Times Advocate, 1989-07-26, Page 4Page 4 Times -Advocate, July 26, 1989
Times Established 1873
Advocate Established 1881
Amalgamat d 1924
CAN.'
BLUE
RIBBON
AWARD
1985
Ut JE
HIUI3O1
AIV AND
1989
Published Each Wednesday Morning at Exeter, Ontario, NOM 1S0
Second Class Mail Registration Number 0386.
Phone 519-235-1331
ROSS HAUGH
Editor
HARRY DEVRIES
Composition Manager
caw..
IIM BECKETT
Publisher 8 Advertising Manager
DON SMITH
Business Manager
SUBSCRIPTION RATES:
Canada: $25.00 Per year; U.S.A._$65.00
Inflation inflating
Don't look now, but the rate of
inflation is moving upwards
again._
A recent report from Statistics Canada
showed its second consecutive monthly
increase, reaching 5.4 percent in June.
That's the highest mark in more than five
years.
The major cause for this large jump
can be blamed on higher federal and pro-
vincial taxes.
The governments aren't through with
us yet. The government in Ottawa is get-
ting ready to spring its new sales tax on
the country at the beginning of 1991.
That- alone will give a big boost to in-
flation. Federal finance minister Michael
Wilson has admitted the new tax, to re-
place the existing manufacturers sales tax
and which will cost taxpayers billions of
dollars, will have a one-time impact of
boosting inflation by close to three per-
centage points.
That will be an ironic turn of events
since the federal government wants to
keep inflation in check in view of the
mammoth interest bill it must pay annu-
ally to service the national debt. This
debt is now nearing the $400 billion
mark. Any increase in the inflation rate
will also add billions to that interest bill.
We all know inflation will rise, but the
problem is, by how much?
The consumer price index is calculated
from the cost of hundreds of goods and
services, practically 100 percent of
which will be included in the new federal
sales tax. This is monitored each month
by Statistics Canada.
The consumer price index based on
1981 prices averaging 100, stood at
151.3 in June. That means that the same
goods and services that cost $100 in 1981.
were up to $151.30 forJune of this year.
That's a collective increase of more than
50 percent in eight years in that wide
range of goods and services..
Put that same kind of compounding
formula to work after Wilson has his
new tax scheme in place and odds are that
prices in the Statistics Canada report will
soon be double what they were in 1981.
By Ross Haugh l
Nanaimo bars
Next week we'll be at Camp
Agawaten. On the shores of
Golden Lake. For as long as the
children can remember, we've
spent the first week in August
there every year. In fact, Eliza-
beth used to go there with her
parents and her brothers and sis-
ters when she was a young child.
The place has much to offer.,
Peace and quiet when the chil-
dren are asleep or out of sight.
No telephone in the cabin. No
mail. No T.V.
No worries about meals, be-
cause we all eat in the lodge.
Breakfast, for example, consists
of fruit juice or milk, hot or cold
cereal, eggs and toast. The usual
nourishing, non -calorie, non-
cholesterol, non -carbohydrate
food.
We spend our mornings sitting
on the verandah reading the
paper. While Elizabeth makes the
Geds and sweeps the cabin floor,
5
Serving South Huron, North Middlesex
& North Lambton Since 1873
Published by J.W. Eedy Publications limited
AM t SAFE IN ASSUMING /OU VOTED PC 1N THE LAST ELECTION?"
More from the east
We come back to work with
mixed emotions following a 13
day trip to Prince Edward Island
and many points in between.
While we saw many interesting
sights in P.E.I., Nova Scotia,
New Brunswick and Quebec
along with several eastern states,
it's great to be back in the great-
est province of them all.
In last week's column we said
it was appearing thanks to Cana-
da Post. The letter was actually
sent by Priority Post and arrived
in Exeter from Fredericton, New
Brunswick in about 48 hours.
While talking about Canada
Post, it seems they have different
policies in place throughout the
country.
A couple of months ago when a
Canada Post official visited Exet-
er to tell council about the new
super mail boxes which -are now
a reality, he said it was for infor-
mation only and no one locally
had a chance for input.
In the Sussex, New Brunswick
weekly paper we saw a headline
which read, "Superboxes could
come by autumn". The story
•
went on to quote a Canada Post
spokesman, " We have given the
presentation to council, it's up to
them to take it to the public and
decide." That alternative was not
given here.
"It's a small world" is a popu-
She also realizes (because I have party developed them? Where?
told her) that I eat no Nanaimo When? Why was the city of Na -
bars all year, just so that I can be naimo chosen for the name? Are
ready for hers. On that hot Sun- they known by another name in
day evening in August at Golden the United States, or are they
Lake* uniquely Canadian? Do'you have
any Nanaimo bar recipes other
than that given below?
