Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1984-01-05, Page 4page of editorial opinion Januar 5, 19:p4 %e trigbam Obbancetimeo Published et Wingham Ontario, R.O. Roe .390 • NOG-2We' by Wenger Bros. Litnited Barry Wenger. resident Robert O. Wenger. See...Treas. Henry Hees..-Ediur u rey Currie, Advertising Manger Member.Audit Bureau of -Circulations OntarioCommunity Newspaper Assoc:. Subscript inns 530.00 per year Six months $ 1 1.50 5ecopd Class Mail Registration No. 0831 a Return postage guarantegsi Member — ( anadian C'ummupity Newspaper Assoc. The great white north The weather has formed much of the topic of conversation during, the past week, as we no more than get dug out from under one snowfall than another deluge is upon us. Each suc- ceeding snowfall becomes more diffi- cult to clear, as snowbanks mount ever skyward while aching arms falter and,. fail to reach the top. Nor is shoveling Iirnited to the ground level, as increas- ingly homeowners are being driven to rooftops to ease the Toad of accumulat- , ed snow. While the snowfall has admittedly been unusually heavy for this time at =the winter, it is by no means a' novel event. Many people who have lived here for a couple of decades or more recall past winters with as much or esernore snow. It is a phenomenon which innocent souls to whom the "snow belt" is an article of winter clothing seem utterly unable to comprehend. A Toronto newspaper last week ran a front-page photograph of a cottage in the ski country of Colorado bearing theburden of what was said to have been.48 days of successive snowfall. A five-minute jaunt through Wingham would have produced dozens of identi- cal scenes after only a week of snow. it is hard to get outsiders to take seriously the threat of a winter storm in this area. Assuming that at worst the .. roads will be slippery and they may have to drive more slowly than usual, they blithely strike out in street cloth- ing and oxfords, utterly unprepared fee- the orthe possibility that they may have to abandon their vehicles miles from the heai-est town when highways become impassable. Eventually they learn, but experience can be a cruel teacher. However, while the weather here may/ chilly and forbidding, the same cannot be, said for the residents, who show not -only an amazing ability to ac- corrimodate themselves to the worst winter has to offer, but t are ever steady d to lend,e hand to the unfortunate. This was never more evident than during the Christmas holidays when travel- lers, stranded far from hearth and home, were taken in, fed and sheltered and in many cases invited to share in Christmas celebrations' with families who had been utter strangers until the. storm brought them together. It was an experience few of them will soon forget. The climate may be cold, but hearts are warm. Year of the prophecy Away back. in 1950 George Orwell completed a book in which the year 1984 and the social and political condi- tions which would prevail was de- scribed in frightening detail. Orwell wrote before the invention of the computer, before the universal presence of television was a reality. He envisioned a society in which one be able -to impose his will on entire na- tions. "Big Brother" was a character we should all be able to recognoze, by this year of, 1984 the seemingly' paternal figure., the power-hungry poli= ,Bolan who Is smart enough to make us all feel grateful while he -manipulates the entire populace for no better reason than the perpetuation of his own power position. - - Some of the technologies Orwell described have not yet been placed in our homes, such as the two-way tele - "vision through which the authorities could learn every detail of our lives and conversations whenever they wished. On the other hand,' many of the tools of multilateral control have been ac- cepted and are in, place. The legally -re- quired social insurance number, for in- stance, provides government with an instant means of identifying every citizen. Computer banks controlled by the federal department of revenue pro- vide detailed knowledge of each tax- payer's_income, place of residence and much more. Bit by small bit we have given up local control of our own communities. School boards, which were elected locally until a few years ago and thus were sensitive to parents' wishes, have been moved up to county level, one step closer to provincial. control. Local hos- pitals in many areas are now subject to the decisions, of regional councils, .which may or may not be aware of local needs. Municipal councils are now elected for three-year terms, despite the fact that in most smaller communities 'one -or two-year terms better fit the needs of the electors. Decisions made at the local level may not always be the best answers to some of our problems, but at least they are the product of the individual's will, not the