The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
An earlier column mentioned a number of interesting people I met on a cruise. Of course there are many other special people, and some who are special in different ways. One whom I have known for a few years is a retiree in St. Petersburg, Florida. His name is Charles Schmidt, but he's better known by his performance name of Chuck Davis. Chuck was a rock performer in the '60s and '70s, writing and recording many songs. He even signed with Nat King Cole's record company, which seemed a sure avenue to success. Unfortunately, Nat died soon after and Chuck's true stardom never materialized, so he turned to other things. He gave me a copy of his latest CD, which has some great beat tunes such as "Purty Girls are Purty." You never know what people have done in their careers! Another special person I have mentioned several times is my favourite federal cabinet minister, Steven Fletcher, who is constantly sending information about government policies and budgets. One of his latest is an overview of Canada's economic plan for 2009, which explains the government's plans to help workers, families and seniors survive the recession. One interesting proposal is to help families raising kids by improving the $1,200 child care benefit, indexing it to inflation, and making it tax-free for single-parent families. He used to be special, and to some Liberals, maybe still is. His name is Wayne Easter, who used to be agriculture minister and is now critic in that same portfolio. Even though he's from PEI, which doesn't have a Wheat Board monopoly, he is constantly criticizing the Harper government for wanting to take away the monopoly in Western Canada and give farmers the choice of who to sell to. Easter says it is the farmers who want to keep the monopoly, conveniently not mentioning that it is the farmers who produce most of the wheat and barley who want to make a level playing field and get rid of this bloated and overpaid organization. What about the millions of people who have lost their jobs due to the recession, bank failures, and so on? Massive job losses in the US are of course having an effect on all parts of the economy, including that of Canada. The Obama administration's $787-billion economic stimulus bill, passed in February, includes nearly $2 billion for re-training. The idea is to give workers new skills in areas that are in demand, such as health care and trades. The economic impact is more serious in the US than in Canada, as many laid-off workers have lost health benefits and do not qualify for employment insurance. Let us hope those with new skills get jobs. They are certainly special people, but in a totally negative sense. They are the Somali pirates who have been a bother for years but have received more attention this year for attacking ships and holding hostages. Earlier this year, the US Navy Seals killed three pirates and rescued an American being held for $2-million ransom, which America refused to pay. This is unlike a lot of countries that have paid the ransoms, which only encourages the pirates. There are no reasons, legal or otherwise, to justify these international criminal acts, and the weak UN should take action. The Americans have shown the only way to get rid of these criminals. People who smoke are in the news, especially in the US, which has decided to double the federal cigarette tax to over a dollar per pack. Quit-smoking programs are being flooded with calls. This shouldn't surprise anybody, as even tobacco companies know that higher prices mean more quitting. In the US, state cigarette taxes vary widely. In New York, a pack may cost over $10, in Seattle, $6.66, and in South Carolina, $ 4.78. The "quit states" like New York have less than 14 per cent of students who smoke, while "tobacco states" like Kentucky show 26 per cent, even though they have doubled their tax to 60 cents. Some Kentucky politicians argue that the taxes fall on low-income people, and note that 55 per cent of smokers are working poor and tobacco farming is tied to Kentucky's economy. But as one writer says: "It is important to to keep future generations of low-income workers from getting hooked in the first place, and if the new taxes cause today's adults to quit, they will have more to spend on their families, cut their risk of cancer and heart disease and feel better. What a terrible fate!" Roger's Right Corner runs Wednesdays.
