Clinton News-Record, 1972-05-04, Page 44—Clinton News-Record, Thursday, May 4, 197
Look in your own back yard
An editorial in the Goderich Signal-
Star last week quietly applauded the
Huron County Board, of Education for
its decision to save Huron, County
Taxpayers $100,00Q .by renovating the
Old Par-Knit factory in Clinton rather
than build a new building to house its
offices.
The editorial went onto say "Aside
from all this, the new boardoff ice will
remove from the 'Hub of Huron
County' a sight which leaves the
impression that Huron County and-or
Clinton is dying on' its feet. The
former Par-Knit Hosiery building has
stood vacant for sometime and its'
boarded up windows and doors on the
main thoroughfare did not inspire the
desired effect on Huron's visitors,"
There is a rather smug inference
that Clinton is giving the rest of the
county a black eye. Perhaps the editor
hasn't travel led in his own town much
to seethe number of vacant buildings
from gas stations to former hotels
that have made Goderich look to be on
the way down.
Or maybe they had never seen the
number of buildings in London and
Toronto which are boarded up,
Maybe, though, it's just sour grapes
on the part of the Goderich paper.
Most of the big news in the county has
been breaking out of Clinton lately.
Most of the new industry locating in
the county has been settling here in the
last year. And it was well known that
many Goderich people had their sights
set on getting the County Board of
Education to move its offices to
Goderich.
As for towns dying on their feet, let
Goderich speak for itself, we're doing
quite well, thank you.
Attitudes can be stumbling blocks
In a comparatively prosperous
country in which one million children
are known to be emotionally
disturbed, many of them seriously,
the magnitude of the work of the
Canadian Mental Health Association
cannot be calculated. Nor can the
difficulties under- which it must
continue to operate.
One of the greatest stumbling
blocks to a more dynamic functioning
is the perpetuation of the nineteenth
century attitudes of many people
towards mental illness.
Public attitudes towards drug
addition, alcoholism, crime, prison
reform, poverty and other pressing
social problems, have changed
enormously over the last decade. But
they have not changed to the same
degree in relation to Canada's most
pressing of all social problems—
mental illness. Certainly not to the
degree that helps to make the work of
Mental Health—Canada as all-
embracing, as vigorous, and as
salutary as it should be.
Mental Health—Canada has
constantly to struggle with attitudes of
those who are not mentally ill when
attempting to inform and assist them
in coping with a member of the family
who is.
Every physician, psychiatrist,
nurse has experienced this struggle
with outmoded attitudes at some time
or another, and knows the delays,
sometimes crucial, that it often
causes in both prevention and
treatment for those who are
emotionally disturbed or mentally ill.
Even the disease of cancer is
gradually emerging from, the gloom,
shame and fear that used to surround
it.
Now is the time that the prejudices,
fears and outright misconceptions%
regarding mental i I lness, sti I I darkly
imbedded in many minds, should be
brought into the light and examined
rationally and fearlessly. Only then
wi I I the fight against Canada's number
one disease—mental i I lness —take on
the momentum and the vigor so vitally
necessary to the work of Mental
Health—Canada.
MENTAL HEALTH WEEK MAY 1-
MAY 8
A lack of objectivity
Objectivity seems to be the major
thing lacking in public views toward
the war in Vietnam.
In the beginning, when the United
States first got involved in the far
East, the public opinion in the United.
States backed the government and the
military all the way. There was no
,questionthatthe American stand was
a right one. Everyone believed they
were halting a great Communist
threat.
Then doubts began to appear in the
minds of some intellectuals and
among the young students at
universities. The number who doubted
the right of their country to be in
Vietnam grew and pitched battles
were fought between this group and the
establishment group who felt the U.S.
should be involved.
Today, the situation has developed
to the point that there seems to be
general opinion that the U.S. should
pull out. Those who do not condemn
U.S. involvement outright, seem to be
so tired of the lengthy war that they
are wi I I ing to let the Vietnamese in the
south fight it out on their own battle.
