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Sole a ) good it can accomodate almost 300. patient. become redundant. health-care dollar should go. as the fault of the patient. mitted a crime as a result. perception. Rebuilding News Health Minister Murray Elston's announcement that Oak Ridge will be rebuilt can only come as good news to nursing assistants and other health care professionals at the Mental Health Centre. The new facility will mean keeping much needed jobs in the Penetanguishene area. It also means better facilities for the pa- tients at the maximum security, psychiatric hospital. There is no doubt the exisiting facility has out-lived its usefullness. Built in 1933 to provide care for 150 male patients The present patient population is closer to 200. The interior of the building is oppressive, the close confined cells were designed during the days when psychiatry could pro- vide little help other than constraint for the severely disturbed With the advent of psychotropic drugs more than 30 years ago and more recent theraputic methods this type of facility has It is a sad but true fact, the treatment of mental illness and its associated cost ranks low in the public perception of where the One need only look at the amount of money spent on cancer research or controlling heart disease. Physical illness is not seen But a person suffering from a major psychosis, schizophrenia or other severe psychiatric disorder continues to bear a stigma associated with his illness. Worse still if that person has com- The interior of the building that is Oak Ridge can do nothing but help maintain the perception of mental illness as somehow being the fault of the patient. And until Oak Ridge falls to the wrecker's ball it will continue play its part in maintaining that Watch your manners Dear Editor: Being a recent visitor to Midland from Stratford-upon-Avon, England, I agree wholeheartedly with your article "Ontario becoming friendlier', (May 22, 1987). I have worked as both a hotel receptionist and now in a bank in England and it doesn't cost anyone to have a friendly smile, a polite manner and spare a minute or two to have a talk to customers. In the majority, touring around Ontario I have found very friendly and helpful people. I was however appalled at the service my host and I got when we went to the Tourist Infor- mation Centre in Penetang to ask about the trip by the 'Georgian Queen". And did the lady know information about it - the one- word answer was no - end of conservation. We wanted to ask more questions but felt that we were being a nuisance. On the whole, gift shop assistants or owners have been most courteous but I am afraid to say that two gift shops in Midland town centre, could have been more friendly and polite - honestly it does not hurt! I have enjoyed my stay here, enormously and hope to plan a longer stay in 1989. I am sure by then Ontario will be the friendliest province in Canada. I only hope Canadians visiting England will get a warm and friend- ly welcome. I felt I had to write before I left Midland and hope my observations are noted. Elizabeth Mountford Stratford-upon-Avon, U.K. Traffic lights needed Dear Editor: A new season of playing "chicken'"' on Highway 12 at the Martyrs' Shrine/Sainte- Marie/Wye Marsh entrance is now upon us. As anyone who drives that route regularly knows, it is extremely dangerous when cars, buses, cyclists or pedestrians try to enter the traffic flow or try to cross four lanes of traf- fic from one site to another. The fact that no one has yet been killed makes one wonder if it's because of luck or because of divine in- tervention. Certainly it is not because of the Ontario Ministry of Transportation and Com- munications. Traffic lights are obviously needed; however, the ministry believes that the traffic flow doesn't warrant the expense of installing lights. What would convince these people that a solution must be found --a school bus tragedy perhaps? How many deaths are needed to justify lights? Nothing was done while the former govern- ment was in power, despite requests made by Huronia Historical Parks and by the Huronia Historical Advisory Council. Will the present government be able, or willing, to do something soon? (No doubt the same 'civil servants at MTC are still making the key decisions.) Playing '"'chicken" on Highway 12 is dif- ferent now. As one emerges from the con- struction zone going east one accelerates to 80 km -- just before approaching the Martyrs' Shrine/Sainte-Marie/Wye Marsh entrance! And those travelling west don't need to slow down_-until after they've gone past the two en- trances. I've been lucky so far, and so have you. t Sincerely, Paul Delaney Thanks to Times Dear Editor: On behalf of the organizing committee for Health Walk '87, we extend a personal "Thank You" for your continuing support of this event over the past several months. Pledges now total $22,500 - awfully cose to our goal of $25,000. Your press coverage before the event gave us much needed impetus and publicity, and your coverage of the day itself added greatly to everyone's enjoyment. Many thanks. Sincerely, George Desroches Penetang Richelieu Club Fred Harpell Elmvale Lions Club _ Viewpoint by Carey Nieuwhof- In pursuit of the