Issue 32 - Bird Talk

Bird Talk - Featuring the letters and concerns of our members

Dear Bird Talk,

Please find enclosed our cheque for $15.00 for our membership for 1999-2000 term.
We attended the Canadian Extravaganza in Palm Springs this spring and greatly enjoyed it. We hope they will have it in Palm Springs next year also.
I really enjoy the quarterly magazine that is published it is very informative. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Yours truly,
Barbara McFadyn
Calgary, AB

We're glad you enjoyed our California Snowbird Extravaganza this past year be sure to reserve February 12, 2000 for next year's event. Palm Springs was such a success, that we will be returning and hope to see you and your friends there.

Dear Bird Talk,

On April 13/99, as we were returning home from Florida, we had a medical emergency while stopped at the CITGO gas station, LOVELACE AUTO SERVICE, Knoxville, Tenn. 37922. We don't know the exit #, but it was in north Knoxville, near 40 and 75.

I asked Mr. Lovelace how to get to emergency. He said that we would probably get lost and asked if he could drive our car and take us there. He had someone follow to take him back. On arriving at the hospital, he went in and had a nurse and wheelchair at the door for us. "Southern hospitality," at its best! The emergency service was excellent and we can't say enough about the whole experience. We have sent a thank you to Mr. Lovelace, but wanted to share this with your readers.

Sincerely,
Joe and Doris Wood
Listowel, Ontario

Thank you for letting us know about this true gentleman. Folks, when passing through Tennessee on your trips south and north, make a point of stopping at Lovelace Auto Service to fill 'er up! This business deserves OUR business.

Dear Bird Talk,

I would like to suggest that fellow snowbirds donate their old CSA magazines to hospitals and doctors' offices, rather than throw them out, as this will help keep fellow snowbirds, seniors and travellers up to date on matters that are so important for their travel outside of Canada. It might also be wise for CSA to donate any surplus magazines to these same institutions (and maybe auto service centres), as I'm sure it will increase circulation to CSA and will bring a lot of travellers up to date on many issues of which they may not be aware.

Yours truly,
Stan Stiles
(via e-mail)

That's a great idea as a matter of fact, if our members can supply us with the names and addresses of companies who would be interested in keeping our magazine in their waiting rooms, we'll be happy to send them out.

Dear Bird Talk,

It is my pleasure to submit for membership, Mr. & Mrs. Fred Konkin, whose application form is attached. Mr. Konkin is the retired Commissioner of Finance S.S. Marie, as well as a retired J.P. He will make an excellent member put him to work. They spend their winters in Florida, although I keep working on them to come to Arizona!

Enclosed you will find my cheque covering my annual membership of $15, plus $15 to cover the Konkins for their first year. I also add $20 for the Special Action Fund, for a total of $50. By the way, my wife Dorothy is an American but she is a great proponent of CSA.

Keep up the good work, what you have accomplished in Ontario is worth much more than the annual membership!

Best wishes with kindest regards.

Sincerely,
D. James Rudack
Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario

Thank you for your kind words and new members! We'll be happy to put Mr. and Mrs. Konkin to work at our events for that matter, we welcome all volunteers! Let us know that you're interested, and we'll get you signed up.

Dear Bird Talk,

Every time we receive CSA News, we make it a point to read all the interesting articles from cover to cover and we wish to thank you and your collaborators for articles that are very interesting and hitting some of the points that are a concern to the members.

In the last issue, number 31, in your article on Government Insurance Benefits, you close your article this way, and I quote: "Now the benefits don't exist unless you are close to poverty income levels they are "clawed" back in what is basically a 100 per cent tax."

Unless we do not get in Quebec the same treatment as in the balance of Canada, in the last French version of the income tax guide, it is stated that the "clawback" starts at the level of an income of $53,215.00 at a rate of 15 per cent.