There is little comment in the
media at least that the U.S. should be
doing more to help the Vietnamese
during the current offensive of the
North Vietnamese. Most people seem
to just wish the situation would go
away.
No one would like the U.S. to go back
to the situation of being in a state of
constant turmoil, but it would be a
good thing if both sides of opinion were
expressed more openly. It's true, that
the U.S. has no business being
involved in Vietnam, but have the
Russians and Chinese got any more
right? And what right do the North
Vietnamese have to invade the south?
The trouble with the Vietnamese
situation, as has been stated many
times before, is that there is no black
or white, only a lot of grey. Faced with
a situation in which the right and
wrongs are not clearly evident most
'people would rather turn the other way
and hope the decision will not have to
be made.
That leaves U.S. President Richard
Nixon in the embarrassing position of
having to make a decision all by
himself.
J
REVISIONIST,
ELITIST LACKEY
Of...
Not like home
The making of a news event
A HAWN
IS NV
A 111X.
THE CLINTON 4\IEW ERA Amalgamated THE HURON NEWS-RECORD
Established 1865 1924 Established 1881
Clinton News-Record
•
A member of the Canadian Weekly Newspaper Association,
Ontario Weekly Newspaper Association and the Audit Bureau
of Circulation (ABC)
second class mail
registration number — 0817
'SUBSCRIPTION RATES: (in advance)
"Canada, $8.00 per year; U.S.A., $9.50
KEITH W. ROULSTON — Editor
J. HOWARD AITKEN -- General Manager
'...PionsokorimnalYmmilem
Published every Thursday at
the heart of Huron County'
Clinton, Ontario
Population 3,475
TILE HOME
OP RADAR
IN CANADA
10 YEARS AGO
THURSDAY, MAY 3, 1962
Walls are going up at the new
apartment building at Princess
St. Already we hear that three
apartments have been rented and
the place is still some months off
completion.
White lines on the pavement in
the downtown area should make
parking an easier chore.
Sometimes folk attempt an old-
fashioned method of angle
parking, which really hasn't been
done with too great success
around here for many years,
except on Isaac Street.
An extra minute could he
spared for a look at that fine tulip
bed on the Post Office point. That
is the work of the liorticultUral
Society and really dresses up the
small park,
15 YEARS AGO
THURSDAY, MAY 2, 1957
Three requests for services
were granted this week by the
Clinton Public Utilities
Commission, Included were J. W.
Elliott, for hydro. water and
sewerage service to the old
Kennedy house which he has
recently moved on to Wellington
Street.
Beachcombers have a lot of fun.
Miss Cathy Wallis, R.R.1,
Bayfield, had a lucky find on the
beach on Easter Monday, It was a
bottle, tightly sealed with a kind of
metal fastener and inside was a
postcard, Apparently the bottle
had been launched by scientists at
Ann Arbor, Mich,, for the purpose
of studying tides in the lakes. With
the promise of refund of postage,
Cathy sent the thing off and is now
awaiting word of its safe arrival,
25 YEARS AGO
THURSDAY, MAY 1, 1947
Four local business changes
are announced in this issue of the
News Record, which are really
something. They are Murphy
Bros. Garage, Horner's Service
Station, inkley and crown and
Clinton Grill,
Howard Cowan was elected
president of Huron Fish and Game
Club at the annual meeting.
W. E. Monaghan, local
plastering contractor, is engaged
in carrying out a plastering sub-
contract on tWo publit schools at
Windsor. Arnold Johnston,
Clinton, is associated with him.
40 YEARS AGO
'THURSDAY, MAY 5, 1932
MISS Mary Matheson, formerly
of Clinton and who has many
friends here, has been appointed
assistant superintendent of the
Goderich Hospital.
Members of the town council
made a survey of the town streets
and some troublesome drains,
yesterday evening, with a view to
making necessary repairs.
