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The Citizen, 1992-06-03, Page 4Learn sad lesson from others The federal government's self-imposed deadline for coming up with a constitutional offer for Quebec passed Sunday and Ottawa and the provincial leaders have given themselves 10 days to cool off and try again. Already separatists leaders are rubbing their hands in glee and no doubt some in English Canada, though less vocal at the moment, can also hardly wait for the official death knell of a united Canada. But before the extremists start feeling too happy that French and English in Canada are to be driven apart, perhaps they should look around the world and see the tragedy that hatred and prejudice is causing. They should take a look at Yugoslavia where Croatians, Serbs and Moslem neighbours are hacking each other apart, settling old scores. Rivalry between Serbs and Croatians date back to before the turn of the century when they were independent, and feuding, countries. The First World War was triggered by an assassination in the region. The Second World War, when some Croatians collaborated with the German occupation forces taking advantage of the situation to settle old scores against the Serbs. The iron hand of the Communist government held down ethnic violence but with the fall of Communism, the guns and clubs and knives are out again as people take revenge on their neighbours over a hatred and distrust over historic incidents few of them are old enough to remember. In Israel in recent weeks, Arabs from occupied territories have taken out their frustration by killing individual, totally innocent Israeli civilians such as a teenage girl and a rabbi. Israeli civilians have struck back, beating and killing Arab civilians. All that has happened hasn't settled anything, only created a new set of injustices that each side will let fester until it causes a new round of revenge. The next few weeks are crucial in the history of Canada. If we cannot find a solution to our constitutional problems, the failure could lead to hard feelings that will haunt us for generations. Now is a time for moderation, for understanding, for reaching out on both sides to prevent the kind of resentment and hatred others in the world have suffered from.—KR Yours to discover When times are tough it may be hard to get time or money for a regular two-week vacation in some distant part of the country but Huron County residents can see plenty by hardly leaving home. Citizen staff have been busy in the past few weeks putting together Stops Along The Way, the visitors’ guide to Huron County that is included in this week's edition of The Citizen and will be available in various spots across Huron over the summer. What staffers have rediscovered while visiting various comers of the county, is what an interesting place we live in. There are plenty of places for formal recreation from museums to two professional theatres, but there are also hundreds of little attractions that cost nothing but the effort to get there. There are historic sites and natural attractions. There are ghost towns and festivals and races, (from dirt bikes to horses). The Huron County Historical Society has also put out a map that charts some of the history of the county on its 150th birthday. It's a fascinating history. We have "martyrs" like Col. Anthony Van Egmond of Seaforth who died in jail after taking part in the 1837 Rebellion to stand up for the rights of his farmer neighbours against the Family Compact that ran the colony. There are old buildings like the Huron Historic Gaol where you can easily imagine what it was like to be James Donnelly of the Black Donnelly's when he stayed in the Gaol more than a century ago. You can stand by the drooping fence of the old Port Albert air base and almost hear the training aircraft taking off from what was once a busy base with 2000 people stationed there. Even as journalists who get around a lot to various part of the county, it was a revelation for our staff just how much there was to see in Huron. We're generally pretty poorly educated about our own back yard. We owe it to ourselves to really get out and enjoy the many things there are to see close to home. While many thousands of tourists are driving to Huron County each summer, many of us think we must travel away from here to experience the new and different. Stops Along the Way tells of just some of the interesting places to visit in Huron County (we didn't have nearly room enough to cover everything). Hopefully readers will take time to sit down and read the articles and discover for the first time, or rediscover if they're travelled Huron's roads well, how much there is locally to do and see. Hopefully after you’ve done that, you'll make it part of your summer to get out and explore your own, fascinating, back yard.-AT? Looking Back Through the Years ONE YEAR AGO June 5,1991 The National Transportation Agency (NTA) issued an order for the abandonment of the Listowel - Wingham CN Rail line within 30 days. The closure brought to an end nearly 120 years of rail history in Brussels, Morris and Grey. With the abandonment of the CN line, northern Huron lost its last railway. Jim Armstrong of RR 3, Brussels hosted the second annual Ontario Pietenpol Gathering at his airstrip east of the village. The event was open to new and old open-cockpit aircraft from Canada and the Unit­ ed States. THREE YEARS AGO May 31,1989 Hundreds of local protesters signed a petition in hopes of obtaining needed beds for the Callander Nursing Home in Brus­ sels to prevent its closure. The Huron County Pioneer Museum received a check for $614,000 from Murray Cardiff, M. P. for Huron - Bruce. The grant was provided under the Canada - Ontario Cultural Development Sub­ sidiary Agreement and went towards renovating the old Central school portion of the museum. Downtown Blyth welcomed a new business as Charlotte and Lloyd Allen opened the Book Shop. FIVE YEARS AGO June 3,1987 Close to $350 in cash was stolen from the office of Manning's Build­ ing Supplies Ltd. in Blyth. The unknown intruder gained entrance through a rear window. Brussels village council passed a by-law not only forbidding the run- ning-at-large of dogs but prohibit­ ing the persistent barking of dogs that is "clearly audible" from any premises other than the owners. Tom Cull, an East Wawanosh Public School student, won a bronze medal for placing third in the "Junior Physical" category at the 26th annual Canada-wide Sci­ ence Fair in Toronto. His project was on the comparative strengths of construction wood. CitizenTheNorthHuron P.O. Box 429,P.O. Box 152, BLYTH, Ont.BRUSSELS, Ont.Publisher, Keith Roulston N0M1H0 NOG 1 HO Editor, Bonnie Gropp Phone 523-4792 Phone 887-9114 Sales Representatives, FAX 523-9140 FAX 887-9021 Jeannette McNeil and Merle Gunby The Citizen is published weekly in Brussels, Ontario by North Huron Publishing Company Inc. Subscriptions are payable in advance at a rate of $20.50/year ($19.16 plus $1.34 G.S.T.) for local; $31.03/year ($29.00 plus $2.03 G.S.T.) for local letter carrier in Goderich, Hanover, Listowel, etc. and out-of-area (40 miles from Brussels); $60.00/year for U.S.A. and Foreign. 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. We are not responsible for unsolicited newscripts or photographs. Contents of The Citizen are © Copywright. 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