Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1984-10-10, Page 50.49p -7-GODERICH SIGNA1rSTa , WEDNESDAY, OPTOBER 1954 DAVE SYKES r: am% ../..„ ______ ,,,,,......_„,._____, (A4 ,1 l I IC I 1 • 1 \ y•A 1 It was difficult to determine whether the kid or his father was more excited at the propsect of going to the show Thursday evening. Buthen I suggested to the youngster at the breakfast table that perhaps we may just take in a movie that evening, he sucked in his breath, got wide-eyed in amazement and offered a resounding "wow". It's a standard reaction from the kid regardless of the offering from the father. He didn't have the slightest idea of the details of my offer, but does know enough to act excited. Even without prompting from his mother, whom I suspect coaches the kid while I do battle with the world of newspapering. I have a- nagging suspicion that, while he acts with suprise and delight, in his head he is saying to himself, "Well it's about time, other kids my age have been to show ten times." Nonetheless, I'm an easy target for the kid. Knowing that this trip eto the movies, which he knows absolutely nothing about, will take place after supper, the kid keeps pleading with his mother all afternoon, THE NEWS PORT FOR GODERICH & DISTRICT SINCE 1848 Founded in 1848 end published every Wedneede et Goderich, Ontario. Member of the CCNA end OCNA. Subscriptions payable in advance '20.95, (Senior Citizens '17.95 privilege card number required) in Canada, '55. to U.B.A., '55. to all other countries, Single copies 50¢. Display, National and Classified advertising rates available on request. please ask for Rate Card No. 15 effective October 1, 1884. Advertising is accepted an the condition that in the event of a typographical error, the advertising apace occupied by the erroneous item, together with reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for but that balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. In the event of a typographical error aduertising goods or services at a wrong price, goods or services may not be Gold. Advertising is merely an offer to sell, andmay be withdrawn at any time.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 purposes. PUBLISHED BY: SIGNAL -STAR PUBLISHING LIMITED ROBERT G. SHRIER -President and Publisher DON HUBICK - Advertising Manager i�he 'Ch .-�P, P.O. BOXaero ,5 HUCKINS ST.20 G...,,v,4p.....- GODERICH, ST.INDUSTRIAL PARK ONT. N7A 4138 SV•07 DAVE SYKES - Editor Member: Second class mail registration number 0716 FOR BUSINESS OR EDITORIAL OFFICES...please phone [5191524-8331 1 Re s onsib e for -action When Huron County Council voted to grant a $3,900 raise to its administrative staff and eliminate finders' fees, it took the safe route and chose to compromise. Council was not overhwelming in its endorsation of the executive committee's recom- mendation to eliminate finders' fees on the investment of county funds and grant the ad- ministrator and deputy -clerk a $3,900 raise. The figure represented the average earned in fees over the five-year period council allowed the fees to be paid to staff; Varying and spirited comments have been offered on the subject over the past several months, but the executive committee's recommendation carried by a 18-10 margin at council's Thursday meeting here. The fees were paid to the administration for the investment of funds of Huronview residents as well as county reserve funds. Council allowed the practice since 1979 and must accept full responsibility for its actions. From its directive Thursday, council is saying that work involved in investing and looking after the funds is worth an additional $3,900. Was this work part of the job prior to 1979 or has the workload increased to the point where a raise adequately compensated the administrative staff for its efforts? Council is also saying by way of its motion that the work was not considered part of the job description of either the administrator or the deputy -clerk. Or else that aspect of the job was never clearly defined by council. There is no quarrel with the fact the administration was receiving fees for its work with the funds, that was allowed by council and they will remain accountable. Recognizing the mistake, council acted, but out of deference to it administrators, agreed to increase both salaries out of a sense of fair play. Perhaps a bonus would have -,-.*—been more in order, but let's hope the experience has taught councillors something. D.S. Davis bows out The announcement by Ontario Premier William Davis that he will step down as the party leader came as a surprise to political observers who speculated on the date of the next provincial election. Davis has given more than quarter century of his life to the service of all Canadians, and moire particularly to the electorate of Ontario. The provincial PC party will be asked to chdose a new leader and when Davis bids farewell to politics, probably in January 1985, he will have served as premier for almost 14 years. Regardless of political leanings, Davis has to be respected for his role in the pat?Iation of the Canadian constitution. He intervened in the stalemate and acted as mediator between the premiers. The Tories have maintained an enviable record of 41 consecutive years in power and Davis has held power the longest during that reign. That is a testimonial to his shrewdness as a politician, his sense of compromise and fair play, his ability to guide the party