Councillor Cook suggested at
the council meeting that the town
and any citizens who Can give even
a day's work to an unemployed
man do so as a day or two of
employment is considerable
assistance to a man out of a job
and will tide him over the slack
times.
55 YEARS AGO
THURSDAY, MAY 3, 191/
Mrs. John Ernmerton, Isaac
Street has disposed of her house
and lot to Richard Jennison,
Joseph Street.
C. F. Libby and H, B. Chant
expect to take in the Shriner's
meeting at London next week.
The following have installed
electric light in their harries;
Thomas Monaghan, Iddo CHOI,
Mrs. Ivor, W. Hamblyri, Mrs,
Hanley, A. J, Holloway.
Mr. Stoddart, one of the rural
route carriers is now using an
auto fot his work. He now waits
for the noon ;nail instead of
Next time somebody in the club
or other organization you belong
to asks if you'd handle the
publicity for some event that's
coming up, take my advice and
respond with a ringing "NO".
That's the way they always put
it: "Handle the publicity."
Casual. Nothing to it. You just
"HANDLE" IT.
Well, I'm sitting here in my
underwear trying to write a
leaving in the morning.
75 YEARS AGO
APRIL 30, 1897
The choir of the Bayfield Road
Presbyterian Church is rising,
both in popularity and in position,
and is ready for the next
exaltation, "Come up higher",
Mr, S. W. Bartell of
Philadelphia, Who has been
spending the winter here,
returned home on Wednesday. He
came here an entire stranger, for
the express purpose of enjoying a
Canadian winter and Canadian
hospitality, and is in ecstasies
over both. He at one time had
serious thoughts of remaining
here, but business demanded his
return to the east, and he expects
to come back and enjoy the glories
of a Canadian summer.
A farewell social Was held in
the Baptist Church on Tuesday
evening last. Rev. E. J. Harris,
B.A., B.Th., the retiring pastor
was presented with a beautiful
gold-heacled cane, accompanied
by a suitable address, to which he
very feelingly replied. Mr.
Harris left on Wednesday for
Clifton Springs, N.Y., where he
will undergo medical treatment
for his eyes, The chair was
Occupied by Mr, R. Irwin.
wherever the hell the centre of
their universe is. Everybody's
anti-American. The food's not
what they're used to, So they
whine away, making enemies
everywhere, and since every
Canadian is presumed to he
American it all rubs off on us."
This sort of criticism is most
frequent directed against
Americans, I'm convinced.
mainly for the reason that
Americans travel more than any
other people.
When we were on the French
Riviera a couple of years ago. for
example. the Americans were a
poor third on every Frenchman's
hate list, easily topped by the
West Germans and the British
whose occasional boorishness
was more noticeably on display
because of ,th ,eir .uenter
numbers.
As it is with all sorts of
.prejudices, it takes just one
individual act of irritation or
thoughtlessness to serve as
reason or justification for
detesting an entire race.
A thousand Ameridans can
behave themselves in seine
foreign place. can he genuinely
interested in establishing a
rapport with the native
population, but let one complain
about the size of the bill or the
column, because I've just finished
a two-week stint of "handling" the
publicity and I'm soaking wet
from the waist up.
Why? Because I'm just home
after galloping up and down the
main street begging merchants to
put posters in their windows.
I should have known better. I got
my baptism quite a few years ago
when I took on the publicity chores
for an election campaign. And I've
been involved in three elections
since, each time emerging in the
same condition: wringing wet and
swearing "never again."
But the first one was the worst
one, I was a lot younger or I'd
probably not have come through it
without cracking up.
My candidate was young. had
never run before, and was up
against a man who belonged to the
large majority. The latter should
have been a shoo-in, But we licked
him.
We formed a triumvirate. Ross
Whicher, the candidate, Geordie
Hough, campaign manager, and
myself, publicity manager.
Ross beat the back roads and
wore out three pairs of shoes.
