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i SECTION TWO WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9. 1988 ®t)c Canabtan Statesman 623-3303 (jCNA Durham County' i: amity J too In 1854. Established 134 veers mo Also incorporating The Bowmen vl He News The NewcesHe Independent The Orono News Second class mail registration number 1561 Produced every Wednesday by THE JAMES PUBLISHING COMPANY LIMITED 62-66 King St. W., Bowmenvllle, Ontario L1C 3K9 JOHN M. JAMES Editor--Publisher GEO. P. MORRIS Business Mgr. RICHARD A. JAMES Assistant Publisher BRIAN PURDY Advertising Mgr. PETER PARROTT Associate Editor DONALD BISHOP Plant Mgr. All layouts and composition of advertisements produced by the employees of The Canadian Statesman, The Newcastle Independent and The James Publishing Company Limited are protected by copyright and must not be reproduced without permission of the publishers. $20.00 a year -- 6 months $11.00 foreign -- $60.00 a year strictly In advance Allhough every precaution will be taken to avoid error, The Canadian Statesman accepts advertising in ils columns on the understanding lhal it will not be liable lor any error in the advertisement published hereunder unless a prool ol such advertisement is requested in writing by the advertiser and returned to The Canadian Statesman business office duly signed by the advertiser and with such error or corrections plainly noted in writing Ihereon, and in that case if any error so noted is not corrected by The Canadian Statesman its liability shall not exceed such a portion ol the entire cost ol such advertisement as the space occupied by the noted error bears to the whole space occupied by such advertisement. All Candidates Given Opportunity to Debate Election Issues Benefits to a Tax Gut Calvin Coolidge once said that "collecting more taxes than is absolutely absolutely necessary is legalized robbery. robbery. Without taking a poll, it seems safe to assume that most Canadians would agree with Mr. Coolidge's assertion. assertion. The difficulty, of course, would be in defining "necessary." A central litmus test of any political political philosophy is its taxation and spending policy. The extremes are represented, at one end, by a belief in absolute individual liberty and responsibility responsibility and, at the other end, by a belief that society is wholly responsible responsible for every member's health and welfare. Supporters of the former view believe in few or no taxes, and in leaving the individual responsible for his own destiny, while proponents of the latter view believe that high tax rates should be used to finance numerous numerous government programs designed designed to level society's economic differences. differences. Between these two extremes lies Canada's mainstream philosophy. However, the course of our policies this century has been away from individuality individuality and toward social responsibility: responsibility: in political jargon, from the right to the left. One of the central tenets of the Reagan Reagan revolution in the United States has been something called supply- side economics, a policy which suggests suggests that lower tax rates will, in fact, produce higher gross revenues for government because the incentive to work, create, and invest is not dampened dampened by a prohibitive tax rate. The lower tax rate is levied on a larger pot of income, thus producing increased revenues. Notwithstanding the ballooning Ü.S. federal deficit (which is smaller per capita than is Canada's), this notion notion of lowering tax rates to increase revenue is worthy of praise and respect. respect. The American deficit has been created by unbridled federal spending, spending, not by any decrease in the revenue revenue collected from taxpayers. The evidence is striking. By 1985 the American capital gains tax had ; been reduced to 20% from a 1980 rate ; of 49%. During the first year in which ; the lower rate was levied the Ameri- • can government received four times ; as much capital gains tax money as it : had in 1980. Together with a renewed ; spirit of entrepreneurship there was ; general acceptance of the tax-a senti- - ment which had not existed when the - government was scooping half of eve- ! rvone's capital gains. Americans de- . clared their profits much more will- ingly. They spent much less time and 1 money searching for loopholes and * tax breaks. In short, more people pro- Warm F eeling at School Walking through the recently completed Monsignor Leo Cleary Separate Separate School, one y s heart warms and a smile comes instinctively to one's lips. The shiny new school bursts with life like so many elementary schools do, as all sorts of children begin begin the education that is so important for the rest of their lives. From kids who are spending their first days • away from their home to kids getting ready for high school, there is much to admire here. This particular school was located in a church basement last year, where not just arithmetic and spelling were taught but so too was a love of and re- A Poet's Corner Whenever love isn't all that it seems Stop and reminisce about your dreams. Recall the good times. Learn not to regret, And happiness is what you'll recol- lect. Yes, you'll have days when you 11 disagree; Sometimes this is how love needs to be. When you communicate freely by speaking your mind, Make sure the volume is understanding understanding