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Page 6, Whitby Free Press, Wednesday, March 8, 1995 The only Newspaper owned and operated by Whitby residents for Whitby residents! MEMBER OF: ONTARIO CANADIAN COMMUNITY COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION ASSOCIATION E m1a U CANADIAN CIRCULATIONS CNA DIVISION AUDIT BOARD ISSN#0844-398X The Whitby Free Press is distributed free to 99% of the homes in Whitby, Brooklin, Ashburn & Myrtle as weIl as numerous public and commercial outlets in Whitby, Oshawa, Ajax, Pickering & Port Perry. 27,000 COPIES DELIVERED WEEKLY MAIL SUBSCRIPTIONS AVAILABLE Canada $34 + GST • Outside Canada $80 + GST Published every Wednesday by 677209 Ontario nc. Box 206, 131 Brock St. N., Whitby, Ontario L1N 5S1 Phone: 668-6111 Out of town: 1-800-668-0322 Fax: 668-0594 Doug Anderson - Publisher Maurice Pifher - Editor Alexandra Martin - Production Manager Printed on newsprint with minimum 20% À recycled content using vegetable based inks. © Al written material, illustrations and advertising contained herein is protected by copyright. Any reproduction by any means for commercial purposes without the express permission of the newspaper is prohibited and is a violation of Canadian copyright law. Reproduction for non-commercial distribution should bear a credit line to the Whitby Free Press. To the editor... More bureaucracy To the editor: My thanks to Bernie Emoff for his letter (Free Press, Feb. 8) about the NDP plan for government-run multi-service agencies for long-term care. I was denied the opportunity to discuss the basic legislation (Bill 173) at the government-sponsored meetina on Jan. 23 at Fairview Lodge. We were told by the government people running the meeting that we could only talk about how to implement Bill 173 and not whether or not it should be imple- mented at all. Bill 173 will limit the involvement of helping organizations and create yet another government bureaucratic monopoly. Restricting the amount of services that can be provided by agencies outside of the new multi-service agencies to just 20 per cent (limiting the involvement of what the government sees as "bad" agencies such as the Victorian Order of Nurses and the Red Cross), and the creation of MSAs which are nothing but giant bureaucratic monopolies (as ugly as the Workers' Compensation Board bureaucracy) does more to entrench NDP ideology than improve the quality and accessibility of community-based health services. We must ensure long-term care and support services for elderly persons, aduits with physical and other disabilities and persons who require health services at home. The NDP says that we should trust the government to take care of us if necessary as we grow older. As president of the Head Injury Association of Durham, I am well aware of the government's failure to provide adequate long-term rehabilitation services for many persons requiring same·in Ontario. Instead, millions of dollars of taxpayers' money are spent on rehabilitation facilities outside Canada which are the same "made for profit" services that Bernie Emoff deplores but his NDP government supports with our tax dollars. We don't need another Workers' Compensation Board. We don't need to exclude important helping organizations in the provision of health care. We need an inclusive, reasonable partnership approach to the provision of compassionate care for those truly in need. Jim Flaherty Whitby Students want a stop to marsh plan To the editor: I am extremely upset about the destruction of Lynde Marsh. I do not think they should tear it down. I want my children (when I grow up) to be able to see and touch all the wonders in the marsh. Therefore, i am now asking if something can be done to stop the building plans and turn it into a sanctuary. Hopefully, we can save Lynde Marsh and keep it here for future generations. Did you know that there are more than 146 species of birds and 14 different kinds of amphibians living in that very marsh they're going to tear down? Would you like your children to live in a world of choking air and smelly garbage that will be caused by the houses? I do not, ever. I am not the only person who thinks this. You see, I am writing on behaif of the children at St. Catherine of Sienna. Stephanie Holdermann and Katie Alfermann Ajax 'Where do we go from here?" To the editor... Predictable rhetoric To the editor: I was bewildered by the front page story (Free Press, March 1), wherein the president of Whitby's Chamber of Commerce slammed the federal government's recent budget. It seems to me that his views, for the most part, are definitely out of sync with the majority of both public and professional opinion, except for anti-tax groups and aspiring politicians. On balance, does it serve your readers to emphasize the negative but narrow comments of those with an axe to grind rather than to have consulted widely on how it might affect (and it most certainly will) the community at large? Surely even the most apolitical or seemingly objective journalist or editor understands