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The Goderich Signal-Star, 1985-06-19, Page 4PAGE 4 —GODERICH SIGNAi,STAR, V,V DNES As of today, Tuesday, June 18, the future of Frank Miller and his Conner fative government was in jeopardy. In fact, if any credence can be attached to news reports, Frank was out of a job as of 6 p.m. Now that's not entirely true, of course, because iii this weird and wonderful world of politics, one is never really out of work. Unemployment is a term politicans use to describe constituents without jobs. Politicians are never without 'jobs. If they happen to fall from the constituents' graces, odds are they could be in line for an appoint- ment of some description. The civil service tends to swallow up and hide several political also-rans. Parties tend to look after their own and reward the faithful. But for over 40 years, members of the Conservative party have been used to AY, JUNE10,198 DAVE. SYKES wandering over to the government side of the Legislature and plopping down in a chair of majority proportions. The rules of the game will have changed with David Peter- son and Bob Rae ganging up on poor Miller. Will the Tory members have to seek out the services of Legislature tour guides in order to find their seats in the opposition benches. Undoubtedly there will be some confusion during the first few weeks. And during the daily question period, how will these new opposition members react to life on the other side. Will they be at a comm plete loss and offer a terse "no comment." I have it on good authority that politicians are quick learners.. It should only be a mat- ter of days before the government of the day is grilled on its economic policies, the school funding issue and other salient business that governments tend to get involved with. And considering that his party has ruled the province for more than four decades it will be impossible for poor Frank Miller to stand tall in the Legislature, confront his political colleagues and berate the govern- ment with the standard opposition cry of, "Well, it's a fine mess you've gotten us in- to." It would seem that this Liberal -New Democrat coalition will change the rules of politics. The players will have to learn quickly. And probably out of force of habit, Miller and his cabinet associates will undoubtedly find' themselves wandering off to various remote regions of the province to cut rib- bons at car wash openings in Sudbury or health food store renovation projects in Dryden or Grassy Narrows. Old habits tend to die hard. Who will break it to Frank and Larry and Bette, that opposition members aren't usually in demand at such key provincial functions. By the same token, Liberal leader David Peterson will have to adjust to his new role. Liiberals, at least in Ontario, just aren't familiar with the nuances of the top job. The perks, for instance, are completely dif- ferent. And will Peterson fumble with the scissors unmercifully at his first car -wash ..opening or, gasp, even worse, cut himself in the act. We should be spared such embarassment. But the electorate. has spoken, well at least whimpered, and demanded change. Now we can only hope and trust that our politicians can respond to the new challenge. That they can overcome adversi- ty and adapt to new roles. Judging by recent newspaper reports, several neophyte politicians have had dif- ficulty finding apartments in Toronto. I'm not so sure we can trust them with the scissors yet. Opinion THE NEWS PORT FOR GODERICH & DISTRICT SINCE 1O48 oaeric SIGNAL -STAR EST ALL POUND COIWMUNKV Na W®PAPER IN CANADA IGrcubponclass 3500 45001C C ^, A Boccie Newspaper Compew+an 1964 P.O. BOX 220 HUCKINS ST. INDUSTRIAL PARK OODERICH, ONT. NTA 488 PUBLISHED BY: SIGNAL -STAR PUBLISHING LIMITED Founded in 1848 and published every Wednesday at Gederich, Ontario. Member of the CCNA and OCNA. Subscriptions payable in advance '20.85, Monier Citizens 97.95 privilege card number required) In Canada, '55. to U.S.A., '55. to all other countries, Single copies 50d. Display, National end Classified advertising rates available on request. Please eek for Rete Card No. 15 effective October 1, 1984. Advertising is accepted on the condition that in the event of a typographical error, the advertising space occ‘Pad by the erroneous item, together with reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for but that 'balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. In the event of a typographical error advertising goods or services et e wrong price, goods or services may not be sold. Advertising is merely an offer to sell, and may be withdrawn et any time. The Signal -Star ie not responsible for the loss or damage of unsolicited manuscript(, photos or other materials usedfnr reproducing purposes. President and Publisher Editor ROBERT G. SHRIER DAVE SYKES Advertising Manager DON HUBICK FOR BUSINESS OR EDITORIAL OFFICES...please phone [6191624-2814 Second class mail registration Member: number 071.6 8 A CCNA A legacy of justice in Huron Chief Judge F.C. Hays officiated at the swearing-in ceremony of Provincial Court Judge R. G. I Gary) Hunter Friday in Goderich and intimated that the court could look forward to many years of capable justice administration. His Honour Judge Hunter, at age 41, is the youngest man appointed to the bench in this area. He has ably acted as Crown Attorney for the past seven years, succeeding Judge William G. Cochrane who was appointed to the bench in 1977. Members of the Huron County Law Association, the Law Society of Upper Canada, the Provincial Judges Association and the Criminal Lawyers Association offered con- gratulatory messages to Judge Hunter