and kind. Don't ask for too much. Live and let live. The gift youll receive is the gift which you give. When you work for love, love works for you, So give love a chance; do the best you can do. , Keep your relationships fun and amusing, , And tne next time love won t be so confusing. Elizabeth Ingram (from the book: L-Stands for Love.) duced and declared more revenue and were taxed at a lower rate, thus creating a huge increase in government government revenue. It is very true that neither the American tax cut, nor the smaller version which the Mulroney government government instituted in its last budget, is so large as to lift the burden of taxation ana liberate the middle classes from this ponderosity. It is more likely to bring to mind the question Peg Bracken asked: "Why does a slight tax increase cost you two hundred dollars dollars and a substantial tax cut save you thirty cents?" But neither should the significance of tax cuts be understated. A lower tax rate is a psychological as well as a fiscal boost. The message it sends is that the economy is healthy, investment investment is welcome, and that job creation creation is not a mystery, but an elementary elementary process of removing some of the obstacles businesses face in growing and prospering. Governments have an insatiable thirst for revenue to fuel ever- increasing spending, in hopes of satisfying satisfying growing numbers of people. Such, after all, is politics. However, proponents of supply-side taxation f iolicies correctly have identified a arge constituency which will be f ileased when government spends ess. They would like to see the deficit shrink dramatically. They do not feel that governments can solve every problem by devising more spending programs. And they are getting tired of politicians who keep trying to do so. This is a special interest group to which our politicians should listen. As our federal election campaign grinds on and spending promises are thrown about like confetti; we would do well to remember that higher and higher tax rates will reach a point of diminishing returns when so much of what is created is taken by government government that people stop creating. And at that point tax revenues will decrease and deficits will shoot up like Jack's beanstock. If we really want government funded daycare and subsidized housing; housing; if we really want expanded healthcare and universities that charge students for a miniscule part of their operating costs; and if we expect expect to ever reduce our enormous government government spending deficit, then we must consider implementing lower tax rates. Not only because they would be popular with the public (politcians take note) but because they will raise more revenue, encourage economic growth, and help us lift ourselves to budget solvency without choking off the economy in the process. EDERATION of AGRICULTURE The Durham Federation of Agriculture sponsored a federal all-candidates' meeting for the riding of Durham on November 1 in Blackstock. The six candidates candidates from left to right are: John Kuipers, Chris tian Heritage Party; Harold Tausch, Green Party; Doug Moffatt, Liberal; Rolf Posma, Libertarian; Marg Wilbur, NDP; Ross Stevenson, Progressive Conservative. by Chris Clark Free Trade and agriculture agriculture issues dominated a federal federal all-candidates' meeting held in Blackstock last week. The six people running to become the first MP from the new riding of Durham met on Tuesday, November 1, at a forum sponsored by the Durham Federation of Agriculture. In addition to candidates from the three major parties, there were representatives of the Green Party, the Libertarian Party, and the Christian Heritage Party. The vast majority of the questions from the 100 people in attendance was directed directed at the three major candidates, however. As expected, PC candidate candidate Ross Stevenson offered strong support for the Free Trade Agreement with the United States, stating that it will be a boon to Canada's agricultural sector. Quick to respond were NDP candidate candidate Marg Wilbur and Liberal Liberal Doug Moffatt, both of whom warned that Canadian Canadian farms, and indeed, Canadian Canadian society as a whole is threatened by the agreement. agreement. For her part, Mrs. Wilbur said she hoped "Canada doesn't become the first nation nation in the world to give away its agricultural capaci ty." Mr. Moffatt claimed that "we have no secure access because of the U.S. omnibus trade bill," which was passed this summer. Mr. Stevenson, a former provincial Minister of Agriculture, Agriculture, reported that Canadian Canadian farmers would benefit in three wavs from the agreement. "We have expanded expanded access to American markets. We have a guarantee guarantee that income support systems systems for agriculture will remain remain in place and be improved. And marketing vehicles like marketing boards remain in place." But Mr. Moffatt disputed the claim that marketing boards are protected. "The trade deal says that chapter 11 of GATT (General Agreement Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) protects marketing boards, but the Americans have been trying to get Chapter 11 changed for months. That claim was disputed by the PC candidate. When asked to offer an alternative alternative to the agreement which would secure economic economic prosperity for Canada, Canada, Mrs. Wilbur said