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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 21, 1999 THE NEW TANNER Haunted Hallowe'en The former YMCA building on Mill Street will be transformed into a haunted house for spooky Hallowe'en fun next Saturday (Octo- ber 30) as downtown merchants party with hobgoblins and ghosts. Kids, up to age eight, are invited to check out the haunted house -- if they dare -- from | to 4 p.m., for spooky stories, apple snapping, a colouring contest, and a costume contest, all offered by the Acton BIA (Business Improvement Area). There will also be ghost route for kids to follow to get tricks or treats from lo- cal merchants. Snow date Forget weather balloons, scientific calculations, predictions of the late Wiarton Willie and fortunetellers. This year, organizers of the Acton Agricultural Society's Winter Fair are going to the ultimate source -- the Farmers Almanac-- when picking the date for the event. While everybody had a lot of fun at last year's event -- the mild weather turned the snow and the proposed skating rink in Prospect Park to slush and it rained. "It will be earlier this year -- I've got to get the Farmers Almanac to see if the date we're considering is going to be snowy," organizer Janis Fread said. Boa says aloha? Blooms Away employees are be- ing very careful when they reach into dark places or head to the basement washroom as they question the whereabouts of a boa constrictor snake belonging to an upstairs ten- GRAPEVIN ant. While the tenant's mother alleg- edly said the snake had been given away, another family is reported to have admitted the snake escaped and hasn't been found. Blooms employee Kelly MacDonald said she's concerned the snake is loose because she brings her small dog to work and is worried the snake might get it. "T still look when I go to stick my hand in anywhere or go downstairs to the bathroom," MacDonald said. adding she doesn't think there should be a Town bylaw governing owner- ship of exotic pets because most own- ers "aren't irresponsible." Beetle raffle Don't wait too long if you plan to purchase a United Way raffle ticket ona 2000 cherry-red VW Beetle, val- ued at $28,000. Ticket sales have been brisk and-only 5,000 were printed at $20 each. All United Way member agencies and many Acton locations have tickets for sale. The Beetle will take part in the Acton Santa Claus parade and will be on display later next month at Acton Home Hardware. For ticket information call 877-3066. Rummage sale 'You can check out a great selec- tion of used fall and winter clothing tomorrow (Friday) and Saturday at St. Joseph's Church annual rummage sale in the church hall. Along with household goods, there's a good se- lection of toys and games. Anything that's not sold is sent to Latvia for needy families. The sale runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday and from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday. es er = l [ago ee Crosswalks have a purpose To the Editor: This letter is directed to all the people that break the law by driving their vehicles through the crosswalk when the lights are flashing. Too many times I have walked my five- and six-year-olds to school be- fore the crossing guard is on duty, to find that so many people are not pay- ing attention. They seem to be caught up in their own little world. They think that they must race through because they cannot afford to be delayed one minute. What they don't seem to re- alize is they risk taking the life of any child or adult attempting to cross at the crosswalk. People that run lighted crosswalk signals are subject to traf- fic fines. I have told my children to press the button, make sure the lights are working, point their finger and wait until all the traffic has stopped. There are times when cars will stop on one side but cars will still be rolling through on the other side. Often the wait is a long one, until all drivers clue in that someone is trying to cross. This problem is not just confined to Halton. It is widespread. I drive a bus in Toronto and see it every day. Well, I have some news for those lawbreak- ers. It's called Road Watch. I encourage everyone to partici- pate. If you see a car going through a crosswalk when the lights are flash- ing, write down the license plate number, the time, and make and model of the car. Then go to the police sta- tion and fill out a form. The police will send them a warning letter for the first infraction. If they havea letter on file for any other moving violation they will receive a ticket. Ifa police officer witnesses the infraction they will re- ceive a ticket on the spot. Also, drivers should be aware that the big "X" on the road means no passing up to the crosswalk. This type of infraction is also occurring. So to all those people who insist on driving full speed through the lighted crosswalk, be aware that if we see you doing this we will report you. The lives of our children and friends are more important than you racing somewhere because you are running late. I want to say a big thank you to "Pop" our crossing and all the other crossing in Halton. They are the people with the toughest job. PS. Road Watch only works if we all get involved. Please take the time to go to the police station and fill out the form. Someone's life may depend on it. K. Bowman Acton More letters on Page 7 WHAT'S YOUR BEEF? Put it in a letter to the Editor! Deadline is Tuesday at noon. TOPS