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2 The Canadian Statesman, Bowmanville, June 21, 1978 Section Two Editorial Comment Canada, Unity and You P.O. Box 797 Santiago de los Caballeros Domimcan Republic May, 1978 SUBJECT: Coast to Coast from Ovèrseas, on Unity Dear Editor: The accompanying letter must be read to appreciate why two Cana- dians, a Francophone and an Anglophone, as politically non- affiliated citizens with extensive overseas experience, would spend their time and money to contribute their "bit" in the struggle for Canadian Unity and Renaissance. As an editor you can appreciate the effort required to write and rewrite our letter in English and French with corresponding mailings when one co-author is in Spain and the other in the Dominican epublic. We believe that there are a significant number of wistful people who have good intentions,but require some catalyst to initiate their constructive participation in- stead of sitting by passively leaving the initiative for others. The success of this project depends on the co-operation lent by each of the 1200 newspapers in publishing this letter in order that it e read nationwide. We have staked a lot on the belief that even if you do not see eye to eye with our ideas you will at least give them a chance at "proof by fire". The results may very well be electrifying as we l as rewarding. We have attached our Curriculum Vitae for your further reference regarding our credentials. Yours very truly, M. Floyd Rodman Hubert E. Lemieux P.S.: We grew up and were educated in our respective cultural back- grounds.It was not until middle age that we met in Guatemala in 1961 and realized how much we appre- ciated the sharing of our relatively fortunate common Canadian herit- age. We learned that absence does make the heart grow fonder. We have corresponded and com- pared thoughts ever since. This letter was conceived several months ago during a visit with Mr. Lemieux in Madrid, while Mr. Rodman was returning on home leave from Argentina, after having visited the trouble spots in South Africa, Rhodesia, Ethiopia and Egypt. CANADA, UNITY AND YOU Your two correspondents are each representative of our French and English founding cultures. They have spent some 25 years in as many foreign countries with those excru- ciating problems arising from politics, poverty and social adjust- ments which only too often resut in revolution. When presenting our observations on our distant and beloved country, we know that we refleet the feelings of thousands of our compatriots who, like us, are engaged in diverse professional activities abroad. We are also fully conscious of the many regional, economic and cultu- ral problems which tend to divide our nation but we firmly believe that in reaity Canada is not by any means a dying country. To the contrary, we are convinced that Canada is on the way to its own Renaissance. As distance does not allow us to participate directly in this awakening, we have wanted to make our contribution by sending this letter to the 950 English and French language newspapers in Canada. We simply refuse to believe that Canadians are less intelligent than other oeople. Surely Canadians realize that a united Canada is a strong Canada and that a divided Canada can only be a weak country which projects among its foreign friends and customers a feeling of skepticism, uncertainty and confu- sion. The disunity of a country, of any country, only invites lack of respect abroad for that country. A divided Canada clearly risks being absorbed and disappearing com- pletely in the big American melting pot. It is axiomatic that the unity of a country is intimately linked to its identity and image abroad. The common experience of your two correspondents demonstrates clearly and abundantly that acts of goodwill and joint efforts by the conflicting parties can only lead to a better mutual understanding and respect, even to friendship, with all the advantages this implies. How else coud one explain the durable and numerous friendships that we ourselves have developed in so many countries speaking such different languages? It seems to us that the startin point towards unity is a real an drastic change of attitude towards languages and a simple appreciation and recognition of the advantages which the knowledge of languages carries in Canada or anywhere else. A second language is a recognized necessity for an educated and cultured person, most particularly when such languages are as universally used as are English and French. If the Chinese, the Rus- sians, the Germans, the Americans to be sure, and many other nations had that same "linguistic" oppor- tunity as have Canadians, you would see how quickly and efficiently they would exploit it to their very best advantage. It is a matter of meeting the challenge. Here are a few of the small and simple means within the reach of all of us: 1. Post notices at appropriate places reading: 'On parle fran- cais" or "English spoken". 2. Write individually or collectively to your Editor, Member of Parlia- ment, School Board (or all three) reauesting that both English and French be effectively taught and used in the first grades of schools. Our famous Dr. Penfield has de- monstrated that the ability to learn languages is greatest in young pupils. 3. Organize and-or support inter- provincial visits. 4. romote the interchange of lang- uage teachers. 