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Times-Advocate, 1988-03-23, Page 6Page 6 firnes-Advocate'v1arch 23, 1988 lime% Established 1871 Advocate Established 1881. Amalgamated 1924 BLUE RIBBON AWARD 1985 Imes dvocate Published Each Wednesday Morning at Exeter, Ontario, NOM 1S0 Second Class Mail Registration Number 0386. s" Phone 519-235-1331 Errita PCNA "� ROSS HAt,GH tditor HARR1 DIVRIES (omposition Manager IIM BKhtil Publisher U Adsertising Manager DO'' SMI1H Business Manager SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Canada: $25.00 Per year; U.S.A. $65.00 More new taxes? This is. sort of a continuation of last week's editorial on the proposal hinted by Ontario Treasurer Robert Nixon to increase our provincial sales tax to eight percent. Now conies a report suggesting a new federal sales tax on food, and virtually all goods and services we purchase. What's coming next? A tax on the air we breathe and the water we drink? An all -party finance committee is pre- paring the draft report after half of its members visited New Zealand in Febru- ary studying that country's goods- and services tax. Sounds like a poor country .to imitate when it comes to trying to bolster econo- mies. When we were in New _ Zealand in 1985, these taxes were just being put into place and since that time the cost of liv- ing and inflation has risen .at a very high clip. Our federal government is currently negotiating with the provinces over.the feasibility of putting a national goods and services tax into place. This new tax would apparently replace both the cur -- rent federal sales tax and retail sates tax- es imposed by the provinces. If both governments get together in this new tax scheme, it's conceivable to ex- pect they will catch everything and any- thing that is missed now and that includes what we eat. The report says the new federal sales tax should be established only if an extra burden is not put on lower and middle income Canadians. As these two groups make up the great- est percentage of Canadians, its ridicu- lous to even think about measures of this kind. Why introduce measures that most of us cannot afford. The report goes on to say it is impor- tant for the government to fully explain this proposed new tax to Canadians. What is there to explain? Most of us are already paying too many taxes. Just to make 'you feel good with warm weather and holiday time approaching, a tone cent per litre federal tax on gasoline will be added on April 1. Happy motor- ing! The readers write To the Editor Congratulations to the Exeter Timcs Advocate in taking the imit- ative to conduct a survey of the arca United Church Ministers, for their opinions and comments on the is- sue of homosexual ordination in the United Church. I sec the issue as a manifestation of a much deeper and serious prob- lem within our Church. The fact that the 32nd General Council have agreed to have this item on their agenda in August, re- gardless of what their decision will be, seems to tell mc that we must have allowed our church, by com- promise, apathy, poor interpreta- tion and application of Biblical truths over the past 63 years, to de- teriorate to the point where we now are spending a great deal of time, thought and argument on an issue that in my opinion should never have surfaced, let alone to be considered important enough in the minds of our church leaders to al- low the issue to have a place on the. Agenda of the 32nd General Council It no doubt is a problem of grave concern, what L an we as individual church members do? We might begin by trying to get to, what I think, is at the root of the problem. Arc we as individuals, church leaders and ministers, living and preaching according to the 20 Arti- cles of Faith and Doctrine, as set down for us and Revised in 1978? By Ross Haugh 1 firmly believe we should be making ourselves aware of the in- struction and uuths contained in these articles, and at the same time believe its our responsibility as members to sec to it that they are adhered to in the Ministry and all functions of the church. Let's not let the homosexual de- bate overshadow the greater prob- lem that appears to be the result of worldly instead of spiritual think- ing in our decision making, and a very obvious departure from the 20 Articles of Faith and Doctrine of our United Church of Canada. • Growing up "l'm beginning to like showers better than baths," Duncan said the other day. "It means you're growing up," i, told him. And i thought that i would miss giving him his hath. Gone is the little bathtime routine of letting the water in at just the right temperature, putting in a couple of bathtub toys, and maybe some bubbles once in a while for a special treat. That time will never come back. "Look, Dad. 1 can reach the hook on the front door," Stephanie announced. "You don't have to do it for me any more." "You're growing up." My little girl can do so many things for herself now. My job as a father,. at least the physical part, is getting easier. Independence is the order of the day. "Thank you, Dad, for helping me with my home work." 1 could hardly believe what I heard. Was this Alexander speaking? Alexander who thinks that "thanks" is thc most difficult word in the English language, next to "please"? I was flabbergasted: "You're growing up, Alexander." -And he gave me one of his big, handsome smiles. 