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"A Family Tradition for 125 Years" PORT PERRY STAR - Tuesday, September 17,1991 - 7 Isn't this another fine mess we're in? Feels like the whole country is unraveling at the seams. How the heck did this happen, with all the improvements in labour and management relations? Ten years ago, we mighta tried answering that ques- tion. Older and wiser now, we know there's simply no point in trying, It's the same old public sector story, featuring callous disregard for the poor sap paying the bills. Each side thinks the other is to blame. Both are right. The weirdest thing about this current epidemic of striking public sector workers is the "deja vu" feeling for anyone over the age of forty. It's the Seventies again, ex- cept for the absence of teacher unions to flavour the brew. (Nobody does 'callous disregard' better.) Another absent group is OPSEU, Ontario's 60,000 Public Service union members. Give them time... You want irony? OPSEU is miffed. The government sez layoffs may be necessary. The union sez there'll be Hell To Pay. We say: Geeze Louise, if OPSEU can't get along with an NDP government, what else is left? (Pun intended.) : You want more irony? Picture the Fan Cow Poo if Poorbob Rae and the Brethren shove "back to work" leg- islation down the throats of two serious unions (TTC "| and OPSEU). : Sounds dicey, huh? Maybe so, but what if the 'arbi- trated' settlements are so lucrative both unions have trouble hiding the smirks on their faces.? Oops. * Ah well, no point getting all worked up about it. These day the issues are out of our hands. - Allwe do is add the unending spiral of increased liv- ing costs (Ontario Hydro just announced an 11% hike for next year), and calculate how much cheaper it would PRESSING MIATTERS "WELL, OLLIE...." be to live in the United States. Many Ontario businesses - and taxpayers - have passed the point of no return. Long gone. Many more teeter on the brink. Hoping they won't have to jump. Wondering if they should have already done so. Count us among them. Folks need to understand how insane the tax situa- tion in Canada has become. You pay too much for everything, especially taxes, and it only makes the situa- tion worse. The best example we can offer is regrettably too damned close to home. Here's an outline of what happened when we sold our own business last year: On April 30th, 1991, a huge cheque was sent to Ot- tawa as payment of a vicious rip-off called "capital gains tax'. (Based on how much you increase the value of something, from the time you buy it, until the time you sell it.) Tax lawyers were hired to reduce the mind- boggling size of the initial calculation. The lawyers cost nearly $50,000. They saved us $200,000. Impressive number? Not nearly as impressive as what remained. The final amount paid, the same way you'd send a cheque for the phone bill at the end of the month, was almost half a million dollars! When that grotesque sum was first determined, the enormity almost made us physically ill. It's difficult to understand how anyone could (or why they'd want to) levy such a horrendous penalty upon the successful op- eration of a business. This particular business grew from four full-time jobs to twenty during an economic period that desperately needed any good news and new jobs it could scrounge. Isn't that the sort of stuff a government should en- courage, rather than penalize? You'd think so, but if any medals were being handed out, ours must be lost in the Sek mail. Please understand, for the privilege of being in busi- ness during that risky period, we paid a big bundle of taxes every year along the way, and also poured more than $600,000 of our own money into the firm for equip- ment and building renovations. Faced with paying an outrageous penalty merely to sell an on-going business to new owners, our initial reac- tion was to call off the deal ... until our lawyer said: "Be- fore you walk away, consider. There is no way the situa- tion will IMPROVE in the foreseeable future." The other key factors which led to the decision to sell: a) drastically increased government interference in the form of Pay Equity, Safety in the Workplace (WHMIS) legislation, and Smoking Bans, for example, b) reams of additional red tape, particularly in ac- counting procedures, to accommocate monstrosities like the GST tax, c¢) continuously escalating costs such as Ontario's Worker's Compensation and UIC deductions, and the recent 2% (so far) OHIP payroll tax. With so many obstacles to overcome before even starting to worry about personnel, marketing strategy, economic uncertainties, obsolete technology, competi- tion and profitability (an ugly word today), there was no choice. We pulled the plug, and walked away from a life- long dream. Remaining behind, unanswered, are some important questions: 1) Remember not so long ago when government said Small Business would be the primary source of new jobs in this country? 