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4 The Canadian Statesman, Bowmanvillc, Wednesday, January 22,1992 Former Publishers Rev. W. R. Climie, 1854-1878 • M.A. James, 1878-1935 • George W. James, 1935-1957 Produced weekly by James Publishing Company Limited For 138 Years, Our First Concern Has Been Our Community Publisher - John M. James Assoc. Publisher - Richard A. James Plant Manager - Donald J. Bishop Ad. Manager - Brian G. Purdy Editor - Peter Parrott Production Rick Patterson, Julie Cashin-Oster, Laurens Kaldeway, Doug Lugtonburg, Sharon McMullen, Barb Patterson, , ■ Sean Pickard, Ralph Rozema, Jim Snock, Vance Sutherland, Jim Tuuramo Advertising Laveme Morrison, Pa t Pa ttcrson-Sa vage Editorial Brad Kelly, Lorraine Manfredo, Laura J. Richards Office Angela Luscher, Junia Carnegie, Grace McGregor, Nancy Pleasance, Marilyn Rutherford, Barb Schouten P.O. Box 190,62 King St. W., Bowmanville, Ontario, L1C 3K9 416-623-3303 Fax 416-623-6161 Coping with Winter The climate of southern Ontario is definitely getting milder. If you don't believe it, just consider consider the reactions last week to Tuesday's storm. Yes, driving conditions were bad. But we should all keep in mind the fact that this is Canada in mid-January. What do we expect, palm trees? At one time, Canadians in this part of the world used to expect winter storms and prepare for them prudently. Perhaps the rafter-high snowfalls the old-timers recall were exaggerated. But recollections of more severe winter weather in the past have some basis in fact. Today, a severe storm is greeted like an outbreak of war or an earthquake. It's almost considered to be something that has no right to happen. The reason why we cannot take winter in its stride is the fact that bad winter weather is getting getting downright rare. If you have two severe snowstorms per winter, you tend to panic. If you have three such storms in a typical month, you get to accept them. Never mind consulting the climatologists. Just look at the typical Ontarian's reaction to winter and you'll conclude the weather is getting warmer. Wc no longer expect snow in January -- only puddles. We couldn't help but chuckle over the fact that although the storm in the Toronto area wasn't as severe as originally expected, there was the tendency on the part of the general public to believe the worst of the news reports coming from areas further to the west where, indeed, there was good reason for panic. It's almost as if some folks trust news bulletins and weather warnings more than they trust their own experience on the highway. Ironically, the storm which created worse local driving conditions was the unheralded snowfall snowfall which crept up on everyone Friday morning. In other words, the snowstorm which everyone everyone prepared for on Tuesday didn't materialize, although the one that wasn't expected on Friday Friday did. Sometimes, you just can't rely on the weather. So, the moral of the story is to be prepared. Allow extra time for travelling or avoid a trip altogether altogether if that's possible. Make sure your vehicle is properly maintained and carry warm clothing clothing and emergency gear. Despite the warming trend in our climate in recent years, we still get . the odd blast of Canadian winter. Fiscal Control Overdue The Durham Region has decided to form a special committee whose job will be to scrutinize regional government spending and wrestle the 1992 regional mill rate to something close to an acceptable level. What a great idea! - Of course, we might wonder why such a committee wasn't formed 10 years ago or five years ago or even when the Durham Region was founded back in 1974. Some of us have been laboring under the impression that whatever tax hike was approved last year or the year before represented the rock-bottom, lowest possible increase without causing causing a collapse of the system. But now, given the ever-increasing costs of general welfare assistance assistance and oilier financial pressures caused by the recession, it appears as though Durham's elected officials are discovering that even more drastic action must be taken. Docs this mean those rock-bottom lax increases proclaimed in the past weren't rock bottom after all? Who knows how much lower the mill rale would have been if a committee such as the one announced by Regional Chairman Herrcma last week had been in existence previously? How unfortunate that it takes a full-blown recession to convince our elected officials to decide there may yet be oilier ways of trimming costs. The problem with big government institutions is the that they get their money from what must seem to be a bottomless pit. Companies in the private sector determine their spending based on factors such as sales volume and productivity. But such guidelines in the private sector sector don't exist. If the public sector wants more money, it simply taps into the tax pipeline and the money flows. In an ever-expanding economy, governments can get àway with tacking an extra five to ten per cent on the lax bill every year. But the process breaks down when lean economic economic times occur. In fact, if there are fewer new buildings to tax and fewer businesses in oper- ' ation, it will become difficult to hold the line on government budgets, since governments are taking in even less money than they did in previous years. Unfortunately, these same lean years produce the need for more social services, such as welfare payments, to help citizens facing tough times. Private sector companies have balance sheets to guide their expenditures. The public sector is supposed to rely on its political leaders to tell them whether they are being fiscally responsible. responsible. Unfortunately, all-too-frequcntly this doesn't happen. Instead, the politicians and senior staff develop a sort of group mentality in which they forget exactly who they are,supposed to serve. It's about time an independent group of elected officials responsible only to the taxpayers U p by a budget committee, took a serious look at government spending and then directed their municipal staff to take the Their