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Times Advocate, 1984-10-17, Page 4Page 4 Times -Advocate, October 17, 1984 Imes - " dvocate Times Established 1873 Advocate Established 1881 Amalgamated 1924 Serving South Huron, North Middlesex & North Lambton Since 1873 Published by J.W. Eedy Publications Limited I OR NE El DY Publisher JIM BFCKE TT Arit.ertising Man.iger BII 1 HAI (EN Idnor HARRY DI VRIES Composition Manager ROSS HAUGH Assistant Editor DICK IONGKIND Business Manager Published Each Wednesday Morning at Exeter, Ontario Second Class Mail Registration Number 0386. Phone 235-1331 SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Canada: $22.00 Per year; U.S.A. $60.00 C.W.N.A., O.C.N.A. CLASS 'A' Principal wrong too When it comes to being tough, you'll go a long way to beat Huron County council. After lengthy and heated debate, members decid- ed at their October meeting to terminate the practice of the clerk and deputy -clerk receiving commission on money invested on behalf of residents of Huronview. It was a form of finders' fee paid the two county executives and several council members were of the opinion that the work was part of the employees' job and they should not be given the commission for mere- ly fulfilling that aspect of their responsibilities. When the policy was enacted, the two employees were authorized to deal only with one trust company. Now there are two involved. That does appear to make the term "finder" a bit of a misnomer. If the story ended there, county ratepayers would probably be able to cheer the decision. However, the tough minds on county council decid- ed that terminating the practice was a bit too harsh so they agreed that the two employees should each received $3,900 a year increase in their salary to com- pensate for their lost commissions. The $3,900 is an average,of the fees received by each employee in each of the past five years. So, while council corrected a matter of principle, they failed to take the appropriate action to correct the principal. The employees will still in effect be getting their finders' fee without having to find anything other than those tough decision makers on Huron council. Taxpayers can probably expect that annual in- creases will continue on the $3,900 per annum bonuses so the latter will soon far exceed the previous commis- sion or finders' fees. It must be assumed the employees found it dif- ficult to hide their grief in the face of such a tough decision. Freedom unjustified The Thanksgiving weekend shooting spree that resulted in the deaths of two civilians and two police officers in Montreal and Woodstock has strengthened the demand for the return of capital punishment. It also strengthens a previous editorial suggestion in this newspaper that the courts and the nation's penal and parole system need some serious revamping. One of the men involved in the fatal shooting of the two policemen had been released from prison under the jurisdiction of the parole board. He had served a little over a year of a sentence of four years and three months for armed robbery and the illegal use of a firearm during a jewellery store heist in Toronto. The other suspect had served two-thirds of a jail term for robbery, break and enter, assault and failure to appear in court. Neither man would have been free had the court sentences been carried out to their full degree. Ob- viously, someone made a serious error in approving the release of the two men, although officials attempt to explain it away as "part of the system". Well, then the system should be changed or those in charge of the system should be changed. A debate on capital punishment merely skirts the real issue and is an unproven deterrent. Many of those politicians presently jumping on the band -wagon do so to escape dealing with the real problem of lenient punishments, early paroles and a general laxity shown against those whose actions indicate they should be separated from society for the good of society. Area residents should obviously be among those raising their voices in concern. The suspect in the shooting of the two policemen in the weekend spree had once walked the streets of Exeter and had been con- victed of an unprovoked attack on a local man. The accused served only a portion of the 90 -day jail term he was given for that offence and was then freed to continue his life of crime with an obivious lack of concern over the consequences. Those consequences must become more pronounced. Lots of sick ones out there The recent rash of slayings in Canada has indicated beyond doubt that society is infested with a disconcerting number of sick people. Although it does not measure on the same scale, a couple of recent additions to menageries with which the writer has some acquaintance, unfortunately sug- gests that there are many among us with questionable consciences. How else can one explain the all too fre- quent practice of people abandoning un- wanted animals? A couple of weeks ago, a friend was driving out the laneway of a farm and while appropriately looking for traffic ap- proaching, happened to spy a small, black object wandering down the middle of the road. A sharper focus revealed the un- mistakeable form of a small kitten and it was