that the NDP "would deal with the United States on a sector by sector basis," citing the Auto Pact as an example of such a policy. The NDP candidate also attacked the Tories for their policy on post offices stating that her party, "wants rural communities to thrive and prosper." The rural post office, office, she said, "often is the centre of a small community." community." "The Liberals began the process and the Conservatives Conservatives continued it. Three hundred rural post offices have been closed down," she said in describing the decline in the number of rural post offices over the past two years. Although a few other issues issues were raised, the candidates candidates were repeatedly asked about Free Trade and its ramifications. Mr. Moffatt told the crowd that "we are not against the concept of free trade. The Liberal governments governments have reduced tariff tariff barriers. But this deal is a sell-out of Canadian interests. interests. We have given up our ability to do something like the National Energy Program Program in the future." On the emotional issue of water, the Liberal candidate said that "water is a good as defined by GATT and, therefore, therefore, is part of the agreement." agreement." Mr. Stevenson, when asked about the same issue, said "water is not included in the deal. I don't know of any group without a political axe to grind who says that water is in the deal." For much of the evening the other three candidates sat and listened to answers without having a chance to give any. They largely were restricted to their opening and closing statements. Libertarian candidate Rolf Posma said that his party party "strongly endorses lower tariff barriers and freer trade, not just between countries countries but between provinces." And he offered his view that the environmental and garbage garbage problems should be solved by private enterprise because if something goes wrong someone is liable, instead instead of an amorphous body like government. by Peter Parrott lii/ spect for God. These children are learning about Christ and about the values He imbued on this earth. And it's wonderful to see. Admiration for such a Christian school does not exclude our respect for the numerous wonderful schools and teachers who make up our public system system in this province and country. But the feeling of seeing four bright eves peer around a door and politely ask a teacher to borrow his Bibles for their class is warmly unique to this type of institution. A new Athletic Association has joined together three Catholic schools in Newcastle and an independent school, Knox Christian School, for the purpose of giving students as much playing time as possible in their particular particular sport. This sort of cooperation is encouraging to see in a world where different strands of Christianity Christianity have not always been so conciliatory conciliatory toward each other. Indeed, the experience of watching this school in operation makes the furor over the funding of schools in Ontario seem a little less important, overshadowed, in part, by tne good service schools of many types provide to our children and to our community. community. At a recent soccer tournament sponsored by the Durham Christian High School, students were led in prayer after all the awards had been given out: an important reminder of the virtues of humbleness and thank- . fulness. Certainly the claim is not that kids at Christian schools are perfect, problem-free, problem-free, and the envy of all parents everywhere. Kids in all schools have problems and seek various solutions and escapes from them. It is refreshing, refreshing, however, to see that tor a portion of our children, one of the avenues they are encouraged to explore for help and encouragement is one leading leading to Heaven. REFLECTIONS ON THE MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS About this time three years ago, my name was on the municipal election election ballot and I was (along with all the other candidates) rapidly approaching approaching the nail- biting time which is also known as election day. Since I'm not running for re-election to the school board, perhaps I can get away with some f ire-election thoughts on ocal politics gleaned from experience as both a participant and observer. observer. The most difficult problem in government today is the need to find a consensus. Folks who are not too familiar with the political political process might imagine imagine that being a politician politician is a relatively easy process. They probably think that all you have to do is find out what your constituents want and then go to the council table, school board or hydro hydro commission and make a speech and cast a vote which reflects that viewpoint. I agree that this is how the process ought to work. But it doesn't. And that is because of the fact that in our pluralistic pluralistic society, it is usually usually very difficult to know exactly what the consensus consensus is ,V- -• y In cases such as a Metro Metro Toronto garbage dump or a 100 per cent tax increase, there would be a fairly clear indication from the public as to how one should vote. Unfortunately, things are not usually that simple. simple. Moreover, the Town of Newcastle is a particularly particularly difficult place to govern because of the fact that it represents such a diverse cross section of people. Among our 35,000 residents