In my modest opinion, that level of income is very far from poverty level income and I can state, without fear of being wrong, that a very large portion of retired persons would not mind to give back a certain portion of their Old Age Security Pension to get that kind of income which represents over $100,000 per year for a couple. The majority of retired couples probably never made that kind of money during their working years.

Maybe, a little correction in the next edition would be necessary.

R. Paquet
Otterburn Park, QC

Here are the points that we were trying to make:

If an individual is at the 35 per cent marginal tax rate and the clawback is 15 per cent of each additional dollar, it raises your tax rate to over 50 per cent on income over $53,215.

The age credit clawback for those 65 or older is clawed back at income of $25,921 or more. Hardly the income of a rich Canadian, when the poverty line for a couple is $21,000.

The personal amount supplements are clawed back after net income exceeds $6,956.

The Care Givers Tax credit of $400 to those looking after an aged or infirm spouse or parent is clawed back after the income of the person being cared for exceeds $11,500.

The government has made clawbacks a way of life, in order to keep seniors who have been responsible in their retirement planning, at or close to the poverty line and punish them for being successful even at middle-income level. This is the point of the paragraph that you questioned.

Dear Bird Talk,

We have just completed our first year of membership in the CSA. We congratulate and appreciate the recent successes achieved in extending the Medicare-covered days of travel outside Ontario and the extra days of travel prescriptions now available. We are renewing our membership for another year...with some misgivings.

We are most disturbed and upset by the completely inappropriate CSA stance (Bird Talk Spring 1999) regarding the handing out of cigarettes at the 1999 Extravaganza at Tampa. I (Irwin) am a laryngectomee. That means I have had my larynx removed due to cancer of the larynx. I had no "freedom of choice" about losing my ability to speak as others do; I have never smoked. My late wife exercised her "freedom of choice," smoking two packs a day for 47 years. She died of lung cancer four years after I had my larynx removed. (The statistic is that every 35 minutes a woman in Canada dies of smoke-related cancer.)

Recently, we were at a laryngectomee conference of 451 attendees at which Patrick Reynolds, grandson of the founder of The Reynolds Tobacco Company (himself a former two-pack-a-day smoker) gave the keynote address. Having seen his father and other family members succumb to smoking-related deaths, he decided to make it his mission to speak the truth about what the tobacco companies are trying to do to "hookin" our teens and younger ones so that tobacco revenues would continue. The CSA is acting hypocritically if it thinks it can "take a proactive approach to one's health" and then endorse handing out cigarettes to "those who haven't yet 'kicked the habit.'" Smokers have the "freedom of choice: to pay for their poison and smoke where it's not going to affect the rest of us who would like to live in a smoke-free environment. The CSA an organization promoting the well-being of retirees certainly does not have to aid and abet this choice.

Sincerely,
Tema and Irwin Title
North York, Ontario

Dear Bird Talk,

The Spring issue of CSA News has just arrived. As a medical practitioner and also a snowbird, I read with interest your Bird Talk, Snowbird Alert and Health and Wellness sections.

I also attended the 1999 Extravaganza at Tampa, as did your correspondent in Bird Talk who was offended by the cigarette booth. This booth was strategically located in the centre of the exhibit area and promoted a legal, but lethal product.

I wondered why Medipac Health Insurance, with which the CSA has a solid relationship, could not persuade CSA to exercise their "freedom of choice" and exclude the promotion of a health hazard from the Extravaganza.

Next year, if you must for pecuniary reasons rent space to the tobacco industry, put the cigarette booth at the periphery of the exhibit area or better still, right out the door.

