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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1984-12-12, Page 4PAGE 4,—GQDERICH SIGNALSTAR, WEDNESDAY, DEQEMBERI2,1984 DAVE SYKES ry If memory serves me correct id old age, it was a much simpler process in my day. The mother of the children and this agent shopped for Christmas presents for the dynamic duo on the weekend and the exer- cise left me shaking my head in disbelief. As a child, I have fond recollections of a Christmas list that included an electric train, a table -top hockey game, MiniBrix, maybe a stick or the odd piece of equipment, a model car, a baseball glove and other neat stuff like that. Of course, parents would also throw in the odd logical gift of socks, underwear and a maytle a sweater just to keep you honest. But our wants and needs appeared to be relatively simple compared to the Christmas fare on today's shopping lists. That's the price of progress, I suspect. So on Saturday, the mother of the children, dragged me through several toy aisles of several depa>;tment stores. We wandered aimlessly through the mounds of plastic, which promise .to perform unparalleled feats at the mere insertion of 12 batteries. Which are neves• included, of co Our. mouths hung open in dl u elief as we passed row after row of irrecognizable space vehicles and muscular action -figures that will fend off the most volatile and venomous of creatures in your home. There was Masters of the Universe action figures, and everything from lunch pails to pencils and erasers emblazooned with He - Man and T -Man actions figures. And of course we could not forget those gentlemen of impeccable taste and character, Kobra Khan, Fisto and Battle Armor Skeletor. I am lost in a world of aliens and a myriad of spacecraft and look feverishly for a friendly face. A slinky, etch a sketch, Ken- ner Easy $a • • n or a Lionel electric train woul o uc o, :,. se this identity crisis. I notice that of r p"aren dry as well and sheepis • quan- roach stuespeopie wan names Utley nave ,,only heard second hand from their children. They too, wonder if this is all a cruel joke in- flicted on unsuspecting pests by their space-age children. Too embarassed to ask for somethi ig as conventional as a rubber ball, aTonka truck or even a doll for the little lady, we pretend we know exactly what we're looking for. .'1 he store is full of parents pretending and, hop- ing their children are norm My son is on the young side of four years and his limited knowledge of space-age toy technology and this gift -giving business, still leaves us with the advantage. However, I fear we will soon relinquish that advantage and be forced to plunge into the futuristic world of plastic toys. ,le, I am not ready for this. However, I suspect that one day I will be forced to succumb to that playful world of plastic. But not before the train set, baseball glove, hockey stick, hockey, net, race car set and hockey game. THE NEWS PORT FOR GODERICH & DISTRICT SINCE 1848 Founded in 1B48 and published every Wednesday at Goderich, Ontario. Member of the CCNA and OCNA. Subscriptions payable in advance '20.85, (Senior Citizens '17.85 privilege card number required] in Canada, '55. to U.S.A., '55. to all other countries, Single copies 50t. Display, National and Classified advertising rates available on request. Please ask for Rat, Card No. 15 effective October 1, 1884. Advertising is accepted on the condition that in the event of s typographical error, the advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with reasonab,e 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 typopraphlcsl error advertising goods or services at a wrong price, goods or services may not be sold. Advertising is merely an offer to sell, and may be withdrawn at any time. TherSignal-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 ITED ROBERT G. SHRIER - President and Publisher DON HUBICK - Advertising Manager • DAVE SYKES - Editor the C� P.O. BOX 220 aeV1 ` J HUCKINS ST. Gor,:.:1INDUSTRIAL PARK NB OODERICH, ONT. N7A 486 15%. Member: Second class mail registration number 0716 FOR BUSINESS OR EDITORIAL OFFICES...please phone [519]524-2614 Respect rights While Monday, December 10 may be a relatively inauspicious day in the calendar year, it does mark an event of rather significant proportions. The week of December 10 to 16 marks Human Rights Week and more importantly, Monday was the 36th anniversary of the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Hainan Rights. Iluman rights are something that we take pretty much for granted these days and the celebration of Human Rights Day and Human Rights Week, can easily be passed off as simply a well-meaning declaration that does little to ensure that rights are respected. But, in