along a popular path, with slight leanings to either side. He survived two minority governments during that time and provided stable, if somewhat bland, disciplined government. Yet, he showed the public the enigmatic side of personality by consenting to provihcial grants for Catholic high schools. Now that Davis has resigned from politics, his retirement should at least buouy the hopes of the two major parties in the next provincial election. But replacing a man like Davis is another problem. D.S. "Well, 1 guess we'll have supper now. Good tactic, but it proves fruitless. What the I found ironic about the entire situation was that I haven't been to a movie in ages. In fact I can't remember the last time and when I finally go, the double feature is Jungle Book and Pete's Dragon. I could do a lot worse, I know. To be honest, they were rather enjoyable. But of course every adult in attendance is there on the pretext of having to take their child. Parents have a built-in excuse. Settled in for the movies, complete with pop and popcorn, the kid pumps his father for information on this movie business with little regard for volume so that everyone in the quiet theatre can hear. "There's lots of mans here with their little boys, isn't there?" he says surveying the situation while we settle into two or three different seats before he finds a suitable location. "What's behind the curtain? That's the biggest blind I ever saw. Where's the music coming from? There's holes in the wall up there dad. Is there somebody up there? I like popcorn. How come you didn't get a straw dad?" he asks in rapid-fire fashion while I fumble for answers. The lights dim and the kW panics. "Hey,. .What's going on dad?" he asks while climbing all over me, While in the middle of a meagre explanation, the national anthem begins and I'm saved for the moment. But with the first flick of the film reel, the kid launches into another tirade of questions and I am forced to remind him that in the quiet of the theatre, everyone else can hear our conversation. From that point on, he,is advised to whisper. IC` -becomes rather apparent that the other children in attendance are not asking questions of their parents out loud. Obviously, they have had access to our conversation (through no intention of their own) and I have answered their questions as well. It was the least I could do under the circlunstfances. We made it through the entire episode of Jungle Book but tired part way through Pete's Dragon, a personal favorite of the kid's and a story he is most familiar with. The next day the kid regaled his little sister with the account of going to the movies with dad batt she remained unimpressed. Not me though. I had a great time. V Harvest time by Dave Sykes POSTSCRIPT JOANNE BUCHANAN Last night I watched an absolutely shock- ing television -movie entitled, "The Burning Bed". What made it shocking we:, the fact that it was based on a true story which took place in Michigan not that long ago. After 13 years of physical abuse from a brutal husband, Francine Hughes packed her three children in the car, poured gasoline in the bedroom where her husband was sleeping, and set the room on fire. Her husband died in the blaze and Francine was tried for murder. In a precedent setting case, she was found not guilty by reason of temporary insanity. Francine took her situation to -an extreme end which heaped even more tragedy on an already tragic situation. However, because of the lack of support given to battered women at that time, an act of murder seem- ed her only desperate way out. Since cases like Francine's have gained national recognition, the public has been made aware of the seriousness of wife bat- tering and some attempts have been made to assist women who find themselves in this situation. Still, much remains to be done. An article on a Calgary shelter for battered women, featured in the October issugof Chatelaine magazine, points out that one in ten married women in Canada -500,000 of them—is bat- tered by her husband every year. One of the shelter's counsellors calls it a `classless crime'. "There's no such thing as a typical case. Every woman's story is unique. They can be any age, any nationality. They can be mar- ried any number of years ( legally or com- mon law). They can have any job, any number of children or none at all," she says. As the event will take place at rather short notice to the public, it is important to get the message out in as any ways as possible. Elsewhere in the paper there is an an- nouncement by Transport Canada whose projects include the commercial harbour expansion in Goderich. The advertisement gives details of the public information forurn planned concerning the expansion. According to information received from Mr. Murray Cardiff MP, over the weekend, there will be a public open house in Goderich this coming Friday, October 12 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in MacKay Centre for Seniors on North Street. Several ministries and other public agen- cies will have officials present for informa- tion purposes. It is understood that the main industries using the harbour will also have representatives in attendance. It is, of course, most welcome news that there is finally going to be a public meeting on this relatively major subject. Govern-' ment departments might be wise to consider making such a step a basic and automatic requirement in the processing similar projects. The