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The Goderich Signal-Star, 1981-11-18, Page 4PAGE 4—GODERICH SXGNAL STAR, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18,18$1 DAVE SYKES eee eee • • r`1 My simple cerebralapparatus has dhf- ficulty grasping complex matters of an economic nature at thebest of times. It's quite easy to play armchair economist and finance minister when a new:financial document or budget is tossed to the masses from the dizzying heights of the House of Commons. Most people are content to shrug off the complexities of government srategy as inefficency. Unless there are ample tax concessions for the average guy, budgets are a waste of time. It's an understandible approach, unless the government consents to lower income tax deducted frum pay "slips, the document is relatively useless. Why since the finance minister knocked the beejeepers out of income tax loopholes, my financial status is shaky and suspect. Budgetsdo little more than perpetrate idle chatter and supposition. Everyone seems to have the answer to the country's malaise but the finance minister. Why doesn't anybody phone the dude and OR him In on sensible and stable. economic polka& To be honest, though, I wouldn't want the job for anything, even if it means a new pair of shoes on the expense account. Take Reaganomics for example. The President's economic policy aren't going over too well and the popularity of the Bonzo movie man is deteriorating rapidly. It's difficult to ask the populace to bite the bullet and endure while incidental expenses at the White House add up to millions. Reagan even rationalized, on television, the thousands of dollars spent by the missus on new dinner ware. It just so happens that the Reagens couldn't properly set the table while en- tertaining and the American public would gladly splurge for a new table setting. The story did tug at the heart strings. The White House itself must be worth millions of dollars. Naturally, every first lady must spruce up the place in a suitable manner and decor but Mrs. Reagan managed to get rid of over $1 million for wallpaper and few coats of paint. Any sensible American would ask that the job be retendered. The quote could be brought down to an acceptable, say, $800,000 or so. It might help to ease the pain a little. It's all part of the economic game and those that have get. Surely, anyone can sympathize with Mrs. Reagan, not having decent dinnerware for guestsand having to rearrange the decorating preferences of Mrs. Carter. Governments can spend money faster than a lawyer can find loopholes in the in- come tax system, if there are any left. Another issue of a vague economic nature that is intriguing, involves the price war between major grocery chains. One chain slashes prices on a host of selected items and everyone follows suit with price cuts that send.consumers into fainting spells. Notv''these chains made no claims that they would be in a financial bind as a result of drastic reduction in prices. So, one must assume, they are able to "'make a living despite sale prices. Consumers are always suspect of such gimmicks and price war tactics, believing the stores make up the difference elsewhere, namely on other products. Now if only the major lending institutions would engage in an interest war, consumers could rush out to bargain for needless loans to purchase needless goods for the house `k they can't afford. But, as advocated from the top, economic matters elude this correspondent's high school math mentality. I am quick, however, at ciphering my expense report and income tax deductions. A 3i UE RIBBON AWARD SINCE 1848 THE .NEWS PORT FOR GODERICH & DISTRICT founded 1n 1840 and published every Wednesday et Goderich, Ontario. Member of the CCNA and OWNA. Adver- tising rates on request. Subscriptions payable In advance '10.00 In Canada, '33.00 to U.S.A., '33.00 to all other coun- tries. single copies 30'. Display advertising rates available on request. Please ask for gate. Card No. 11 effective Oc- tober 1. 1441..Sacrd dam mail Registration Number 0710. Advertising is accepted on the condition that 1n the event of typographical error. the advertising space occupied by the erroneous Nem, together with reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged ,for but that balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the ap- plicable rata. to the event of o typographical error advertising goods or services at a wrong price. goods or services may not be sold. Advertising Is merely an offer to sell, and may bo withdrawn at any time. The Signal -Star Is not responsible for the tailor damage of unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other materials used for reproducing pus. poses. PUBLISHED BY:SIGNAL-STAR PUBLISHING LIMITED Second chits mail keglstrotipn number.O71.6 ROBERT G. SHRIER-President and Publisher DONALD M. HUBICK-Advertising Manager DAVID SYKES-Editor P.Q. BOX 220. HUCK INS, ST. INDUSTRIAL PARK GODERICH N7A 4B6 f-Saeviat s\G BUSIES OR EDITORIAL OFFICES please; phone (519) 524-8331 A e ullet Finance 'Minister Alan MacEachen has asked .Canadiat&t.:bite the bullet in his. federal,budget. and the n fight against inflation was obviously his 'number one concelrn. The budget was rather conservative in nature, waging an attack on inflation, that will require higher interest rates, White M*F hen tried to conitutceCanadiansll the iich wtlikOit y°'the liiilk of the tax b1fdeff. If Canadians}: were seeking relief from high interest rates and.imifflation, MacEachen's economic tactics were only acceptable under the guise that a revamped tax system would take fromthe rich and give to the Boor. His aim is to pare down the federal deficit, but