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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1986-01-08, Page 4PAGE 4'—GODERICH SIGNAL -STAR, WEDNF�SDAY, JANUARY 8,1988 I get the feeling that in a queer, perverted sort of way; Huron County, drivers actually look forward to winter with its snow- covered, drift -filled highways and its poor to zero visibility. Because, only in the winter, does the touristy Bluewater countryside become a treacherous, danger -filled steeplechase where only the daring (or ex- tremely foolish but lucky) survive. In essense, winter separates the visitors from the natives. ey Let's face it, it tapes a certain kind of macho (macha for the women) to live year- round in Huron County. The cottagers recognize it. By the last day of summer, they've boarded up the windows and headed south of Exeter if they know what's good for them. And, the tourists shiver when 'they hear about the last cottager who waited until Thanksgiving to head for home. They found him the following May 24th weekend. He was halfway between his car and his cot- tage. He still hadn't thawed out. POSTSCRIPT By Susan Hundertrnark Of course, Huron County natives, true sur- vivalists that they are, would never come to such a chilling end. That's because they've been travelling in Arctic conditions since they were knee-high to a snowball. Three winters ago, when I experienced my first Huron County winter, limonites scoffed when I expressed my amazement at the heights of the snowbanks. When they learned I had grown up in London, I was told I was from the "banana belt." I've come to realize that Huron County in the winter is the final frontier. (Forget about what they tell you about space being the final frontier in Star Trek! We're in it! ) The pioneering spirit is in evidence on the roadways of Huron during every major bliz- zard. It doesn't matter if the Ministry of Transportation and Communications takes the snowplows off the road. It doesn't mat- ter if the OPP puts up roadblocks. All that just adds to the challenge, the excitement, the raw sense of adventure in. the wilderness. While,I may tremble inside while the wind. howls and whips white -outs around my cosy apartment, I always wonder whether I should phone into the office and whimper about the weather or pull out my survival gear and trudge forth. Because, if I stay at home,. I know there's always a Huron Coun- ty daredevil who'll make it into work against all odds. He may have to use a snowmobile or a dog team to do it, but he'll make it. And, once he gets to work, he'll spend the entire day bragging about his exploits until it's time to jump back into his car and drive off into another adventure with the environ- ment. Of course, the more near -death ex- periences a driver lives through, the more popular he is on the office gossip circuit. He attains a certain notoriety when he becomes faster than a westerly wind off Lake Huron and is able to leap tall snowbanks in a single bound. While I would never question the right of a person to take his own life in his hands by treating every day like a balmy spring day, I resent the pressure it puts on us lesser mortals. We weren't all cut out for such exploits—some of us prefer a fire and a warm cup of cocoa when the driving's dangerous. I must admit there was a time , when I thought I could compete with the Duron daredevil drivers. Not content to accept the radio weather report, I had to judge road conditions for myself. I was cured after a couple nerve-wracking trips. It wasn't so bad driving 20 miles an hour through a never-ending white cloud. It was sort of peaceful until a speeding transport truck suddenly pierced through the calm whiteness and I noticed just in time that he was in my lane. With adrenalin surging through my system, I was able to swerve out of the way and then ,back onto the road. But, I was a white -knuckled, trembling wreck with eye strain by the time I arrived at my destina- tion. So, I've resigned myself to the fact I'll never make it into Huron County's daredevil club of winter driving. I guess I'm not dar-, frig (lucky, foolish) enough. • Opinion THE NEWS PORT FOR GODERICH & DISTRICT SINCE 1848 th oderich SIGNAL -STAR EST ALL ROUND COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER 04 CANADA (Crw01 on CWss 3500.450010 C ^. A BAmur Nuwspnpur Compel9on 1904 P.O, BOX 220 HUCKINS ST. INDUSTRIAL PARK SOOERICH, ONT. N7A 4U6 PUBLISHED BY: SIGNAL -STAR PUBLISHING LIMITED Founded In 1648 end published every Wednesday et ®oderloh, Ontario. Member of the CCNA and OCNA. 6ubacriptlone payable In advance f812e.00, (Senior Citizens f819.00 privilege card number required) In Canada, 81E10.00 to U.B.A., 19eC.O0 to all other countrlee, Single copies BOC. Display, Netlonsl ■nd Classified advertising rotor available en requeat. Please oak for Rete Card No. 16 affective October 1, 1955. 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OFFICES...pleeee phone (619)524-2614 Second class mail registration Member: number 0716 eNA County council decisions should be made in pbiic' First bornl,,,ld r , , :a {'it, • by ToddhMowatt The former members of the council of the county of Huron knew exactly what they were doing when they deferred on a recommendation from the executive committee in November. The committee had prepared a salary schedule for its nine department heads that called for increases ranging up to nine per cent. With a host of new members, council went into closed session Friday and stamped the ex- ecutive committee's salary recommendations. The executive committee reasoned that the salary schedules were arrived at "by taking the average paid to similar or comparative positions in the adjoining counties or in Southwestern Ontario in 1985 and adding cost of living increases of 4 per cent in year for 1986, 1987 and 1988." . The salary increases range from 4 to over 9 per cent in each year of the three-year schedule. Ultimately, .council has