retrieved and taken home. Its size suggested it was not much older than the four-week old kittens the farm cat had stashed in the woodshed and the new resident quickly joined in the meal time pleasures being practised by her new-found playmates. While small kittens are at times known to roam, there is considerable doubt that it had decided to strike out that far on its own. That a mother cat would permit such a venture, is also open to much conjecture. Of a higher degree of probability is that someone decided that the kitten was un- wanted, and rather than taking the time and effort to find a suitable home or even a merciful death, the black ball of fur was ejected from a car to fend for itself. That, of course, would be next to im- possible for such a mite at the best of times and of insurmountable odds in the early fall. In short, it had been left to face the cruel death of cold and hunger. . . The incident may not be worthy of any more than passing comment in the minds of some, but it took on more significance when I was rudely disturbedduring an ex- citing football play this week when another small, black object waved its tail in front of the TV. This new arrival came with a tale of be- ing found in the dense, damp confines of Ilay swamp by number three son and his BATT'N AROUND with the editor 1 cousin while they were out on an other- wise uneventful hunting expedition. For some reason number three son talk- ed number two into looking after the crit- ter, now better known as Pogo. The location of Pogo's discovery leaves no room for consideration that she had strayed from home. Her age has been guesstimated at four or five weeks so there is little doubt that she too was left to face the cruel death of cold and hunger by someone who should end up getting the same in return. . . The new owners neither need, nor par- ticularly want, their respective guests, although the pets have been given royal welcomes and will probably end up either staying or being provided with some other suitable accommodation. Obviously, both have been given reprieves from the deaths that they avoid- ed through being in the right place at the ;ht time, and having overcome those ds, they certainly deserve to live out their new-found lives with no more than ri the normal perils faced by their counter- parts in this fast paced world. That probably won't cause any deep sigh of relief from the original owners. It must be imagined that anyone who could perpetrate such a cruel and thoughtless deed has not had occasion to feel any remorse. That's what makes the situation so pathetic. . . • . • . That the writer has personally en- countered two such incidents in a short time span leads to pondering the question of just how wide -spread the problem may be. Of course, the thought has not escaped that both the kitten and pup were aban- doned along with countless of their litter mates, and were left to wander about with the growing number of pets pushed from cars in some sparsely populated area. While the agony to be .faced by these creatures is best not left to the imagina- tion, there is also the problem that arises with the hundreds of pets that manage to survive and become costly nisuances and even dangerous to other pets, livestock or humans. That makes the crime of abandonment even more difficult to comprehend as it is accompanied by the frightening in- crease in rabiesand the highly destructive attacks on livestock by former pets that have no other choice in their search for sustenance. The unconscionable act may not measure up to the horrifyingk statistics related to violent crimes, child abuse and the like, but it is perhaps symptomatic of a society that appears to be declining in its general assessment of right and wrong. Abandoning pets may not be among the most severe atrocities, but one wonders what other acts are possible from those who have such a callous regard for a small creature's suffering. ter "Arnie decided to make a pre-emptive strike at the postal service." Great month for males Despite the lousy weather, this was a great September for Canadian males. That is, if you happened to be a rocking -chair jock, a Monday morning quarterback, or an arm- chair analyst of sports. Everything came together, to the dismay of the ladies who happen to like game shows, soap operas, or good, old- fashioned movies that make you laugh and cry to the point where you don't know which you are doing with the tears running down. It was the epitome of ex- cellence for us old athletes who didn't make the big- time and the big money because we skated on our ankles, couldn't throw a wobbly pass twenty feet, and whiffed at the plate with the count three and two and the winning run on third base. CFL heading for the Grey Cup. World Series in the offing. Canada Cup in hockey, with many a mut- tered curse about cheap penalties against the Russians. And sandwiched in bet- ween, some great tennis, golf, Grand Prix races with guys doing cart- wheels in their dinky toy cars. American football, which I abhor because of the histrionics of the guys who score a touchdown because of their histrionics. And then, of course, Pope -watching. After wat- ching the Pope in action, it's going to be difficult to get up for the Queen's