Yours truly,
D.H. Aikenhead M.D.
Milton, Ontario

Thank you for your letters. They are representative of a number that we have received. Perhaps my point in the last issue was not clear while we strongly believe in our members taking a proactive approach to their health, we must still respect our members who smoke. In consideration of the number of you who took the time to write, I can assure you that the tobacco industry will not have a high profile within our shows (should they choose to participate)

Table of Contents Issue 32 / Next Issue Story




	Bird Talk - Featuring the letters and concerns of our members

		Dear Bird Talk, Please find enclosed our cheque for $15.00 for our membership for 1999-2000 term. We attended the Canadian Extravaganza in Palm Springs this spring and greatly enjoyed it. We hope they will have it in Palm Springs next year also. I really enjoy the quarterly magazine that is published it is very informative. Thank you for your attention to this matter. Yours truly, Barbara McFadyn Calgary, AB We're glad you enjoyed our California Snowbird Extravaganza this past year be sure to reserve February 12, 2000 for next year's event. Palm Springs was such a success, that we will be returning and hope to see you and your friends there. Dear Bird Talk, On April 13/99, as we were returning home from Florida, we had a medical emergency while stopped at the CITGO gas station, LOVELACE AUTO SERVICE, Knoxville, Tenn. 37922. We don't know the exit #, but it was in north Knoxville, near 40 and 75. I asked Mr. Lovelace how to get to emergency. He said that we would probably get lost and asked if he could drive our car and take us there. He had someone follow to take him back. On arriving at the hospital, he went in and had a nurse and wheelchair at the door for us. "Southern hospitality," at its best! The emergency service was excellent and we can't say enough about the whole experience. We have sent a thank you to Mr. Lovelace, but wanted to share this with your readers. Sincerely, Joe and Doris Wood Listowel, Ontario Thank you for letting us know about this true gentleman. Folks, when passing through Tennessee on your trips south and north, make a point of stopping at Lovelace Auto Service to fill 'er up! This business deserves OUR business. Dear Bird Talk, I would like to suggest that fellow snowbirds donate their old CSA magazines to hospitals and doctors' offices, rather than throw them out, as this will help keep fellow snowbirds, seniors and travellers up to date on matters that are so important for their travel outside of Canada. It might also be wise for CSA to donate any surplus magazines to these same institutions (and maybe auto service centres), as I'm sure it will increase circulation to CSA and will bring a lot of travellers up to date on many issues of which they may not be aware. Yours truly, Stan Stiles (via e-mail) That's a great idea as a matter of fact, if our members can supply us with the names and addresses of companies who would be interested in keeping our magazine in their waiting rooms, we'll be happy to send them out. Dear Bird Talk, It is my pleasure to submit for membership, Mr. & Mrs. Fred Konkin, whose application form is attached. Mr. Konkin is the retired Commissioner of Finance S.S. Marie, as well as a retired J.P. He will make an excellent member put him to work. They spend their winters in Florida, although I keep working on them to come to Arizona! Enclosed you will find my cheque covering my annual membership of $15, plus $15 to cover the Konkins for their first year. I also add $20 for the Special Action Fund, for a total of $50. By the way, my wife Dorothy is an American but she is a great proponent of CSA. Keep up the good work, what you have accomplished in Ontario is worth much more than the annual membership! Best wishes with kindest regards. Sincerely, D. James Rudack Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Thank you for your kind words and new members! We'll be happy to put Mr. and Mrs. Konkin to work at our events for that matter, we welcome all volunteers! Let us know that you're interested, and we'll get you signed up. Dear Bird Talk, Every time we receive CSA News, we make it a point to read all the interesting articles from cover to cover and we wish to thank you and your collaborators for articles that are very interesting and hitting some of the points that are a concern to the members. In the last issue, number 31, in your article on Government Insurance Benefits, you close your article this way, and I quote: "Now the benefits don't exist unless you are close to poverty income levels they are "clawed" back in what is basically a 100 per cent tax." Unless we do not get in Quebec the same treatment as in the balance of Canada, in the last French version of the income tax guide, it is stated that the "clawback" starts at the level of an income of $53,215.00 at a rate of 15 per cent. In my