purpose is to find out necessary actions. That's the way it was always supposed to work. what citizens want to see in And lei's hope this sort of control is maintained even when the current recession is nothing this year's provincial budget, more than a bad memory. I asked my aunt Linda, It shouldn't take a financial catastrophe to force elected officials to do their job. who manages the Capital Re- . AfTR A Meeting /ft; News Item: Local Mayors to Discuss Ways to Save Jobs at G.M. Laura J. Richards While in New Brunswick last week for my mother's funeral funeral I came across an advertisement advertisement in the Daily Gleaner newspaper. The ad, which had been placed by the New Brunswick Brunswick Liberal government, asked for citizens to attend seven meetings to take place throughout the province. The meetings are to be set Is there a doctor in the house? For those of us who will try every home remedy before finally going to visit the family doctor, we had no idea how critical the doctor shortage is until until we tried to find one. In the "past few months, "old" Bowmanville's core of veteran doctors has diminished through closures closures and retirements, leaving a huge supply and demand gap in the medical profession. No new patients patients are being accepted by the remaining medical offices, and no new doctors are expected to help ease the burden until at least July. One possible reason? Insiders tell us that general general practitioners graduating from today's medical schools are not comfortable working in smaller communities where state-of-the-art equipment and specialists are not readily available. Graduates like the big city where difficult cases can be quickly transferred to a unit that specializes in the condition. condition. So where do you go when you need help? The Emergency Department of Memorial Hospital. This doesn't solve the problem, it only shifts head colds and sore throats to a department that should be available for true emergencies. It will be interesting to see how those in charge of recruiting new doctors tackle this one. After recently recently utilizing the new maternity ward at the hospital, hospital, we have nothing but praise for the facility and its personnel. No better care could have been given anywhere. Unfortunately, graduating doctors are having a difficult time accepting that. •••••••• Canada Post has hung us out to dry on this one. For the last year we have been objecting to exorbitant exorbitant rates increases to mail a Statesman subscription. subscription. Effective March 1st, 1991, we were facing up to 1000% rate increases for some readers. We had to react by launching a campaign to fight the postal increases, accomplishing nothing more than stalling stalling the whole decision making process. Canada Post in Ottawa says the new rates are effective, but the local office continues to bill us for mailing at the 1990 rate. When we point this out to the brass in Ottawa, we are told that we will be charged retroactively to March 1st, 1991. That adds up to about $50,000 a year on subscriptions that we have already sold at the old rate. Hah! To make matters even more confusing, under the new rate structure, it is cheaper for us to mail a subscription in Orono or Hampton than in Bowmanville. Bowmanville. That is until they close those rural offices. offices. Not complicated enough yet? Well, if we were to publish from anywhere outside of the Region of Durham, we could mail 2,500 local copies free of charge. Since we are part of regional government, no such luxury exists that newspapers such as the Haliburton Echo enjoy. What has regional government government got to do with mailing a newspaper? To be perfectly honest, we have no idea what we should be charging for a year's subscription outside of the town limits. Canada Post won't tell us. Thankfully, we set up our own delivery system in town to avoid dealing with the worst run organization organization in the country. We will likely do the same out- of-town to ensure that our readers are not the victims victims in this fiasco. Since last March we have been told a dozen different different rates. We even have a letter from Ottawa saying that the old rates are back in effect and that we would be receiving a rebate for over-pricing. That was followed by a phone call saying the letter was a mistake. So why has there been no decision? Mainly because because Canada Post does not want to deliver newspapers. newspapers. They are heavy and bulky for letter carriers. carriers. The bigger reason is advertising flyers inserted in newspapers. Canada Post wants them badly and is doing everything it can to stop newspapers newspapers from having them. Not exactly fair competition competition when we can't deliver first class mail, but Canada Canada Post can manipulate one of its biggest customers. March 1st, 1992 is going to be watched very closely. We can't believe that even Canada Post can take so long to do something so simple. Then again, have you mailed a letter lately? gion Development Commission Commission in Fredericton, about this particular idea and how it worked last year. She said people asked for more social programs, more money for education, and help for some of the industries industries in the province. However, what the citizens citizens got was something altogether altogether different. The Liberal government slashed social programs and education budgets down to their skeletons. However, the projected deficit of the province is not as bad this year as it was last year at budget planning time. Now, what does the budget budget in New Brunswick have to do with the citizens of the Town of Newcastle? Not much, except to say that you too have a chance to voice your concerns to Premier Premier Bob Rae regarding 13 issues. However, you have the luxury of calling a 1-800 number instead of having to trek so many miles to a meeting meeting set up by the government. There is another option for the person who wants to have his or her opinions put down on paper. You can mail your thoughts on topics which concern you and yours. There will also be public hearings