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6- The Oakville Beaver, Friday August 1, 2008 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: NEIL OLIVER Vice ­ President and Group Publisher of Metroland West The Oakville Beaver is a division of IAN OLIVER President Media Group Ltd. DAVID HARVEY General Manager JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief ROD JERRED Managing Editor DANIEL BAIRD Advertising Director RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director SANDY PARE Business Manager MARK DILLS Director of Production MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager CHARLENE HALL Director of Distribution ALEXANDRIA ANCHOR Circ. Manager Lock it or lose it The dog days of summer usually mark an increase in all kinds of activity: more cyclists are on the roads, joggers hit the pavement in larger numbers and sadly, thieves become more active. Particularly when it comes to thefts from vehicles. Halton Regional Police Service reports all areas of the region have been experiencing a significant number of incidents where culprits are gaining access to parked vehicles in order to steal property. In most cases, the vehicles were unlocked, but in some instances windows were smashed to gain access, when the thieves could see there was some valuable property inside. Most of these crimes have occurred during the overnight and early morning hours on residential streets. In other cases, the culprits are breaking into cars during the daylight hours in public areas --such as parks -- once the vehicle owner walks away from the car. In addition, many cars have been targeted by thieves in the parking lots of movie theatres, restaurants and hotels, when the thieves know the vehicles will be unattended for a significant period of time. Cellphones, GPS devices, laptops, compact discs and, of course, cash, have proven to be among the favourite items for thieves to grab. While a locked vehicle is no guarantee against theft, an unlocked car only provides culprits with an easier target. It takes less time for you to lock your vehicle than it does for a thief to swipe your valuables. If we want to avoid becoming victims of crime, it's time we became more proactive where preventive measures are concerned. Police offer the following to help prevent this type of crime: · Always lock your car when you leave it unattended. · Never leave valuables in plain view within your car interior. · If you must leave property in your car, lock it in the trunk. · Report any suspicious activity immediately to Halton Regional Police, and if you feel a crime is in progress call 9-1-1. The message is simple enough: Lock it or lose it. 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 I am amazed to read the recent columns on disposable diapers and the wish of some residents to expand garbage pick up for the sake of stinky diapers. I am also amazed at the preposterous claim that cloth diapers are not ecofriendly. The statistics and studies are readily available to support a need for decreasing the amount of disposable diapers in our landfills and, at this point in time, cloth diapers are an improved option in achieving this goal. Diapers smell because they are full of organic material. Any garbage with organic material in it will smell. Oakville residents are moving in the right direction in that we have elected to separate organic from inorganic material because we now know that organics are best dealt with in an organic Reader is `amazed' at claim cloth diapers are not eco-friendly environment (where they eventually do smell nice!) and not in the landfill. Adults deal with human waste through the wastewater system; this is where it is most hygienically dealt with. The organic material of the diaper, ideally, should be in the wastewater system as well. Aside from whether to use cloth or disposable diapers -- flushable biodegradable liners are now available which allow any dia- least decrease quantities going per contents to be easily to landfill. I have found this to flushed in the toilet. It is my be a good option for our family. opinion that the choice to use We are lucky that there is a cloth or disposable diapers brand of cloth diapers promust be one of balance and duced locally in Stoney Creek, personal environmental ethic. which are very effective and I cannot preach my environ- easy to use. mental ethic but I can offer an option of balance ­ perhaps use cloth diapers while around the house and disposables when Re: Boy's Severe Allergies a out on the run in order to at Hurdle at Daycare, Oakville Beaver, July 18. I agree with the daycare BY STEVE NEASE snease@haltonsearch.com supervisor that told Julie and Mike Lundrigen that "they couldn't keep (their son, Ryan) safe." What responsible daycare would make this guarantee given that a severely allergic child may be in close contact with children who may have eaten nuts/eggs for breakfast? I don't believe that We are attempting to be environmentally friendly for the sake of our future generations; it is not we who will generally suffer any consequences of these waste management choices. NANCY VANCE Daycare no place for severely allergic child a child with allergies this severe should be in a group daycare setting, or for that matter, with a nanny (can you imagine the devastation if that caregiver inadvertently gave an allergic child one of the offending substances?) A child that small with multiple life threatening allergies belongs at home with a parent until he's old enough to be vigilant on his own behalf. CLARE ALLEN Pud 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.