The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

8 -- PORT PERRY STAR -- Tuesday, April 24, 1990 Average 'Joe' Canadian questions MP Stevenson To the Editor: I have no connection to any political party. I am an average Joe Canadian with average hopes for wife and family and through hard work to enjoy some of the things hard work should bring. M.P. Ross Stevenson scares us. His explanations in your paper to Meech Lake, G.S.T. and to Mulroney being misunderstood tell me two things. I, He just does not understand how we people who elected him really feel and that he is trying to bluff just to be popular in the party and to Mulroney or (2) - he really does not understand the facts of each subject, and this is much more scary. When we vote for someone it is because we have believed in their promises. We can now see that to be elected and some people will say anything. Haw sorry they must be to think of losing the respect of average Joe Canadian. I work ten, sometimes twelve hours each day. I would also like to have thirty percent of my pay cheque tax free the same as M.P. Stevenson. 1 want to believe Stevenson is my partner: not Mulroneys. Bert Leekes, Scugog Letters io the editor Pawns in a political con game To the Editor: Last week's article in the Star "PM TREATED UNFAIR" says Ross Stevenson M.P. What it should have read was PM TREATS COUNTRY UNFAIR. Stevenson tows the party line, right or wrong. Stevenson in his support of Meech Lake says "It does not give Quebec any New Powers." What nonsense! Why are Bourassa and Mulroney, both Quebecors fighting so hard for it? Leading businessmen in Quebec likewise. It was Premier Wells of New- b He made you laugh, he made you scream, and even his worst enemy will admit he was larger than life. No one will ever know who the true Harold Bal- lard was. Was he really the mean, vindictive, small, bigot, scrooge, and bully that the press made him out to be? Or was he the warm, generous, loyal, soft touch, and philanthropist that he would not al- low the press to make him? Along with his personality, his role as a decision maker was always in question. Many still believe that Ballard turned the Leafs from a national institu- tion into a national joke. When he took controlling interests in the Gar- dens in 1972, | think he tried too hard to come out of the shadows of Stafford Smythe, and John Bas- sett. He came into the operation with only one signifi- cant team decision under his belt, that being his at- tempt to abort the selling of Frank Mahovilich to the Black Hawks. Pal Hal made a lot of interesting, and bizarre de- cisions over the years at the helm of the Leafs. Whether or not he intended to make the franchise a three ring circus or not is another question. Dar- ryl Sittler was quoted saying that in the dearness of his heart Ballard had a hard time making the right decisions, but there was never a time that he didn't think a decision was in the best interests of the Leafs. One thing no one could ever say about Pal Hal is that he was dull. On the man's 81st birthday in 1984, he was spotted riding a motorcycle on the backroads near his cottage in Midland. He was a man who enjoyed playing games, nee- dling, teasing, embarrassing, and infuriating, to get a reaction. He would then turn around and donate large amounts of money to charities such as the Cancer Society, the Scott Mission, and Variety Vil- lage to name a few, his only request being his name not be mentioned as the donor. | think Harold was just a man who liked to get under the collar of everyone he met. He liked a good joke, the more off the wall the better. He lived to see other's reactions, to see people seething to ring his neck. He simply just had an outlandish sense of humor, and liked to get people's goats. Ballard was not always the eccentric man that he is painted today. In the 1930's he was the man- about-town a real swinger, everybody adored Hal. When Ballard's only stablizing force, his beloved wife Dorthy passed away in 1969, he began to change. The changes became more apparent after he finished his term at Millhaven Prison for theft and fraud, when he stated he would 'never cry Back Talk rry BE again', and he became flamboyant and mouthy. Maybe Ballard's fear in life was someone steal- ing his show. Maybe that is why he traded playars such as Sittler, MacDonald, Williams, and Turnball, that he once stated were the only Leafs who were not expendable. The big question still remains, what would the Leaf's have been without Ballard? Sure, they may have been a contender, a force to reckon with, and a team to take seriously, but one thing for certain is they sure would have been dull, something that would never happen to some- thing that Harold Ballard touched. This reporter will mourn the loss of a flamboyant individual. Many may never believe the good side of Ballard, but | do. A greedy man only concerned for himself, and nothing else, would never donate huge amounts to charity, and ask nothing in return. self-indulgent man would never give the coat off his back to a man huddled in the corner of the gardens who had no where else to stay on a cold, windy night. Every word he spoke he meant, he never denied anything he said, and he acted on every sentence. He could never be labelled a liar or coward. Maybe the best example of this is when he stated that the bulk of his estate would go to charity when he died, and it did. Would a vain man leave his fortunes to ] the needy? Noll Ballard will be remembered for years to come, and many will reflect back on his personality and decisions. It was fun to turn on a Leaf game and spot Har- old in his personal box. To see him