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

i Section Two The Canadian Statesman, Bowmanville, Anril 11, 1984 3 Editorial Comment Letter to The Editor Dear Sam: I have received your letter inquiring if the Section 63 reassessment in Newcastle will have any impact on the Town's unconditional grants. I have also received your second note questioning whether alternatives to a local tax based on property values have been considered. On the 1984 grants issue, the answer is no. This is because the 1984 grants are based on 1983 data. The reassessment will form the basis for 1984 taxes and 1985 grant data. The Town will receive only one assessment or levy related grant in 1984, namely the general support grant which is calculated as 5.75 R ercent of the 1983 taxes raised, [ewcastle, in the past, received a resource equalization grant but a large portion of the amount received was non-formula protection. In other words, the municipality does not qualify as assessment poor. The Province, however, protected the Town from losing grants. In 1984, the protection of grant levels has been continued on a total grant basis and a minimum increase of 2.5 percent has been guaranteed. It is anticipated that the Town would continue to be ineligible for a resource equalization grant in 1985 regardless of the Section 63 reassessment. With regard to your second note concerning alternative bases for local taxes, I assure you that other approaches have been considered seriously by both the Province and several independent committees. The 1967 Ontario Committee on Taxation (Smith Committee) concluded that, unlike alternative taxation systems, the use of property values clearly provides a direct and definable relationship to taxes. Also, the 1977 Report of the Commission on the Reform of Property Taxation in Ontario (Blair Commission) endorsed the property tax because of its responsiveness to local decisions, its visibility and its focus on local fiscal responsibility. It was also determined to be the least costly system to administer relative to the amount of the yield and particularly well suited to the local scene by virtue of the certainty of established assessment and collection practices. Other tax raising methods were found by the commission to be discriminatory, excessive, inherently complex relative to the property tax and could easily have created more inequities than they solved. In keeping with the findings of these reviews, the Province has continued to provide local overnment access to other taxes ased on retail sales, personal and corporate income, etc., through its various grant programs while leaving municipalities and school boards with exclusive use of property taxation as a source of self- supporting revenue. Thank you for bringing your concerns to my attention. Your sincerely, Claude F. Bennett Minister M.P.P., Ottawa South The Ganny Was Too Much! With thoughts of "Deliverance" vivid in our minds, we set out on our trek through icy rapids, treacherous rocks, and surging white-water. Armed with only our paddles, we bounced our backsides down a swollen river to compete in the 4th annual "Float Your Fanny Down the Ganny" river race. For those who are not familiar with the yearly river contest, we "should explain that it is Port Hope's way of commemorating one of the most destructive tragedies to hit any small town in Ontario. In March of 1980, a major portion of Port Hope's business section was wiped out by the raging Ganaraska River. Businesses were flooded as the river overflowed its banks, caused by huge slabs of ice wedged in the channel. A subsequent fire gutted several downtown structures, structures, with the historic Russell Building suffering the most damage. damage. Port Hope's downtown was destroyed destroyed in just a few short hours. But, from that grew a unity in Port Hope that saw the town's people rally to rebuild their businesses. Floors were replaced, buildings were repaired and saturated stores were drained. In a few weeks, Port Hope was back on its feet, open for business. And just to show the Ganny who was in charge, the people would run a boat race on it. That was five years ago, and now the event has grown to more than 100 canoes, kayaks, dinghys, and crazy crafts that bounced down the Ganaraska last Saturday. Despite the obvious hazards of river racing, numbers have grown each year, attracting attracting competitors from all across Ontario. This year, it was our turn. We were going for all the marbles in this race. Production supervisor Rick Patterson Patterson was the first to catch the racing racing fever, but with a little coaxing, he persuaded us into manning the bow of the ship. After procuring two wetsuits and a pair of life-jackets, we were ready to meet and beat the competition. We started our adventure in the middle of the pack, and quickly three canoes zipped by us. Obviously, Obviously, it was time to change our strategy. Neither one of us is related related to Hiawatha, so any insight into the art of canoeing was to be developed during this race. We started showing some promise promise midway through the contest. Our paddles were now working in unison unison and we discovered that the shortest line in the river is not necessarily the swiftest. "Head for the current," the skipper bellowed. Now we're looking good! The crowd cheered us on as we passed under bridges. They hollered hollered advice and taunted our competitors. competitors. Once again the competitive competitive spirit was alive and we set our sights on victory. Then things started to go downhill, downhill, or rather, downriver. We headed for the portage around Corbett's Corbett's Dam and we verbally rehearsed rehearsed our plan of attack. In the back of our minds, we envisioned charging the beaches at Norman- dey. Fortunately, that landing was more successful than ours. Our canoe hit the muddy beach as planned, but from there, we were in trouble. We hadn't noticed that our feet and ankles had gone numb from sitting in the canoe. When we went to jump out of the boat and pull our craft to