that the Finance Minister is charged with Get involved To the editor: The Royal Commission on Learning has reported its findings to the people of Ontario. One of the recommendations is to have more parental involvement in the education system. To achieve this, parent advisorytcommittees are being set up. This is not a new idea. Immanuel Christian School in Oshawa has implemented this for more than 30 years. We discovered some of the advantages to doing this: • The cost of education decreases. Instead of paying employees to do jobs such as board positions, yard duty, etc., volunteer parents do them. • The most important aspect is that the student benefits. Nothing motivates a child more than a home where learning is encouraged. if parents get involved' by helping with homework, projects, attend school activities and get involved in the running of their local school, their children are more likely to have higher student achievement, higher aspirations, better attendance and a more positive relationship with their teacher. Let's all get involved in our children's education and not just leave it to our teachers. The rewards of getting involved are numerous as the parents of children at Immanuel Christian School have found out. Margaret Verkuyl Parent1 Immanuel Christlan School1 administering public policy for all . Canadians. It's plain to me that you were out of your depth in covering the budget when the best you can offer is the altogether predictable rhetoric of a marginal special interest group and political 'wannabes.' Please spare us the shallow national coverage and concentrate on your usual bang-up job of reporting local scandals, the foibles. of our municipal government and the ineptitude of the Durham District Heath Council. Joseph Butson Whitby To the editor: Last Friday I sat for six hours at the second OMB prehearing, as a member of the Save the Lynde Marsh Committee. We were represented by our lawyer and planner. Across the table from our two representatives sat four lawyers, representing the Town of Whitby, Region of Durham, Province of Ontario and Rose Corporation. How ironic that we, as taxpayers, are paying the bill for all but one party, the private developer. It is a sad state of affairs that we would have been forced to fight both the Town and province who pride themselves on their environmental policies. The proposed Lynde Shores development will destroy Lynde Marsh. Exceptional areas such as this are disappearing forever at an To the editor: Canada's immigration policies need a drastic overhaul. Our country is the envy of the world and many people are knocking on our doors to be let in. Until now we have welcomed ail colours, cultures and faiths. it is rather flattering that so many people prefer our country over their own. We need to establish some rules, though, for newcomers. We have practically leaned over backwards to please and pacify the new immigrants, some of whom have been very demanding. They claim that they have rights here because Canada is a multicultural country. When my husband and I came to Canada in 1954, it never occurred to us that we should demand our rights. We felt so privileged to be allowed into Canada and we thought in our ignorance, "When in Canada, do as the Canadians do." ift is now 'our' country: first we became citizens; secondly, we have lived here almost twice as alarming rate. Do you think that our elected officials are aware of the numbers of citizens who enjoy the marsh and surrounding areas on a regular basis all year round? Should we be . asking polit ical hopefuls if they are aware of the value of this area? Do they appreciate the varieties of plants, trees and flowers, the many species of birds and wildlife that depend on this habitat? Then ask the families, students and teachers, birdwatchers, canoeists, Scouts and Guides, Brownies and Cubs what they feel about the potential destruction of, this wetland. We have heard from them ali Citizens, please, we have a chance..Let our politicians know that this kind of irresponsible planning must stop. Write. Donate. Rally. The buck stops here. L Moyle Whltby long as in the country of our birth, Holiand. Obviously, Canada is very attractive to outsiders, but for us who live here there is cause for concern. Are we losing our freedoms and privileges, those which set us above any other country? Our government has to make sure what we do not. Keith Spicer says it so well: "We should tell people who get off the plane: Delighted you came here, ere are your freedoms and, by the way, here are your obligations. And here is also who we are. Here is how this country was created. Here is how it came to Ife. Here is how it became so attractive that you wanted to come here." Now we have so much unchallenged criticism from the multicultural camp, one wonders why they were so anxious to get here in the first place. Hopefully, it is not to make this country like the one from which they came. Oh, Canada, is someone standing guard for thee? Jeanette Vander Meulen Brooklin Sad alfair A privilege