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the HERALD All is calm in Ontario legislature Home Newspaper of Halton Hills Established A Division of Canadian Newspapers Company Limited Street Georgetown Ontario DAVID A Publisher and General Manager DAN Advertising Page Tilt HERALD Wednesda December A refreshing change Amid this year back slopping ho rhetoric that traditionally accompanies the swearing in of new Halton Regional Chairman Peter Pomtroy has provided us with a refreshing change from the norm In his address after being re instated as chairman hit week Mr proceeded to call a spade a shovel and he did so without mincing any words in the process It has become very easy for municipal leaders to take on a sense of complacency when looking ahead to the future We hear words like optimistic and challenging used to excess in many circles But Mr Pomeroy chose to take a different tact and bother about minor details like who was in his sights when he began his barrage Walt Elliot was on hand for the new Regional Coun cil inauguration bringing greetings and best wishes from Ontario Premier David Peterson and his Liberal government And Mr Pomeroy readily gave Mr Elliot a little something he could lake back to Premier David Peterson and his Liberal government Mr made it clear and in no uncertain terms that he has grown weary of talk on the government com mitment lo affordable housing when so precious little has actually been accomplished toward resolving the ongoing problem When he referred to the red tape the Region must con to deal with Mr Pomeroy most certainly did not have a colorful Christmas in mind It was apparent the returned Regional Chairman wanted to gel the new council off on the proper one even if some of the positive aspects were set aside for the time being Mr Pomeroy sent a clear and urgent message to the Government of Ontario and his timing was impeccable Hopefully that message won t go unheeded Season for giving Christmas is the season for giving and a number of local groups in town are giving of themselves to see that as many people as possible have a Merry Christmas We can all help the cause whether in a big or small way But it s important that we don get so caught up in ourselves that we forget those who are less fortunate It within our power to make someone Christmas a lit tie brighter by contributing in whatever way we feel we can Others are leading the way We need merely help the Let it snow please lime time when they re heading home for Christmas Hint the reason for their trip I not fussy on snow Rut there something about having a foot of the white stuff on he ground thai picks up my spirits around the Yule season I can remember one Christmas close lo quarterecntury ago now thai scary when there I a lick of snow or Christmas and no one could understand it The neighbor kid was out on front lawn Christmas morning out a new set of golf clubs he had There t seem be too much Chrlstmasy about thai year The best Christmas I can remember were the ones when the snow banks were nearly as high as the telephone poles on the country Now were lucky if we can get enough snow to cover the lawn Unfortunately there not a whole lot we can do to Improve the tion Taxpayers probably t take too kindly to the proposal of the town buying a snow making machine like they have at ski resorts That would be quite a sight though Town Halton Hills trucks hauling snow through the town to dump along the streets so we could be put In the Christmas spirit Not too likely 1 guess All we can do is rely on Mother Nature to work her unpredictable magic In lhat respect we re the mercy of the dements And all we can do is keep dream ingof a while Christmas The doldrums A region of light winds and calms near equator according one dictionary Another definition would be the Ontario legislature in action December I960 Partly lhat a consequence of the federal ileclion dominant Impact on political discussion recently But somehow hat explanation I quilt adequate enough ex why legislative assembly as so quit recently Sure then is Ihe usual of question pi nod after Issue gets raised for discussion an bills going through the process including such Hems us those on Sunday shopp ing and tin to Iht Workers Compensation Occasionally they product I detail Editors Notebook The season of Christmas spirit seems to be getting shorter and shorter each year doesn UP It seems like most people aren t taken by the Christmas spirit until they re sitting by the tree on morning or Dec opening heir presents and watching he Joy thry bring others when the gifts Ihey vc given are being opened As much as I hate to admit it the Christmas spirit is on a steady decline and it s hard to say just how critical the situation become And when we try to analyze Ihe problem It natural to think hack to Christmases past to del ermine what the difference was between them and Christmas now One of the most obvious has to be the lock of snow we have now There s something about snow blanketing the ground that makes Christmas more ex citing days the white Christmas scenario has become rare The only serious lions of snow seem to come in the new year Sure his takes some of the burden off Christmas travellers but also casts an entirely different atmosphere over Christ mas Those same travellers practically have remind themselves from Spirit of cooperation helps avert a tragedy Dear Sir On Monday December 1963 as a result of an accident involving a jack knifed tractor trailer loaded with gravel on the Line a major emergency operation was required to rescue a person From the wreckage This