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ad nC ym SR haa i bi sap PORT PERRY STAR -- Tuesday, March 3, 1987 -- § i | Viewpoint by John B. McClelland How ironic that once again a Middle East country run by a bunch of religious fanatics is threatening the President of the most powerful nation on the face of the earth. Iran today would place under the bottom of anybody's list of countries they would "least like to visit." It is a country whose 'eaders have raged a bloody and senseless war for seven years with neighbouring Iraq. It is a country whose foreign policy centres around religious fanaticism disguised as Moslem fundamen- - talism. It is a country that has supported terrorism in many parts of the world. It is a country where children as young as ten are used as "shock troops" in battle on the promise of immortality in the hereafter. By any in- telligent stretch of the imagination, Iran in 1987 is a fourth-rate actor on the international stage. Yet, Iran is threatening the presidency of Ronald Reagan. And it was this same pip-squeak country which many observers feel killed the presidency of Jimmy Carter. You may recall the seizure of hostages from the American embassy in Tehran. They were held over a year, and it was Jimmy Carter's inability to deal with this crisis that paved the way for Ronald Reagan's vic- tory at the polls in 1980. | Today it is Reagan in hot water over Iran, specifically the arms deal in which the U.S. arranged for weapons to be shipped to the country and the pro- ceeds from those sales diverted to the Contra rebels in Nicaragua. A top level commission in Washirigton which spent three months investigating this affair, came to some conclusions last week. The'most damaging was that Ronald Reagan's authorization of the arms sales ~ was "probably illegal." The Commission also said that Reagan lost control of the actions of very senior White House officials and aides. Whether he can ride out this storm of controversy and seek another term in office remains to be seen. What has damaged his credibility is his admission that "he forgot" whether he authorized the shipment of weapons to Iran. - Jimmy Carter's nemesis was that the embassy hostages languished for 44 days. His military attempt to free them ended in flaming disaster in the désert. The American public came to perceive Carter as being weak-kneed and faint of heart in dealing with tin-pot regimes like that in Iran. How ironic it is that a super-power like the United States has fumbled so badly in its dealing with second and third rate countries. One could say the same about the Soviet Union and its disastrous foray into AS ghanistan. Likewise with the United States and Viet am. d ' It would appear as if the super-powers operates in a vacuum when it comes to dealing with small nations. In 1965, the United States thought it could just send in a few marines and the Viet Nam 'problem' would be solved. The Soviets were probably thinking the same thing when they went into Afghanistan. It took the Americans ten years and 50,000 combat deaths to get out of Viet Nam. The Soviets are finding Afghanistan equally as difficult. I am not shocked at the latest problems Ronald Reagan is encountering-over the Iran arms deals. The sale and shipment of weapons world-wide is a multi- billion dollar business each year, and it has no cons: cience. Weapons are readily available to any regime with the cash to pay for them. That's a fact of life in 1987. What is surprising are the ramifications for an American president when the deals are made public and become the subject of a commission investigation. Like Jimmy Carter before him, Reagan is being dragged down over his handling of "relations" with a regime that is blatantly anti-American, hostile, and a supporter of terrorism, kidnapping and murder. Unfortunately, Iran's geographic location in the Middle East gives it a large amount of military and "strategic importance not only in that troubled part of the world, but on the global scale as well. As a super power, the United States simply can't ignore Iran. : BEST OF LUCK A contingent of young rugby players from Port Perry High School will be leaving next week for a two week tour of Scotland. We wish these young men the best of luck as they are playing five games against rugby teams from high schools in southern Scotland. But more important is the chance to see a part of the world few of them have not seen before. It's a marvellous oppor- tunity to travel, make new friends, play a little rugby and act as goodwill ambassadors for Port Perry, On- tario and the country. To all the players and the two coaches, best of luck on and off the field. This is a once-in-a-lifetime oppor- tunity, so make the very most of it. It's quite amazing when one thinks of the oppor- tunities that can come along for high school and even elementary students these days. What a change from my own school days when a student trip of major significance was a Friday afternoon outing to see a . reforestation project ten miles away. 'If I sound a little envious, it's because I am. Again, you guys, enjoy Scotland and have a safe journey. Memories 70 YEARS AGO Wed. March 7, 1917 Mr. Arthur Prentice is moving into Mr. Penshall's house on Yesterday's Letters Insist Bill 30 be repealed A qumini Crandell Street. Mr. and Mrs. J. Stonehouse, Mrs. John Ford and Mrs. Sam Farmer attended the Temperance Convention in Toronto. Mr. James Ward has bought the property of Mrs. George Rose on John Street. : At the regular meeting of council in Port Perry, two awards are " being offered to the persons who, upon the ringing of the fire alarm, were first at the Town Hall with horse or motor vehicle to haul the hose reel to the fire. : ~The old steel bridge over the Nonquon River at Seagrave is a thing of the past. It was cut apart last week and moved out on land. "Mrs. S.I. Barrett's sale at Manchester was well attended and 'good prices were realized. ' 45 YEARS AGO Thurs. March 5, 1942 Epsom and Utica raised over $500.00 for the British War Victim's Fund At the Epsom Parsonage, Mr. Malcolm Bailey took as his bride, Miss Eva Luella Jeffrey. Mrs. Gwen Nott entertained at a miscellaneous shower in honour of Marguerite Waridel, a recent bride. Mrs. Buraeill and family of Alberta are visiting at the home of Mr. and Mrs. H. Martyn, Prospect. : A consumer update: made-to-measure suits - $28.50; brezd - (2-24 oz. loaves) 15¢; chocolate bars - 6 for 25c. 30 YEARS AGO - Thurs. March 4, 1957 The winners of the Lions Club Public Speaking contest for Seniors were Mary Lynn Hodgins and Bruce Taylor. Owing to the quick thinking of Mr. Tom Sandiland, the Western Tire Store, owned by Mr. Bob Howsam, was saved, when fire, believ- ed to have started by spontaneous combustion, broke out in the base- ment of the store. At a joint meeting of the Junior Farmers held at the High School recently, a square dance competition was held. The Beaverton, Brooklin and Uxbridge Clubs entered with Uxbridge winning the competition. f Miss Audrey Kent, who has been quietly raising Angora rabbits for many years, has been given considerable publicity in the weekend Tely. : 20 YEARS AGO Thurs. March 2, 1967 | Port Perry Lions Club membership is at an all time high and has passed the 50 mark. At the Monday meeting, seven new members were added; P. Hvidsten, D. McRitchie, J. Lumgair, D. Madsen, A. Hatelie, R. Wilson, and J. Franssen. Approximately 90 persons attended the meeting of the Cartwright 'No. 1 Brownie Pack, Monday evening when 14 Brownies received their Golden Ladders and became Guides. At the same meeting, Dianne Taylor was presented with her All-Round Cord by Commis- sioner Kyte. oo : (Turn to page 6) To The Editor: The following letter was submit- ted by the Renfrew County Chapter of the Coalition for Public Education. , An OPEN LETTER to the Prime Minister of Canada, The Right Honourable Brian Mulroney. During your recent visit to Zim- babwe, you expressed the sentiment of millions of people throughout the world when you abhorred apartheid in South Africa. Although a stand against such an obvious injustice is laudable, the statement, your per- son, your office, and Canada lose credibility because of the hypocrisy 'involved. . Bill 30 is now an act of the Ontario Legislature which segregates On- tario high school students into two groups by creating a duplicate, publicly-funded, secondary school system for Roman Catholic students. This is government spon- sored segregation. It is also discrimination. 7" This segregation and discrimina- tion in Ontario is no less repugnant than South Africa's because of the substitution of religion for colour, and indeed, to some it is considered even more repugnant because of its subtlety. When, sir, are you going to ad- dress this violation of social unity and human rights in your own backyard, Ontario? Until you do, continued statements about human rights abuses in other countries em- barrass Canada on the world stage. As well as being against section 15 (1) of our own Canadian Charter of - Rights and Freedoms, the abuses in Ontario AND South Africa are both contrary to article No. 2 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This Declaration was adopted by the U.N. General Assembly on Dec. 10, 1948, was sign- ed by Canada in 1948, and states that "Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without any distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status." : We suggest that you concentrate on the establishment of equality and human rights in this country and ~ make an immediate start by in- sisting on the repeal of Bill 30 in On- ~ seriously. tario, so that your criticism of other governments can be taken - Renton Patterson Coalition for Public Education Renfrew County Chapter Box 491, Pembroke, Ontario -K8A 6X9 A winter playground To The Editor: As I look out my picture window today, I look across the ice and snow of the lake and I see the town of Port - Perry asleep in its winter bed. I have been away for awhile and I missed the activities on the lake. It is a warm winter day and there are quite a few ice huts out. there, making it: look like a town or a village. The huts are not being us- ed today because of the nice weather. : . A man is towing an ice hut onto the ice with his truck. He had been there earlier and ploughed an area on the ice with his snow plough. Now, he is drilling a hole with an auger and has started to fish. At the new village, I see a lot of men fishing. They walk back and forth from one hut to the next to show their catch. I almost think I know what they are saying. "What kind of fish?" *'How big are they?" "How many did you catch?" "I think I'll move my hut to a new loca- - tion." "There are only perch caught ~~ ~~ today." "The ice is only one and a half feet here." I also see Ma and Pa out there with junior tossing a can around with a hockey stick. The family brought some chairs and are sitting out there on the ice. There are two dogs with them, enjoying the wide open spaces. ' Runways have been ploughed for the snowmobile races. There seems to be a hundred out there today, making many different patterns on the ice field. I see snowmobiles towing other snowmobiles, sleighs with their equipment for fishing and also tow- (Turn to page 6) ter to the editor. | Letters to the Editor ... our policy It has always been the policy of this newpspaper to encourage our readers to make use of the letters to the editor column. Our readers have a right to freely express their opinions and view- points on just about any subject, and we feel that a lively letters col- umn helps make a better community newspaper. We insist, however, that a letter writer sign his or her name. On rare occasions, we will agree to with-hold publication of a letter writer's name, if we feel there are very good reasons to do so. Under no circumstances will this paper print an anonymous let- While we enjoy receiving letters from our readers, we must con- tinue to insist on knowing the identity of the writer. --