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OAKVILLE BEAVER Friday, November 6, 2009 · 6 OPINION & LETTERS The Oakville Beaver 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5571 Classified Advertising: 632-4440 Circulation: 845-9742 --Open 9-5 weekdays, 5-7 for calls only Wed. to Friday, Closed weekends 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 Media Group Ltd. DAVID HARVEY Regional 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 SARAH MCSWEENEY Circ. Manager Council needs to respect the Rzone A year ago, the Town of Oakville proudly announced the expansion of its townwide Rzone operating procedure. At the time, Mayor Rob Burton proclaimed: "The Town is dedicated to creating an environment for all our residents, employees and visitors, where there is a sense of belonging and that encourages participation. Treating everyone with respect is an inherent part of the way we do business and the Rzone is a great symbol of that commitment." The Rzone applies to all Town of Oakville facilities, properties, Town-sponsored events, programs, in written or verbal communications, in Town vehicles, or at any other location where Town staff are present. Apparently, though, it doesn't apply to the Town Council Chambers. How else can the shabby treatment of Ward 5 Councillor Jeff Knoll by many of his council colleagues on Monday night be explained? For those of you who may have missed the story, the Ward 5 councillor exploded in frustration Monday night after being excluded for the third year in a row from a variety of community committees requiring council representation. Knoll put his name forward for membership on seven committees and went away empty handed -- again. It's not like there are not enough positions on committees to go around. Ward 4 Councillor Roger Lapworth and Ward 2 Councillor Cathy Duddeck are each on seven committees. Knoll also rightly points out that Council is violating its own rules of not letting councillors serve more than two years on a committee. The third-term councillor contends he was purposely excluded by a subset of councillors because he endorsed the former mayor in the last municipal election and frequently speaks his mind on council. "I don't simply blindly sit there and vote on things," he said. A pity that can't be said for many of the other councillors. For the record, Ward 3 Councillor Mary Chapin and Ward 5 Councillor Marc Grant did not support the motion excluding Knoll from the committees. Fortunately for Knoll, his talents appear to be more highly regarded at Halton Regional Council. At the regional level he is president of the Halton Community Housing Corporation, chair of the Halton Region Housing Task Force, chair of the Halton Diversity Advisory Committee and member of the Halton Youth Advisory Committee. Council's action Monday night was petty and spiteful. 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. Letter to the editor MoH responds to flu shot critics Re: Flu shot fumbled, Oakville Beaver, Wed. Nov. 4 As the Medical Officer of Health for Halton, I take full responsibility for all the positives and negatives respecting our H1N1 flu immunization clinics, since we opened the doors last Wednesday, Oct. 28. The waits on the first day of our clinics were unacceptably long. I want to thank my staff and acknowledge the incredible patience and goodwill shown by my staff and by Dr. Bob Nosal those in line, some of whom were not immunized until well after midnight on that first day. For the next day's clinic, we made process changes and improvements in how the clinics functioned, significantly reducing wait times. We are also posting real-time wait times on our website to help keep residents informed about what to expect at each clinic location. The change to implementing four main clinic sites is working well as we have a larger number of staff working together to keep the lines moving smoothly, ensuring sufficient parking is available and that clinics are accessible by all. We have immunized almost 30,000 people in the first week of clinics. I am proud of the commitment, caring, and flexibility my staff has shown throughout the process, and am also impressed by the numerous accounts of appreciation expressed by residents who have written to us about their clinic experience. Finally, I would like to thank your newspaper for its ongoing, comprehensive coverage of the H1N1 issues and for helping me to get out the key public health messages. Your efforts are appreciated. DR. BOB NOSAL, MEDICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH, HALTON REGION Letters to the editor 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 email to editor@oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. Saturday flu shot lineup went smoothly They say a picture is worth a thousand words. It is unfortunate when these words are uttered from such a narrow perspective. While I share in the general cynicism directed at our politicians and the frustration felt by many in regard to the H1N1 vaccination program, may I take a moment to offer a different perspective? As a Type 1 diabetic, I attended the H1N1 vaccination clinic at the Halton Region facilities on Bronte Road Saturday, Oct. 31 expecting the worst. The posted start time was 10 a.m. and arriving at 7 a.m. in the cold and rain, found the formation of the lineup was well underway. Although already significant in size, appearances were deceiving. Many were parents holding a spot while the other parent See Flu page 7 Pud BY STEVE NEASE neasecartoons@gmail.com