrowing costs are 12 percent; then your indicated bid price should be '$300per acre -- arrived at by dividing 12 (the borrowing cost) into $36 the return figure. This formula .assumes a constant annualnet income.• , Should this figure change in the future, due to changesin productivity. 'and overall efficiency, then the formula will have yielded an incorrect price that could have been paid for the land. Another drawback: the formula doesn't provide for any changes in net •.income due to contributing in- flation on product prices and 'costs... The prospect of in-• flation in land values may seem to justify currently high asking prices for land, But future in- creases in land values will not necessarily help you meet the annual debt load during the loan repayment period, particularly•if net income does not grow propor- tionately with inflation. DEAR READERS t.• BY SHIRLEY J. KELLER Canada Column crosses my desk regularly. Written by John Fisher, better known in some circles as "Mr. Canada", it is a service publication of the Council for Canadian Unity. For trivia buffs, it is a goldmine of Canadian information. Just as an example, there's the story of Jerome from Nova Scotia. Ever heard of him? Seems that in 1854 Arcadian fishermen found a young man huddled on the beach. They took him home. He stayed with them for 64 years and never ut- tered a.word. When the fishermen picked him up, the young man had both his legs am- putated, apparently shortly before being found. He was dressed in fine clothes and had distinguished features. His hands were soft. It seemed to the fishermen he had come from a fine background. The ship that had ap- parently dumped him, was never open. People on the French Shore of Nova Scotia. tried everything to get him to talk. Occasionally, he would grunt and it sounded as through he was saying "Jerome" so he Was called Jerome. mystery. His tombstone has only one word• Jerome, and the date•he died. No one ever knew when or where he was horn or why he was cast on a beach with his legs cut off. It is said that visitors speaking other languages tried 'to get him to say something, but he remained silent and sullen He never read. He just sat and stared out the window, And wonders of wonders, it is said he showed no gratitude whatever to the families who cared for him over six decades. • Then there's the story about Reginald Fessenden, horn at East Bolton, Quebec. He is called the father of ri:dio. Fessenden's father was a minister, so as a young man he moved about the country. He atended school in Fergus and in Niagara Falls in Ontario, and graduated from Bishop's College in I-enn„xville, Quebec. • (Even then, young Canadians had to leave the country to be recognized for their special abilities. He moved to the United States where he worked with homes Edison and leading American "R.A.Fessenden, inventor, pioneer in radio communication conducted wireless experiments in 1901-02.” Note the dates, dear readers. Mar- coni received the first wireless message from overseas in Newfoun- dland December 12, 1901. Marconi used the Morse Code. Fessenden was searching for some way at that time to transmit the human voice through the air. Oh Christmas Eve 1906, he made the first radio broadcast of music and voice. He played the violin and spoke to ships at sea. Radio was born. • In fact, Fessenden had more than 500 inventions patented in his lifetime. Now that's an important Canadian figure!. And speaking about important Canadian figures, there was Wil-liam Avery Bishop from Owen Sound, Canada's most distinguished air ace. He shot down 72 German planes in World War 1. In his most daring raid, Billy Bishop flew alone at? am into enemy territory to attack German aircraft sitting on their own tarmac. Billy was gambling nvcntors. his life to be sure, but although the In North Carolina, not far from Germans threw everything they had at where the Wright 'Brothers pioneered him, he landed his plane in shreds at When he died, Jerome was still a That's simply in aviation, is a plaque which reads:home hasp. p Y not Canadian. This was called "the greatest single show of the war". For it and other courageous acts, Billy was awarded the Victoria Cross, the .Distinguished Service Order and the Military Cross,, Distinguished Flying -Cross and the French Legioh of Honour. He was and still is Canada's most decorated hero. But did you know that Billy Bishop will also find a place in Canadian history as the man who indirectly gave Canada its Maple Leaf flag? Yes sir, Billy designed the red Maple Leaf emblem for the Royal Canadian Air Force and undoubtedly, it was this which influenced the, politicians in Ottawa -to maintain the Maple Leaf as a symbol for all Canadians. And you thought it was all govern- ment bureaucracy and Liberal pop- pycock! As far as Dawson City's Robert Service is concerned, I was dissatisfied to note that when he finally left the Yukon, he took up residence in the south of France and never returned to Dawson. The log cabin where he lived and did much of his writing waste"' preserved as a national historic site, but Service himself was basking ih the sunny climes of Europe.