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4 -- PORT PERRY STAR -- Tuesday, March 6, 1984 "Now, where was / before / - p= Dd ny == was so rudely interrupted ? * chatterbox by John B. McClelland 'wasn't sure THE ERA ENDS Unless you've been vacationing on Christmas Island, you know that Pierre Trudeau finally announc- ed last week that he is getting out of politics. As [ watched the news reports and commentary on television the evening of the announcement, I must ad- mit to a feeling of relief and also a touch of sadness. Why the latter, I don't really know. The Prime Minister would not get my vote as Canadian of the Century. But then, nobody else would, either. In the days after the announcement, of course, the press and the air-waves were filled with commentary and opinion about Trudeau; his impact on the country, his style, his politics, the legacy he has left Canada, his good points and his foibles. A caller to a radio talk show more or less summed up my own feelings about the Trudeau era: disappoint- ment; not so much at ony one thing in particular, but more a general feeling that things didn't really work out for good old Canada the way we might have hoped. He t home the Constitution, which is a good thing for any country to have, I suppose. But frankly, I've never been able to grasp the significance of why the patriation of the Constitution (and its Charter of Rights and Freedoms) so dominated the political scene in Canada for such a long time. I don't feel any profound sense of al nce to that document. During his tenure, great emphasis was placed on bilingualism and multiculturalism; again, two very ad- mirable notions for any country to follow. But like a lot of Canadians, I'm not doing any cartwheels over them. Petrocan, our national oil company is another reasonable idea, if you believe like I do that energy is as fundamentally important to the well being of a na- tion as its health care or education systems, or iood sup- plies, or even its armed forces. But my perception is that it's just another oil company. Pierre Trudeau became Prime Minister of Canada in the year I was old enough to vote for the first time. Like a lot of people my age who sensed a change in the air that warm summer of '68, I voted Liberal, and the reason was not the local Liberal candidate in the riding where | was living at the time (I don't even remember his name). The reason, of course, was Pierre Trudeau. He was the first politician I had ever seen who didn't wear a gray flannel suit and have a pot belly. Something was happening in Canada, although I t at that time, and looking back today, I'm even less sure. It was an exciting year to turn 21 and vote for a politician like . .cire Trudeau. In the 16 years since, the images became blurred and fuzzy, out of focus. The country changed, Pierre Trudeau cha . Some say he's to blame for the changes. I it, but that's the perception. Of all the images of the Trudeau era: the marriage, the spats with his wife, metrification, those endless first ministers conferences in Ottawa, his Mercedes sports car, the swimming pool, his fights with the press, his trips to every corner of the globe, the FLQ crisis, the fuddle cuddle, the shrug, and the peace mission; the one image that will stick in my mind was that one-fingered salute to Unemployed hecklers in B.C. a few years ago. Sure, the hecklers were acting like boors, but that in- famous gesture said a lot about how Trudeau felt not about this country, but about the people. And that's the unfilled promise. Trudeau, with all his brilliance of mind, his undeniable passion for Cana- dian federalism, his skill in debate, his admirable vi- sions of world peace, failed to see the forest for the trees. He didn't see the people. If he did see them, he didn't listen. When he listened, he didn't seem to care. Of course, now that he has announced his intention to step down, even some of his sharpest critics are ad- mitting that history will look kindly on the Trudeau era, and I agree. Those sharp unfavourable images like the one-fingered salute will blur quickly, and the passing of the years will give a perspective to his days in power that many don't see right now. Yes, I did feel a twinge of sadness last week, know- ing that the Trudeau era is drawing to a close. It hasn't been fun; I don't know if the country is better off for his presence on the stage for 16 years, but nobody can ever say that it hasn't been interesting to be a Cana- dian over the last decade and a half. Personally, I hope he turns his attention to the world stage. He enjoys a presence there which he didn't en- joy at home, probably because we saw too much of him every day for so long. There is nobody who can argue that global tensions don't h ave to be toned down. Trudeau tried in recent months and appears to have attained some moderate degrees of success. That much can be said. Where Canada goes in the next couple of years re- mains to be seen. Just as I am convinced that Trudeau took more of the blame for the nation's problems than was due him, I am equally convinced the country will fare no better or worse now that he is gone. After all, if the fate and course of an entire nation is not bigger than one man, then God help that nation. Certainly on paper the record of his 16 years (almost) in office "it look very good: the massive deficit, soaring government spending, the strikes in the public service sector, the chronic unemployment. Would things have been different with other leaders at the helm? Of course, his critics, but I really wonder .... With an election likely this fall, we won't have long to wait before we find out. It's one thing for a country (Turn to page 6) Brutal Murder An 18-year old youth, working the overnight shift in a west Toronto milk store is stabbed in the neck dur- ing a robbery and then apparently bleeds to death while his assailants help themselves to the few dollars in the cash register. This shocking incident comes while the memory of another milk store robbery is fresh in our minds; the one a few months ago when a young girl was shot. She survived but will spend the rest of her days in a wheelchair as a quadraplegic. The murder of the young man over the weekend prompted some politicians to immediately call for measures to protect the people who work in all-night convenience stores. This is a natural reaction when a barbaric incident takes place that defies the imagina- tion. And we suppose there are steps that could be taken as closed circuit TV monitors which may act as a deterrent. But we wonder when a person is so intent on rob- bery that he (she or them) would commit cold blooded murder if any kind of actions are going to stop them. It it isn't the milk store clerk, it might be an innocen citizen on the street corner. : Robbery for a few dollars is not something new to our society. But what is new in the past few years is that some people appear willing to kill and maim for those few lousy dollars. It is a sign of the times in a society more and more tuned in to violence. So what are we to do, shut down all business at 11:00 at night; build steel cages and bullet-proof glass around all the clerks who serve the public; hire armed guards to patrol the milk stores? It may have to come to that. Some say our system of justice has fallen down with easy bail, easy parole, light sentences and so on. Still others are demanding a return to capital punish- ment. it may have to come to that, too. Society is losing the battle against violent crime, and the weekend murder of a young man in a Toronto milk store is just one more example. Tax Hikes it is pretty hard to quibble with a budget that will ~ add less than two dollars to the average household tax bill this year in Scugog Township. Durham Region council last week approved the 1984 budget which will result in an average tax increase of 2.8 per cent. In the case of Scugog Township, that translates into $1.95 on an average home with an assessed value of $3000, or 65 cents per $1000 of assessment. This increase applies to the Regional share of pro- perty taxes, which amount to about 25 per cent of the total tax bill. Durham Region has come in for more than its fair share of criticism since its formation about a decade ago. Some of the criticism has been well founded; some of it based on ignorance and misconception. But we would have to agree with some of the com- ments made by councillors at the budget meeting last week, that the Region, financially speaking, has put its house in order. This is the second straight year in which the Regional tax hike on average has been under five per cent. To our knowledge, there have not been any irate taxpayer's groups storming the Regional council meetings to complain about deterioration in the ser- vices they receive for their Regional tax dollars. Durham Region has been helped by a couple of factors. The assessment growth rate is healthy; something like 3.6 per cent on average across Dur' And the local economy is not as depressed here as it i8 in other municipalities in Ontario and the rest of Canada. And the Regional departments have taken the word "'restraint" at face value. They have tightened their belts to pinch pennies and control spending. Just what the total tax hike for 1984 will be, won't be known until the local municipal councils and the Durham Board of Education bring down their respec- tive budgets some time in the next few weeks. For the sake of the beleaguered ratepayers, let us hope that the increase there is not much higher than that of Durham Region's. hie i -- RE PT RI gino