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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1986-06-18, Page 4PAGE 4 On Monday evening, Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney made history, if not for the country to record for posterity, at least fol his wife Mile to record in the family's album of memorable moments. Complete with photos of course. For it was on Monday, June 16 that the Canadian Prime Minister seized air time :corn the venerable broadcorping castra- tion, er, excuse me, that could be in con- travention of Crosby's new anit- pornography legislation, broadcasting cor- poration, to address the citizenry of the land for the very first time. It was an auspicious occasion for the Prime Minister considering he was a relative neophyte in the entertainment business. Oh sure, he'd performed the odd facial contortion for the neighbourhood children in Baie Comeau and, on request, DAVE SYKES he'd also been known to come up with some darn good animal noises at his children's birthday parties. But this television business was a new adventure for the leader. His palms grew Opinion sweaty and beads of perspiration formed on his forehead. His thoughts drifted to his arch -enemy in the trade -talk war and he realized he was at a decided disadvantage. Ronald Reagan was a polished personality, an inveterate entertainer who could manipulate millions of people by pre-empting a Love Boat rerun for a hasty, but well -orchestrated, State -of - the -Union address. Mulroney wished he too had done this television thing before. He had practiced in the bathroom in his shorts in front of the mirror, but the prospect of speaking to millions of Canadians through a television camera lens was completely different he reasoned. Dozens of technicians buzzed about his oak -panelled, flag -draped office, some powdering • facial parts and others unob- trusively attaching microphones to clothing. A director spoke to him through a set of ear- phones, offering encouragement, sugges- tions and directives. "Director, director. Is the setting here perhaps too ornate or ostentatious for the average Canadian to be viewing? I mean, I could have this place redecorated w'thin 45 minutes for just a few hundred tho sand to give it that 'less extravagant' look. a have the means, you know. But you're the pert, just say the word," the prime minister of- fered while adjusting his coat and settling in the chair behind the desk. "Okay, we want to check the mike level, just say a few words please," the director asked. "No, ]nister prime minister you don't have to hold your suit jacket open to speak into the rnike. It's a sensitive instrument, it will pick up the audio. Thank you sir. Speak again please. "I don't mean to be irreverent sir, but 4-' could you. cut the Lorne Uri eeii wife ehsiui. , What's that? I'm sorry sir, I didn't realize you talked like that. Great voice, great voice. Sincere stuff, they'll love it." "Now, Mr. Prime Minister, if you'll just watch the cameras and speak directly to the one with the red flashing light then we'll have no problems," the director sighs while raising his eyebrows in disbelief. "Ah, sir, it would probably be a good idea to put your hands on the desk in front of you. That way people won't be wondering what it is you're doing. That's fine. All right. We've got the lights and ready to roll....let's tape." "Hi there. I'm the prime min.." "Cut, cut. Sir, 1 know it's your first tune but we'll need a better opening line and please look sincere. We don't want to be here all day." "My fellow Canadians.." THE NEWS PORT FOR GODERICH & DISTRICT SINCE 1848 Gthe� EBT ALL POUND COMMLINITV NEWBPAPe6i IN CANADA oderich, (Grnm,pon Class .1500 ahOOJC C n, 4 Boer Nowspaper Comyomon 1964 SIGNAL -STAR P.O. BOX 220 HUCKINS ST. INDUSTRIAL PARK GODERICH, ONT. N7A 4861 PUBLISHED BY SIGNAL -STAR PUBLISHING LIMITED Founded In 1848 end published every Wednesday at OoderIch, Ontario. Member of the CCNA and OCNA. Bubacriptlorld payable in advance $2E.00, [senior Citizens 919.00 privilege card number required] In Canelo, $60.00 to U.S.A., 860.00 to all other countries, Single copies 800. Cleplay, National end Cieasiflad advertising reten available on request. Please Bak for Rate Card No. 18 effective October 1, 1985. Advertising is accepted on the condition that In the event of a typographical error, the advertising space by gether ce for signature, not be charged forpied he erroneous item, but that balance of the advertisement isement with 1 1 l be paid for e the pp^oeble re e. In the evlent of a typographical error advertising goods or services et wrong price, geode or services may not be sold. Advertising Is merely en offer to sell, end mey be withdrawn et any time. The signal -Etter Is not responsible for 'the loss or den -Inge of un.olloited manuscripts, photos or other materiels used for reproducing purposes. General Manager Editor Advertising ManagerDON HUBICK SHIRLEY J. KELLER DAVE SYKES FOR BUSINESS OR EDITORIAL OFFICES...please phone [519]524-2614 Second class mail registration Member. number 0716 &AC It's a year round job Statistics released recently indicate that the battle being waged against drinking ,act driving is paying some dividends the Exeter Times -Advocate says, but the stats also em- phasize the sobering thought that there is still a long way to go. Attorney -general Ian Scott told the Legislature that stiffer penalties and stricter enforce- ment of laws last December reduced the percentage. of alcohol-related fatalities to the lowest for any month of the year. Festive activities have made December one of the worst months for drinking driver of- fences, and the fact it has now totally reversed that position, provides some considerable en- couragement. -However, Scott is possibly