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6 - The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday, December 18, 2002 EDITORIALS M D LETTERS TH E OAKVILLE BEAVER 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5567 Classified Advertising: 337-5610 Circulation: 845-9742 IAN O LIVER Publisher NEIL O LIVER Associate Publisher TERI CASAS Office Manager JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief MARK DILLS Production Manager KELLY M O NTAG UE Advertising Director R IZIE R OV ER TO LLI Photography Director STEVE CRO ZIER Circulation Director R O D JE R R E D Managing Editor Metroland Printing, Publishing & Distributing Ltd., includes: Ajax/Pickering News Advertiser, Alliston Herald/Courier, Arthur Enterprise News, Barrie Advance, Barry's Bay This Week, Bolton Enterprise, Brampton Guardian, Burlington Post, .Burlington Shopping News, City Parent, Collingwood/Wasaga Connection, East York Mirror, Erin Advocate/Country Routes, Etobicoke Guardian, Flamborough Post, Georgetown Independent/Acton Free Press, Harriston Review, Huronia Business Times, Kingston This Week, 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/Thomhill/Vaughan Liberal, Scarborough Mirror, StouffviHe/Uxbridge Tribune, Forever Young, City of York Guardian TH EO A K V IL L E BEA VER IS PROUD O FFIC IA LM EDIA SPONSOR FO R : Recognized for Excellence by Ontario Community Newspapers Association YMCA I oakville g a lle rie s x^tw a rti V L/ e u COM E* PCK V BUSHESXTHtMTS ^C N A Canadian Community Newspapers Association I WA ' GON a r r Si J in g e B e t Fund SK Suburban Newspapers of America TV AUCTION Uniled W ay of Oakville Ortki'ille ©W /wSl F O RB U SIN E SSE X C E L L E N C E © © R E A LE S T A T EB O A R D The OakvHle, Milton and District MBS A G K 3F95 h h to U M k Registry is insult to victims In all likelihood Canada will No wonder victims' rights have a national sex offender reg activists feel they are hitting their istry to track convicted sex offend heads against a brick wall every ers sometime next year -- 10 years time they deal with a layer of gov after the Liberals first promised ernment. one. Better late than never -- we Three provinces, including suppose. Ontario, already have some form However, this registry, which of a registry for sex offenders will require convicted sex offend while all U.S. states (many that ers to register with police within allow public access) have laws to 15 days of conviction or release track those convicted of sex from jail, or face a new crimes. criminal charge, will There are literally It's a shame the be unique. thousands of sex rights of victims Not one name will offenders -- Karla be in it. Homolka's name is have again been In an inexplicable the first one that leaps ignored. bout of cowardice to mind -- in our pris (stupidity?), the feder ons now who one day al government announced last will be released. week that the long-promised reg But for every Homolka, whose istry will not apply retroactively to daily moves will likely be difficult convicted offenders for fear of to miss, there are hundreds of other breaching offenders' civil rights. predators ready to lurk in the shad What, we ask, about the rights of ows until they strike again. law-abiding Canadians? And make no mistake, sex What about the rights of children offenders have a notoriously high who could potentially be the future recidivism rate. It's a shame this victims of these perverts? proposed registry will not bear What about the rights of past vic their names. tims? It's a shame the Liberals refused Where, in heaven's name, is the to stand up to them. Liberal government's concern for It's a shame the rights of victims them? have again been ignored. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR We need police on residential streets: reader I read with great sadness, but not sur prise, the story regarding Janice Caster's accident on her home street. I am saddened that it may take an almost deadly accident to wake up our political and law enforcement leaders in the Town of Oakville. I am not surprised though, as I witness this driving debacle daily. My wife and I reside on Grand Boulevard, just south of the intersection of Grand and Glenashton. Frankly, I see repeats of what took place on Ms. Caster's street almost all day long. The article points out that the majori ty are "young mothers" rushing to take their children to the Catholic school just east of the comer on Glenashton, but worse yet is their rush, through the stop sign (the crossing guard takes her life in her hands daily), and down Grand on their return trip to the coffee shop or per haps to work. What concerns me is the fact we have called the Halton police on numerous occasions asking for an officer and radar on the street. We are constantly told, there are too many streets to patrol, the department is short-staffed, the depart ment is overworked and on and on, but nothing happens. It is amazing though those same "ter ribly busy and terribly short-staffed" offi cers can be found on Ninth Line fre quently with radar -- protecting who? There are no residences there; there are no children walking to school; perhaps a ground hog or gopher needs protection crossing the road. Another example is where the officers sit on Upper Middle Road near the Golf Centre, where absolutely no one lives. Could one be led to believe the name of the game is "easy catches" with radar on those `unlived' roads, versus a pres ence on high-traffic residential streets where the revenue might not come so quickly. And, yes, I might add that in a con versation with Mayor Ann Mulvale a few years ago, I was informed that I had to keep calling (the police), keep vigilance etc. Well Mayor Mulvale, maybe now that someone closer to you has had a horrible experience you will step in and set some rules for Halton Region's finest. Please, before it is too late on Grand Boulevard. NEILL M. CAMPBELL D riv e r b e liev es s u n lig h t re s p o n s ib le fo r a c c id e n t I read the article in the North News (an Oakville Beaver publication) of Friday, Dec. 13, 2002 titled Living proof to drive slow. As I have been chauffeuring my children to River Oaks Public School for the past eight years, and most of the time driving on Poole to get to the school, I don't think the arti cle is exactly fair. There is indeed a lot of traffic on Poole between 8:10 and 8:30 a.m., Monday to Friday. The day on which this particular accident occurred, I can, in all confidence, state that no drivers were speeding along Poole. Upon turning onto Poole, I was blinded by the sunlight. No driver could possibly have been speeding. I resent the implication that drivers going to our school are speeders. After experiencing the blinding sunlight, especially dur ing the colder months of December and January, I must say that it has been my