such as the ones back in New Brunswick, small discussion groups, and individual sessions. How you make contact with your government is up to you. The top concern for citizens citizens of Ontario is the 1992 Budget. Tell Ontario Treasurer Floyd Laughren what you don't want in the budget and what you want. However, remember what happened in New Brunswick. Sometimes you do get the unexpected unexpected during hurting times. To understand the process of preparing a budget for the province, the government will give you a helping hand. There are four documents being printed up just for folks like you and me. To have copies sent your way, give a call to Bohodar Rubashew- sky, the Manager, Budget Secretariat at 416-325-1588 or fax a message to 416-325- 0339. " Other topics you might be interested in discussing with others or submitting a written document on are: The Ontario Ontario Investment Program, An Industrial Strategy, A New Skills Training System, Fair Taxes, Agricultural Land Use Review, Managing Ontario's Forests, Long Term Care for Seniors and Adults with Physical Disabilities, Labour Relations Reform, Child Care Reform, Waste Reduction Initiatives, Initiatives, Employment Equity and A Social Charter for Canada. Canada. For more information give a call to 1-800-268-1749. So, what are you waiting for? Get going! And as lor the claim of the NDP government being the first provincial government to reach out to its citizens in regards regards to discussing budget concerns --HA! Sorry, guys. New Brunswick Brunswick beat you on that one in 1991! Thanks for Help Dear Mr. James: I would like to thank yo for your donation. It was was a great help in deferring the cost of the trip. The trip will be for two weeks beginning March 8th. Wc will be stopping in Calgary, Calgary, Edmonton, Red Deer, Kamloops and Vancouver, In each city we will be handing out brochures with my stats and sponsors in it. Again I would like to extend extend my appreciation for your help. Thank you. Sincerely, Suzanne Brooks Mr. John James: Mr. Rick James: It was with great relief I read "Report from Parliament Hill" in the January 15 Statesman. Statesman. All along it had appeared to me that Canada was slowing going down the drain when Mr. Stevenson set me straight. With one and half million unemployed, unemployed, welfare costs going up 200 and 300 percent, factories factories closing, a possible loss of 4000 jobs at G.M., rising costs for everything, I did not realize we had, it so good. Perhaps, if the rest of us had jobs paying up to a hundred thousand a year, much of it tax free, large indexed pensions, free world wide travel (i.c. the three stooges in China, and now sending Robinson to Asia, can world war three be far behind?), behind?), subsidized meals, subsidized subsidized everything, wc might have a different perspective on life to-day, eh? Murray Tighe M.P. Responds To Questions Dear Doug: This will acknowledge your letter of January 13 regarding my Report From Ottawa column column that appeared in the December December 11 edition of The Canadian Canadian Statesman. As you sent a copy of your letter to the editor, editor, I felt it would be appropriate appropriate to do the same with my reply. reply. I'd like to thank you for your comments, and believe we're in basic agreement about the desirability of tax reductions, reductions, by Ottawa and all other levels of government. I indicated indicated this in the the column and have said it publicly on many other occasions. The point ■ I was making was that, while our taxes,arc high, Canadians aren't doing too badly in comparison comparison with people in most other leading industrial nations. nations. The figures you quoted don't disprove what I wrote, because wc were dealing with different aspects of the situation. situation. And I'd like to remind you that the comparative statistics statistics I used were not mine nor the federal government's, but came from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, an independent research group based in Paris. As that column states, the present government has reduced reduced the income tax paid by many senior citizens and others with low incomes, as your letter letter urged. And federal government government spending has been cut quite severely since 1984. That year, when this government took office, Ottawa was spending $16 billion more on operations than it took in taxes. This year we'd have a $12.5 billion operating surplus if it wasn't for the massive interest that must be paid on our national national debt. I can assure you that no one wants tax reductions more than I do. As you said, wc have been going through difficult circumstances. I believe the government has taken the necessary necessary action, even though it wasn't always popular, and I'm confident we will sec the situation improve before too long. Your comments were very much appreciated, and I'd like to thank you again for taking the time to share your views on this important issue. With very best personal regards, regards, Yours very truly, Ross Stevenson, M.P. Durham Editor's Mail Dear Friend: Please accept my sincere thanks and appreciation for your donation towards our Christmas Appeal. Be assured that our efforts helped to make another's Christmas season a little more enjoyable. May God bless you and grant you Love and Peace throughout 1992. Sincerely, Mrs. I. Jones Family Services Co-ordinator a iff We Asked... Should Canada continue its policy on official bilingualism and biculturalism? ... And You Said Audrey VanHout Bowmanville "I really don't care much about it cither way." Gerry Grootendorst Bowmanville "No, it shouldn't. It should be up to each individual province." Stan Sobanski Wilmot Creek "It's just a duplication of services, services, and we're already paying paying too much for the two services. services. With the cost of education education it's getting to be too much . of a burden for Canada." Joanne Clouthier Bowmanville "Yes, but I don't agree with shoving it down people's throats." Next week's question: Do vou agree with the actions Premier Bob Rae is taking to improve the economy? m E