5. Increase communication by organizing pen-pal clubs through newspapers or schools. We who live overseas have made a first gesture by writing this letter. It is up to you to ensure its success through your individual or collective efforts. When the stake is the survivaI of the country nobody can refuse to answer the cail or to make an effort. Long live Canada! M.F. Rodman Santiago de los Caballeros Dominican Republic H. E. Lemieux Madrid, Spain. Quick now. What is exactly like a Quebec politician: always wanting a bit more than there is in the kitty; quick to assume anger; deliberately misunderstanding feelers of amiability; vaguely threatening separation; charming one minute, abrasive the next? Give up? I thought everyone would get 100 per cent on that. Answer: a wife. Sometimes, although not often, I wish I had been married three or four times. Not because I am a sex fiend, or because I want a change of cooks every few years, or because I don't like the way my socks disappear in the dryer. No. Just to find out if other men's wives are as crazy as mine. Back in the good old days before women's lib, men just heaved a universal, brotherly sigh and groaned: "Women..." Everybody who counted (all adult males and small boys), knew exactl what was meant by the big shrug that accompanied this ambiguous two-syllable lament. Even the women knew what it meant, and smirked slyly, _ tacitly admitting they had us by the short and curly, and there wasn't a dang thing we could do about it except endure. Nowadays, if you get some guy in a dark corner in a bar, and try to tell him your wife is crazy, he's probably so house-trained that he'll look at you in horror, glance nervously over his shoulder, and blurt: "Oh, no! Perhaps a little volatile, a trifle mercurial, but that's aill." Then, casting a swift glom around, he might whisper: 'No crazier than the sea, which is also affected by the moon." There's no comfort in people like that. He's the type who probably scrubs the kitchen floor every Saturday morning, delivers his kids to their music lesson, and mows the lawn himself, even though he knows these are a wife's prerogatives and privileges. I don't for one minute suggest that my wife is crazier than other wives. I couldn't in all honesty, and without prejudice. I've seen some pretty crazy wives in my day. But I think I'd put some money on her if it came to a contest. And I'm a cautious bettor. Perhaps the only way I can describe her is in sports' terms. She is like a boxer wit a long left jab that keeps you off balance, an a mean right hook that can come in out of left field at any time. I trust I am being obscure. Obscurity is what I have need of, when this appears in print. It's not that we don't get along. We get along and along and along. Thirty years is a long time to be married to a strange woman. Perhaps it's the fault of The Lord. He made man in His own image: decent, upright, honorable, straight forward, sense of humor. I can just hear Him saying: A poor, forked, naked thing, but Mine own." Then His sense of humor got out of hand.He took one of Adam's ribs (note it was not a tooth or an ear or a toe) and made Woman. Notice the connection. A rib is both concave and convex, just like a dame. Imagine what women would look like if He had taken a toe. But He wasn't satisfied with condemning men to heart attacks because they were missing a rib, and things are inclined to cave in on a chap. I can almost hear Him giggling as He took, not one of Adam's regular run-of-the-mill ribs, but his CRAZY rib. This was the rib that Adam couldn't seem to control. Sometimes it made him pant breathlessly. Sometimes it grew a sharp end, punched him in the guts and gave him an ulcer. Sometimes it seemed to float, and when he put out his hand to grasp it, it wasn't there. Sometimes it sang the sweetest of songs, all by itself. At others, it gave him a pain in the arm. Well, that's what my old lady is like. I don't know about yours, but I suspect. We head out to a party with friends, and she tells me I have the most beautiful blue eyes in the world, after Paul Newman. I tell her she looks pretty good, too. Five hôurs later, after I have delivered an extremely lucid lecture on sex after death, polygamy among penguins, or the iniquity of highschool principals, she tells me that I am a rotten father, husband, and grand- father, that she's sick of hearing me click my "partial lower plate" and that my eyes look like those of an alligator crossed with a sleepy parrot. We used to go to church on Sunday morning, and have our sins washed away, or at least slightly rinsed. Nowadays, we have a Revival Meeting on Sunday mornings. From a long list, meticulously hidden in that floating rib, she produces si'is of omission and commission that make me a combination of Attila the Hun and Henry the Eighth, with a little dash of Richard Nixon thrown in. Absolutely adamant, she says: "And not another nickel to that daughter of yours". Two days later, she sends her a cheque for $200 to pay the ever-behind rent. I've slipped the kid only a lousy hundred. Then she rages: "And no way are those boys going to come and destroy-the house! Just look at that - you name it, they've done it." Three hours later, on the phone: "Of course, darling we'll take the boys for two weeks while you sort out your psyche." Women is crazy. We do not envy the jobs of health care officials who are up against tough limits in their budgets these days. You can cut back on municipal budgets by filling in fewer potholes. You can cut back on the school board's budget by buying fewer pieces of chalk and pencils. But, how are you going to cut back on hospital's, spending when you have to keep in mind the fact that tne institution meals often with life and death situations. Here in Bowmanville, hospital