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\ \ Section Two The Canadian Statesman, Bowmanville, December 5,1984 3 ( Editorial Comment ] Be Careful While Shopping A few helpful consumer tips have come our way via a news release from the Ontario Ministry of Consumer Consumer and Commercial Relations. In this festive season, the Ministry's Ministry's advice is especially pertinent. After all, we're entering the time of the year when shopping activity reaches an all-time high. Did you know, for example, that Ontario merchants are not obliged to give refunds or exchanges? Many consumers have the mistaken belief belief that they are legally entitled to return unsuitable goods. In fact, customers may only request request a refund or exchange if they believe a product does not live up to sales or advertising claims. Of course, very many stores allow refunds. The important thing is to realize in advance the individual store's policy on this subject. Better yet, why not shop carefully so that sizes, colors, and other details details won't become a problem to the recipient of the gift? The Ministry' also advises consumers consumers to use those plastic charge cards wisely. Don't be pressured into borrowing more money than is absolutely necessary, the Ministry says. It also warns against costly commitments commitments towards fitness programs. programs. Without proper shopping and planning, joining a fitness club can be an exercise in needless expenses, expenses, the consumer Ministry warns. And, finally, there's the issue of wood-burning appliances. Last year they sparked 396 blazes in Ontario. Ontario. They killed 12 people and caused damages totalling $3.6 million. million. Of course, there's nothing wrong with wood-burning appliances in themselves. But the Ministry warns that they should be properly installed installed and maintained. Correct fuels should be burned and regular inspections inspections are a must. Naturally, this kind of advice from the Ministry of Consumer and Commercial Relations all boils down to common sense, plus a knowledge of a few basic consumer facts. At this time of the year when, more than ever, we are buyers of goods and services, let's remember our consumer knowledge and use it wisely. The Media and Mulroney Don't be surprised if you read or hear more news items having to do with topics such as the Prime Minister's domestic staff or the confidential confidential tapes accidentally released released by the Minister of External Affairs. We are witnessing a kind of government government in which the press is becoming becoming part of the unofficial opposition. opposition. Such a turn of events is hardly surprising. The strength of the opposition opposition parties is at an all-time low. If the press does not provide criticism of the government, who will? Moreover, the Progressive Conservatives Conservatives have gone out of their way to try and control the amount of information getting into the hands of the nation's scribes. Such actions are bound to spur eager reporters reporters to uncover "unauthorized" stories which might not be found in government hand-outs given to all newspapers, TV stations, or radio stations. There's also the possibility that many of the new regime's sympathizers sympathizers in the media have obtained obtained positions in various communications communications departments within the government. The media representatives representatives who are left behind are hardly the individuals who will be willing to accommodate those in power. Given all of these factors, it's not surprising to find squabbles developing developing over whether the prime minister's maid is actually employed employed as a nanny. And then, there were the gaffes last week involving the Minister of Finance, the Minister of External Affairs, and some troublesome tape recorders. This was followed by speculation over whether or not the Prime Minister's hot tub and satellite satellite receiving dish were being funded by the public purse. It is interesting to note, of course, that most of the negative stories coming out of Ottawa these days centre around stories which some might label as "petty". For example, example, even if the PM's nanny is being paid at the expense of the taxpayer, it's hardly the kind of revelation which will topple the government. Similarily, the tape recording incidents incidents are rather insignificant. And the significance of who pays for the hot tub or satellite dish pales when one considers the national national debt or unemployment. And critics will have to fall back on the old saying that explains it's the principle of the thing and not the actual substance of the story which is noteworthy. All of this proves one of two