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The Citizen, 2009-06-25, Page 4PAGE 4. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, JUNE 25, 2009.Editorials Opinions Publisher, Keith Roulston Editor, Bonnie GroppAdvertising, Ken Warwick & Lori Patterson The CitizenP.O. Box 429,BLYTH, Ont.N0M 1H0 Phone 523-4792 FAX 523-9140 P.O. Box 152,BRUSSELS, Ont.N0G 1H0 Phone 887-9114 E-mail norhuron@scsinternet.com Website www.northhuron.on.ca Looking Back Through the Years Member of the Ontario Press Council The Citizen is published 50 times a year in Brussels,Ontario by North Huron Publishing Company Inc.Subscriptions are payable in advance at a rate of $34.00/year ($32.38 + $1.62 G.S.T.) in Canada; $105.00/year in U.S.A.and $175/year in other foreign countries.Advertising is accepted on the condition that in the event of a typographical error,only that portion of the advertisement will be credited. Advertising Deadlines: Monday, 2 p.m. - Brussels; Monday, 4 p.m. - Blyth. PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT NO. 40050141 PAP REGISTRATION NO. 09244 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO CIRCULATION DEPT. PO BOX 152 BRUSSELS ON N0G 1H0 email: norhuron@scsinternet.com Letter to the editor June 24, 1963 A Kitchener couple, Mr. and Mrs. Becker, purchased the Queen’s Hotel from Mr. and Mrs. Leek. The couple took possession on Monday of that week, and according to The Brussels Post, were welcomed into the community on the same day. White bean, flax and late-sewn grain crops were suffering due to dry conditions being felt through most of Huron County, however, some scattered showers satisfied some areas. Haying, however, while progressing rapidly, was producing a below-average crop. The overall crop picture in Huron County was said to be favourable though, despite the dry conditions and bean crops being hit with the seed corn maggot and several corn crops suffering from cutworm injury. The Brussels ladies softball team won their opening game that week, beating Goderich by a score of 13- 12. After trailing early after a six-run first inning by Goderich, Brussels scored nine runs in their last inning to open their season with a big win. The Huron County Ministry of Health expressed its concern over the level of pollution in Lake Huron. Dr. Aldis, in speaking to Huron County council, said “As the tourist season begins to burst upon this county, one wonders how long Lake Huron will remain relative for industrial and recreational development. How long until it too, becomes an open sewer like much of the Great Lake down stream?” Ontario Hydro published an advertisement announcing its new logo, featuring the familiar square plug, which remained in circulation for many years. June 19, 1974 Robbie Burkholder and Leslie Cook took it upon themselves to travel from Blyth to London pushing one another in a wheelbarrow. The trip took two days, but the pair raised $900 for repairs to the Blyth arena. With an uncertain future, local municipal councils came to the aid of the Blyth Union Cemetery after the board found itself with some serious financial problems. The tent was raised (literally) for another theatre season at the Huron County Playhouse in Grand Bend. A 100-foot long blue and white- striped theatre tent was erected to signify the start of this year’s theatre season in Grand Bend. It was announced that later in October, the provincial minimum wage would increase by 12.5 per cent. While it sat at $2 per hour, as of Oct. 1, it would be $2.25 per hour. There were also several different occupations that saw their own specific rates rise. A construction worker saw his minimum wage go from $2.25 per hour to $2.50 per hour, student workers went from $1.65 per hour to $1.90 per hour and the “learner rate,” for workers still in their first month of employment, went from $1.90 per hour to $2.15 per hour. A recipe featured in The Blyth Standard touted a salad “designed for the men in your life.” The “meateater salad” featured ground beef as well as an assortment of vegetables to give the salad its name. June 18, 1986 The Blyth Festival opened for its 12th season with a gala celebration. The evening’s speaker was agricultural and business editor at CFPL Television in London, Ross Dailey. The night also featured a performance by the No-Notes Jug Band. The season was set to open with the festival’s production of Another Season’s Promise which was commissioned by the festival and produced by Anne Chislett and Keith Roulston. The Brussels Lions Club celebrated the opening of the new community pool with a parade down Turnberry Street. Lions member Paul Mutter received an award from Lions Club president Dale Newman for his work as chairman of the Brussels, Morris and Grey swimming pool project. June 19, 1996 The Blyth Festival opened its 22nd season with a gala performance of Barndance Live!as well as a reception after the show. Talks began throughout Huron County on proposals for participation in the newly- developed Work For Welfare program. Huron County was chosen as one of 20 centres for the program in the province. The Radford Group hosted its annual fishing derby, awarding prizes for the largest and smallest fish caught that day. The Blyth Legion was also there serving hot dogs to all the amateur anglers out for the derby. To curb the effects of allergies, the Blyth Apothecary was offering a free pocket package of tissues with every purchase of allergy