public should be able to count on being important in public affairs; it should not be necessary to fight for it every time. While thoroughly appreciative of the fact of the meeting, it is possible to feel slightly disappointed about the very short notice and the format of the forum. The short notice part might be easier to overcome, as the an- nouncement concerning the meeting will be repeated via different news media. The format of the meeting, however, is a more unfortunate choice. In the case of an open house the public has an opportunity to drop in at different times during the ap- pointed hours and to have a personal con- sultation with the officials on an individual basis. In some instances this might be fine, but in this case the concerns are of such wide and general nature of interest to the whole community that treating them in isolation does not add enough knowledge for the benefit of overall enlightenment. At an ordinary public meeting where everybody gets together at the same time, we could have been given the think that necessary y facts first (some people will be given the seventeen million dollars to do the work) and that would have led more • Even right here in Huron County, the pro- blem of wife battering was wide -spread enough for the Huron County Family Crisis Shelter to be opened. It was a place where a' woman (and her children) could seek tem- porary refuge from a bad situation. Unfor- tunately, the shelter operated for only a year in Goderich and Tuckersmith Townships before being closed due to isola- tion, lack of volunteer help, support and funds. However, there is still a support group in Goderich called Survival Through Friend- ship which meets every Monday and Thursday morning at St. George's Anglican Church. It is a non -denominational self-help group where women can talk about their problems and gain help and understanding from others in the group. Battered women in Goderich can also con- tact police before, during or after an assault from a husband or boyfriend. Besides offer- ing protection, the police can put these women in contact with "A Safe Home"—a temporary refuge operated through the auspices of several local churches. Police Chief Pat King says his department usually averages no more than three 'wife assault' calls per month. This does not mean there aren't more however—perhaps many more. I sometimes wonder if the reason more isn't being done to help battered women, is because the balance of political power is held by men. What few shelters for battered women there are in this country are mostly located in large cities and even they are nothing more than warehouses or holding tanks for women because government funding is ;too scarce to offer the counselling services and programming needed for follow up. Shelters then, are nothing but a band-aid solution. The biggest, underlying problem is Society's attitude. For. eitample, not long ago, an Edmonton department store was selling "wife beater" bats, foam rubber jokes the store's buyers hadn't thought of- fensive until women protested. And an Ed- monton judge reduced the sentence handed a wife beater because the woman was a shrew who "would have provoked a saint". It wasn't that long ago either that "domestic disputes" (as they were called) were regarded as "private matters" between husband and wife. In the patriarchal structure to which our society still subscribes, a man is the head of his household, he wields the power, and some men use force to maintain their domination. Many people think this force is okay; and a lot of women don't realize that they deserve to live their lives without being physically abused by their husbands. Often people are disgusted with women who stay in an abusive situation. However, accompanying emotional abuse, including accusations that the beatings are "caused" by the woman herself, erodes her self- esteem, explain shelter counsellors. Along with their financial dependence, women often feel an internal pressure to work things out. The psychological reasons for staying are many. In an upcoming issue of the Signal -Star, stories on family violence in Huron County will be featured. Please read them careful- ly. The problems are right here in our own backyard and they won't go away if we simply ignore them. reasonably to informed questions and clarifications. Among thirty people there might be twenty with the same questions which could be openly asked and answered once. More people would learn more, par- ticularly those who feel more comfortable in the anonymous background of a group. Nevertheless, an open house seems to be what we are getting. Now it is up to us - and in our interest - to help make it as effective and beneficial as possible. If the federal government organizers find a way to modify the format and to add some new elements to reach the widest possible audience with the most complete information, better still. In the meantime those with any kincof concern about the harbour expansion and future activities should get their questions ready, not because they are opposed to the project, but because they wish to be inform- ed about what to expect. In a small com- munity noise, dust, odour, water or any other kind of pollution goes a long way. In- creased truck traffic, erosion, land creation and use, the effects on fishing and similar concerns have been expressed by a number of people. Now is your chance to get as near to answers as possible. ELSA HAYDON 9