Geordie beat every bush in the
county raising money, And I beat
my brains to the bone writing
speeches and news releases and
advertisements,
Hardly anybody pays any
attention to the platforms of the
various parties, so you have to
sell the man. And there are only
so many ways of saying, "Our guy
is better than their guy."
You say your guy has more
children thah their guy and that
the former is active in church
Work, The opposition counters by
pointing out their guy's
experience and claiming he is
vitally interested in crippled
children. And so on.
You challenge your opponent. in
an ad, to a public debate. He gets
free publicity by refusing On the
quality of the menu or voice some
ridiculous comparison with
conditions back home and the
whole tribe may stand
condemned.
In this case I think my editor
friend, who may be just a little
guilty of feeling superior. has
very little cause for complaint.
I can imagine no greater
naivete than the notion that there
might be a chance to "commune
with Mexicans." as he puts it
elsewhere in his letter. by
spending a couple of weeks in
Acapulco. He might just as well
try to commune at a
boilermakers' picnic or on the
beach at Coney Island.
. Indeed, it could be said that the
curse of travel. as it increases
enormously each year. is that the
herd instinct (or perhaps just lack
of knowledge) sendS thonsands to
resorts and that the more
successful such resorts become
the less they reflect the true
flavor of the people and the land.
The kind of behavior that
offended my friend is. sure
enough. a common occurrence at
every popular holiday spot from
Capri to Palm Springs and I don't
see how it could be otherwise.
The tourist who goes to these
places, often because of travel
agencies that are really only
grounds that there is no evidence
your guy has anything worth
listening to in public. And so on.
Then there are the
advertisements. We had ten
weeklies and a daily paper
involved, plus two radio stations.
And we never had enough money.
So, every ad had to he small but
packed with power. Try this
sometime. Try getting across a
vital message in a thirty-second
commercial.
Oh well, it was sort of fun at the
time, and I learned that a man can
work 18 hours a day and emerge,
if not unscathed, at least alive. As
I recall, the only material reward
was a crock of Crown Royal. Not
because the candidate was a
cheapskate. but because he was up
to his ears in hills, after the
election.
As I said, I should have known
better, at my age, than to "handle
the publicity" again. But when I
was asked, I responded like an old
war horse who has been through
the reek and blood of battle, but
can't resist it,
It was such a little thing, really.
Just the publicity for an Open
transportation booking offices
and with no real knowledge of the
alternatives, can have a perfectly.
miserable time of it amidst
surroundings of spectacular
beauty.
If it is a country of poverty, as
Mexico is, he's fair game for
every operator avariciously after
a fast buck.
His meals and accomodation
very often are imitation
American. They obscure or
eliminate any real empathy with
the genuine people and life of the
chosen country. Almost
everything is phoney and. worst of
all. the poor boob is imbedded in
mobs of his own countrymen from
whom there is absolutely no
escape,
It's true, of course. that many
people prefer that to exposing
themselves to the strangeness or
the perils of sanitation conditions
sometime unchanged since the
Aztec Empire, but those are
people who'd get just as much by
staying home.
There are 18 million
destinations that are no place like
home, none of them being famous
or established resorts. and that's
the choice to be made if you'd
avoid The Ugly Traveller. If not.
he could be YOU..
House at our school, to mark the
completion of a new wing. built to
the tune of three-million. Nothing
to it. A no-profit event, Just let the
papers know„,etc.
Next thing I know, I'm writing
ads. churning out thousands of
words of copy, trying to con radio
and television stations into
believing that the "news item" I
am phoning in is not paid
advertising, composing a letter
for 1300 kids to take home to their
parents, writing letters of
invitation to various dignitaries,
arranging printing of posters, and
finally distributing these in
person.