gradually. What the budget has successfully done is to remove or at least revamp major personal tax loopholes and give back some of that money in the form of reductions to middle- income Canadian& It's the kindof approach most Canadians can live with. Taking from the rich and giving, to lower income workers.. - MacEachen offered some relief to desperate homeowners,. small business and farmers but not to the extent that people had hoped for. He has committed $400 million from now .to April 1984 to encourage the developinent of rental housing, help homeowners having trouble, renewing their mortgage and aid farmers in distress. , Unemployment insurance premiums paid both by the employee and employer have been reduced and federal transfer payments to the provinces have been cut, to generate an extra $5.7 billion over five years. However, unemployment is expected' to remain at a relatively high level, 7.8 per cent, over the next six years, W4ile average wages and salaries,wtll not rise at current' rates; Inflation is expected tt'be near•4:he 10 per centleiel. ` fi}ie a was 11 rieasut of give std take inthe budget, but it didn't apply to the, banking scene and MacEachen simply urged the lending institutions to "do more" to help • borrowers in trouble. The thought is there, • but borrowers will just have to wait for results. Homeowners were granted a mortgage interest deferral scheme from September . 1, 1981 to November, 1982. Builders of rental units will be inline for interest free loans and for businessmen and farmers, there is an ex- tension of the Small. Business Loan Development Bond program. Basically, the tone of the budget was restraint especially in government spending, and licking inflation through conservative measures. There was little to stimulate employment, but MacEachen believes that a serious attack on inflation will eventually initiate employment opportunities.: It's a long hard climb and the little guy's optimism is only buoyed by the fact the havesmay have to pay a fair share. D.S. Quality of life is high Are you satisfied with the quality of Canadian life? Admittedly, inflated prices and high interest and mortgage rates have kicked a few dents into the ac- customed lifestyle enjoyed by Canadians, but on a com- parative basis, Canadians don't have a great deal to com- plain about. According to the Quality of Life Index, Sweden is the best country in which to live while Canada managed arneagre seventh on the global index. The index rates countries on a scale of 1 to 100 and the factors used to determine the rating include; infant mortality, life expectancy and literacy. Economic measures such as taxes, income and housing were not used as factors in the rating. Sweden rated a 97 on the scale that was developed by the Overseas Development Council. Even countries such as Denmark, Japan. Iceland, the Netherlands and Norway ranked higher than Canada with scores of 96. While Canada and Switzerland were rated on a par they did outscore such countries as the United States, Britain, Finland and France. If certain economic measures were used in the indexing process, certainly it would also serve to indicate that Canadians are among the most prosperous, although not the most productive nations in the world. While our quality of life may rate highly on a global comparison, the index does little to alleviate the reality of unemployment, high rates on loans and mortgages and inflation. But there can always be a measure of consolation in the fact that many are much worse off. D.S. Hanging on Photo by Cath Wooden DEAR READERS SHIRLEY KELLER At the eleventh hour ci the eleventh day of the eleventh month of every year, thousands of people remember the men and women who fought in two world wars to .keep our country free. Some people get very emotional about Remembrance Day. But their numbers are getting fewer and fewer all the time. That's probably because it is very difficult to keep such memories alive in a society where war and the ravages of war are only as real as the movie - makers can portray them on the screen. While I was in Holland recently, the reality of war was brought home to me in a dramatic fashion. I visited Arnhem on the Rhine River, the scene of Operation Market. Garden during the Second World War. ' As I understand it, the object of that battle was to take the bridge at Arnhem. Allied forces in- tended to put the squeeze on the Germans by dropping paratroopers in behind the enemy whileat the same time advancing across the bridge against the enemy. It was a fierce encounter, in which hundreds of Allied troops, including many Canadians, lost their lives: The bridge at Arnhem was destroyed but the Germans still held the territory when the smoke had cleared that day in September,1945. Arnhem today has little visible evidence to attest to this sickening slaughter. It is a beautiful city, with tree -lined streets and peaceful, progressive neighborhoods. But there are reminders. One of these is a cemetery where rows and rows of tombstones silently give evidence of the uselessness of war. It was dusk when I visited the cemetery. The weather was damp and cold, adding to the gloom. I wandered around reading epitaphs. Usually name, age, rank, sometimes battalion. Occasionally the simple identification: Soldier. I was numbed by the terrible testimony -I found there. ' And I was drawn away from today and back into- history. I seemed to hear the roar of airplanes overhead and the sound of heavy ar- tillery across the river. I imagined the screams of dying men and I thought I could smell the stench of dead bodies waiting to be buried here. You can say I was over -reacting. I may even agree with you to some degree. But