HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1986-02-19, Page 4PAGE 4 —GODERICH SIGNAL -STAR, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 19,1986
Hucksters, and those that pretend ° to
possess a refined knowledge of the garne of
amateur hockey will continue to inflict
fables on the less pretentious about the state
of hockey in this town.
Junior hockey arrived back on this pond
for the first time in many a year and post
mortems on the fate and state of the Junior
C Sailors would have been considered less
than kind even if the words had tumbled out
of the mouth of Harold Ballard,
The last time Ballard's team laid claim to
Lord Stanley's silver prize was about the
time Goderich was an active entry in what
must have been a rather robust and talent -
laden Junior B league.
The hot stove lounge . at the local ice
palace on game nights is rife with tarnished
and embellished memories of those junior
days in Goderich when the guys from the
Big Six teams in the NHL held the wallet
open for their junior affiliates. That spon-
�AvE SYKES
elm
sorship meant a great deal to the teams and
talent could be scouted and secured with the
right connections.
Hockey aficionados will convince you that
in the days of the Junior B team, the hockey
Opinion
was worth watt ing and the players knew
fu11 well that inspirational play could buy
their ticket out of this joint and lead to the
NHL.
Reminiscing fans can recall the fiesty ef-
forts of players like Gary Doak, Larry Jef-
frey, Bob Leduc,. Dennis Williamson, Bill
Gallow and a host of others who have moved
on or settled in this picturesque town.
In retrospect, our sporting heroes,
whether they be local junior players or pro-
fessionals, and their exploits are magnified
in time. We tend to remember the good
plays, the quick -paced games and ex-
cellence in the face of adversity. Mediocri-
ty, if it indeed existed, tends to get blurred
and faded with time.
The local Junior C Sailors will have to live
in. the shadow of those memories for a long
time and the comparison may always exist.
But this town's foray back into the battles
of illilinr hnek' ' is on diff,'rwnt 1 'rrtic thic
time. There is no sponsorship, .there is no
working relationship between the team and
its junior D gounterpart in Clinton or even
with the minor hockey aystein.
The team struggled this year and while its
play more often than not reflected that of a
first-year team, there were also indications
that hard work and determination could
translate into some fine spectator hockey.
It cannot, to be fair, be compared to the
fine Junior B teams that competed in
Goderich and fed the teams up the ladder
with some solid talent.
The Goderich Sailors dropped out of the
playoffs i three straight games but in their
only home playoff game they extended the
,Port Elgin Bears to double overtime before
losing 7-6. They, deserved better in that.
game but more importantly their effort
salvaged something out of a testing ground
year.
I only witnessed six or eight junior games
this season but last week's playoff game
was one of the better encounters offered at
the arena in recent years. Hopefully, the
players learned that effort, and hard work
produces results. The many fans in atten-
dance weren't disappointed and got good
value for their attendance buck.
The game should have fueled the -prospect
of better hockey in the years to come. The
Sailors didn't produce a "win" for their un-
tiring effoiks last week but they gained some
respect in the process and that, perhaps, is
more important in this case.
It,'s tough to corral Gthe enthusiasm of
youth into gainful expenditure of energy
when their more intent on impressing a
�oung lady at the rink. Just ask coaches Ron
Sbwerby and Dan Duncan.
There were some junior sparks flying
again in town, just maybe they can be fann-
ed into a flame again. •
THE NEWS PORT FOR GODERICH & DISTRICT
SINCE 1848
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SHIRLEY J. K.ELLER
• Editor
DAVE SYKES
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Getting hosed at the pumps
What will it take before Canadians get a break at the gasoline pumps'?
It took, a lot of drill -type questioning from the opposition before Federal Energy Minister
Pat Carney would concede that the world 'price for. crude oil had dropped sharply. (!aruey
says consumers will have to wait several months for the cheaper oil to work itself into the
system before they see lower prices at the pumps.
World crude oil prices have declined by nearly 30 per cent over the, last 12 months, but the
price of gasoline has failed to come down. How long must we wait? •
Dennis Baxter, manager of media services for Imperial Oil 141., says Imperial's prices at
the pump in ttwo or three months depend on their supply of crude oil at the time. He said a
fluctuating world price does not always affect Canada's prices in short term. So when' does
, it leave the consumer?