to decide what the taxpayer can afford and it has reasoned that the current can be tucked into the tax bill. It is neither unfair, nor unreasonable for the county department heads to demand that their salaries be in line with the salaries paid to department heads in other counties. It amounts to equal pay for equal work. ' However, council could, in its wisdom, rule that the jobs in Huron County command a cer- tain salary, what the market will bear so to speak, and leave it at that. It decided, however, to pay its professional staff a salary comparable to that of professionals in similar jobs in other counties. Council will now have to live with that decision when it deals with the contracts of other ' county employees.. It is unlikely that anyone in the county, regardless of their employment, caNexpect raises of that magnitude. By taking a firmer stand, council may have risked losing some those good people. It has chosen to pay the going rate and keep them. County council has many newcomers who were an integral part of the block voting in favor of those raises. It would be interesting to hear their reasons for their actions. What is somewhat disturbing about the increase,.is not so much the money but the manner in which council went about its business. Despite protests from Goderich deputy -reeve John Doherty, council passed the executive committee's report in closed session after Warden Leona Armstrong suggested new members were intimidated by the press and may not speak as candidly or openly, or at all, if that portion of the meeting was open. - If a council -is convinced that what it is doing is right, then it should have the conviction to say so in public. No-one will think less of a councillor who had the courage to take a stand on an issue and speak tris or ler mind. . That's democracy anditis an integral part of the job for each and every councillor. ' s Sugar and Spice One of the deepest satisfactions in writing a column of this kind is the knowledge that you are getting into print the angers and frustrations of a lot of other people, who have no recourse for their resentments, and consequently takethem out on the old man or the old lady. How do you know this? Well, hecause peo- ple write you letters cheering you on to fur- ther attacks, and other -people come up to you, perfect strangers, shake hands warm- ly, and say, "By the Holy Ole Jumpin! Bill, you really hit the nail on the head." This can be a little disconcerting, as you are never quite sure which nail they are referring to. If the congratulatgr is a woman, I smile weakly and change the sub-jl ject. Because sure as guns, though she thought you were one of nature's 'noblemen for your assault on male chauvinism last week, she'll turn on you like a snake when she reads tomorrow's paper, with the col- umn exposing female chauvinism. Speaking recently to a class of potentia! writers in a creative writing course, l tried to pass along -the personal satisfaction one gets from this type of personal journalism. I emphasized the "personal" satisfaction, because there's a lot more of that involved then there is of the other kind, financial satisfaction. Columnists and freelance writers have no anion working for them, nor any professional association, as have doe: tors, lawyers, teachers. They have only their own talent and wit and perseverance with which to penetrate the'tt$ck heads and' thicker skins of editors and pubjishers. But it's a great feeling when you vent your . wrath, say, about the rapaciousness of mechanics, and you are button -holed six times in the next three days by people with horror stories, about mechanics you can Goderich Reeve Harry Worsell and Deputy John Doherty; Exeter Reeve Bill Mickle and Deputy ',Lossy Fuller, and newcomer Laurie Cox, Deputy Reeve of Goderich Township. The rest felt comfortable behind closed doors. Such closed doors did definitely a disser- vice to the department heads who made presentations) concerning their work. Had we been able to hear what they said, no doubt proudly, about the functions, . vitality and importance of their departments in the overall county picture and for the better- ment of the taxpayers' fortunes and lifestyles, we might feel more at ease with the hefty salary increases they were given by the new council at its first working meeting. When the- road engineer " (or planning director, medical officer of health or any other department head) explains the work- ings of his department, how is it in public in- terest not to hear it? It is public motley that finances the whole lot.. For voting the council had to come out of the closed meeting. In a'generally surpris- ing move, the department heads' salary in- creases Were approved in a recorded vote of Judging by the exceptional treatment of the department heads' salary increases as well as by the newly instituted in -camera "study sessions", Huron County council is starting the new year by sending alit conflic- ting signals which confuse even keen and reasonably experienced observers. - Just when one has become accustomed to the pleasant idea that the meetings of the county standing committees are now indeed, open -to the public, along comes a recom- mendation from the executive committee that the whole council hold closed study ses- sions, to review and explain the county working structure and each of the depart tnents. This method means a new departure from openness and defeats, to a large extent, its own declared purpose. I agree that an informal, study and discus- sion session is beneficial, particularly since half of the council members are newcomers this year. Study sessions can contribute greatly to the councillors' understanding of county affairs and functions which, is essen- tial for good work. By the same token,. such information and educational clarification, if dealt with open - ly, Would contribute a great deal to better .. general appreciation and understanding by the public