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Whitby Free Press, 1 Dec 1976, p. 7

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'-1 ~ 'i WHITBY FREE PRESS, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBEIR 1, 1976, PAGE 7 It's flot uncommon for foreigners comning to this country, to either visit or live, to brand ail of us as "Americans". At first glance, l'mn sure we ail ap)pear the saine but 1 believe most Canadians resent being referred to as "Americans". The fact is the lifestyle is different even if the differences are sometimeU subtie. 1 spent some tirne living in the U.S. when I was y0oung su. for a briet' period, 1 got an insight as to howv Arnericans live from day to day. The différenices in lifestyle camne flooding back to me the other night as 1 sat outside the front dloor of a school une evening waiting to meet a friend. Filing past me by the dozens were people with that look of an intent to learn as they hurried iu to nighit schnol ciass. Looking at their faces remninded mie of the past. miy period in the U.S. and wvhat these people mighit be doing to occupy their time on a wveek night if they [Kalni*ns On.j The American presidential election is over and, as %ve know, Jimmy Carter wvon over the incumibent U.S.ý, President Gerald Ford. These presidential elections south of the border cannot be ignored by Canadians as «e depend su much on the U.S. ecunomy and their political way of life. It is a-fact of life-if the U.S. suffers fromn unem loyment, inflation and other econumic dis, wc (Canadi ans) imimediately feel the pinch. 0f late, many peuple have asked me how 1 feel about Jimmy Carter and, of course, the rnost ubviuus question- why Gerry Ford lost this highiy important election. First of a*il. 1 think. Upr-ild Ford was a better were American. Many of tbem would stili be enroiled in night school but a great number wouid be gathering in a "local" bar for a few drinks and some companionship. A lot more of them would be home watching tv and a very insignificant number of themi would be fixing-up around the house. In Canada, 1 believe we have a greâter urge to attend night schiool to iearn, we watch more educationai programs on tv and we are really caught up in the fix-it-yourself craze. H-owever, on the negative side before you get to smug about being a Canadian, we are also rotten gamblers and even worse at making good investments. Our pariamentary systemn is nu great shakes either but at least we don't have any Watergates although we did have a Harbourgate in Hamilton. For some years now, 1 have been teaching Scuba at night school but the other night, watching ail those dedicated people file into school, i was also taken back to the days when 1 attended night schooi, flot as a teacher but as a student. Even then, the variety of courses of staggering. You could take such oddities as: belly dancing, accounting, oriental cooking, welding, mechanics for wornen, how to buy a hose, lariguages incliuding Russian and Yiddish, w riting, typing, painting, speed reading and even public speaking. The way things are today it appears yuu can take a night schuol class un juist about any topic you ,nay be interested in learning abouit. As for the learning process, 1 think 1 hacl more fun as a stLldent than as a teacher. 1 fondly look back to the days when 1 attended nighit schuol iu Toronto. 1 had tu (drive to Toronto because the courses weren't offered locally. Twice a week 1 would rush home fromn work and hurriedly- presidential candidate, but lie made a lut of big mnistakes. The biggest mistake was his foolishi remnarks about Easteril European countries, implying that peuple frum these counitries miight as weil forget about thieir life-lung aspira- tions for freedomi. Despite the following "correction of views", Ford knew th.at hie had hust a lot of votes-muostly froin peuple 'vho oppose tyranny and Cumimunist ruhe. Then, there wvere a numiber of other things that hurt hlmi badly. Mlary peuple could nut vote' for Gerry Ford because of his purîtýitical views un life, and his generally grey, straighit-laced, colorless image. 1 wunder if hie made a wise miove by l'iring une of'is campaign managers, only because ut une tinie lie liud been involved lu sex meivie produiction on a very amlateuir busis. Most Anmericans du not ger Liptigh t about sex, unless they happen to live ln sm-all towns or corne from hlghiy religlous states. Thien,e'ne iighit say, Jimnmy Carter sheuld hiave lost the race because. ufter ail, hie's a religlous man. 1le would have iiothing Io do withi sex. Well. lie surprised everyune. Môstly by what hie said lu thie Pluyboy magazine. Quite upenly, hie 4dinit ted thuat lu bis heuart hie'd lusted ufter miany wumen. That. ln my opinion, wvas a very honest .tatemn t. Because of bis remiarks, peuple did not picture m prepare something which 1 couid eat in the car on the way to Toronto. On arrivai, i would have to search for blocks before finding a parking space and then make a mad rush to get to class'on time. 1 was taking photography and French, Tbe'pbotography teacher was one of Canada's best bird photographers (the kind of bird that bas feathers - not the kind that wears bikinis). The photography was fascinating