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6- The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday November 26, 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 No need to rush decision To fluoridate or not to fluoridate... that appears to be the question. Halton council was to decide last week on whether to end the Region's practice of fluoridating local water after current supplies have been exhausted. However, councillors were greeted with a barrage of delegations -- many of which were expected to address council on the issue. Council, ultimately, opted to defer any decision. Halton Hills Councillor Clark Somerville, who earlier brought forward the motion to remove fluoride from Halton's water supply, said council could not have done justice to the delegations by making a decision that day. The motion to defer was the correct one, as water fluoridation is a hot-button issue. Councillors need time to sift through the many varying opinions and studies on this subject. Halton's Medical Officer of Health Dr. Bob Nosal called much of the material anti-fluoride delegations brought forward "nonsense." He said many of the statements from the anti-fluoride groups are "not applicable to the level of fluoride we have." He pointed to a U.S. study shared by some speakers that showed adverse effects where the fluoride count is four parts per million. "I agree with that statement, but our level is point six (0.6). It's much, much lower," said Nosal, noting dental decay rates are lower in communities that fluoridate water. Nosal also said that both Health Canada and the World Health Organization support fluoridation. We are somewhat puzzled why council is questioning the viewpoint of its own medical officer of health. Nosal has, over the years, proven to be a sound voice of reason for this region. He has always put the best interests of this region's citizens first. He is a medical professional whose job it is to know the benefits/adverse effects of matters such as water fluoridation. Health Canada's chief dental officer also supports Nosal's position. This is certainly a black and white issue -- no grey area here. The groups who are against fluoride in their drinking water will produce just as many scientific studies supporting their belief as those who are for fluoridation. We don't envy council as it wades through the studies before making a decision. It is in a no-win situation. 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 The West River Residents Association (WRRA) is extremely pleased about the agreement reached between the Town of Oakville and Empire Communities regarding the condo development at the corner of Kerr Street and Speers Road. Our board members put in many long hours at Town meetings and in discussions with the Town planning department, our councillors and Mayor Rob Burton, in an effort to get the originally proposed mammoth development scaled WRRA pleased with Empire compromise back to a size that was reasonable for our community. It is gratifying to know that all our hard work paid off. We'd especially like to acknowledge the good faith of Empire Communities for coming to an agreement everyone could live with rather than forcing a lengthy and expensive hearing before the OMB. We look forward to working with Empire to make this development a truly welcoming gateway to our community. And our thanks go to everyone at the Town who was involved with this long and arduous process. This was a truly fine example of the Town working with a residents' association to craft an acceptable solution. We hope it sets a pattern for other groups facing similar development issues in their neighbourhoods. CHRIS KOWALCHUK PRESIDENT WRRA What became of the greater good? Whatever happened to the concept of people working together for the greater good of society? We have become single minded, selfish individuals incapable of compromise. Too often I read about community issues in your paper -- school closures, budget cuts, etc. -- and am dismayed at the polarization of Oakville's citizens. For each and every issue people cannot see beyond what is best for them as individuals. Those involved are unwilling or incapable of seeing that change See Time page 7 This week's poll The Oakville Beaver has a polling feature on its website oakvillebeaver.com. A new poll will be posted every Wednesday with the results of the poll published in the following Wednesday edition of The Oakville Beaver. This week's question is: In light of the current economic uncertainty, do you feel secure in your job? · Yes · No To vote, visit oakvillebeaver.com Last week's poll: Do you think Halton Region should stop adding fluoride to its drinking water? · Yes 71.32% · No 28.68% Total votes: 129 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. Pud BY STEVE NEASE snease@haltonsearch.com