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Page 4 The Colborne Citizen Oct. 23, 1974 citizen editorial It'sabouttime Encouraging incident One of the first tasks of the Editor last week was to deliver the copies of the Citizen which required mailing, to the Post Office in Colborne late last Tuesday evening. After spending the day in Marmora preparing the paper for publication; dashing over to Tweed to get them printed; back to Marmora to address the copies for mailing; then driving all the way back to Colborne late in the evening to ensure they got off in Wednesday's mail; you can probably understand how tired and weary the Editor felt. He had just driven up to the Post Office and had opened the door of the car preparatory to getting the bundles of papers out, when a pick up truck came dashing up behind him and out jumped two men who seemed to be on some hurried business. Not knowing just what to expect, the Editor proceeded to unload the papers and to carry them into the post office. Meanwhile, the two men had proceeded to the building next door, pulled out some keys, and had opened the door. One of them went inside while the other stayed outside the door. On the Editor's second trip with a bundle of papers in his arms, he was surprised to see a friendly smile appear on the man's face and, to the Editor's further surprise, the man spoke some pleasant words to him. The two men were complete strangers; it was late at night and the post office and all buildings were closed, yet this man found the time to be pleasant to a complete stranger. Rare today, indeed, is this type of incident. Being pleasant to a complete stranger is something not often heard of today, yet this man, who was obviously from Colborne or the area, found the time in a busy schedule to be pleasant to a complete stranger! A rather small incident but the effects were rather profound. The weariness seemed to lift from the Editor's shoulders; the work of the long day seemed to be so much more worthwhile; and he even found himself humming a tune as he drove home. If this man's actions are any indication of the friendliness and goodwill to be found in Colborne, then this Editor is most fortunate in having chosen the Colborne Citizen to work for! The recent decision by some school boards not to compel those 14 and 15-year old students who are not deriving any benefit from the school program, to attend school, seems to be a sound and sensible thing to do. Aside from the normal dislike of most students to attending school, there are those who find it comparable to a prison i for varying reasons. Some come home environment where the s of life are scarce and, to sit in school instead of being out contributing to the family income, seems an utter waste of time. Others who are keenly interested in learning but do not find the school program offering anything in the line of what they want, soon lose interest and may become more of a problem to themselves; their families; and to the schools than if they were allowed to seek what it is they want elsewhere. , It would appear though, this new legislation may be in danger of becoming wrapped up in so much red tape, it may still be virtually impossible for most students to obtain permission to leave school. Applications must be made; interviews with school officials must take place; and the student's case if then referred to a school sub-committee who will review the case and may, or may not, grant the permission. Let us hope those students who are truly deserving of being excused do not suffer once again because of the "system". Scapegoats of the system For some time now we have been told consumers in Canada are getting their food too cheaply and that the farmer is not getting a fair price for his products. Almost daily, someone is talking on this same theme and the refrain i There is not too much argument about the fact the farmer is, indeed, getting short-changed for what he produces. With spiralling prices on almost every commodity, not just food alone, it only seems common sense for the farmer to be getting his share of the increased profits, however, as statistics prove, this is not the case. Conversely, it doesn't seem fair to continually harp on the fact food in Canada than 5 of the ■orld. It would appear to make sense for the farmer to conduct his business the same as any other form of business, that is, when the costs to him for his equipment and supplies rise, so should the return for his products rise. This, apparently, is why the food marketing boards are being formed almost daily for every type of food commodity produced; to ensure the farmer a fair return on every dollar he invests. Both the farmer and the consumer i be the scapegoats of a system aws such a wide disparity between r and the consumer. It's about ie started talking about the gap these two groups. Perhaps who should, would rightfully latcver dividends are derived appear t Letters to the editor This s the o s page in any newspaper, spot where personal opinion is usually expressed but, contrary to common belief, it isnot reserved only for the newspaper's point of view. It is here where readers also have a chance to voice their opinions and to Letters to The Editor are always welcome and, in most cases, will be printed provided the person writing the letter signs it and provides the newspaper with his or her address and phone number. Then too, space available may also dictate how much can be included in any one issue. For this reason, readers are asked to keep their letters to about 500 words or less. If, for any reason, you do not want your name to appear in print, all you have to do is say so but, in any case, your letter must be signed. Most letters submitted are very rarely edited unless there is a need for it and this the newspaper reserves the right to do. However, if editing is required, care is taken not to change the meaning or intent of the letter. Editorials