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-------- 4 -- PORT PERRY STAR -- Tuesday, January 28, 1986 Editorial Comments Economic Recover? We wish we could share the complete euphoria of the chief economist with the Toronto-based Merrill Lynch Canada Inc., who is quoted last week in a major financial publication as saying: 'The Canadian economy looks.absolutely superb. It's the best I've seen it in ten years." Assuming that Michael Manford was not misquoted or quoted out of context in the article, that's a pretty powerful statement, indeed. And a quick glance at many of the key indicators of the nation's economy -- such things as housing starts, new cars produced and sold, the GNP, and new capital investment -- there is some reason to be optimistic about the economy of this country over the next cou- ple of years. . 'New cars for example: this country sold 225,000 more vehicles in 1985 than in 1984. New vehicle production climbed by 125,000 units in 1985 to a total of 1.9 million. The auto industry is booming. Housing starts are up nearly 30,000 units in 1985 to a total of 139,000 new units. That's good news for the. construction industry, suppliers and producers of materials used in housing. Retail sales hit $103 billion in 1985, a hefty increase of about ten per cent. Merchandise exports also went up by about $6 billion. The value of mineral production climbed by $1 billion. The average weekly wage in Canada rose to $464 from $445 the previous year, while the inflation.rate hovered in the four per cent range. That may appear to be good news, but new income tax rates and consumer sales taxes took a big bite out of the salary gains. Still, the economists who compile all these statistics on key in- dicators, have pretty good reason to be optimistic that the economy will continue to perform well for the next three years, at least. But it's by no means a totally cloudless picture. Farm cash receipts in 1985 actually dropped off, by about $425 million over the previous year. The nation's farmers had less money than the year before, yet their production costs went up. The number of man-days lost to strikes and lock-outs eC in creased in 1985. Maybe this is a symptom of the 'good Aimes."' Canada lost 997,000 man-days to strikes and lock-outs in the past year and that figure is too high no matter how you cut it. There are other clouds, like the Bank rate, which has been creep- ing of late. And of course that old problem spot, the Canadian dollar is losing more ground to the paper with George Washington on the front. We all remember what the Bank of Canada did just a few short years ago to shore up the Canadian buck. Will it happen again? But the key indicator that is most bothersome about the Cana- dian economy is the unemployment figure. It was slightly better in 1985, to be sure, but there were still 1,329,000 Canadians out of work. That is scandalous in any country, never mind a country like Canada that is bragging about its economy. ~The number of Canadians out of work appear in the tables of ~ the economists as just another indicator, like the measure of steel ingots, bank deposits or new housing starts. Heck, at a quick glance down the key indicator table, the eye might even miss the unemployment figures. But it's there, and it is a shocking fact of life that despite all the - glowing economic gains and optimistic predictions for the future, one Canadian in ten (in the workforce) can't or won't get a job. 1,329,000 is a lot of people (about the same number who live in the city of Toronto). We notice the economists don't try to measure the human misery factor that results from 1.3 million people out of - work. Maybe Mr. Manford, from Merrill Lynch has never been in an (Turn to page 6) the | | (Qa . Pr PORT PLAY STAR (O (NNVTID { 3) 233 Quen stent? y #0 #0190 a Ch | PORT MEY ONTAMNO LO8 m0 \ 3S / (09) ?0) - [| "J. PETER HVIDSTEN Publisher Advertising Manager 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 Oftice Department Ottawa and for cash CATHY ROBB payment of postage in cash News & Features AN CO CR ~ X [a » WN (Qi) ) LI) 3 [3 Second Class Mail Registration Number 0265 Subscription Rate In Canada $15 00 per year Elsewhere $45 00 per year Single Copy 35° COPYRIGHT -- All layout and composition of advertisements produced by the adver ising department of the Port Pérry Star Company | imited are protected under copyright and may not be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher FEB 200 SUPPORT CRIPPLED KIDS ~ { guppaar "| BASTER SEALS _ 55 rir . BUY YOUR OWN GAS Oo © AQ o TY, ce O S oF = TY. be A. © +" Chatterbox "by John B. McClelland I don't know about you, but I was pretty relieved to see 22 year old Jean Viau step forward