politically -oriented policies of centralized authority. George Orwell was a keen student of human . behavior. He correctly understood the stark fact that ,the clever leader, who employs scientific .methods and equipment, has little dif- ficulty in neutralizing the will and in- telligence of the masses. His prophecy about the year 1984, is closer to fulfill- ment than many ofi=us would bike to be- lieve. e,lieve. Of interest to °seniors - An interesting movement is afoot in Huron County, aimed at providing a -valuabl i service to the older people in that area. Named the Huron Retire- ment. Club, the organization plans 'to hold seminars at Exeter, Seaforth, Clinton, . Wingham and Goderich, as well as mailing our periodical news- --lettere to its membership. This clubrys purpose is not to" pro- vide another gratuitous service for senior citizens, but rather to equip them with. information by which they will be better able to manage their own financial affairs. Advice, Information and Direction are the watchwords of the new club. Financial information. is the priority and it should be 6f real value to people whose .lifetime experi- ence has not exposed them to, financial concerns. This information will include such areas as tax deductions, income splitting, insurance planning, tax de - e. TODAY'S CHILD Everyliody warms to. little Barbara, a loving little three-year-old with a big smile for the whole • world. Barbara -was born with hydroce- phalus and het muscles are unusually weak, so she has rather a large head in proportion to -.. her body and at the moment, she isn't able oto stand. She can crawl very well though and pulls herself up to standing with some sort of support. She can feed herself fairly well and enjoys playing inside or out, alone or with other children, so she's not as totally handicapped as that wheelchair might make her appear. Barbara certainly 1!.? has intellectual delays and is in the modera- tely retarded group. ferrals, annuities, investments, Mort gages, stocks and mutual funds. The club's consultants will also offer advice on personal affairs and problems, such as lower estatesettlement costs, making sure the members' wishes are fulfilled, providing for Tess burden on survivjng family members when a death .occurs. A few generation's ago, when Can- adian tax laws were Tess complicated, it was not 'too difficult to plan for the fi- nancial aspects of retirement. The family lawyer or, at most, a regular. accountant could provide all the in- formation necessary. Today, however, the retiree cannot evert Test assured that the advice he or she received five years ago is still valid. Changing tax. laws haw made constant updating of investment plans a necessity. The Huron Retirement Club sounds like a good idea. Valuable assistance Thousands of elderly Ontarians trying to maintain their own hotjn s and others genuinely concerned abut the welfare of the aged, can accept good news a recent provincial governrnent decision to give an extra million dollars to voluntary agencies that . provide home support services, says The Glen- garry News. Such services enable many people to stay in familiar neighborhoods and maintain a real measure of independ- ence. Throughout Ontario there are thousands of elderly men and women who don't want or need anyone telling 'fhem how to run their lives. But illness or other physical limi- tations that often come with advanced 1, age make it difficult, sometimes im- possible to perform some chores es- sential to maintaining an Independent home, such as cleaning, floors, doing laundry or shopping in bad weather. Providing'"support services, often with volunteers, can keep; these people in their homes, wherethey belong, with their sense of independence, privacy and pride intact. They can remain near people they have known all their lives, in familiar surroundings. Home support, no matter how ex- tensive, is no guarantee against de- bilitating lonelihess for the elderly living alone, but it `certainly helps, leaving more purpose to Life. Such .as- sistance is only small payment on the debt society owes its needy 'se rs. LOOK "OUT BELOW! is what the students in Mrs. 