appearing in this newspaper are usually written by the Editor or by some member of the staff. You may not ! always agree with the opinions expressed ; in them but, quite often, feel frustrated because you have no means by which to reply to them. You may also wish to express some opinion about the news items which appear or to offer sc criticism which may aid in bettering some situation. You can do it by your letters, .lust address them to: The Editor, P.O.Box 1030, Brighton, Ont. They will always receive every consideration but, please, be sure to sign them! If you do not, we cannot print them. Sensible direction t last Wednesday by Provincial Transportation Minister John Rhodes, not to make the use of seat belts in automobiles mandatory, is the kind of decision which, to some degree, restores faith in a government's ability to make /cllin r thci infringe on individual until the belts are made , it is an ordeal for any great distance to When making the a Rhodes said the public would rebel against any law forcing car riders to use the belts and, in a great majority of cases, he is right. Imposing such a law as this one Surely there are more effective means of " reducing the number of traffic deaths than trussing people in uncomfortable harnesses. Why not reduce the speed limits on the highways. British Columbia has done it and reports a substantial reduction in the number of traffic deaths. Perhaps this method is the answer. ££&One foot in the furrow f+CNA Colborne Citizen MEMBER OF THE CANADIAN AND ONTARIO COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS ASSOCIATION Offices: Main St., Brighton, in the lower floor of the Brighton Public Library. Drop-off depot Simpson Sears office, Colborne. Phone 475-0255. Second ( i Mail Registration No. : Subscription Kates: $6 per year, payable in advance anywhere in Canada. $7 in advance in the U.S.A.. $8 to any other country. Both old and new address should be given when change of address is requested. Advertising: Rates upon request. Although every precaution will be taken to avoid errors, The Brighton Independent accepts advertising in its columns on the understanding that it will not be liable for any error in any advertisement published in its columns. Some soul-searching questions were posed early this month at the Canadian Conference on the World Food Crisis in Ottawa. This corner has predicted that energy crises can come and go, political upheavals can take place, wars and rumors of wars can rumble throughout the world. But the final crunch will come in the empty bellies of many millions of people. Was the energy crisis of recent months real or fabricated? In any event, recent discoveries such as the huge oil deposits in the Yucatan Peninsula will alleviate the energy worries of the Western world. The crisis developing ii cerns farmers and food. Ottawa brought many things into focus. For instance. Roy Jackson, deputy director-general of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, put his finger on the pulse of concern. Were the Western world's much vaunted food aid programs during the last 20 or 30 years founded solely on politically embarrassing surpluses? Think about that for a few minutes. Did the rich nations of the world--and Canada, in spite of what you think about your pay cheque, is one of them--give and sell surpluses to the developing countries simply because it was politically expedient to do so at the time? And by doing so, have they done more harm than good? Have the less developed countries counted too heavily on those surpluses and allowed development of their own agriculture to slip too low among national priorities? This, too. was another question posed by Mr. Jackson. And can we allow price to ration food supplies in times of shortage? One of Mr. Jackson's most probing questions identifies an immediate problem. Access to supplies, he said, is becoming more vital. Are the industrialized countries prepared to share fertilizers and pesticides with nations just beginning to modernize farming methods? This increased use of fertilizers and pesticides has accounted for most of the improved productivity in developing countries. But prices of these items have increased three to four times in two or three years. Demand far exceeds supply and food production in dozens of developing countries will surely decrease if the poorer nations cannot get--or even afford--fertilizer. Mr. Jackson explains that every ton of fertilizer applied in India, for example, yields eight to 10 tons of wheat. But a ton of that same fertilizer applied in Europe or North America may result in only two or three additional tons of wheat. In other words, the nations who have the fertilizer and can afford to buy it are the nations who will get it. Those who need it to increase production 10 times or more do not have it and can't afford to buy it. The law of supply and demand along with the Western world's profit-motivated society will simply see to it that developing nations will not get what is so desperately needed to fill empty bellies. A hungry man is a desperate man. He will do anything to get enough food for himself and his family. A desperate man is a violent man. And violence spawns hatred and wars. The key is a willingness among all nations to co-operate but I cannot see this co-operation as a reality in the immediate future. How many Canadians would be willing to tighten their belts one notch--just one notch--in an effort to feed a hungry family in the third world? A few, perhaps. How many profit-oriented companies are willing to take a few cents less on their investment to help someone starving in Asia? Hell, the only time we give anything away is when we can get a deduction on our taxes. If the "gift" goes one penny beyond that tax deduction, we belly-ache about it and then go sulk in front of our color television sets with a drink in one hand and a huge plateful of potato chips in the other.