experience that the drivers using this route are not only courteous, but respectful of students and other vehicles. I used Poole that morning, complained to my children about the blinding sun, and then returned home along the same route, at which time I saw the vehicles in question, and a woman sitting on the sidewalk. Another vehicle had already stopped before me. Many people back their vehi cles onto busy streets, and should be well aware of the problem on this particular street with the sunlight, and the fact that many cars are heading towards the school. I would respect her comments more, as Ward 5 council lor, if the road was well maintained in snowy conditions. Both O 'Donoghue and Poole are some of the last streets to be salted in icy conditions. The same could be said for Munn's on which the school is situated. There is definitely a safety issue. However, in my eight years of chauffeuring my children to school, I observe daily blatant traffic violations. Cars are parked continuously in the school's fire route. Others are parked illegally. It has been a sore issue with me since my child started kindergarten. The morning congestion affects the buses using Munn's and therein lies a real safety issue. This article places too much blame on the parents taking their children to school. There are more viable issues than an accident. It was not a speeding accident -- just an acci dent, plain and simple. Personally, I feel sad for Ms. Caster's mishap, but believe that more caution should have been taken on her part before backing up. Perhaps she should have left her vehicle on her driveway to scrape the windows. To also place the time correctly, this accident would have happened between 8:15 and 8:25 am. because there was not an incident on my way to the school. Councillors praised for stand I am writing this letter to publicly commend councillors Allan Elgar and Kevin Flynn for their positions taken at the Halton Region council meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 20. I am a resident of Halton whose family and community has been negatively impacted by the operation of a biosolid stor age facility for many years. I addressed regional council regarding an alkaline stabilization process being proposed for this site. I understand the region's quest to diversify its already in trouble, biosolid waste program. However, I believe such a facility is not in the best interests of the residents and envi ronment of Halton region. The BMC is located on the west bank of 16 Mile Creek/Conservation Area and Trafalgar Moraine, visibly seen to the north-west from Hwy. 407 bridge as you cross 16 Mile. The existing facility, or any proposed on this site, is not, I believe, appropriate land use in such an environmentally-sensitive area. Our elected officials are obligated to make deci sions in the best interests of its residents and community. This process can only be completed successfully when all the information available has been presented. It was Mr. Elgar's and Mr. Flynn's position that all the information had not been presented, therefore, they could not act and or make decisions in the best interests of their resi dents and community. I do not believe the other councillors were more informed, but were unwilling to act responsibly. It has been my experience, and also the region's response, that through miscommunication, mistakes have been made. Mr. Elgar and Mr. Flynn expressed that more information was needed. I hope they, as our public officials, continue to pursue the information available for those who want to be informed. I would also ask anyone who lives within 10 kilometres of this site (Canadian Infectious Disease Society suggested a moratorium on sewage sludge and that population should not be exposed within 10 kilometres of biosolid due to health risks) contact your regional councillor or myself. All the information needs to be shared with residents, people con cerned with our environment, developers who propose devel opment within this area, Conservation Halton and the medical community. Mr. Elgar and Mr. Flynn acted responsibly and I thank you. Only through community participation/involve ment can our quality of life, health and the environment be protected. LAURIE EAGLES Humans pose a 'safety hazard' to trees A woodlot is presumably so called because it is limited to a plot of land sur rounded by highways and roads on all sides; essentially it is an island of vestig ial trees. I don't doubt that the oak decline in Iroquois Shore Woodlot is linked to drought but could it also be possible that the trees have been weakened due to iso lation and constant influx of passing car exhaust and factory emissions? Bob McFarland mentions that "we need a prescription to make the forest healthy again" but unfortunately, "no practical treatm ent is available," so instead we have to "monitor and predict the rate of decline" and hope for the best. Key lesson? Forests can't be replaced. As it is very difficult to help a dying forest, why not start by proper planning and allowing enough greenspace in our urban areas in order for the trees to be strong and healthy? Perhaps, we as a human species should consider how much of a "safety hazard" we pose to the trees instead of vice versa. Thanks for taking the time to read this. LAURA PIERSOL Day should not have to resign In response to John Day's public apology in the Oakville Beaver on Dec. 4 , 1 am sure many people commend him for coming forward and displaying the consequences of drinking and driving. Having said that, I do not believe it is necessary for Day to resign from his high-profile positions. Having been charged with impaired driving does not mean that he is unqualified for his positions. He is a councillor that has much experience in dealing with the public on many issues and this is not something that is found readily. I see this charge and conviction as a hurdle and learning experience for Day. Sometimes these experiences make people, such as Day more aware of issues facing us within the community. REJEAN DEMOE Pud ^ , m By STEVE NEASE is Busy P ra c tic in g Fo R-mesomcol H|KN0WSXH&HASrttl HISSTUFF. ( STOPPED iC S J ff> J 1 S IN G IN G TO'T/v W CHRISTMAS CONCERT, to n ig h t / Ai i nAV., A The Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. In order to be published, letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to The Editor, Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Road, Oakville, On., L6K 3S4, or via e-mail to editor@oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves, the right to refuse to publish any letter. The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Could S t, Suite 206, Toronto, O nt, M5B 2M7. Phone (416) 340-1981. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of adver tising 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.