Here is the recipe from Laura
Secord's Canadian Cook Book
(McClelland & Stewart, 1966):
Grease a 9 -inch square cake
pan. In a sauce -pan combine: 1/2
cup butter, 1/4 cup granulated
sugar, 5 tablespoons cocoa, 1
egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla.
When dessert time comes, eve- Cook over medium heat, stir-
ryone in the lodge is allowed two ring constantly, until smooth and
Nanaimo bars - except me. I get slightly thickened. Stir in: 1 2/3
four. They are among the very cups fine graham wafer crumbs,
few special comforts I get in this 1 cup desiccated coconut, 1/2 cup
life, and I think I'm entitled. So chopped walnuts. Press into pre -
don't criticize me. pared pan. -
I'm positive that all my readers Cream 1/4 cup butter. Beat in
knnu, 'gni- t/a/2y. a. cups Sifted icing
But do ya.: know how they orig- sugar, 1 egg. Spread over crumb
mixture and chill for about 15
4-..-4,444,i5teir-46*.s4t.liatibelAsillarAmikaaisallanainntaLLMIR to be
ones, the real ones on the lake). Canada's best -kept
You know how it at a cottage. They're not listed injhe giant Over hot water. melt together. 4
I'm coming to the point. Every Webster's Third New Interna- squares semi -sweet chocolate, 1
• Sunday after supper, the dessert tional Dictionary. They're not tablespoon butter.
consists of freshly made Nanai- mentioned in Larousse Gastron- Spread on top and chill. When
_..._,-_,.,-_mo bars. Now these are not your omique, Better Homes and Gar- set, cut into squares.
average, polio;, tu13-of-tic-nmill, dcns New 'Cook Book, New - • -Warning: Health and Welfare
city type, over-the-counter, 3 cm York Times Meny Cook Book,' Canada advises that Nanaimo
. x 3 cm Nanaimo bars. No, they Margo Oliver's Most Treasured bars can lead to addiction. When
arc country -sized 5 cm x 7 cm Recipes or any other standard consumed regularly and without
Golden Lake humdingers, fit for culinary reference works I con- moderation, they may cause
a working man's appetite. Which V+��
h < c0 3�ti�t' i`r;.�l'eirnau ra 'navy 157 &VU 1n
=7accd with after a hard day in a the first place: in Laura Secord's
boat or on the beach or on the na- Canadian Cookbook.
ture trail. Exactly the right kind Here we can read that these
of'stuff to put you in shape for a . "no -bake bars" were actually
game of volleyball or tennis after "developed in the Canadian
supper. kitchens c,f a well-known food
' Now Lorraine, the friendly ' company" and named after the
spirit of Agawaten, has known city of Nanaimo, B.C.
my weakness for Nanaimo bars - That's good information, but I
for a long, long time. She under- would like to know more. Per -
stands that Nanaimo bars are my haps some of my readers have
most obvious weakness (al- answer to my following ques-
though not my only passion). tions: -
Which well-known food com-
stilted. I did finally find t,heln
Results of the Victoria Day sur-
vey: 161 readers don't want to
mess around with Victoria Day
and keep its name. -153 readers
suggested various new names,
from the sublime (Prince Charles
Day, Queen Mother Day) to the
ridiculous (Blackfly Day, Cou-
sins Day, Firecracker Education
Day). There were five anony-
mous letters which don't count. 1
guess we'll have to keep Queen
Victoria's memory alive a while
longer. Only in Canada, you say?
y i :..,�:y. •r---i—_"keg:-a�-e,y, ��"`•3; �i€
F•-...:}r`.s+k:$*:%.�.$•.A�;�i..nv.”�'�.i�:-a�ii'�s..tt!c.:a..:.Lv'iH"w�7�.``a. +. -
Goodbye
Whether they wanted it or not,
the American people now have
their B-2.
They stand near the runway
with misty eyes as the $500 mil-
lion stealth bomber proves that
with enough money you can
make an aircraft invisible to radar
that really flies.
It is hard to swallow the idea
that one plane can really be wolf'
half a billion dollars. T'm_,nnt
saying 1 could build one for less.
I just can't see the American tax-
payer getting his money's worth.
iSs9.94.%,.,Q.f s ep P, alth„tech-
nology can filter down to the surveiilance, ,< t+116rta"c rrtffe--'
consumer level like the Apollo courts would support an individ-
program's semiconductor work ual's right to shield himself from
brought us calculators, comput- being spied upon. It might keep
ers and VCRs. - t the supreme court tied up longer
In fact, stealth stuff mightal- than the abortion i^.;Tee. -
ready be with us. From the In any case, Chevrolet might
grumblings I heard from a local really need stealth technology to
fisherman, you might think the keep its customers out of jail.