but the French course was also rather odd. 1 was the oniy maie in the class of 1 5. It didn't start that way but the other two guys dropped out ieaving me alone to listen each night to the ladies discussing their favourite recipes and new sewing patterns they had discovered in the catalogue. At first, 1 felt very conspicubus being the oniy beard in a sea' of hules but eventually i got used to it. The teacher was a very lovely iooking lady and, as French is a roman tic laqguage, of course, 1 feul in love with ber. More so, 1 feIl in love with the language and she taugbt me well. 1 feit very smiug a year ago on my first trip to Europe being able to make my way around Paris witb very littie difficuity. Everything I had iearned about the language just dropped into place and suddenly i was speaking in another tongue and making myseif understood. As a resuit, 1 was able to iearn far more of the history 'of the city by talking to the locals. Had 1 been unilinguai, 1 would have depended on the tourist ýguides and Engiish signs. Su, as 1 sat there the other night watcbing the students file intu school, 1 fondly looked back and said to myself that, if 1 ever get enuugh time away from teaching night schoui, i wouid sure like to go back as a student. himii as some sort uf'sex maniac, dirty-old man, decadent, etc. iHe spuke the truth, and Americans loved it. Basically, Jimmy Carter's victory is understandable. He did nut inherit the Watergate probiems nor had he been invulved in any form of scandais that couid have tarnisbed his pulitical carter. At the time of his presidential camipaign, Jimmy was a clean-cut, small-town American boy whu stands for ail the good things in life. His own sinmpiicity went over very big. Political observers are somnewha t worrîed about Carter's political inexperience but, 1 think, time will mnake Jimmy Carter a pretty good U.S. president. There is une thing 1 aiready like 'about the newly- elected president; his determination to create more jobs. At the present timne, seve'n million Americans are out of wurk. It is,.almuist a national calamity. Something-must be dune. And, Jimrny Carter has said that he'll do everything in his power to miake America a more prosperous nation. That mneans providing mure jobs, perhaps, at the expense of re(iLlcing taxes. 1 can only hope that our uwn Prime Minister is taking, note of &ijrter's domiestic policies. Su far, I'm pleased with Car ter's performance. 1 swear that what yuu are about to read is t rue. This 15 inside news, officiai and direct frum Dawson City, Yukon Territory, 1976. As of the ast census, our officiaI number of residents is 822. Back lu 1849, it was the teeming thousands -. ut the time of the worhd famous Kondike gold rush. Millions of dollars worth of gohd were taken fromn our neck of the woods. Dawson today stands as a monument to thuse old days of the'sourdougli boys. Why, we even h:îJ, a greai Canadian born here, Ile famous or infamnous (whlichiever way yoti 5ee hlmi) Pierre Berton. l i nther spent many years here as a teacher and a fine lady she %vas tue. Noew here's somne of the goings on during the past several weekàs We've expcrienced un Indian sommiier us neyer before.',,. Fiowers *gurden vege table'. continuieclte produce untîl lfate September, and the t rees stili bore their FuI I celours a t t huat ime. Twenty-five hyads of fureign missions tuured Duwson during Septemlbei'. as part of their two-day Yumkon tour. Thle Iust evening was conipleted wvîth the groiup attending a pc-rfG;imaniice (ifXtýthc Gaslight Feles. The uisuiaiIust nigh! Ilijinks wvent on.' A standing ovation ut the final curtain filled eyes tu brimming on the part of the cast dnd audience us they bld the seusun farewell. Most hutrried over t'O Diamond Tooth Gerties for a last fling ut the gaming tables. The flinal cancan hune appeared with blackened teeth and overallý as Andrea Davidson appeared amiong their nipnbers. Vicki Hermlan acted as Gertie. Run Basford, Minister of Justice, was in Dawson only a few weeks ago to witness court proceedings. The une triai case hiad Soi Frornkin, Director of Criminai Law of Ottawa, prusecuting. (Pretty big gun for this two-horse town!) City Council News: The National Gold Study Commiiittee, imade up of communities whose primary incomle is based on the mining of gold, has been reactivated due to the slumip of guld prices. The Committee is making representation tu the Federal -Goverument to stabilize prices at an econoinic level to make it feasable to mine. Inside -News: Congratulations to Bill "Shebango" Kryshewski on his winning the Yukon Poker Tournament after a ten-day running game at Diamond Tooth Gerties. The amnount he won is kept strictiy confidentiai but he was presented with a handsome trophy by Andrea Davidson. The Museum Suciety received a pleasant surprise when Cont'd on P. 8 NORTHWARD ELECT-1' Woodward AS YOUR FULL-TIME COU NCILLQR For any further details or information as Io voting locations and transportation, etc., please cal- 655-4525. DO UT YOURSELF HOME INSULATION SPECIAL $2,e45 BAtG MITCHELL BROTHERS Building Supplies Ltd. Broolin. 655- 4991 Hearing is belioving doesn't sound speaker system. 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