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iii An open letter to Bill Davis Dear Sir: I was very surprised to see a full page ad in the last issue of the Port Perry Star sponsored by your government which urges the public to make more effective use of mass transit. As you are very much aware, many residents of this area made regular use of the Havelock VIA train to commute to and from their jobs in Toronto un- til this much needed train service was discon- tinued by Federal Transport Minister Jean- Luc Pepin last September. Despite numerous «well documented representa- tions from users of the: Havelock service, your government refused to provide a replacement train. As a result, mass transit service for residents of our area re- mains woefully inadequate. 'I'm sure I speak for many of my fellow citizens when I say that Iresent the abuse of my tax dollars in paying for ads urging me to use non- existent mass transit ser- vices. Even more, I re- sent the hypocritical at- titude of your govern- ment in placing such ads in local papers while refusing to provide train commuter service which would save energy and money (as your own pro- paganda indicates) while promoting employment and economic growth. You would be well ad- vised to ensure that ade- quate transportation ser- vices are actually in place before spending tax dollars urging people to use them. Give us back the Havelock train! Yours very truly, Jay S. Madsen Port Perry, Ontario St (*cha PORT PERRY STAR CO LNTNTED 235 QUEEN STREET PO 80190 PORT PERRY ONTARIO LO8 WO Ye Publisher Advertising Manager . 10, 2A r5ps Ass0C AY (416) 985.7383 (= ) (549) (=) J. PETER HVIDSTEN Member of the Canadian Community Newspaper Association and Ontario Community Newspaper Association Published every Tuesday by the Port Perry Star Co. Ltd , Port Perry, Ontario J.B. McCLELLAND Editor Authorized as second class mail by the Post Office RADIAN Com 08 » Department, Ottawa, and for cash payment of postage in cash Second Class Mail Registration Number 0265 A Subscription Rate: In Canada $15.00 per year. Elsewhere $45.00 per year. Single copy: 35 ES ------ A SAR AE 35 SP THE LAW'S SOILED IMAGE I've been trying to get some of my 'students in- terested in writing essays for money, instead of grin- ding them out for the teacher. The local Bar Association offers a $100 prize for an fers $50 for the best humerous piece by a high school student. : Either my students are leery of the law, and have no sense of humour, or they already have more money than is good for them. There is a resounding lack of in- - terest in both competitions. When I was in Grade 8, my home town held an essay contest. I entered it, won it, walked off with the grand prize of $2.50 cash, and have never looked back. Now, I can see them being a bit dubious about writing humour. That's a dicey thing: one man's bellow of laughter is another man's groan -- and it requires a special talent. But surely any dam-fool can write something about the law -- good, bad, or otherwise. Judges, lawyers and politicians (most of whom are lawyers), can be expected to out something creditable . about the law, whéther or not their effusions are credible. ; Gangsters, drug addicts and murderers can equal- ly be expected to savage the law in print, as seen from their slightly biased position. But even great writers have been fascinated by the - law. Shakespeare said something like, "Let's hang all the lawyers." The poor man was constantly in the ment will be readily echoed in many a mind. essay on The Rule of Law. The Leacock Association of- ...courts, which made him a poorer. man. But his senti-. a bill smiley equally popular idea among a fair proportion of the populace. : Thoreau too had a word for the law: "U:njust laws exist. Shall we obey them, or shall we endeavour to amend them and obey them until we have succeeded, or shall we transgress them at once?" He states fur- ther, "If it (a Jaw) requires you to be the agent of in- justice to another, then, I say, break the law." Neatly put. Of course, if everyone followed Thoreau's advice, military law would become a shambles, there'd be no more war, and people would stop killing each other in massive numbers, that, of course, would upset the economy dreadfully, and where would we, be then?' Looking back through history, we can see that the law doesn't always appear too squeaky clean, but somehow the results weren't too bad. -Christ was crucified by the law, and see what that produced. Joan of Arc was condemned as a heretic by ecclesiastical law, and burned as a witch by English law.. If that hadn't happened, the English wouldn't have been driven out of France, and the populace of that love- ly land would have been condemned to a lifetime of - eating brussels sprouts instead of truffles. Sir Thomas More, a great lawyer, fought off several attempts to frame him, and was finally brought to the executioner's block by perjury, organized by another lawyer. But the results? England, rather short on saints, got another one: Good Queen Bess made it to the throne and fifty years of peace; and we got the television series The Wives of Henry the Eighth.