1 should bc.proud and delighted, and I am. After all, parents are supposed to teach their children _to think and act for thetiselves. Letting go is an.cssentiar part of parenthood. But it's hard. And. I catch myself over and over thinking: "Never again ..." I want my kids to grow up, to lose some of their silly habits, some of thcir annoying manners. And when they do, I find that I PETER'S POINT • am losing parts of my children along the way. Now that they all know how to read, they'd rather read for themselves than have their Mom or Dad read to them. I practically have to beg them to let me read a story to them. Or tell them one. And the circles get wider and - wider. When they were babies, and we left them alone in their nurseries at night, we had an intercom strung up, so we could hear them breathe. When they were toddlers., they'd get as far as the nursery school for a couple of hours a day. When they played in the yard, we never let them out of our sight. Then they started increasing their orbits. Bicycle rides to the end of the lane, the end of the road. to the village. The school bus, slcepovers, camp ... in no time at all they will call us collect from Vancouver or. 1 Yours truly Gordon Johnson, Woodham, Ontario. London, England. And we may be lucky if we see them at Christmas. Grow up, kids, but don't grow quite so fast. Your old man isn't ready for it. What's this? You hope your front teeth will come out soon? Don't rush them. When will you be ahlc to stay up till nine? When you're ten. When will you be able to have your own crcdit card? Soon enough. When will you get a motor bike? When you can pay for it in cash. Which may be never. Anyway, i tell them, growing up isn't what it's cracked up to be. I've done it, and I sometimes wish I hadn't. When you're grown up you may get more allowance and more mail than a kid. But you also get more headaches. Now when you have a scraped knee, you can 'come to me or to Mommy, and we clean you up, give you an ouch -less bandaid, and a hug and a kiss. When you grow bigger and have a scraped knee, we'll just hand you the first-aid kit and give you an encouraging pat on the back. But when you grow up and have a scraped knee, we might be a thousand miles away in a nursing home, dreaming of the day you might come for a visit and a hug and a kiss. Grow up, kids, but slow down a little. And remind me of what I' just tbld you the next time I get mad at y i Serving South Huron, North Middlesex & North Lambton Since 1873 Published by I.W. Eedy Publications Limited "THERE'S AN MP 1N OUR CLOSE' 1" Do we buy Canadian? How many of us are con- cerned enough when buying merchandise of all kinds to check and see if it is made in Canada? Thc answer to that question will most likely be very few. The exception is likely new cars and many of those arc made in our country and can compete successfully against most other makes. We have talked to a few peo- ple about this and our findings arc that patriotic impulses are not enough to Icad people to choose Canadian products over those from another country. It appears that the Canadian - made product will be selected if it offers high quality and meets both the immediate needs and wants of the customer. The fact an article was manu- factured in Canada may be a pleasant bonus, but it doesn't sccm to be a deciding factor for most people. In buying wearing apparel, we scc many customers stretch and pull and tum a- garment inside out before buying it, but don't always read- thc information on the label. Canadian goods may be losing ground not because of price, but because consumers don't think the quality is better than those of imports. Shoppers seem to trust their own judgment of product quality, especiaily in clothing and person- al items and only seek informa- tion such as brand name and country of origin when the prod- uct is more technical or unfamil- iar. A recent experiment by thc f From the editor's disk by Ross Haugh t. University of Guelph points to thc importance of good marketing techniques. Although shoppers gave a higher quality rating to products they thought were man- ufactured in a developed country, they did not indicate a preference for products made