American dream Watching events in America transpire late- ly has been like watching all the trash on late night TV come to life at once. There has been sex, corruption, vice, shady business deals, spying, political manipulating etc. etc. Most of the front-page stories also find their way into the gossip columns. The stuff of which real news is made these days is jam-packed with filth, scandal and sleaze. Moreover, Americans are gobbling it up. Why is this? What has become of the American of 1984? What happened to baseball, apple pie, Ronald Reagan and beer- commercial patriotism? The America of 1984 has been replaced by Gary Hart, the Bakkers, marine spying, a president in trouvle and bad deals on Wall Street. Surprisingly enough, we should have seen this coming. We should have known that Reagan's America, which resembled a fairy tale more that it did a real nation of over 200 million people, was bound to come crashing down sometime. Americans are a strang breed. They tend to ride emotional roller coasters. They tend to accept things at face value, analyse them rather superficially, and draw conclusions based on that. That characterization is not as harsh as it may sound. Actually, it is not the fault of the Americans that they turned out this way. Their character came out of the founding of their nation. America, was founded on the principle that things could be better than they were elsewhere, and that, in America, life could be a glorious and wonderful affair. Accor- dingly, they have expected their political and social leaders and figures to conform to that goal. Some have, predictable, some haven't. Americans have historically ridden waves or unrestrained patriotism followed by a time of quiet self-reflection. The post Second World War era of cute families and white picket fences was extended into the 1960s with the arrival of a president who was young, dynamic and good-looking. The joy of finding America a new place in the world as a superpower and the excitement over discovering that sense of purpose personified in John Kennedy caused Americans to overlook some of the responsibilities that ac- companied that power. Those responsibilities hit home with the reality of Vietnam and later with Watergate. The youthful naivete of the 1950s and the belief that the American dream could be realizea was deadened by the 1960s. Is that, in essence, what we see today? It should have been clear that the Ronald Reagan who inspired America was little more that a two-dimensional appartion that would have to be blown over by a gust of reality at some point. But Americans swallowed Reagan's vision wholeheartedly. One wonders if they are feeling guilty about it now. The first clue that there was something wrong with Reagan's America came when the president himself was connected to the Iran-Contra scandal last fall. Shortly after that, Reagan's America fell apart at the seam. Ivan Boesky showed the flip side of the self- made man. The marine spy scandal violated national honour. The Bakker's collapsed before millions of followers. Gary Hart show- ed America that he too was human and fell. short of the mythical ideals Reagan and Americans had established. As I've said before in this space, Americans have been following these scandals with an anmost disgustingly keen interest. Newspapers have been digging beyond the bounds of good taste just to find yet another headline. This may be America's way of telling itself, ironically, that its dream of a better and perfect America is attainable. The recent a 'quest for filth' may just be a search for - scapegoats. Ups By convicting Gary Hart, the Bak- kers and Ivan Boesky, Americans may con- clude that it is just a few individuals, and not an entire nation, that falls short of standards which have been long established. So what we have seen unfold before us in the past few months has been the unfolding of Ronald Reagan's America. What Americans are scared to admit is that Reagan's America is really a myth, and that scurrying after a few scapegoats is not SOIN SE to solve their problems. It is fascination to live next door to America. It is fascinating to watch a nation that sets standards for itself which, while ad- mirable, are unrealistic. It will also be fascinating to see if America can ever come - to grips with the fact that it, like every other nation, is human too. Until that time, we'll likely see America swing through a lot more patriotic highs, and lot more Vietnam-like lows. Letters The Penetanguishene Citizen welcomes Letters to - ¢ e e Se a -Pen etangu ishene Gi tizen SSS Publisher: Andi:ew Markle & M b the Editor. They must be legible, signed (by hand), Ye A wigait Manager: Judy French cn €mbDer | and carry the writer's address and telephone Published by Bayweb Limited SVEry: Tuesday at Editor: David Wright aa number for verification. Pen names are not allow- 74 Main Street, Penetanguishene, Ontario 549-2012 Reporter: Murray Moore ay ed and anonymous letters will not be published. Second Class Mail Registration Number 2327 Sports: Arnold Burgher #CNA Member | Letters published by this newspaper do not Year subscription rate $39.00 necessarily reflect the opinion of this newspaper. its publisher or editor. : Page 6, Tuesday, May 26, 1987