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VIEWPOINT by John B. McClelland ~Bougog Citizen -- Tuesday, March 31, 1096 -- 0 LETTERS TO EDITOR|4 WAY OF THE FUTURE I was intrigued to read about the plans by a private company-- Canadian Allsports Compl Inc., to spend $18 million building a multi-sports complex is Oshawa. The plans unveiled a week or so ago call for four large indoor ice arenas, two slo-pitch diamonds under an air-supported dome for year round play, a restaurant, sports bar, outdoor patio, batting cages and perhaps even a 200 room hotel and conference centre. Municipal politicians in Oshawa were crowing with delight at the announcement, And why not. The complex is supposed to put about $1 million yearly into city coffers through taxes and leases on city- owned land. And it will generate some $92 million in revenues in its first five years of operation--$60 million from fees for the ice pads and diamonds and another $32 million for everything from meals, drinks and taxi fa No wonder®the politicians were smiling. Oshawa, like just about every other municipality in the country, is cash-strapped these days. The tax dollars are just not there to provide Big lise! recreation facilities for its citizéns even though the demand continues to go up. However, the private sector--in this case--Allsports Complexes Inc., apparently has the money to develop and operate these very expensive facilities. In the case of the one in Oshawa, my understanding is that the arenas will be rented at a premium rates to mens and womens leagues and teams from all over Durham and Metro Toronto. Minor hockey, ringette and figure skating will continue to use municipal owned rinks, paying a reduced rate. Reading the flowing accounts of this project, which is supposed to start this fall at the corner of Stevenson Road and Phillip Murray Ave., I could not help but think of Scugog Township. Plans for a second pad of ice at our arena have been in the works for almost a decade now. The demand for ice time is higher than ever, True, the council has approved a new community centre, and it's now under construction. But this new centre only got off the ground this year because Ontario and the federal government tossed about $600,000 Scugog's way to Pay for two-thirds of the cost. As for the second pad, forget it. Scugog Township doesn't have the bucks now or in the near future to build it or operate it. So, why not the private sector? Why not invite Canadian Allsports Complexes to take a look at Scugog. Maybe this company would be interested in building the second pad and running it, along with a restaurant, sports bar, fitness centre, etc. as money makers. After all, if they are prepared to spend nearly $20 million for four ice pads and a domed slo-pitch stadium in Oshawa, they might be interested in spending a couple of million bucks in. Scugog. It could be the only way Scugog will ever see a second pad of ice. Municipalities cannot afford the big-ticket recreation facilities without adding to the already heavy tax burden. It's worth a look, from my perspective, anyway. IN CLOSING: Count me fino the many Canadians who think gur fisheries minister Brian Tobin deserves some kind of a medal for the way he handled the dispute with the Spanish. Imagine, Canada actually having the gall to fire a warning shot on the high seas, impound a fishing trawler, drag it to Newfoundland, charge the skipper and force posting of a $500,000 bond before allowing it to sail again? "Lard tundegin' bye," we haven't had this much excitement in years, Just what the doé ordered to tak our minds off that budget of couple of weeks ago. | The Spanish government ig threatening to force all Canadian tourists to get visas. Big deal. Maybe Canadian tourists ought to| be cancelling their hotel rooms on the Costa del Sol. You see one bull | fight, you've seen 'em all, right? Seriously, taking a stand for the turbot was long overdue. The Spaniards have an international reputation as high seas plunderers when it comes to fish species-- take until they're gone and damn the consequences. I found it just slightly ironic that the very week Canada was firing shots in anger across the bow of Spanish fishing boat, the elite Ajgborne Regiment was trooping the colours for the last time. In this crazy world, your friends one day are your enemies the next. You never know when you might need a couple of good gun-boats, maybe even a destroyer. Sure hope Canada never needs a few hundred paratroops. I cost Oi IScandal of discriminatior To the Editor: to say that "surely in a contrast in treatment ig so Message to Gord Mills... stop conning us please To the Editor: : MPP Mills you're at it again. Sending me more propaganda that I think you should be ashamed to spend citizen money on. If it was your money you spent--I'd like to hear it andg@apologize. But for goodness sake please top conning us-- or do you really think we all still believe in Mother Goose? ' A) jobsOntario is an affront to intelligence. You weave lovely stories with back-to-work figures. As though Uncle Rae were the one and only genie at large. Well now, tell us what his expertise 0 in taxes to pay for all that _back-to-work