Last week, Energy Minister Carney turned down a request by. NDP leader Ed Broadbent
which called for the governfiient to demand that federally -owned Petro Canada !ewer its
'prices. No can do, the minister replied.
It seems the minister feels it,would be bad business for the government to dict ate pricing
policies to teh crown -owned company.
It's also bad business to pump the consumers' wallets dry. It's time to let the consumer
benefit from a decrease in the cyst of world oil.
The federal government is getting its fair share of taxesfrom the high price of gasoline, ih
one year, federal taxes on gasoline have rise 58 per cent while gasoline taxes in the United
States stayed the same.
Town rewards employees
This time of year, municipal fare tends to be dollar oriented as the council and its commit-
tees and boards prepare budgets for the calendar year.
It. also' marks. the time of year when council and the employees of the corporation line up
for pay increases. -
Pay increases can sometimes appear to be the most ambiguous and unfair practice
known to man. Every working person firmly believes that their work is worthy of a
meritorious increase. Every working person believes that what he or she docs is a vital cog
in the organizational link. We all think we are deserving of more than we recievc,
It's a natural tendency. And it's natural to be suspect when others receive increases in ex-
cess of our own.
Town employees received four per cent increases across the board for the 1986 calendar
year but the town also gave employees the opportunity to plead their case for a merit orious
increase which some people were allotted.
. Municipal and government employees' wages and salaries are a matter of public record
in view of the fact that, the average taxpayer contributes to every wage and salary. Those
employees have to live with that.
However, judging by an anonymous letter to the paper, the disparity between the top and
bottom paying jobs doesn't sit well with all employees. With across the board percentage in-
creases, the disparity continues to widen and only once has council made an attempt to
deviate from the process by granting larger increases to the smaller wage and salary
earners.
There is no question that'people have to be paid for their qualifications, their experience,
their responsibility and their contribution to the operation of the town. And with the latest in-
creases; cbuncil has obviously made a statement about rewarding effort. D.S.
By Susan Hundertmark
Itis not the job of doctors to decide
who can afford to pay for service
Dear Editor;
Irebeent xp eased points f view which 1..... E i'T r F 8
have been expressed regarding the propos- C
ed Health Care Accessibility Act. Both the
articles and the letters have been infor-
mative and enlightening. The motives and
practice of medicine in this area have never
been suspect or at issue. Remember the pro-
posed Act is provincial wide legislation. •
I have been chastised in a recent letter to
the Signal -Star for suggesting that doctors
see only one viewpoint. That stateinent was
a headline which the Signal -Star decided to
run. The; headline was in reference to my
comment that the paper was only represen-
ting one side of the issue.
The proposed legislation has given rise to
many concerns and issues. Let us deal with
one –extra billing. Last summer a 73 year
old pensioner in Toronto was billed $950
following two eye operations. He was re-
quired to pay the amount out of his own
pocket then be reimbursed by OHIP. OHIP
reimbursed him $471.80. We cannot allow a,
system to develop in which there is one form
of medical care for the rich and another for
the poor. 111 patients cannot predict when
the services of a doctor will be required let
alone wait until they can afford to pay.
A 1985 poll conducted by Goldfarb Con-
sultants of Toronto showed that 70 percent of
the public disapproved of extra billing.
Some have suggested that it is balanced..
' billing, not extra billing. When it comes out
of the pocket of the patient above and
beyond what OHIP reimburses, it is extra
billing. .
A position taken by some physicians is'
that they are able to judge if a patient is able
to afford it or not. It is not the job of doctors
to decide who can afford to pay for service.
Simply because one is not on social
assistance does not mean that they can han-
dle the added financial burden of medical
care. Besides, who of you wishes to discuss
your finances with your doctor.
Although in Goderich we are fortunate to
have some choice between physicians who
extra bill and those who do not, in some
areas of the province patients have little
choice when requiring the services of cer-
tain specialists.
