The Brussels Post, 1973-02-21, Page 2lEsTABLisRED
187?
BRUSSELS
ONTARIO
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 1973
-Serving Brussels and the surrounding community
published each Wednesday afternoon at Brussels, Ontario
by 'McLean Bros. Publishers, Limited.
Evelyn Kennedy - Editor Torn Haley - Advertising.
Member Canadian Community Newspaper Association and
Ontario Weekly Newspaper Association.
Subscriptions (in advance) Canada $4.00 a year, Others
$5.00 a year, Single Copies 10 cents each.
Second class mail Registration No, 0562.
"Telephone 887-6641.
Sugar and Spice
by Bill Smiley
0
' Dangerous game
A plea which Goderich Police
made to parents of Goderich child-
ren to warn their youngsters not to
hi.tch rides on the rear bumpers of
cars and trucks applies equally to
parents in Brussels.
It is a valid plea, the Goderich
Signal Star points out and one which
should be taken to heart by con-
cerned adults everywhere in the
municipality.
The editor goe-s on in these
words and says that just last week,
a young woman driver was reported
to have run over one unwary bumper-
hitcher here in Goderich. Strangely
enough,'the "child" in this case
was a 14-year old youth, according
to police, proving that one does
not,necessarily become more safety
conscious as one grows older.
Many of today's parents will re-
call their own youth when bumper-
hitching was good fun .. . and prac-
tically injury-free. That was in
the days when horses and flat sleighs
were widely used in the winter months
and the farmers from the area gladly
towed half the population of the
town at one time or another.
The trouble comes as times and
'transportation change and the exub-
.erance of youth.remains constant and
needing fulfillment.
It behooves parents, then, to
warn their children - their older
children as well as their younger
ones - that bumper-hitching in 1973
can result in serious injury or .
death. What's more, it is a nerve-
racking and totally disarming ex-
perience for a driver to discover
that the automobile bumper is carry-
ing human cargo precious to some
mom and/or dad somewhere . . and
to realize that one unsuspectr ,un-
predicted move could kill or : 13ple
.in a split second.
,t behooves all thinking adults
anpAere, anytithe, to warn against
sir, ;') foolish stunts and to curtail
such joy-riding whenever and wherever
it is Obse.rved.
A life or worse yet, a lifetime
of misery, could be spared.
0*
"it's A photogtAiiii -of the little WOthati
serites as a constant iiitenttoe..0
we all have to stand up and be counted
sometime, even though we manage to
duck, out of it until the last trumpet
sounds. People who express their honest
opinions are not always popular, but I
never aimed for that, so here. goes. My
opinions on some of, the burning issues
of the-day.
Open winters. I'm in favour of. them.
We've had a beauty this winter, with only
a few cold snaps, only a few feet of snow,
a peachy January thaw, and lots of sun.
I'd like to say my heart goes out to
the skiers and snowmobilerS, but it would
be a lie. I don't care if their snowmobiles
sit in the back yard and rust, or if their
skis warp into pretzels. I have normally
moved about twelve feet of snow from one
place to another by• this time of winter.
This year I've moved only about three
feet, and I'll settle for that.
men's clothing. Modern trends nau-
seate me. There's nothing in the stores
but yellow and purple shirts, hideous ties
that would go with nothing except a wino's
eyes, and checkered pants with a flared
bottom.
What ever happened to the white shirt,
the modest single-shade tie, and the well-
cut gray flannels?
Most of all, I hate those great fat
ties. They're about four inches wide
and made of Stuff as thick as a great-
coat. Trying to tie"one in an elegant knot
if; about as easy as trying to lace your
ShoeS with half-inch rope.
NieceS arid nephews. I'm all for them.
We had some of ours for the Weekend
and it was a mlight to See their minds
and talents developing. Jennie and Sue
played a ripping flute duet, AS Well AS their
piano pieces. Little steven spent the week,,
end chasing our cat, Who was just AS
anxious to avoid his caresses as he WAS
to give therri, Finally, in perplekity i , he
said, ,,tley; Uncle sill, do you know what
kind Of cat this IS?" f muttered
thing vague.'She's a Sda.tedy,•dat” he
Stated trittniphantly.
Toilets and tires. It never faits, but
they do, nearly always when you're tkpect ,, they
guests and need both, satiltday
morning, armed,with huge shopping list,
'went 'out .and found a flat tire, The
garagerhan raised his eyes When he had to
clamber &et two: loaded golf carts to
get at tny 4A -re, In Pebruary., Sunday
morning; with' seven' people bit deck; the
toilet :blocked. rro plumbers available,
Now that we've dealt. With Maier issues,
let's take a 'look at the minor ones. A
great deal of ink and hot air is being
squandered these days on two of them:
the Montreal Olympics and capital punish-
ment. I'm against them both.
First, the Olympics. Isn't it rather
significant that the last two Olympics
have been held in the countries with the
most booming economies in the world,
Japan and Germany? Maybe 'they could
afford them. Canada, in my opinion,
cannot.
our population is too small, and our
national debt too big, to take on an inter—
national extravaganza notedchieflyfOr its
bickering and back-biting. Not to mention
murder in Mexico and Munich.
Who needs the Olympics, anyway? It's
a great spectacle, but so were the Roman
games, with their chariot races; throwing
lions to the Christians, and such thrilling
events.
Canada needs the Olympics about as
much as it needs another set of Rockies,
And they'd cost about the Same, and be
of as much use, The chief difference
is that the Rockies remain, and we can
look at their). The Olympics will be here
today, gone tomorrow, with nothing to show
for it but a big , fat bill.
We had our day, with Expo. We showed
the world that we could put On a really big
show. 'And We're still paying interest on
the money Mayor brapeau diddled out of
the federal government for that one.
You don't tee Britain or Fyance or
even the U.S. scrambling to get the summer
games. They can't afford 'em. Noncan We.
Prime Minister Trudeau has said that
Montreal will tidt get more than a token
Support from the Federal governMent.
That is so much you•=know -what. There
are Ways and. means and the wily M.
Drapeati knows all of them, and some
that haven't been thtink up yet: . ,
Arid the whole concept of arnatetiriSth
is an international laugh, what with totaii-
tatian countries employing their best
athletes in the armed force -S i where they
Can train all year round:
It's probably tee' late to Step the
juggernaut i. but it's not too late to throw
some san in the wheels.
If the citizens of greater MOtitteal
were told that they, personally, had -LOA:4A
the bills for the games; M. brapeauwoUld
probably wind up at the bottom Of the
St. Lawrence- River, with all the' Other
Sewage duniped in it.
Oh,. yep, I rn against capital punlah
tOd) but I've run out of spade.
Maybe'. next week,
•