we nave senior citizens, we have farmers, farmers, we have factory workers, we have yuppies, yuppies, and we have multimillionaires. multimillionaires. It goes without saying that any decision reached by local council which might be good for one of those groups could be bad for the others. Getting a consensus among those groups is about as difficult as reaching an agreement among the provincial premiers. Consequently, 7 H E Y G A V £ a local politician lives with the knowledge that any decision he or she makes is hurting someone. someone. For example: Allowing Allowing development will frequently be detrimental detrimental to the way of life of the farming community. But not allowing development development will cause local businesses to stagnate. As a politician, you have to decide which group gets hurt. Or do you seek some kind of compromise compromise which will make both groups equally happy happy or equally angry? (As is more frequently the case.) I have always felt that the role of a politician is to make an impartial decision decision based on the information information put before him or her. But I suspect that politicians politicians find their job much easier if they bring to their role certain ready-made viewpoints. If you hold that development development is always bad or that taxes must never rise or that business interests interests must always be served first, then you are well-equipped to render instant judgements on anything. Green Party candidate Harold Tausch stated that his party "is the only party committed to an economic system not based on the growth principle of all other parties. He said that in a finite finite world with finite resources, resources, the message of constant constant growth will eventually destroy the environment. His party would offer incentives incentives for producing durable goods ana penalize the production production of disposable items. John Kuipers, candidate for the Christian Heritage Party, was noncommittal on Free Trade, saying that he supports freer trade in principle principle but that Canada should be very careful to protect its resources and sovereignty. He stressed the environment and, in particular, recycling. "A Canadian Conservation Commission should be established established with quick action on its recommendations," he suggested. He also said that communities which house a landfill site should be compensated. compensated. When asked about the risks of rejecting the Free Trade Agreement, Mr. Moffatt Moffatt conceded that "there probably would be a drop (in the dollar) of three or four cents. It's a short term problem, problem, but the decline will solve itself because we can export more easily with a lower dollar." dollar." He then joked, "I'm not advocating a 12 cent dollar." Mrs. Wilbur cited the environment environment and a dearth of women in politics as her two central reasons for running. And she attacked the Liberals Liberals for "sounding like New Democrats when in opposition opposition but turning into Conservatives Conservatives when elected." Mr. Stevenson promised the kind of representation for his constituents that he provided when he was an MPP at Queen's Park. Mr. Moffatt, also a former MPP, closed his remarks with further criticism of Free Trade. Letters to Editor THEIR etc day FOR OUR TOMORROW . " 1914-1918 IS 5 G - ! 945 ' .G Y/./i ■ V ' ' LEST we FORGET j Remembrance Day is This Friday The Poppy Flag is flying high over the Cenotaph, reminding us that November 11 is Remembrance Day. These three members of Branch 178 of the Royal Canadian Canadian Legion raised the flag last Wednesday. From the left they are: Cecile Bowers, Bowers, poppy co-chairman; Nyhl Sheehan, poppy chairman; and Fred Brown, branch president. You may not be able to give a fair hearing to all groups, but you'll have no difficulty making decisions. decisions. For those of us who believe believe that the truth is a little more complex and a little more multifaceted, multifaceted, the decisionmaking decisionmaking process is more difficult. But, so far, I have been giving the impression that people in politics are constantly listening to a clamour of conflicting opinions. Sometimes, that happens - especially when the issues are big enough. I have found, however, that there are many times when the_ silence on a particular "topic is deafening. By that, I mean that there are times when very controversial controversial decisions are about to be made and the feedback from the public is non-existent. It's difficult to find a consensus within the community when nobody seems to care what's going going on. My final observation is that it's difficult to reach a consensus when one's hands are tied by rules, regulations, red tape, and the opposition of other politicians. Every election has a fair number of novice politicians who believe that their ideas will cure every ill. If they have not researched the political process carefully, they will find that when they are in power they will be rather disappointed. For one thing, it's not enough to have good ideas ideas on local government. It's also necessary to sell those ideas to the majority majority of the local board or council or commission. Sometimes, colleagues do not greet these ideas enthusiastically. Sometimes Sometimes they have other ideas of their own. And, even if a board or council or commission arrives at a decision, its work must not run contrary