and its messenger corps known as the press. Free and direct communications are important for businesslike relations and intelligent information, distribution in our public life. When Goderich Deputy -Reeve John Doherty objected to the in -camera character )of the recommended study ses- sions, Warden Leona Armstrong explained the execu ive committee's reasoning by stating tha in an open discussion new coun- cil menthe s might feel intimidated by the presence o the press. - I cannot lieve it! We just had municipal 'elections . t o months ago and now we are (stuck with such delicate representation Wr three yea '. Did the persons who ran for elected pu tic office think that they were ap- plying for j nior jobs in a nursery school? The ma ority of county councillors ap- peared tb gree with the executive commit- tee's not xactly flattering assessment of their con ations, courage and ability to In think, spec and act a usinesslike man- ner, in pub a business. Only five members voted in favor of dpeii study sessions, By Bill Smiley_ scarcely believe. Trouble is, they all want you to write another column about 'mechanics, and put some real meat into it. This means, in ef- fect, that they would happily stand in the wings and applaud, when you were .sued for libel. • Some ,readers •would like you to be con- stantly attacking whatever it is that they don't like. Capitalist - friends are aghast when you refuse to launch an assault on capital gains taxes. Welfarist friends think you are a traitor and a fink when you won't attack the government for not providing col- or TV for everyone on the take. I am not by nature an attacker, and I think there is nothing more boring than a writer of any kind who tries to make a career of being a "hard- hitting" journalist. Once in a while my gently bubbling nature boils over. Throwing caution and syntax to the winds, I let my spleen have a field day and try to throw some sand in the grease With which many aspects of society are try- ing to give us a snow job. And that's one of the finest paragraphs I've ever written, if mixed metaphors are your bag. Fair game for the hard -hitter are: garage mechanics, plumbers, postal workers, ' supermarkets," civil servants„ and politi- cians. Most of them. can't 'hit back, and everybody hates them, except garage mechanics and their olives, plumbers and their wives, etc. etc. Smaller fry are doctors, .lawyers, teachers, used car salesmen. They all squeal like dying rabbits when attacked, but nobodypays much attention to them except doctors and their wives, etc. etc. There are a few areas that even the hardest -hitters avoid. When have you, late- ly, read a savage attack on greedy farmers, callous nurses, pr unloving mothers? And yet, there are lots of them around. One of these days, perhaps, one of these hard-hitting writers will muster enough guts, after about five brandies, to launch an all-out attack on the audacity of women, thinking they're as- good as men. Boyy;:that fellow will learn what real hard-hittingis all .about. Personally, I can't stay mad at anybody long enough to be a voice of the people; or a public watch -do, or any of those obnoxious creatures who try to tell other people how they should feel. The only constant in my rage is the bla- tant manipulation of self-seeking politicians who will twist and warp and wriggle and squirm and bribe for self -perpetuation in of- fice. ' Otherwise, I get a great deal more joy from touching the individual life than in- flaming the masses. When I get a letter from an old lady in hospital, crippled with arthritis, who has managed to get a chuckle out of my column, it makes me feel good. Recently, I got a letter from a young Scot who has immigrated to Canada. he says: "I have learned more about Canada and Cana- dians through reading your column that all the accumulated wisdom from the Canadian newsmagazines, novels and TV programs I th havexabsorbed." Now there is a man w his head screwed on right. If; as a newcotner, tried to get my impressions of tis. country from : newsmagazine and progran s, I'd catch the first boat or plan home. - So, I guess I'll jus try to go on talking to people, getting sore, having some fun, look- ing for sympathy n the war between the sexes. That's wha life is all about, : not plumbers and pliticians,and other horrors of that ilk. dues 1101 111111 It easy to accept that he or she must finance a 9.2 per cent increase for a county emploYeewho is already in the over $40,000 income group, with 8.4 per cent to.. follow next year land 7.7 per cent the year after. This is one example. The figures are reported elsewhere and ,speak, for themselves. There was what looks almost like an inden cent hurry to increase the department heads' salaries, nut of context and in isola- tion from the budget and other increases. -Suffering from a cart -before -the -horse syn- drome, the council increased these salaries first and is now going into a (closed) study session to find out how the rest of the county business functions.. - I believe that other employees of the coun- ty are efficient, dedicated and, conscientious �. in their jobs. Their responsibilities are dif- ferent and their salaries . are, rightly, smaller. However, how will they feel, if they are given a four per cent inc ease on:their more modest salaries? '•How will their department heads face thee One hopes that the 'con* council members will show more individual respon- sibility and>get a bettergri i on their public duties before we step dither'into 1986. ELSA 'HAYDON 18 to 13. The five reeves and deputies to whom I referred in an earlier paragraph, were among those who opposed the in- creases and the fact that they were, for the first time, establidhed for three'years. As to the salary levels, one can look at it two ways. There is no doubt that tf°we want to have good people working for us we must pay them good salaries. Then there is the other side. The average county taxpayer 8