my companion was a woman who remembered the battle at Arnhem. She had been there. Arnhem is her hometown. And suddenly I understood that war is more than soldiers dying and buildings blown apart. I began to comprehend for the very first time that what comes after the winners have been declared, is what really takes courage and determination. My companion was an ordinary person with very ordinary ambitions who lived in an or- dinary house and pursued ordinary activities. By a turn of fate, her street became a battleground and her world turned upside down. She was whisked away from everything she knew and loved. She became an evacuated person - and when she returned to Arnhem about a year later, she was a different woman with different ambitions and different priorities. Picking up the shattered pieces of a home and a job and a community and a life doesn't sound easy. But I wondered if anyone can really comprehend what it means in day to day har- dships unless you've been there. I really hadn't considered that aspectof war very much. And I doubt that many others had either. The tendency for folks like me in North America was to rejoice because the fighting had ceased and to fall back into the old, comfortable pattern of pre-war living in a land where most things were the same as before. But for my friend, it was a nightmare. A home blown to bits. A community without Services or money or food. Only rubble and poverty. More than just starting over. As I turned over in my hands the few pieces of silverware she still keeps as a daily reminder of. the way she had to scrounge for the barest necessities from the welfare agencies of those days, I sensed the real horror of war. It isn't the death of young men and women, although that is tragic. It isn't the destruction of property, or even the unrooting of people's lives, although that is despicable. It is thq frightening fact that while wars can be brought to an end, the seed that causes wars is forever in the hearts of greedy men and women. It could take root tomorrow. And that is why it is imperative that we never allow future generations to forget to remember. Everybody hide. If you know what is good for you, you will buy great quantities of canned beans and ge hide ori the Canadian Shield somewhere until it a 11 blows over: -Until- what blows over?" you ask, as the fear closes around you and grips the very cuticles of your fingernails. It's like this: yesterday, Uranus joined Neptune in the sign of Sagittarius. And we aft know what that means. It means cataclysmic, earth -shattering events are right around the corner. Neptune is characterized by "illusion, delusion and confusion" say aerologists, and Uranus means -sudden cataclysmic happenings " "There's something going on out there in the atmosphere; people don't have control of things," psychic Sandra Henry is reported to have said in the Toronto Star. Yeu'11 find a lot of people's lives are really cha‘.tir richt now: they don't know where they're going or what they're doing," a situation she predicts will continue for at least three months. Well, we can certainly identify with that now, can't we? I must say that Uranus and Neptune have picked a fine time to join forces. It's all we need! I'm no psychic, but it doesn't take a crystal ball to predict what might happen in this spinny world of ours thanks to the star co nfli go rations. For example, the planets might explain the Toronto Maple Leafs' earth -shattering win on Saturday night. If Ballard figures it out, we maysee astrologer Jean Dixon behind the Leaf bench in future games. I do hope Ronald Reagan is strong enough to resist the pull of the cosmic forces on his rationality. If the planets keep causing people like his budget director to say nasty things about him, he may be forced to take drastic m e a aures. i can finr...ee an announcement such as this, "Loyal Americans, this great country of ours has developed a weapon that could destroy the alliance of Uranus and Neptune. If the stars.and planets keep threatening the security of this great country of ours, I have no choice but to press the `let's blow em all up' button here by my jelly bean jar." I find the whole situation rather alarming. Even those closer to ' home are at the mercy of theolar system. Take the Huron County Board/of Education and its teachers - please. They have been trying to,negotiate, but everybody knows that negotiating is fruitless while Uranus and Neptune are joined in Sagittarius. I mean really, shouldn't they know better? Only the heavens know what they'll do to each other next. It's possible that the non - talking will give way to violence and the Board of Education office lawn will become the new Plains of Abraham. Teachers will be throwing chalk when they see the whites • of the trustees',e es, and trustees will stuff their vests with copies of Bill 82 for protection, shouting, "But we're poor! We're poor!" You have probably noticed 'the chaos building in your own life too. Perhaps you had an incredible urge to paint the $20 a sheet panelling in your rec room orange? Or maybe you backed over the neighbors' pink lawn flamingos with the car, just for a lark? You can take comfort in knowing that you aren't going loony, and it will all pass in a few months time. You aren't alone. The crime rate is way up this year in metro areas, especially in the last few weeks. It will do no harm to let off a little of that astrokogical steam, but don't carry it too far. Meaning, if yen get the urge to set fires, do it in your fireplace (make sure the draft is open). And if you have to eat macaroni and weiners once more this month, try not to get angry. You might lose control and bite a cow. CATH WOODEN