There have been concerns voiced by
physicians about their ability to perform
their jobs effectively if they were controlled
financially by OHIP. There is no evidence to
confirm that doctors who extra bill have a
better relationships with their patients or do
better work than doctors who do, at extra
bill.
Some would argue that extra billing is the
basic right of a free profession. The ban on
extra billing will not effect the professional
autonomy of physicians. Doctors will con-
tinue to have considerable influence in the
health care system of Ontario.
Many issues remain to be addressed. Let
us begin by banning extra billing.
Sincerely,
M. Cicchini, Goderich.
Premier is fooling the public, says reader
An open letter to:
The Honourable David Peterson,
Premier of Ontario.
I really must congratulate you! How you
have been succeeding in pulling the wool
over the public's eye!
I was so pleased to see that you abolished
the Q. C. degree. It is very clever to'erase all
of them, even though we both know there
were some who were very deserving of the
title. None of this! Deciding on anew degree
which would be reserved only for those trply
deserving, eltheiminating
of Q.C. bneoh us, too. Wewanpow
Eliminate it with the,stroke of a pen!
Then there is your bill for the phar-
macists. It is very clever the way you have
made them the scapegoat for what you and I
both know is the government's debacle in ,
funding a drug plan. It would nevir do to ad-
mit the problem and try to come to terms
with it. That would be a very unpopular
move politically, despite its integrity.
Then, of course, there is the health ac-
cessibility act. How pre you able to keep on
saying that it is over money, when you know
it is all about the power to do with health
care whatever you wish, with no in-
terference? To continue to blame the physi-
cians and placate the public, when it is they
who will'be most affected is truly a stroke of
genius.
I need not mention.the ignoring of the ar-
bitrator's decision, with. regard to judges'
salaries. Why should we be honourable?
r Many, inere is the elimination of the
board of the LLBO. Of course, you and I both
know that despite the problems, there really
is not one ounce of good on that board. Ex-
perience and knowledge of the system have
no value whatever.
So much for responsible democracy !
My only concern is whom will you blame if
something, • like the passing (9f the health
care accessibility act, backfires? The only
person I see to take the fall is you. It may be
time to think twice about your own future,
and less about Bob Rae.
Mr. Peterson, would you be kind enough to
let me in on who is next?
Janet 'Thomson,
Goderich
By the sound of it, sciatica should be an
exotic flower, with crimson petals and
sultry scent. In reality it is "low back
and/or leg pain .and has sometimes other
symptoms." In this case, the nerve that is
responsible for my right leg, suddenly
decided not to do its proper duty.
Amusing stories provide useful relief dur-
ing a hospital stay. In this respect, some of
the reports coming from the Huron County
Council have been priceless, concerning the
"to be or not to be" situation of the Library
Board.
The county is asking to be exempted from
provincial legislation. The reasons have
been a bit elusive, until now. A report
presented to the council on Feb. 6 includes
this statement "It is now our intention to
legalize the system which had been in place
since the inception of the Huron County
Library."
Thank to Hallett Township Reeve Tom
Cunningham, the 'present Library Board
chait°man, for putting his finger so perfectly
on the tvery spot of public concern! At times
the county pretends to be a little kingdom
unto itself. One need not legalize what is
legal. The county . admits that the intended
change that involves" a special act by the
provincial parliament is simply to legalize
what the county has done, less than
legitimately for nearly two decades, in a
selective mish-mash of procedures. How
funny and how incredible.
It is just a couple of weeks short of three
years since I started to write two regular
columns. In due course the "Why bother"
will continue inthe Focus. However, as only
one deadline will be more itab a for
or Srgeae n
the future; this is my last
Star column.
Continued common interests will no doubt
keep us in touch from time to time, in some
Ammumain
ELSA HAYDON
form. There is quite a bit of an old firehorse'
in me.
I have always tried to reduce apathy in.
public affairs. 1 have attempted to rescue
municipal governments from obscurity
between elections, treating them as rele-
vant growing and breathing bodies, with
strengths and weaknesses. I have tried to
show "the other side".
Greetings to those who understood what I
was trying to do. Best wishes to those who
did not.
Someone reminded me recently how right
John Lennon was when he said "Life is what
happens while we are making other plans."