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Times Advocate, 1991-03-20, Page 6Page 6 Times -Advocate, March 20, 1991 Publisher: Jim Beckett News Editor: Adrian Harte Business Manager: Don Smith Composition Manager: Deb Lord Second Class Mail Registration Number 0386 BUBSQ$IPTION RATES: CANADA Within 40 miles (85 km.) addressed to non letter earlier addresses $30.00 piss 32.10 GALT. Outisde 40 miles (85 km.) or any letter carrier address 330.00 plus $30.00 postage (total $80.00) plus $4.20 0.3.T. Outside Canada $88.00 Me. • inion "Men are never so likely to settle a question rightly as when they discuss it freely." ' ... Thomas Macauley Published Each Wednesday Morning at 424 Main $t., Exeter, Ontario, NOM WSa by J.W. Eedy Publications Ltd. Telephone 1-515235-1331 Y.S.T. M10421OSS$ No payment no solution The news last week that Hibbert Township is sending a clear message to the Hensall Fire Department not to respond to calls from its boundary areas can't have come as good news to those who live there. In fact, the whole issue of Hibbert Township not wanting to pay the Hen- sall Fire Department for responding to emergencies mistakenly called into the wrong department is somewhat disturb- ing. It's not the money, some $1,254, that is at stake here. It is the possibility of losing the good image that local volun- teer fire departments have in this area. While someone made the mistake of calling out Hensall's department to fires that were technically in.Seaforth's juris- diction, Hensall naturally responded, only to find the fires within sight of the township boundary. Were they honest- ly expected to halt their trucks and turn around, or should they have arrived on the scene and helped out until the Sea - forth department could take over? Ob- viously the latter is preferable, especial- ly if you are the homeowner watching the flashing lights approach. Of course, as one local fire chief ob- served, there are legal problems in- volved in fighting fires outside the pre- scribed area of coverage. If a firefighter is injured in such an incident, lawyers and insurance companies go haywire. But he also pointed out it is impossible to ask a team of volunteers to simply stand by and watch a property burn just because it is on the other side of an imaginary line. Especially if there is a possibility of lives being at stake. While we could call for better public education to make sure only the correct department is called out, there are bound to be mistakes made when a neighbour spots a house or barn burning on the oth- er side of the road, unware it is in the other territory. What is really needed is a better policy to allow for such "grey areas" of cover- age, and some sort of agreement that makes sure fire departments are com- pensated for hauling volunteers away from work or out of bed even though they were the wrong ones called. It would also make for better feelings all round. A.D.H. "MAWS A VAST COUNTRY RUN DY HALF -VAST POLITICIANS!" Bunnies for Easter? To stew or not to stew? These days North America's From- favourite Easter symbol (often Sea to sea to .Sea to... I don't know who used it first, Brian Mulroney or Jean Chre- tian, or who copied it from whom. But it has become Cana- da's slogan for the 90s. "From Sea to Sea' to Sea." Thcy.don't stutter. They mean it. Ow poihicia s firmly believe that theycan impress us with the (for them) new discovery that Canada bot+cier* not on two but on three oceans. No, I have already looked it up. We don't have a southem shore that is lapped by an arm of the Indian Ocean. That would really complicate matters for our public speakers. We see thee rise... I suppose we should be proud of the new phrase "From Sea to Sea to Sea." We could even in- corporate it in our national an- them: "From Sea to Sea to Sea we see thee rise..." Cynics have asked whether the third sea, the Arctic Ocetiri, really warrants all this official recogni-e tion. After all, much of it is fro- zen most of the time. And not too many Canadians have ever seteyes on I'm as keen as anyone to ac- knowledge the contributions of the: But is it regally ne- r shave cotwalai I have also discovered another major problem. If we mention the Atlantic, the Pacific, and the Arctic Ocean, we are really leav- ing out Hudson Bay, which ac- cording to all my reference books is a separate "inland sea" connected via Hudson Strait with the Atlantic and via Foxe Basin with the Arctic Ocean. It belongs to neither. Our leaders should be notified immediately how totally unfair it is to leave out Hudson Bay. They must include it and say: "From Sea to Sea to Sea to Sea". But wait, there is another body of water that wouldn't be included in the above. Baffin Bay. It is also an inland sea. The Canadian Encyclopedia de- scribes it this way: "connected to the Arctic Ocean in the north PETER'S POINT e by Peter Hesse' through Nasees Strait, Jones and Landcaster Sounds, and to the Labrador Sea in the south by Davis Strait." Baffin Bay, too, is neither part of the Atlantic nor part of the Arctic Ocean. Back to the drawing board, please. "From Sea to Sea to Sea to Sea" is the only way we can cope with the problem and be fair to everyone. Hold it! Not so fast. What ex- actly 'is the Labrador Sea, to width the Baffin Sea is connect- ed? Bad news for our politicians indeed: "The Labrador Sea is a body of winter between Green- land and the coast of Labrador. It joins the North Atlantic..." So it isn't really part of the North Atlantic either, is it? There is no geeing away from it: "From Sea to Sea to Sea to Sea to Sea to Sea" is the very least we can do without offend- ing our Labradorian fellow - Canadians. Just one other small detail. Foxe Bain. .1 looked it up. I am truly sorry. But it is a separate sea, connected with Hudson Bay via Foxe Channel and with the Gulf of Boothia via Furyand He- cia Strait. O.K. What about the Gulf of Boothia? Surely it must be part of the Arctic Ocean? Not accord- ing to the learned reference books. The Arctic Ocean doesn't start until after Ellesmere Island - a very long way off. • We're in deep trouble. And we are facing some crucial choices. We can either acknowledge all Canadian oceans and seas by saying "From Sea to at least an- other nine or ten Seas" or we can forget about those confounded waters altogether and concentrate on our other assets. Land, for example. How about this: "Canada from Cape Colum- bia to Pelee Island"? r ----•Co- lumbia on Ellesmerr ' ,qt northerly point of lee Island (in Lake Erie) the most southerly. It