things. Either the government is so competent that only tiny errors make the front pages or else the early attempts to manage thé flow of information are working well. We shall see. LETTER TO THE EDITOR Dear Johnny I think you will not be overly dismayed to learn that I disagree disagree with some of the ideas expressed in the editorial "Resources Should be Pooled" (Nov. 21 issue). You say town council is a prodevelopment prodevelopment group otherwise Darlington Nuke would not have been allowed. I say Darlington was going to be built regardless of the attitude of this or any other council. When I was a half century or so younger I used to hike through that location once in a while and even way back then there were signs advising it was Hydro property. I think it would be interesting to find out when Hydro made the first land purchase: because that was when Darlington was unofficially unofficially launched. When the government officially officially announced Darlington was going to be built it was going to be built and any reservations anyone had concerning concerning the project would be noted as a minor disagreement disagreement or misunderstanding and hydro would give grants for this and that and those so no great unhappiness would surface. Hydro, of course, has no money except what it collects for selling power, so any little favors that are handed out must first be raised through a procedure known as rate increases. increases. I understand Hydro's debt charges now take about one-third of revenue and this will rise to 45 percent of revenue before it levels off. So, if it is necessary to "give" Town of Newcastle a hundred thousand or two or three to keep folks happy it is no great deal - notjeven a tiny drop in a very large barrel. You also say that "without more real estate to support expenditures citizens in a stagnate economy will begin to notice a giant increase in taxation." This would seem logical but it doesn't seem to work that way. For instance, as we brace ourselves for the big population increase (which now turns out to be 40 new residents yearly for the next 16 years) we have had yet another consultant's report, this time re fire fighters, equipment, stations, secretaries secretaries and so forth. His recom-_ mendations were colossal and" there is no way the new numbers are going to pick up the tab for this one issue alone. Everyone living here now will be expected to chip in and this is the way it is in reality. Bigness is expensive. You also mention commercial activity which is a loss of another color. Additional commercial enterprises should help reduce the tax rate: but how many restaurants can we support? An interesting thing seems to be that in the former Town of Bowmanville, which is now part of the Town of Newcastle, the majority of the citizens couldn't care less if not one of the 645 new persons we are supposed to have by the year 2000 ever manages to get here. I understand you and Mrs. Johnny were to be at the Head Table for the Canadian Club meeting last Wednesday, Sorry you couldn't make it - the evening was super. Morgan QUje (Canadian Statesman 623-3303 Durham Counly'a Great Family Journal Established 130 years ago In 1854. Also Incorporating The Bowmanville News The Newcastle Independent The Orono News Second class mall registration number 1581 Produced every Wednesday by THE JAMES PUBLISHING COMPANY LIMITED 62-68 King St. W,, Bowmanville, Ontario L1C 3K9 JOHN M. JAMES Editor -- Publisher GEO. P. MORRIS Business Mgr. RICHARD A. JAMES Assistant Publisher BRIAN PURDY Advertising Mgr. PETER PARROTT Associate Editor DONALD BISHOP Plant Mgr. All liyouli »nd composition ol advrtlsamtnli produced by Ihe employees ol The Canadien Slaleiman, The Newcaslle Independent and The James Publishing Company Limited are protected by copyright and muet not be reproduced without written permisilon ol the publlahere, $15.00 a year - 6 months $6.00 foreign -- $45,00 a year strictly In advance Although cv«ty prucmilion will bo taken to avoid error. The Canadian Statesman accepts advertising in ilr, columns on the undoiMiinding that it will not bo liable lor any error in the odvortlsomonl published hereunder unless a prool ol such advertisement Is requested in writing by (ho advertiser and relumed lo The Canadian Statesman business othce duly signed by Ihe advertiser and with such error or corrections plainly noted in writing thereon, ami in that case it any error so noted is not corrected by The Canadian Statesman ils liability shall not exceed such a portion ol the entire cost ol such idvriiistiniml as the space occupied by the noted error bears to Ihe whole space occupied by such advertisement Winter Freeze is Coming SUGAR and SPICE Of Days Past I have come up