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« A6 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday June 27, 2001 T h e O a k v il l e B e a v e r Ian Oliver Publisher Neil Oliver .Associate Publisher Norman Alexander Editor Kelly Montague, .Advertising Director Steve Crazier Circulation Director Ten Casas Office Manager Mark Dills Production Manager Riziero Vertolli Director ofPhotography Metrotand 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, B urlington P ost, B urlin g to n S hopping N ew s. C ity Parent. CollingwoodA/Vasaga Connection. East \bri< Mirror, Erin Advocate/Country R outes. E tobicoke G uardian. Flam borough Post, G eorgetow n Independent/Acton Free Press. Hamston Review. H utrua Business Times, Kingston This Week. Lindsay This Week. Markham Ecnom ist & Sun. M ldland/Penetanguishine Mirror, Milton Canadian C ham pion. Milton Shopping News. Mississauga Business Times. 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M ilton a n d District RE A L E S T A T E BOARD Editorials Exclusive club Who wants to be a millionaire? Well it seems if you're an eye specialist in Ontario, you're a good candi date to make it into this exclusive club. A published report last week revealed that As our population ages,\ 10 Ontario doctors, six of them opthamolo- eye problems continue \ gists, had billed the system more than $1 mil to increase and that lion. means if you're an Given the fact that the massive bulge of baby boomers is entering into their degenerat opthamologist, ing eye tim e o f life , o p th a m o lo g ists are chances are you could \ booked solid for procedures. A ccording to health experts, the reason for the windfall is be a millionaire. technology. With eye specialists able to push more patients through operations because of new techniques and equipment, their billings escalate accordingly. And the simple, if unacceptable, answer given for the continuing escalation in billing is that it can take years for fee structures to change in accordance with time needed for procedures. Even more disturbing for taxpayers who are bombarded daily with stories on how our health system needs more money, is the fact that the names of topbilling Ontario doctors are only available through the Freedom of Information Act. W e'd like the Province to follow the lead o f British Colum bia and Manitoba who annually publish doctors' names and their billings. And for those who are interested, Ontario's highest billing physician was a cardiologist who billed $1.6 million in fiscal 1999-2000 followed by an anes thetist with $1.5 million in charges. One wonders how nurses working in hospital emergency departments and in operating rooms feel about this kind of remuneration. Surgeons and special ists take a long time to be trained but given the rewards, it's little wonder our health care system is under stress. Letters to the Editor The Oakville Beaver welcomes your comments. All letters must be typed, signed and include the writer's address and phone number. Send to: Letters to the Editor, The Oakville Beaver 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, Ont. L6K 3S4 Education suffering at hands o f technology We have received our so n s' report cards and although we find the standardized reporting format to be arbitrary, derivative, formula ic and abstruse, we are encouraged. The results shown on this report card indicate clearly that the teach ing staff at Munn's Public School has continued, despite a sustained government-initiated ideological assault, to demonstrate profession alism and care for their students. Our children have been fortunate to come into contact with this dedi catio n , acum en, nurturing and guidance. This fact displays itself with the academic results our sons have achieved. We. as parents, have great con cerns about the government's atti tude toward public education, to say nothing of the curriculum pre vailing in Ontario. We lament the loss of respect for a liberal arts education with a concurrent overreliance on technological instruc tion. We desire that our children have a well balanced, rounded and com plete education rather than m ere training. The M inistry of Education seems to want to pro duce very knowledgeable taxpay ers. It also seems to ignore, indeed write off, the equally important need for the impartation of wisdom and creative insight to develop fully participating members of a democratic and equitable society. More frequent, rigorous standardized testing may create automatons with higher marks, but does it real istically contribute to the full expe rience of citizenship while being attentive to the very urgent needs accom panying each stage of growth into adulthood? With this outlook, we will con tinue to vigorously pursue our own involvement with our children's education. We are determined that they will experience childhood and adolescence to their fullest capaci ties while taking every advantage provided by the public system. Our concerns have been under stood and effectively responded to by the staff at Munn's. We fervent ly hope that this attitude will thrive in what we perceive to be, general ly, a parlous atmosphere infiltrating the province. We are concerned that the teaching profession will becom e a som ew hat less-thandesirable career choice for the future. That, in our opinion, would be a disaster, not only for Ontario, but for Canada as well. Thank you to all staff and vol unteers at Munn's Public School. A jo b w ell done, applauded and much appreciated. Corey & Donald Johnston Letter of the Week Private school funding would kill public system Your tim ely ed ito rial (W ed. June 20, 2001) on the proposed private school funding by the H arris governm ent, reveals the usual jockeying for posi tion to gather `free' m oney from the tax-paying pub lic. This certainly reveals a grasping unconscionable m inority who would, for w hatever