However, I've managed to
totter through once again. The
only thing that bothers me is that I
enlisted one of my young
assistants in the English
department into writing radio
commercials, and I'm afraid he's
hooked. He's been battling out
thirty-second commercials with
not only elan but gusto, I wouldn't
be surprised if he quit teaching
English and went into advertising,
a fate worse than death.
There's one other unfortunate
Letter
to the
Editor
The Editor;
Recently, the Clinton Wheel 'N'
Dealers Square Dance Club had
the privilege of hosting SWOSDA
(South Western Ontario Square
Dance Association) in the town of
Clinton,
Over 200 square (lancers came
from all points in South Western
Ontario to dance in Clinton.
Our club felt this was a real big
recreationalactivity, and worthy
of some recognition from our
local newspaper.
It was a big disappointment,
when the evening came to an end
and no one had made an
appearance, after having asked
the Clinton News-Record
previously, if they would send up a
photographer to the High School to
take some pictures for the paper.
We understand that that
particular weekend was busy,
with many other events taking
place, but we were participating
from 2:30 p.m, in the afternoon
until 11;00 p.m. at night. Surely,
somewhere along the line you
could have worked us into your
schedule.
The local T.V. station came and
took film, which they presented on
their pictorial news feature.
What is wrong that our own
local newspaper let us down?
We are always seeing pictures
of hockey teams, bowling and
curling champs, golfers,
fishermen, and various other
recreations, etc. etc., so why not
support the dancers too?
This is now the second time we
have asked for a photographer to
come to a special event of our
club, and with no success. Don't
let us strike out on our third try!
Thank you for letting us air our
beef,
Signed—The Executive of
Clinton Wheel 'N' Dealers.
Edward and Lois Wise.
Publicity.
ED. NOTE: If you would kindly
check with the receptionist at the
door you will find that a
photographer from this
newspaper was at the event.
Unfortunately however the
photographer was informed that
he could get pictures between 2:30
and 4:30 in the afternoon. On
arriving at 4:10 p.m. (the earliest
he could possibly find time to get
there) the photographer found the
afternoon's events already
completed. No time was available
to return in the evening,
side effect. My wife and daughter
have a wedding coming up. The
former is flying in ever-
decreasing circles of panic and
accuses me of having deserted
her during the crisis, because
I've spent so much time—you
guessed it—"handling the
publicity,"
Fortunately, Kim is blithely
unconcerned about the whole
thing, She constantly remarks,
"Stop worrying, Mom, There's
nothing to it", which has the effect
of turning the Old Battleaxe a deep
shade of violet, while her head
whirls with thoughts of invitations
and announcements to be printed,
the house to get ready, the flowers
to be organized, and the casual
kid's wedding dress not even
thought of, with ten days to go, Not
to mention, "When is the yard
going to be cleaned up?' ' and "I'll
never get that chair back from the
upholsterer's in time", and
simply. "I can't face it,"
Like Kim, I believe the wedding
will take place, and it will
scarecely rate in the history
books with the crossing of the Red
Sea,
As a long-time nut on flying
who'd have given substantial odds
that the introduction of the jets
and the consequent shrinkage of
the world in travel hours would
lead to a new climate of global
understanding I find it
discouraging to confront the
evidence that it seems to have
worked the other way.
"Eire today and Guam
tomorrow," we once quipped and
it seemed that the promise of
massive tourism, of getting to
know each other' through the fun of
travel. would be at least a fast
start toward understanding.
But what's happened. all too
often, is the sort of reaction I find
in a letter this week from an
eastern editor friend just back
from a winter vacation in Mexico, ..
• •W.ehad a fine time.- a. lot; of
blue sea and golden sun." he
writes, rhapsodically. —but_
But! There is almost always
that cursed but!
—But" his letter goes on. •'we
found everywhere the
omnipresent. ultra-ignorant,
superlatively arrogant and
whining American Tourist. Why
these clods travel at all heats me,
They suffer so. Places smell. You
can't buy Marlboros. Nobody
speaks English. It isn't Des
Moines or Indianapolis or