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MESSAGE to Star readers The more sophisticated and indeed more costly operation of a Regional Government as compared to the traditional County system has become one of several causes for an increased cost in publishing the Port Perry Star. With the amalgamation of the Village of Port Perry and the Townships of Reach, Scugog and Cartwright about one year ago, the total population of the municipality, known today as the Township of Scugog has exceeded the 10,000 population mark. Our many subscribers may ask and rightly so: "What has this to do with the cost of publishing a newspaper?' : The. answer is quite simple. When a municipality reaches 10,000 population, a news- paper such as the Port Perry Star loses a mailing 'privilege, the paper and its readers have enjoyed for many years. This is a Canada Postal Department ruling and it came into effect as far as the Star is concerned in October of this year, when it was disclosed the population of Scugog Township had reached 10,000. Due to this increase, the price of delivering the Star by mail rose - by a whopping 200 percent, in reality caused by the creation of region of Durham. However, this is not the only reason for the increased cost. During the last 18 months, the cost of printing the Port Perry Star has jumped by 50 per cent, staff wages have risen twice and the inflationary cost of equipment and supplies have also increased to a much greater extent than expected. The encouraging response we receive from both readers and advertisers make us believe the Star is a welcome commodity in the many homes in Scugog Township. In order that we may continue to serve you well and even hopefully improve this service we are "forced" to increase subscription rates. The present rates will be in effect until the end of the year, but starting with the issue of January 4, 1975, annual subscription rates will be $8.00 in Canada and $10.00 elsewhere. Single copy price will go up to 20c, of which local dealers will receive 5 cents. During the month of December, readers are welcome to take advantage of the lower price and renew subscriptions in advance at the present rates. We really didn't have to elaborate on, this question tothe extent we have done here, but felt it was only fair to inform our readérs about the many reasons causing the increase in subscription rates. - P. Hvidsten, publisher. Safe Driving Week If more people had paid attention to what was said during Safe Driving Week in December 1972, six thousand people might not have died on Canadian roads in 1973. But that is approximately the number of.people who die annually on the roads in Canada and almost one third of those die in Ontario. Safe Driving Week is being observed from December 1 to December 7 this year. Safe Driving Week is aimed at alerting Canadian motorists to the scope of the traffic accident epidemic and what must be done to reduce accidents, not just during the campaign, but all year. Officials stress that one of the most important ways to prevent traffic accidents is to THINK all the time you are driving. It is a good idea to assume you will face an emergency every time you are driving. Scan the road, the shoulders and the ditches for possible options to avoid disaster. a Concentrate on driving and not on passing scenery, no matter how beautiful it is. "Take your living room with you" is the advice of the Canada Safety Council to all drivers this winter. The "Living Room' referred to is the space retween any driver and the vehicle in front. The council emphasizes that this space is the nly factor outside the vehicle fhat can be -ontrolled by the driver. All other external factors lepend on climatic conditions, other vehicles or ther road users. -- } = ) As our roads become more heavily travelled nd surfaces deteriorate, all drivers are urged to esolve that all safety rules will be observed hroughout 1975. . --- 19y Mar) 15 JOE VOTER AN' 1 way 156 mayors, 580 REEVES, A SOCKFULL oF couNCILLORS, COMMISSIONERS AN' TRUSTEES «.. " BILL gm MILEY UGAR ano ABOUT THAT WORD HONOUR Had to make a speech the other night to the honour students at our school. I say "had to", because, the vice-principal, who is six feet twelve, told me I was going to be the guest speaker. I am five feet eight and a half. . How can you be a '"'guest' speaker when you work in the joint? However, I done my best, as we say in the English department. It wasn't much of a speech, but the remuneration was not exactly princely, either. Zero. I abhor speakers at honour nights who get up there and praise the kids and tell them to stick in there and fight and be competitive, because that's what the world is all about. I took rather a different line. I told them that being an honour student is chiefly a matter of birth. Either you are born with "some intelligence, in which case you can. walk through our school system, or