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Home My WebLink AboutThe Times Advocate, 2008-02-06, Page 44 Times—Advocate Wednesday, February 6, 2008 OC Editorial Opinion TIMES ADVOCATE PUBLICATIONS MAIL REGISTRATION NUMBER 07511 We acknowledge the Financial support of the Government of Canada, through the Publications Assistance Program (PAP), toward our mailing costs. Canada Jim Beckett — Publisher Deb Lord — Production Manager Scott Nixon — Editor CNA 2007 BLUE RIBBON /\ t The Times -Advocate is owned by Metroland Media Group Ltd. Metroland 424 Main Street South, P.O. Box 850 Media Group Ltd. Exeter, Ontario NOM 1S6 • 519-235-1331 Doug Rowe -General Manager, Southwestern Ontario Division EDITORIAL Public involvement important Aicommon complaint from ratepayers in many municipalities is that they feel hey don't know what's going on at town hall and that council and staff either aren't allowing for enough public involvement in municipal happenings, or they're ignoring the public's wishes. South Huron had the right idea Monday night when they set aside 30 minutes for the public to offer presentations with their suggestions or comments on what types of projects the munici- pality should be looking at as it prepares to get down to work on the 2008 municipal budget. New chief administrative officer Roy Hardy suggested at an earlier meeting that time be allotted for the public to speak about the bud- get, explaining that it allows the public to get involved in the process and it also provides an opportunity for council and staff to learn what ratepayers' wishes are. It was a good idea and one that more munici- palities should try. Council is getting into the nitty gritty of budget work over the next couple of months and plans to adopt the 2008 budget and tax rates in April at regular council meetings. It should be pointed out that only two groups accepted the municipality's open invitation to speak about the budget at Monday's meeting — Communities in Bloom and South Huron Minor Hockey. But it's a new concept and hopefully in the future is something that will see more mem- bers of the public take part in. After all, everyone complains about taxes — the more you get involved, the more you have an opportunity to effect change. THE LEAFSORCIST ring them all back Like all of us he's greyer around the edges, although not like most of us, he's muscled up since the last time we saw him. For the first time in 20 years, (and just in time for Valentine's Day) Rambo, John J., has grunted his way back into theatres and not a moment too soon, to save what is left of what was once Hollywood's golden era. They once ruled the screens, back in the '70s, '80s and early '90s, cleaning up crime and wiping out city blocks from one end of the country to the other with noth- ing more than a scowl, any handy weapon and a catch phrase delivered at the same time as a roundhouse upside the head. From Clint in San Francisco to Joe Don Baker down south in Tennessee who needed only a two by four to "Walk Tall," and Charles Bronson putting a "Death Wish" on New York City scum, the '70s made it easy for parents looking for wholesome family drive-in fare. By the time the '80s rolled around, men had taken over the screen, dialogue and plots had disappeared and the body counts went through the roof as Sly and Arnold took justice into their own hands by any means neces- sary. It was a true golden age for men and boys, if not for the girlfriends as the guns got bigger, the explosions got louder and the criminals and everyone else were on the run. After a relatively laid back John Rambo brought justice to a small town in "First Blood" and Schwarzenegger terminated everything in sight, Stallone turned the volume and carnage up a notch in 1985 as he refought and won the Vietnam war before Schwarzenegger fired back with a volley of shots from "Commando," to "Raw Deal" and "Predator." Following in the rubble, when Stallone and Schwarzenegger marched off stage to reload, were a lineup of lesser stars who made sure the screen was always lit up. Gene Hackman and Chuck Norris also took a trip back to Vietnam and even the Europeans got into the action with the high kicker from Brussels in the form of Jean Claude Van Damme Lumbering onto the screen from the other side of the world was Steven Seagal, whose claim to fame was the ability to break arms, fingers and other appendages with little reason and less explanation. But as the '80s closed the first signs that the on - N screen killing sprees were winding down started to appear as the men, who had formally been content to slay the bad guys with their rocket launchers and bows and arrows, decided they could be comedians instead. And when Arnold decided it was time to have a baby, we realized the good times were over and it was time to hand over the screen to the chicks and kids, at least for a little while. It's been a slow but steady decline since leaving us with nothing more than half drunken pirates, Asian chicks flying through the air, stone -faced goth boys mumbling something about a matrix and animated rub- ber super heroes stretching across the screen. So welcome back, John, it's been a long time. And if you could somehow convince Clint, Charles, Chuck and any of the rest of the guys to reload one more time, the wife and I are always looking for a good date movie. • PAT BOLE BACK 40 VIEW About the Times -Advocate Address & Office Hours Times -Advocate, 424 Main Street South, P.O. Box 850, Exeter, Ontario NOM 1S6. Our office is open Monday to Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm. CLOSED ON HOLIDAYS. Contact Us By Phone or Fax Classified ad & subscription sales 519-235-1331 24-hour automated attendant 519-235-1336 Fax number 519-235-0766 Fax number for accounting dept. 519-235-2449 Subscription Rates One year rate for addresses in Canada: $42+GST Two year rate for addresses in Canada: $75+GST One year rate for addresses outside Canada:$160+GST Call 519-235-1331 to order a subscription. Classified Rates Word ads: $13 for 20 words, 20t for each additional word+ GST. Notices (births, announcements, coming events, memoriams, cards of thanks): $16 + GST for up to 50 words, All ads must be pre -paid. The classified ad deadline is Monday at 10 a.m. Display Advertising To place a display ad, 519-235-1331 weekdays 8:30 to 4:30 p.m. or evenings 519-235-1336 (leave message) or toll-free at 1-888-270-1602. Deadline: Fri. 2 p.m. Web site: www.southhuron.com E-mail Us TA e-mail addresses consist of the person's first initial and last name followed by @southhuron.com. For example, Jim Beckett's e-mail address is jbeckett@southhuron.com Our general e-mail address is ads@southhuron.com. The Times -Advocate Team Publisher Jim Beckett ext. 109 ADVERTISING Deborah Schillemore ext. 112 EDITOR Scott Nixon ext. 105 REPORTERS Pat Bolen ext. 113 Nina Van Lieshout ext. 107 CUSTOMER SERVICE Sue Rollings ext. 101 Jennifer Skonieczny ext. 102 PRODUCTION DEPARTMENT Manager Deb Lord ext. 103 Nikki Cyr ext. 101 Kelly Gackstetter ext. 101 ACCOUNTING STAFF Anita McDonald ext. 104 Ruth Slaght ext. 106 Marg Pertschy ext. 108 Heather Clarke ext. 111