visit. The general result of all this sports activities, for the chap with his gut hang- ing over his belt, but fire within it, is a plethora of uncut lawns, also unrak- ed, undone chores, unat- tended business, and un- shaved whiskers. Wives became hewers of hamburg and drawers Sugar and Spice Dispensed By Smiley of beer, in the good, old Canadian tradition. Never mind that your favorite team lost practically everything. You still felt your heart thumping, almost dangerously, when the Canadian team was tied by the Americans, swamped by the Swedes, and ruined by the Russkies. They were still "our boys", and we still believe in miracles, which is not a bad thing for a nation. In our favor, we ignored the facts that the Blue Jays couldn't have caught the Yankees with a lasso and a couple of highly - bred quarter horses, that our hockey team, with no less than twelve Grey- Cuppers on it, would be lucky to tie Italy, that the local Pee -wee team lost 18-4 in their final game, we were right there with them, cheering every boo- hoo, waxing wild with every hit, pass or goal. One thing you must say about Canadians. We're good losers. We've learn- ed to be. I remember talking to a charming chap from Mon- treal about eight years ago, on a trip to Europe. "Itw come", I asked, "t ontreal has a good football team ( Les Allouettes), a good baseball team (Expos) and a great hockey team (Les Canadiens, in their glory days), and Toronto has the worst football team (Argos), worst baseball team (Blue Jays) and almost worst hockey team (Maple Leafs? )" He assured me that it was only a matter of time. He was right. Thanks to massive injections of Americans, the Blue Jays and Argos are respec- table, the Maple Leafs still fourth -rate. That's enough about sports. I'm sure my lady readers are bored silly. They are much more in- terested in the real things of life: who had a baby, who died and why and how, when is that grump going to get out of that chair and stop watching that box, what'll i give him (that's portable) for supper? But then, thank goodness, came along Pope -watching. This is almost as good as wat- ching the Queen, and a lot more important to many people than watching foot- ball or whatever. I could have been in the front row, if I'd wanted to exaggerate my arthritic foot, get some crutches, don some dark glasses and hire a seeing -eye-dog. But I thought that would be a bit much. I could have gone to the big mass by driving four miles from town and taken a shuttle bus, and arrived the night before if I wanted standing room. I thought that, too, would be a bit much. Especially because it promised rain. I can go there any day in the rain. Heck with it. I'll watch it on TV, provided there isn't an especially ex- citing game on TV, which there won't be because the Papal Visit seemed to have cornered the market on the tube. And no wonder. He is a man of terrific presence, with a great sense of the dramatic, as befits a one- time actor, a dedication that allows for no ques- tions, and a feeling for the poor and underprivileged that makes one, for a few moments, at least, feel like a fat, overprivileged slob. At least the sports and the Pope crowded politics off the front pages. A mat- ter of deep, almost religious thanks. Only thing I fault the Pope for is that he didn't offer a special prayer for Team Canada against the atheistic Russians. That would have been a nice gesture, and he'd pro- bably have doubled his Canadian fold. Grab thing -a -ma -jigs 1 must admit that when it comes to times of emergency that lam able to always come through with a perfectly cool head. If you believe that you'll believe that the present gas war will last over the next holiday weekend. For example take the night when it was the first really cool evening of the fall, We decided that it would be nice to light the fireplace up with a cozy fire. No problem. Out to the garage for the last few sticks of wood left over from last year's trip to the bush. Hmmn. Have to do something about that shortly. There's a real knack to building a Fre quickly. All you have to have is forty matches, a huge stack of out -of date London Free sparking coals fly out over the hearth, one on the rug, one on the plastic bag which I had put under the Perspectives By Syd Fletcher Press papers, and a large supply of patience. And Geronimo. There it goes. And goes out when you turn your back. Nope. Some good coals still there. Throw on the last piece of wood. Bang! Three large red - neat cloth wood carrier my daughter gave me for Christmas, and one more on the neat cloth wood carrier. "Quick, get the thing -a - ma -jig out of the closet!" i holler at my wife. "What thing -a -ma -jig!" I flip the one coal off the rug burning my right in- dex finger. "Put the hag in the sink ... the shovel's in the closet." The second coal burns a nice little brown spot in the wood carrier. The lit- tle devil that decorated my finger has decided to cool down now though i doubt that the rug will ever be quite the same. My wife puts the plastic bag in the sink. It will not likely hold much water in the future. She is mutter- ing sweet nothings about thing -a -ma -jigs. There's something about a cozy fire that just makes you want to curl up in front of it.