and offered testimony to his integrity, tenacity and sense of fairness during his seven-year tenure as Crown Attorney. A graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School in 1974, Judge Hunter began his legal career as assistant crown attorney in the city of Windsor. After three years there, he accepted the crown attorney position in Goderich. The appointment, executed by an Order in Council was recommended by Attorney - General Robert Welch and approved by Lieutenant Governor John B. Aird, was effective May 8, 1985_ Judge Hunter follows a tradition of crown attorneys who have been appointed to the pro- vincial court bench and we trust , given his record over the past seven years, that his tenure as provincial court judge will be a most successful one. D.S. Improve the service Canadians are at least by now getting used to the notion that increases in postal rates are a regular fact of life. Now the Crown Corporation has applied to the federal cabinet to raise the cost of a first- class domestic stamp to 34 cents from 32 while letters to the United States and overseas will jump to 39 and 68 cents respectively. The increases would also extend to rates applied to small parcels, newspapers and periodicals and raise the special delivery rate. Rates would also increase for boxes, money orders, the fee for redirecting and holding mail and change of address cards ,which have tmcn-prcrvidted-freeof ch -rge, will -now besold for-34eerts--each- .- . _ _- ---... —__ Postal rates were increased in February, 1983 but Perrin Beatty, the minister responsible for the agency, says Canada Post needs the money if it is to eradicate its deficit by 1987, as per instructions from parliament. However, while Canadians have been asked to pay snore for postal service, Beatty has ad- mitted that service is suffering drastically because the rate of absenteeism in the -post office is running at twice that of private industry. Beatty suggested that only a minority were abusing the system and that the majority of Canada Post employees were conscientious. Cdnada Post has already printed up to 100 iiiilliuci of the new stanips ice arrticipattvrrof cabinet's approval. If Canadians could be guaranteed better service for the increase, there would be no arguments launched against Canada Post. D.S. Cloak of justice, By Dave. Sykes Sugar and Spice By Bill Smiley By the time this appears in print, I'll be - hold it now; don't faint; don't have a heart attack; it's not a suicide note; it's worse than•that---I'll-be-aSenior Citizen; What a moment. On the second of June, in the year of Our Lord 1985, in the reign of our sovereign, Elizabeth II, under the domain of a jumped-up Irishman, I shall be 65, and enter the golden years. Oh, yes, I'll be rich. The old age pension and the Canada Pension Plan will come flowing in, and at the end of a year, I'll pro- bably owe only $3,000 income tax on them. But. I'll be able to go to the movies at half - rate every second Tuesday. I'll be able to shop for groceries at five per cent off every third Thursday, as long as I have my birth certificate, passport, and driver's license handy. I'll be able to get on a bus, if there are no other passengers, at half-price. I've been waiting enviously for this. Many of my friends are senior citizens, and have joshed me jocularly about being so young. "Why don't you become a senior citizen'? It's great. Free medical care. Half price on However, i have -no regrets, except a few hundred. It's been a good life, and I'm ready to face my Maker, or even the President of the Senior Citizens Club, with a terrified face. I had a remarkably happy childhood, thanks to a kind, rather inarticulate lath*. who slapped my ear only once, and for very good reasons. I had a wonderful, warm mother, who onbeat me with a yardstick or fly -swatter when she was going out of her mind with my antics. My siblings were about as good as you come across, in the average lifetime. I loved sports and books. And girls. Played a fair game of football and baseball, lousy hockey. Read everything in the town library by the time I was fourteen. Fell in love, deeply, at least eighteen times. Wish I had a few of those old loves right now, to comfort me, like Kind David, and help out with their old age pensions. Wherever they are, i hope they're kissing their grandchildren, instead of me. I was a poor student in high school. Took shrouds. The hatred of the Yuppies, who seven years go get through. Not stupid. ,Just ads t Ail' .); teres ted, li.ke_ post t.her.itids--An had- fricnd of mine has a pass that enables him to a summer job, which began in April, which ride the transit system of his home city all didn't help. day, free. He hasn't done it yet, but it's pret- That summer job was one of the most tv intriguing, if you have nothing better ti gruelling, and happy, times of my life - Jo than ride buses. Worked my way up from night porter Mind you, I don't mind all these perks ( cleaning lavatories and polishing brass) to touring in, but there's a graver side. Rather day porter, doing same, to linen -man, Gon- d stiff pi oprrsiti-orr, as they -ally a-r'eu-nd-the - tr Allirrg all -tkre-lir>$A . an board - towels -- cemetery. You've used up most of your sheets, napkins, etc. A position of great three score and ten. power, possibly next to the captain and chief engineer.