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Zurich Citizens News, 1973-10-18, Page 4PAGE 4 ZURICH CITIZENS NEWS Scheeling -How early? More than 40 years ago, the late Dr. W.E. Blatz, most prominent Canadian child psychologist of the thirties, predicted that "within 50 years, children will be in school at the age of two years." That prophesy is close to fulfilment, with the almost phenomenal increase in the number of nursery, day care and pre -kindergarten facilities now available for children. Dr. Blatz at the time emphasized that "the period from two to five years of age is possibly the most important for the form- ative training of the child's character." More recent research in the field of child psychology has indicated that even very young children are capable of learning a great deal more than was ever thought possible. More and more it is realized that many deprived homes fail to provide the necessary stimulation -- if their children are to reach a level of intelligence and social adaption which will enable them to compete more effectively in our highly competitive society. More than 40 years ago, Dr. Blatz predicted that the cost for such a wholesale "School Age at Two" program would double the expenditure on education within 50 years. For many differ- ent reasons, we' ve reached that point all ready. Yet it would be unwise to pare the educational budget where the right to pre- kindergarten training would be denied to those children who definitely require it. One reasonable way out remains --namely that fees for pre- kindergarten schooling be charged on the basis of total family income. Even today, that policy is followed in a number of tax - supported day-care centres. If more generally applied, it would mean that those parents who want and who can afford this train- ing for their children would pay for it --those with lower incomes would pay less. (contributed) A lei, e ride! Anyone who has been shopping lately doesn't have to be told how prices are steadily climbing for all types of merchandise. The most common complaints are about food and children's necessities. But that's only because people are anxious to pound home the fact that high prices have struck even the most basic needs. It is to ward off any insinuations that society today is kept poor buying services and commodities for which it has no real use. When workers vote to strike for more money their cry is that the cost of living is increasing faster than their pay checks. They lament over the spiralling cost of basic needs like foot and clothes and rent and utilities. Their argument sounds fair. Their demands appear just. But when the surface excuses are stripped away, it is surpris- ing the numbers of times that food budgets are actually cut to permit payments on a color television; or clothing accounts are truly tightened to finance a holiday. Society willingly swamps necessities for luxuries and has it- self so thoroughly confused it is no longer able to differentiate between the two groups. Modern living results in over spending. Like an infection, greed for more and more of anything new and up-to-date has spread over the land until it now is strangling the whole of society. Ask the employer what's happening. He'll tell you the aver- age worker expects moremoney than ever before in history -- and at the same time is ready to expend far less energy to earn it. The reason? What's the use of a camping trailer and no time to enjoy it? Why have a snowmobile and not enough hours to run it around? Yes, the prices are steadily climbing and it isn't difficult to see why. The trick is convincing society to get off themerry- go-round that is affording such a lovely ride. (Goderich Signal Star) ZURICH Citizens NEWS PRINTED BY SOUTH HURON PUBLISHERS LIMITED, ZURICH HERE TURKHEIM, Publisher Second Class Mail Registration Number 1385,�0.y Itie Member: • twill • Canadian Weekly. Newspapers Association1 Ontario Weakly Newspapers Association ,►!t Subscription Rates: $5,00 per year in advance in Canada; $G.00 in United States and Foreign; single copies 15¢ THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 1973 IT'S TOUGH TO BE MIDDLE CLASS My daughter Kim and her husband are having a tough time these days. He's starting a post- graduate course at university, and she's well into an under- graduate course in advanced pregnancy. But that's not what's tough. Those things are normal, excit- ing, and even joyful. It's the eternal problem for students, and for most of the rest of us, of money, scarcity of. At first, I was inclined to scoff. "Ah! You kids!.. You don't know what it's like to be hard up. You get all those grants and loans. Why, when your mother and I. . blah blah Not that they're going to starve. They do get just enough to get by. But when you're young and impatient and have been spoiled in a middle-class home with most of the amenit- ies, you get a little sick of "getting by . " You's like to buy an occas- ional roast, instead of trying to think of another method of making a delicious hamburg dish. In fact, at today's prices, you can't even afford hamburg too often. You'd like to go to a show once in a while, or have a party, or have the clothes to go to someone else's party. But there just isn't anything in the budget for these fairly simple pleasures. You's like to have a car, like most normal people, an d be able to drive into the country or visit friends, or go home for a weekend and have some decent foot from the old folks' groaning board. Can't afford it. You's like to have colour TV, or even black and white, but there are no funds. You'd like some new, warm winter clothes, .but you have to make do with last year's five-year-old shabby dufflecoat, and last year's leak- ing boots. If you'r pregnant, you'd like to start making a nest, fixing up a home. But on the rent you can afford, you wind up in a crumby flat where you share the bathroom and the stove doesn't work and the decorating is in puke colour and the thermometer never goes higher than 65. It can all be pretty depress- ing unless you have plenty of physical and mental fortitude. There's love, of course, to fall back on. But from what I've seen in my day, love flourishes a lot better when there's some bread on the table and some bread in your wallet. My wife and I went through the whole bit, but I can't help feeling more pity for today's young couples than I ever felt for us. First of all, we were prod- ucts of the depression, and didn't expect much. When we did get a little windfall, we counted our blessings and promptly went out and spent them. I remember the time one of my` uncles dies intestate. By A draftee claimed exemption on the grounds of poor eyesight, and he brought along his wife to prove it. the time the estate had been cut up among the numerous nieces and nephews, we got something like $102.50. It was manna from heaven. We went straight out and bought a radio, a case of beer, a bunch of stuff at the delicat- essen, and had a party. To heck with tomorrow or next week. But I must admit that life was a lot simpler then, and a great deal cheaper. We had a child, and we got more pleas- ure out of him than we would have from colour TV, a pent- house apartment, and a Cadil- lac. We had a furnished flat in one of the grimmer sections of the city. Shared the bathroom. Furniture was Salvation Army specials. But my wife redecor- ated the place, and it had two entrances and a backyard with real trees and grass. It cost $15 a week. Furnished. Today you can scarcely rent one room for that. We had a total income of about $130 a month. That covered rent, food, clothes, transportation. About once a month we'd have a real blowout. Baby-sitter (75¢); movies (75¢ each); half a dozen cokes (36¢) and a bag of peanuts (15¢). Wow! That's living. We weren't bored, or desper- ate. We talked, read, studied, listened to the radio, gloated over our child. Holidays, I worked in the post office or in a factory, to pick up a few extra bucks. Smokes were roll -your -owns. It wasn't bad, but I used to get mighty sick of never having a dollar that didn't have a slot waiting to gulp it. I've never been sorry that my plans for post -graduate work and three or four more years of pov- erty went up in flames and I was tossed by accident into the hurly-burly of the newspaper business. ,Today's students work hard at dull summer jobs, save every nickel, get grants, but have to scrape on the edge of poverty and shabbiness. 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