in Canada. The next time you go shopping take time to look at the origin of manufacture. We arc probably as guilty as anyone by being swayed in the final decision by thc price, regardless of where it was made. We would guess the Canadian economy would be helped greatly if each of us made only one cxtra purchase a month of an article made in our own country: We have a suggestion for any- one looking for a spot to visit for a day trip this summer. The Ontario Agricultural Mu- seum , just off Highway 401 near Milton has a full line of ac- tivities planned for this summer. The museum which depicts farm life in Ontario over the years opens on May 24 and will contin- ue on a seven days a week. basis until September 25. Six feature attractions on spe- cific days arc listed on the pro- gram in -addition to Rural Reflec- tions - Portraits of a Century which runs from Junc.27 to Sep iembcr 5. Thc first feature is set, for June 11. it will be known as "Tin Liz- zies and Rumble Scats' and is one, of Canada's largest antique shows dating from 1898 to 1968. The month of July has Canada Day celebrations on the first day of the month and Great Canadian Antique Tractor Field Days on July 23 and 24. A Family Com Festival goes on August 21 , a Harvest Fair is planned for September 11 and the museum's season closes with a Christmas Craft Fair on Saturday and Sunday, September 24 and 25. Why don't you care? Dear God, why her? She ncvcr hurt anyone in her whole life. If ever there was a person who put others first, who tried to help the rest of thc world, it was this lady. And here she is, God, dying at the age of 45 in a particularly nas- ty way. Her speech is almost gone. Her hearing is so bad her husband has to put his mouth up against Her temple so she can hear something and even then she is guessing. The radiation did that at the same time that it killed the sa- liva glands. Every bit of food is a dry morsel which can barely be swallowed. I can sec thc lump of a tumor under that half -dollar shaped black bruise on her fore- head and can understand why the brain is becoming more and more confused. And she doesn't cvcn com- plain, Lord. Just a few whimpers as they try to case the pain of the ctemal bcd sores by finding some new position with pillows or by cranking up thc bed a little. When we came in today she was catching a little rest. They had her covered up with the blan- kets right over her head just like a mother docs with,, Ler baby to protect hcrfrom a coli wind. Then when they roll the covers back I don't know her. Thirty pounds have dissolved off in a few months and they've left only a shell of thc lovely lady we knew ther., In thcir place they've left an old woman parchment -like skin drawn so tightly around her skull that her teeth seem to pro- trude prominently. At least her hair has grown back in a curly red mat from the last time and she doesn't have to wear that scarf. it's just not fair, God, to leave By the Way by Syd Fletcher a little five year old tyke who huhhlcs away about learning "Comment allez-vous?" in her French immersion class' and brings out a new sweater to mod- cl.for us. It isn't any fairer for the sixteen year old who puts on a brave front and nevcrshcds a tear and somehow can't concentrate any more in school cvcn though he secs his marks sliding to new • lows. And her husband. God, you have truly dealt a low blow to. him. Ile's on compassionate leave you know. The board of education has given him more than you have with a full-time leave from teaching so he can stay home with her`, so thc hospi- tal bed can be moved right into her living room ncxt to the win- dows. At least she doesn't have to be in some place with strang- ers. •• Even though she doesn't talk very well she is ahlc to point and smile wanly at the robber squir- rels playing on the bird feeder while the jays and cardinals squawk indignantly at them from the pines down in the snow- covered ravine. Arc you listening, God? Her husband doesn't deserve this pain inside of him which is turning his hair white and deepening the lines in his face. A man doesn't live with a woman for all these years and just let her go easily. It's tearing him apart slowly with every blood transfusion which ncvcr brings the blood cells up for more than a couple of days, with the months on the road to the city, the bone marrow trans- plant, the trip to Mexico, the radi- ation, the chemo. God, the list is too long of the things that have been done by man. lie has done his share. And you" You have just not pulled your weight on this thing. She is dying, Lord. My friend is going so fast. By the time the snow melts and runs down thc gully outside her window and the buds come out on the trees she will .be dead and you just don't seem to carc, Lord. Why don't you care?