stuff, "Three pompous levels of oblivious governments fiendishly load manufacturing (to mention just one perishing national income) to the point where there are too many of them with no money to operate. Are these the jobs you claim to have re-incarnated by all your clever selves? B) Try to believe that business knows how to run business and government track records should proliferate that they know not what they do. When a business fails, it is because it should, not because it was bled to death by politically-induced genocide. C) Let business apprentice the un- skilled by lifting taxes. Let business train the un-skilled to their own particular criteria. Or does it make more sense to you to pay folks from taxes--to learn things I have no confidente you know how, let alone what? Even our school systems can't seem to turn out marketable students. That's not me talking--Ilisten around. D) We know that you are not responsible for three levels of government. Trouble is, nobody is: which poses a thorny question. Why do we put up with all of you? E) Tell me you are indispensable and I'll tell you you're an entrepreneur, Canada should be run by a few unselfish brains supervising innovative and economical national referendums-- that's rule by the people who could scarcely do worse. Referendums could put integrity in command and empower our people to right wrongs that get written in stone. There are lots of those. F) Inept laws? Retire them to museums alongside the equally awesome dinosaurs. Less than six pages of lay, written, criminal and civil law can banish crime and enjoy life as ° heaven on earth for the deserving and hell on earth for the rest. And do it all with the demise of lawyers, judges, cumbersome-costly dark ages law while basking in responsible freedom and surplus kitty. G) Please put these things on your platform or send me $7.85 for my booklet promoting non-violent, national revolt. And oh yes, the ladies endorse it: testosterone said she'd be horrified. J Trouble with letters to the editor, i just blowin' in the wind. If I were an innovative editor I'd promote a readership inter. which may lead to thinkers and doers in action. I'm told only money motivates and the tax revolt proves it. Well, next time crime claims a victim that tax lay-off crumb didn't help. Regards, Ron Ward RR 1, Janetville. Stop sticking it to the taxpayers, Canadians are tired of politicians sticking taxpayers with bills for legislation that is not affordable and ineffective Liberal MP Alex Shepherd told Justice Minister Allan Rock in the | Commons last week. The MP made the remarks while debating the second reading of Bill C-68 which deals with firearms registration, Shepherd quoted from the Auditor General's 1993 report which he said found present gun control laws to be ineffective. "We found several weaknesses in the methodology which significantly reduces the extent government, MPs and the Canadian public can rely on evaluation to be assured that the gun control program is effective,® Shepherd quoted from the report. | Jews, Protestants, Muslims says MP "Canadians will regard the bill as ar unwarranted tax, the proceeds of which will be wasted on further bureaucracy with no nptle results," the Durham MP said. Shepherd told Rock the Department of Justice is about to repeat the errors the Auditor's report found with the current legislation. © He also pointed out' the Justice Department's budget projections contain no cost esti for gun Estimates range between $85 million and $406 million. "The taxpayers across Canada want to know how much this is going to cost and who is going to pay. It simply isn't good enough to introduce legislation that isn't costed," Shepherd said. 7 must be dealt with I noted with interest Tom Harpur's recent article in the Toronto Star about funding inequities in our school system. I want to, comment on this. He began with a quotation from the February 19 issue of Catholic New Times titled "Education justice can't be only for Catholics." I agree with this statement. It goes on pluralistic democracy like Canada, every serious faith community must have equal recognition of its educational rights and aspirations, It is ethically unsustainable for Catholics to go on accepting such generous public' support....... when Jewish parents, Protestant Christian p , Muslim p are without public funding. The inequitable that it is a scandal." \ 1 wonder how many pedple ever thought about it this way? The British Nerth America Act of 1887 guaranteed Catholics the right to fair treatment, and I don't be-grudge them this right, But why must the rest of the province's children be lumped together into secular schools? | ] \ and Hindus must content themselves with the seculars humanism espoused in public schools, while Catholic children enjoy full instruction in their own faith at the public's expense. Does this seem fair? I hope the challenge now before the Supreme Court by Jewish and Protestant Christians will result in the extension of public funding to the Td dant: voligh heal already in existence in Ontario. What Tom Harpur calls the "scandal of discrimination" must be dealt with immediately. 'Sincerely, Linda Van Andel, Port Perry, Ont.