incorrect in his suggestion that the improvement in those December statistics is evidence that more people are viewing drinking and driving as unacceptable social behaviour. ' The downward trend probably is based more on the reality that people know the police dramatically increase their surveillance during December and fewer drivers take the risk of being caught. • The obvious conclusion is that not only must the police continue or increase their effort in December, but it must be duplicated through every month of the year until drinking drivers know the odds of being detected are stacked against them. Alcohol remains a factor in over 500 Ontario highway deaths each year, plus over 25,000 injuries. These figures are still too high by any standard and will only he changed when the broadly aimed counter-measures are employed throughout the year. 0 Unforgettable act Can I play too by Paul Hartman Greed is the issue in extra -billing Dear Editor, It seems -that week after week we all keep reading about extra -billing. This subject mostly comes from doctors who think they are being really hard pressed by the govern- ment, so guess what — they can't get their ' own way. So they, and a very few people who agree with the doctors, want the average working stiffs to write the government and defend doctors' extra '.;Winn our UVI LVID cn��c." b• The only problem I can see at the heart of all this, on both sides (doctors and the government), is greed. Pure and simple. The government wants money that is being held back, because Ontario doe -ors extra - bill. To get this money, simply stop the doc- tors extra -billing. This is okay for one side - the government - but, the doctors want their way too. The on- ly problem is, they don't have the power or cldut of the government. All they seem to be able to do is intimidate their patients into siding with them. Now the doctors write in every week asking for your support. The Public, I don't think, agrees with or supports the doctors at all. The public is afraid of what their doctors will say to them if they speak up against them. Doctors have money and power — important friends that make people afraid to say what is on their minds. Sooner on later the past comes to.haunt you says the Listowel Banner. Not since U.S. President Richard Nixon was toppled from power has that old maxim been so clearly demonstrated as it is now in the case of Kurt Waldheim. Waldheim easily won the June Austrian election and although he is the president of that country, is a ruined man. 'rhe fault is Waldheim's but not his alone. Along the way, down through the years, many people in many lands have been derelict in their duty. How else could one possibly explain the fact that a former Nazi with a less than glamarous war record could gain one of the most powerful positions on earth? ' As secretary-general of the United Nations, Waldheim had a position of respect and trust -a position for someone beyond reproach. To gain such an exalted position on his part, took years of dilpomatic achievement. On his climb up the ladder, he even stopped for a bit in the Austrian embassy in Canada. , Therefore Canadian officials responsible for checking Waldheim's credentials were as negligent as any number of officials elsewhere. Why? How could a former Nazi whose war records now reveal Knowledge, complicity and according to some, involvement in war crimes against Jews and Yugoslav partisans have escaped detection for so long? There is no evidence of a cover-up on the part of anyone except Waldheim himself. That Waldheim concealed his war record, there now can be no question. Moreover, he has con-, tinued to deny his past. The Waldheim record has now been revealed not only by the World Jewish Council but the head of the U.S. Justice Department's Office of Special Investigations which after studying hundreds of pages of United Nations documents stated there was grounds for barring Waldheim from entering the United States. That Waldheim's records- are on file at the United Nations only counfounds further this puzzling case. For his part, one can comprehend Waldheim concealing his past. What did he have to lose? IIowever, his conduct from the time the case unravelled has been despicable. Rather than owning up to his past and withdrawing himself from the election for the Austrian presidency, Waldheim edeavored to maintain a position of innocence. It was' a preposterous charade that has placed not just him, but his nation in an untenable position. Now that he is president, how does a dation go about banning another nation's leader without severing diplomatic relations? Should such a nation be admitted in international circles? The nations of the world have to address these questions. Perhaps the darkest "side of all to this Waldheim affair is the sentiment being expressed by many, not only in Austria, but in this country as well, that the WJC should have left well enough alone; that here is a man who has succesfully put his past behind him, who has gone on to make a contribution and should be allowed to continue his career. If one is to embrace' that line of thinking, then one must accept that crimes against humanity are not only forgibabie, but forgettable. Opted out Dear editor, I am sure by now that everyone is' well aware of our doctors' and governments' stand to Bill 94. I, however, feel that what our doctors are doing to us, their patients and to their medical position is wrong. Patients respect their doctors, placing trust and a great deal of confidence in them. Doctors at this time are telling us, the pa- tient, they really no longer care. They are telling people who work in the mical field, I really don't care. What they are saying to us is I want more money. They are saying to the elderly, lower