doesn't grab you?" I admit it lacks the poetic ring of "From Sea to shining Sea." Here are some other possibili- ties: "Canada from Newfound- land Standard Time to Pacific Standard Time"; "Canada from 54 to 142 Degrees West and from 43 to 90 Degrees North"; "Canada, all of its 9,960,000 square kilometres." We should decide soon. Be- cause our official motto will have to be changed, too. As we all know, it now reads "A marc usque ad mare". It might take classical scholars a while to translate the new political slogan of the 90s from House of Com- mons Vcmacular to cast -in - bronze Latin. as many uses. Some believe they make a tas- ty meal, others wear their little feet do key chains and still oth- ers wear the floppy eared little critters as coats or perhaps mit- tens. And, there are others, like myself who have chosen to give Bugs a home. Needless to say, some people will be taken in by the cotton - tailed, big eared rodents at the pet shop and dare to take one home around Easter. After all, it is a hopping good time to trick your parents, spouse or room -mate into' agree- ing to a new household member. If you do manage to con whoever, here am some handy bunny -handling tips; First: Hide everything electri- cal, bunnies love eating wires and remote control buttons - they .find telephone cords espe- Say III what? By Cheryl Clark B Cheryl Clark cially tasty. Second: Make sure you have a clean, warm and secure place to put your new friend - bunnies love escaping the confines of a hap -hazard cage: Third: Never trust a seemingly snuggly bunny. It may be cute at first when it hops onto your fur- niture, but it is more than likely to leave you an unwelcome gift. Fourth: Bunnies will eat al- most anything including your new sweater, but it Is important to feed them properly with a healthy mix of pellets and veg- gies - tomatoes are a big-time fa- vourite. Bunnies (especially lop-eared) are amiable characters and actu- ally get along quite well with other small animals, but once again beware, their big feet can do more than a little damage to the unsuspecting attacker. Me and my abnormally adora- ble lop-eared bunny Hossinfeffer live a comfortable existence. She is hug -size, entertaining and above else - she doesn't bark or scratch the furniture. HAVE AN OPINION? The Times Advocate welcomes letters to the editor. They must be signed and should be *Ccompanied by a telephone number and address should we need to clarify any littdandtion. The newspaper also reserves the right to edit letters. tetters can be dropped off at the Times Advocate Office or mailed to: Exeter Times Advocate Box 850, Exeter, Ontario NOM 1S6 '4 Community newspapers fighting for postal equality Changes to Canada Post rates for newspapers and other publications; have resulted in a clear case of discrimination asst community newspapers and their readers. The facts are clear. While community newspapers face postage cost increases of from 100 to 1000 per- cent with only 90 days notice, paid subscription mag- azines have had their mailing rates increased by 5.55. pest, free magazines by 50 percent and dai- ly ynewspapers by 25 percent per year for three years. For example, Rate Code 1 Canadian daily newspapers mailing more than five percent of their circulation will pay 14.9 cents for a 150 - gram issue; and their rates will increase 25 per- cent per year for the next three years. Rate Code 2 community newspapers may deliver ..-- free of charge the first 2,500 copies within a "free zone" 65 km radius of their community. Charges for other copies of the same 150 gram weight will jump to 41 cents this year. Canadian -owned magazines such as MacLean's will pay 6.4 cents for each 20 gram magazine mailed. These Rate Code 3 increases were limited to the rate of inflation as directed by the office of the Minister of Communication. Non -paid Canadian magazines were hit with a SO percent increase effec- tive March 1, raising their Rate Code 4 charges to 38.4 cents per copy for a 200 gram issue. Communi- ty newspapers of the same weight will be, charged 51 cents. (Community newspapers which used to qualify as Rate Code 3 or 4 publications are not placed in a commercial rate option, which has the same rates as Rate Code 2.) The Canadian Community Newspapers Associa- tion, of which this newspaper is a member, made nu- merous presentations to officials at Canada Post, the federal Department of Communications, and Mem- bers of Parliament and Cabinet after learning of the proposed increases in early December. Despite *dices , from Communications Minister Marcel Masse that there would be consultations prior to the increase, community newspapers were given only 90 days notice of the impending changes, which are a reflection of decreased subsidies from the De- partment of Communications (DOC) to Canada Post. The representations resulted in a decision by Cabi- net to delay the increase for Rate Code 2ublications an additional 90 days. Increases for former Rate Code 3 and 4 publications remained effective March 1. Such blatant discrimination against commu- nity newspapers and their readers cannot be ig- nored. These newspapers have long been the voice or rural and small town Canada, offering a service that is different from their big city cousins but of no less value to their readers. That value is apparently not appreciated by the government, Wit, the Department of Communications, or Community newspaper publishers understand the reason for the decreased DOC subsidies and support the government's fight against the federal deficit. But they wonder why they have been singled out for in- creases of up t0 1000 percent in 90 days while daily newspapers will be given three years to absorb a 75 percent increase, and increases for paid magazines are kept to the rate of inflation. These huge increases could well result in the death of many smaller community newspapers. The readers of these small papers and the communities they serve can ill afford to lose that valuable link to their munic- ipal governments and their neighbours. Readers should be asking their Members of Parlia- ment about these increases, and why they are less worthy of consideration and service than readers of daily newspapers and magazines. Community newspapers are not asking for special consideration. They are asking that they be treated as a valued and valuable service to their communities, as a valued and valuable customer of Canada Post, artki as equals with other Canadian publications. Are equality and respect too much to ask?