shore, we sank in the mud up to our kiMjtas.' Then we stumbled and fell in the muck while other competitors were waiting to come ashore. We finally got out of the mud and started the portage with senseless feet and legs. By this time, winning was secondary, finishing the race had become the main objective. After reboarding our craft, we were back in control of the Ganny. Only a few hundred yards and we were finished, possibly still in the prizes. The finish was in sight when the skipper alerted us that we were taking taking on water in the white water rapids. Only a few more yards though, we were sure we could make it. But, after two severe collisions collisions with rocks and a few extra gallons of water, we watched as our faithful canoe turned into a submarine. submarine. We sank within 50 yards of the finish line. The skipper gave the order to abandon ship and a helmet and life jacket did just that. They are both somewhere in Lake Ontario by now. Fortunately, the crew was able to recover and drain the canoe to finish the race,, well out of the prizes. Naturally, we were disappointed with our time down the river. From all indications, we should have been clocked with a calendar. However, However, looking ahead to next year, we can only get better! Nevertheless You came into my life (It was Fate, I guess) You lifted up my heart and then you cast it down. You couldn't care less.. Nevertheless, God bless. Although I had resigned myself these many, many years (It is the truth) I thought that maybe you were sent from heaven.. long awaited answer to an almost hopeless prayer that I would find a very special friend; but.. I am left perplexed.. Nevertheless, God bless. You made no effort to express some reason why. If only I could understand! Could it be you are afraid to trust in me? You needn't be, my dear, because, you see I really care.. Nevertheless, God bless... GOD BLESS. By Mackie of Queensbury, Jamaica Window into San Juan, Puerto Rico r SUGAR and SPICE Brothers Beckon J Have to go and see my kid brother this week; I don't have to. Nobody in. his right mind has to have anything to do with his relatives. From birth to death they are a. pain in the arm. When a baby is born, all the eyebrows go up at the choice of name, unless it happens to be one of theirs, or that of a rich uncle. Asked my grandboys the other day what their second name was. Balind, who sometimes doesn't know his anus from his elbow, promptly retorted, "William." His second name was the same as mine, in case I'd be pleased and leave him something. Asked the other guy, who knows everything, from why Gran's crying to why Grandad is in a tearing rage. He muttered, "Chen." I'd forgotten. His parents named him that, don't ask me why, because they were on an international kick, and Chen means "first-born." Poor little devil. His full name is Nikov Chen. Imagine what the CIA will do with that when they take over Canadian intelligence. Notice I spelled the last word without a capital. Next time the relatives act like Little Jack Horner is when your kids get married. Despite the fact that the couple has been living together for nine months, your blasted relatives want a church wedding, with the bride in white, a big reception where everybody pretends that the newlyweds are virgin, there are some adolescent speeches right out of the age of Victoria, and somebody cuts a cake that nobody would eat with a 10-foot pole. This costs roughly five to 10 thousand dollars so that the couple can go on living in sin, but with a paper to prove that they're not. And the third occasion on which the relatives get their arms into it, right up to the elbows, is when somebody dies. This is when the real Christians emerge. "Mom always said I could have that tea service." "Well, that's what you think. I was there the day she died and she distinctly stated (arm twisted behind her back) that I could have not only the tea service but all the linen." and so on. I've seen all this, but not experienced it. After my mother's death, my elder sister was mutually appointed arbitrator. And she arbitrated: "Two sheets for you, two for you. Two blankets for you, two for you. Two linen tablecloths for you, two for you. Two beds for you, a dining-room table for you. Everyday china for you, plus the silver coffee pot. Good china for you, plus the chamber-pot." And so on. It was like being at an auction, without any bids, and we all went away rather dazed, enriched beyond our dreams, and with only a few grudges. We were all so young and unsophisticated that we let an aunt have a beautiful chaise lounge, which wound up as a period piece in, of all places, Australia. My aunt didn't want it. This hasn't much to do with going to see my kid brother, but I still think that he thinks he got screwed (he was in Paris at the time) on the family split-up, and covets the hand- carved stool my Dad made, which I traded off for an upright piano of dubious vintage. Maybe not. Maybe he just wants to see me. Maybe he wants to apologize for all the times he trailed me all over town when I was seven and he was five. I would first hiss at him, then shout at him, to go home. He'd hang on, a block behind, crying like a fire siren, stubborn as a hound following a fox. He's challenged me to a game of golf. This is quite understandable. It fits the pattern. I could always beat him at everything, and he wants the masochistic satisfaction of being trounced once more, before he retires to that wonderland of golf where everybody takes a Mulligan, everybody rides an electric cart to the next hole, and everybody discusses every shot at the 10th hole. On the other hand, maybe he wants to talk about all that money I borrowed from him when he had a paper route and I was a -- well, a sort of freelancer. Every Saturday night, I used to lock him in the bathroom and freelance about two-thirds of his weekly take, so I could go to the movies. Saw him in Germany a few years ago, and he was still keeping track. He figures I owe him 28 thousand, 500 and some dollars, with compound compound interest. Perhaps