with some, items that bring back memories and voices from the past. A few months ago, a young colleague of mine was heading off to Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia) with his wife and children to teach school there. They didn't know a soul in that part of Africa. I had a thought, which occurs every so often. "Mark," I told him, "I have an old war-time friend who lived in Rhodesia. I'll dig up his address and maybe he can at least give you some tips on life there." So I went to my old prisoner-of- war log book, and there it was. Unfortunately, Don McGibbon lived in Bulawayo, not Salisbury, to which Mark was posted. However, I gave him the address and a note to my old friend. There was every likelihood that he was dead, or had moved, or had got out of the country, as so many white Rhodesians did when a black takeover seemed inevitable. And the other day, while I was having lunch, a member of our staff was reading a letter from Mark's wife. It turned out that they'd been sent to Bulawayo, not Salisbury. She described conditions, pretty grim -- curfews, house searches for insurgents, and so on -- and the letter said: "And we're going for a picnic on Sunday with Bill Smiley's old air force friend." You could have knocked me down with a Spitfire. I hadn't heard from Mac since-1945, when we were both incarcerated in prison camp. We'd been on the same Typhoon wing in Normandy, where I knew him slightly. He'd been shot down shortly after I was, and, joined by a wbunded Australian, Frank Land, we wound up as a trio doing a train journey all over Germany: first to a camp occupied by British and New Zealand veterans of Cyprus, then to an interrogation centre at Frankfurt, then off on a long haul across the war-torn country to a prison camp, where we wound up in the same room in barracks. One forms pretty close associations under trying circumstances. We did. I had a lot of respect for the Rhodesians I'd met: their courage, their cheerfulness, their lack of swank. And, of course, they were only colonials, so we Canadians could needle them about that. Mac was one of the best of the best. As if that weren't enough to start the juices of memory flowing, my wife, while cleaning out drawers and boxes, came across a cache of ancient letters and pictures that I'd forgotten existed. There I am, Leading Aircraftsman Smiley, at 21, black hair, white teeth (the opposite of the present), wedge cap tilted to one side, dashing moustache, cocky as only a young fellow can be when he knows he's going to be a fighter pilot. And there I am again, on a prison camp identification card, complete with numbers and fingerprint, soon after I'd been shot down, looking bewildered and anything but cocky. And another photo, at another camp, front and side view, looking 10 years older, stubble of beard, mean. And finally, a photo taken soon after release, sporting .the magnificent handlebar moustache I'd grown in camp. There's a picture of Freddy Wakeham, Canadian, Eric Necklen, New Zealander, and self, in front of our tent in Normandy. I am the only survivor. And another one, both leaning against a Spitfire's fuselage, of two our gang, a motley crowd, when we trained in Shropshire to take off and land Spits without killing ourselves. Jacques Van der Perren, Belgian, and Singh Thandi, Indian Air Force. Van escaped when the Germans invaded Belgium, made his way through occupied France, got over the mountains into Spain and was thrown in jail for six months. He was eventually released, got to England, joined the R.A.F., and was shot down and killed on a mission not far from his home town in Belgium. Singh Thandi went back to India. I heard he was killed flying Hurricanes in Burma. We were closer than most brothers. The only one of that crowd left is Jack Ryan of Toronto. The others were from half the countries in Europe, and from all over the then British Empire. Here's a letter, written to my mother, from Casajus Pascal, postmarked M. Stammlager XI, Deutschland. It's in French. Part of it: "Ici mon ami Bill, votre fils qui actuellement dans mon stalag . . ." and so on. He told her I was en parfaite santee (in perfect health) and tried to reassure her. How good of him. I don't even remember him, although I knew a number of French POWs. He ends by saying, in French: "I hope that he himself will be able to write you soon." Why couldn't I write then? Who was Casajus? Must dig into the memory cells. And on they go. A letter from my squadron leader describing my last mission, and holding out hope. A letter from a chap in Florida to my parents. He listened every night, on his short wave radio, to lists of Allied prisoners announced by the Germans, and had caught my name and home address. And a happy, happy