contrary to some of those previously-mentioned previously-mentioned rules and regulations. For example, example, local town council council can find itself overruled overruled by a decision of regional regional council or the Ontario Ontario Municipal Board. A school board can find that its decision is contrary contrary to the will of the Ministry of Education. And so, the merry-go- round of political activities activities continues, Sometimes, it appears Dear Mr. James: I would like to respond to the letter in your November 2, 1988 edition, written by Donna Wallis, of the Village of Newcastle. For her information, there are 23 practising doctors with Hospital privileges in this area and 3 or more of them from e.g. Oshawa. There are 24 office spaces available in present Medical Clinics - which seems ample as there are at present only 16 in use. and an additonal 4 doctors incoming when expansion expansion is complete. This proposal is indeed close to a school (too close), but should any student need medical attention attention while on school property, property, the parents are requested requested to take the children directly to the hospital as a policy they have. Now when it comes to people with heart problems, the first place to seek help is the Hospital Emergency services services - tney are not about to sit in a doctor's office and wait to be looked after. Now for the part that hurts the most, is her insinuations insinuations regarding the Sisnett Triplets. When the Sisnetts moved to this town, there was no odor from the Goodyear Goodyear plant, as the reclaim plant had been shut down, also there was not such a traffic impact on Liberty Street, because all the subdivisions subdivisions on the outskirts to the north-east were not present. And the hospital being being a block away was a Godsend Godsend in case there was a emergency when they were finally able to bring their babies babies home after 3 very long months. Also, these babies "will not be a year old until January 2,1989, and never are they put outdoors to be exposed to the elements and even in the case of a common common cold, they must not have a household fixture that is common use for most colds. I am referring to Vicks Medication (that is not a plug for a product, but as a nurse, Mrs. Wallis, you must be aware of how often it is put into use for children suffering suffering from colds.) Their main transportation is an "air-conditioned" van, supplied by a local dealer so that they can travel safely and if they do venture out in as though results of the political process take second place to the process process itself. I suppose that what I've written above may seem pessimistic. I hope not. For, generally speaking, speaking, I think the political process delivers the kind of government that we (on average) want to see. I only wish to convey the idea that the process is a complex one, The quick and easy solutions look good on tne political platform but won't stand up during the long haul or a full term in office. their carriage, it is at times when there is light traffic, on side streets or in the country, where their maternal grandparents grandparents reside. Let me just say it is an assumption assumption on your part that Emergency services at the Hospital are available at the drop of a hat. If it is not deemed an emergency by staff, they could wait for maybe 24 hours for reports and testing, if necessary. So let me just say,Mrs. Wallis, until you have "walked a mile in the Sis- nett's shoes," don't be so fast with suppositions on your part until you are aware of all the facts involved. Thank you for letting me say my piece and correct some misconceptions that were glaring at me. Having the privilege of acting as a grandparent in the absence of their maternal and paternal paternal grandparents, it hurts to read such tripe, 'and that is exactly what it was and is. And may I just add, if it were not for these babies, I'm sure I'd have lost my sanity with what is happening down here, but I take one look at them and feel reassured that whatever the outcome of the battle, it was fought witha great deal of caring feelings, even though we might lose the war. I would like to suggest you secure a map of the Town of Bowmanville and reaffirm just where these streets and roads are located - as it js approximately 50 feet from their door to the proposed parking lot. Thank you, Marion R. Wiseman 71 Brown St. Dear Sir: After Her Royal Highness Princess Margaret of Snowdon's Snowdon's visit to the Newcastle Town Hall, I wrote to thank her for adjusting her itinerary itinerary so that she would be able to attend and officially open our administrative facility. Enclosed is the reply I received received recently from Kensington Kensington Palace. I thought perhaps your readers might enjoy this response. response. Yours very truly, John Winters, Mayor. Dear Mayor: Princess Margaret has asked me to write to thank you for your letter of 30th August. Her Royal Highness was so pleased to be reminded of her visit to Bowmanville on the 12th July, for the official reopening of the Newcastle Town Hall, and greatly appreciated appreciated all the kind words contained in your letter. I am to say how much The Princess enjoyed her visit but, sadly, Her Royal Highness does not fish! Yours sincerely, Private Secretary to The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, From: Lord Napier and Ettrick, CVO.