he just wants to remind me of all the girls he has taken away from me, over the years. He never took anyone of any real consequence, but he took some very fine prospectives. On the fourth hand, maybe he just wants to rub it in to me that I'm a failure. He retired as a Colonel with a chestful of medals. I quit as a Flight-Loot with four or five medals mouldering in the basement: He has been at the beck and call of generals, ambassadors, and such. He is divorced -- fashionable. I am married -- unfashionable. He is charming, multi-lingual, has tasted the fleshpots of Europe. I am a typical suburban snob. Or maybe the poor little fella just wants to see the brother he used to pillow-fight with, every Saturday morning. Letters to the Editor April 2,1984 Dear Sir, After reading a letter in your paper last week, I felt that a response was indeed necessary. The letter in question question was written by Bernice A. Cameron-Hill. There are several points which clearly indicate that Mrs. Cameron- Hill is at best ill-informed. There is no information held by the Executive which has at any time been deemed classified. classified. We have tried to keep people informed as to the progress progress of the group and to that end submitted a newsletter outlining the events to date, which appeared in the March 21st edition of the Newcastle Independent. Obviously, It was missed by some readers. I resent the suggestion that the Executive has embarked on a giant ego trip. The Executive Executive has spent many hours working and planning, hopefully hopefully for the benefit-of all taxpayers In the Town of Newcastle. We have met regularly and often and most assuredly more than once. I feel that the Ratepayers Association along with " the support and strength of their members was to a great extent extent responsible for our Mayor and Council Members in their infinite wisdom seeing their way clear to reducing the mill rate after having previously set it at 2.68, and further dropping the ridiculous suggestion of severance pay and pensions for Region council members. As for the matter of the petition, copies were made and sent off to all three Provincial Provincial Party Leaders, Bud Gregory Revenue Minister and Sam Curcatz M.P.P, for Durham East. They were never "sat on" but were in fact sent out shortly after the Public Meeting held at Bowmanville High School. There was in fact a short period of time that elapsed from the time of the first Public Meeting at Courtlce High School and the time that the petition was sent in, and that was to allow lime for people to sign the petition who had not previously done so, but had requested that they be given the opportunity to do so. In closing I would simply wish to state that the Executive Executive welcomes any and all suggestions and input from any of its members. We would hope that the people of Newcastle Newcastle will always feel free to contact any member of the Executive of the Ratepayers Association. Yours Truly, Ruth Kaaz Chairperson Town of Newcastle Ratepayers Association April 2,1984 Dear Editor: On Sunday, 1 March 11, my wife and I were involved in the large pile-up on the 401 near Bowmanville. Since then, we have wanted to express our appreciation to various people and organizations for the way we and others were looked after following the accident. At the scene, 1 appeared to have a serious head injury, and a passing truck drove us to the Fifth Wheel Restaurant and Esso station. A woman there, perhaps the manager, did an excellent job in coping with a growing number of people arriving injured and or in somewhat of a state of shock. She sat people down, provided coffee and towels, and made people both comfortable comfortable and calm. One of the customers, I believe someone who lived in the area, seeing my blood stains, drove us to the hospital. At the hospital also, we were well looked after, despite the size and unexpectedness of the emergency. People were seen immediately, information taken about their injuries, and doctors treated people apparently apparently in order of need, while more seriously injured were quickly looked after. A tray of coffee and tea was provided, and the Salvation Army came by to offer hot meals at their centre. Buses were provided to give rides to Toronto for those who needed them, and people were treated and released released quickly and efficiently. Finally, we were well served served when tracking down (the remains of) our car. A woman at a Beckers' store on High way Two, rather than giving directions, phoned local towing firms to locate it. In the end, the people at Bob's Towing Towing were quite helpful in leading leading us to the car, and arranging arranging for me to recover our luggage, as well as towing it to Toronto for the benefit of our insurance company. I hesitate to recommend Bowmanville to people as a good place to have an accident, accident, but it is a place where we needed help a number of times and places, and always received received more than expected. Yours truly, John Leeson 98 Muy field Ave., Toronto, Ont., MUS 1K8 Bernard R. Kitncy Box 125 Indian Head, Sask. S0G2K0 March lit), 1984 My Dear John: This is my first letter to a newspaper, 1 felt I just had to comment on Ray Brown's letter about Ken Hooper, I think that letter was cruel and uncalled for. For some 17 years I was Chief of Police of the Town of Bowmanville. For a number of those years, Councillor Hooper was chairman of the Police Committee. I found he never held a grudge. He was a good chairman, good for the Town of Bowmanville, I ran three times (nearly four) for Council in Bowman- villc and finished last each time. What does losing at the polls mean? Today - Popularity, Popularity, I think is lacking not ability. If Ray Brown would go and see Ken and talk to him he might be able to see his point of view, All 1 think he is trying to do is save a few bucks for the taxpayers of the Town of Bowmanville. lie is trying to reach the 80 percent who don't give a damn. John, keep on printing Ken Hooper, Sincerely Bernard R. Kimey Indian Head, Sask,