essence, we all have a basic responsibility to follow codes of decency inherent in most men and women and to respect the intent of that code. For the most part, people value their rights as individuals and respect the rights and authorities of others they are in contact with. • Decency and respect are the trademarks of human rights. The Ontario Human Rights Commission urges everyone to respect and make a strong commitment to the spirit of human rights. Citing a need for dedication to the cause in our own communities, the Commission urges individuals and organlzations to make special efforts to promote understanding, co-operation,peace and universal respect for human rights. The message is a compelling one on a subject that we far too often take for granted as a right of life in Canada and Ontario? Liberties and freedoms have not always come cheap. There has been a price to pay. But perhaps, in observance of Human Rights Week, it is incumbent upon all of .us to reflect on our rights as individuals and to learn to be more tolerant and respectful of the opinions, customs and-soCtal differences of others. Ostensibly, human rights is not simply a right of democracy. Rather, it is a philosophy and way of life. D.S. No need for crime It was rather unfortunate to note the warnings offered by Police Chief Pat King in a f ront page story last week with respect to Christmas theft. Traditionally, Christmas is a season of giving but it has also evolved into the season of taking. It is no secret that during the weeks preceeding Christmas, there is a prolifera- tion of theft and shoplifting. No doubt some people steal because they lack sufficient funds to purchase the gifts they would like to give others. Perhaps society has placed a great pressure and emphasis on the giving aspect of Christmas. Others, simply refuse to pay the price, believing it to be inflated, and take the item. Regardless. the deed is wrong. It is also quite evident that many people in town have taken the trouble to decorate the exterior of their homes and trees with lights. The lights create a festive mood and are a most attractive and welcome sight. It is unfortunate we cannot respect the property of others.D.S. Reflections by Patrick Rfftis POSTSCRIPT JOANNE BUCHANAN Ho. Ho. Ho. 'Tis the season to be jolly. Fat and jolly that is. As you probably know by now from reading my previous columns, food is my addiction. I'm a perennial dieter but my diets are ' offset by frequent binges and Christmas is fraught with pitfalls. Everywhere you go during the festive season, there are booby traps for us calorie counters. For me, it all started last week. While out shopping for gifts in some local stores, I was confronted with plates of Christmas cake and cookies. The store owners urged me to have a treat on them. How nice! I decided that I couldn't be rude and say no. Besides, one little piece of cake couldn't hurt me, could it? That's the type of logic we dieters use when we're about to embark on a serious binge. But while one little piece of cake won't hurt a normal person, it sets up a chain reaction in the dieter's psyche. One little piece of cake leads to more, more, more and pretty soon we're off and running on a full-fledged eating spree. Today, one of my co-workers brought in some Christmas cookies for our coffee - break. It was a generous gesture but I've already eaten at least six of them and there are still several hours left to put in here at the office. Since I'm presently out of control on one of my binges, I will not rest until every -last' cookie crumb is gone. I am not content to leave them alone. If there are any left at 5 p.m. when everyone else has gone home, I'll have to finish them off. After all, I don't want then" to get stale overnight ( dieter's logic again). Egg nog is another hazard for the dieter at Christmas -time. Do you know how many calories are in one little glass of egg nog? Never mind. You don't want to know. It's sinful. Almost as bad as shortbread. Then of course there are the inevitable boxes of chocolates. I have my family and friends trained to never, ever, under any circumstances, buy me chocolates (6n, Christmas. But someone near me always gets a box and passes them around. After I have a taste of one, I'm hooked. One leads to six and six leads to 12 and' 12 leads to a stomach ache. And how about those candy canes? I love candy canes. 1 never buy them for myself but if there happen to be some around, I can devour them faster that you can say tooth decay. . A few years ago my mother decorated our Christmas tree with cthidy canes. They kept disappearing one by one until pretty soon, the poor old tree looked quite naked. 