Conservation Authority stocked Their n!"r, ' '
lar saying and that proved to be
very true on a number of occa-
sions on our trip.
During a visit to the Hopewell
Rocks in New Brunswick, we
ran into a family from Beams-
.- •
From the
4 editor's disk
by
Ross Haugh 1(1111
111
ville, Ontario. When told we
were from Exeter, they said a
young lady from the Exeter area•
was the librarian in their town. It
turned out to be Lori Sims, who
wife Irene •taught at Usborne
Central School.
During the wait for the ferry to
Prince Edward Island we en-
countered a couple from Hano-
ver who are next-door neigh-
bours of Don and Mary Gravett,
formerly of Exeter.
A gas station owner in New-
castle, New Brunswick worked
in Tillsonburg in the 1950's and
remembers going to dances at the
Lakeview Casino in Grand
Bend.
Two of the major industries in
New Brunswick toward the Que-
bec border are potatoes and pulp
and /paper. In Newcastle one pa-
per mill had dozens of trucks.
lined up with logs ready to un-
load. It was similar to the lineup
of trucks with corn at our local
Nabisco canning plant.
We had the opportunity to at-
tend harness horse races in Tru-
ro, Nova Scotia and were sur-
pised to see a former local horse
in action.
It was Roger B Quick, who
was raised by Art and Jean Hod-
gins in Clandeboye and later sold
to Jack Morrissey of Grand
Bend. Roger is now nine years
of age and has earned $132,749
during his career.
We arrived in Chatham, New
Brunswick late on a Sunday af-
ternoon when residents there
were just concluding an Irish
Festival. They took the celebra-
tions seriously as Shamrocks
were painted on the pavement of
most of the town's streets.
In the Chatham paper we
learned plans are being formulat-
ed for a summer theatre and men-
tion was made of a successful
operation in Blyth, Ontario where
hundreds of tourists are attracted
each summer.
Pun of the Week : It's certainly.
easier to climb the ladder of suc-
cess if there is somebody else
steadying it.
-car, hello Batmobile
legal in Ontario, could this new
item in the radar gun/detector/
anti -detector war be outlawed?
I'm not sure.
Because radar speed detection
amounts to a form of electronic
Hold that
Y � lltUU6111...
�s�.;c
by
Adrian I larte
- .'.•�r.� ,W4 17Y6tr te1`iiivisible if anyone
Trout. They can't be seen, can't wanted to test its 290 km/h top
be caught, and don't show up on speed.
sonar. The crux of the problem is that
You can already buy a Stealth we have to recognize speed lim-
Bra. its for what they arc: a sin tax
I know what you're thinking, like tobacco and alcohol, all un -
but it's actually one of those fab- der the umbrella of public safety
ric covers for the front of cars, and . health. Nobody wants
only this one is radar absorptive. speed demons on the roads, but
The idea is to delay the time it some. have suggested North
• takes for your car to show up on American highway limits atr arti-
a police radar gun. Someone is ficially low. In Europe the limits
bound to make a whole car otlt of aren't as rigidly enforced, and
the stuff. few complain.
With radar detectors already il- One publication I was reading
PrN•-ra.. v,a,- ...�+'
stated that motorists wouldn't
honestly endanger their lives by
driving at speeds at which they
felt unsafe. In fact, the writer
said police told him they can only
stop speeders who go faster than
85 percent of the other drivers on
the road, otherwise they just have
"an enforcement problem".
Those are pretty interesting ide-
as, especially when you consider
ti ,W -: t is-:gii--3ct1rr-.era rr
'with exceeding the limits by
about 10 km/h. Are these people
voting with their right feet? -
I know of one road in London
" lliat End. `caries ando. ks for
all the world like the other 60
km/h roads in the city, but it's
not posted so it's only good for
50 km/h. Unsuspecting motor-
ifrrs tool along at 70 km/h and get
nabbed for an easy 20 km/h. It's
a neat trick and I'm sure that
street just about nays for its n' '
•
The ministry of transportation
backs up its policies with statis-
tics that show speeding is a factor
in most accidents, but I suppose
if they lowered the limits to 30
km/h then everyone would ignore
them and speeding would become
a factor in all accidents.°
It's bound to be a hard juggling
act to balance impatient drivers,
highway safety, and reality. But
what does it matter? Give us a
few ycirs and we'll all have
stealth cars.