operation lasted hours and ended In the ruccessful rescue ihe driver of the vehicle Through the cooperation and co ordinated efforts of many people this Incident did not end In tragedy The Fire Department would like to publicly thank all thai assisted and In particular the following Hills Ambulance and Ministry of Health for their emergency medical expertise Hills Public Works Superintendent Frank Morel and Mechanic Jim McDowell or their assistance with their acetylene cut ting equipment Regional Police Tor their excellent and speedy response lo all our resource re- It was the most involved and laborious rescue operation lhat we have ever been faced with You can be proud of the Important role you all played Wm Cunningham Fire Chief Queens Park Derek Nelson Thornton Yel overall there seems to be a quietude about place a resting or pause before it goes on from here OUT Of FOCUS It is almost as though Ihe legislature was slightly of focus with the world around it Free trade was such an emotional burning crusade for or against hat it seems to have soaked up all the available political energy In assembly Itself the Ihrei parties PC Liberal to approach the they dealing wllh in such a way as lo reinforce their federal cousins Yet even that had Its strange blips Premier David Peterson main effort for Instance was suc cessfully trying to get his brother Jim In a Toronto riding He made at least six sorties into the ana on his behalf And while is understandable he might do so kith and kin coming first it was a slightly peculiar way for the only major pro vincial leader opposing free trade to spend his time during an election that in his view was deciding the future of the country Nol the of sync feeling was restricted lo In Liberals alone Thi Conservatives under Interim leader Andy Brandt started off well this year but have gradually sunk of in past months CHINA WILL AIMYSKA SEPARATE AMD UNIQUE WRY Citizens forum This round goes to Goliath Off Id thwe Georgetown was shut down by he heavyweights at Canada Post David never really had a chance When tht and authority of a mull billion dollar postal corpora Ion is pitted the of a small community basically no contest No biblical miracles here What transpired population over these past eight months is an all toofamiliar story in rural The details vary from village lo village bud sadly plot Is the same The I version goes something like this A youn rlcd Mike by the name of Delia and bought General Store lost spring when the former owner Shirley Yates decided o retire The Post Office was part and parcel of the general store and Mrs Yates the official federally appointed postmaster lime of the sale Canada Post stepped In say hat the Job was being eliminated as part of a cost saving rural restructuring program But the corporation was quick to add postal service would continue exact ly as before If the Gaskill signed one of its new retail postal lei contacts In service would be equal or bet Icr nan it was before or so the pro mise went One small hitch the supposedly negotiable Canada Post con Iract was to pay Delia and Mike less than a quarter he salary Mrs received for same vices rendered Nm to and thousands of other rural people that you can t get something equal or better for less than a quarter of what you paid before But and In of small com muni across he country Canada Post stood firm with lis meagre offer Thus GaskillCadwalladers were snared in an impossible double bind Sign the unsatisfactory contract and save the post office for the people of Or refuse to sign and become scapegoat for he less of a beloved yearold tradition Delia and Mike arc good and dedicated people so they signed But Ihey re not stupid people so they signed reluctantly Seven Ins later after a great deal of soul searching and anguish they mated the contract Meanwhile hod discovered that providing general delivery service lo was full lime work Al end also learned that tht negotiable Canada Post con tract was indeed negotiable but not In the point of providing a decent return or their efforts Above all they found out lhat deal with Canada Post is both weary and demoralizing and a week ago Friday ihey said enough By the way how does Canada Post train these per year city bureaucrats to seem genuinely prised and affronted when rural peo ple turn down their a month t we out here in the country ungrateful A decision like this lakes courage Many other retail postal outlet con tractors caught In exactly the same bind continue to work for Utile return fearful they say no mail service in heir towns will del ale even further They re right but this same fear allows Canada Post to march blithely on with lis ludicrous rural plon knowing there yel enough people like Delia who will stand up and say We won perpetuate the wrong system Rural Canadians deserve better All was not lost in Limehouse by way To the best of my Knowledge residents there are he first in Canada after closure of a rural posl office receive lone delivery for Incoming mall I m not sure what accounts for Canada Post benevolence In this case but my hunch is It had a great deal to do with the corporation desire to keep things qulel during the last stages of the federal campaign Most other post office losers gel leaky rust prone green boxes or those misbegotten Canada has set an precedent at and new subdivisions crying for door delivery plus dozens of other rural communities will no doubt pay But buy stamps register letters and pick up parcels the people of Limehouse must now go to Acton eight kilometres away In all of this Canada will claim its hands were tied But