1 sug- gested that perhaps my brothers were eating them but I don't think she fell for that one. She never decorated the tree with can- dy canes again either. Besides cake, cookies, egg nog and candy, there are usually numerous Christmas par - Being a regular visitor at the council meetings of both the Huron County and the Town of Goderich 1 am starting to feel in- creasingly encouraged in the first case and to experience some disappointment concer- ning the second. In a way the roles seem to be slowly rever- sing. There used to be a perception that the county council is a tightly shut group with closed minds moving only on a traditional set of tracks. Now there are occasions when one is left with the impression that while the county council is slowly turning in a more progressive and responsive direction, the town council displays gradually more regressive tendencies, perhaps more by carelessness and lack of time taken than by intentional design. The most recent illustration of this in- yolves the two bodies' reaction to a • irovincial-municipal set of recommenda- tions on open meetings and access to infor- mation. When enacted the ' provincial legislation would lead to better defined and more enlightened openness in municipal af- fairs. The county council vo O��t"'�nunously in support a the recommendltions and pleasantly surprised many people. The town council simply received and filed the ministry's letter. Had the members read the full report which was available on request in the town office? This council has inherited a tradition of excellent openness and could be an exam- ple. I would have expected it to be the first municipality to support the minister's endeavRurs to secure a timely and accessi-' ble local government policy more ,evenly across the province. I am asking the town council to return the report in question to its agenda and give it the attention the subject deserves. It is in daily municipal work that the council members reveal their true attitudes to the public. Another element of open t to be kept in mind. A committee meetin only theoretically open if it is held at mealtimes and in a restaurant. It certainly inhibits public access. The practice seems to be growing. Last Monday councillors Searls and Doherty presented what looks like a perfect- ly sensible motion asking that committee meetings be held at the town hall. The exact wording could have be easily amended to accommodate the airp rt. committee and the recreation board as to the location of their meetings. Instead, in a recorded vote, the motion was lost, with only the &er and seconder voting in favour. I find myself in agreement with the two councillors. It would be normal and accep- table courtesy for the town to entertain cer- tain outside visitors and officials, but the or- dinary working meetings should not be in that category where public access is ques-' tionable and openness becomes mean- ingless for all practical purposes. Council members and appointed commit- tees would also do well to stop or reduce the practice of treating town hall employees (top officials among them) as their personal servants for fetching and serving food at the town hall meetings. Small town distances should not make it too difficult to separate mealsm the public duties one has taken upon on If. There are better ways of show- ing public ppreciation of the time and ef- fort contribution. 1985 is election year. People who regard public office as too great a sacrifice need not become involved. ties to attend and they each feature lots of food and drink. This all leads up the annual Christmas day feast. Next to Thanksgiving, this has to be one of the biggest pig -outs of the year. I usually eat a round of turkey, potatoes, gravy, stuffing, vegetables and salad— taking a good sized helping of each. I have seconds and dessert after that too. I can keep right up with my dad and my brothers mouthful for mouthful. In fact sometimes I even eat more. Then, after convincing my mother that we should wait to do the dishes when we don't feel quite so full, I stagger to the nearest couch or comfortable chair, plop myself into it and try to contemplate why I've eaten so much. By this point, I feel : • ,.lutely terrible and I'm thoroughly disgust • .' . `, myself. But I turn right around and eat + same sized proportions of left -overs the day. One good thing about the Christmas binge however, is that it is usually followed by a New Year's resolution to start a serious pro- gram of diet and exercise. If you really have willpower, this can last until about February 14 when you are tempted by little red candy hearts...and more chocolates...and cake with pink ic- ing...and... I guess what I'm concluding is that any old holiday will do for an excuse if a dieter has made up his or her mind to go on a binge. ELSA 1—IAYDON 4