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Page 6, Whltby Free Presa, Wednesday, May 15, 199 The only Newspaper owned and operated by Whitby residents for Whitby residents! @IA MEMBER 0F: Canadian Community Ontario Community Newspaper Association Newspaper Association ISSN#0844-398X Whitby Whitby Business Oshawa-Durham Home Chamber of Commerce in Action Builders' Association The Whitby Free Press is distributed free to 99% of the homes in Whitby, Brooklin, Ashbum & Myrtle as weII as numerous public and commercial outlets in Whitby, Oshawa, Ajax, Pickering & Port Perry. ?8,500 COPIES DELIVERED WEEKLY MAIL SUBSCRIPTIONS AVAILABLE Canada $36 + GST - Outside Canada $85 + GSI -Published every Wednesday by 677209 Ontario mc. 900 Hopkins St. /Box 206, Whitby, Ontario LI N 5Sl Phone: 6684611il Fax: 668-0594 Doug Anderson - Publisher Maurioe P ither - .Editor Donald G. Hinton - Sales Manager Alexandra Martin - Production Manager Printed on newspnînt with minimum 20% 4* recycled content using vegetable based inks. U OAIl written mateulal, illustrations and advertislng 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 viotation of Canadian copyright law. Reproduction for non-commercial distribution should bear a credit line to the Whitby Free Press. Reduce boards' power To the editor: I completely support the posiin and feelings of the many parents agalnst the new C .E. Broughton school, as articulated ln a letter from Mr. and Mms. P. Robinson (Free Press' May 8). My family had a different conflit wlth the Durham board, but my observations and conclusions are striklngly similar ta theirs. ln resoMvng differences of opinion, thls board ls authoritative and dictatorial, neither aoeountable ta the taxpayer, the communltyfor the familles tliey seve. Despite their extravagant, administrative, facllies and their pald legion of $100.000- plus elte, the board wants mare. With baclnq of hmst af the trustees, the board wailgai what they want. The provincial govemment ls looklng ai alternatives to, the current' method af the partial fundlng of educatian through property taxes. Rt is also looklng' ai a mor equitable distribution of the education tax dollars. Hopefulty, if dane correctly, the solutions Io these complex issues wouki reduce the power of these littie "self-seMvng fiefdomse known as boards ai education. Hopefully, there wauki be finandial consideration and aceptance for alternative education cholces such as the successful and Pgrcvàng home schooflng and independent schoollng movements. It Is nat reasonable ta expect that only two pubilc cholces ta educatian could support our diverse socuetal needs and preferences. 1lwould IeeIo see the scope af the trustees' mandate lncreased. Naw their resosbite relate ta poflcy and budget and they have Mtl urisdlctlon over conflit resolutian. Wfth such a narrow scope ta their mandate, trustes have very Mtl power ln tactcal and operational decislons that affect aur chidren. They really do become, at best, spokespersons for the board and, Wi worst, puppets for the board. Why not give trustees the power ta decide how, confits 'shouid be fesohed. A procedural prooess could be definecaapblished for the pubk ic. R aies esporisibilities could be donne. The spirit af the procees wouk1 reflect aur democratlc socuety. Any any persan or group af persans could Invoke the process. i believe that for the trustees ta ho more effective and sympthetic ta the familes that they serve, their offices should ho -In their local municipalities, ln buildings that are the same as what is available for the children's classraoms, such as portables. They would have free access and prlanity in usage ai the boards luxurlaus faiies.- I feel Ihai the numhor af terms a trustee can serve the public shauld ho Imlted ta two terms. We' need fresh ideas and different vlews continuaily, drculating ln aur education syslem. At the very least, when Rt cornes time ta vote ln the next election for aur trustees, take mb ocansideration what each af them has or has flot contrlbuîed ta the belterment of aur chlldren's education. Carol Simpson Whitby "We smoke alarmare arriving everywhere!" To theeditr. Bordering on paranaola To the editor: Re: Article 'No vote for non-Cathoiic parents,' Free Press, May8. I's unfortunate that trustees Martin and Gidman dld not clarlfy exaoely who la ta be excluded froM running and votlgfor sohool council. They have made tsound as though the aniy ones ta be excluded are the parents af the very smail percentage of non-Gathoflc students. They falied ta mention that ln the many case where oniy one parent Is Catholic., the other parent who las not of our falth has no vote and cannot run for a position on the counci (my husband and I are bath Cathollo and we have bath options). The explanation given for this decision borders on paranola and bigotry. Why on earth would a family thatIs ofmldxed faithsand hasmade a conscientiaus decision ta have their chlldren educated ln the Cathoilc systemn seekç a seat on the counci solely as a means ta undermine andý destroy Gathoio education? Rest assured that at the time the chlldren were