-- -- It seems that the law, traditionally blindfolded, works, like God, in mysterious ways its wonders to perform. In modern times, the law is taking something of a battering. Ordinary citizens break the laws freely, especially when it has anything to do with something much more majestic -- the automobile. A man who would vomit at the thought of murder, rape, robbery, - will cheerfully park illegally, exceed the speed limit, refuse to fasten his seat belt. Because the minions of the law -- police and the military -- are tools of the establishment, there was a great wave of lawleslsness during the anti- establishment movement of the 60s and 70s. Because the law seemed to have lost its teeth, we have seen unions defying court injuctions, football fans rioting and vandalizing, mugging in the streets. Because we see our once-treasured Mounties up to all sorts of nefarious tricks and see the police closing ranks when some of their members are charged with brutality, we have lost some of our once-solid faith in the arm of the law. Because we see clearly, every day in the news, that there is one law for the rich, and another for the poor, we have lost some of our faith in the courts. Perhaps the most telling sign of the times iis a re- cent new story from England, where the bobbies, tradi- tionally unarmed, are carrying guns in a British city, on a '"'trial basis." It's not too late. There is still, at least in this coun- try, a healthy respect for the law, an earnest desire to be a law-abiding nation. But a good spring cleaning - would burnish the image of the law, which has become. _ somewhat tarnished in the twentieth century. Ia Dickens said it succinctly: "The law is an ass." An - 60 YEARS AGO Thursday, May 17, 1923 Reach Township council met and set the rate of pay for roads workers for the 1923 season as 25 cents per hour for a man alone or 50 cents per hour for a man and his hor- se. .. Mrs. J. Shunk was elected president of the Seagrave - Ladies Aid. Mr. and Mrs. M.R. Arlidge had a baby boy, Ernest Beattie Maurice. Mr. and Mrs. Frank R. Bennett became parents of a son, Edward Russell. Mr. and Mrs. Norman Edgerton also had a baby boy. > 35 YEARS AGO Thursday, May 13, 1948" : A federal election campaign was in full swing and oposition candidates were declaring inflation to be the main issue. As a sample of "absurdly high prices", one candidate pointed out that the price of a new car had gone up to $1,855.00. Ata Port Perry council meeting it was moved by M.B. Dymond, seconded by R.H. Frise, that the town felt a great sense of loss over the passing of Port Perry Star publisher Samuel Farmer. 5 Council was requesting that owners of dogs in Port - Perry keep them tied up during May, June and July, out of - consideration for people's gardens. The Scugog chapter of the 1.0.0.D. sponsored a tag day of behalf of the blind. : Ralph Scott as the 'Gunfighter was playing at the Port Perry theatre. } member wh 25 YEARS AGO Thursday, May 8, 1958 _ Work started on the widening of Oshawa Road near Department of Highways engineers were in town to inspect the causeway. They found that one culvert needed to be replaced, but otherwise the roadway between Port Perry and Scugog Island was in good condition. Cecil B. DeMille's movie "The Ten Commandments" was playing in the area. . Charles and Pat Harvey became the parents of a boy, Raymond Scott. "20 YEARS AGO . Thursday, May 8, 1963 Tris Coffin was the guest speaker at the 25th Anniver- sary Dinner of the Port Perry. Lions Club which was held in the Legion Hall. Leeman Nixon, a minister of the Port Perry congregation of Jehovah Witnesses attended a ministerial leadership seminar at Oshawa. The Seagrave Angels softball club held its first prac- tice of the season. : The latest equipment avaialble at Port Perry Hospital was shown off at the hospital's Open House. i A half pound tin of sockeye salmon sold for 59 cents; side bacon was 57 cents per pound and cooked ham was 47 cents for a 6 oz. package. 15 YEARS AGO Thursday, May 16, 1968 Heavy dredging equipment was put in operation at Caesarea to clean out and deepen the channel for larger boats to make use of the area. + The boys and girls of Cartwright High recaptured the trophy from Millbrook High School in the annual B-School Track & Field Meet between the two schools. Twenty five creative displays were being erected for the 1st annual Home Show to be held at the Port Perry Arena. In May 1968, prices on appliances were advertised as follows: 13.1 cu. ft. frost free refrigerator - $299.95 and the matching 24' range was $189.95. _ 10YEARS AGO _ Wednesday, May 16, 1973 The Victoria Day fireworks display was cancelled this year due to strict provincial regulations regarding the sale and use of fireworks. Historical society president, Bill Brock stated in a let- ter to the editor in the Star that Port Perry's old town hall may be torn down. It has been suggested that the proper- ty would be a good site for a parking lot. Pending objection from the County Health Unit, Len Taylor may begin operating an overnight trailer park on Lot 10, Reach Township (facing Hwy. 7 & 12). The site is known as Wells Spring Park and application was ap- proved by the Township Planning Board and local council recently. . PORT PERRY STAR -- Tuesday, May 17, 1983 -- 5 ST FA -- rp. hd i Air AR vf 3 J y