you are born to a mother or father who makes you get off your lazy butt and do some work. In either case, it was an accident, not something to sit around and feel self-satis- fied about. Both my kids were honour students, in Grade 9. And the boy could almost tie his own shoelaces when he was 14, and the girl was still knocking over her glass of milk at table when she was 14. From Grade 9 they went straight down hill. But I'm not too worried about them. They both have a sense of honour, and that's a lot more important, to me, than honour standing in school. Some of the rottenest people, physically, morally and emotionally, whom I have ever mel, have been honour students. With no _sense-of Honour. I was an honour student too, once, in Grade 8. This was back about the time of the Boer War. I knew I was about the smartest kid in the school, and was confident of coming first in Grade 8, or the Entrance, as we called it. Entrance to what, I never did find out. Entrance to five more stultifying years of school, I guess. Unfortunately, though I was the smartest kid in school, I was also the laziest. Eddie Kirkland, now a big corporation lawyer in Montreal, came first. I beat him up as soon as the results came out. This didn't solve my frustration. Muriel Robbins came second. I was going to beat her up too, but she was bigger than I, so i settled for third. Third is a good place to be. You can't be accused of being a teacher's pet, as we called it, or a "brown", as today's youngsters so bluntly label it. On the other hand, you have proved that you are not a dummy. [I've been running a comfortable third ever since. I was the third member in our family of five. It was rather pleasant. I didn't have to compete with my older brother and sister, and I could bully my younger brother and sister. When it came time to take our lumps in -the war, Tstill ran a comfortable third. My older brother chose to have himself blown up, rather spectacularly. My young brother, in a desperate attempt to get some recognition, won a decoration for bravery, after being shot down in the English Channel. (I don't see what's so brave about that.) I went quietly off to a prison camp, and emerged with three thousand dollars in back pay. They were both broke. There's nothing wrong with being a third-place runner. I don't mind getting a little mud'in my face, as long as I finish in the money. Now let's be serious for a moment. I'd like to take a closer look at the word "honour". It's one of those abstract words that you hear less and less these days, as though it were embarrassing to utter them. Words like compassion and virtue and chastity and loyalty and decency. People almost blush when they use one of them. It seems that we all have to be tough and callous. From this "all", I would except our young people, who are not afraid to talk of love and compassion and tolerance and kindness and pity. They see only too clearly through the "plastic" world they have been bequeathed: -- a world of false values, lip service to ideals, and violence. No wonder there is a generation gap. We worship the golden calf, and are flaber- gasted when our kids see it for what it is: a graven image. We want to sweep everything under the rug, so the neighbours won't see it. We want our Kids to be "nice", and "sensible", and "solid", while they see the joy and the pain that is real human life. These are some of the thoughts I shared with the students. In closing, I suggested, "Don't just be an honour student. Be an honour person." Do you agree? The Argyle Syndicate Ltd. 50 YEAR AGO Thursday, November 27,1924 A memorial meeting held in planning a new soldiers Memorial Library was held in the Town Hall. During the meeting $650.00 was sub- scribed with a $200.00 donat- ion from the [.O.D.E. Prizes were awarded to Jean Cawker and Alfred Higgs winners of second and third place in entrances ex- aminations. Two young Port Perry men were called to the bar at Osgoode Hall, Toronto, the oath was administered by Chief Justice Meredith. They were Mr. John Harris and Mr. Douglas Lucas. 25 YEARS AGO Thursday, November 24,1949 Two local families were particularly interested in the rescue of, the passengers and crew of the B-29 forced down in the Atlantic as each had a son among the personnel of (continued on page b) AAA ~ { PORT PERRY STAR | Company Limited St, Cw fm): Serving Por! Perry, Reach. Scugog and Cartwright Twps }--- P. Hvidsten, Publisher- Editor J.P. Hvidsten, Adv. Mgr. § Member of the Canadian Community Newspaper Association and the Ontario. Weekly Newspaper Association . Published every Wednesday by the Port Perry Star Co. Ltd., Port Perry. Onlario Authorized as second class mail by the Post Office Department, Ottawa. and for payment of postage in cash. Second Class Mail Registration Number 0265 Subscription Rates: Canada . . . $6.00 per year Elsewhere . . . $8.50 per year Singlé Copy 15¢ Naa POCO a of