reglstered for schoot neither parent was asked his or her views on Cathoflc education. The most Important question ai that time was where their non-Catholic tax dollars were being directed. The Broughton 'adventure' To the edîtor: Attention, parents af eiemeptary school children ln Durham Region Are you aware af the fantastic oppartunity available ta you and yaur children this coming August? An opportunity for yaur child ta parlicipate in such fun activities as woodworking, blacksmithing, gardenîng, sheepshearing, cartoonlng, polttery maklng, swlmmling and skating, ta name just a few. Vour child cen gai in on the action during the aclion-packed *theme weekse hoing affered 1h18 August* al C.E. Broughton Public Schooî ln Whilby. wHeyr you. say. wid have ta pay several hundred dollars ta send my chikil ta a camp ta do ail Ihat fun stuif - that's if Icould even fi a camp that %uld offer such avariety of gretat ivities." That's right, you wouli. But you don'lhave ta. Slmply enroil your cNildren ln the mdfe schaaî year at C.E. Broughbon and let the fun begini This offer is not available (ai the present lime) ta any ocher school in Durham, iVa offered onîy ai Broughtan, and Is hoing brought ta yvu courfesyof the Durham Board af Education. This is a time-limited offer -- this fun-filled agenda is hoing offered anly for the manlh ai August. Should you choose ta watt, and keep your child In the regular school track system in September, f vilwIl ho business as usual - user fees, culs ta outdoor educalion programs, etc. Sa dont delay. Cali your Durham Board af Education trustee today for more details on how your child cen be a part af this exating education acivenlurel (You might as weil - after ail, your tax doflars are paying for it). Note: This offer is condilional an appraval af the modifled schoolyear by the Ministry af Educetion. Cynthia van den Brook Whktby Many years ago a very wlse nun sal tamyGrade 13 religion clas: 'Vouknw girls. we get so hung Up on b e mi atoc that we sometimes forget how ta be Chrlstan.m Food for thought maybe? Mlrlam Accardo Whltby More stray animais. To th.e ditor: Re: PAW user-fee changes (Free Press, May 8) Myfamily and I have, ln twa years, braught elght cals and one dog ta the animal contrai centre. Accrdlng. ta the new changes, this wauld have cost us $400. These unfortunate castaifs were left here (Columbus and Garraid) by, unfeellng people who did nat want ta ho responsible for their pets. (Oh look. a farm, leors dump them herel) Do these people not reaize that i we don't flnd, trap and remove these pets thae the coyotes and woives wlII? Naw l'm expected ta sheil out $400 ta bring these sbrays in? It is sbated that the trapplng and relocation af nuisance wtldlfe takes up a considerable amount af PAW staff time (kt takes faim ltime as weII). Besides irs whab they are paid for. Neyer have I brought lhem a lil for my services and lime, and neyer will 1lpaylthem ta do thei r lob, that's whai aur taxes do. What 1 will do, as wel as many other people, is resort ta leashing the por animal safely ta, the front ~r hofore staff arrives. At leasi thon the poor lhing sti11 gels care from wild animais, rables and cars. I wont have ta pay because someone els§e who reads this has decided tha tIheir dog or cal has outorown Iheir cuteness. 1 have kept six cals for the bamn, ail af which WiIl ho flxed by summer's end.,I refuse ta pay for someone eise's endangerment af a petnat ta mention the danger in which these people have put my children or cared-far pais. A stray la dangerous ... this fe change is-gainglao resuit in everyday people, cke myseff, who used ta help round lhem up, now Ieaving them out. Sa I1 guessa PAW realizes that they Wllnow have'a blgger lo"ad leiking up 'strays. Or- does -an nicrease in rables sound appetizing? Peggy-Jean Palge Brooklln We decide on..Hydro Tro the-editor: Wilh the decision by the Macdonald Commission on. the future of Ontario Hydra expected soan, I thlnk lb Is worth mentionling ta the consumers af Ontario that they have a very important raie In deciding its fate. We, as taxpayers, are In effet the basses of aur elected represenlatives and as such should reîay aur opinions on this very Important subjectbothe MPPs we elected. The method by which aur opinions can be made known is very simple and effective. At the turn aif the century the government af the day (Conservabive) decided that rather than lebling the power barons af the U.S. step In and virtually. take ful contrai aof 'aur hydro syslem, they would let the people ai Ontario decide by taklng a vote. That vote has slood for over 90 years and I belleve that If some people in government want ta change thal decision then they will have ta put t ta a vote once again. As for the cost of this vote, il cen easily ho accomplished by adding It ta the vabing forms aif the next municipal elections wvithout any cast ta the taxpayer. This is flot a decision ta be taken lightly as il WHl literally affect every aspect af aur lifestylq., We made Ontario Hydro, theref are we should be the ones who decide Ils future, not the politiclans;* R.-Patton Whltby