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OrorioWee'kl*Ti e~Wednesday. Novemfber" 19~- N Nifty Fifty Celebrates i st Birthday Hi, my naine is Jeremy Dylan Fernandez. 1 am 'ozpne on November 3, 1993. My proud Mommy and Daddy are Annette and Ward. Nana and Poppa are Noreen and Earl Nixon of Orono. Grandpa and Grandina are Terry and Sandy Allen of Petawawa. Nana and Poppa Dianne and Aaron Fernandez of Oshawa. Hugs and kisses to big brother Shawn and big sister Justine. "No I'm lot" The question was asked of me recently "Are you net smoking anymore?" The answer was "No I'm not". It is an answer I wish I could have given, should have given, years ago. It bas been seven months without a cigarette ail dating back to the time of entry into Toronto Hospital, for the first operation. There was no real plan to quit smoking nor any great effort made to stop. There was just no desire to stick a cigarette back into the mouth. The fact of the matter is I really neyer.thought that much about smoking following the operation, either to carry on or stop. 11 I have no formula or method to pass along for those who might bc looking for some measure of a plan to stop smoking. It just happened and that's ail there was to it. Thinking back over the years and the number of times 1 made some attempt to stop and neyer succeeded is rather, difficult to fathom. 1 would imagine the total desîre to stop neyer was there. The amazing part of the recent closing out of smoking is that there was no plan, no thought of stopping - it just happened. It was Queen' s Park Report from Gord Mils, MPP Durham East Last week, at Queen's Park, both the leader of the Officiai Opposition and the Leader of the Third Party, took turns raving about the massive welfare fraud perpetrated by, people fromn Somalia. The controversy in the Legisiature erupted over a report, written by an immigration officer, and leaked te the Ontario Liberals that suggested massive Somalia welfare fraud. In fact.the report documented only nine cases of abuse, but perhaps more troubling was the stereotyping of Somalia people as "masters of confusion and mîsrepresentation." I certainly don't condone any forin of welfare fraud, and neither does the government. In fact six of those involved in the fraud have been charged and face a court hearing. The amount of welfare money involved in these cases appears to be less than $30,000 and not the millions alleged to be funding sending guns and the like to Somalia. 1When 1 sit in the House and listen to the screaming over welfare fraud, I often wonder why a long tinie coming. A break with tradition Out for a Sunday morning walk in the Ganaraska Forest we came face-to-face with a sign asking that a membership be purchased by the forest users. This would put me in the position of requiring the membership. At fîrst it seem some offensive and lilcely like others we bring up the fact that we do pay taxes for the forest operation through both the province and the Region who pass funds along to the Conservation Authority. But really this is 1993 and many things have changed over the past couple of years and especially so in 1993. Funding cut-backs are the order of the day for ail public institutions and s0 is the case for conservation authoriies. Taxes to the municipalities paid by the Ganaraska amnount to some $100,000 in 1993 of which, in the past, the province would have paid 100 percent rebate. This is flot the case this year and the Ganaraska find theinselves with a shortfall of funds for municipal taxes. As a resuit the authority bas setforth a schedule of user fées for those making use of the forest. General membership single $15.00 family $25.00; x-country ski membership, $50.00 for both single or family and a combined membership of $60.00 family for general use and skiing. The imembership costs are not outrageous by any means when one thinks of cost of entertamnment through the private sector. Therv is no doubt that tiiere will be a lot of opposition.to the membership féee charge but the Authority does flot have a lot of options. Increased taxes, nor the sale of lands would be acceptable options. User pay has merits and the charges proposed arecflot that, by any means, offensive. the screams over corporate fraud aren't forthcoming with equal voracity. Let's take for example the corporate fraud committed at Blue Jay's basebaîl gaines in Toronto. There is more fraud committed there dian in ail welfare offices across the province. The cosns executives dlaim for entertagnment at the SkyDome, are in the majority just pure fraud. They're not entertaining clients, but simply havîng a good time with fiends and family. Who says this? Law professor Neil Brooks vice-chairman of the Ontario's Fair Tax Commission says th at the business executive dlaim for meals and entertaininent deprives federal government coffers of about $ 1-billion each year, and there's more fraud committed at Blue Jays' basebal gaines than in any welfare office in Ontario. 1 haven't heard either Lynn or Mike rave about these skilful cheaters of the Family Support Plan either. These delinquent payors, usually quite well off, owe $394 million to their children and a further $252 million to us, the taxpayers of Ontario, for the welfare payments we are forced to pay to keep the cheater's destitute mothers of their chidren and their children alive while they lead a life of niley. Unfortunately, fraud is rampant in our society, and is not just confined to welfare ('u ess Who 's THE REGIONAL DORHAM MUNICIPALITY 0F DURHAM Holiday Closure of Transfer Stations The OSHAWA, CARTWRIGHT AND SCUGOG TRANSFER STATIONS will be ciosed Thursday, November il, 1993, for the Remembrance Day Holiday. Normal operations wilI resume on Frlday, November l2th, 1993. V.A. SILGAILIS, P. ENG. COMMISSIONER 0F WORKS The CLARKE 0 CO;4NNEnCTION MORE TIL4N A STORE *A LUNIQUE EXPERIENCE ONE 0F A KIND-HAND MADE CANADIAN CRAFI7S POTTERY - WOOD - SILKS - TOYS AND MUCH MUCH MORE MAIN STREET. ORONO 983-9314 TUES-FRI11t6 ST9o From Ar..» HOME recipients. A word once again on the increased cons some seniors are facing in- nursîng homes. Municipal Homes for the Aged and private nursing homes have been engaged ini causing a degree of anxiety in respect to inecased costs for their accommodation. The essence of the change in policy is that the province will no longer pay "private" or "semi- private" accommodation. It will only pay a base rate for "Ward" accommodation. However, and 1 want to make it abundantly clear, ail institutions are required to provide accommodation at the basic rate even if it imeans they will have to' redesignate so-called semi- private rooms as wards. They are not aliowed te charge higher rates to people who can't afford to pay on the excuse that they don't have any ward accommodation available. (Many institutions have phased out wards i favour of "semi-private rooms.) 0f course its logical, and in the interests of these institutions to get their residents to pay more money if they can get it, so they are distorting the facts and bashmng the governinent at the saine time. 1 find it passing strange that the Ontario Federation of Labour wil debate on November 22, at their federation's convention, whether to try to defeat sitting NDP members of the Legislature Who supported the government's cost-cutting legisiation. I was under the (Continued page 6)