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Classified Advertising: 845â€"2809 Circulation: 845â€"9742 or 845â€"9743 Ian Oliver Publisher Robert Glasbey Advertising Director Norman Alexander Editor Geoff Hill Circulation Director Teri Casas Office Manager Tim Coles Production Manager The Oakville Beaver, published every , Wednesday wzsand Friday, at 467 Rd., Oakville, is one of the Melmland Printi hing Distributing Ltd. group of suburban newspapers which includes: Ajax: ing News Advertiser, Barrie Advance, Brampton Guardian, Burtington Post, Colli Connection, Etobicoke Guardian, lown I Acton Free Kingston This Week, Lindsay ‘This Week, Markham Economist and Sun, Stouffville/Uxbridge Tribune, Milton Canadian Champion, Mississauga News, Newmarketâ€"Aurora Em-Bannef. North York Mirror, Oakville Beaver, Orillia Today, Oshawa/Whitby This Week, Peterborough This Week, Richmond HiV Thomhil/Vaughan Liberal, Scarborough Mirror. All material published in the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Any reproduction in whole or in part of this material is strictly forbidden the consent of the publisher. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of the advefllsng bYd erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charmd for, but the balance of advumumsn will be at the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize and reject advertising. in the event of typographical error, Mang or services at the wrong price, goods or services rmynolbesoid Advertising is merely an offer to sell and may be withdrawn at any time. Dear Sir: As the government continues to search for budgets to cut, there is, no doubt, that the foreign aid allocation is a tempting target. In the light of the up coming foreign policy review, members of the international volunâ€" tary sector, also called the NGO community, welcome a review of D5 6 Canada‘s "aid" programs and priorities. " After 25 years of topâ€"down planning by governments and United Nations Organizations, it is painfully clear that most of the funds officialâ€" ly paid out for development stay near the top. In spite of this, there have have been some striking accomplishments in human development includâ€" ing longer life, improved health, and more access to education. Indeed, it would be a tragedy at this important socioâ€"economic and political juncture, if foreign aid were seriously curtailed. There is room, however, and lots of it, to redirect foreign aid, to make a supreme effort to mobilize people at the grass roots, both in Canada and in our partner "developing" countries, where people can plan and put into action proâ€" grams to benefit themselves and to throw off the shackles of poverty. We have a lot of highly educated people who recognize the value of indigeâ€" nous knowledge â€" peoples‘ knowledge. They have finally understood that millions of people, without benefit of schools and universities, have had the wit and intelligence to live, grow, and even thrive for millenia, in spite of, overwhelming challenges from nature and humankind. These people are called "the poor". Isn‘t it time we made the effort to get resources into the hands of these survivors so they can take charge of their own future? Voluntary organizations staffed by their own nationals have now achieved a significant place in most developing countries, thanks to the support of Canadlans Canadian voluntary organizations with the support of thousands of Canadians have established links with grass roots organiâ€" zations and village people in developing countries throughout the world. This has been done with a great deal of help from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). We are optimistic that a government foreign policy review will recogâ€" nize the great importance of the voluntary or NGO sector, throughout the world, and the role of Canadian voluntary organizations in linking Canadians with the people of many developing nations. People to people is an idea whose time has come. This recognition calls for significant financial support in the new "aid" budget for peoples‘ organizations. Let‘s give foreign aid a new direction and get it to those who can make the difâ€" ference. _ Letter to the Editor Give foreign aid new direction 467 Speers Road, Oakville, Ont it. L6K 3S4 845â€"3824 Fax: 845â€"3085 ‘John Martin Chief Executive Officer Unitarian Service Committee Canada ; onsidering the ageâ€"old maxim that the first + things to go on a man are his knees, his memory, and then his mind, I‘m a bit nerâ€" vous. My knees went long ago on the gridiron in a tangle of teen tacklers. Now my memory is following my knees into premaâ€" ture decrepitude. Can my poor mind be far behind? The most recent indication that my memory is not what it once was occurred the other day when, after showering, I could not for the sake of my scalp recall whether I‘d washed my hair. I was pretty certain my hair had needed shampooing...so I showered all over again, just to be sure. Memory experts might conâ€" tend that forgetting whether you‘ve lathered your locks is an example of normal absentâ€" mindedness, or temporary memâ€" ory lapse, not a sign of a memoâ€" ry gone kaputsky. But wait, there‘s more. Only days prior to the omiâ€" nous shower incident, I spent an afternoon in a dank parking garage trying to find my car. Eventually, in an underground epiphany, it dawned on me that I‘d left my auto at home that day, that I‘d taken public tranâ€" sit. Memory experts might chalk up my guest appearance on Car Search to transplant global amnesia (or other mutant strains of medical mumbo jumbo). My wife said, simply, that I‘d gone "cuckoo0". I defended my mind, but I could offer no defence for my memory. Memory in this informationâ€" intensive age is vital. We need to recall dizzying amounts of Perils of the memoryâ€"challenged y3 %% % % §3 crucial information in order to succeed, or just to survive. What time does Married With Children come on? What chanâ€" nel? What‘s the telephone numâ€" ber for Gino‘s Pizza? Who wrote the novel Chicanery Row? How many beers are in a sixâ€"pack? Who is on first and what‘s on second? Remembering just how much I need to remember can be disâ€" heartening. So, too, are the conâ€" stant reminders that, although I haven‘t quite crashed into the wall of middleâ€"age, I am already certifiably "memory challenged". First, there‘s the nut on Letterman whose pet bird has memorized the entire Manhatten telephone directory, when I have to look up my own home phone number. Then, there‘s my sevenâ€"yearâ€" old son whose remarkable memâ€" ory rivals that of Raymond, the autistic savant portrayed by Dustin Hoffman in the movie Rainman. Having perused our local Parks and Recreation brochure â€" just for the fun of it â€" my son proceeds to tell me in detail what each of the publicaâ€" tion‘s 50 pages contains. Then, there‘s the annoying guy on the infoâ€"mercial I watch every Saturday who pitches a memoryâ€"improvement system, and who personally admits to possessing perfect memory recall (and some glop that will make my hair look like Cher‘s). One Saturday, I might actually i k t B r DR R o remember to write down this guy‘s number, so I can take advantage of his wonderful offer, get a great memory, and have hair like Cher. Finally, there are those dear daily personal reminders of the southerly direction in which my memory is travelling. I‘ll be walking down a street, for instance, and I‘ll run into someâ€" one I know I should know, whose face is familiar, but whose slippery name eludes me. "Ahhh, Merfingisht," I mumâ€" ble into the back of my hand as I stare down at my shoes, "damn good to see you." At times when my memory abandons me and leaves me feeling particularly pathetic, I rationalize: sometimes not havâ€" ing perfect recall is a blessing. I remember my wife‘s grandâ€" mother experiencing prolonged spells of illness, then regaining her health and being unable to recall a single second of her sickness. Also, I remind myself, everyâ€" one knows that women would never have more than one baby if they could completely recall the birthing experience. And if memory were perfect, would anyone ever cheer for Chicago‘s Cubs? Wasn‘t it author, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, who wrote of "the broken mirror memory". I think it was Marquez, but then I can‘t be sure. Maybe, it was John Irving. Or Leacock. Anyway the point is... My mirror is shattered. Knees, memory, mind. I‘m a bit nervous. Does anybody have the number of that annoying infoâ€" mercial pitchman? If you do, please call me at... Hey, my number‘s in the book.