administration opted for a cutback in staff and a closing of beds in an attempt at saving $126,000. While not decreasing the level of care offered to patients, this modest cutback will increase the occupancy rate of the beds and therefore make even more efficient use of facilities. That's one way to do the job but certainly there are limits to the amount of pruning and cutting that you can do. However, there's another way that health care costs can be reduced and this method was mentioned briefly last week by hospital adminis- trator Dick Elston. The suggestion 4he made at a meeting of the hospital corporation last week does not involve reducing care to patients. Mr. Elston indicated that if healthier lifestyles were adopted then health care costs could bo reduced. In other words, being sick unnecessarily is really a luxury that we can't afford when times are a little tougher than they were in recent years. That 37 per cent OHIP hike proposed last spring taught us that health care costs money and is not free. So, it's probably time that we pulled up our socks health-wise and started eating less, exercising more, smoking and drinking less, driving more carefully and doing all of those things that will keep us out of the clutches of expensive health care for many years. This will leave top-notch medical care for those who really need it. Tihe rest of us can enjoy the effects of a healthier lifestyle and at the same time avoid the costs of preventable health problems. Once preventable illness has been all but wiped out, it only stands to reason that there will be fewer sick people which means fewer health care costs. Who knows? The OHIP premiums might start to come dowh although we're not taxing any Dets on the chances of that happening. Letter to the Editor 10-200 Park Street, Kingston, Ontario June 13, 1978 Dear John, I am writing in regards to your "Bits and Pieces" article about Carson improving the appearance of his boulevard. Everyone for miles around knows Carson has the best lawns and gardens in the Bowmanville area, therefore, the nit pickers who are doing all the complainig should be advised to Hesh-up and let the chips fall where they may. Yours truly, K. Neil Webster June 15th, 1978 Dear Editor, In regards to your comment on the front page in "News Flashes" on Wednesday, June 14th regarding the trouble at Mosport. W ere do you get off blaming it on city people? As you said "They must be city types not accustomed to our fresh air and open space" who caused the trouble. Have you proof that it was only the people from the city that were at fault and that people from around this area cannot be to blame? Let me tell you, there are a lot of nice decent people from "the city" who have recently moved to this area and I am one of them, being here 5 years now. We came here thinking people were friendlier in the country, but your cutting remark has offended one of them I can tell you. I feel strongly you should retract that statement and apologize for your small minded thinking to everyone in your newspaper next week. People like you are the cause of why people don't feel welcome here. Thanks for the welcome mat. Mrs. A. Maingot R.R. 1, Orono LoB1Mo Dear Mrs. Maingot: Our humble apologies for offending you and the other 'city' folks who have seen the light and moved into the area. We welcome you with open arms and certainly would not do anything to make you feel unwelcome in our community, but after five years here you should realize that we country folks do a bit of kidding now and then -about the 'city slickers.' It's all in good fun and not meant to be nasty. We rural types gttIghe city to raise a bit ofIelend often they return to do likewise. Sort of a reciprocal agreement. Our local darlings would never think of assaulting Durham's finest, burning cars or such like, they stick to roaring their cars or motorcycles along the streets, with the odd robbery or store stick up thrown in. All of which usually takes place after they've been sucking on a bottle, smoking some grass or otherwise relaxing their inhibitions. Fortunately, in both the city and the country these things are perpetrated by a small minority who make life miserable for police and citizens generally. Again our apologies and we hope that you will soon feel welcome here. Dear Sir, Once again, I want to report to your readers on the success of the Caribbean Hearing Aid Program co-ordinated by the Ontario Ministry of Education. During 1977, Dr. Donald Hood, Audiologist, and Mrs. Hood, a Speech Therapist, visited St. Vincent in the West Indies where they did follow- up work on children previously fitted with hearing aids; conducted tests and fitted aids for other deaf children. At this time, 65 children have been fitted with hearing aids donated to this program by Canadians froni coast to coast. And, like all successful on-going and voluntary programs we are again in need of discarded hearing aids. Anyone with a hearing aid,' in any condition, is invited to support this small but productive effort to help the deaf children in St. Vincent. Hearing aids may be mailed to: Project Hearing Aids, Student Activities Branch, Ministry of Education, Ontario, 19th Floor, Mowat Block, Queen's Park, Bay Street, Toronto, Ont. M7A 1L2. On behalf of the deaf children who have already benefitted from this program, and those who have yet to enjoy the world of sound, I thank your readers for their warm response to my previous appeals. Sincereiy, George J. Maso'h, Co-ordinator, Student Activities and Snppi,,1 Prniepts Rranch, Suarand Sice Crazy Wives h4 A Healthy Solution