WINNERS: Members of the Acton chapter of Take Off Pounds Sensibly picked up a number of awards at the recent district meeting with 13 other chapters. Shown with their awards are from the left: Peggy DeBryun, Second Best Achiever and more than 20 pounds lost; Marlene Kempton, KOPS and TOPS booster, awards for perfect weight recorder for chapter; Connie Burt weighing in; Dorothy Rognvaldson, more than 20 pounds lost and 15 year KOPS (Keep Off Pounds Sensibly); Ena Gibson, awards for most weight loss for the year (60 pounds), and TOPS booster; Betty Armstrong, chapter supporter; and Tell Connolly, 22 pounds lost, 22 year KOPS. -- Maggie Petrushevsky photo Last week the new governor general (sob!) read the Federal Lib- eral's throne speech marking the opening of parliament. No surprises here. The Chretienites won the day and more new spending programs were announdced. In spite of proof that tax cuts create jobs and wealth, as evidenced in Alberta and On- tario, the Liberals just can't cut taxes in any meaningful way. There was a promise of some tax reduction to be announced in February's budget but it's to be tied into some convoluted formula regarding the performance of the national economy. The way I interpret this. is not that we're going to get any big tax break but rather the gov- ernment doesn't plan to rob us quite as much in the future provid- ing the economy keeps cooking along. What galls me is the attitude the Prime Minister has when he talks about the surplus. You'd think he did something positive which re- sulted in the demise of government deficits. In truth, the government is just overtaxing us. I don't un- derstand why people aren't upset. If you went to IGA and they took $75 out of your bank for $50 worth of groceries you'd be furious. And rightly so. If Toth Motors charged you $100 but " did $75 in re- pairs there would be grounds for ud charges. But when the gov- ernment does the same thing we're supposed to be grateful? It appears that a majority of Canadians are buying into this particular brand of voodoo economics if the polls are to be believed. What's the old saying about a sucker born every minute? They all must live in da. KKK Last month a convict purloined the home addresses and telephone numbers of member of the Toronto judiciary. He managed this by steal- ing the list instead of shredding it ame working in the Mimico Cor- ( a as Government promises more of same The Way | See It with Mike O'Leary rectional Centre. Information and pri- vacy commissioner Ann Cavoukian said that it was "questionable" if in- mates should be shredding sensitive documents. Questionable? Most reasonable folks would say it's downright asi- nine. It's this type of bureaucratic thinking that scares me about the gun control bill. Obviously, government can't handle 'sensitive' information and I predict it will be months, if not week, before a list of guns and the owners' addresses, will be on the streets. I realize that the gun list is under Federal control while the judges list screw-up was provincial. I would submit, though, that the bu- reaucracy operates in a similar fash- ionat all ys é hes Hopefully, upreme Court chal- lenge will strike down this ill-con- ceived law. If not, coming soon to Ja town, a shopping list for crimi- KKKK During the ens Sel Marchi was promoted t's Principle in ac- tion) to be Canada's Federal Trade Commissioner to the European com- munity. With Sergio across the pond not only are our trade relations liable to be in trouble but we'll be lucky if we're not at war with Europe by Christmas. The good news is that with Marchi leaving the government, the average IQ of the cabinet went up by several points. So far though, it hasn't seemed to have helped much. Some- where someone will undoubtably miss Mr. Marchi on the Ottawa scene. Why is as big a mystery as how they get the caramel in the Caramilk bar: KKK I promised myself not to write about this but I can't resist. Re- tired basketball star Wilt Chamber- lain passed away at age 63. In ad- dition to his outstanding basket- ball career he gained notoriety with his claim that he had made love to 20,000 different women during his lifetime. Silly me, all this time I thought they called him "Wilt the Stilt" because he was 7 foot 1 in. tall. Many, including the late tennis pro Arthur Ashe, discounted Chamberlain's claim as wishful thinking and macho accounting. In order to rack up this (you should pardon the word) score, our boy 'Wilt would have had to have you- know-what with 1.2 women every day since he was 15 years old. Most women I heard discussing this outrageous claim were dis- gusted. Most men were over- whelmed by the possibility. I sought the counsel of "The Bride" who tends to be very level headed on issues like this. "Any man" she said "who is looking for sex 1.2 times per year is nothing but a raving sex-maniac." So now you have the definitive word on the matter. Subject closed! Keke Two weeks ago we printed a poignant article by Judith Snow in this space. Many thanks to the readers who took the time to tell me their reaction to this column. We neglected to acknowledge that Judith's column originally ap- peared in another publication, namely, Inclusion Press. If you would like more information on in- clusion programs or their imple- mentation you can contact Cathy, Jack or Marsha at: Inclusion Press, 24 Thome Cr., Toronto M6H 285. Tel: 416-658-5363. Or youcan visit their web page at : http:// www.inclusion.com. =