PAGE 4o WEDNESIJAY AUG Mw 24, 1983 WHÇTBY FREE PRESS, whitby Voice of the County Town The only Whitby newspaper independentlv w ibllshed ewery Wednesday Michael Ian Burgess, Publisher Managing Edit or bv NI.B.N1. Publishing and I>ho(ography ime. Phonie 668-fi611 The F'ree P>ress Building, CI 1 Brock Street North, P.O. Box 206, Whitby, Ont. Regostralion No. 5351 TIMOTHY BAINES Commun Ity Editor ANDY THOMSON Advertlsing Manager Second Class Mail F irs ad festivas re i*eao As the dog days of summer are'drawing to an end, the fair and festival season is upon us. Actually It began last weekend with the Rough Stock Rodeo at Iroquois Park Arena. Over 2,000 people attended the two-day event, which featured such wlld west competitions as bronc rldlng,, steer wrestllng and goat tieing. It wasn't the Calgary Stampede, but It certainly was a fun way to kil11 some ti me. This weekend is the Whitby Dunlops reunion, celebrating the 25th anniversary of a world hockey champ ionsh lp. The old Du nnies may look a littie more weathered thari they dld 25 years ago, but their accomplishments stili hoid a place ln the hearts LMaînstre%-am Canaddj Tîme to tame UI monster Ré < Rger Worth The 'governent in. West Germany has tightened regu- lations on the programn that provides benefits to the' unemployed.. So has' the' socialist government in Franceé that has nationalizéd most of' the countryý's, bank9. In the United States, the na- tional averýage of benefits to the unempiloyed'ba's been hieId to about,$125 perweek. Many countries, it seems, are either tightening up on unemployment payouts, or at least holding the lime. But that's flot so in Canada. Here, the maximum weekly payout under Unemployment Insurance rules is -$231. per week,, and the, average pay- ment is $145 per week,- about $20 higher than that in 'the U.S. The point, of course, is that with weakened economnies and the number of jobless at high levels (in Canada the unem- pioyment rate is more than 12 percent of the work force), other countries are tightening the rules to ensure that Only those who really need support get it. In Canada, on the otber hand, life at the Unemploy- ment Insurance Commission seems to go on mnuch as before, even though payouts are phenomenaliy higher. In 1981, for instancei Our. Unemployment, Insurance system cost. èmpfloyees, em- ployers and the federâl treasury about $4.8-billion. The total 1982 outlay was $8.6-billion,- and iii '1983, Unemployment Insur ânce is expected to cost aà staggering i $11 .6-billion. That's a whop- c ping $100 per month for every c working Canadian.î While there is a very real re- t quirement to remain compas- e sionate to the. unemployed, e particularly in troubled times, i the rocketing costs of' the SystIemn have gotten out of1 hand. Contributions by ýem- ployers and employees, for ex- ample, were' increased by 50 percent Wn January, and another large hike ,is expected at year-end. These, facts, among others,- <were stressed by John Bulloch, President of. the Canadian Federation of Independent Business,. at a. recent meeting with FinaniceMinister Marc Lalonde. The organization is spearheading a drive to con- vince Ottawa to omit the an- ticipated year-end increase in contributions. For stnaller. firms, such payroll tax incre ases are a near disaster because tWey'must be paid, no mfatter'if the firm is making or losing money. There is a very real disincen- tive to expand and create newý jobs, and, in fact, Ottawa seems to be pushing entre- preneurs to lay off employees to Save payroll costs, as well as the taxes involved. Few argue that the Unem- pioyment Insurance rules are loose, for benefits are based on previous work experience and wages, rather than on whether or flot the individual really needs the money. Under the present system, an unem- ployed person qualiies, even if he or she bas just won a million dollar lottery prize! What's needed is a com- plete overbaul of the system. R.egulations should be tight- ened, thus saving cash for em- ployees and employers, as wel as other taxpayers. As it stands, another major increase in contributions by employers will have a darnpening effect on the abil- ity of the job creators, par- ticularly those in the small business sector, to provide the employment we s0 badly reed. CF/B Featuie Senviîe of many. Don't let the grey hair decelve you, they're stili young at heart. The dance honouring the Dunnies Saturday night features the Carlton Showband so this Is an opportunity to talk to some of those old hockey warriors and also dance the night away. It is weli worth thetrnp to Toronto to take in the Canadian National Exhibition this year. Although adult admission is more costly at $4, there are a multitude of things to see and do. There are 30 many exhibits, free concerts and dlsplays, the exhibition can be enjoyed for nominal costs. Admission also covers free entry to Ontario Place, a wonder in itself. Ontario Place also houses 'Cinespherel, ýa breatntakî ng shows -such expenience ln vlewing "selected as Nomacts of the Deep, a feature Humane Society Dear editor, I don't reaily want to carry- on corresponden- ce-,through your coium- ns w ith Roxanne Reveler. .1 ýhave'repiied to a previous column, giving facts and offering a reasonable ex- planation for the cir- cumstances. The infor- mation I used was sup- piied to me by the Sheiter 'Supervisor, Mrs. Carole Lang, who is a much respected and long serving employes of ý the Society and somneone who Mrs. Reveler professes to respect. I don't really under- stand why Mrs. Reveler feels it necessary to be so rude to me in the course of her Iast column. However, Mrs. Reveler has chosen to be flot only 'rude. but quite unnecessarily of- fensi.ve. 1 suppose this is in, keeping wyith the theory'that when a per- son knows he or she is in the wrong' and is "not' prepared to admit it, the best'way to divert in- terest fromn the facts is to start another argument., I -don't see, for exam- pie, why I should be referred to as "Hughes" or "it". Mrs. Reveler knows perfectly welI who I arn. In any case, normal courtesy would be appreciated. about creatures of the seatý speclf Ically whales. The midway is another interestlng experience. It Is worthwhlle, If only to, behold the Interestlng people walklng by. An excellent array of musical talent has aiso been lined up for* the Exhibition grandstand. Musicians from Kenny Rogers ta, David Bowie and Supertramp will draw crowds 0f over 20,000 to the bandshell. Whltby's Marlgold Festival will be held Sep- tember 8 ta 11. Organizers have lined up a variety of events from a pancake breakfast ta a soap box derby. There are events to satisfy those of all ages. Wlth the cancellation of the County Town Carnival this year, the Marigold Festival wlll be the social highlight of the year. Nor do I ses why Mrs. Reveler feit it necessary to question whether or not 1 had any miiitary service. I don't ses what that has to do with the matter. However, if it is important' to Mrs. Reveler, it- may be to your readers. For the record, therefore, let me say that I served il years, in the Royal Navy, inciuding the en- tire war, and at the end of ýthe war I wasin- valided out of the ser- vice. I have spent'the rest of my .,working -life working for the weifare of animais in the United Kingdon, British Columbia and Ontario. Finaliy, Mrs. Reveler dlaims that she has great respect for the.- staff of. the Society in Whitby. One can't heip wondering, therefore, why she would choose to attach the Society before obtaining the fac- ts from the very people she professes to admire. By attacking the Society, she was- un- doubtedly attacking the empioyees, of the Society in Whitby. I appreciate that the column by Mrs. Reveler is probably not wideiy read or, as she puts- it, "it, ià ntteNwYr Times". That is not the pomt. The point is that when the free press is used to print material which. is incorrect or harmnful to the Society, you can be sure, that "it" will respond. T.*I. Hughes Executive Vice-President Ontario Humane Society - - - - ...i .-..t. u ueateu ay vnituy i~ru intstr vviity resiaents. 0