make no mistake our huge postal corpora lion is responsible lor he closure it will protest its innocence with righteous Some people land I one of them believe that Canada Post has slowly but deliberately allowed rural service to stagnate slip into a backwater Small federal post of flees with their dedicated postmasters and personal service have often been called the backbone of Canada postal service Now they re under and in places like Limehouse gone like the wind For people who don t know better it easy blame Mike and Delia for the loss of Ihe Post Of flee They are after all the closest and easiest target For lis part the postal corporation can Btmpry announce as it did last Monday Following discussions last week Canada Post was Inform by he operators of our Retail Postal Outlet at the General Store hat they will resigning at the end of business hours on December 1988 Well phrased Goliath The rest as they say Is history All 131 years of II Liz Armstrong Erin PS Yes David Is down not oul for he count If we all work together we can still win this struggle for the benefit of all rural Canadians Their greatest falling their in ability to project on image lhat Is consistent while framing genuine policy alternatives to the Liberals has resurfaced with Even when they do something in teresting it doesn seem to relate to anything else Taxes would teem to be a natural Tory Issue and thus we had Brandt standing on a Toronto street a week or so ago handing out anil tax literature but was his action related Id No one said II was a oneday wonder THE1H WHEELS The truth is that Tories are simply spinning heir wheels until they finally troop off to a leadership convention sometime in the next IB months Then Ihere is Ihe NDP New Democrats should have had Ihe good feeling that comes from winning a especially in a riding historically been In their fold although the retiring Incum bent was NDP there hasn t been a lot of spirit on he party benches Mind you maybe Ihe victor Peter Thorold will help With a flam lhat includes a Cor cowboy boots and a record for Income tax evasion he t exactly your standard dull New Democrat The truth Is that In a somewhat different way than the Tories the New Democrats too In their case I so much a lack of policies as the frustration they feel in being unable to package them In such a way as to make them attractive to the broad mass of Last the legislature sat right through Christmas battling over free trade Nothing will provoke a similar happening this year Haltons History from our files 30 years ago Hunters Real Estaters combined a little strategy and a lot of hustle trip up the high flying Bradford Fords the arena last night for fans The win eases the pain of the Real Estate last three losses to Bradford Georgetown new sewage disposal plant will be In operation in the spring of 1960 If plans materialize according to the schedule of Proctor and consulting engineers Proctor outlined progress to date when he reported lo council on Monday and said he expects to call for tenders for he trunk sewer early In the new year Tenders for the disposal plant will be called later In the spring he sold and it will take approximately a year from then complete he whole pro 15 years ago It was officially announced Mon day lhat Georgetown purchased 15 acres of land from Focal Properties at a cost of The land situated just off Guelph Street bet ween Mountain lew Road and Sinclair Avenue is the site for Georgetown arena and tionnl complex D of and McLaughlin solicitors or Focal Properties announced the sale Monday The land was sold at an acre subject to four Condi Including obtaining provincial approval municipal approval from the Ontario government and fun ding from he provincial and municipal levels Norval Presbyterian Church mel the home of Mrs Craig Mc- Clure for their Christmas meeting Wednesday afternoon Dec with Mrs Hyatt presiding Mrs Walker of Georgetown gave an in teresllng talk on Mary the mother of Jesus Mrs Herb Anthony read the scripture lesson and Mrs Dixon Duff led In prayer Mrs Hyatt Mc Clure assisted the hostess in serving Christmas cake and cookies with a cup of lea for social time years ago Subject to formal ratification to day by regional council Halton region new chairman Is Jock lis a 49year old professional engineer from Burlington who has headed the region public works committee since Its formation in 1974 Coun Raitis was acclaimed to the year seat when It ap peared clear that there were no con lenders The Liquor Licence Board of On- was scheduled to consider an application yesterday Tuesday submitted by the Georgetown Bakery at the Market for the issuance of a licence for he sale of alcoholic beverages In the bakery a restaurant area Although the in formation about application was placed before town general commit lee too late warrant com town planning director Mario Vendltti deemed the proposed sale of liquor Inappropriate for the site 5 years ago A 10year council and school board veteran Rush Miller reached yet another political milestone as he was appointed mayor of Hill Monday night by fellow town coun cillors Mayor Miller who until his appointment was the regional coun cillor representing the town s rural residents edged out fellow regional councillor Mike Armstrong in a secret ballot decision cast Informal ly by councillors Regional councillora want more information before they 11 Join a growing call tor tougher sentences against Impaired drivers Part of a broad ranging resolution dealing with djinking and driving was sent back to health department staff after It appeared before council Wednesday