sneer, scoff, grimace, and jeer whether it was the Leafs, or the opposition that scored. One day he gave your heart a warm glowing feeling, the next you wanted to shake the man senseless. But it takes a special personality to attract so much attention, and a special personality to bring out every emotion known to mankind like a flash No one should be condemned for living life as a leader. Children are always taught to make their own decisions, not to follow the crowd just to make them like you.That is what Ballard did, he was the leader of the pack, whether or not he carried it a bit far at times. He may not always have meant to in- sult others, he may have just wanted his own opin- ion to be heard. Whatever his reasons were behind anything he did only Harold Ballard, 'the ringmaster' could keep 'em all guessing to the grave. foundland that saved our skins. Does Stevenson live in a vacuum? Doesn't he read the papers and see that Mulroney is at the lowest of any party in history with only 15 percent sup- port? A leaked inside report by the P.C.'s own poll shows them at only 10 percent in Ontario. The GST is reported to cost $434,000 jobs, and lead us into a recession. From the cradle to the grave. Seven percent this year -- 10 percent next? Mulroney keeps spending like a drunken sailor, then increases taxes. The whole language issue was caused by gutless politicians! Both French-speaking and English-speaking are the pawns in a political con game. I wrote Finance Minister Wilson (Feb. 9/90) and asked him why the $1.4 BILLION for French was not being cut in the budget. It was $500 million last year ---- a 300 percent increase this year. | also questioned the $60 million Sen. Lowell Murray gave Premier Peterson for more French Services. Peterson has spent at least $150 million on French Services and ordered all 28 Ministries in his government to answer the phones "Bonjour." He called the $150 million "ONLY PEANUTS." Remember that at the next election!- He's raised taxes 32 times! Wilson did not answer his mail. Nor do other P.C.'s like the Appreciatesthe supportreceived for Durham FM radio application To the Editor: Recently, I represented a group who applied to the CRTC for per- mission to operate an FM station in Durham Region. The frequen- cy under consideration was assigned to the City of Oshawa. We competed against 10 other ap- plicants all who were applying for the same frequency but to operate a station in Toronto. It will be mid summer before we know if we were successful. On behalf of the others involv- ed in the application, I would like to thank all those who supported our application either by appear- ing personally at the hearing or by writing a letter to support our application. We hope that we will be able to serve Durham in the near future with an alternative radio service. Yours truly, Robert J. Marshall, Radio Durham, Uxbridge, Ontario. For Better or For Worse? H1,UH, AUYSONZ ITS ME, CORDON. | KNOW [T5 SHORT NOTicE, BUT A BUNCH OF US AREGONG OUT TO- NIGHT, AN' WAS WONDER - ING IF {aU'D A UM--- "BYE OH YOLARE,HUH. NO, | UNDERSTAND. Shp! (ELL, I'LL SEE YoU. YEAH. by Lynn Johnston SHE. CANT COME. SHE SAYS SHE HAS TO BABY-SIT. .. ITS Just NICETO HEAR THE SOUND OF HER VOICE. wildest spender in government, Joe Clark. Billions for foreign aid while more than 80,000 poor peo- ple in Metro Toronto area need food banks every month. While Stevenson defends Mulroney's write-off of $182 million in the Caribbean he fail- ed to mention he turned around and gave them another $195.5 million in the same breath. He even promised a near $1 million trade office for the Caribbean. Meanwhile Wilson pleads for the GST defending his tax grab with the fact that every family in Canada has a $34,200 debt over our heads. That's only the federal debt. Who put it there? It is reported that the white elephant Mirabel airport is losing $1 million a day. Thats $365 million a year! Yet they cut the Peterboro-Toronto commuter train. Prime Minister Mulroney pushes so hard for Meech Lake and says "Quebec is the heart and soul of Canada.' What does that make the rest of us Canadians? Chopped liver? Newfoundland is just as distinct as Quebec. More loyal to the rest of Canada, than the prodigal spoiled brat -- Quebec. The only savior from the 3 par- ty troika, that vote against the wishes of the people, is the new Confederation of Regions (C.0.R.) party established as a federal party in Alberta and soon provincial party in Ontario and already well established in New Brunswick. The only party that will limit the time a P.M. can serve --- two terms like the U.S. President. M.P.'s can be recalled (fired) by the public and made to represent their ridings, not ignore them. Referendums will be held on all major issues. True representative democracy. No more dictatorial self-serving doublespeak politicians. The brat province will no longer run the rest of Canada. COR will represent The Maritimes, Ontario and the West, whether Quebec separates or not. Dean J. Kelly, President Association of Dedicated Canadians. P.S. The whole constitutional ac- cord was settled and signed in 1971 at the Victoria Conference. Bourassa went back to Quebec and after pressure from St. Jean Baptiste Society scuttled the ac- cord. Now he blames English- Canada for all the problems of Meech Lake! Dr. Redekop. political scientist at Wifrid Laurier University states "Quebec continues to function ful- ly and completely as part of Canada whether it signs or refuses to sign!"' EMMERSON INSURANCE BROKERS LIMITED 193 QUEEN ST., PORT PERRY, ONT. LIL 1B9 (416) 985-7306 ALL LINES OF GENERAL INSURANCE » HOMEOWNERS - FARM - AUTO COMMERCIAL J * Ta NR a a ET