selfish reasons, break dow n, and long term, destroy, m uch o f what is valuable in our society - a com m on educational . sy stem th a t e d u c a te s and im b u es s tu d e n ts w ith sound Canadian values. This is not to say that our present system o f edu cation is perfect. The Davis governm ent started the fragm entation with full funding for Roman C atholic schools. The teachers in both C atholic and Public schools, jum ped on an opportunity to transfer more money to their pockets from the general tax-paying public. The Harris governm ent has tried to correct this but the efforts lack understanding o f the funda m entals o f education with pressure groups now try ing to drive the com m on educational system into the ground for their own selfish interest. It doesn't take much im agination to see the end of the fragm ented road. Each religious belief system will hire only those who fit their religious profile, fro m ja n ito r rig h t th ro u g h to top s e n io r le v e ls. School buses, as we now see in the Rom an C atholic system , will carry only students o f that faith. W ithin this scenario, the ultim ate unfairness, when those teachers who do not fit the `correct' religious pro file. are restricted, for em ploym ent purposes, to the rem nants o f our Public school system. W hile those who have the benefit o f the `correct' belief system , can find em ploym ent either way. O tem pora, O mores! Ivo r D a vie s Many people made Walk to Remember a success 1 am writing to thank you for your support of our fundraising event, the Walk to Remember, which took place May 27th. In spite of the rain, the event was very success ful, raising over $10,000 in its first year as a public event. Over 100 walkers of all ages came to walk through the parks and waterfront of old Oakville, in memory o f som eone who had died. Pledges and donations are still coming in from those who had intended to come but were discouraged by the rain. As you know, walkers who were able to desig nate up to 40% of their pledges to any other charity. B ecau se o f th is, the C a n a d ia n M ental H ealth A sso c ia tio n , C a n a d ia n C a n c e r S o ciety , C h ris Lockwood Foundation, Georgetown Hospital, Heart and Stroke Foundation, Princess Margaret Hospital and Victorian Order of Nurses all benefited, as well as Bereaved Families of Ontario - Halton/Peel. Thanks to many generous sponsors, wonderful volunteers, dedicated walkers and the many giving people who pledged them. Bereaved Families of Ontario - Halton/Peel's Walk to Remember was a big success for the whole community. Your contri bution was an im portant and valued part o f this success. We acknowledged the generosity of our spon sors and donors through many public venues which included recognition in quarter page ads in the Oakville Beaver, posters, brochures and hand-outs. We will also be printing a full list of sponsors in our next newsletter, which will go out to 650 mem bers. Again, thank you very much for your support. It is truly appreciated. W endy Dean Executive Director Thankful that Ian Anderson House is there to help My mother Grace Bell, a Milton resident, moved to Ian Anderson House in Oakville this month. When we, her adult children, could no longer care for her in her home, we were so fortunate to find out about this incredible place. Mom now spends her days in beautiful surroundings, with people who care deeply about her w elfare. It truly is the next best thing to being in your own home when cir cumstances dictate that you can no longer live there. During the'recent IAH annual Walkathon to raise funds for its upkeep, I was inspired to write this poem on behalf of all families who benefit from its being there. If anyone feels inspired to help the hospice in any way, I will be so glad. Mom is a wonderful, sweet lady who loves people and we are so blessed to have quality time with her in this beautiful place. My poem says it all. Patricia Keachie A hospice is an answer to a prayer. Love and compassion are found there. To spend one's days in peace until one's sweet release from these bonds of earth is surely a time of blessing. Gardens mindful of Paradise Sun, sweet air. birds in their flight The comforts of Home Room to roam Though by imagination or wheelchair Still, they are there. A nd what o f the people who give their days looking for those large and small ways to make their guests that bit more content In God's truth, they are Heaven-sent. As are all who care As are all who share And all who are aware of the need For a home away from home from which we shall not roam. When we ARE our brother's keeper We succeed. Special nam e for Bronte bridge I would like to add my name to that o f Alex Klein and the countless others who silently support the idea o f naming the new (Rebecca St.-Bronte Creek) bridge after `Mr. B ronte' (Bill Hill). A part from his in h eren t k indness, g enerosity and hum ility, B ill's lack o f avarice has accounted for the sm all town atm osphere Bronte Pier has retained. Thank you, Bill, for the serenity and sense o f history you have provided by not succum bing to the current trend to pull down and construct on every inch o f land available. B e tty L. Reade Pud by Steve Nease All creatures big and small My congratulations to the individual who authorized the mass removal of Canada Geese from Oakville's waterfront parks. I would like to see he/she continue the good work by removing all other creatures from our parks and in particu lar, those annoying songbirds. Thereafter, if all trees were cut down and all grassed areas paved over, it would ensure no living thing returns to our parks, ever. M ost urgently, in the intrest o f promoting our W ater Festival, it is important to expedite the removal of whichev er species is responsible for the foul stench which wafts into Coronation Park from the sewage treatment plan nearby. Brian Cable