in- come, husbands, wives, children and babies, if you're ill, too bad - I'm on strike, you'll have to wait. What I would like to know is, what if you all opt out of OHIP, who do you think you're hurting? It sure isn't yourself ,or the government. It's the elderly person on a fixed pension who is ill and can not afford to pay you, it's the families whose husband or wife or both, are unemployed, it's the families whose LETTERS So these doctors are trying to impose their views on others, even if the others don't agree. The "I AM RIGHT - YOU ARE WRONG" attitude. Extra -billing should be banned, because it is wrong io contiiiva'dy take more than is necessary. Just where does it stop? The government represents the people. It tries to get its money's worth, but the people do get some benefit from the government. We end up having something done for us for a change, not just the select few with the bet- ter education, salaries and the political pull and power to get things done their way. Not only doctors, but lawyers, store owners, pharmacists and even people of the press can all control what goes on - to manipulate the point of view or try to con- trol price - to get more or their own way. Just like a bunch of spoiled kids. OHIP was brought in to make health care available to everyone, not just those who could afford the price. Those doctors who extra -bill have a fine point - "CARE FOR WHO - PEOPLE WITH MONEY!! ?" I'm not trying to say that the doctors are completely wrong, everyone 'has greed. It's a part of human nature. They do a lot of good and charity work, but that is what we hear and read, brought to our eyes in the paper by mostly doctors. That's fine, but what about all those peo- ple who work free of charge, knocking on doors canvassing for money to help the sick? A lot of time is spent helping the doc- tors get money for much needed equipment, construction and repairs. A big THANK YOU should go out to them too! You don't see them whining about not enough pay - they work for nothing! If it wasn't for OHIP, the doctor's couldn't enjoy their present high standard of living. The point is, doctors would constantly be in court trying to repossess some poor old lady's liver or kidney because she couldn't afford to pay the bill. Because of OHIP, the doctors can practise medicine and be paid and not have to worry about the money r it's guaranteed. They should stop gouging their patients with their extra -billing. After all, no one else has any guarantee to anything. Sincerely, T.A. McGuire Goderich doctors hurt patients total income is -$25,000 a year or less, it's the families who have a spouse or a child or both who require constant medical care, it's the woman who is expecting a child, it's the pregnant teenager who not only requires your medical care, but your support. These are the people you are hurting. Before you gentlemen and ladies went on strike, I had become aware of situations, where people from our own town had been referred to specialists who had opted out of OHIP, and did not keep their appointments, because of the fact that they were unable to pay the fees you expect, out of their pockets. I am well aware, as these people were, that OHIP would re-imburse them, but, some of them were not financially able to. do this. Since you have gone on strike., I have also become aware of situations that need not be. People not only in our community, but in other areas as well, have always looked up to their doctor with a great deal of respect and admiration. But, now, the doctors have taken this very precious admiration and slapped it back in our faces, to the point where they are quickly losing that respect. I myself am a nurse and entered this pro- fession to work with people, care for them and help in preventing illness, not for the almighty dollar. I would like to think that doctors entered into their profession for the same reasons, if not more so. Hospital employees are not allowed to strike. They are essential services. What makes the doctors so high and mighty that they think they are not essential to our well being? . If they want more than what they're get- ting, which is much more than what most of us have, why don't they get out of the profes- sion and go to work somewhere else? Then maybe they would realize what they have isn't all that bad, but, don't let the patients or the people that work With them suffer. I know this letter won't end your strike or likely even put a dent in it, but I hope it will make the doctors stop and think and possibly put themselves in someone else's shoes for awhile. Maybe if we all did this, things might be a lot better for everyone. Yours truly Mrs. E. Milley Goderich, Ont. Government should arrange to pay specialists more Dear editor, The current strike of the doctors only pro- ves one thing - the gross incompetence of the Ontario government for not having arrang- ed in advance for emergency facilities. Because a high percentage of their pa- tients are elderly, and need medical care more frequently than the average person of thetheelderly more than the averare going to age personthe . I was wondering if our premier has a mother or was he raised like Tartan in the jungle by the apes? Emergency surgery and specialized medication cannot be performed without charging a higher fee. It's ludicrous to ex- pect it to be done. Physicians of this category have a much higher overhead. Perhaps the public will be able to resort to a telethon like they do for the hospitals. So far as I am concerned, it is just another ploy on the part of the government to shift its financial responsibilities on the public. They should bear in mind that who put them in there can also put them out. Their actions thus far have been pathetic to say the least. Sincerely, N. J. Minaker