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6- The Oakville Beaver, Friday December 8, 2006 www.oakvillebeaver.com OPINION & LETTERS The Oakville Beaver 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5567 Classified Advertising: 845-3824, ext. 224 Circulation: 845-9742 Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS A DIVISION OF METROLAND MEDIA GROUP WEST GROUP PUBLISHER IAN OLIVER NEIL OLIVER Publisher JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief ROD JERRED Managing Editor DANIEL BAIRD Advertising Director TERI CASAS Business Manager MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director CHARLENE HALL Director of Distribution ALEXANDRIA CALHOUN Circ. Manager Metroland Printing, Publishing & Distributing Ltd., includes: Ajax/Pickering News Advertiser, Alliston Herald/Courier, Arthur Enterprise News, Barrie Advance, Brampton Guardian, Burlington Post, Burlington Shopping News, Caledon Enterprise, City Parent, Collingwood/Wasaga Connection, East York Mirror, Erin Advocate/Country Routes, Etobicoke Guardian, Flamborough Review, Georgetown Independent/Acton Free Press, Harriston Review, Huronia Business Times, Lindsay This Week, Markham Economist & Sun, Midland/Penetanguishine Mirror, Milton Canadian Champion, Milton Shopping News, Mississauga Business Times, Mississauga News, Napanee Guide, Newmarket/Aurora Era-Banner, Northumberland News, North York Mirror, Oakville Beaver, Oakville Shopping News, Oldtimers Hockey News, Orillia Today, Oshawa/Whitby/Clarington Port Perry This Week, Owen Sound Tribune, Palmerston Observer, Peterborough This Week, Picton County Guide, Richmond Hill/Thornhill/Vaughan Liberal, Scarborough Mirror, Stouffville/Uxbridge Tribune, Forever Young, City of York Guardian Poor fiscal management Sitting governments -- at either the provincial or federal level -- must look forward to Auditor General reports the way the rest of us anticipate a root canal from a dentist with a bad case of the shakes. Usually such reports detail how the government and agencies under its purview waste taxpayers' hard-earned money. Such was the case this week when provincial Auditor General Jim McCarter's report outlined a litany of problems with the way Dalton McGuinty's Liberal government spends tax dollars. Among the lowlights: · Children's Aid Society (CAS) assessments for vulnerable children were not done in time in 73 per cent of the cases; · One CAS executive received a $2,000 gym membership and an additional $2,600 for a personal trainer; · Two senior CAS executives were given SUV's worth $53,000 and $59,000; · 725 doctors, no longer licensed, were still submitting OHIP claims; · 5.7 million red-and-white health cards, which were to be phased out by 2000, will take another 14 years to convert to photo ID cards; · One teacher spent $52,000 over two years using a school board purchasing card. Included in that total was $4,000 spent during a summer break on DVDs, eyeglasses and Christmas lights. · Three senior school board staff members went to Las Vegas for a four-day conference but stayed a week and charged $660 for a one-week car rental. · There is a 7,000-case backlog of fraud investigations involving OHIP cards. While Auditor General reports are predictable for their detailing of poor fiscal management by governments and agencies, the reaction of those governments and agencies is equally predictable. To that end McGuinty didn't disappoint, vowing he will take steps to fix the problem while admitting "we have not been getting good value for our dollars". Now that's an understatement. Jeannette Lewis, executive director of the Ontario Association of Children's Aid Societies says her agencies will "act swiftly" on the report. Haven't we heard similar refrains in the past? Now that the government has had its hand slapped and various employees have been "outed" we can be confident that OUR money will no longer be spent foolishly. That is, until we get the next Auditor General's report. We can hardly wait. The Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. In order to be published all letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to The Editor, Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, ON, L6K 3S4, or via e-mail to editor@oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Dion's vision propelled him past rest of Liberal leadership hopefuls Re: Oakville Beaver, Dec. 6, editorial Will the magic last? It is Stephane Dion's vision not a magic trick that propelled him to the leadership of the Liberal Party. It is with this vision that Stephane Dion will continue to touch every Canadian the way he won his way into the hearts and minds of all Liberals. Dion offers a vision of social justice where no Canadian will ever be left behind. He offers the vision of economic prosperity where every Canadian will reap the benefits of prosperous and robust economy. Through economic prosperity, Canadians will continue to enjoy the best health care system, the highest educational standards and a viable social and security network. Mr. Dion's vision will harmonize the above tenets with the pressing environmental issues in order to ensure sustainable environmental practices. This is the vision that carried Mr. Dion to the leadership of the Liberal Party. And it is this vision that will be everlasting and appeal to every Canadian. As he is the right choice for Liberals, Canadians will also realize that he is the right choice for Canada. Your attempt to burden Mr. Dion with "baggage" is not only unfair, but utterly unfounded. May I remind you that Mr. Dion was fully exonerated by the Gomery Commission, and regardless of what distracters may claim, his record speaks for itself. As the champion of national unity, the author of the Clarity Act, and the architect of Kyoto, Stephane Dion is exactly what Canada needs at this critical time. Finally let me assure you that the greatest winner last Saturday was Canada. Our great country will finally have a chance to replace the narrow minded, divisive, and "Me" approach with the vision that unites Canadians around social justice, economic prosperity, and environmental sustainability. FAISAL SAAB, PRESIDENT OAKVILLE FEDERAL LIBERAL RIDING ASSOCIATION Pud BY STEVE NEASE snease@haltonsearch.com Optometrist responds to Great Glasses I could not let the article written by Bruce Bergez (Great Glasses founder says ruling gives monopoly to optometrists, Oakville Beaver, Dec. 2) go unchallenged. By giving him equal space you do your readers a disservice by clouding the true issue that the courts ruled about. Mr. Bergez new spin is to now position himself as a defender of the public good. Justice Crane found the testimony of Bergez to be "highly provocative, arrogant and egregious." See properly page 10 The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. Phone (416) 340-1981. 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