products. THE EDITOR, I recently attended a council meeting of North Huron Township (committee of the whole) where they were re-evaluating cemetery costs. A year ago this April, township council voted to increase cemetery costs by over 40 per cent. They are now planning to implement a further increase for “non-residents” of almost 15 per cent. At first inspection, a non-resident rate for the cemetery sounds like a practical thing. Why not let “outsiders” pay a higher rate? Township council has determined, however, that an outsider is anyone not currently living in the Twp. of North Huron. The problems with this definition are obvious. First, former residents of Blyth or Wingham, even those who have paid decades of taxes to support programs and services within the township, would be declared non-residents. Council has evidently chosen to ignore that both our county nursing homes, as well as the Braemar Retirement Centre, are not located in North Huron. Why should those who, due to health care requirements, have been forced to relocate to one of these facilities shoulder additional costs? To purchase two graves and open just one, in either Blyth Union or Wingham Cemetery, a resident of one of these homes will pay an additional penalty of $400. This would bring the total cost of securing a final resting place for themselves and a loved one to over $1,700 compared to $1,300 for a resident who need only have called North Huron home for a week before passing. This township has been sustained for many years by hardworking people; people who paid their taxes and contributed as long as they were able. They should be applauded and thanked for their contribution to our township, not slapped in the face with another penalty. What a great and final insult for a lifetime of residency. Does council not get it? With the exception of perpetual care funds, every dollar that comes into the cemetery from outside the township, regardless of whether it comes from Wingham and Blyth or from somewhere else, decreases the amount that taxpayers pay into the cemetery. Who else does this hurt? How about the residents of Morris- Turnberry and Central Huron who shop and do business in Wingham and Blyth? North Huron council has also apparently forgotten that they don’t pay a single cent in taxes We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Publications Assistance Program (PAP) toward our mailing costs. We are not responsible for unsolicited newsscripts or photographs. Contents of The Citizen are © Copyright Living in a different world At a time when a growing number of people would be glad to have a job at all, two messy strikes are taking place in Ontario featuring municipal employees. The highest profile strike right now involves 30,000 city employees in Toronto that has closed day care centres, swimming pools and canceled garbage collection at the hottest time of the year. Meanwhile in Windsor, a strike of municipal workers has been going on for weeks in a city where many thousands of private sector workers have lost their jobs. These strikes are bound to be unpopular. It’s all too easy to bash government employees as being overpaid and underworked – they are, after all, working for us but are inconveniencing our lives. Still, there is a different culture within governments of all sizes. No matter how realistic employees and managers try to be, it’s a different world than the harsh realities of the private sector in tough times. Fairness is a big word within government. It’s only fair that employ- ees get at least the cost of inflation each year. It’s only fair that if the price of gas goes up, employees get an immediate increase in their mileage rate (but mysteriously doesn’t come down if gas prices fall). It’s only fair that employees have good, modern working conditions. But there’s nothing fair in the private sector during a recession or depression. It’s not fair that companies have to close down. It’s not fair that workers lose their jobs. It’s not fair that investors lose their retirement savings when the stocks become worthless. In the case of the Toronto workers, one of the major issues is the city’s demand for an end to the banking of unused sick time, to be cashed in at retirement time. Workers see it as only fair that if they don’t use their sick time they should be able to save it. But as playwright Ted Johns said years ago in The Great Huron County Teacher’s Strike of 1978 when teachers fought to retain the same right, it’s like having fire insurance on your house and if it doesn’t burn down, still expecting to collect the insurance. The world is going through a great attitude readjustment right now. Spurred on by the recession/depression and the fear of what might happen if they lose their jobs, people are re-evaluating what’s really important. They’re learning to live with less – a good thing in that our planet could not continue to live with the kind of rampant consumerism we’ve indulged in for decades in the developed world. Will we learn the lesson well enough to really change? It may depend on how long the recession lasts. Nobody wants people to suffer too long but if we don’t gain a new appreciation of what really matters other than gadgets and cheap thrills, all this pain will have been for nothing. The challenge to make government employees readjust their attitudes will be longer and harder. They live in a world of “should be” instead of “can be”. — KR & Continued on page 6