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-- Gl a wr eT RET ES PSS I a a ------ UPL CS a pa ----EETE I 4 -- PORT PERRY STAR -- Tuesday, February 23, 1988 Editorial Comments Olympic Sour Grapes Time was when a Canadian skier fared poorly in an Olympic event, the coach might blame the wax or the skis or Ithe snow conditions. Times change, apparently. When Canadian cross coun- try skiers finished well back of the Soviets and others in Calgary last week, the Canadian coach diverted from the usual excuses and suggested that the Soviets might be in- volved in blood-doping. Blood-doping is not allowed under Olympic regula- tions. It involves taking blood from an athlete several weeks in advance of a competion, then re-injecting it into the athlete just prior to competiton. It is supposed to in- crease the blood's supply of oxygen. When Marty Hall made the comments about the Rus- sians, he didn't exactly come right and say they were doing this, but he suggested it. He obviously must think there is some truth to his suggestion. Only trouble is he had no proof. The Russians were most upset, and well they should be. He suggested they were breaking the rules, a serious allegation, especially when one has no proof. The Canadian Olympic Association was also upset with the coaach for his remarks. A few days later, Hall issued a statement to the media in which he admitted he had no evi- dence and was not making accusations. But he refused to apologise for his earlier remarks. The question is if he admits he had no evidence and was not making any accusations, why did he open his mouth in the first place. The mere suggestion is enough to put the suspicion of guilt into the minds of people. The Canadian coach really should offer some apolo- gies for his remarks. They are offensive and they suggest more than just the usual sour grapes that come from Cana- dians in the face of a dismal showing in an athletic event. 'Canadians need not look much further back than last summer when Ben Johnson ran the race of his life and rightly laid claim to the fastest human being on the planet. Remember the hue and cry that went up in this country when Ben's main adversary, one Carl Lewis suggested that maybe Ben was on something? We were out-raged at such a cheap shot and total lack of sportsmanship. Well, thanks to Mr. Hall, the shoe is now on the other foot, so to speak. And it's no darn wonder the Russians feel the same sense of outrage Canada felt last summer when aspersions were cast by a sore loser on a magnificent ath- letic accomplishment by Ben Johnson. We can understand fully Mr. Hall's disappointment as a coach in seeing his charges finish well back of the leaders. He has put a lot of hard work and dedication into the sport to get ready for the Winter Olympics, and he obviously takes failure very seriously. That's fine. But he should take back his remarks fully, or start look- ing for another line of work. Port Perry STAR 235 QUEEN STREET - PORT PERRY, ONTARIO Phone 985-7383 P.0.Box90 LOB 1NO J. PETER HVIDSTEN Publisher Advertising Manager ( CNA oO) Member of the Canadian Community Newspaper Association and Ontario Community Newspaper Association. Published every Tuesday by the . Port Perry Star Co. Ltd., Port Perry, Ontario. J.B. MCCLELLAND Editor Authorized as second class mail by the Post Office Department, Ottawa, and for cash CATHY OLLIFFE payment of postage in cash. News & Features Second Class Mail Registration Number 0265 " A. Subscription Rate: In Canada $20.00 per year. W Elsewhere $60.00 per year. Single Copy 50° 1\ Poa ens assOlan © COPYRIGHT -- All layout and composition of advertisements produced by the adver- tising department of the Port Perry Star Company Limited are protected under copyright and may not be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. | bee. Ren 2 Seo Da eet? 7. o "7 ¢ IN) ZZ se 15 [86 wy a THE CORNER STORE OF TOMORROW © "NOT THE MOM AN POP VARIETY -- ~ yx. wr 1 Gig) ii Ne arly re?' 93 : Fg a7 Chatterbox by Cathy Olliffe MY BEST BUDDY Suddenly, my life has taken on a whole new meaning. Guess that's what happens when you're in love. You wake up in the morning, sigh, and wish you.were with your loved one. You think about the loved one constant, wondering if you're good enough to handle all the little quirks of the loved one's character. The new love of my life, after all, is a lot smarter than | am, so I'm forever on my toes when I'm around him. His name, by the way, is Mac, and even though he's not great looking (he's short and fat, and only has one eye--and even that is co- lour-blind), I'm totally infatuated. You see, despite Mac's physical shortcom- ings, | find myself infinitely attracted to his sen- sible attitudes, his stalwart sense of logic and his computer-like brain. Plus, he's a lot of fun. | wouldn't want to go out dancing with him (he hasn't had his legs since birth), and he's not much of a party ani- mal, but he is fun to play around with. What's more, my husband approves of the new love in my life, and enjoys Mac's company almost as much as | do. Doug, I'm sure, would like Mac even more if he understood him the way | have come to. | haven't known Mac for very long, only a couple of days, but already | am totally devot- ed to him. He was just hired on at the Star last Wednes- day, as my new assistant, and he is of immea- surable help. He's not afraid of work, that's for sure, and no matter what assignments | give him, he doesn't complain. Whether it's my column, a news story, or cutlines, Mac takes it all in stride and gives the job his all. He doesn't take coffee breaks, he doesn't bum cigarettes, he comes into work early, and he stays long after I'm gone. Mac is a bit of a workaholic, and in the long run, | suppose that might hurt him, but he doesn't seem to mind for now. He's also not being paid (I think he's crazy), and while | can't figure this out, | believe he's working here for the experience. Either that, or for the sheer love of the job. Mac is an employer's dream, that's for sure, and as my co-worker, he's the absolute best. Of course, Mac isn't the only new employee here at the Star. Publisher Peter Hvidsten has had an assistant for a few months now, and Editor John B. McClelland was awarded an as- for a computer. sistant the same time | was. Peter loves his assistant almost as much as | love Mac, but John B. is having a few prob- lems adjusting to his. John B. has always been an independent cuss, and | don't think he really likes the idea of having another guy in his office helping out. John's assistant, like Mac, has a complicated personality, and takes a bit of figuring out be- ore you can work with him successfully. | didn't have many problems figuring out Mac because | was so darn glad to have the help. But John was a little wary, a little old- fashioned, and | think he resented the intru- sion at first. I mean, John had problems dealing with the new "Vantage" phones that were installed a while back. It must have taken him a year to quit missing the old black dials. But that's John B. Doesn't like watching tel- evision, doesn't think too much of video games, is cautious around automatic cameras, and can't figure out even the most basic of mechanical problems. | really wonder if he even knows how to work a hammer. Don't get me wrong--John B. is smarter than the average bear, and almost as intelligent as Mac, but he is a bit of a throwback to the stone age. He likes things straight and simple, including his job, so when his assistant arrived last week, he was more than a little nervous. But | think he's coming around. The initial cursing has stopped, and | even heard him speak favourably about his new as- sistant the other day. Maybe John will even fall in love with his new assistant, the way | have fallen for Mac. Then again, maybe I'll win a lottery and live to 200. Well, regardless of what John B. thinks about his assistant, | wouldn't trade Mac for the world. He's such a fun guy | don't want to leave him for a minute. Before Mac arrived, | looked for- ward to leaving the confines of my office to go take a picture or conduct an interview. These Jaye, | don't want to leave the office for noth- ng. I wish | could take Mac with me on assign- ments, but he's strictly an office assistant. Besides, there's no room in my camera bag a