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+ 4 4 -- PORT PERRY STAR -- Tuesday, December 3, 1985 Editorial Comments Licence Photos In about three months, the province will start a program to put photos on the licences of all drivers in Ontario. Starting in February 1986, when an individual's driver's licence comes up for normal renewal, the new licence will contain a photo of the holder. Already there are complaints about the scheme by some who consider this an unnecssary invasion of privacy, and no doubt once the plan gets underway, some indignant soul is going to challenge the process in the courts. Remember when the mandatory seat belt laws were introduc- ed? There were several court challenges by persons who claimed the state does not have the right to force them to wear a seat belt. Photos on drivers licences are going to cost more, $21 for a three year renewal, and there likely will be a bit of inconvenience at issu- ing centres as people wait for the photo, etc. Tough. The fact of the matter is that having photos on the drivers licence is designed to help save lives. It will give police and law enforcement agencies an extra advantage in keeping the bad drivers and suspend- ed drivers off our streets and highways. How many times do we read in the press of court cases where a driver already under suspension either begged, borrowed or stole a licence and happily got behind the wheel of a car or truck. Photos on the drivers licence will not stamp this out completely, but it will help. And let's face it, when innocent people are being kill- ed on our highways, any reasonable step to prevent loss of life or serous injury 1s worthwhile. The word "reasonable" is the key In this issue. Requiring a photo on a drivers licence is a reasonable measure, just as photos on passports, visas, age of majority cards or student ID cards, are a reasonable measure. They are not asking for saliva tests, just a sim- ple photo to help prove that the person holding the drivers licence Is the person to whom it was issued. It's not an invasion of privacy, any more than a photo on a passport And it's hardly an innovation. Alberta, British Columbia and PEI drivers have their photos on their licences, as do all drivers in the United States We expect there will be a few whiners and sulkers who will cry and moan about the program. That's their nght But the rest of us have a few rights, too. And one of them 1s sater highways. free from those who have no nght to be behind the wheel of a car Paying For The Hangman There were a few raised eyebrows around Queens Park last week when the auditor revealed that the taxpayers of this province had paid about $20,000 to retain a hangman over the past eight years, despite the fact capital pumshment was banned by Ottawa in 1976 Just why the provincial government kept this guy on the public payroll was never made clear Maybe the province didn't want to lose him as he apparently had plenty of expenence plying his unusual trade He was first hired by Ontario back in 1953, and fitted the noose around the necks of two punks who were hanged in the Don Jail way back in 1962. the last ime the state has executed anyone in Ontario. [e] o o © o ° oo o © 0° Qo o °° o Oo 0 0 o (o] o o o o © oo o [+] © oo o © oo o WELL ITS WINTER DRIVING MODE TIME AGAIN cg -- PPCATTEN) PPS . S219 y, (Turn to page 6) LR ACT ARAL} Las M1 ARES EIERAY TN oO) ere Cn EE ACT LANE AE = La op A CR ERAT J PETER HVIDSTEN Member of the Pubhsher Canadian Community Newspaper Association ing Ontario Community Newspaper Association ising Manag Advert Ll Published every Tuesday by the Parr Perry Star Co 11D Part Perry Ontaro JB McCLELLAND Editor Author zed as second (lass maid by the Post Otte Department Ottawa nd tor cash CATHY ROBB DAVTANT Of POSTAGE 1 (Ash News & Features ! Second Cass Mal Registration Number 0265 Subscription Rate In Canada 315 00 per year Elsewhere $45 00 per year Single Copy 35 COPYRIGHT Ail LAYOU! ANY COMPOSTHON Of advert sements produced Dy the adver tising department of the Port Perry Star Company Limited are protected under copy' jp Mt and may not be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher Chatterbox by Cathy Robb CATTY CATHY Our household is really going to the cats. Which is fine, if you, like me, like cats. Because you really have to love the furry critters to live at our house. Dad lives at our house, along with the 15 or so cats, but he threatens constantly to move out if the cats don't move our first. Dad, you see, is not a cat lover. Even Garfield comics make him heave. Every night he heads down to the barn to do chores, he is forced to fight his way through a stream of cats, all yeowling at his heels, walking over his toes and tripping him the way cats do. It's their dinnertime, you see, and they don't stop the racket until their bellies are stuffed with no- name cat chow. Beef flavour, usually. Feeding the cats is his biggest beef, speaking of beef. He claims to shell out 20 bucks every week on cat food alone, almost as much as it costs to feed our five horses. Horses, he doesn't mind feeding. At least they're worth something in the long run, either to an interested equestrian or the meat factory. Cats on the other hand, are non-profit organizations (unless you raise purebreds, which we don't. Just purebred barn cats). And yes, they catch mice, but our barn is so small that just one cat would do. Maybe even half a cat. Still, I'm learning a lot about animals by wat- ching those felines. In large herds, cats take on new characteristics not commonly found in housecats First off, they re more affectionate. Not get- ting much attention (unless it's the toes of Dad's boots), they truly appreciate every pat, every chin rub and every kind word that comes their way Housecats tend to think they're better than anyone else, humans included, and come to expect the at- tention lavished on them Most of the time they take it for granted and often won't allow themselves to be fondled unless you're at the din- ner table or in the bathroom or someplace where you have no desire to pat the cat. A big group of cats will also take on the characteristics of a herd of horses. In horse life, only one stallion leads a pack of mares. All other mares are either sent away to find their own mares. or are allowed to stay as long as they keep their place and don't bother the leading stallhion's harem (ats are hke this too Once upon a ime. a year or so ago, a cat named Caesar used to rule the roost He happily fathered the children of every female in the barn and defended his domain from uppity young males and assorted strays. Jerry, a wee son of Caesar, was always a bit on the feminine : de (or so it seemed), avoiding illicit scenes with t males and running away from fights. A docile creature, not leadership material at all. But when something happened to Caesar (he just disappeared one day. We suspect Dad shot him), Jerry took on a new confidence, eventually transforming himself into a tom with Clint Eastwood appeal ---- both with his fists (er, paws) and the ladies. Nowadays, he's the lord of the castle, guar- ding over this herd with the stateliness of any lion. It's hard to believe this is the same wimp that ran away from kittens. On most days, Jerry sits on the kitchen win- dowsill, eyeing dirty dishes in the sink and that sort of thing, with one or two females on each side. Cats, I have learned, know nothing about women's lib, and will slave all day long in the fields catching mice for the family, while Jerry sits on the windowsill. While most females are out catching mice, there's a rotation system at work to make sure there's always two or more females sitting with Jerry. The windowsill duty is a multi-faceted one. It is here that young females wash Jerry's face and body. over and over, snuggle close to him, and generally acquiesce to his every bidding whim. My Dad finds this extra disgusting and has been known to paint the windowsill with cats still on it. But not only do we have barn cats, we also have house cats, Charlie, Scoop and Tacker, three privileged upper-class types who get up on the kit- chen counter and lick the butter when no one's looking. That sort of thing This. of course, bothers my father more than anything. and it is with great glee that he sicks the dog on them at every available opportunity The house cats, you see, are allowed outside 'where the dog is), which is really unfair when you consider the outside cats aren't allowed inside But there is justice in the world, even in the cat world, and nature ensures revenge is wrought on behalf of the barn cats When someone lets either Charhe. Scoop or Tacker outside, the barn cats lav in wait on the back porch, ready to pounce on the bourgos cats. bat their heads around and generally beat the mucous out of them (Turn to page 5) wr dmad