'Robertson's 'Kindergarten class were shouting Tuesday at noon asthey jumped off this giant snowbank right in front' of their classroom, The kids.returned East Wawanosh To t ship re .. Council t East Wawanosh Council is in the process of setting up a . historical` committee to. prepare a page for the town- ship in the county's new bicentennial atlas., • • to school Monday and most people went back -to work Tuesday to br-• ing things back to normal after the Christmas break. • • form committee to work on new atlas n'Plans for + t will }fie included . in t e Eas Wawanosh page and who will sit on the committee still are incomplete. The atlas will commemorate the province • • of.1 Ontario's .200th an- niversary. The matter was' dieussed at last Tuesday's `meeting of council. Clerk -Treasurer Winona Thompson said council has a list uf about 14 people to sit on the committee, but those people had to be contacted first to see if they, would be willing to help. ' Mrs. Thompson said she is not even sure when the ,,material for the' atlas is needed at the county'. level, but said she will be in touch with County Librarian Bill Partridge this week. In other business at the meeting, council gave. its TAKING A BREAK from Clearing the snow in front of - their dairy last week, John Bateson and son Jon were typical of most home and business owners in Wingham who found themselves up to their necks in the white stuff following a Christmas blizzard. approval to an application for a wayside pit permit submitted by the County of Huron. The county bought a farm on 'the south half of Lot 30, Con. 4; of the township. recenttl-y and it will be using gravel obtained from the 'zf rm to rebuild part of County Road 22. The Ministry of . Natural Resources must grant finale approval for the pit permit. ' Mary Vair, chairman of the board of governors 'at the Wingham ,and District Hospital, and Hospital Administrator Norman Hayes attended the meeting e to discuss the ' planned ex- pansion' project, at the. Id payers from 1911 creat another myst Move over 19 3 rifle club, another myeste has come to light at The A van -Times. Late last' mon , Mrs. Eleanoryvenhoven said her husbndnd John was doing some r novating work at their rthur Street home whe he found four old n papers from one . week. uly, •1911, in between the / ails. The papers, aside from being a bit yellowed and musty, .are in good shape. One paper, the July -13,-191f edition o The .Viingham- Times, • }r -addressed to. a John Nichol and there is some handwriting with several names at the top of the page. Several longtime residents of the community have confirmed that a John Nichol did indeed live in- the Kuyvenhoven house, located next to the Royal Homes plant. • Bert Holmes of Winghain-- a nephew of the man in question, said. that Mr. Nichol and his wife, an Elliott, had no children of hospital. They showed council the board's video presentation about the proposed—expansion to the existing emergency wing. Mrs. Thompson said council members generally were in favor with the plans for the expansion and. said they felt it is necessary: • A total of 31 building permits and • two trailer permits were issued in East Wawanosh Township in 1983. That figure is up somewhat from 1982, said Mrs. Thompson, but it was still a slower year than some for building permits in the town- ship. The next meeting of. East .Wawanosh council • is scheduled for Feb. 7 at the township shed. She ' understands a great deal of what is being said to her and asks many questions. about the name of objects around her. She has about five, clear words at present, the most endearing of which is "hug". When she puts her arms out and asks for a hug she melts the hardest, heart, for Barbara treats . the world as though it has just as much love as she has. This little girl attends an integrated nursery program and is waiting to enter a children's Treatment Centre for physical therapy to help those weak mus- cles develop. She's an aware little person who really enjoys being in "school" with other children. `She's in good health except for a ten- dency to get fevers. She needs an adopt-- ing family. If you think you may be the parents for 'this special little - girl, please write to Today's Child, Ministry. of Community and Social Services, Box 888, Station K, Toronto. Describe your family and the way you live in your letter, and include your. address and tele- phone number. their own and therefore have no direct descendents. Edna%Carr of Wingham. also can remember visiting the Nichol house when she was a child: - By all accounts, John Nichol was a farmer and his wife may have been a tailor, but little else is known of them. And especially, it is a mystery why they would choose to save four newspapers from the same week in 1911. - ..The other three papers fourfd in the house are The Huron , Expositor, The Calgary Daily Herald and The, Weekly Globe and Canada Farmer. Close 'examination of those papers has resulted in no obvious common denominator, although one would assume they were being kept for some reason. ' One thing Act. note: ac- . rding to those old .papers, the summer of 1911 was a real scorcher, just like the one we experienced in 1983. Wonder what kind of a ,winter they had? A LOT OF CHOCOLATE Jason Crawford will be con- siderably bigger if he eats this whole seven -pound bar of chocolate by himself.. Jason won the bar in a' draw sponsored by the Wingharn Hockey Mothers, and the chocolate was presented by. the group's president, Mrs. Mary. Houghton. The bar was donated by N, C. Cameron Limited.