• Went to college, thanks to my principal. who discerned some light amid the murky depths. Almost failed my first dear. thanks to Sylvia, a beautiful Brazilian from Rio-. Went to war, thanks to the RCAF. Wasn't killed, as obvious. But was shot down and spent the rest of the war behind barbed wire. It wasn't bad. in retrospect. Hungry but not hopeless. Back to college. fairly sceptical, if not cynical. Met my true love. married her. and spent a year in the sanatorium, with suspected tuberculosis, while niy wife had a bun in the oven, as we crude and licentious soldiery used tosay. Graduated; somehow. in honour English. Fell Into the weekly newspaper business by accident (death of a brother-in-law). Spent 11 years there, learning the fascination of wedding and funeral reports. Switched,.inito high school teaching. learn- ing the fascination of 12iI jaws out of twenty . chewing gum, ruminating like cows. Retired at 63, to the great glee of in English staff, who i a ) thought 1 was senile lb.L.thought I_wasn'tls�ltglt people they didn't like; 1 c i thought there should be a firm hand at the tiller. Well, that's about it. By the way. this is not an obituary. That will he much grander. it's already written. It's just a brief history of an ordinary Canadian who stumbled from one pit -hole to anotlrec:_�ari�w it ntarriaiT• briantglrp two kids during the drug days, and trying to �I keep his head on straight. After tducars of getting nowhere, are Domtar, the Ministry of the Environment, and the Goderich Town Council going to be serious about eliminating the environmen- tal problem caused by the emissions from the mine's third shaft? Assurances of full co-operation have been floating in all direc- tions; after all that time some decisive ac- tion is in order. One can understand that among the overall business concerns of Domtar Chemicals Group the problem in question is so small as to be invisible: One does not fully understand, however, why the local management of the Sifto Salt Division does not actively correct this nagging situation that is probably just a small irritant on their scale. Allowing it to continue could leave the community with an impression of witness- ing a large corporation's indifference and insensitivity to public concerns, amidst general awareness of public money being used for corporate business improvements. I am even more unhappily puzzled about the part of the Ministry of the Environment is playing half-heartedly in all (this, and I must wonder what trust one could realistically place in its functions. Corpora- tions can afford to hire agents and specialists to represent their. side. Who speaks for the public? The unacceptable volumes of salt•° and grease emissions from the new shaft have been particularly detrimental to the municipal -marina area, causing' some loss of that business. Apart from providing public services at affordable prices to the local practicioners of the sport, municipal statistics show that 287 visiting boats brought 785 visitors to Goderich last sum- mer, a good figure to remember when we are talking about tourism promotion and publicity. I should hate to see this positive element damaged, because somebody does not live up to the respc nsibility of his or her position. Following private complaints and en- quiries there were meetings and letters between the town, the ministry and Domtar, always with assurances that the problem had been temporary and stands corrected. In reality things have not changed, as it was again established at a recent parks and waterfront committee meeting. The grease emission appears to be worse. The town officials set up a special meeting with Domtar representatives on December 19, 1984. Domtar spokesmen stated that "the grease problem was a one time event which was caused by inexperienced people greas- ing the hoist cable. "They further Stated that the cause of the salt emission had been identified and felt "that they have rectified the problem". i)orntar agreed to write to the committee with details of the remedies as wellas of their sampling procedures. Municipal files do not contain such a report. In reply to a letter in April this year, Dom- tar assured the town of "full co-operation in any matter concerning environment" and offered to participate in a monitoring pro- gram. It is nice to have such assurances, but nothing beats the real thing - action. The ministry officials who act only upon complaints do not appear to be overly keen in having the problem solved in public in- terest. Their credibility is not enhanced when they state that a staff member of the ELSA HAYDON marina was interviewed and reported that the salt problem had noticeably decreased over the past several weeks, as•in reality the staff member was a student helper who had only started to work at the marina and who claims that he made no such statement. The ministry has now notified the municipal office that "at this time we will not be carrying out an air monitoring pro- gram." The town officials have asked for a full meeting with all parties represented. The parties in question ought to realize that the pollution problem will not just disappear and the public concern and in- terest will not simply go away until definite steps, seriously taken, lead to an effective elimination of the offensive emissions. Right now we do not really know even whether the exce§sive visible accumulation is the whole problem or does this level of pullution contain any element that could be a potential health hazard. Who will tell for sure? Domtar is a major and valuable presence in Goderich harbour; it is a major incentive for the expansion. Domtar's importance as a major employer of Goderich and area workers is well appreciated. One hopes that the environmental officials and local authorities understand that all this is not in dispute and will continue in healthy goodwill after the company engineers and manage- ment have effectively corrected the pro- blem created in an area of public interest.