2) Why would anyone want to operate a small busi- ness in this country? 3) What happens now? Letters io the editor ~ Think twice before voting Remember When 2? HISTORIC PHOTOS COURTESY SCUGOG SHORES MUSEUM 'To the Editor: : The letter in your 20th August issue from the Campaign Direc- tor for the Impeachment of Brian Mulroney has prompted me to write to you on the issue of Mr. Mulroney's 1984 promise to create, 'Jobs, Jobs, Jobs," and his promise to improve conditions for disabled persons. As many of your readers will know, I have been a long time advocate for blind and other disabled persons and I was a very active member of the Conservative Party when 1 lived in Port Perry - I worked vigorously on Allan Lawrence's 1984 election campaign. In 1984, I mistakenly believed "that if a Conservative govern- ment was elected, the party's oft 'repeated slogans about the work ethic and so forth would be ex- "tended fo include disabled people 'who wanted to work too. In the fall of 1986, when I found myself in need of employment after com- pleting a six-month contract job, I went to the Canada Employ- ment Centre in Toronto and ex- plained that, being blind, I would need to have the job openings read out to me from the bulletin board so that I could secure some work. Employment Centre staff refused to provide this service to me - instructing me to go to CNIB instead - although I had been told in a letter sent to me on 6th June of 1985 by then Employment Minister Flora MacDonald that reader service was available for blind people at Canada Employ- ment Centres. My Member of Parliament at the time, Allan Lawrence, wrote to the Minister of Employment, who was then Benoit Bouchard, urging him to ensure that I receiv- Turn to Page 8 Oppose user pay garbage 25 YEARS AGO Port Perry received its first police cruiser in 1964. Pictured during the unvelling ceremony outside the Township Office on Perry Street are {from left} Councillor Robert Kenney, Storey Beare, Reeve J.J. Gibson, Police Chief Robert Cameron, Councillor Thomas Harris, Counclilor Irving Boyd, & Constable Eric Place. To the Editor: It was with great distress that I read a recent article.in the Oshawa/Whitby This Week newspaper titled 'Councils Back Garbage Pick-up Fees." This ar- ticle talks about how the associa- "tion of municipalities of Ontario voted to ask the province to per- mit municipalities to adopt a fee for garbage pick-up. ~ Iam usually a very strong sup- porter of the user pay method of financing the various services that the taxpayer receives from the vatious levels of government. However this is one instance where 1 feel user pay is wrong. We already have a problem of cap we illegal dumping with people dum- ping full truck loads of garbage in the middle of country roads as witnessed by the dumping earlier this year in Scugog Township of four tonnes of garbage. On a recent trip into Toronto on the Go Train I noticed a spot along the side of the 401 Highway bet- ween the tracks and the highway where someone had just pulled off the highway behind some bushes and dumped several loads of dirt and someone else had dumped a load of old broken pieces of lumber. All of this and I am sure much more takes place now with just the increase costs of dumping Turn to Page 8 Thursday, September 15, 1966 Lorna Wright, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Wright of Blackstock has been awarded a scholarship providing her with free tuition for four years at the University of Waterloo. Public School enrolment in Reach Township hit an all-time high of 732 students in attendance. Demolition was started on the building occupied by Brewer's Retail Store for the last ten years. A new, modern structure is almost completed behind the old store, and is expected to be in operation in about two weeks time. The building being demolished was originally built by Mr. Art Brunton for a chicken hatchery. Bryant's Roost, the home of Mr. and Mrs. Earl Bryant on Rosa Street, was the scene for a birthday party for Earl's mother, Mrs. Ed Bryant. A total of 26 guests enjoyed the Chicken Pot Pie supper held in Mrs. Bryant's honor. 20 YEARS AGO Wednesday, September 15, 1971 The new Pastor of Port Perry Baptist Church is Rev. D.C. Payne, formerly of Sault Ste. Marie. He and his wife will be taking up residence on Scugog Island. Two bands will provide the music for the Centennial Fall Dance, sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce. Ron Myers and his orchestra and an orchestra named "Hot Duck" will be playing music for the occasion. Port Perry Lions Club Bantams capped off another fine baseball season capturing the 4th Annual Town of Bradford Bantam Tburnament trophy. Tom Olsen led the way with his excellent pitching and power hitting. The Ontario County Holstein Show held in PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 10 em" ttt" emg et a 5 PTE 1 EEN i } i |