telegram, marked Sans Origine, and Important, from 64 Squadron: "Happy to inform you that your son F/O Smiley WBT is safe and well as prisoner of war. Letter follows." . A letter of commiseration from my college president, when the first "missing" report went out. Finally, a letter from a chaplain in England: "So happy to be able to welcome and chat with your son, on his safe arrival in England." Dated May 25, 1945. People in those days really cared. And I've only skimmed the surface. OTTAWA REPORT By the Hon. Allan Lawrence M.P. (Durham - Norlhumberlaml) On September 4th the Canadian people voted overwhelmingly for change in the management of our nation's affairs. By electing a majority Progressive Conservative government, Canadians called for renewal in all aspects aspects of our national life. Our Finance Minister, Michael Wilson, answered the call for economic renewal renewal in his address to Parliament Parliament and the Canadian people on November 8th. Some of you may recall an earlier Ottawa Report, last Mardi, in which I warned of our country's deepening financial financial crisis and of the urgent urgent need for controlling the federal deficit and reducing reducing government spending. spending. In his tough but fail- speech on November 8th, Mr, Wilson began the long process of restoring such order. He described four basic challenges on the Mulroney government's agenda: * We must put our own house in order fiscally, so we can limit and ultimately reverse the massive buildup buildup in public debt and its damaging impact on confidence confidence and growth. * We must re-define the role of government, so it provides a better framework for growth and job creation and less obstruction to change and innovation. * We must foster higher investment, greater innovation, innovation, increased international international competitiveness, and a positive climate for creating creating and developing new enterprises. enterprises. * We must bring about these changes in a way that is fair, open, and consistent with the basic sense of compassion, compassion, tolerance and justice justice that characterizes Canadian society. In unveiling broad-based spending restraints, the Finance Finance Minister was reacting reacting to the inherited spiralling spiralling deficit that has so long retarded Canada's economic growth and skewered skewered private investment and job creation. Present projections for national economic growth, unemployment and the deficit deficit arc unacceptable, Mr, Wilson told us, and controlling controlling the deficit is the key. Spending cuts -- which will trim $4.2 billion from a projected projected $37.1 billion deficit for 1985-86 -- are a clear signal signal that our new government government is determined lo bring back fiscal responsibility at Ottawa, All major social programs were loll untouched by the restraint package. Coupled with a $1 billion fund for employment and training; greater assistance for widows, widowers and veterans; lax simplification measures; pay cuts for the Prime Minister and his Cabinet; gas tax rebates for farmers and resource workers; workers; the government has taken the first step in a balanced balanced and sensitive approach approach to restoring the strength of our ailing economy. economy. The alternative to the restraints restraints would be continuing continuing the course of the previous previous government -- witli a rising deficit and public debt load, mortgaging our nation's and our children's future, destroying confidence confidence and choking any opportunity opportunity for achieving a healthy economy. Next year's First Ministers' Ministers' Conference, a national summit meeting, and Mr. Wilson's spring budget will be further important steps along our road towards economic consensus and renewal. renewal. It may not be an easy road for any of us, but it certainly will prove well worth the trip. The simple truth is that, for the past many years, we as a nation have been living far beyond our means. Had wc done the same in our private private lives, most of us would long since have been bankrupt bankrupt personally. There is a now attitude in Ottawa, and we will all benefit benefit from it. Newcastle Hydro Rates to Increase by Close to 9% 'Newcastle Hydro will be increasing increasing rates by 0.9 % on January 1,1985 due to a rise in wholesale prices. Ontario Hydro increased its wholesale prices 0,69 %. This "prompted an overall financial review", review", said Morley Watson, Man ager of Newcastle Hydro, Mr. Watson said that the commission commission decided the increase was warranted warranted in order to maintain payroll and general operating costs. 09% of Newcastle Hydro's revenue goes to the purchase of power.