modest opinion, that level of income is very far from poverty level income and I can state, without fear of being wrong, that a very large portion of retired persons would not mind to give back a certain portion of their Old Age Security Pension to get that kind of income which represents over $100,000 per year for a couple. The majority of retired couples probably never made that kind of money during their working years. Maybe, a little correction in the next edition would be necessary. R. Paquet Otterburn Park, QC Here are the points that we were trying to make: If an individual is at the 35 per cent marginal tax rate and the clawback is 15 per cent of each additional dollar, it raises your tax rate to over 50 per cent on income over $53,215. The age credit clawback for those 65 or older is clawed back at income of $25,921 or more. Hardly the income of a rich Canadian, when the poverty line for a couple is $21,000. The personal amount supplements are clawed back after net income exceeds $6,956. The Care Givers Tax credit of $400 to those looking after an aged or infirm spouse or parent is clawed back after the income of the person being cared for exceeds $11,500. The government has made clawbacks a way of life, in order to keep seniors who have been responsible in their retirement planning, at or close to the poverty line and punish them for being successful even at middle-income level. This is the point of the paragraph that you questioned. Dear Bird Talk, We have just completed our first year of membership in the CSA. We congratulate and appreciate the recent successes achieved in extending the Medicare-covered days of travel outside Ontario and the extra days of travel prescriptions now available. We are renewing our membership for another year...with some misgivings. We are most disturbed and upset by the completely inappropriate CSA stance (Bird Talk Spring 1999) regarding the handing out of cigarettes at the 1999 Extravaganza at Tampa. I (Irwin) am a laryngectomee. That means I have had my larynx removed due to cancer of the larynx. I had no "freedom of choice" about losing my ability to speak as others do; I have never smoked. My late wife exercised her "freedom of choice," smoking two packs a day for 47 years. She died of lung cancer four years after I had my larynx removed. (The statistic is that every 35 minutes a woman in Canada dies of smoke-related cancer.) Recently, we were at a laryngectomee conference of 451 attendees at which Patrick Reynolds, grandson of the founder of The Reynolds Tobacco Company (himself a former two-pack-a-day smoker) gave the keynote address. Having seen his father and other family members succumb to smoking-related deaths, he decided to make it his mission to speak the truth about what the tobacco companies are trying to do to "hookin" our teens and younger ones so that tobacco revenues would continue. The CSA is acting hypocritically if it thinks it can "take a proactive approach to one's health" and then endorse handing out cigarettes to "those who haven't yet 'kicked the habit.'" Smokers have the "freedom of choice: to pay for their poison and smoke where it's not going to affect the rest of us who would like to live in a smoke-free environment. The CSA an organization promoting the well-being of retirees certainly does not have to aid and abet this choice. Sincerely, Tema and Irwin Title North York, Ontario Dear Bird Talk, The Spring issue of CSA News has just arrived. As a medical practitioner and also a snowbird, I read with interest your Bird Talk, Snowbird Alert and Health and Wellness sections. I also attended the 1999 Extravaganza at Tampa, as did your correspondent in Bird Talk who was offended by the cigarette booth. This booth was strategically located in the centre of the exhibit area and promoted a legal, but lethal product. I wondered why Medipac Health Insurance, with which the CSA has a solid relationship, could not persuade CSA to exercise their "freedom of choice" and exclude the promotion of a health hazard from the Extravaganza. Next year, if you must for pecuniary reasons rent space to the tobacco industry, put the cigarette booth at the periphery of the exhibit area or better still, right out the door. Yours truly, D.H. Aikenhead M.D. Milton, Ontario Thank you for your letters. They are representative of a number that we have received. Perhaps my point in the last issue was not clear while we strongly believe in our members taking a proactive approach to their health, we must still respect our members who smoke. In consideration of the number of you who took the time to write, I can assure you that the tobacco industry will not have a high profile within our shows (should they choose to participate) Table of Contents Issue 32 / Next Issue Story

	\| Home \| Contact CSA \| Events \| Lifestyle \| Join CSA \| Press \| Magazine \|
	Copyright © 2003 Medipac International Inc. All rights reserved. Terms of Use