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6- The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday February 2, 2008 www.oakvillebeaver.com 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 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. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate.The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline. Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. Commentary Guest Columnist NEIL OLIVER Publisher DAVE HARVEY General Manager JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief ROD JERRED Managing Editor DANIEL BAIRD Advertising Director RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director SANDY PARE Business Manager Metroland Media Group Ltd. includes: Ajax/Pickering News Advertiser, Alliston Herald/Courier, Arthur Enterprise News, Barrie Advance, Caledon Enterprise, Brampton Guardian, Burlington Post, Burlington Shopping News, 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 MARK DILLS Director of Production MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager CHARLENE HALL Director of Distribution ALEXANDRIA ANCHOR Circ. Manager WEBSITE oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver is a division of Back to business Bonnie Brown, Oakville MP ow that the federal parliament has resumed for the spring session, politicians must be mindful of several important issues that are on the minds of all Canadians. Bonnie Brown Among these is Afghanistan. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has delayed to the last possible moment, dealing with the issue of Canada's role there once our current NATO commitment ends in 2009. As Liberals we believe that we can be very proud of the contributions our men and women in uniform have made to try to bring peace and stability to that region. Canada has contributed more than its fair share to the NATO deployment and has suffered over 79 casualties and untold serious injuries. We have spent $7.2 billion on the Afghan military effort to date and have significantly beefed up our military spending overall. In fact, this year Canada's military budget is over $18 billion. Mr. Harper has been a strong advocate of the Bush administration's vaguely defined global "war on terror" with an aggressive, interventionist military policy. Yet history has shown that foreign interventions in Afghanistan have a zero per cent success rate and a lasting solution to the current civil war with its complex mix of tribal and religious tensions cannot be imposed by foreign military intervention. John Manley's group has recently issued its report on Canada's role in Afghanistan and has pointed out that the current combat mission is flawed and untenable. His report supports the long-standing Liberal position which supports the continuation of diplomatic and development efforts, as well as a possible continued military presence in a non-combat role. But the purpose of any such military role must be to create the conditions that will enable Afghans to achieve a negotiated, political solution. This might include continued training of the Afghan National Army and police and the protection of Afghan civilians or for reconstruction efforts. Accordingly, Canada should notify NATO immediately that the current counterinsurgency combat mission in Kandahar will end as scheduled in February 2009. Another important issue that is on everyone's minds is the precarious state of the U.S. economy and its effects on Canadian businesses and workers. Over 2.1 million people across Canada rely on the manufacturing sector for their livelihoods, yet Canada lost 6.2 per cent of its manufacturing jobs (132,000) during 2007, with 33,000 disappearing last month alone. Ontario was hard hit and 2008 is looking worse. Yet in the face of these troubling facts, Mr. Harper retains his unquestioned faith in free markets and sits idly by as our situation deteriorates daily. His recent offer of funding to the resource and manufacturing sectors was limited and conditional upon the opposition parties supporting his government in the next budget. This is no time to play politics with the livelihoods of Canadians. The federal government must partner with the manufacturing sector as it adjusts to recent economic shocks. That requires strategic investment. The Liberal plan is to create a $1 billion Advanced Manufacturing Prosperity (AMP) Fund to support major investments in manufacturing and R&D facilities to help Canada's manufacturing sector thrive in the global economy. To qualify for investments, facilities would be required to leverage significant private investment, and in so doing create jobs. They'd also be expected to attract significant secondary industries (suppliers, services, and other support businesses) and help position Canada as a leader in the manufacture of greener technologies and products. But we are also committed to reducing corporate income taxes in order to boost IAN OLIVER Group Publisher Media Group Ltd. Canadian Champion, Milton Shopping News, Mississauga Business Times, Mississauga News, Napanee Guide, Newmarket/Aurora EraBanner, 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 N RECOGNIZED FOR EXCELLENCE BY: Ontario Community Newspapers Association Canadian Community Newspapers Association Suburban Newspapers of America THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: United Way of Oakville TV AUCTION See Hands-off page 11 Here's to anxiety, anger, and hoping for a good brush fire ccording to a study by the Australia Institute, Aussie homes are clogged with clutter and this inestimable untidiness is creating gobs of guilt, not to mention untold embarrassment, anxiety and anger: to the point where one participant in the study said the clutter was so bad, she could only hope that her home would burn down in a brush fire. Whoa, I can relate. Because I'm a Felix Unger neat freak and, well, my kids aren't (they're so Oscar Madison-ish it makes me bonkers). Seriously: any time I get up the gumption to venture into one of their bedrooms, my first (and apparently perfectly natural) reaction is to hope for a brush fire. The Aussie study ­ an online survey of 1,002 people, followed up with telephone interviews ­ revealed that 88 per cent of those surveyed have at least one room in their homes dedicated to clutter while, on average, Australians have no less than three rooms brimming with unneeded and unwanted items. And the room most dedicated to clutter? The `spare room', of course. Now, I know for a fact that the Aussies are not alone in this issue. I know many people who are horrible hoarders, perpetual pack rats ­ people who live amid chaos, and who definitely suffer Clutter Anxiety because of it. A I have friends who stand outside in the bitter cold each morning, cussing as they scrape the snow and ice off their cars, even though they own huge houses replete with spacious three-car garages: garages that are so clogged with crap, they can't squeeze a scooter in there, let alone a car. Furthermore, I have friends whose basements are bursting with boxes from Andy Juniper moves made years ago, boxes that have never been opened, let alone unpacked. I think every house has a clutter room. It's the room where everything piles up, despite annual New Year's resolutions to the contrary. In one of our former houses that room was a little-used dining room. In our current abode, it's my office. Until just last week, the room in which I am expected to weave spellbinding yarns and create columns as extraordinary as the one you are presently perusing, was overrun with Christmas decorations that no one could seem to find time to pack away downstairs in the furnace room. Even as I write, I am surrounded by lamps that no longer work, a broken printer, an end table with unsteady legs, and a bunch of sandy seashells we brought back from the sunny south. And, yes, I have Clutter Anxiety; chaos makes me crazy! Apparently my office is not the only messy one around: desks in workplaces are renowned magnets for clutter. I know people who swear they haven't seen their desks in months, buried as they are under anxiety-inducing piles of paper. I once had a boss whose desk was so cluttered, he flipped out, calling for me to come to his office and requesting I bring a hefty green garbage bag. He then asked me to hold the bag wide open at desk level as he took a large ruler and swept everything that was on his desk into the open bag. Presto, clean work space. And no consequences ­ one month later, he swore he hadn't missed a single paper that had been collecting dust on his desk. Not surprisingly, the marketplace is cluttered with self-help books aimed at eliminating personal clutter. Now, you can spend all your hard-earned cash on these books, or you can buy a large ruler and a hefty green garbage bag, or you can just hope for a good brush fire. Andy Juniper can be visited at his Web site, www.strangledeggs.com, or contacted at ajuniper@strangledeggs.com.