last week to claim his $10 million from the Lotto 649 draw earlier this month. The young man from just outside Cornwall, who worked in a running shoe factory for $6 bucks an hour, held the winning ticket in the January 11 bingo. Up until Viau claimed his prize, there had been something of a cloud hanging over that specific draw with some guy in Maine claiming he picked the winning numbers but a mail-order ticket outfit in Toronto didn't process them in time. It all sounded a little fishy and lottery of- ficials were concerned enough to launch a probe into the way the ticket selling company does business. Anyway, Jean Viau has his $10 million and change. News reports say he wants to do three things: quit his factory job, buy a red Vette con- vertible and get married to his girlfriend of the last three years. Oh, yes, he's going to study to be an accountant. That's not a bad choice for so- meone who could have an after tax income of $500,000 a year for the rest of his life. Investing wisely and finding as many tax loop-holes as legal- ly possible would be a full time job for someone with $10 million in his pocket. Having at least a rudimentary knowledge of accounting and the tax laws might be a help. B It's hard to believe, but by waiting ten days to claim his prize, Viau lost about $13,000 in in- terest. That's more than he was making in a year at the shoe factory. I guess he can afford it now. There's no point in hiding the fact that I buy a few Lotto 649 tickets each week. I started a cou- ple of years ago when the jackpot soared to $13 million. I've eashed enough $10 tickets to cover what I put into it by playing the same numbers (more or less) each week. . Some people don't like lotteries, calling them nothing more than a cheap way for the govern- ment to suck more money from the hapless tax- payer. Baloney. I think most people play for the fun of it. If some play with the intention of "strik- ing it rich," that's their problem. But let's face it, everyone who has ever bought a lottery ticket with a chance at winning $10 million has allowed themselves just a few ,uiet moments to dream about what could be done with all that money. It's human nature. For me, dreaming about that money is part of the fun. I have always maintained that for the vast majority of people, lotteries are nothing more than a harmless diversion. There is one thing I find perplexing. The three times when the Lotto 649 jackpot has climbed through the roof have been in January, the one month in the year when money is on the minds of most people: Christmas bills to pay, miserable weather, cars that won't start, flu bugs and fur- naces that swallow oil in mighty gulps. January is the one month when a lot of peo- ple would like to close their eyes and wake up on some sun-drenched beach where the only ice to be seen is in the bottom of a tall glass. No wonder ticket sales on a $10 million jackpot soared this month. But that's enough about lotteries. I've just got to rush over to the store and fill out my card for the next draw. RIDIN' SHOTGUN According to published reports, the Durham Region Police is the first force in Ontario to equip all its cruisers with shotguns. 'There are some faint-hearted people who may say "tut-tut-tut" at this. They may say that cops don't need shotguns, that it will only lead to more violence in the streets as the crooks will increase their arsenals. A few years ago, I might have agreed with this idea. But not any more. It may be a sad sign of the times we live in, but the more artillery the cops have, the better I feel. All you have to do is scan any daily paper these days to realize that violent crime is a fact of life, even in Durham Region. Cops are wearing body armour and open holters. The reason? There are a lot of goons and creeps out there who shoot first and they don't give a damn who's in the way. Let's face it, there are some situations where the cops are in a war zone, and the enemy ain't firing blanks. We wouldn't think of putting pea- shooters in the hands of soldiers when the other side is using bazookas. If shotguns in the cruisers can help the police deal with violent crime that's becoming more and more routine, so be it. For my money, a few of those Israeli-made Uzis wouldn't be a bad idea, either. SORRY 'BOUT THAT Had a call last week from a reader most upset at the use of the word 'crippled' in a photo cutline about the upcoming Snowarama. The reader was quite right in admonishing us for using the word in reference to children with physical disabilities. It was a slip on our part as I can honestly say that over the years this paper has tried to be sensitive and supportive of not just children with special needs, but all members of our society.